Redesigning a control room from an ergonomic point of view : a case study of user participation in a chemical plant

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schaaf, van der T.W.; Kragt, H.; Kragt, H.

1992-01-01

A field study in a chemical industry was conducted to redesign a control room with panel instrumentation into one with visual display units (VDUs). The authors had been asked to advise the project team and to participate in the application. First, a general evaluation of the central control room

Participants' views of telephone interviews within a grounded theory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ward, Kim; Gott, Merryn; Hoare, Karen

2015-12-01

To offer a unique contribution to the evolving debate around the use of the telephone during semistructured interview by drawing on interviewees' reflections on telephone interview during a grounded theory study. The accepted norm for qualitative interviews is to conduct them face-to-face. It is typical to consider collecting qualitative data via telephone only when face-to-face interview is not possible. During a grounded theory study, exploring users' experiences with overnight mask ventilation for sleep apnoea, the authors selected the telephone to conduct interviews. This article reports participants' views on semistructured interview by telephone. An inductive thematic analysis was conducted on data pertaining to the use of the telephone interview in a grounded theory study. The data were collected during 4 months of 2011 and 6 months in 2014. The article presents an inductive thematic analysis of sixteen participants' opinions about telephone interviewing and discusses these in relation to existing literature reporting the use of telephone interviews in grounded theory studies. Overall, participants reported a positive experience of telephone interviewing. From each participants reports we identified four themes from the data: being 'phone savvy; concentrating on voice instead of your face; easy rapport; and not being judged or feeling inhibited. By drawing on these data, we argue that the telephone as a data collection tool in grounded theory research and other qualitative methodologies need not be relegated to second best status. Rather, researchers can consider telephone interview a valuable first choice option. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Professionals' views of children's everyday life situations and the relation to participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Adolfsson, Margareta; Granlund, Mats; Pless, Mia

2012-01-01

The aim was to determine professionals' views of everyday life situations (ELS) of importance for children and to explore how ELS correlate with the construct "Participation". This study was part of a larger work to develop a structured tool with code sets to identify child participation and support children with disabilities to describe what matters most for them in intervention planning. The study had a concurrent mixed methods design. Information from one open-ended question and questionnaires were linked to the ICF-CY component Activities and Participation. Two concurrent data sets were compared. Proposed ELS were distributed across ICF-CY categories from low to high level of complexity and context specificity. The correlation with participation became stronger for the later chapters of the component (d7-d9). Differences between respondents due to working field, country, and children's ages were explored. Acts and tasks seemed most important for the youngest children, whereas ELS shifted towards societal involvement for adolescents. Eleven categories related to ICF-CY chapters d3-d9 emerged as ELS. Two age groups (infants/preschoolers and adolescents) are required to develop code sets for the new tool. The results need triangulation with other concurrent studies to provide corroborating evidence and add a family perspective.

Patient advocacy and patient centredness in participant recruitment to randomized-controlled trials: implications for informed consent.

Science.gov (United States)

Tomlin, Zelda; deSalis, Isabel; Toerien, Merran; Donovan, Jenny L

2014-10-01

With the routinization of evidence-based medicine and of the randomized-controlled trial (RCT), more patients are becoming 'sites of evidence production' yet, little is known about how they are recruited as participants; there is some evidence that 'substantively valid consent' is difficult to achieve. To explore the views and experiences of nurses recruiting patients to randomized-controlled trials and to examine the extent to which their recruitment practices were patient-centred and patient empowering. Semi-structured in-depth interviews; audio recording of recruitment appointments; thematic interactional analysis (drawing on discourse and conversation analysis). Nurses recruiting patients to five publicly funded RCTs and patients consenting to the recording of their recruitment sessions. The views of recruiting nurses about their recruitment role; the extent to which nurse-patient interactions were patient-centred; the nature of the nurses' interactional strategies and the nature and extent of patient participation in the discussion. The nurses had a keen sense of themselves as clinicians and patient advocates and their perceptions of the trial and its interventions were inextricably linked to those of the patients. However, many of their recruitment practices made it difficult for patients to play an active and informed part in the discussion about trial participation, raising questions over the quality of consent decisions. Nurses working in patient recruitment to RCTs need to reconcile two different worlds with different demands and ethics. Evidence production, a central task in evidence-based medicine, poses a challenge to patient-centred practice and more research and relevant training are needed. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

42 CFR 482.42 - Condition of participation: Infection control.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Hospital Functions § 482.42 Condition of participation: Infection control. The hospital must provide a... be an active program for the prevention, control, and investigation of infections and communicable... 42 Public Health 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Condition of participation: Infection control. 482...

Effects of affective picture viewing on postural control.

Science.gov (United States)

Stins, John F; Beek, Peter J

2007-10-04

Emotion theory holds that unpleasant events prime withdrawal actions, whereas pleasant events prime approach actions. Recent studies have suggested that passive viewing of emotion eliciting images results in postural adjustments, which become manifest as changes in body center of pressure (COP) trajectories. From those studies it appears that posture is modulated most when viewing pictures with negative valence. The present experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that pictures with negative valence have a greater impact on postural control than neutral or positive ones. Thirty-four healthy subjects passively viewed a series of emotion eliciting images, while standing either in a bipedal or unipedal stance on a force plate. The images were adopted from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS). We analysed mean and variability of the COP and the length of the associated sway path as a function of emotion. The mean position of the COP was unaffected by emotion, but unipedal stance resulted in overall greater body sway than bipedal stance. We found a modest effect of emotion on COP: viewing pictures of mutilation resulted in a smaller sway path, but only in unipedal stance. We obtained valence and arousal ratings of the images with an independent sample of viewers. These subjects rated the unpleasant images as significantly less pleasant than neutral images, and the pleasant images as significantly more pleasant than neutral images. However, the subjects rated the images as overall less pleasant and less arousing than viewers in a closely comparable American study, pointing to unknown differences in viewer characteristics. Overall, viewing emotion eliciting images had little effect on body sway. Our finding of a reduction in sway path length when viewing pictures of mutilation was indicative of a freezing strategy, i.e. fear bradycardia. The results are consistent with current knowledge about the neuroanatomical organization of the emotion system and

Age and Family Control Influences on Children's Television Viewing.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubin, Alan M.

1986-01-01

Indicates that (1) age and family control did not influence children's television viewing levels; (2) age influenced program preferences of children; (3) cartoon preferences related negatively to family control for the youngest groups; and (4) comedy and children's program preferences and television realism related positively to family control for…

A controllable viewing angle LCD with an optically isotropic liquid crystal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Min Su; Lim, Young Jin; Yoon, Sukin; Kang, Shin-Woong; Lee, Seung Hee; Kim, Miyoung; Wu, Shin-Tson

2010-01-01

An optically isotropic liquid crystal (LC) such as a blue phase LC or an optically isotropic nano-structured LC exhibits a very wide viewing angle because the induced birefringence is along the in-plane electric field. Utilizing such a material, we propose a liquid crystal display (LCD) whose viewing angle can be switched from wide view to narrow view using only one panel. In the device, each pixel is divided into two parts: a major pixel and a sub-pixel. The main pixels display the images while the sub-pixels control the viewing angle. In the main pixels, birefringence is induced by horizontal electric fields through inter-digital electrodes leading to a wide viewing angle, while in the sub-pixels, birefringence is induced by the vertical electric field so that phase retardation occurs only at oblique angles. As a result, the dark state (or contrast ratio) of the entire pixel can be controlled by the voltage of the sub-pixels. Such a switchable viewing angle LCD is attractive for protecting personal privacy.

Dual-mode switching of a liquid crystal panel for viewing angle control

Science.gov (United States)

Baek, Jong-In; Kwon, Yong-Hoan; Kim, Jae Chang; Yoon, Tae-Hoon

2007-03-01

The authors propose a method to control the viewing angle of a liquid crystal (LC) panel using dual-mode switching. To realize both wide viewing angle (WVA) characteristics and narrow viewing angle (NVA) characteristics with a single LC panel, the authors use two different dark states. The LC layer can be aligned homogeneously parallel to the transmission axis of the bottom polarizer for WVA dark state operation, while it can be aligned vertically for NVA dark state operation. The authors demonstrated that viewing angle control can be achieved with a single panel without any loss of contrast at the front.

Development of an Embedded Solar Tracking System with LabVIEW Motion Control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Seung Jin; Hyun, Jun Ho; Oh, Won Jong; Kim, Yeong Min; Lee, Yoon Joon; Chun, Won Gee

2010-01-01

Motion control is a sub-field of automation, in which the position and/or velocity of machines are controlled using some type of device such as a hydraulic pump, linear actuator, or an electric motor. The motion control is widely used in the packaging, printing, textile, semiconductor production, and power plants. National Instruments LabVIEW is a graphical programming language that has its roots in automation control and data acquisition. Its graphical representation, similar to a process flow diagram, was created to provide an intuitive programming environment for scientist and engineers. Crystal River Nuclear Plant engineers developed automated testing system of nuclear plant control modules in an aging nuclear power plant using LabVIEW to improve performance and reliability and reduce cost. In this study, an embedded two-axis solar tracking system was developed using LabVIEW motion control module

Effects of affective picture viewing on postural control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beek Peter J

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Emotion theory holds that unpleasant events prime withdrawal actions, whereas pleasant events prime approach actions. Recent studies have suggested that passive viewing of emotion eliciting images results in postural adjustments, which become manifest as changes in body center of pressure (COP trajectories. From those studies it appears that posture is modulated most when viewing pictures with negative valence. The present experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that pictures with negative valence have a greater impact on postural control than neutral or positive ones. Thirty-four healthy subjects passively viewed a series of emotion eliciting images, while standing either in a bipedal or unipedal stance on a force plate. The images were adopted from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS. We analysed mean and variability of the COP and the length of the associated sway path as a function of emotion. Results The mean position of the COP was unaffected by emotion, but unipedal stance resulted in overall greater body sway than bipedal stance. We found a modest effect of emotion on COP: viewing pictures of mutilation resulted in a smaller sway path, but only in unipedal stance. We obtained valence and arousal ratings of the images with an independent sample of viewers. These subjects rated the unpleasant images as significantly less pleasant than neutral images, and the pleasant images as significantly more pleasant than neutral images. However, the subjects rated the images as overall less pleasant and less arousing than viewers in a closely comparable American study, pointing to unknown differences in viewer characteristics. Conclusion Overall, viewing emotion eliciting images had little effect on body sway. Our finding of a reduction in sway path length when viewing pictures of mutilation was indicative of a freezing strategy, i.e. fear bradycardia. The results are consistent with current knowledge about the

Artificial intelligence programming with LabVIEW: genetic algorithms for instrumentation control and optimization.

Science.gov (United States)

Moore, J H

1995-06-01

A genetic algorithm for instrumentation control and optimization was developed using the LabVIEW graphical programming environment. The usefulness of this methodology for the optimization of a closed loop control instrument is demonstrated with minimal complexity and the programming is presented in detail to facilitate its adaptation to other LabVIEW applications. Closed loop control instruments have variety of applications in the biomedical sciences including the regulation of physiological processes such as blood pressure. The program presented here should provide a useful starting point for those wishing to incorporate genetic algorithm approaches to LabVIEW mediated optimization of closed loop control instruments.

Model-View-Controller-arkkitehtuuri JavaScriptissa

OpenAIRE

Salo, Antti

2015-01-01

Insinöörityössä tehtiin Model-View-Controller-arkkitehtuuria noudattava sovellus, joka suoritetaan selaimessa. Toteutus tehtiin käyttäen JavaScript-ohjelmointikieltä ja sovelluskehystä nimeltä AngularJS. Työssä ei käyty läpi muita samaan suunnittelumalliin nojaavia sovelluskehyksiä. Työssä perehdyttiin MVC-arkkitehtuurin historiaan ja valotettiin sen teoreettisia toimintaperiaatteita. Tutustumalla suunnittelumallin periaatteisiin palvelinkehityksen maailmassa luotiin pohja haasteista, jo...

Some aspects of public associations’ participation in implementing public control at municipal level

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roman V. Gornev

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Objective to clarify the status of public associations as subjects of public control and to analyze the problems of participation of citizens 39 associations in conducting public expertise and public audits. Methods the methodology of research includes general scientific methods such as dialectic method. Specific jurisprudence methods of scientific cognition have also been used. Systematic method was used for the analysis of forms of public control by citizens39 associations at the municipal level. The principle of scientific objectivity has allowed for a comprehensive and objective analysis of the factual material the totality of factors affecting the interaction of public associations with local authorities in the implementation of public control. The formallegal method allowed to analyze the normativelegal acts to reveal the signs of fixing of such public control forms as public expertise and public audit. In the present study other research methods were also applied allowing to study the theme in detail. Results the study identified the lack of legal regulation of the legal status of public associations as subjects of public control as well as some forms of public control. The additions to the list of subjects of public control by public associations were proposed as well as improvements in the implementation of public expertise and public audit by the citizens39 associations as forms of social control. Scientific novelty the author found a lack of regulation of public associationsrsquo participation in some forms of social control and justified proposals for their improvement from a scientific point of view. Practical significance the possibility to apply the research results in legislative activity aimed at improving the provisions of the Federal Laws quotOn fundamentals of public control in the Russian Federationquot and quotOn the general principles of local selfgovernment organization in the Russian Federationquot. In addition the

Design and Manufacturing of Remote Control for Children Viewing Using Children Inspiration

OpenAIRE

Madani, R.; Moroz, Adam

2012-01-01

N/A The recruitment of children’s imagination in the development of new product design provides an interesting source of new ideas for product development, including for products for children. This study is related to the design and manufacture of a prototype for a remote control that controls television viewing content for children, to protect them from inappropriate content, control their viewing time and keep them at a safe distance from the television screen. For security reasons this ...

The design of remote participation platform for EAST plasma control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yuan, Q.P., E-mail: qpyuan@ipp.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei (China); Xiao, B.J. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei (China); University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei (China); Zhang, R.R. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei (China); Chai, W.T.; Liu, J.; Xiao, R.; Zhou, Z.C.; Pei, X.F. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei (China); University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei (China)

2016-11-15

Highlights: • The remote participation platform for EAST plasma control is composed of real time control service and scenario management. • The web based interface has been developed for supporting remote participation. • The functionality module has been designed and assistant tools have been developed. - Abstract: EAST has become a physics experimental platform for high parameter and steady-state long-pulse plasma operation. A new remote participation platform for EAST plasma control is designed, which is composed of gatekeeper system, web-based user interface system, discharge scenario management system, online simulation system and data interface with on-site plasma control system (PCS). The identification and access privilege of remote participator is validated by the gatekeeper system. Only authorized users can set control parameters for next shot plasma control or making discharge scenario for future shot through WebPCS which is a web-based user interface and designed based on B/S structure. The systematic architecture design and preliminary deployment of such remote platform will be presented in this paper.

Participative planning and information flow within management control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomasz Dyczkowski

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The paper examines the relationships between two different approaches to planning processes (participa- tive and non-participative and information flows within management control in companies. It augments the existing theoretical and empirical research by coupling management control and management infor- mation with participative planning, not only in operational but also in the strategic perspective. The re- sults presented in the paper stem from two consecutive studies, conducted between November 2010 and January 2012 and between November 2013 and January 2014. The studies comprised 397 and 179 Polish companies respectively. The authors formulated two hypotheses linking participative planning with upward and downward management information flows. The paper employed a quantitative approach, using the Spearman rank correlation analysis and hierarchical clustering using the Ward method, which enabled comparative analyses both in reference to various groups of companies included in particular research samples and over time. The results obtained showed the positive influence of participative plan- ning both on upward and downward information flows in enterprises. In particular, participative planning reduced information imbalances between top (the management and lower (employees of functional departments tiers in organisation structures.

Views of potential research participants on financial conflicts of interest: barriers and opportunities for effective disclosure.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinfurt, Kevin P; Friedman, Joëlle Y; Allsbrook, Jennifer S; Dinan, Michaela A; Hall, Mark A; Sugarman, Jeremy

2006-09-01

There is little guidance regarding how to disclose researchers' financial interests to potential research participants. To determine what potential research participants want to know about financial interests, their capacity to understand disclosed information and its implications, and the reactions of potential research participants to a proposed disclosure statement. Sixteen focus groups in 3 cities, including 6 groups of healthy adults, 6 groups of adults with mild chronic illness, 1 group of parents of healthy children, 1 group of parents of children with leukemia or brain tumor, 1 group of adults with heart failure, and 1 group of adults with cancer. Focus group discussions covered a range of topics including financial relationships in clinical research, whether people should be told about them, and how they should be told. Audio-recordings of focus groups were transcribed, verified, and coded for analysis. Participants wanted to know about financial interests, whether or not those interests would affect their participation. However, they varied in their desire and ability to understand the nature and implications of financial interests. Whether disclosure was deemed important depended upon the risk of the research. Trust in clinicians was also related to views regarding disclosure. If given the opportunity to ask questions during the consent process, some participants would not have known what to ask; however, after the focus group sessions, participants could identify information they would want to know. Financial interests are important to potential research participants, but obstacles to effective disclosure exist.

Split views among parents regarding children's right to decide about participation in research: a questionnaire survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Swartling, U; Helgesson, G; Hansson, M G; Ludvigsson, J

2009-07-01

Based on extensive questionnaire data, this paper focuses on parents' views about children's right to decide about participation in research. The data originates from 4000 families participating in a longitudinal prospective screening as 1997. Although current regulations and recommendations underline that children should have influence over their participation, many parents in this study disagree. Most (66%) were positive providing information to the child about relevant aspects of the study. However, responding parents were split about whether or not children should at some point be allowed decisional authority when participating in research: 41.6% of the parents reported being against or unsure. Those who responded positively believed that children should be allowed to decide about blood-sampling procedures (70%), but to a less extent about participation (48.5%), analyses of samples (19.7%) and biological bank storage (15.4%). That as many as possible should remain in the study, and that children do not have the competence to understand the consequences for research was strongly stressed by respondents who do not think children should have a right to decide. When asked what interests they consider most important in paediatric research, child autonomy and decision-making was ranked lowest. We discuss the implications of these findings.

Interest Rate Demands and Television Viewing-Is a Single Exposure More Influential Than Routine Viewing?

Science.gov (United States)

Hetsroni, Amir; Reizer, Abira; Ben Zion, Uri

2017-04-01

This study examined the impact of media consumption, and particularly exposure to television, on decisions regarding interest rate demands. One hundred and fifty-four participants were randomly divided into two groups: in the manipulation group, participants were exposed to a news clip about an Iranian nuclear attack on Israel, whereas in the control group, the participants were not exposed to the film. Both groups filled a questionnaires regarding their interest rate requirements in different situations, their media conception behaviors, and demographic questionnaires. Frequent routine viewing increased the interest rate demands only among participants in the manipulation group, but the manipulation itself did not have a significant effect on interest rate demands. The results are explained in terms of cultivation theory.

A multi-channel humidity control system based on LabVIEW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Aiwu; Xie Yuguang; Liu Hongbang; Liu Yingbiao; Cai Xiao; Yu Boxiang; Lu Junguang; Zhou Li

2011-01-01

A real time multi-channel humidity control system was designed based on LabVIEW, using the dry air branch of BESⅢ drying system. The hardware of this control system consist of mini humidity and temperature sensors, intelligent collection module, switch quantity controller and electromagnetic valves. The humidity can be controlled at arbitrary value from air humidity to 3% with accuracy better than 2%. Multi microenvironment with different humidity can be easily controlled and monitored in real time by this system. It can also be extended to hybrid control of multi channel humidity and temperature. (authors)

Viewing Artworks: Contributions of Cognitive Control and Perceptual Facilitation to Aesthetic Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Cupchik, Gerald C.; Vartanian, Oshin; Crawley, Adrian; Mikulis, David J.

2009-01-01

When we view visual images in everyday life, our perception is oriented toward object identification. In contrast, when viewing visual images "as artworks", we also tend to experience subjective reactions to their stylistic and structural properties. This experiment sought to determine how cognitive control and perceptual facilitation contribute…

A participatory study of teenagers and young adults views on access and participation in cancer research.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, Rachel M; Solanki, Anita; Aslam, Natasha; Whelan, Jeremy S; Fern, Lorna A

2016-02-01

The purpose of this study was to elicit young people's views on access and participation in cancer research. Eight young people aged 18-25 years with a previous cancer diagnosis aged 15-24 participated in a one day workshop utilising participatory methodology. The workshop consisted of four exercises: role play/scene setting; focus group examining thoughts and opinions of research access and participation; individual reflection on access to different types of research; and creative interpretation of the workshop. Further consultation with 222 young people with cancer was conducted using an electronic survey. Three themes emerged: • Patient choice: Young people thought it was their right to know all options about available research. Without knowledge of all available studies they would be unable to make an informed choice about participation. • Role of healthcare professionals as facilitators/barriers: Young people suggested non-clinical healthcare professionals such as social workers and youth support coordinators may be more suited to approaching young people about participation in psychosocial and health services research. • Value of the research: The what, when and how information was delivered was key in relaying the value of the study and assisting young people in their decision to participate. Further consultation showed approximately 70% wanted to find out about all available research. However, one third trusted healthcare professionals to decide which research studies to inform them of. Effective ways to support healthcare professionals approaching vulnerable populations about research are needed to ensure young people are empowered to make informed choices about research participation. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Intelligent Lighting Control System (ILCS) using LabVIEW ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

An Intelligent Lighting Control System (ILCS) was proposed and designed by considering ergonomic setting and energy efficiency. The integration of CompactRIO as a main hardware and National Instrument Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench (NI LabVIEW) 2012 as a platform to design an interactive ...

Four linked genes participate in controlling sporulation efficiency in budding yeast.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giora Ben-Ari

2006-11-01

Full Text Available Quantitative traits are conditioned by several genetic determinants. Since such genes influence many important complex traits in various organisms, the identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs is of major interest, but still encounters serious difficulties. We detected four linked genes within one QTL, which participate in controlling sporulation efficiency in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Following the identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms by comparing the sequences of 145 genes between the parental strains SK1 and S288c, we analyzed the segregating progeny of the cross between them. Through reciprocal hemizygosity analysis, four genes, RAS2, PMS1, SWS2, and FKH2, located in a region of 60 kilobases on Chromosome 14, were found to be associated with sporulation efficiency. Three of the four "high" sporulation alleles are derived from the "low" sporulating strain. Two of these sporulation-related genes were verified through allele replacements. For RAS2, the causative variation was suggested to be a single nucleotide difference in the upstream region of the gene. This quantitative trait nucleotide accounts for sporulation variability among a set of ten closely related winery yeast strains. Our results provide a detailed view of genetic complexity in one "QTL region" that controls a quantitative trait and reports a single nucleotide polymorphism-trait association in wild strains. Moreover, these findings have implications on QTL identification in higher eukaryotes.

Architecture of the Neurath Basic Model View Controller

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. Yermashov

2006-01-01

Full Text Available The idea of the Neurath Basic Model View Controller (NBMVC appeared during the discussion of the design of domain-specific modeling tools based on the Neurath Modeling Language [Yer06]. The NBMVC is the core of the modeling process within the modeling environment. It reduces complexity out of the design process by providing domain-specific interfaces between the developer and the model. These interfaces help to organize and manipulate the model. The organization includes, for example, a layer with visual components to drop them in and filter them out. The control routines includes, for example, model transformations.

Implementation of Model View Controller (Mvc) Architecture on Building Web-based Information System

OpenAIRE

'Uyun, Shofwatul; Ma'arif, Muhammad Rifqi

2010-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the use of MVC architecture in web-based information systemsdevelopment. MVC (Model-View-Controller) architecture is a way to decompose the application into threeparts: model, view and controller. Originally applied to the graphical user interaction model of input,processing and output. Expected to use the MVC architecture, applications can be built maintenance of moremodular, rusable, and easy and migrate. We have developed a management system of sch...

IMPLEMENTATION OF MODEL VIEW CONTROLLER (MVC) ARCHITECTURE ON BUILDING WEB-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEM

OpenAIRE

'Uyun, Shofwatul; Ma'arif, Muhammad Rifqi

2010-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the use of MVC architecture in web-based information systemsdevelopment. MVC (Model-View-Controller) architecture is a way to decompose the application into threeparts: model, view and controller. Originally applied to the graphical user interaction model of input,processing and output. Expected to use the MVC architecture, applications can be built maintenance of moremodular, rusable, and easy and migrate. We have developed a management system of sch...

Controlling patient participation during robot-assisted gait training

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background The overall goal of this paper was to investigate approaches to controlling active participation in stroke patients during robot-assisted gait therapy. Although active physical participation during gait rehabilitation after stroke was shown to improve therapy outcome, some patients can behave passively during rehabilitation, not maximally benefiting from the gait training. Up to now, there has not been an effective method for forcing patient activity to the desired level that would most benefit stroke patients with a broad variety of cognitive and biomechanical impairments. Methods Patient activity was quantified in two ways: by heart rate (HR), a physiological parameter that reflected physical effort during body weight supported treadmill training, and by a weighted sum of the interaction torques (WIT) between robot and patient, recorded from hip and knee joints of both legs. We recorded data in three experiments, each with five stroke patients, and controlled HR and WIT to a desired temporal profile. Depending on the patient's cognitive capabilities, two different approaches were taken: either by allowing voluntary patient effort via visual instructions or by forcing the patient to vary physical effort by adapting the treadmill speed. Results We successfully controlled patient activity quantified by WIT and by HR to a desired level. The setup was thereby individually adaptable to the specific cognitive and biomechanical needs of each patient. Conclusion Based on the three successful approaches to controlling patient participation, we propose a metric which enables clinicians to select the best strategy for each patient, according to the patient's physical and cognitive capabilities. Our framework will enable therapists to challenge the patient to more activity by automatically controlling the patient effort to a desired level. We expect that the increase in activity will lead to improved rehabilitation outcome. PMID:21429200

Linear Motor Motion Control Experiment System Design Based on LabVIEW

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cuixian He

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In order to meet the needs of experimental training of electrical information industry, a linear motor motion experiment system based on LabVIEW was developed. This system is based on the STM32F103ZET6 system processor controller, a state signal when the motor moves through the grating encoder feedback controller to form a closed loop, through the RS232 serial port communication with the host computer, the host computer is designed in the LabVIEW interactive environment monitoring software. Combined with the modular design concept proposed overall program, given the detailed hardware circuit, targeted for the software function design, to achieve man-machine interface. The system control of high accuracy, good stability, meet the training requirements for laboratory equipment, but also as a reference embodiment of the linear motor monitoring system.

State Analysis: A Control Architecture View of Systems Engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Robert D.

2005-01-01

A viewgraph presentation on the state analysis process is shown. The topics include: 1) Issues with growing complexity; 2) Limits of common practice; 3) Exploiting a control point of view; 4) A glimpse at the State Analysis process; 5) Synergy with model-based systems engineering; and 6) Bridging the systems to software gap.

Viewing geometry determines the contribution of binocular vision to the online control of grasping.

Science.gov (United States)

Keefe, Bruce D; Watt, Simon J

2017-12-01

Binocular vision is often assumed to make a specific, critical contribution to online visual control of grasping by providing precise information about the separation between digits and object. This account overlooks the 'viewing geometry' typically encountered in grasping, however. Separation of hand and object is rarely aligned precisely with the line of sight (the visual depth dimension), and analysis of the raw signals suggests that, for most other viewing angles, binocular feedback is less precise than monocular feedback. Thus, online grasp control relying selectively on binocular feedback would not be robust to natural changes in viewing geometry. Alternatively, sensory integration theory suggests that different signals contribute according to their relative precision, in which case the role of binocular feedback should depend on viewing geometry, rather than being 'hard-wired'. We manipulated viewing geometry, and assessed the role of binocular feedback by measuring the effects on grasping of occluding one eye at movement onset. Loss of binocular feedback resulted in a significantly less extended final slow-movement phase when hand and object were separated primarily in the frontoparallel plane (where binocular information is relatively imprecise), compared to when they were separated primarily along the line of sight (where binocular information is relatively precise). Consistent with sensory integration theory, this suggests the role of binocular (and monocular) vision in online grasp control is not a fixed, 'architectural' property of the visuo-motor system, but arises instead from the interaction of viewer and situation, allowing robust online control across natural variations in viewing geometry.

Intensive Versus Standard Blood Pressure Control in SPRINT-Eligible Participants of ACCORD-BP.

Science.gov (United States)

Buckley, Leo F; Dixon, Dave L; Wohlford, George F; Wijesinghe, Dayanjan S; Baker, William L; Van Tassell, Benjamin W

2017-12-01

We sought to determine the effect of intensive blood pressure (BP) control on cardiovascular outcomes in participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and additional risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). This study was a post hoc, multivariate, subgroup analysis of ACCORD-BP (Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes Blood Pressure) participants. Participants were eligible for the analysis if they were in the standard glucose control arm of ACCORD-BP and also had the additional CVD risk factors required for SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial) eligibility. We used a Cox proportional hazards regression model to compare the effect of intensive versus standard BP control on CVD outcomes. The "SPRINT-eligible" ACCORD-BP participants were pooled with SPRINT participants to determine whether the effects of intensive BP control interacted with T2DM. The mean baseline Framingham 10-year CVD risk scores were 14.5% and 14.8%, respectively, in the intensive and standard BP control groups. The mean achieved systolic BP values were 120 and 134 mmHg in the intensive and standard BP control groups ( P control reduced the composite of CVD death, nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI), nonfatal stroke, any revascularization, and heart failure (hazard ratio 0.79; 95% CI 0.65-0.96; P = 0.02). Intensive BP control also reduced CVD death, nonfatal MI, and nonfatal stroke (hazard ratio 0.69; 95% CI 0.51-0.93; P = 0.01). Treatment-related adverse events occurred more frequently in participants receiving intensive BP control (4.1% vs. 2.1%; P = 0.003). The effect of intensive BP control on CVD outcomes did not differ between patients with and without T2DM ( P > 0.62). Intensive BP control reduced CVD outcomes in a cohort of participants with T2DM and additional CVD risk factors. © 2017 by the American Diabetes Association.

Exercising self-control increases relative left frontal cortical activation.

Science.gov (United States)

Schmeichel, Brandon J; Crowell, Adrienne; Harmon-Jones, Eddie

2016-02-01

Self-control refers to the capacity to override or alter a predominant response tendency. The current experiment tested the hypothesis that exercising self-control temporarily increases approach motivation, as revealed by patterns of electrical activity in the prefrontal cortex. Participants completed a writing task that did vs did not require them to exercise self-control. Then they viewed pictures known to evoke positive, negative or neutral affect. We assessed electroencephalographic (EEG) activity while participants viewed the pictures, and participants reported their trait levels of behavioral inhibition system (BIS) and behavioral activation system (BAS) sensitivity at the end of the study. We found that exercising (vs not exercising) self-control increased relative left frontal cortical activity during picture viewing, particularly among individuals with relatively higher BAS than BIS, and particularly during positive picture viewing. A similar but weaker pattern emerged during negative picture viewing. The results suggest that exercising self-control temporarily increases approach motivation, which may help to explain the aftereffects of self-control (i.e. ego depletion). © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Building a dynamically ASP.NET 2.0 GridView control

OpenAIRE

Catalin NACHILA

2008-01-01

Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 (based on ASP.NET 2.0), the successor to Visual Studio .NET 2003 has a lot of new features and goodies designed for Web developers. This article show how a ASP.NET 2.0 control can be dynamically connected to Microsoft Access database. The delete and update operation will be implemented using a GridView control and SQL queries. The connection between the database and the .NET application will be made with OleDb Data provider, the new Access Data Source control. The...

Giving voice to study volunteers: comparing views of mentally ill, physically ill, and healthy protocol participants on ethical aspects of clinical research.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Laura Weiss; Kim, Jane Paik

2014-09-01

Ethical controversy surrounds clinical research involving seriously ill participants. While many stakeholders have opinions, the extent to which protocol volunteers themselves see human research as ethically acceptable has not been documented. To address this gap of knowledge, authors sought to assess views of healthy and ill clinical research volunteers regarding the ethical acceptability of human studies involving individuals who are ill or are potentially vulnerable. Surveys and semi-structured interviews were used to query clinical research protocol participants and a comparison group of healthy individuals. A total of 179 respondents participated in this study: 150 in protocols (60 mentally ill, 43 physically ill, and 47 healthy clinical research protocol participants) and 29 healthy individuals not enrolled in protocols. Main outcome measures included responses regarding ethical acceptability of clinical research when it presents significant burdens and risks, involves people with serious mental and physical illness, or enrolls people with other potential vulnerabilities in the research situation. Respondents expressed decreasing levels of acceptance of participation in research that posed burdens of increasing severity. Participation in protocols with possibly life-threatening consequences was perceived as least acceptable (mean = 1.82, sd = 1.29). Research on serious illnesses, including HIV, cancer, schizophrenia, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder, was seen as ethically acceptable across respondent groups (range of means = [4.0, 4.7]). Mentally ill volunteers expressed levels of ethical acceptability for physical illness research and mental illness research as acceptable and similar, while physically ill volunteers expressed greater ethical acceptability for physical illness research than for mental illness research. Mentally ill, physically ill, and healthy participants expressed neutral to favorable perspectives regarding the ethical

A users view of the SPS and LEP control systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bailey, R.

1992-01-01

Every accelerator has a control system; at present the SPS has two, both of which are needed to run the machine. Consequently a user of the SPS/LEP complex has to be concurrently familiar with three control systems. While this situation brings problems it allows, even forces, comparison between the different systems, which in turn enriches the user viewpoint. This paper assesses the SPS and LEP control systems from the point of view of the user, who may be an equipment specialist, operator, accelerator physicist or combinations thereof. (author)

Design of viewing windows for controlled-atmosphere chambers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robinson, J.N.

1980-03-01

A guide to the design of safe viewing windows is presented. Design criteria, the properties of materials, the problems of structural design in unreliable materials such as glass, the mathematics of reliability and redundance, and problems associated with testing windows are discussed, and formulas are presented for the design of windows. Criteria adopted at ORNL for controlled-atmosphere chambers are presented, a program for surveying and upgrading the safety of existing facilities is described, and the results of this program are reported

Building a dynamically ASP.NET 2.0 GridView control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catalin NACHILA

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 (based on ASP.NET 2.0, the successor to Visual Studio .NET 2003 has a lot of new features and goodies designed for Web developers. This article show how a ASP.NET 2.0 control can be dynamically connected to Microsoft Access database. The delete and update operation will be implemented using a GridView control and SQL queries. The connection between the database and the .NET application will be made with OleDb Data provider, the new Access Data Source control. The SQL queries will be implemented with OleDbCommand.

Same Game, Different Rules? Gender Differences in Political Participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Coffé, Hilde; Bolzendahl, Catherine

2010-03-01

We investigate gender gaps in political participation with 2004 ISSP data for 18 advanced Western democracies (N: 20,359) using linear and logistic regression models. Controlling for socio-economic characteristics and political attitudes reveals that women are more likely than men to have voted and engaged in 'private' activism, while men are more likely to have engaged in direct contact, collective types of actions and be (more active) members of political parties. Our analysis indicates that demographic and attitudinal characteristics influence participation differently among men and among women, as well as across types of participation. These results highlight the need to move toward a view of women engaging in differing types of participation and based on different characteristics.

Scene unseen: Disrupted neuronal adaptation in melancholia during emotional film viewing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew P. Hyett

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Impairments in attention and concentration are distinctive features of melancholic depression, and may diminish the ability to shift focus away from internal dysphoric states. Disrupted brain networks may underlie the inability to effectively disengage from interoceptive signals in this disorder. This study investigates changes in effective connectivity between cortical systems supporting attention, interoception, and perception in those with melancholic depression when shifting attention from rest to viewing dynamic film stimuli. We hypothesised that those with melancholia would show impaired attentional shifting from rest to emotional film viewing, captured in neuronal states that differed little across conditions. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI data were acquired from 48 participants (16 melancholic depressed, 16 non-melancholic depressed, and 16 healthy controls at rest and whilst viewing emotionally salient movies. Using independent component analysis, we identified 8 cortical modes (default mode, executive control, left/right frontoparietal attention, left/right insula, visual and auditory and studied their dynamics using dynamic causal modelling. Engagement with dynamic emotional material diminished in melancholia and was associated with network-wide increases in effective connectivity. Melancholia was also characterised by an increase in effective connectivity amongst cortical regions involved in attention and interoception when shifting from rest to negative film viewing, with the converse pattern in control participants. The observed involvement of attention- and insula-based cortical systems highlights a potential neurobiological mechanism for disrupted attentional resource allocation, particularly in switching between interoceptive and exteroceptive signals, in melancholia.

Participants' perception of pharmaceutical clinical research: a cross-sectional controlled study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

González-Saldivar G

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Gerardo González-Saldivar,1 René Rodríguez-Gutiérrez,2 José Luis Viramontes-Madrid,3 Alejandro Salcido-Montenegro,2 Kevin Erick Gabriel Carlos-Reyna,2 Andrés Marcelo Treviño-Alvarez,2 Neri Alejandro Álvarez-Villalobos,4 José Gerardo González-González2 1Ophthalmology Department, 2Endocrinology Division, Hospital Universitario “Dr. José E. González”, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, 3Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública, Cuernavaca, Morelos, 4Medical Statistics Department, Hospital Universitario “Dr. José E. González”, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Background: There is scarce scientific information assessing participants’ perception of pharmaceutical research in developed and developing countries concerning the risks, safety, and purpose of clinical trials.Methods: To assess the perception that 604 trial participants (cases and 604 nonparticipants (controls of pharmaceutical clinical trials have about pharmaceutical clinical research, we surveyed participants with one of four chronic diseases from 12 research sites throughout Mexico.Results: Participation in clinical trials positively influences the perception of pharmaceutical clinical research. More cases (65.4% than controls (50.7% perceived that the main purpose of pharmaceutical research is to cure more diseases and to do so more effectively. In addition, more cases considered that there are significant benefits when participating in a research study, such as excellent medical care and extra free services, with this being the most important motivation to participate for both groups (cases 52%, controls 54.5%. We also found a sense of trust in their physicians to deal with adverse events, and the perception that clinical research is a benefit to their health, rather than a risk. More controls believed that clinical trial participants’ health is put at risk

Transient or permanent fisheye views

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jakobsen, Mikkel Rønne; Hornbæk, Kasper

2012-01-01

Transient use of information visualization may support specific tasks without permanently changing the user interface. Transient visualizations provide immediate and transient use of information visualization close to and in the context of the user’s focus of attention. Little is known, however......, about the benefits and limitations of transient visualizations. We describe an experiment that compares the usability of a fisheye view that participants could call up temporarily, a permanent fisheye view, and a linear view: all interfaces gave access to source code in the editor of a widespread...... programming environment. Fourteen participants performed varied tasks involving navigation and understanding of source code. Participants used the three interfaces for between four and six hours in all. Time and accuracy measures were inconclusive, but subjective data showed a preference for the permanent...

Business Students' Views of Peer Assessment on Class Participation

Science.gov (United States)

Tiew, Fidella

2010-01-01

The purpose of this project was to introduce peer and self assessment on tutorial class participation to a marketing unit at Curtin Sarawak. This assessment strategy was introduced with desire to improve class participation and increase student involvement in assessment. At the end of semester, a questionnaire was used to gather responses from a…

Evidence for view-invariant face recognition units in unfamiliar face learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Etchells, David B; Brooks, Joseph L; Johnston, Robert A

2017-05-01

Many models of face recognition incorporate the idea of a face recognition unit (FRU), an abstracted representation formed from each experience of a face which aids recognition under novel viewing conditions. Some previous studies have failed to find evidence of this FRU representation. Here, we report three experiments which investigated this theoretical construct by modifying the face learning procedure from that in previous work. During learning, one or two views of previously unfamiliar faces were shown to participants in a serial matching task. Later, participants attempted to recognize both seen and novel views of the learned faces (recognition phase). Experiment 1 tested participants' recognition of a novel view, a day after learning. Experiment 2 was identical, but tested participants on the same day as learning. Experiment 3 repeated Experiment 1, but tested participants on a novel view that was outside the rotation of those views learned. Results revealed a significant advantage, across all experiments, for recognizing a novel view when two views had been learned compared to single view learning. The observed view invariance supports the notion that an FRU representation is established during multi-view face learning under particular learning conditions.

Radioactive wastes and residues: government participation in a control policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gelli, Guido

1993-01-01

This paper discusses the politic aspects of the State participation in inspection and control of the radioactive wastes residues with the supervise of Brazilian Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN), by a national program

Pervasive, hard-wired and male: Qualitative study of how UK adolescents view alcohol-related aggression.

Science.gov (United States)

Whitaker, Lydia; Brown, Stephen L; Young, Bridget; Fereday, Richard; Coyne, Sarah M; Qualter, Pamela

2018-01-01

Laboratory studies of alcohol-inexperienced adolescents show that aggression can be primed by alcohol-related stimuli, suggesting that alcohol-related aggression is partly socially learned. Script theory proposes that alcohol-related aggression 'scripts' for social behaviors are culturally-available and learned by individuals. The purpose of the study was to understand the content and origins of alcohol-related aggression scripts learned by adolescents. This qualitative focus group study of 40 adolescents (ages 14-16 years) examined alcohol-related aggression scripts. Participants believed aggression and severe injury to be pervasive when young people drink. Viewed through a biological lens, participants described aggression as an 'instinctive' and 'hard-wired' male trait facilitated by intoxication. As such, alcohol-related aggression was not seen as intended or personally controllable and participants did not see it in moral terms. Females were largely viewed as either bystanders of inter-male aggression or potential victims of male sexual aggression. Participants attributed their views on the frequency and nature of alcohol-related aggression to current affairs and reality television, which they felt portrayed a reality of which they had little experience. The origins of the explicitly biological frameworks that participants used seemed to lie in pre-existing beliefs about the nature of gender differences. Perceptions of the pervasiveness of male alcohol-related aggression, and the consequent failure to view alcohol-related aggression in moral terms, could dispose some young people to alcohol-related aggression. Interventions could target (1) the beliefs that alcohol-related aggression is pervasive and uncontrollable in males, and (2) participants' dysfunctional views of masculinity that underpin those beliefs.

Public and Biobank Participant Attitudes toward Genetic Research Participation and Data Sharing

OpenAIRE

Lemke, A.A.; Wolf, W.A.; Hebert-Beirne, J.; Smith, M.E.

2010-01-01

Research assessing attitudes toward consent processes for high-throughput genomic-wide technologies and widespread sharing of data is limited. In order to develop a better understanding of stakeholder views toward these issues, this cross-sectional study assessed public and biorepository participant attitudes toward research participation and sharing of genetic research data. Forty-nine individuals participated in 6 focus groups; 28 in 3 public focus groups and 21 in 3 NUgene biorepository pa...

Assessment of distribution grid voltage control strategies in view of deployment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Han, Xue; Kosek, Anna Magdalena; Bondy, Daniel Esteban Morales

2014-01-01

Increasing integration of distributed energy resources (DER) and available monitoring devices in the power distribution grid make system services provided by DERs possible and an integral part of distribution grid operation. Numerous publications have proposed various control solutions by utilizing......, it provides some qualitative discussions on the challenges in view of deployment. Several qualifying metrics are listed to specify the challenges from different perspectives. A metrics comparison diagram is proposed to asses deployment of a control strategy. Five case studies are presented to identify...

Data acquisition and control using National Instruments' ''LabVIEW'' software

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirkman, I.W.; Buksh, P.A.

1992-01-01

Using conventional programming techniques for the production of data acquisition and control software can be a time-consuming procedure, and the code subsequently produced can often be inflexible and rather difficult to modify in the light of changing experimental requirements. A new generation of commercial software products have recently appeared which it is claimed can significantly reduce development times and give rise to more flexible code and improved user interfaces. An example of such a product is National Instruments' ''LabVIEW,'' which presents a novel graphical approach based on Apple Macintosh computer platforms. Extensive use of LabVIEW has been made by the Soft X-ray Group at Daresbury Laboratory over the past two years, and its performance is reported on here. Several examples of experimental arrangements for which it has been used are described, and an evaluation of the product is made

Macintosh/LabVIEW based control and data acquisition system for a single photon counting fluorometer

Science.gov (United States)

Stryjewski, Wieslaw J.

1991-08-01

A flexible software system has been developed for controlling fluorescence decay measurements using the virtual instrument approach offered by LabVIEW. The time-correlated single photon counting instrument operates under computer control in both manual and automatic mode. Implementation time was short and the equipment is now easier to use, reducing the training time required for new investigators. It is not difficult to customize the front panel or adapt the program to a different instrument. We found LabVIEW much more convenient to use for this application than traditional, textual computer languages.

Attributions of Stability, Control and Responsibility: How Parents of Children with Intellectual Disabilities View their Child's Problematic Behaviour and Its Causes.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobs, Myrthe; Woolfson, Lisa Marks; Hunter, Simon C

2016-01-01

Children with intellectual disabilities have high rates of behaviour problems. This study explored parents' causal beliefs and attributions for general problematic child behaviour in children with different aetiologies of intellectual disabilities. Ten parents of children with intellectual disabilities participated in interviews about their child's problematic behaviour. Thematic analysis using NVivo revealed that parents viewed their child's problematic behaviour not only as caused by the child's intellectual disabilities but also by other causes unrelated to the intellectual disabilities, as well as by aspects of the social environmental context. Some causes were viewed as stable and uncontrollable and others as unstable and controllable. In addition, parents showed a strong sense of responsibility for child behaviour. Parents of children with intellectual disabilities do not solely interpret their child's problematic behaviour through the intellectual disabilities but incorporate the environment and causes and attributions that are not related to the intellectual disabilities, which may help to promote more effective parenting. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

[A design of simple ventilator control system based on LabVIEW].

Science.gov (United States)

Pei, Baoqing; Xu, Shengwei; Li, Hui; Li, Deyu; Pei, Yidong; He, Haixing

2011-01-01

This paper designed a ventilator control system to control proportional valves and motors. It used LabVIEW to control the object mentioned above and design ,validate, evaluate arithmetic, and establish hardware in loop platform. There are two system' s hierarchies. The high layer was used to run non-real time program and the low layer was used to run real time program. The two layers communicated through TCP/IP net. The program can be divided into several modules, which can be expanded and maintained easily. And the harvest in the prototype designing can be seamlessly used to embedded products. From all above, this system was useful in employing OEM products.

Cue reactivity towards shopping cues in female participants.

Science.gov (United States)

Starcke, Katrin; Schlereth, Berenike; Domass, Debora; Schöler, Tobias; Brand, Matthias

2013-03-01

Background and aims It is currently under debate whether pathological buying can be considered as a behavioural addiction. Addictions have often been investigated with cue-reactivity paradigms to assess subjective, physiological and neural craving reactions. The current study aims at testing whether cue reactivity towards shopping cues is related to pathological buying tendencies. Methods A sample of 66 non-clinical female participants rated shopping related pictures concerning valence, arousal, and subjective craving. In a subgroup of 26 participants, electrodermal reactions towards those pictures were additionally assessed. Furthermore, all participants were screened concerning pathological buying tendencies and baseline craving for shopping. Results Results indicate a relationship between the subjective ratings of the shopping cues and pathological buying tendencies, even if baseline craving for shopping was controlled for. Electrodermal reactions were partly related to the subjective ratings of the cues. Conclusions Cue reactivity may be a potential correlate of pathological buying tendencies. Thus, pathological buying may be accompanied by craving reactions towards shopping cues. Results support the assumption that pathological buying can be considered as a behavioural addiction. From a methodological point of view, results support the view that the cue-reactivity paradigm is suited for the investigation of craving reactions in pathological buying and future studies should implement this paradigm in clinical samples.

Workers' Participation and the Distribution of Control as Perceived by Members of Ten German Companies.

Science.gov (United States)

Bartolke, Klaus; And Others

1982-01-01

A survey of 601 managers and workers in 10 German manufacturing companies studied the implications of workers' participation for the exercise of control. Statistical analysis of data on control over work environments, production organization, personnel, and finance indicated that, in more participative companies, distribution of control is more…

Active Participation of Air Conditioners in Power System Frequency Control Considering Users’ Thermal Comfort

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rongxiang Zhang

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Air conditioners have great potential to participate in power system frequency control. This paper proposes a control strategy to facilitate the active participation of air conditioners. For each air conditioner, a decentralized control law is designed to adjust its temperature set point in response to the system frequency deviation. The decentralized control law accounts for the user’s thermal comfort that is evaluated by a fuzzy algorithm. The aggregation of air conditioners’ response is conducted by using the Monte Carlo simulation method. A structure preserving model is applied to the multi-bus power system, in which air conditioners are aggregated at certain load buses. An inner-outer iteration scheme is adopted to solve power system dynamics. An experiment is conducted on a test air conditioner to examine the performance of the proposed decentralized control law. Simulation results on a test power system verify the effectiveness of the proposed strategy for air conditioners participating in frequency control.

Women's views and experiences of two alternative consent pathways for participation in a preterm intrapartum trial: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Sawyer, Alexandra; Chhoa, Celine; Ayers, Susan; Pushpa-Rajah, Angela; Duley, Lelia

2017-09-09

The Cord Pilot Trial compared alternative policies for timing of cord clamping at very preterm birth at eight UK hospitals. In addition to standard written consent, an oral assent pathway was developed for use when birth was imminent. The aim of this study was to explore women's views and experiences of two alternative consent pathways to participate in the Cord Pilot Trial. We conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. A total of 179 participants in the Cord Pilot Trial were sent a postal invitation to take part in interviews. Women who agreed were interviewed in person or by telephone to explore their experiences of two consent pathways for a preterm intrapartum trial. Data were analysed using inductive systematic thematic analysis. Twenty-three women who gave either written consent (n = 18) or oral assent followed by written consent (n = 5) to participate in the trial were interviewed. Five themes were identified: (1) understanding of the implications of randomisation, (2) importance of staff offering participation, (3) information about the trial and time to consider participation, (4) trial secondary in women's minds and (5) reasons for agreeing to take part in the trial. Experiences were similar for the two consent pathways. Women recruited by the oral assent pathway reported being given less information about the trial but felt it was sufficient to make a decision regarding participation. There were gaps in women's understanding of the trial and intervention, regardless of the consent pathway. Overall, women were positive about their experiences of being invited to participate in the trial. The oral assent pathway seems an acceptable option for women if the intervention is low-risk and time is limited. ISRCTN Registry, ISRCTN21456601 . Registered on 28 February 2013.

The architecture and effect of participation: a systematic review of community participation for communicable disease control and elimination. Implications for malaria elimination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Whittaker Maxine

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Community engagement and participation has played a critical role in successful disease control and elimination campaigns in many countries. Despite this, its benefits for malaria control and elimination are yet to be fully realized. This may be due to a limited understanding of the influences on participation in developing countries as well as inadequate investment in infrastructure and resources to support sustainable community participation. This paper reports the findings of an atypical systematic review of 60 years of literature in order to arrive at a more comprehensive awareness of the constructs of participation for communicable disease control and elimination and provide guidance for the current malaria elimination campaign. Methods Evidence derived from quantitative research was considered both independently and collectively with qualitative research papers and case reports. All papers included in the review were systematically coded using a pre-determined qualitative coding matrix that identified influences on community participation at the individual, household, community and government/civil society levels. Colour coding was also carried out to reflect the key primary health care period in which community participation programmes originated. These processes allowed exhaustive content analysis and synthesis of data in an attempt to realize conceptual development beyond that able to be achieved by individual empirical studies or case reports. Results Of the 60 papers meeting the selection criteria, only four studies attempted to determine the effect of community participation on disease transmission. Due to inherent differences in their design, interventions and outcome measures, results could not be compared. However, these studies showed statistically significant reductions in disease incidence or prevalence using various forms of community participation. The use of locally selected volunteers provided with

Intention of dog owners to participate in rabies control measures in Flores Island, Indonesia.

Science.gov (United States)

Wera, Ewaldus; Mourits, Monique C M; Hogeveen, Henk

2016-04-01

The success of a rabies control strategy depends on the commitment and collaboration of dog owners. In this study the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) was used to identify the factors, which are associated with the intention of dog owners to participate in rabies control measures in the Manggarai and Sikka regencies of Flores Island, Indonesia. Questionnaires were administered to 450 dog owners from 44 randomly selected villages in the two regencies. Ninety-six percent of the dog owners intended to participate in a free-of-charge vaccination campaign. The intention decreased to 24% when dog owners were asked to pay a vaccination fee equal to the market price of the vaccine (Rp 18.000 per dose=US$2). Approximately 81% of the dog owners intended to keep their dogs inside their house or to leash them day and night during a period of at least three months in case of an incidence of rabies in the dog population within their village. Only 40% intended to cull their dogs in case of a rabies incident within their village. Using multivariable logistic regression analysis, the attitude item 'vaccinating dogs reduces rabies cases in humans', and the perceived behavioural control items 'availability of time' and 'ability to confine dogs' were shown to be significantly associated with the intention to participate in a free-of-charge vaccination campaign. The attitude item 'culling dogs reduces rabies cases in humans' was significantly associated with the intention to participate in a culling measure. The attitude item 'leashing of dogs reduces human rabies cases' and perceived behavioural controls 'availability of time' and 'money to buy a leash' were associated with the intention to leash dogs during a rabies outbreak. As the attitude variables were often significantly associated with intention to participate in a rabies control measure, an educational rabies campaign focusing on the benefit of rabies control measures is expected to increase the intention of dog owners to

Participation in population-based case-control studies: does the observed decline vary by socio-economic status?

Science.gov (United States)

Mazloum, Marie; Bailey, Helen D; Heiden, Tamika; Armstrong, Bruce K; de Klerk, Nicholas; Milne, Elizabeth

2012-05-01

An Australian study of childhood leukaemia (Aus-ALL) previously reported that control participation was positively associated with socio-economic status (SES). A similar study of childhood brain tumours (Aus-CBT) was carried out 4 years later, and this paper compares control participation and its relationship with SES in the two studies. To assess the representativeness of controls in terms of SES, the addresses of controls were linked to Australian Bureau of Statistics Census 2006 Collection Districts (CDs), and hence to area-based indices of SES. Independent sample t-tests and chi-squared tests were used to compare the SES indices of CDs where Aus-CBT controls lived with those where Aus-ALL controls lived and with those of all CDs where Australian families lived. The overall percentage of eligible families who agreed to participate was lower in Aus-CBT (53.9%) than in Aus-ALL (70.3%). Control families in both studies were of higher SES than the general population, while the distribution of SES among recruited controls was similar in both studies. These findings provide some reassurance that the observed decline in research participation over time may not be associated with an increasingly unrepresentative participant population. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Benefits of EMU Participation : Estimates using the Synthetic Control Method

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verstegen, Loes; van Groezen, Bas; Meijdam, Lex

2017-01-01

This paper investigates quantitatively the benefits from participation in the Economic and Monetary Union for individual Euro area countries. Using the synthetic control method, we estimate how real GDP per capita would have developed for the EMU member states, if those countries had not joined the

Participative management in health care services.

Science.gov (United States)

Muller, M

1995-03-01

The need and demand for the highest-quality management of all health care delivery activities requires a participative management approach. The purpose with this article is to explore the process of participative management, to generate and describe a model for such management, focusing mainly on the process of participative management, and to formulate guidelines for operationalization of the procedure. An exploratory, descriptive and theory-generating research design is pursued. After a brief literature review, inductive reasoning is mainly employed to identify and define central concepts, followed by the formulation of a few applicable statements and guidelines. Participative management is viewed as a process of that constitutes the elements of dynamic interactive decision-making and problem-solving, shared governance, empowerment, organisational transformation, and dynamic communication within the health care organisation. The scientific method of assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation is utilised throughout the process of participative management. A continuum of interactive decision-making and problem-solving is described, the different role-players involved, as well as the levels of interactive decision-making and problem-solving. The most appropriate decision-making strategy should be employed in pro-active and reactive decision-making. Applicable principles and assumptions in each element of participative management is described. It is recommended that this proposed model for participative management be refined by means of a literature control, interactive dialogue with experts and a model case description or participative management, to ensure the trustworthiness of this research.

Operational Strategies for Predictive Dispatch of Control Reserves in View of Stochastic Generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Delikaraoglou, Stefanos; Heussen, Kai; Pinson, Pierre

2014-01-01

In view of the predictability and stochasticity of wind power generation, transmission system operators (TSOs) can benefit from predictive dispatch of slow and manual control reserves in order to maintain reactive reserve levels for unpredictable events. While scenario-based approaches for stocha...

Control, data acquisition and remote participation for steady-state operation in LHD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sudo, S.; Nagayama, Y.; Emoto, M.; Nakanishi, H.; Chikaraishi, H.; Imazu, S.; Iwata, C.; Kogi, Y.; Kojima, M.; Komada, S.; Kubo, S.; Kumazawa, R.; Mase, A.; Miyazawa, J.; Mutoh, T.; Nakamura, Y.; Nonomura, M.; Ohsuna, M.; Saito, K.; Sakamoto, R.; Seki, T.; Shoji, M.; Tsuda, K.; Yoshida, M.

2006-01-01

Control, data acquisition, plasma monitoring and remote participation for steady state operation in the large helical device (LHD) are reviewed. By controlling the impedance matching of ICH, the plasma position and the electron density, high temperature plasma is confined for 1905s. The plasma parameters are monitored in real time. Data are continuously sampled by the YOKOGAWA WE7000 system and by the NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CompactPCI system. Those data are managed by the object-oriented database system based on ObjectStore in distributed servers with mass storage. By using the multi protocol label switching-virtual private network (MPLS-VPN) technology, the local area network of LHD is expanded to the Japanese fusion community. This provides the remote participants with the same environment of the LHD control room

Control, data acquisition and remote participation for steady-state operation in LHD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sudo, S. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan)]. E-mail: sudo@nifs.ac.jp; Nagayama, Y. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Emoto, M. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Nakanishi, H. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Chikaraishi, H. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Imazu, S. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Iwata, C. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Kogi, Y. [KASTEC, Kyushu University, Kasuga 816-8580 (Japan); Kojima, M. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Komada, S. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Kubo, S. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Kumazawa, R. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Mase, A. [KASTEC, Kyushu University, Kasuga 816-8580 (Japan); Miyazawa, J. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Mutoh, T. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Nakamura, Y. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Nonomura, M. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Ohsuna, M. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Saito, K. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan); Sakamoto, R.; Seki, T.; Shoji, M.; Tsuda, K.; Yoshida, M. [National Institute of Natural Sciences, 322-6 Oroshi, Toki 509-5292 (Japan)

2006-07-15

Control, data acquisition, plasma monitoring and remote participation for steady state operation in the large helical device (LHD) are reviewed. By controlling the impedance matching of ICH, the plasma position and the electron density, high temperature plasma is confined for 1905s. The plasma parameters are monitored in real time. Data are continuously sampled by the YOKOGAWA WE7000 system and by the NATIONAL INSTRUMENTS CompactPCI system. Those data are managed by the object-oriented database system based on ObjectStore in distributed servers with mass storage. By using the multi protocol label switching-virtual private network (MPLS-VPN) technology, the local area network of LHD is expanded to the Japanese fusion community. This provides the remote participants with the same environment of the LHD control room.

Social Role Participation in Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis: A Cross-Sectional Comparison With Population Controls.

Science.gov (United States)

van Genderen, Simon; Plasqui, Guy; Landewé, Robert; Lacaille, Diane; Arends, Suzanne; van Gaalen, Floris; van der Heijde, Désirée; Heuft, Liesbeth; Luime, Jolanda; Spoorenberg, Anneke; Gignac, Monique; Boonen, Annelies

2016-12-01

Participation in social roles for persons with chronic disease is important for their quality of life, but interpretation of the data on participation is difficult in the absence of a benchmark. This study aimed to compare social role participation in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) to population controls using the Social Role Participation Questionnaire (SRPQ). There were 246 AS patients and 510 population controls who completed the SRPQ, which assesses participation in 11 roles (with scores ranging 1-5) across 4 dimensions (importance, satisfaction with performance, satisfaction with time, and physical difficulty), and additionally ranked their 3 most important roles. The ranking of role importance, the SRPQ dimension scores, and the gap between importance and satisfaction with performance of roles were compared between patients and controls. Patients (62% male; mean ± SD age 51 ± 12 years) and controls (70% male; mean ± SD 42 ± 15 years) ranked intimate relationships, relationships with children/stepchildren/grandchildren, and employment as the most important roles. Compared to controls, patients gave higher scores on the SRPQ to importance (3.75 versus 3.43), but reported lower satisfaction with performance (3.19 versus 3.58) and greater physical difficulty (3.87 versus 4.67) (P ≤ 0.05 for all). The largest differences in gaps between importance and satisfaction with performance for patients compared to controls were seen in the physical leisure, hobbies, and traveling and vacation categories, in which patients assigned higher importance but reported especially low satisfaction. As society places increasing emphasis on individual responsibility to participate fully in social roles, the current data suggest that health care providers should pay more attention to participation restrictions experienced by patients with AS. © 2016, American College of Rheumatology.

LabVIEW: a software system for data acquisition, data analysis, and instrument control.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalkman, C J

1995-01-01

Computer-based data acquisition systems play an important role in clinical monitoring and in the development of new monitoring tools. LabVIEW (National Instruments, Austin, TX) is a data acquisition and programming environment that allows flexible acquisition and processing of analog and digital data. The main feature that distinguishes LabVIEW from other data acquisition programs is its highly modular graphical programming language, "G," and a large library of mathematical and statistical functions. The advantage of graphical programming is that the code is flexible, reusable, and self-documenting. Subroutines can be saved in a library and reused without modification in other programs. This dramatically reduces development time and enables researchers to develop or modify their own programs. LabVIEW uses a large amount of processing power and computer memory, thus requiring a powerful computer. A large-screen monitor is desirable when developing larger applications. LabVIEW is excellently suited for testing new monitoring paradigms, analysis algorithms, or user interfaces. The typical LabVIEW user is the researcher who wants to develop a new monitoring technique, a set of new (derived) variables by integrating signals from several existing patient monitors, closed-loop control of a physiological variable, or a physiological simulator.

Smoking for weight control: effect of priming for body image in female restrained eaters.

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McKee, Sherry A; Nhean, Siphannay; Hinson, Riley E; Mase, Tricia

2006-12-01

Women are more likely than men to believe that smoking helps to control their weight, and this relationship may be more pronounced in those with eating disturbances, such as eating restraint. Restrained eaters have been shown to be more susceptible to media portrayals of idealized body image, like those used in tobacco advertising. The primary aim of this study was to examine the effect of an implicit prime for body image on expectations that smoking can control weight in restrained and non-restrained eaters. Participants were 40 females, who smoked an average of 7.65 (S.D.=4.38) cigarettes per day. Participants were presented with a bogus task of rating slides; either participants viewed 30 slides of nature scenes (neutral prime); or viewed 30 slides depicting fashion models (body image prime). Participants then completed questionnaires that assessed smoking expectancies, smoking history, and eating restraint. As hypothesized, restrained eaters who viewed the slides depicting models had greater likelihood ratings that smoking helps to control appetite and manage weight, in comparison to restrained eaters who viewed the control slides and non-restrained eaters who viewed either type of slides. There were no other group differences across the remaining smoking expectancy factors. Images similar to those used in tobacco advertising targeting women had the ability to elicit stronger beliefs that smoking is beneficial for weight control in a group of women who are at heightened risk for such beliefs.

Children’s participation in Finnish pre-school education - Identifying, Describing and Documenting Children’s Participation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jonna Leinonen

2014-04-01

Full Text Available This article describes, analyzes, and evaluates children’s participatory in Finnish pre-school groups. Children’s participation is viewed in the context of the Core Curriculum for Pre-school Education in Finland (2010, in which children are considered active subjects, who interact with both other people and the environment. However, in practical data, collected via survey from pre-school educators, this ideology is restricted and the educators in pre-school groups focus on children’s participation from a narrow point of view that reflects a lack of connection between the Core Curriculum goals for pre-school education and the actual participatory practices children face.

Action Control: Independent Effects of Memory and Monocular Viewing on Reaching Accuracy

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Westwood, D.A.; Robertson, C.; Heath, M.

2005-01-01

Evidence suggests that perceptual networks in the ventral visual pathway are necessary for action control when targets are viewed with only one eye, or when the target must be stored in memory. We tested whether memory-linked (i.e., open-loop versus memory-guided actions) and monocular-linked effects (i.e., binocular versus monocular actions) on…

Self-Control of Haptic Assistance for Motor Learning: Influences of Frequency and Opinion of Utility

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Williams, Camille K.; Tseung, Victrine; Carnahan, Heather

2017-01-01

Studies of self-controlled practice have shown benefits when learners controlled feedback schedule, use of assistive devices and task difficulty, with benefits attributed to information processing and motivational advantages of self-control. Although haptic assistance serves as feedback, aids task performance and modifies task difficulty, researchers have yet to explore whether self-control over haptic assistance could be beneficial for learning. We explored whether self-control of haptic assistance would be beneficial for learning a tracing task. Self-controlled participants selected practice blocks on which they would receive haptic assistance, while participants in a yoked group received haptic assistance on blocks determined by a matched self-controlled participant. We inferred learning from performance on retention tests without haptic assistance. From qualitative analysis of open-ended questions related to rationales for/experiences of the haptic assistance that was chosen/provided, themes emerged regarding participants’ views of the utility of haptic assistance for performance and learning. Results showed that learning was directly impacted by the frequency of haptic assistance for self-controlled participants only and view of haptic assistance. Furthermore, self-controlled participants’ views were significantly associated with their requested haptic assistance frequency. We discuss these findings as further support for the beneficial role of self-controlled practice for motor learning. PMID:29255438

Art participation for psychosocial wellbeing during stroke rehabilitation: a feasibility randomised controlled trial.

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Morris, Jacqui H; Kelly, Chris; Joice, Sara; Kroll, Thilo; Mead, Gillian; Donnan, Peter; Toma, Madalina; Williams, Brian

2017-08-30

To examine the feasibility of undertaking a pragmatic single-blind randomised controlled trial (RCT) of a visual arts participation programme to evaluate effects on survivor wellbeing within stroke rehabilitation. Stroke survivors receiving in-patient rehabilitation were randomised to receive eight art participation sessions (n = 41) or usual care (n = 40). Recruitment, retention, preference for art participation and change in selected outcomes were evaluated at end of intervention outcome assessment and three-month follow-up. Of 315 potentially eligible participants 81 (29%) were recruited. 88% (n = 71) completed outcome and 77% (n = 62) follow-up assessments. Of eight intervention group non-completers, six had no preference for art participation. Outcome completion varied between 97% and 77%. Running groups was difficult because of randomisation timing. Effectiveness cannot be determined from this feasibility study but effects sizes suggested art participation may benefit emotional wellbeing, measured on the positive and negative affect schedule, and self-efficacy for Art (d = 0.24-0.42). Undertaking a RCT of art participation within stroke rehabilitation was feasible. Art participation may enhance self-efficacy and positively influence emotional wellbeing. These should be outcomes in a future definitive trial. A cluster RCT would ensure art groups could be reliably convened. Fewer measures, and better retention strategies are required. Implications for Rehabilitation This feasibility randomised controlled trial (RCT) showed that recruiting and retaining stroke survivors in an RCT of a visual arts participation intervention within stroke rehabilitation was feasible. Preference to participate in art activities may influence recruitment and drop-out rates, and should be addressed and evaluated fully. Art participation as part of rehabilitation may improve some aspects of post-stroke wellbeing, including positive affect and self-efficacy for art

Participation in the workforce after a traumatic brain injury: a matter of control.

Science.gov (United States)

Johansson, Annica E M; Haugstad, Tor; Berg, Marie; Johansson, Ulla

2016-01-01

This study sought to explore individual experience in developing a mastery of daily activities and roles after a traumatic brain injury (TBI) with the objective of returning to work. Eight 30-60-year-old men, employed at the time of injury, were each interviewed three times over a 6-month period. Ten to 21 months after the injuries, four participants had returned to work at least part time. Grounded theory was adapted for analyses. A single core category emerged: a desire for control: focusing on high-priority issues. Still, 2 years after injury, the participants were uncertain about their abilities with respect to what was expected of them at work. They felt they would do better as time progressed. The participants' uncertainty about their efficacy cast doubt on their beliefs in improving their skills, balancing daily activities and work. They wondered about the sustainability of their health and efficacy at work. Wanting to control their own improvement, the participants asked for counselling in strategies and techniques to help with their progress. This issue could be taken into account in follow-up rehabilitation programmes. Additionally, the workplace might be the ideal context in which to develop the structures and routines necessary to master life in general. Two years after injury, the participants remained uncertain about their abilities with respect to what was expected of them at work. The participants felt they would do better as time progressed. The participants, wanting to control their own improvement, sought counselling to help sort out their priorities and found it could contribute to help with their progress in finding a suitable balance between daily activities and work. A consequence of our main finding, in a multidisciplinary context, is that counselling in structures and routines with respect to work-related tasks should be considered to be an integral part of any rehabilitation programme after TBI.

The role of community participation in the control of bird hazards at ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... of measures to prevent bird hazards from occurring. One of the most important methods of bird hazard control involves participation of local communities around the airport. This paper illustrates the different ways in which the airport works with the community to control bird collisions with aircraft at Entebbe International ...

Leisure Sport Participation in Cyprus

OpenAIRE

Nicos Kartakoullis; Evan Webb; George Karlis; Stavros Pouloukas; Christina Loizou

2015-01-01

This study contributes to the limited existing research on the participation patterns of Cypriots in leisure and sports. Leisure and sport are viewed collectively while adapting the notion put forth by The Council of Europe (2007) defining leisure sports as sports activities aimed at the preservation and improvement of physical condition, health and fun. The purpose of this paper is to examine the leisure sport participation patterns of Cypriots, specifically: (1) participation patterns in le...

Japanese views on ASSET

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hirano, M [Department of Reactor Safety Research, Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst. (Japan)

1997-10-01

The presentation briefly reviews the following aspects directed to ensuring NPP safety: Japanese participation in ASSET activities; views to ASSET activities; recent operating experience in Japan; future ASSET activities.

Japanese views on ASSET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirano, M.

1997-01-01

The presentation briefly reviews the following aspects directed to ensuring NPP safety: Japanese participation in ASSET activities; views to ASSET activities; recent operating experience in Japan; future ASSET activities

Impact of Viewing vs. Not Viewing a Real Forest on Physiological and Psychological Responses in the Same Setting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masahiro Horiuchi

2014-10-01

Full Text Available We investigated the impact of viewing versus not viewing a real forest on human subjects’ physiological and psychological responses in the same setting. Fifteen healthy volunteers (11 males, four females, mean age 36 years participated. Each participant was asked to view a forest while seated in a comfortable chair for 15 min (Forest condition vs. sitting the same length of time with a curtain obscuring the forest view (Enclosed condition. Both conditions significantly decreased blood pressure (BP variables, i.e., systolic BP, diastolic BP, and mean arterial pressure between pre and post experimental stimuli, but these reductions showed no difference between conditions. Interestingly, the Forest viewing reduced cerebral oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO2 assessed by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS and improved the subjects’ Profile of Mood States (POMS scores, whereas the Enclosed condition increased the HbO2 and did not affect the POMS scores. There were no significant differences in saliva amylase or heart rate variability (HRV between the two conditions. Collectively, these results suggest that viewing a real forest may have a positive effect on cerebral activity and psychological responses. However, both viewing and not viewing the forest had similar effects on cardiovascular responses such as BP variables and HRV.

A conceptual view data model of a distributed control and monitoring system for a nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fennern, L.E.

1987-01-01

Three views of data are possible: the conceptual view, a superset of what is sometimes termed the global schema, which describes data as it exists in the plant; the logical view, a superset of what is sometimes termed the external schema, which describes the view of data required by applications; and the storage view, a superset of what is sometimes termed the internal schema, which describes how the data elements are represented in a database management system. Through careful attention to data base management, closer consistency between these three views of data can be achieved. Such consistency is desirable, in order to fully realize the potential for greater data accessibility and improved plant availability made possible through application of digital microelectronic and optical data transmission technologies which have been proposed for distributed control and monitoring systems of some advanced nuclear power plants

Using The Obser-view In Qualitative Research: Benefits And Challenges

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kragelund, Linda; Moser, Albine; van Zadelhoff, Ezra

2015-01-01

The obser-view is a method to generate data and a learning space for both researcher and participants in qualitative research. It includes reflection between researcher and participant just after the researcher has observed the participant. Developed during a project about student nurses' learning...... processes in interaction with psychiatric patients, it can and has been used in several disparate research projects. The aim of this article is to reveal the benefits and challenges encountered when using the obser-view in two very different qualitative research projects. In a Dutch project where the aim....... A challenge of the obser-view is for the researcher to get the best opportunity to reflect with the participants, which is more likely to be successful if the two of them have had time to develop a trusting relationship. Even though the obser-view is still a novel method to generate data in qualitative...

Improving participation rates by providing choice of participation mode: two randomized controlled trials

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Heijmans, N.; Lieshout, J. van; Wensing, M.J.

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND: Low participation rates reduce effective sample size, statistical power and can increase risk for selection bias. Previous research suggests that offering choice of participation mode can improve participation rates. However, few head-to-head trials compared choice of participation mode

A Case Study of Framing and Project Design Impacts on Participant Identity, Views, and Trust of Science in a Phenology Public Participatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

Sorensen, A. E.; Jordan, R.

2016-12-01

Recent literature has suggested public participatory research models (e.g., citizen science and similar) as a key opportunity for scientists to meaningfully engage and communicate with the public to increase support for science and encourage pro-science behavior. In this, there has been an inherent assumption that all models of engagement yield similar participant results with few examples of assessment of these programs. While many of these programs do share superficial similarities in their modes of participant engagement and participant motivation, there is a large disparity in participant engagement between them. This disparity suggests that framing of these projects (e.g., citizen science versus crowd sourcing) also plays an important role in decisions about participation. Additionally, participant outcomes, in terms of beliefs about scientific practices and scientific trust, between these two project types has not yet been investigated. To investigate the impact of framing, participants were recruited to a web-based tree phenology public participatory research program where half the participants were engaged in a citizen science framed program and the other were engaged in a crowdsourced framed project. The participants in each frame were engaged in the same task (reporting leaf budding/leaf drop), but the way the projects were framed differed. Post-participation we see that there are indeed statistically significant differences in participant outcomes between individuals who participated as a citizen scientist versus as a crowdsourcer. Particularly we see differences in terms of their views of science, identity, and trust of science. This work is the first to the authors' knowledge that aims to evaluate if projects can be treated synonymously when discussing potential for public engagement and broader trust and literacy outcomes.

Quality control in public participation assessments of water quality: the OPAL Water Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Rose, N L; Turner, S D; Goldsmith, B; Gosling, L; Davidson, T A

2016-07-22

Public participation in scientific data collection is a rapidly expanding field. In water quality surveys, the involvement of the public, usually as trained volunteers, generally includes the identification of aquatic invertebrates to a broad taxonomic level. However, quality assurance is often not addressed and remains a key concern for the acceptance of publicly-generated water quality data. The Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) Water Survey, launched in May 2010, aimed to encourage interest and participation in water science by developing a 'low-barrier-to-entry' water quality survey. During 2010, over 3000 participant-selected lakes and ponds were surveyed making this the largest public participation lake and pond survey undertaken to date in the UK. But the OPAL approach of using untrained volunteers and largely anonymous data submission exacerbates quality control concerns. A number of approaches were used in order to address data quality issues including: sensitivity analysis to determine differences due to operator, sampling effort and duration; direct comparisons of identification between participants and experienced scientists; the use of a self-assessment identification quiz; the use of multiple participant surveys to assess data variability at single sites over short periods of time; comparison of survey techniques with other measurement variables and with other metrics generally considered more accurate. These quality control approaches were then used to screen the OPAL Water Survey data to generate a more robust dataset. The OPAL Water Survey results provide a regional and national assessment of water quality as well as a first national picture of water clarity (as suspended solids concentrations). Less than 10 % of lakes and ponds surveyed were 'poor' quality while 26.8 % were in the highest water quality band. It is likely that there will always be a question mark over untrained volunteer generated data simply because quality assurance is uncertain

Brain responses to sound intensity changes dissociate depressed participants and healthy controls.

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Ruohonen, Elisa M; Astikainen, Piia

2017-07-01

Depression is associated with bias in emotional information processing, but less is known about the processing of neutral sensory stimuli. Of particular interest is processing of sound intensity which is suggested to indicate central serotonergic function. We tested weather event-related brain potentials (ERPs) to occasional changes in sound intensity can dissociate first-episode depressed, recurrent depressed and healthy control participants. The first-episode depressed showed larger N1 amplitude to deviant sounds compared to recurrent depression group and control participants. In addition, both depression groups, but not the control group, showed larger N1 amplitude to deviant than standard sounds. Whether these manifestations of sensory over-excitability in depression are directly related to the serotonergic neurotransmission requires further research. The method based on ERPs to sound intensity change is fast and low-cost way to objectively measure brain activation and holds promise as a future diagnostic tool. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Relationship of Personality and Locus of Control With Employment Outcomes among Participants with Spinal Cord Injury

Science.gov (United States)

Krause, James S.; Broderick, Lynne

2006-01-01

We investigated relationships among personality, locus of control, and current post-injury employment status for 1,391 participants with spinal cord injury. Participants with higher internality locus-of-control scores and activity scores (personality) reported more favorable employment outcomes. Higher scores on chance and powerful others (locus…

Constructing a LabVIEW-Controlled High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) System: An Undergraduate Instrumental Methods Exercise

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Eugene T.; Hill, Marc

2011-01-01

In this laboratory exercise, students develop a LabVIEW-controlled high-performance liquid chromatography system utilizing a data acquisition device, two pumps, a detector, and fraction collector. The programming experience involves a variety of methods for interface communication, including serial control, analog-to-digital conversion, and…

Blood Pressure Treatment Adherence and Control after Participation in the ReHOT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nathália Silva de Jesus

Full Text Available Abstract Background: Lack of adherence to pharmacological treatment is one of the main causes of low control rates in hypertension. Objective: To verify treatment adherence and associated factors, as well as blood pressure (BP control in participants of the Resistant Hypertension Optimal Treatment (ReHOT clinical trial. Method: Cross-sectional study including all 109 patients who had completed the ReHOT for at least 6 months. We excluded those participants who failed to respond to the new recruitment after three phone contact attempts. We evaluated the BP control by ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM; controlled levels: 24-hour systolic and diastolic BP < 130 x 80 mmHg and analyzed the patients' treatment adherence using the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS questionnaire validated by Bloch, Melo, and Nogueira (2008. The statistical analysis was performed with the software IBM SPSS statistics 21.0. We tested the normality of the data distribution with kurtosis and skewness. The variables tested in the study are presented with descriptive statistics. Comparisons between treatment adherence and other variables were performed with Student's t test for independent variables and Pearson's chi-square or Fisher's exact test. To conduct analyses among patients considering adherence to treatment and BP control, we created four groups: G0, G1, G2, and G3. We considered a 5% significance level in all tests. Results: During the ReHOT, 80% of the patients had good BP control and treatment adherence. Of 96 patients reevaluated in the present study, only 52.1% had controlled hypertension when assessed by ABPM, while 31.3% were considered adherent by the MMAS. Regarding other ABPM measures, we observed an absence of a nocturnal dip in 64.6% of the patients and a white-coat effect and false BP control in 23% and 12.5%, respectively. Patients' education level showed a trend towards being a determinant factor associated with lack of adherence (p = 0

Prediction of Children's Academic Competence from Their Effortful Control, Relationships, and Classroom Participation

Science.gov (United States)

Valiente, Carlos; Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn; Swanson, Jodi; Reiser, Mark

2008-01-01

The authors examined the relations among children's effortful control, school relationships, classroom participation, and academic competence with a sample of 7- to 12-year-old children (N = 264). Parents and children reported on children's effortful control, and teachers and children reported on children's school relationships and classroom…

The Yazd People’s Point of View about Effect of Visual Media on Smoking Prevalence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Hossein Baghianimoghadam

2013-10-01

Results: Based on participants' view role of family, friends and media respectively were more important in tendency of teenagers and adolescents smoking users. Almost 80 percent of subjects showed that influence of smoking in the media on a positive attitude towards tobacco smoking among adolescents and young people was very high. More than 55% of participants confirmed that the lack of smoking in movies is not effective in quality of the films. It was also confirmed, that in last month advertisements and anti-smoking programs were not seen by participants. Conclusion: The present study suggest control and monitoring on media, limitation or lack of smoking on media and films is an important factor to decreasing and control of smoking in adolescents and young adults.

Can a documentary increase help-seeking intentions in men? A randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

King, Kylie Elizabeth; Schlichthorst, Marisa; Spittal, Matthew J; Phelps, Andrea; Pirkis, Jane

2018-01-01

We investigated whether a public health intervention-a three-part documentary called Man Up which explored the relationship between masculinity and mental health, well-being and suicidality-could increase men's intentions to seek help for personal and emotional problems. We recruited men aged 18 years or over who were not at risk of suicide to participate in a double-blind randomised controlled trial. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) via computer randomisation to view Man Up (the intervention) or a control documentary. We hypothesised that 4 weeks after viewing Man Up participants would report higher levels of intention to seek help than those who viewed the control documentary. Our primary outcome was assessed using the General Help Seeking Questionnaire, and was analysed for all participants. The trial was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12616001169437, Universal Trial Number: U1111-1186-1459) and was funded by the Movember Foundation. Three hundred and fifty-four men were assessed for eligibility for the trial and randomised to view Man Up or the control documentary. Of these, 337 completed all stages (nine participants were lost to follow-up in the intervention group and eight in the control group). Linear regression analysis showed a significant increase in intentions to seek help in the intervention group, but not in the control group (coef.=2.06, 95% CI 0.48 to 3.63, P=0.01). Our trial demonstrates the potential for men's health outcomes to be positively impacted by novel, media-based public health interventions that focus on traditional masculinity. ACTRN12616001169437, Results. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Effects of the feeling of invulnerability and the feeling of control on motivation to participate in experience-based analysis, by type of risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Mbaye, Safiétou; Kouabenan, Dongo Rémi

2013-03-01

Experience-based analysis (EBA) refers to a set of safety-management practices consisting of detecting, analyzing, and correcting the individual, material, and organizational causal factors of accidents in order to prevent their reoccurrence. Unfortunately, these practices do not always garner the adherence of employees. This article presents a study that examines the impact of risk perceptions on agents' motivation to participate in EBA in various production sectors. The study was conducted at two sites, a chemical factory and a nuclear power plant, by means of a questionnaire administered to 302 employees. The results indicated that the feeling of control was not only positively linked to the feeling of invulnerability, but that these two factors were negatively linked to risk perception. In addition, the actors in both production sectors were more motivated to participate in EBA of accidents linked to the core processes of their industry (which were more accurately perceived) than in EBA of ordinary accidents (accidents not specific to chemical or nuclear processes). Moreover, the agents' feeling of invulnerability and feeling of control both reduced EBA motivation for ordinary accidents to a greater extent than for chemical and radiation-related accidents. Recommendations are made in view of encouraging agents to get more involved in EBA. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Virtual Reality to control active participation in a subacute stroke patient during robot-assisted gait training.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergmann, J; Krewer, C; Müller, F; Koenig, A; Riener, R

2011-01-01

Virtual Reality (VR) provides a promising medium to enrich robot assisted rehabilitation. VR applications present the opportunity to engage patients in therapy and control participation. The aim of this study was to investigate two strategies to control active participation of a stroke patient focusing on the involvement of the paretic leg in task solution. A subacute stroke patient with a severe hemiparesis performed two experiments on the driven gait orthosis Lokomat. Patient activity was quantified by weighted interaction torques measured in both legs (experiment A) and the paretic leg only (experiment B). The patient was able to successfully implement both the bilateral and unilateral control modality. Both control modes increased the motor output of the paretic leg, however the paretic leg control mode resulted in a much more differentiated regulation of the activity in the leg. Both control modes are appropriate approaches to enhance active participation and increase motor output in the paretic leg. Further research should evaluate the therapeutic benefit of patients with hemiparesis using the unilateral control mode depending on the severity of their impairment. © 2011 IEEE

Cruel intentions on television and in real life: can viewing indirect aggression increase viewers' subsequent indirect aggression?

Science.gov (United States)

Coyne, Sarah M; Archer, John; Eslea, Mike

2004-07-01

Numerous studies have shown that viewing violence in the media can influence an individual's subsequent aggression, but none have examined the effect of viewing indirect aggression. This study examines the immediate effect of viewing indirect and direct aggression on subsequent indirect aggression among 199 children ages 11 to 14 years. They were shown an indirect, direct, or no-aggression video and their subsequent indirect aggression was measured by negative evaluation of a confederate and responses to a vignette. Participants viewing indirect or direct aggression gave a more negative evaluation of and less money to a confederate than participants viewing no-aggression. Participants viewing indirect aggression gave less money to the confederate than those viewing direct aggression. Participants viewing indirect aggression gave more indirectly aggressive responses to an ambiguous situation and participants viewing direct aggression gave more directly aggressive responses. This study provides the first evidence that viewing indirect aggression in the media can have an immediate impact on subsequent aggression.

Benefits and Limitations of Text Messages to Stimulate Higher Learning Among Community Providers: Participants' Views of an mHealth Intervention to Support Continuing Medical Education in Vietnam.

Science.gov (United States)

Sabin, Lora L; Larson Williams, Anna; Le, Bao Ngoc; Herman, Augusta R; Viet Nguyen, Ha; Albanese, Rebecca R; Xiong, Wenjun; Shobiye, Hezekiah Oa; Halim, Nafisa; Tran, Lien Thi Ngoc; McNabb, Marion; Hoang, Hai; Falconer, Ariel; Nguyen, Tam Thi Thanh; Gill, Christopher J

2017-06-27

A randomized controlled trial was conducted in 2015 to evaluate a mobile continuing medical education (mCME) intervention that provided daily text messages to community-based physicians' assistants (CBPAs) in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam. Although the intervention failed to improve medical knowledge over a 6-month period, a companion qualitative study provided insights on the views and experiences of intervention participants. We conducted focus group discussions (FGDs) and in-depth interviews (IDIs) among participants randomized to receive text messages containing either simple medical facts or quiz questions. Trained interviewers collected data immediately following the conclusion of the trial in December 2015. Using semi-structured question guides, respondents were queried on their views of the intervention, positive and negative, and perceived impacts of the intervention. During analysis, after learning that the intervention had failed to increase knowledge among participants, we also examined reasons for lack of improvement in medical knowledge. All analyses were performed in NVivo using a thematic approach. A total of 70 CBPAs engaged in one of 8 FGDs or an IDI. One-half were men; average age among all respondents was 40 years. Most (81%) practiced in rural settings and most (51%) focused on general medicine. The mean length of work experience was 3 years. All respondents made positive comments about the intervention; convenience, relevance, and quick feedback (quiz format) were praised. Downsides encompassed lack of depth of information, weak interaction, technology challenges, and challenging/irrelevant messages. Respondents described perceived impacts encompassing increased motivation, knowledge, collegial discussions, Internet use to search for more information, and clinical skills. Overall, they expressed a desire for the intervention to continue and recommended expansion to other medical professionals. Overreliance on the text messages, lack of

Do nutrition labels influence healthier food choices? Analysis of label viewing behaviour and subsequent food purchases in a labelling intervention trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Ni Mhurchu, Cliona; Eyles, Helen; Jiang, Yannan; Blakely, Tony

2018-02-01

There are few objective data on how nutrition labels are used in real-world shopping situations, or how they affect dietary choices and patterns. The Starlight study was a four-week randomised, controlled trial of the effects of three different types of nutrition labels on consumer food purchases: Traffic Light Labels, Health Star Rating labels, or Nutrition Information Panels (control). Smartphone technology allowed participants to scan barcodes of packaged foods and receive randomly allocated labels on their phone screen, and to record their food purchases. The study app therefore provided objectively recorded data on label viewing behaviour and food purchases over a four-week period. A post-hoc analysis of trial data was undertaken to assess frequency of label use, label use by food group, and association between label use and the healthiness of packaged food products purchased. Over the four-week intervention, study participants (n = 1255) viewed nutrition labels for and/or purchased 66,915 barcoded packaged products. Labels were viewed for 23% of all purchased products, with decreasing frequency over time. Shoppers were most likely to view labels for convenience foods, cereals, snack foods, bread and bakery products, and oils. They were least likely to view labels for sugar and honey products, eggs, fish, fruit and vegetables, and meat. Products for which participants viewed the label and subsequently purchased the product during the same shopping episode were significantly healthier than products where labels were viewed but the product was not subsequently purchased: mean difference in nutrient profile score -0.90 (95% CI -1.54 to -0.26). In a secondary analysis of a nutrition labelling intervention trial, there was a significant association between label use and the healthiness of products purchased. Nutrition label use may therefore lead to healthier food purchases. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Participants' Understanding of Informed Consent in a Randomized Controlled Trial for Chronic Knee Pain.

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Guillemin, Marilys; Barnard, Emma; Walker, Hannah; Bennell, Kim; Hinman, Rana; Gillam, Lynn

2015-12-01

This study explored participants' experiences of randomized controlled trial (RCT) participation to examine their understanding of the trial design and whether their consent was indeed informed. A nested qualitative interview study was conducted with 38 participants from a sample of 282 who participated in a complex RCT evaluating the effectiveness of laser compared with needle acupuncture for chronic knee pain. Overall participants had a good understanding of the RCT, and concepts such as randomization and placebo. Their experiences of being in the trial were largely positive, even if they did not experience any knee pain improvement. Their responses to unblinding at the end of the study were accepting. Participants had a good functional understanding of the RCT, sufficient for valid informed consent. © The Author(s) 2015.

The control and data acquisition system of a laser in-vessel viewing system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pereira, Rita C.; Cruz, Nuno; Neri, C.; Riva, M.; Correia, C.; Varandas, C.A.F.

2000-01-01

This paper presents the dedicated control and data acquisition system (CADAS) of a new laser in-vessel viewing system that has been developed for inspection purposes in fusion experiments. CADAS is based on a MC68060 microprocessor and on-site developed VME instrumentation. Its main aims are to simultaneously control the laser alignment system as well as the laser beam deflection for in-vessel scanning, acquire a high-resolution image and support real-time data flow rates up to 2 Mbyte/s from the acquisition modules to the hard disk and network. The hardware (modules for control and alignment acquisition, scanning acquisition and monitoring) as well as the three levels of software are described

Two controlled trials to increase participant retention in a randomized controlled trial of mobile phone-based smoking cessation support in the United Kingdom.

Science.gov (United States)

Severi, Ettore; Free, Caroline; Knight, Rosemary; Robertson, Steven; Edwards, Philip; Hoile, Elizabeth

2011-10-01

Loss to follow-up of trial participants represents a threat to research validity. To date, interventions designed to increase participants' awareness of benefits to society of completing follow-up, and the impact of a telephone call from a senior female clinician and researcher requesting follow-up have not been evaluated robustly. Trial 1 aimed to evaluate the effect on trial follow-up of written information regarding the benefits of participation to society. Trial 2 aimed to evaluate the effect on trial follow-up of a telephone call from a senior female clinician and researcher. Two single-blind randomized controlled trials were nested within a larger trial, Txt2stop. In Trial 1, participants were allocated using minimization to receive a refrigerator magnet and a text message emphasizing the benefits to society of completing follow-up, or to a control group receiving a simple reminder regarding follow-up. In Trial 2, participants were randomly allocated to receive a telephone call from a senior female clinician and researcher, or to a control group receiving standard Txt2stop follow-up procedures. Trial 1: 33.5% (327 of 976) of the intervention group and 33.8% (329 of 974) of the control group returned the questionnaire within 26 weeks of randomization, risk ratio (RR) 0.99; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.88-1.12. In all, 83.3% (813 of 976) of the intervention group and 82.2% (801 of/974) of the control group sent back the questionnaire within 30 weeks of randomization, RR 1.01; 95% CI 0.97, 1.05. Trial 2: 31% (20 of 65) of the intervention group and 32% (20 of 62) of the control group completed trial follow-up, RR 0.93; 95%CI 0.44, 1.98. In presence of other methods to increase follow-up neither experimental method (refrigerator magnet and text message emphasizing participation's benefits to society nor a telephone call from study's principal investigator) increased participant follow-up in the Txt2stop trial.

A randomized, controlled trial of team-based competition to increase learner participation in quality-improvement education.

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Scales, Charles D; Moin, Tannaz; Fink, Arlene; Berry, Sandra H; Afsar-Manesh, Nasim; Mangione, Carol M; Kerfoot, B Price

2016-04-01

Several barriers challenge resident engagement in learning quality improvement (QI). We investigated whether the incorporation of team-based game mechanics into an evidence-based online learning platform could increase resident participation in a QI curriculum. Randomized, controlled trial. Tertiary-care medical center residency training programs. Resident physicians (n = 422) from nine training programs (anesthesia, emergency medicine, family medicine, internal medicine, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pediatrics, psychiatry and general surgery) randomly allocated to a team competition environment (n = 200) or the control group (n = 222). Specialty-based team assignment with leaderboards to foster competition, and alias assignment to de-identify individual participants. Participation in online learning, as measured by percentage of questions attempted (primary outcome) and additional secondary measures of engagement (i.e. response time). Changes in participation measures over time between groups were assessed with a repeated measures ANOVA framework. Residents in the intervention arm demonstrated greater participation than the control group. The percentage of questions attempted at least once was greater in the competition group (79% [SD ± 32] versus control, 68% [SD ± 37], P= 0.03). Median response time was faster in the competition group (P= 0.006). Differences in participation continued to increase over the duration of the intervention, as measured by average response time and cumulative percent of questions attempted (each Ponline course delivering QI content. Medical educators should consider game mechanics to optimize participation when designing learning experiences. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care 2016. This work is written by (a) US Government employee(s) and is in the public domain in the US.

Microfinance Participation, Control Over Resources, and Justification of IPV: Results From a Nationally Representative Sample of Women.

Science.gov (United States)

Murshid, Nadine Shaanta

2016-04-13

A high percentage of men and women are purported to justify intimate partner violence (IPV) in countries that are steeped in patriarchy even in the presence of programs such as microfinance that aim to address gender equity. This article examines two assertions that emerge from the literature on microfinance and its potential for positive outcomes for women who participate in it: (a) Microfinance participation is associated with reduced justification of IPV, and (b) microfinance participants with control over their own resources are less likely to justify IPV when compared with microfinance participants who do not have control over their resources. Couples data from a nationally representative survey, the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey, were used in the present study. Propensity score matching and logistic regression analyses were conducted to reveal that (a) microfinance participation was not associated with justification of IPV and that (b) women who participated in microfinance were less likely to justify IPV when they had no control over their resources. Implications for practitioners and policymakers are discussed. © The Author(s) 2016.

Effects of affective picture viewing on postural control

OpenAIRE

Stins, John F; Beek, Peter J

2007-01-01

Abstract Background Emotion theory holds that unpleasant events prime withdrawal actions, whereas pleasant events prime approach actions. Recent studies have suggested that passive viewing of emotion eliciting images results in postural adjustments, which become manifest as changes in body center of pressure (COP) trajectories. From those studies it appears that posture is modulated most when viewing pictures with negative valence. The present experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis t...

42 CFR 489.34 - Allowable charges: Hospitals participating in State reimbursement control systems or...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... reimbursement control systems or demonstration projects. 489.34 Section 489.34 Public Health CENTERS FOR... CERTIFICATION PROVIDER AGREEMENTS AND SUPPLIER APPROVAL Allowable Charges § 489.34 Allowable charges: Hospitals participating in State reimbursement control systems or demonstration projects. A hospital receiving payment for...

A descriptive study of medical educators' views of problem-based learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dennick Reg

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background There is a growing amount of literature on the benefits and drawbacks of Problem-Based Learning (PBL compared to conventional curricula. However, it seems that PBL research studies do not provide information rigorously and formally that can contribute to making evidence-based medical education decisions. The authors performed an investigation aimed at medical education scholars around the question, "What are the views of medical educators concerning the PBL approach?" Methods After framing the question, the method of data collection relied on asking medical educators to report their views on PBL. Two methods were used for collecting data: the questionnaire survey and an online discussion forum. Results The descriptive analysis of the study showed that many participants value the PBL approach in the practice and training of doctors. However, some participants hold contrasting views upon the importance of the PBL approach in basic medical education. For example, more than a third of participants (38.5% had a neutral stance on PBL as a student-oriented educational approach. The same proportion of participants also had a neutral view of the efficiency of traditional learning compared to a PBL tutorial. The open-ended question explored the importance of faculty development in PBL. A few participants had negative perceptions of the epistemological assumptions of PBL. Two themes emerged from the analysis of the forum repliers: the importance of the faculty role and self-managed education. Conclusion Whilst many participants valued the importance of the PBL approach in the practice and training of doctors and agreed with most of the conventional descriptions of PBL, some participants held contrasting views on the importance of the PBL approach in undergraduate medical education. However there was a strong view concerning the importance of facilitator training. More research is needed to understand the process of PBL better.

Participation in a National Lifestyle Change Program is associated with improved diabetes Control outcomes.

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Jackson, Sandra L; Staimez, Lisa R; Safo, Sandra; Long, Qi; Rhee, Mary K; Cunningham, Solveig A; Olson, Darin E; Tomolo, Anne M; Ramakrishnan, Usha; Narayan, Venkat K M; Phillips, Lawrence S

2017-09-01

Clinical trials show lifestyle change programs are beneficial, yet large-scale, successful translation of these programs is scarce. We investigated the association between participation in the largest U.S. lifestyle change program, MOVE!, and diabetes control outcomes. This longitudinal, retrospective cohort study used Veterans Health Administration databases of patients with diabetes who participated in MOVE! between 2005 and 2012, or met eligibility criteria (BMI ≥25kg/m 2 ) but did not participate. Main outcomes were diabetic eye disease, renal disease, and medication intensification. There were 400,170 eligible patients with diabetes, including 87,366 (22%) MOVE! Included patients were 96% male, 77% white, with mean age 58years and BMI 34kg/m 2 . Controlling for baseline measurements and age, race, sex, BMI, and antidiabetes medications, MOVE! participants had lower body weight (-0.6kg), random plasma glucose (-2.8mg/dL), and HbA1c (-0.1%) at 12months compared to nonparticipants (each plifestyle change programs in U.S. health systems may improve health among the growing patient population with diabetes. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Distributed energy resources and control: A power system point of view

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gehrke, O.; Ropenus, S.; Venne, P.

2007-05-15

The power grid is currently facing tremendous changes in the way the energy is produced, transmitted and consumed. The increasing number of actors and the demand for more and more complex services to be provided by the grid exceed the capabilities of today's control systems. This paper gives an overview of the changes that the power system is undergoing and how these affect the aspects of communication, ancillary services, demand response, the role of the control room and market participation. (au)

Participation under Uncertainty

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boudourides, Moses A.

2003-01-01

This essay reviews a number of theoretical perspectives about uncertainty and participation in the present-day knowledge-based society. After discussing the on-going reconfigurations of science, technology and society, we examine how appropriate for policy studies are various theories of social complexity. Post-normal science is such an example of a complexity-motivated approach, which justifies civic participation as a policy response to an increasing uncertainty. But there are different categories and models of uncertainties implying a variety of configurations of policy processes. A particular role in all of them is played by expertise whose democratization is an often-claimed imperative nowadays. Moreover, we discuss how different participatory arrangements are shaped into instruments of policy-making and framing regulatory processes. As participation necessitates and triggers deliberation, we proceed to examine the role and the barriers of deliberativeness. Finally, we conclude by referring to some critical views about the ultimate assumptions of recent European policy frameworks and the conceptions of civic participation and politicization that they invoke

Pharmacists' views on involvement in pharmacy practice research: Strategies for facilitating participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Armour, Carol; Brillant, Martha; Krass, Ines

2007-01-01

In order for community pharmacy practice to continue to evolve, pharmacy practice research on potential new services is essential. This requires the active participation of community pharmacists. At present the level of involvement of community pharmacists in pharmacy practice research is minimal. To ascertain the attitudes of a group of research-experienced community pharmacists towards participating in research; to investigate the barriers and facilitators to participation; to identify potential strategies to increase the involvement of community pharmacists in research. A focus group was conducted with a purposive sample of 11 research-experienced community pharmacists. A pharmacist academic moderated the focus group using a semi-structured interview guide. The participants were asked about their attitudes towards research, previous involvement in research, barriers to their involvement and strategies to overcome these barriers. The session was audio-taped and notes were taken by an observer. Thematic analysis of the notes and audio-tape transcripts was conducted. Three themes emerged around pharmacists' attitudes towards research: pharmacists' perception of the purpose of research, pharmacists' motivation for involvement in research, and pharmacists' desired role in research. Barriers to research participation were grouped into four themes: pharmacists' mindset, communication, infrastructure (time, money and staff), and skills/knowledge. Strategies to address each of these barriers were suggested. Participants recognised the importance of research towards advancing their profession and this was a motivating factor for involvement in research. They perceived their role in research primarily as data collection. A series of practical strategies to overcome the barriers to participation were offered that researchers may wish to consider when promoting research outcomes and designing research projects.

Pharmacists’ views on involvement in pharmacy practice research: Strategies for facilitating participation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Armour C

2007-06-01

Full Text Available In order for community pharmacy practice to continue to evolve, pharmacy practice research on potential new services is essential. This requires the active participation of community pharmacists. At present the level of involvement of community pharmacists in pharmacy practice research is minimal. Objectives: To ascertain the attitudes of a group of research-experienced community pharmacists towards participating in research; to investigate the barriers and facilitators to participation; to identify potential strategies to increase the involvement of community pharmacists in research. Methods: A focus group was conducted with a purposive sample of 11 research-experienced community pharmacists. A pharmacist academic moderated the focus group using a semi-structured interview guide. The participants were asked about their attitudes towards research, previous involvement in research, barriers to their involvement and strategies to overcome these barriers. The session was audio-taped and notes were taken by an observer. Thematic analysis of the notes and audio-tape transcripts was conducted.Results: Three themes emerged around pharmacists’ attitudes towards research: pharmacists’ perception of the purpose of research, pharmacists’ motivation for involvement in research, and pharmacists’ desired role in research. Barriers to research participation were grouped into four themes: pharmacists’ mindset, communication, infrastructure (time, money and staff, and skills/knowledge. Strategies to address each of these barriers were suggested.Conclusions: Participants recognised the importance of research towards advancing their profession and this was a motivating factor for involvement in research. They perceived their role in research primarily as data collection. A series of practical strategies to overcome the barriers to participation were offered that researchers may wish to consider when promoting research outcomes and designing research

Acceptance and commitment therapy as a treatment for problematic internet pornography viewing.

Science.gov (United States)

Twohig, Michael P; Crosby, Jesse M

2010-09-01

Despite the prevalence of problematic Internet pornography viewing and the breadth of intervention approaches to potentially address it, no studies to address this problem have been reported to date. An emerging treatment approach, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), holds promise as a treatment for Internet pornography viewing because of its focus on processes hypothesized to underlie this maladaptive behavior. In the first experiment on the treatment of problematic Internet pornography viewing, 6 adult males who reported that their Internet pornography viewing was affecting their quality of life were treated in eight 1.5-hour sessions of ACT for problematic pornography viewing. The effects of the intervention were assessed in a multiple-baseline-across-participants design with time viewing pornography as the dependent variable. Treatment resulted in an 85% reduction in viewing at posttreatment with results being maintained at 3-month follow-up (83% reduction). Increases were seen on measures of quality of life, and reductions were seen on measures of OCD and scrupulosity. Weekly measures of ACT-consistent processes showed reductions that corresponded with reductions in viewing. Large reductions were seen on a measure of psychological flexibility, and minor reductions were seen on measures of thought-action fusion and thought control. Overall, results suggest the promise of ACT as a treatment for problematic Internet pornography viewing and the value of future randomized trials of this approach.

The association of parent's outcome expectations for child TV viewing with parenting practices and child TV viewing: an examination using path analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Lauren; Chen, Tzu-An; Hughes, Sheryl O; O'Connor, Teresia M

2015-05-28

Television (TV) viewing has been associated with many undesirable outcomes for children, such as increased risk of obesity, but TV viewing can also have benefits. Although restrictive parenting practices are effective in reducing children's TV viewing, not all parents use them and it is currently unclear why. The current study examined parenting practices related to TV viewing in the context of social- cognitive theory. Specifically, we hypothesized that positive and negative Parental Outcome Expectations for child's TV Viewing (POETV) would be associated with social co-viewing and restrictive parenting practices, and that POETV and parenting practices influence the amount of TV viewed by child. Data were collected from an internet survey of 287 multi-ethnic parents and their 6-12 year old children on participants' sociodemographic information, parenting practices related to TV use, POETV, and parent and child TV viewing. Path analysis was used to examine the relationship amongst variables in separate models for weekday and weekend TV viewing. controlling for child age, household education, and parental TV viewing. The results provided partial support for the hypotheses, with notable differences between weekday and weekend viewing. The models explained 13.6% and 23.4% of the variance in children's TV viewing on weekdays and weekends respectively. Neither positive nor negative POETV were associated with restrictive TV parenting in either model. One subscale each from positive and negative POETV were associated with social co-viewing parenting on both weekends and weekdays in the expected direction. Restrictive parenting practices were directly negatively associated with children's TV viewing on weekdays, but not weekends. Social co-viewing parenting was directly positively associated with children's TV viewing on weekends, but not weekdays. The strongest influence on children's TV viewing was having a TV in the child's bedroom. Negative POETV was weakly associated

Participant-selected music and physical activity in older adults following cardiac rehabilitation: a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Imogen N; Baker, Felicity A; Peiris, Casey L; Shoebridge, Georgie; Taylor, Nicholas F

2017-03-01

To evaluate effects of participant-selected music on older adults' achievement of activity levels recommended in the physical activity guidelines following cardiac rehabilitation. A parallel group randomized controlled trial with measurements at Weeks 0, 6 and 26. A multisite outpatient rehabilitation programme of a publicly funded metropolitan health service. Adults aged 60 years and older who had completed a cardiac rehabilitation programme. Experimental participants selected music to support walking with guidance from a music therapist. Control participants received usual care only. The primary outcome was the proportion of participants achieving activity levels recommended in physical activity guidelines. Secondary outcomes compared amounts of physical activity, exercise capacity, cardiac risk factors, and exercise self-efficacy. A total of 56 participants, mean age 68.2 years (SD = 6.5), were randomized to the experimental ( n = 28) and control groups ( n = 28). There were no differences between groups in proportions of participants achieving activity recommended in physical activity guidelines at Week 6 or 26. Secondary outcomes demonstrated between-group differences in male waist circumference at both measurements (Week 6 difference -2.0 cm, 95% CI -4.0 to 0; Week 26 difference -2.8 cm, 95% CI -5.4 to -0.1), and observed effect sizes favoured the experimental group for amounts of physical activity (d = 0.30), exercise capacity (d = 0.48), and blood pressure (d = -0.32). Participant-selected music did not increase the proportion of participants achieving recommended amounts of physical activity, but may have contributed to exercise-related benefits.

How Justice System Officials View Wrongful Convictions

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Brad; Zalman, Marvin; Kiger, Angie

2011-01-01

The wrongful conviction of factually innocent people is a growing concern within the United States. Reforms generated by this concern are predicated in part on the views of justice system participants. The authors surveyed judges, police officials, prosecutors, and defense lawyers in Michigan regarding their views of why wrongful convictions…

LabVIEW-based control software for para-hydrogen induced polarization instrumentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Agraz, Jose; Grunfeld, Alexander; Li, Debiao; Cunningham, Karl; Willey, Cindy; Pozos, Robert; Wagner, Shawn

2014-04-01

The elucidation of cell metabolic mechanisms is the modern underpinning of the diagnosis, treatment, and in some cases the prevention of disease. Para-Hydrogen induced polarization (PHIP) enhances magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signals over 10,000 fold, allowing for the MRI of cell metabolic mechanisms. This signal enhancement is the result of hyperpolarizing endogenous substances used as contrast agents during imaging. PHIP instrumentation hyperpolarizes Carbon-13 ((13)C) based substances using a process requiring control of a number of factors: chemical reaction timing, gas flow, monitoring of a static magnetic field (Bo), radio frequency (RF) irradiation timing, reaction temperature, and gas pressures. Current PHIP instruments manually control the hyperpolarization process resulting in the lack of the precise control of factors listed above, resulting in non-reproducible results. We discuss the design and implementation of a LabVIEW based computer program that automatically and precisely controls the delivery and manipulation of gases and samples, monitoring gas pressures, environmental temperature, and RF sample irradiation. We show that the automated control over the hyperpolarization process results in the hyperpolarization of hydroxyethylpropionate. The implementation of this software provides the fast prototyping of PHIP instrumentation for the evaluation of a myriad of (13)C based endogenous contrast agents used in molecular imaging.

LabVIEW-based control software for para-hydrogen induced polarization instrumentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agraz, Jose; Grunfeld, Alexander; Li, Debiao; Cunningham, Karl; Willey, Cindy; Pozos, Robert; Wagner, Shawn

2014-01-01

The elucidation of cell metabolic mechanisms is the modern underpinning of the diagnosis, treatment, and in some cases the prevention of disease. Para-Hydrogen induced polarization (PHIP) enhances magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) signals over 10 000 fold, allowing for the MRI of cell metabolic mechanisms. This signal enhancement is the result of hyperpolarizing endogenous substances used as contrast agents during imaging. PHIP instrumentation hyperpolarizes Carbon-13 ( 13 C) based substances using a process requiring control of a number of factors: chemical reaction timing, gas flow, monitoring of a static magnetic field (B o ), radio frequency (RF) irradiation timing, reaction temperature, and gas pressures. Current PHIP instruments manually control the hyperpolarization process resulting in the lack of the precise control of factors listed above, resulting in non-reproducible results. We discuss the design and implementation of a LabVIEW based computer program that automatically and precisely controls the delivery and manipulation of gases and samples, monitoring gas pressures, environmental temperature, and RF sample irradiation. We show that the automated control over the hyperpolarization process results in the hyperpolarization of hydroxyethylpropionate. The implementation of this software provides the fast prototyping of PHIP instrumentation for the evaluation of a myriad of 13 C based endogenous contrast agents used in molecular imaging

Shedding light on research participation effects in behaviour change trials: a qualitative study examining research participant experiences.

Science.gov (United States)

MacNeill, Virginia; Foley, Marian; Quirk, Alan; McCambridge, Jim

2016-01-29

The sequence of events in a behaviour change trial involves interactions between research participants and the trial process. Taking part in such a study has the potential to influence the behaviour of the participant, and if it does, this can engender bias in trial outcomes. Since participants' experience has received scant attention, the aim of this study is thus to generate hypotheses about which aspects of the conduct of behaviour change trials might matter most to participants, and thus have potential to alter subsequent behaviours and bias trial outcomes Twenty participants were opportunistically screened for a health compromising behaviour (unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, smoking or alcohol consumption) and recruited if eligible. Semi structured face to face interviews were conducted, after going through the usual processes involved in trial recruitment, baseline assessment and randomisation. Participants were given information on the contents of an intervention or control condition in a behaviour change trial, which was not actually implemented. Three months later they returned to reflect on these experiences and whether they had any effect on their behaviour during the intervening period. Data from the latter interview were analysed thematically using a modified grounded theory approach. The early processes of trial participation raised awareness of unhealthy behaviours, although most reported having had only fleeting intentions to change their behaviour as a result of taking part in this study, in the absence of interventions. However, careful examination of the accounts revealed evidence of subtle research participation effects, which varied according to the health behaviour, and its perceived social acceptability. Participants' relationships with the research study were viewed as somewhat important in stimulating thinking about whether and how to make lifestyle changes. These participants described no dramatic impacts attributable to taking part in

External validity of randomized controlled trials of glycaemic control and vascular disease: how representative are participants?

Science.gov (United States)

Saunders, C; Byrne, C D; Guthrie, B; Lindsay, R S; McKnight, J A; Philip, S; Sattar, N; Walker, J J; Wild, S H

2013-03-01

To describe the proportion of people with Type 2 diabetes living in Scotland who meet eligibility criteria for inclusion in several large randomized controlled trials of glycaemic control to inform physicians and guideline developers about the generalizibility of trial results. A literature review was performed to identify large trials assessing the impact of glycaemic control on risk of macrovascular disease. Inclusion and exclusion criteria from each trial were applied to data on the population of people with a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes living in Scotland in 2008 (n = 180,590) in a population-based cross-sectional study and the number and proportion of people eligible for each trial was determined. Seven trials were identified. The proportion of people with Type 2 diabetes who met the eligibility criteria for the trials ranged from 3.5 to 50.7%. Trial participants were younger at age of diagnosis of diabetes and at time of trial recruitment than in the Scottish study population. The application of upper age criteria excluded the largest proportion of patients, with up to 39% of people with Type 2 diabetes ineligible for a trial with the most stringent criteria based on age alone. We found that many of the large trials of glycaemic control among people with Type 2 diabetes have limited external validity when applied to a population-based cohort of people with Type 2 diabetes. In particular, the age distribution of trial participants often does not reflect that of people with Type 2 diabetes in a contemporary British population. © 2012 The Authors. Diabetic Medicine © 2012 Diabetes UK.

Self-Stigma and Consumer Participation in Shared Decision Making in Mental Health Services.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamann, Johannes; Bühner, Markus; Rüsch, Nicolas

2017-08-01

People with mental illness struggle with symptoms and with public stigma. Some accept common prejudices and lose self-esteem, resulting in shame and self-stigma, which may affect their interactions with mental health professionals. This study explored whether self-stigma and shame are associated with consumers' preferences for participation in medical decision making and their behavior in psychiatric consultations. In a cross-sectional study conducted in Germany, 329 individuals with a diagnosis of a schizophrenia spectrum disorder or an affective disorder and their psychiatrists provided sociodemographic and illness-related information. Self-stigma, shame, locus of control, and views about clinical decision making were assessed by self-report. Psychiatrists rated their impression of the decision-making behavior of consumers. Regression analyses and structural equation modeling were used to determine the association of self-stigma and shame with clinical decision making. Self-stigma was not related to consumers' participation preferences, but it was associated with some aspects of communicative behavior. Active and critical behavior (for example, expressing views, daring to challenge the doctor's opinion, and openly speaking out about disagreements with the doctor) was associated with less shame, less self-stigma, more self-responsibility, less attribution of external control to powerful others, and more years of education. Self-stigma and shame were associated with less participative and critical behavior, which probably leads to clinical encounters that involve less shared decision making and more paternalistic decision making. Paternalistic decision making may reinforce self-stigma and lead to poorer health outcomes. Therefore, interventions that reduce self-stigma and increase consumers' critical and participative communication may improve health outcomes.

An Organization of the Theoretical Perspectives in the Field of Civic and Political Participation: Contributions to Citizenship Education

Science.gov (United States)

Ribeiro, Norberto; Neves, Tiago; Menezes, Isabel

2017-01-01

This article provides a review of the theoretical perspectives on civic and political participation. Four distinct views were identified in the literature: (a) The orthodox view: "Civic and political participation are always positive"; (b) The broad view: "Civic and political participation are multidimensional"; (c) The…

Autonomous and controlled motivational regulations for multiple health-related behaviors: between- and within-participants analyses

Science.gov (United States)

Hagger, M.S.; Hardcastle, S.J.; Chater, A.; Mallett, C.; Pal, S.; Chatzisarantis, N.L.D.

2014-01-01

Self-determination theory has been applied to the prediction of a number of health-related behaviors with self-determined or autonomous forms of motivation generally more effective in predicting health behavior than non-self-determined or controlled forms. Research has been confined to examining the motivational predictors in single health behaviors rather than comparing effects across multiple behaviors. The present study addressed this gap in the literature by testing the relative contribution of autonomous and controlling motivation to the prediction of a large number of health-related behaviors, and examining individual differences in self-determined motivation as a moderator of the effects of autonomous and controlling motivation on health behavior. Participants were undergraduate students (N = 140) who completed measures of autonomous and controlled motivational regulations and behavioral intention for 20 health-related behaviors at an initial occasion with follow-up behavioral measures taken four weeks later. Path analysis was used to test a process model for each behavior in which motivational regulations predicted behavior mediated by intentions. Some minor idiosyncratic findings aside, between-participants analyses revealed significant effects for autonomous motivational regulations on intentions and behavior across the 20 behaviors. Effects for controlled motivation on intentions and behavior were relatively modest by comparison. Intentions mediated the effect of autonomous motivation on behavior. Within-participants analyses were used to segregate the sample into individuals who based their intentions on autonomous motivation (autonomy-oriented) and controlled motivation (control-oriented). Replicating the between-participants path analyses for the process model in the autonomy- and control-oriented samples did not alter the relative effects of the motivational orientations on intention and behavior. Results provide evidence for consistent effects

Opportunity or Obligation? Participation in Adult Vocational Training.

Science.gov (United States)

Hemsley-Brown, Jane; Humphreys, John

1998-01-01

British nurses (n=275), many of whom had to upgrade skills for conversion to registered nursing, participated in an upskilling exercise. Participants and a comparison group of nonparticipants were categorized as either opportunity-takers or conscripts (those who viewed retraining as obligatory). (SK)

Bias due to differential participation in case-control studies and review of available approaches for adjustment.

Science.gov (United States)

Aigner, Annette; Grittner, Ulrike; Becher, Heiko

2018-01-01

Low response rates in epidemiologic research potentially lead to the recruitment of a non-representative sample of controls in case-control studies. Problems in the unbiased estimation of odds ratios arise when characteristics causing the probability of participation are associated with exposure and outcome. This is a specific setting of selection bias and a realistic hazard in many case-control studies. This paper formally describes the problem and shows its potential extent, reviews existing approaches for bias adjustment applicable under certain conditions, compares and applies them. We focus on two scenarios: a characteristic C causing differential participation of controls is linked to the outcome through its association with risk factor E (scenario I), and C is additionally a genuine risk factor itself (scenario II). We further assume external data sources are available which provide an unbiased estimate of C in the underlying population. Given these scenarios, we (i) review available approaches and their performance in the setting of bias due to differential participation; (ii) describe two existing approaches to correct for the bias in both scenarios in more detail; (iii) present the magnitude of the resulting bias by simulation if the selection of a non-representative sample is ignored; and (iv) demonstrate the approaches' application via data from a case-control study on stroke. The bias of the effect measure for variable E in scenario I and C in scenario II can be large and should therefore be adjusted for in any analysis. It is positively associated with the difference in response rates between groups of the characteristic causing differential participation, and inversely associated with the total response rate in the controls. Adjustment in a standard logistic regression framework is possible in both scenarios if the population distribution of the characteristic causing differential participation is known or can be approximated well.

LabVIEW-based control and data acquisition system for cathodoluminescence experiments.

Science.gov (United States)

Bok, J; Schauer, P

2011-11-01

Computer automation of cathodoluminescence (CL) experiments using equipment developed in our laboratory is described. The equipment provides various experiments for CL efficiency, CL spectra, and CL time response studies. The automation was realized utilizing the graphical programming environment LabVIEW. The developed application software with procedures for equipment control and data acquisition during various CL experiments is presented. As the measured CL data are distorted by technical limitations of the equipment, such as equipment spectral sensitivity and time response, data correction algorithms were incorporated into the procedures. Some examples of measured data corrections are presented. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

Acceptability of the 6-PACK falls prevention program: A pre-implementation study in hospitals participating in a cluster randomized controlled trial.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna L Barker

Full Text Available There is limited evidence to support the effectiveness of falls prevention interventions in the acute hospital setting. The 6-PACK falls prevention program includes a fall-risk tool; 'falls alert' signs; supervision of patients in the bathroom; ensuring patients' walking aids are within reach; toileting regimes; low-low beds; and bed/chair alarms. This study explored the acceptability of the 6-PACK program from the perspective of nurses and senior staff prior to its implementation in a randomised controlled trial. A mixed-methods approach was applied involving 24 acute wards from six Australian hospitals. Participants were nurses working on participating wards and senior hospital staff including: Nurse Unit Managers; senior physicians; Directors of Nursing; and senior personnel involved in quality and safety or falls prevention. Information on program acceptability (suitability, practicality and benefits was obtained by surveys, focus groups and interviews. Survey data were analysed descriptively, and focus group and interview data thematically. The survey response rate was 60%. Twelve focus groups (n = 96 nurses and 24 interviews with senior staff were conducted. Falls were identified as a priority patient safety issue and nurses as key players in falls prevention. The 6-PACK program was perceived to offer practical benefits compared to current practice. Nurses agreed fall-risk tools, low-low beds and alert signs were useful for preventing falls (>70%. Views were mixed regarding positioning patients' walking aid within reach. Practical issues raised included access to equipment; and risk of staff injury with low-low bed use. Bathroom supervision was seen to be beneficial, however not always practical. Views on the program appropriateness and benefits were consistent across nurses and senior staff. Staff perceived the 6-PACK program as suitable, practical and beneficial, and were open to adopting the program. Some practical concerns were raised

HOME Participating Jurisdictions Open Activities Reports

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Housing and Urban Development — This report is an MS Excel spreadsheet broken up by state. Participating Jurisdictions can use this report to view open activities in IDIS including activities with...

An Investigation of Students' Views about Enzymes by Fortune Lines Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Özarslan, Murat; Çetin, Gülcan

2014-01-01

This study aimed to investigate ninth grade students' views about enzymes using fortune lines technique and to obtain the students' views about fortune lines technique. Participants were 38 ninth grade students in a Technique Vocational Girls High School in the city of Kocaeli, Turkey. After instruction of subject of enzymes, the participants were…

Intention of dog owners to participate in rabies control measures in Flores Island, Indonesia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wera, Ewaldus; Mourits, Monique C.M.; Hogeveen, Henk

2016-01-01

The success of a rabies control strategy depends on the commitment and collaboration of dog owners. In this study the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) was used to identify the factors, which are associated with the intention of dog owners to participate in rabies control measures in the

Power and control in interactions between journalists and health-related industries: the view from industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrell, Bronwen; Lipworth, Wendy L; Forsyth, Rowena; Jordens, Christopher F C; Kerridge, Ian

2014-06-01

The mass media is a major source of health information for the public, and as such the quality and independence of health news reporting is an important concern. Concerns have been expressed that journalists reporting on health are increasingly dependent on their sources--including representatives of industries responsible for manufacturing health-related products--for story ideas and content. Many critics perceive an imbalance of power between journalists and industry sources, with industry being in a position of relative power, however the empirical evidence to support this view is limited. The analysis presented here--which is part of a larger study of industry-journalist relationships--draws on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with representatives of health-related industries in Australia to inductively examine their perceptions of power relations between industry and journalists. Participants painted a picture in which journalists, rather than themselves, were in a position to control the nature, extent, and outcome of their interactions with industry sources. Our results resonate with the concept of "mediatisation" as it has been applied in the domain of political reporting. It appears that, from the perspective of industry representatives, the imposition of media logic on health-related industries may inappropriately influence the information that the public receives about health-related products.

Effects of multiple viewings of an ultraviolet photo on sun protection behaviors.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahler, H I M

2018-05-02

To determine whether multiple viewings of one's ultraviolet (UV) facial photo differentially affects subsequent sun protection behaviors relative to a single viewing. Pretest-posttest control group. Southern California college students (N = 151) were randomly assigned to be shown their UV facial photo one time, multiple times over the course of 2 weeks, or not at all. Emotional reactions, perceived susceptibility to skin damage, and sun protection intentions were assessed immediately, and sun protection behaviors were assessed during a surprise telephonic follow-up 1 month later. Immediately after viewing a UV photo of their face, participants reported significantly greater perceived susceptibility to skin damage, greater intentions to engage in future sun protection, and more negative emotions than those who had not seen a UV photo. Moreover, 1 month later, those who had viewed their UV photo were less likely to report having sunbathed and reported significantly greater sun protection than did controls. There were no differences in sun protection behaviors between those who had been shown their UV photo only once during the initial intervention session and those who had been sent their UV photo several times thereafter. However, among those who had been sent their UV photo several times, those who reported having viewed their photo on additional occasions reported significantly greater sun protection behaviors than those who had not. Being randomly assigned to view a UV facial photo multiple times generally neither strengthened nor weakened effects on subsequent sun protection behaviors relative to being shown the photo just once. However, among those who were sent their photo and thus had the option of viewing it more often than they had been assigned to, those who chose to view their photo more frequently also engaged in more sun protection behaviors. Copyright © 2018 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Women's Views About Domestic Violence: A Qualitative Study in Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Shams, Mohsen; Kianfard, Leila; Parhizkar, Saadat; Mousavizadeh, Ali

2017-05-01

Violence against women is an urgent health priority in Iran. Designing effective programs for preventing and controlling the problem necessitates a thorough understanding of Iranian women and their perspectives regarding domestic violence. This study was aimed at exploring the domestic violence-related views of married women who were referred to health care facilities in Ahvaz, Iran. In this qualitative research, data were collected through four focus group discussions with 30 married women. All the discussions were recorded and transcribed, after which the data were classified separately. The main themes and subthemes were then manually derived from the data and analyzed. The five main themes identified were domestic violence against women in Ahvaz, behavioral influencing factors, nonbehavioral influencing factors, the necessity to empower women to prevent domestic violence, and recommendations for developing special training programs for Ahvazi women. Most of the participants were aware that domestic violence against women is a common occurrence in Iran. They were well aware of the definition of violence and expressed a belief that behavioral factors exert an important effect on the occurrence of the problem. They recommended the development of appropriate training programs that empower women to prevent the problem, the use of mass media to educate citizens about domestic violence, and the involvement of opinion leaders in eliminating the taboo against considering such violence a crime against Iranian women. Considering the views and ideas of women as consumers of educational services is a principle used to develop effective programs for preventing and controlling domestic violence. As indicated by the findings, the participants believe that empowering women must be treated as a priority in the Iranian health care system. However, they recommended differing approaches and methods of empowerment on the basis of their individual views and concerns.

Where and How You Sit: How Civil Servants View Citizens’ Participation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Karin Hilmer; Johannsen, Lars

2016-01-01

place on inclusion. Echoing Miles’s law, “where you stand depends on where you sit,” we discuss how administrative structures and processes—“how you sit”—shape civil servants’ values on citizens’ participation. Using survey data from more than 1,700 civil servants in the Baltic countries, the article......Citizen participation is disputed; some see it as enhancing democracy while others see it as undermining representative government. Some find it increases administrative efficiency, and others find it creates additional costs. Studies argue that the outcome depends on the value which civil servants...

Multi-view L2-SVM and its multi-view core vector machine.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Chengquan; Chung, Fu-lai; Wang, Shitong

2016-03-01

In this paper, a novel L2-SVM based classifier Multi-view L2-SVM is proposed to address multi-view classification tasks. The proposed Multi-view L2-SVM classifier does not have any bias in its objective function and hence has the flexibility like μ-SVC in the sense that the number of the yielded support vectors can be controlled by a pre-specified parameter. The proposed Multi-view L2-SVM classifier can make full use of the coherence and the difference of different views through imposing the consensus among multiple views to improve the overall classification performance. Besides, based on the generalized core vector machine GCVM, the proposed Multi-view L2-SVM classifier is extended into its GCVM version MvCVM which can realize its fast training on large scale multi-view datasets, with its asymptotic linear time complexity with the sample size and its space complexity independent of the sample size. Our experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed Multi-view L2-SVM classifier for small scale multi-view datasets and the proposed MvCVM classifier for large scale multi-view datasets. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Personal Control Over Decisions to Participate in Research by Persons With Histories of Both Substance Use Disorders and Criminal Justice Supervision.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Donna T; Ko, Tomohiro M; Allen, Ashleigh A; Bonnie, Richard J; Suratt, Colleen E; Appelbaum, Paul S; Nunes, Edward V; Friedmann, Peter D; Lee, Joshua D; Gordon, Michael S; McDonald, Ryan; Wilson, Donna; Boney, Tamara Y; Murphy, Sean M; O'Brien, Charles P

2018-04-01

Individuals must feel free to exert personal control over decisions regarding research participation. We present an examination of participants' perceived personal control over, as well as reported pressures and threats from others, influencing their decision to join a study assessing the effectiveness of extended-release naltrexone in preventing opioid dependence relapse. Most participants endorsed a strong sense of control over the decision; few reported pressures or threats. Although few in number, participants' brief narrative descriptions of the pressures and threats are illuminating and provide context for their perceptions of personal control. Based on this work, we propose a useful set of tools to help ascertain participants' sense of personal control in joining research.

Strategy for increasing the participation of masyarakat peduli api in forest fire control

Science.gov (United States)

Ni’mah, N. L. K.; Herdiansyah, H.; Soesilo, T. E. B.; Mutia, E. F.

2018-03-01

Forest fires have negative impact on ecology, health, and damage economic activities. One of conservation areas facing the threat of forest fire is Gunung Ciremai National Park. This research aims to formulate a strategy to increase the participation of Masyarakat Peduli Api in the effort of forest fire control. This research use quantitative method with SWOT analysis. Expert consisting of representatives from the national park, Ministry of Environment and Forestry, and BPBD Kuningan Regency. An alternative strategy based on SWOT analysis is in quadrant 1 with coordinate point (0,39; 1,23). The position shows that sustainability of national park management through forest fire control can be done with an aggressive strategy. That is maximizing the strength that is owned with its potential as an ecotourism area to increase community motivation to engage in forest fire control activities. Provision of tourism management licenses will create employment opportunities and increase income for the community so it is expected to increase community participation to prevent the occurrence of forest fires rather than forest fire prevention.

Homography-based control scheme for mobile robots with nonholonomic and field-of-view constraints.

Science.gov (United States)

López-Nicolás, Gonzalo; Gans, Nicholas R; Bhattacharya, Sourabh; Sagüés, Carlos; Guerrero, Josechu J; Hutchinson, Seth

2010-08-01

In this paper, we present a visual servo controller that effects optimal paths for a nonholonomic differential drive robot with field-of-view constraints imposed by the vision system. The control scheme relies on the computation of homographies between current and goal images, but unlike previous homography-based methods, it does not use the homography to compute estimates of pose parameters. Instead, the control laws are directly expressed in terms of individual entries in the homography matrix. In particular, we develop individual control laws for the three path classes that define the language of optimal paths: rotations, straight-line segments, and logarithmic spirals. These control laws, as well as the switching conditions that define how to sequence path segments, are defined in terms of the entries of homography matrices. The selection of the corresponding control law requires the homography decomposition before starting the navigation. We provide a controllability and stability analysis for our system and give experimental results.

Girls' Participation in Post-16 Mathematics: A View from Pupils in Wales

Science.gov (United States)

Cann, Rosemary

2009-01-01

A number of studies have highlighted that anxiety, confidence and enjoyment are influential factors on students' participation in mathematics, and in particular girls' participation. This paper, based upon data collected as part of a PhD thesis, examines the effect of these influences on pupil choices within different types of secondary schools in…

The Subjectivity of Participation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nissen, Morten

of a community of social/youth workers in Copenhagen between 1987 and 2003, who developed a pedagogy through creating collectives and mobilizing young people as participants. The theoretical and practical traditions are combined in a unique methodology viewing research as a contentious modeling of prototypical......What is a 'we' – a collective – and how can we use such communal self-knowledge to help people? This book is about collectivity, participation, and subjectivity – and about the social theories that may help us understand these matters. It also seeks to learn from the innovative practices and ideas...

School Autonomy and Government Control: School Leaders' Views on a Changing Policy Landscape in England

Science.gov (United States)

Higham, Rob; Earley, Peter

2013-01-01

The Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition government elected in 2010 has argued contemporary reform will increase the autonomy of schools in England. Given the complexities that exist, however, in the balance between autonomy and control, we explore how school leaders view autonomy as it exists within the wider policy framework. The article…

Disentangling participation power and decision-making in participatory design

CERN Document Server

Bratteteig, Tone

2014-01-01

Providing a critical view on user participation in design, disentangling decision making and power in design, this book uses fieldwork material from two large participatory design projects: one experimental in the field of urban planning, the other a product development project within health care. Addressing power issues in participatory design is critical to providing a realistic view of the possibilities and limitations of participation. Design is decision-making: during a design process a huge number of decisions?taken before the designers end up with a design result - an artefact or system

Delay discounting, self-control, and substance use among adult drug court participants.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Craig G A; Fearnley, Helen; Panagiotopoulos, Barbara; Kemp, Richard I

2015-08-01

The current study examined the relationship between two measures of impulsiveness and the odds of substance use among a sample of participants on an Australian drug court (n=80). Participants completed a computer-based delay discounting task, a paper-based delay discounting task, and a questionnaire-based measure of self-control. The delay discounting tasks measured individual differences in the value attributed to distal outcomes, which is one aspect of impulsive behavior that has been found to be over-represented among illicit drug users. The relationship between the measures of impulsiveness and the odds of substance use was assessed by fitting longitudinal panel regression models with adjustment for informative treatment dropout. Consistent with previous research, drug court participants were found to have higher discount rates (i.e. were more impulsive) than a noncriminal population of university students (n=101). Drug court participants also discounted delayed gains more than delayed losses. Delay discounting was not significantly associated with the odds of substance use on the drug court program. There was a positive relationship between the survey-based measure of impulsivity and the mean substance use frequency. The authors conclude that impulsivity is correlated with substance use among drug court participants but not when measuring impulsivity using a delay discounting paradigm.

View of God as benevolent and forgiving or punishing and judgmental predicts HIV disease progression.

Science.gov (United States)

Ironson, Gail; Stuetzle, Rick; Ironson, Dale; Balbin, Elizabeth; Kremer, Heidemarie; George, Annie; Schneiderman, Neil; Fletcher, Mary Ann

2011-12-01

This study assessed the predictive relationship between View of God beliefs and change in CD4-cell and Viral Load (VL) in HIV positive people over an extended period. A diverse sample of HIVseropositive participants (N = 101) undergoing comprehensive psychological assessment and blood draws over the course of 4 years completed the View of God Inventory with subscales measuring Positive View (benevolent/forgiving) and Negative View of God (harsh/judgmental/punishing). Adjusting for initial disease status, age, gender, ethnicity, education, and antiretroviral medication (at every 6-month visit), a Positive View of God predicted significantly slower disease-progression (better preservation of CD4-cells, better control of VL), whereas a Negative View of God predicted faster disease-progression over 4 years. Effect sizes were greater than those previously demonstrated for psychosocial variables known to predict HIV-disease-progression, such as depression and coping. Results remained significant even after adjusting for church attendance and psychosocial variables (health behaviors, mood, and coping). These results provide good initial evidence that spiritual beliefs may predict health outcomes.

Financial Participation of Employees in Lithuania

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Darskuviené, Valdoné; Hanisch, Stefan; Mygind, Niels

2006-01-01

Participation of employees in decision-making in Lithuanian companies has its roots in trade union movement as well as in the practice of managing companies under Soviet rule. After Lithuania regained independence, employee ownership was used to facilitate privatization. A notable success...... as participation in decision-making - is not well developed and does not provide for stronger incentives. The solution of current employment and social problems by the Government, ruling parties as well as social partners is not associated with a higher level of participation of employees. Financial participation...... is viewed mainly as a way of employee motivation as initiated by managers and current owners of companies....

LabVIEW control software for scanning micro-beam X-ray fluorescence spectrometer.

Science.gov (United States)

Wrobel, Pawel; Czyzycki, Mateusz; Furman, Leszek; Kolasinski, Krzysztof; Lankosz, Marek; Mrenca, Alina; Samek, Lucyna; Wegrzynek, Dariusz

2012-05-15

Confocal micro-beam X-ray fluorescence microscope was constructed. The system was assembled from commercially available components - a low power X-ray tube source, polycapillary X-ray optics and silicon drift detector - controlled by an in-house developed LabVIEW software. A video camera coupled to optical microscope was utilized to display the area excited by X-ray beam. The camera image calibration and scan area definition software were also based entirely on LabVIEW code. Presently, the main area of application of the newly constructed spectrometer is 2-dimensional mapping of element distribution in environmental, biological and geological samples with micrometer spatial resolution. The hardware and the developed software can already handle volumetric 3-D confocal scans. In this work, a front panel graphical user interface as well as communication protocols between hardware components were described. Two applications of the spectrometer, to homogeneity testing of titanium layers and to imaging of various types of grains in air particulate matter collected on membrane filters, were presented. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CORBA-based solution for remote participation in SST-1 tokamak control and operation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mahajan, Kirti [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India)]. E-mail: kirti@ipr.res.in; Ravikiran, M. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Gulati, Hitesh [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Dave, H.J. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Kumar, Neeraj [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Patel, Kirit [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Kumar, Aveg [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Raju, D. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Bhandarkar, M. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Chudasama, H. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Kulkarni, S.V. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India); Saxena, Y.C. [Institute for Plasma Research, Near Indira Bridge, Bhat, Gandhinagar 382428 (India)

2006-07-15

The steady state superconducting tokamak (SST-1) central control system is a distributed heterogeneous process communication system built on socket programming. It consists of machine, experiment and discharge control plus timing and a database. The software controls and monitors SST-1 subsystems: water-cooling, power supplies, cryogenics and vacuum over a local area network (LAN). The SST-1 control room is the place where all the activities like session announcement, machine control, experiment control, discharge control and monitoring are performed. We have realized that, instead of having a single monitoring place, we should have multiple monitoring points and it should be made possible to control the experiment from any PC over the LAN. In order to meet such requirements for remote participation in tokamak operation, we are upgrading the existing software. The upgraded software is based on Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) technology. The software is utilizing CORBA-services such as event service, naming services, interface repository and security services. The inherent features of CORBA make the software, platform and language independent. The software supports a variety of communication paradigms including publish-subscribe, peer-to-peer, and request-reply. Based on this software, one can participate in SST-1 tokamak operation from the LAN, or a wide area network (WAN) connection anywhere on the Internet. Each user can customize plasma parameters and diagnostics data that he wants to monitor, at any time without any change in the software and a copy of these parameters will be available to him. This paper focuses on the publish-subscribe communication paradigm and its application for a machine monitoring system.

CORBA-based solution for remote participation in SST-1 tokamak control and operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahajan, Kirti; Ravikiran, M.; Gulati, Hitesh; Dave, H.J.; Kumar, Neeraj; Patel, Kirit; Kumar, Aveg; Raju, D.; Bhandarkar, M.; Chudasama, H.; Kulkarni, S.V.; Saxena, Y.C.

2006-01-01

The steady state superconducting tokamak (SST-1) central control system is a distributed heterogeneous process communication system built on socket programming. It consists of machine, experiment and discharge control plus timing and a database. The software controls and monitors SST-1 subsystems: water-cooling, power supplies, cryogenics and vacuum over a local area network (LAN). The SST-1 control room is the place where all the activities like session announcement, machine control, experiment control, discharge control and monitoring are performed. We have realized that, instead of having a single monitoring place, we should have multiple monitoring points and it should be made possible to control the experiment from any PC over the LAN. In order to meet such requirements for remote participation in tokamak operation, we are upgrading the existing software. The upgraded software is based on Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) technology. The software is utilizing CORBA-services such as event service, naming services, interface repository and security services. The inherent features of CORBA make the software, platform and language independent. The software supports a variety of communication paradigms including publish-subscribe, peer-to-peer, and request-reply. Based on this software, one can participate in SST-1 tokamak operation from the LAN, or a wide area network (WAN) connection anywhere on the Internet. Each user can customize plasma parameters and diagnostics data that he wants to monitor, at any time without any change in the software and a copy of these parameters will be available to him. This paper focuses on the publish-subscribe communication paradigm and its application for a machine monitoring system

Towards more consistent and effective food control: learning from the views of food business operators.

Science.gov (United States)

Kettunen, Karoliina; Lundén, Janne; Läikkö-Roto, Tiina; Nevas, Mari

2017-06-01

We surveyed the opinions of Finnish food business operators (FBOs) about the uniformity of local official food control and its importance for dairy, fishery and meat plants. A total of 136 FBOs responded to the questionnaire. Most FBOs considered official food control to be important for food safety and were generally satisfied with its quality. However, they often did not perceive official food control as being uniform, and 23% even considered it arbitrary. Small-sized FBOs were particularly critical of the relevance of control actions. The better the FBOs assessed their cooperation with the inspector, the higher they assessed the quality, uniformity and benefits of official food control. The cooperative approach in control practices should be emphasized to support the positive views of FBOs about official food control, thus promoting food safety. Cross-audits among local food control units are recommended to improve the FBOs' experience of uniformity of food control.

Participant recruitment into a randomised controlled trial of exercise therapy for people with multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Carter, Anouska; Humphreys, Liam; Snowdon, Nicky; Sharrack, Basil; Daley, Amanda; Petty, Jane; Woodroofe, Nicola; Saxton, John

2015-10-15

The success of a clinical trial is often dependant on whether recruitment targets can be met in the required time frame. Despite an increase in research into the benefits of exercise in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS), no trial has reported detailed data on effective recruitment strategies for large-scale randomised controlled trials. The main purpose of this report is to provide a detailed outline of recruitment strategies, rates and estimated costs in the Exercise Intervention for Multiple Sclerosis (ExIMS) trial to identify best practices for future trials involving multiple sclerosis (MS) patient recruitment. The ExIMS researchers recruited 120 PwMS to participate in a 12-week exercise intervention. Participants were randomly allocated to either exercise or usual-care control groups. Participants were sedentary, aged 18-65 years and had Expanded Disability Status Scale scores of 1.0-6.5. Recruitment strategies included attendance at MS outpatient clinics, consultant mail-out and trial awareness-raising activities. A total of 120 participants were recruited over the course of 34 months. To achieve this target, 369 potentially eligible and interested participants were identified. A total of 60 % of participants were recruited via MS clinics, 29.2 % from consultant mail-outs and 10.8 % through trial awareness. The randomisation yields were 33.2 %, 31.0 % and 68.4 % for MS clinic, consultant mail-outs and trial awareness strategies, respectively. The main reason for ineligibility was being too active (69.2 %), whilst for eligible participants the most common reason for non-participation was the need to travel to the study site (15.8 %). Recruitment via consultant mail-out was the most cost-effective strategy, with MS clinics being the most time-consuming and most costly. To reach recruitment targets in a timely fashion, a variety of methods were employed. Although consultant mail-outs were the most cost-effective recruitment strategy, use of this

Student Participation and Parental Involvement in Relation to Academic Achievement

Science.gov (United States)

Niia, Anna; Almqvist, Lena; Brunnberg, Elinor; Granlund, Mats

2015-01-01

This study shows that students, teachers, and parents in Swedish schools ascribe differing meanings and significance to students' participation in school in relation to academic achievement. Students see participation as mainly related to social interaction and not academic achievement, whilst teachers view students' participation as more closely…

Intervention levels in a precocious detection program for breast cancer and evaluation of four participant units

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carrera M, F.; Velazquez M, S.; Manzano M, F.J.; Sanchez S, J.

1998-01-01

It is presented the basis to make a cost benefit analysis for a breast cancer precocious detection program and consequently the keys for its optimization from the radiological point of view. Taking this as a reference it is made an exhaustive quality control to four mammographic unities which were participating or they were candidates to participate in a breast cancer precocious detection program. Also it is presented its results. It is followed the protocol for quality control in mammography in Spain obtaining values for the measurement of twelve interesting parameters. It should be maintained the standard breast dose about 1 mGy/ image. It should be available a 24 x 30 cm portacassete and considering the utilization of a single projection by breast. (Author)

[Quality process control system of Chinese medicine preparation based on "holistic view"].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ya-Qi; Jiao, Jiao-Jiao; Wu, Zhen-Feng; Zheng, Qin; Yang, Ming

2018-01-01

"High quality, safety and effectiveness" are the primary principles for the pharmaceutical research and development process in China. The quality of products relies not only on the inspection method, but also on the design and development, process control and standardized management. The quality depends on the process control level. In this paper, the history and current development of quality control of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparations are reviewed systematically. Based on the development model of international drug quality control and the misunderstanding of quality control of TCM preparations, the reasons for impacting the homogeneity of TCM preparations are analyzed and summarized. According to TCM characteristics, efforts were made to control the diversity of TCM, make "unstable" TCM into "stable" Chinese patent medicines, put forward the concepts of "holistic view" and "QbD (quality by design)", so as to create the "holistic, modular, data, standardized" model as the core of TCM preparation quality process control model. Scientific studies shall conform to the actual production of TCM preparations, and be conducive to supporting advanced equipment and technology upgrade, thoroughly applying the scientific research achievements in Chinese patent medicines, and promoting the cluster application and transformation application of TCM pharmaceutical technology, so as to improve the quality and effectiveness of the TCM industry and realize the green development. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Participation in Southeast Asian pollution control policies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofman, Peter; Coenen, Franciscus H.J.M.; Huitema, Dave; O'Toole, Laurence J.

1998-01-01

Although public awareness of environmental issues in Southeast Asian countries has increased dramatically during the nineties, there has not been a corresponding rise in the level of participation in environmental decision-making. Public participation often takes places at the end of a

Control, data acquisition, data analysis and remote participation in LHD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagayama, Y.; Emoto, M.; Nakanishi, H.; Sudo, S.; Imazu, S.; Inagaki, S.; Iwata, C.; Kojima, M.; Nonomura, M.; Ohsuna, M.; Tsuda, K.; Yoshida, M.; Chikaraishi, H.; Funaba, H.; Horiuchi, R.; Ishiguro, S.; Ito, Y.; Kubo, S.; Mase, A.; Mito, T.

2008-01-01

This paper presents the control, data acquisition, data analysis and remote participation facilities of the Large Helical Device (LHD), which is designed to confine the plasma in steady state. In LHD the plasma duration exceeds 3000 s by controlling the plasma position, the density and the ICRF heating. The 'LABCOM' data acquisition system takes both the short-pulse and the steady-state data. A two-layer Mass Storage System with RAIDs and Blu-ray Disk jukeboxes in a storage area network has been developed to increase capacity of storage. The steady-state data can be monitored with a Web browser in real time. A high-level data analysis system with Web interfaces is being developed in order to provide easier usage of LHD data and large FORTRAN codes in a supercomputer. A virtual laboratory system for the Japanese fusion community has been developed with Multi-protocol Label Switching Virtual Private Network Technology. Collaborators at remote sites can join the LHD experiment or use the NIFS supercomputer system as if they were working in the LHD control room

What Does Political Participation Mean to Spanish Students?

Science.gov (United States)

Sant, Edda

2014-01-01

This article explores how a group of Spanish students (aged 11-19) understand the meaning of "political participation" in society and discusses the implications of their views for debates and practices in citizenship education. The ways in which these students (n = 112) describe and interpret political participation are analysed using an…

Ways of Viewing Pictorial Plasticity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maarten W. A. Wijntjes

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The plastic effect is historically used to denote various forms of stereopsis. The vivid impression of depth often associated with binocular stereopsis can also be achieved in other ways, for example, using a synopter. Accounts of this go back over a hundred years. These ways of viewing all aim to diminish sensorial evidence that the picture is physically flat. Although various viewing modes have been proposed in the literature, their effects have never been compared. In the current study, we compared three viewing modes: monocular blur, synoptic viewing, and free viewing (using a placebo synopter. By designing a physical embodiment that was indistinguishable for the three experimental conditions, we kept observers naïve with respect to the differences between them; 197 observers participated in an experiment where the three viewing modes were compared by performing a rating task. Results indicate that synoptic viewing causes the largest plastic effect. Monocular blur scores lower than synoptic viewing but is still rated significantly higher than the baseline conditions. The results strengthen the idea that synoptic viewing is not due to a placebo effect. Furthermore, monocular blur has been verified for the first time as a way of experiencing the plastic effect, although the effect is smaller than synoptic viewing. We discuss the results with respect to the theoretical basis for the plastic effect. We show that current theories are not described with sufficient details to explain the differences we found.

Ways of Viewing Pictorial Plasticity.

Science.gov (United States)

Wijntjes, Maarten W A

2017-01-01

The plastic effect is historically used to denote various forms of stereopsis. The vivid impression of depth often associated with binocular stereopsis can also be achieved in other ways, for example, using a synopter. Accounts of this go back over a hundred years. These ways of viewing all aim to diminish sensorial evidence that the picture is physically flat. Although various viewing modes have been proposed in the literature, their effects have never been compared. In the current study, we compared three viewing modes: monocular blur, synoptic viewing, and free viewing (using a placebo synopter). By designing a physical embodiment that was indistinguishable for the three experimental conditions, we kept observers naïve with respect to the differences between them; 197 observers participated in an experiment where the three viewing modes were compared by performing a rating task. Results indicate that synoptic viewing causes the largest plastic effect. Monocular blur scores lower than synoptic viewing but is still rated significantly higher than the baseline conditions. The results strengthen the idea that synoptic viewing is not due to a placebo effect. Furthermore, monocular blur has been verified for the first time as a way of experiencing the plastic effect, although the effect is smaller than synoptic viewing. We discuss the results with respect to the theoretical basis for the plastic effect. We show that current theories are not described with sufficient details to explain the differences we found.

Associations of obesogenic behaviors in mothers and obese children participating in a randomized trial

OpenAIRE

Sonneville, Kendrin R.; Rifas-Shiman, Sheryl L.; Kleinman, Ken; Gortmaker, Steven; Gillman, Matthew W.; Taveras, Elsie M.

2012-01-01

Relatively little research has assessed the association between obesogenic behaviors in parents and their children. The objective of the present analysis was to examine cross-sectional associations in television (TV)/video viewing, sugar-sweetened beverage intake, and fast food intake between mothers and their pre-school aged children. We studied baseline data among 428 participants in High Five for Kids, a randomized controlled trial of behavior change among overweight and obese children age...

Relation between working memory and self-control capacity in participants with mild intellectual disability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dučić Bojan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Working memory is activated in situations which require active control of directing attention, processing information and making it available for a short time. Its content is limited in capacity and changes with regard to the context of a performed activity. Self-control is the capacity of a voluntary conscious effort to persist in achieving a previously set goal. The aim of this research was to determine the relation of verbal and visuospatial aspects of working memory with self-control skills in persons with mild intellectual disability (ID. The sample included 40 participants 8-12 years of age (M=10.65, SD=1.19. Memorizing a Maze task, adapted for participants with ID, was used to determine the capacity of visuospatial aspect of working memory. Memorizing Animals task was used to assess verbal aspect of working memory, and Self-Control Rating Scale was used to determine the acquisition level of self-control skills. It was determined that verbal aspects of working memory were significantly related to the acquired level of self-control skills (p=0.002. There was no significant relation between the results of tasks assessing the capacity of visuospatial working memory and the success on the scale assessing self-control capacity (p=0.089. The relation between self-control and verbal aspect of working memory may be explained by close links between using speech and applying self-regulation strategies.

Convergence and divergence of neuroanatomic correlates and executive task performance in healthy controls and psychiatric participants.

Science.gov (United States)

Ming-Tak Chung, Dennis; Jerram, Matthew W; Lee, Jonathan K; Katz, Harvey; Gansler, David A

2013-12-30

The associations between brain matter volume in the cerebral cortex and set shifting and attentional control as operationalized by the Wisconsin Card Sort Test (WCST) and Condition Three of the Delis-Kaplan version of the Color Word Interference Test (CWIT) were investigated in 15 healthy controls and 16 heterogeneously diagnosed psychiatric patients with self-control problems using voxel based morphometry. Both groups underwent standardized magnetic resonance imaging and neuropsychological assessment. WCST and CWIT variables, and a composite, were regressed across the whole brain. Although CWIT performance levels were the same in both groups, neuroanatomic correlates for the psychiatric participants invoked the left hemisphere language system, but the bilateral dorsal attention system in the healthy controls. On its own, no neuroanatomic correlates were observed for the WCST. But when part of a composite with CWIT, neuroanatomic correlates in the dorsal attention system emerged for the psychiatric participants. Psychometric combinations of manifest executive task variables may best represent higher level latent neuro-cognitive control systems. Factor analytic studies of neuropsychological test performances suggest the constructs being measured are the same across psychiatric and non-diagnosed participants, however, imaging modalities indicate the relevant neural architecture can vary by group. © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neural correlates of viewing paintings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vartanian, Oshin; Skov, Martin

2014-01-01

Many studies involving functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have exposed participants to paintings under varying task demands. To isolate neural systems that are activated reliably across fMRI studies in response to viewing paintings regardless of variation in task demands, a quantitative...

Comparison of trial participants and open access users of a web-based physical activity intervention regarding adherence, attrition, and repeated participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wanner, Miriam; Martin-Diener, Eva; Bauer, Georg; Braun-Fahrländer, Charlotte; Martin, Brian W

2010-02-10

Web-based interventions are popular for promoting healthy lifestyles such as physical activity. However, little is known about user characteristics, adherence, attrition, and predictors of repeated participation on open access physical activity websites. The focus of this study was Active-online, a Web-based individually tailored physical activity intervention. The aims were (1) to assess and compare user characteristics and adherence to the website (a) in the open access context over time from 2003 to 2009, and (b) between trial participants and open access users; and (2) to analyze attrition and predictors of repeated use among participants in a randomized controlled trial compared with registered open access users. Data routinely recorded in the Active-online user database were used. Adherence was defined as: the number of pages viewed, the proportion of visits during which a tailored module was begun, the proportion of visits during which tailored feedback was received, and the time spent in the tailored modules. Adherence was analyzed according to six one-year periods (2003-2009) and according to the context (trial or open access) based on first visits and longest visits. Attrition and predictors of repeated participation were compared between trial participants and open access users. The number of recorded visits per year on Active-online decreased from 42,626 in 2003-2004 to 8343 in 2008-2009 (each of six one-year time periods ran from April 23 to April 22 of the following year). The mean age of users was between 38.4 and 43.1 years in all time periods and both contexts. The proportion of women increased from 49.5% in 2003-2004 to 61.3% in 2008-2009 (Popen access users. For open access users, adherence was similar during the first and the longest visits; for trial participants, adherence was lower during the first visits and higher during the longest visits. Of registered open access users and trial participants, 25.8% and 67.3% respectively visited Active

Automatic creation of LabVIEW network shared variables

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kluge, T.; Schroeder, H.

2012-01-01

We are in the process of preparing the LabVIEW controlled system components of our Solid State Direct Drive experiments for the integration into a Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) or distributed control system. The predetermined route to this is the generation of LabVIEW network shared variables that can easily be exported by LabVIEW to the SCADA system using OLE for Process Control (OPC) or other means. Many repetitive tasks are associated with the creation of the shared variables and the required code. We are introducing an efficient and inexpensive procedure that automatically creates shared variable libraries and sets default values for the shared variables. Furthermore, LabVIEW controls are created that are used for managing the connection to the shared variable inside the LabVIEW code operating on the shared variables. The procedure takes as input an XML spread-sheet defining the required input. The procedure utilizes XSLT and LabVIEW scripting. In a later state of the project the code generation can be expanded to also create code and configuration files that will become necessary in order to access the shared variables from the SCADA system of choice. (authors)

Informing potential participants about research: observational study with an embedded randomized controlled trial.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Helen M Kirkby

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: To assess: 1 the feasibility of electronic information provision; 2 gather evidence on the topics and level of detail of information potential research participant's accessed; 3 to assess satisfaction and understanding. DESIGN: Observational study with an embedded randomised controlled trial. SETTING: Low risk intervention study based in primary care. PARTICIPANTS: White British & Irish, South Asian and African-Caribbean subjects aged between 40-74 years eligible for a blood pressure monitoring study. INTERVENTIONS: PDF copy of the standard paper participant information sheet (PDF-PIS and an electronic Interactive Information Sheet (IIS where participants could choose both the type and level of detail accessed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: 1 Proportion of participants providing an email address and accessing electronic information 2 Willingness to participate in a recruitment clinic. 3 Type and depth of information accessed on the IIS. 4 Participant satisfaction and understanding. RESULTS: 1160 participants were eligible for the study. Of these, 276 (24% provided an active email address, of whom 84 did not respond to the email. 106 responded to the email but chose not to access any electronic information and were therefore ineligible for randomisation. 42 were randomised to receive the PDF-PIS and 44 to receive the IIS (with consent rates of 48% and 36%, respectively; odds ratio 0.6, 95% confidence interval 0.25 to 1.4. Electronic observation of information accessed by potential participants showed 41% chose to access no information and only 9% accessed the detail presented on the Research Ethics Committee approved participant information sheet before booking to attend a recruitment clinic for the intervention study. 63 of the 106 participants (59% who chose not to access any electronic information also booked an appointment. CONCLUSIONS: Current written information about research may not be read, emphasising the importance of the consent

Simulation platform for remote participants in fusion experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrera, E.; Ruiz, M.; Lopez, S.; Vega, J.; Sanchez, E.

2004-01-01

One of the major challenges in remote participation in fusion experiments is the control from remote locations of the data acquisition and treatment process. In an optimum situation, the remote researcher should be able to control the data acquisition configuration parameters, and data processing, specifying the results that must be returned to him. The simulation platform presented here, allows the researcher to develop and test complex algorithms in a high level graphical language (LabVIEW), which includes powerful data processing libraries. These algorithms will be downloaded later into the data acquisition system. Furthermore, the platform allows the simulation of hardware data acquisition, which include the following points: (a) simulation of channel configuration from one or several data acquisition cards (channels used, sample frequencies, etc.), (b) generation of buffered simulated data (it is also possible the use of raw data, acquired in previous experiments, as simulated data), and (c) reproduction of hardware behavior (except, of course, in terms of real time behavior and real data). For this purpose, Virtual Instruments (VIs) libraries written in LabVIEW will be provided to the remote developers. These VIs will be replaced later, in the data acquisition system, by their homologous VIs that actually interface with the hardware. This facility will allow remote researchers to verify the correct behavior of their own data processing algorithms before downloading them into the data acquisition system

Dynamic participation of doubly fed induction generator in automatic generation control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bhatt, Praghnesh [Department of Electrical Engineering, Charotar Institute of Technology, Changa, Gujarat-388421 (India); Roy, Ranjit [Department of Electrical Engineering, S.V. National Institute of Technology, Surat, Gujarat-395007 (India); Ghoshal, S.P. [Department of Electrical Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Durgapur, West Bengal-713209 (India)

2011-04-15

Increasing levels of wind generation have resulted in an urgent need for the assessment of their impact on frequency control of power systems. The displacement of conventional generation with wind generation will result in erosion of system frequency. The paper analyzed the dynamic participation of doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) to system frequency responses of two-area interconnected power system having variety of conventional generating units. Frequency control support function responding proportionally to frequency deviation is proposed to take out the kinetic energy of turbine blades in order to improve the frequency response of the system. Impacts of different wind penetrations in the system and varying active power support from wind farm on frequency control have been investigated. Integral gains of AGC loop are optimized through craziness-based particle swarm optimization (CRPSO) in order to have optimal transient responses of area frequencies, tie-line power deviation and DFIG parameters. (author)

Effects of viewing a pro-ana website: an experimental study on body satisfaction, affect, and appearance self-efficacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Delforterie, Monique J; Larsen, Junilla K; Bardone-Cone, Anna M; Scholte, Ron H J

2014-01-01

Pro-anorexia websites portray an extreme form of thin-ideal. This between-subjects experiment examined the effects of viewing such a website on body satisfaction, affect, and appearance self-efficacy compared to viewing control websites (fashion, home decoration, automutilation). The sample consisted of 124 normal weight, young adult, Dutch women (mean age 21.2, mean body mass index 21.4). Participants did not differ on affect and appearance self-efficacy. One body satisfaction measure showed that pro-anorexia viewers were more satisfied with their bodies than home decoration viewers. Our findings suggest that viewing a pro-anorexia website might not have detrimental effects on body satisfaction and affect among normal weight young women.

Viewing angle switching of patterned vertical alignment liquid crystal display

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Young Jin; Jeong, Eun; Chin, Mi Hyung; Lee, Seung Hee; Ji, Seunghoon; Lee, Gi-Dong

2008-01-01

Viewing angle control of a patterned vertical alignment (PVA) liquid crystal display using only one panel is investigated. In conventional PVA modes, a vertically aligned liquid crystal (LC) director tilts down in four directions making 45 deg. with respect to crossed polarizers to exhibit a wide viewing angle. In the viewing angle control device, one pixel was divided into two sub-pixels such that the LC director in the main pixel is controlled to be tilted down in multiple directions making an angle with the polarizer, playing the role of main display with the wide viewing angle, while the LC director in the sub-pixel is controlled to be tilted down to the polarizer axis, playing the role of sub-pixel to the viewing angle control for the narrow viewing angle. Using sub-pixel control, light leakage or any type of information such as characters and image can be generated in oblique viewing directions without distorting the image quality in the normal direction, which will prevent others from peeping at the displayed image by overlapping the displayed image with the made image

TV viewing and incident venous thromboembolism: the Atherosclerotic Risk in Communities Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kubota, Yasuhiko; Cushman, Mary; Zakai, Neil; Rosamond, Wayne D; Folsom, Aaron R

2018-04-01

TV viewing is associated with risk of arterial vascular diseases, but has not been evaluated in relation to venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk in Western populations. In 1987-1989, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study obtained information on the frequency of TV viewing in participants aged 45-64 and followed them prospectively. In individuals free of prebaseline VTE (n = 15, 158), we used a Cox proportional hazards models to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of incident VTE according to frequency of TV viewing ("Never or seldom", "Sometimes", "Often" or "Very often"). During the 299,767 person-years of follow-up, we identified 691 VTE events. In a multivariable-adjusted model, the frequency of TV viewing showed a positive dose-response relation with VTE incidence (P for trend = 0.036), in which "very often" viewing TV carried 1.71 (95% CI 1.26-2.32) times the risk of VTE compared with "never or seldom" viewing TV. This association to some degree was mediated by obesity (25% mediation, 95% CI 10.7-27.5). Even among individuals who met a recommended level of physical activity, viewing TV "very often" carried 1.80 (1.04-3.09) times the risk of VTE, compared to viewing TV "never or seldom". Greater frequency of TV viewing was independently associated with increased risk of VTE, partially mediated by obesity. Achieving a recommended physical activity level did not eliminate the increased VTE risk associated with frequent TV viewing. Avoiding frequent TV viewing as well as increasing physical activity and controlling body weight might be beneficial for VTE prevention.

Innovating information-delivery for potential clinical trials participants. What do patients want from multi-media resources?

Science.gov (United States)

Shneerson, Catherine; Windle, Richard; Cox, Karen

2013-01-01

To discover whether the provision of clinical trials information via a multi-media platform could better meet the needs, preferences and practices of potential cancer trial participants. A mixed qualitative and quantitative questionnaire was delivered to 72 participants from cancer support groups to elicit views on the provision and design features of multimedia resources in delivering clinical trials information. Perceived lack of information is an expressed barrier to clinical trials participation. Multimedia resources were viewed positively as a way to address this barrier by most potential clinical trials participants; in particular by helping to align information to individual needs, promote active engagement with information, and by allowing more control of the learning experience. Whilst text remained the most valued attribute of any resource, other highly rated attributes included the resource being simple to use, easily accessible, having a clear focus, incorporating examples and visual aids, and being interactive. Provision of support for the learning resource was also rated highly. As in other areas, such as education, multimedia resources may enhance the delivery and acceptance of information regarding clinical trials. Better alignment of information may have a positive impact on recruitment and retention into clinical trials. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Impact of Silent and Freeze-Frame Viewing Techniques of Video Materials on the Intermediate EFL Learners’ Listening Comprehension

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara Shahani

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The use of modern technologies has been widely prevalent among language learners, and video, in particular, as a valuable learning tool provides learners with comprehensible input. The present study investigated the effect of silent and freeze-frame viewing techniques of video materials on the intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL learners’ listening comprehension. To this end, 45 intermediate EFL learners participated in this quasi-experimental study. The results of one-way ANOVA revealed that there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental groups (using two types of viewing techniques and the control group. While the difference between the two experimental groups was not statistically significant, the experimental groups outperformed the control group significantly.

A multimedia consent tool for research participants in the Gambia: a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Afolabi, Muhammed Olanrewaju; McGrath, Nuala; D'Alessandro, Umberto; Kampmann, Beate; Imoukhuede, Egeruan B; Ravinetto, Raffaella M; Alexander, Neal; Larson, Heidi J; Chandramohan, Daniel; Bojang, Kalifa

2015-05-01

To assess the effectiveness of a multimedia informed consent tool for adults participating in a clinical trial in the Gambia. Adults eligible for inclusion in a malaria treatment trial (n = 311) were randomized to receive information needed for informed consent using either a multimedia tool (intervention arm) or a standard procedure (control arm). A computerized, audio questionnaire was used to assess participants' comprehension of informed consent. This was done immediately after consent had been obtained (at day 0) and at subsequent follow-up visits (days 7, 14, 21 and 28). The acceptability and ease of use of the multimedia tool were assessed in focus groups. On day 0, the median comprehension score in the intervention arm was 64% compared with 40% in the control arm (P = 0.042). The difference remained significant at all follow-up visits. Poorer comprehension was independently associated with female sex (odds ratio, OR: 0.29; 95% confidence interval, CI: 0.12-0.70) and residing in Jahaly rather than Basse province (OR: 0.33; 95% CI: 0.13-0.82). There was no significant independent association with educational level. The risk that a participant's comprehension score would drop to half of the initial value was lower in the intervention arm (hazard ratio 0.22, 95% CI: 0.16-0.31). Overall, 70% (42/60) of focus group participants from the intervention arm found the multimedia tool clear and easy to understand. A multimedia informed consent tool significantly improved comprehension and retention of consent information by research participants with low levels of literacy.

Real Time Implementation of PID and Fuzzy PD Controllers for DC-Servo Motor Based on Lab View Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Safaa M. Z. Al-Ubaidi

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an implementation of conventional PID (CPID controller using Ziegler-Nichols rules and fuzzy PD (FPD controller for position servo motor control based on Lab View (Laboratory Virtual Instrument Engineering Workbench Environment through Data Acquisition (DAQ Device PCI- 6521 of National Instrument's and Data Acquisition Accessory Board Model (CB-68LP.CPID controller is perhaps the most well-known and most widely used in industrial applications. However, it has been known that CPID controller generally don’t work well for non-linear systems, higher order and time-delayed linear system and particularly complex and vague system. To overcome these difficulties, this paper proposes to use the FPD controller for a servo motor system instead of CPID. The parameters of servo motor used are completely unknown. The FPD structure has two-input single-output and fairly similar characteristic to its conventional counterpart and provides good performance. Simple rules base are used for FPD (nine rules only. Performance evaluation was carried out via a comparison study for the proposed control scheme and other existing control scheme, such as CPID controller. The critical point for this experiment on position system is a steady state error and settling time.  The performance showing that the FPD has less settling time and zero steady state error over its CPID. The algorithms of FPD and CPID controllers are implemented using PID, Fuzzy Logic and simulation toolkits of the Lab View environment.

An investigation into participation in classroom dialogue in mainland China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Song

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Classroom dialogue is commonly used in teaching and learning, and viewed as in terms of helping students to think critically and understand knowledge better. Thus, educators and scholars call on active participation in classroom dialogue. However, students in mainland China are traditionally viewed as less talkative in class. In this study, I aimed to investigate how Chinese students in secondary school normally participate in classroom dialogue. I designed an instrument for measuring students’ participation, and my research yielded initial evidence for its reliability and validity. The findings indicated that most students generally talked less and the teachers took the lead in initiating dialogue. Accuracy was used as the main criterion for evaluating whether students made a good contribution in class. A positive change was that students developed their reasoning through participating in dialogue.

Corneal Transplantation in Disease Affecting Only One Eye: Does It Make a Difference to Habitual Binocular Viewing?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praveen K Bandela

Full Text Available Clarity of the transplanted tissue and restoration of visual acuity are the two primary metrics for evaluating the success of corneal transplantation. Participation of the transplanted eye in habitual binocular viewing is seldom evaluated post-operatively. In unilateral corneal disease, the transplanted eye may remain functionally inactive during binocular viewing due to its suboptimal visual acuity and poor image quality, vis-à-vis the healthy fellow eye.This study prospectively quantified the contribution of the transplanted eye towards habitual binocular viewing in 25 cases with unilateral transplants [40 yrs (IQR: 32-42 yrs and 25 age-matched controls [30 yrs (25-37 yrs]. Binocular functions including visual field extent, high-contrast logMAR acuity, suppression threshold and stereoacuity were assessed using standard psychophysical paradigms. Optical quality of all eyes was determined from wavefront aberrometry measurements. Binocular visual field expanded by a median 21% (IQR: 18-29% compared to the monocular field of cases and controls (p = 0.63. Binocular logMAR acuity [0.0 (0.0-0.0] almost always followed the fellow eye's acuity [0.00 (0.00 --0.02] (r = 0.82, independent of the transplanted eye's acuity [0.34 (0.2-0.5] (r = 0.04. Suppression threshold and stereoacuity were poorer in cases [30.1% (13.5-44.3%; 620.8 arc sec (370.3-988.2 arc sec] than in controls [79% (63.5-100%; 16.3 arc sec (10.6-25.5 arc sec] (p<0.001. Higher-order wavefront aberrations of the transplanted eye [0.34 μ (0.21-0.51 μ] were higher than the fellow eye [0.07 μ (0.05-0.11 μ] (p<0.001 and their reduction with RGP contact lenses [0.09 μ (0.08-0.12 μ] significantly improved the suppression threshold [65% (50-72%] and stereoacuity [56.6 arc sec (47.7-181.6 arc sec] (p<0.001.In unilateral corneal disease, the transplanted eye does participate in gross binocular viewing but offers limited support to fine levels of binocularity. Improvement in the transplanted

Data acquisition from vacuum gage controlled by RS-232 standard using LabVIEW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brandea, Iulian; Culcer, Mihai; Steflea, Dumitru

1999-01-01

This paper deals with the problem of connecting a microcontroller-based vacuum gage to a personal computer, using the RS-232 hardware standard and the software LabVIEW and his collection of virtual instruments from National Instruments. To solve the problem an instrument driver was created. This provided the customer with a perfect solution for the remote control and data acquisition from an Intel 80CXX microcontroller-based vacuum gage. The remote control making use of an IBM-PC was design and manufactured in our institute. In order to make it intelligent the device was provided with a microprocessor or a microcontroller. To fulfill the requirements a vacuum gage with an 80C31 microcontroller and two Bayard-Alpert ion gauges, for very low pressures (10 -3 to 10 -7 mbar) and low pressure (10 mbar to 10 -3 mbar) was built. Because this microcontroller has a built-in circuitry for a serial communication, we established a serial communication between the PC (Pentium -166 MHz) and the vacuum gage, according to the RS-232 hardware standard. Optimum selection of software development tools however, was not as straightforward. Most producers use the C/C ++ - language programming tool for developing instrument drivers for their intelligent devices. One of the advantages of C/C ++ is its speed, but the compilation and the high-level skill required for optimum programming do not fit well with some requirements, particularly those of versatility, upgradability and user friendliness. After careful evaluation of several options, a final decision was to develop a hybrid software package using two different software development tools: LabVIEW, and assembly language. We chose LabVIEW because it is dedicated to data acquisition and communications, containing libraries for data collection, analysis, presentation and storage. The assembly language for Intel 8051's microcontrollers family is used to write the firmware for the vacuum gage and arithmetic routines. (authors)

Hostility Modifies the Association between TV Viewing and Cardiometabolic Risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anthony Fabio

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background. It was hypothesized that television viewing is predictive of cardiometabolic risk. Moreover, people with hostile personality type may be more susceptible to TV-induced negative emotions and harmful health habits which increase occurrence of cardiometabolic risk. Purpose. The prospective association of TV viewing on cardiometabolic risk was examined along with whether hostile personality trait was a modifier. Methods. A total of 3,269 Black and White participants in the coronary artery risk development in young adults (CARDIA study were assessed from age 23 to age 35. A cross-lagged panel model at exam years 5, 10, 15, and 20, covering 15 years, was used to test whether hours of daily TV viewing predicted cardiometabolic risk, controlling confounding variables. Multiple group analysis of additional cross-lagged panel models stratified by high and low levels of hostility was used to evaluate whether the association was modified by the hostile personality trait. Results. The cross-lagged association of TV viewing at years 5 and 15 on clustered cardiometabolic risk score at years 10 and 20 was significant (B=0.058 and 0.051, but not at 10 to 15 years. This association was significant for those with high hostility (B=0.068 for exam years 5 to 10 and 0.057 for exam years 15 to 20 but not low hostility. Conclusion. These findings indicate that TV viewing is positively associated with cardiometabolic risk. Further, they indicate that hostility might be a modifier for the association between TV viewing and cardiometabolic risk.

Postural Control Can Be Well Maintained by Healthy, Young Adults in Difficult Visual Task, Even in Sway-Referenced Dynamic Conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Lions, Cynthia; Bucci, Maria Pia; Bonnet, Cédrick

2016-01-01

To challenge the validity of existing cognitive models of postural control, we recorded eye movements and postural sway during two visual tasks (a control free-viewing task and a difficult searching task), and two postural tasks (one static task in which the platform was maintained stable and a dynamic task in which the platform moved in a sway-referenced manner.) We expected these models to be insufficient to predict the results in postural control both in static-as already shown in the literature reports-and in dynamic platform conditions. Twelve healthy, young adults (17.3 to 34.1 years old) participated in this study. Postural performances were evaluated using the Multitest platform (Framiral®) and ocular recording was performed with Mobile T2 (e(ye)BRAIN®). In the free-viewing task, the participants had to look at an image, without any specific instruction. In the searching task, the participants had to look at an image and also to locate the position of an object in the scene. Postural sway was only significantly higher in the dynamic free-viewing condition than in the three other conditions with no significant difference between these three other conditions. Visual task performance was slightly higher in dynamic than in static conditions. As expected, our results did not confirm the main assumption of the current cognitive models of postural control-i.e. that the limited attentional resources of the brain should explain changes in postural control in our conditions. Indeed, 1) the participants did not sway significantly more in the sway-referenced dynamic searching condition than in any other condition; 2) the participants swayed significantly less in both static and dynamic searching conditions than in the dynamic free-viewing condition. We suggest that a new cognitive model illustrating the adaptive, functional role of the brain to control upright stance is necessary for future studies.

Postural Control Can Be Well Maintained by Healthy, Young Adults in Difficult Visual Task, Even in Sway-Referenced Dynamic Conditions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cynthia Lions

Full Text Available To challenge the validity of existing cognitive models of postural control, we recorded eye movements and postural sway during two visual tasks (a control free-viewing task and a difficult searching task, and two postural tasks (one static task in which the platform was maintained stable and a dynamic task in which the platform moved in a sway-referenced manner. We expected these models to be insufficient to predict the results in postural control both in static-as already shown in the literature reports-and in dynamic platform conditions.Twelve healthy, young adults (17.3 to 34.1 years old participated in this study. Postural performances were evaluated using the Multitest platform (Framiral® and ocular recording was performed with Mobile T2 (e(yeBRAIN®. In the free-viewing task, the participants had to look at an image, without any specific instruction. In the searching task, the participants had to look at an image and also to locate the position of an object in the scene.Postural sway was only significantly higher in the dynamic free-viewing condition than in the three other conditions with no significant difference between these three other conditions. Visual task performance was slightly higher in dynamic than in static conditions.As expected, our results did not confirm the main assumption of the current cognitive models of postural control-i.e. that the limited attentional resources of the brain should explain changes in postural control in our conditions. Indeed, 1 the participants did not sway significantly more in the sway-referenced dynamic searching condition than in any other condition; 2 the participants swayed significantly less in both static and dynamic searching conditions than in the dynamic free-viewing condition. We suggest that a new cognitive model illustrating the adaptive, functional role of the brain to control upright stance is necessary for future studies.

Mental Health staff views on improving burnout and mental toughness

OpenAIRE

Posner, Zoe; Janssen, Jessica; Roddam, Hazel

2017-01-01

Purpose- Burnout in mental health staff is acknowledged as a major problem. The purpose of this paper is to gain an understanding of mental health staff views on improving burnout and mental toughness in mental health staff.\\ud Design/methodology/approach-Ten participants from two mental health rehabilitation units across the North West of England took part in a Nominal Group Technique (NGT). Participants consisted of mental health workers from varied roles in order to\\ud capture views from a...

How do midwives in Slovenia view their professional status?

Science.gov (United States)

Mivšek, Polona; Pahor, Majda; Hlebec, Valentina; Hundley, Vanora

2015-12-01

The aim of the study was to explore Slovenian midwives' views of their professional status. The influence of participants' educational background on their views was also examined, since higher education is related to professionalism. This was a quantitative descriptive survey, using postal data collection. The questionnaire comprised of six elements crucial for professionalism--three elements distinctive of 'old' professionalism (power, ethics, specific knowledge) and three characteristics of 'new' professionalism (reflective practice, inter-professional collaboration and partnership with users). A total of 300 midwives who were registered in a national register of nurses and midwives at the time of the study. The response rate was 50.7% (152 returned the questionnaire). Participants that were on a probationary period were excluded, leaving 128 questionnaires for analysis (43%). Some 40.9% participants had secondary midwifery education, 56.7% had higher midwifery education and only few (2.4%) finished postgraduate education. The majority of participants did not consider midwifery to be a specific profession. Midwives with secondary education were more likely to consider practical skills to be important than theoretical midwifery knowledge. In general midwives did not feel enabled to practice autonomously; and this caused them to face ethical dilemmas when aiming to fulfil women's wishes. All participants with midwifery secondary school education thought that obstetrics jeopardises midwifery scope of practice, but only half of the BSc participants thought this. One-fifth of all participants estimated that midwifery is also threatened by nursing. The respondents reported feeling a lack of control over their professional activity and policy making; however the majority of midwives claimed that they were willing to take on more responsibility for independent practice. Slovenian midwifery cannot be considered to be a profession yet. It faces several hindrances, due to

Shedding light on research participation effects in behaviour change trials: a qualitative study examining research participant experiences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Virginia MacNeill

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The sequence of events in a behaviour change trial involves interactions between research participants and the trial process. Taking part in such a study has the potential to influence the behaviour of the participant, and if it does, this can engender bias in trial outcomes. Since participants’ experience has received scant attention, the aim of this study is thus to generate hypotheses about which aspects of the conduct of behaviour change trials might matter most to participants, and thus have potential to alter subsequent behaviours and bias trial outcomes Methods Twenty participants were opportunistically screened for a health compromising behaviour (unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, smoking or alcohol consumption and recruited if eligible. Semi structured face to face interviews were conducted, after going through the usual processes involved in trial recruitment, baseline assessment and randomisation. Participants were given information on the contents of an intervention or control condition in a behaviour change trial, which was not actually implemented. Three months later they returned to reflect on these experiences and whether they had any effect on their behaviour during the intervening period. Data from the latter interview were analysed thematically using a modified grounded theory approach. Results The early processes of trial participation raised awareness of unhealthy behaviours, although most reported having had only fleeting intentions to change their behaviour as a result of taking part in this study, in the absence of interventions. However, careful examination of the accounts revealed evidence of subtle research participation effects, which varied according to the health behaviour, and its perceived social acceptability. Participants’ relationships with the research study were viewed as somewhat important in stimulating thinking about whether and how to make lifestyle changes. Conclusion These

Young people's participation in physical activity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Stine Frydendal; Ottesen, Laila; Thing, Lone Friis

regarding physical activity. 469 students participated in the survey. It is carried out through the online program SurveyXact. The data is processed in SPSS, and subsequently discussed. The primary results reveal that spare time jobs have a large impact on young people’s participation in physical activity......; Shame has an immense influence on the girls’ participation in physical activity; The offers regarding physical activity, provided by the school, appeal more to the boys and the students who are already physically active. Consequently, the students express a wish to have more influence on physical...... of young people today. This means that participation in physical activity cannot be discussed independently, but must always be viewed within the context of the lives of young people today....

Pension plan participation among married couples.

Science.gov (United States)

Dushi, Irena; Iams, Howard M

2013-01-01

We present descriptive statistics on pension participation and types of pensions among married couples, using data from the 1996/2008 Panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation and Social Security administrative records. Previous research has focused on pension coverage by marital status, but has not examined couples as a unit. Because couples usually share income, viewing them as a unit provides a better picture of potential access to income from retirement plans. Our analysis compares 1998 and 2009 data because substantial changes occurred in the pension landscape over this decade that could have influenced the prevalence of different pension plans, although we observe modest changes in participation rates and types of plans over the period. We find that in 20 percent of couples, neither spouse participated in a pension plan; in 10 percent, the wife was the only participant; and in 37 percent, the husband was the only participant.

Public and biobank participant attitudes toward genetic research participation and data sharing.

Science.gov (United States)

Lemke, A A; Wolf, W A; Hebert-Beirne, J; Smith, M E

2010-01-01

Research assessing attitudes toward consent processes for high-throughput genomic-wide technologies and widespread sharing of data is limited. In order to develop a better understanding of stakeholder views toward these issues, this cross-sectional study assessed public and biorepository participant attitudes toward research participation and sharing of genetic research data. Forty-nine individuals participated in 6 focus groups; 28 in 3 public focus groups and 21 in 3 NUgene biorepository participant focus groups. In the public focus groups, 75% of participants were women, 75% had some college education or more, 46% were African-American and 29% were Hispanic. In the NUgene focus groups, 67% of participants were women, 95% had some college education or more, and the majority (76%) of participants was Caucasian. Five major themes were identified in the focus group data: (a) a wide spectrum of understanding of genetic research; (b) pros and cons of participation in genetic research; (c) influence of credibility and trust of the research institution; (d) concerns about sharing genetic research data and need for transparency in the Policy for Sharing of Data in National Institutes of Health-Supported or Conducted Genome-Wide Association Studies; (e) a need for more information and education about genetic research. In order to increase public understanding and address potential concerns about genetic research, future efforts should be aimed at involving the public in genetic research policy development and in identifying or developing appropriate educational strategies to meet the public's needs.

The diagnostic accuracy of dual-view digital mammography, single-view breast tomo-synthesis and a dual-view combination of breast tomo-synthesis and digital mammography in a free-response observer performance study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Svahn, T.; Andersson, I.; Chakraborty, D.; Svensson, S.; Ikeda, D.; Foernvik, D.; Mattsson, S.; Tingberg, A.; Zackrisson, S.

2010-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of dual-view digital mammography (DM), single view breast tomo-synthesis (BT) and BT combined with the opposite DM view. Patients with subtle lesions were selected to undergo BT examinations. Two radiologists who are non-participants in the study and have experience in using DM and BT determined the locations and extents of lesions in the images. Five expert mammographers interpreted the cases using the free-response paradigm. The task was to mark and rate clinically reportable findings suspicious for malignancy and clinically relevant benign findings. The marks were scored with reference to the outlined regions into lesion localization or non-lesion localization, and analysed by the jackknife alternative free-response receiver operating characteristic method. The analysis yielded statistically significant differences between the combined modality and dual-view DM (p < 0.05). No differences were found between single-view BT and dual-view DM or between single-view BT and the combined modality. (authors)

Effect of personalised citizen assistance for social participation (APIC) on older adults' health and social participation: study protocol for a pragmatic multicentre randomised controlled trial (RCT).

Science.gov (United States)

Levasseur, Mélanie; Dubois, Marie-France; Filliatrault, Johanne; Vasiliadis, Helen-Maria; Lacasse-Bédard, Joanie; Tourigny, André; Levert, Marie-Josée; Gabaude, Catherine; Lefebvre, Hélène; Berger, Valérie; Eymard, Chantal

2018-03-31

The challenges of global ageing and the growing burden of chronic diseases require innovative interventions acting on health determinants like social participation. Many older adults do not have equitable opportunities to achieve full social participation, and interventions might underempower their personal and environmental resources and only reach a minority. To optimise current practices, the Accompagnement-citoyen Personnalisé d'Intégration Communautaire (APIC), an intervention demonstrated as being feasible and having positive impacts, needs further evaluation. A pragmatic multicentre, prospective, two-armed, randomised controlled trial will evaluate: (1) the short-term and long-term effects of the APIC on older adults' health, social participation, life satisfaction and healthcare services utilisation and (2) its cost-effectiveness. A total of 376 participants restricted in at least one instrumental activity of daily living and living in three large cities in the province of Quebec, Canada, will be randomly assigned to the experimental or control group using a centralised computer-generated random number sequence procedure. The experimental group will receive weekly 3-hour personalised stimulation sessions given by a trained volunteer over the first 12 months. Sessions will encourage empowerment, gradual mobilisation of personal and environmental resources and community integration. The control group will receive the publicly funded universal healthcare services available to all Quebecers. Over 2 years (baseline and 12, 18 and 24 months later), self-administered questionnaires will assess physical and mental health (primary outcome; version 2 of the 36-item Short-Form Health Survey, converted to SF-6D utility scores for quality-adjusted life years), social participation (Social Participation Scale) and life satisfaction (Life Satisfaction Index-Z). Healthcare services utilisation will be recorded and costs of each intervention calculated. The Research

Present status of the TJ-II remote participation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vega, J.; Sanchez, E.; Lopez, A.; Portas, A.; Ochando, M.; Ascasibar, E.; Mollinedo, A.; Munoz, J.; Sanchez, A.; Ruiz, M.; Barrera, E.; Lopez, S.; Castro, R.; Lopez, D.

2005-01-01

The TJ-II remote participation system (RPS) was designed to extend to Internet the working capabilities provided in the TJ-II local environment, i.e., tracking the TJ-II operation, monitoring/programming data acquisition and control systems, and accessing databases. The TJ-II RPS was based on web and Java technologies because of their open character, security properties and technological maturity. A web server acts as a communication front-end between remote participants and local TJ-II elements. From the server side, web services are provided by means of resources supplied by JSP pages. The client part makes use of web browsers and ad hoc Java applications. The operation requires the use of a distributed authentication and authorization system. This development employs the PAPI System. At present, approximately 1000 digitisation channels can be managed from the TJ-II RPS. Furthermore, processing software based on a 4GL language (LabView) can be downloaded to multiprocessor data acquisition systems. Also, 15 diagnostic control systems, databases and the operation logbook are available from the RPS. The system even allows for the physicist in charge of operation to be in a remote location. Four Spanish universities make use of the TJ-II remote participation system capabilities for joint collaborations: these are the Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (UPM), Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (UNED), Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) and Universidad Politecnica de Cataluna (UPC)

The comparison of manual and LabVIEW-based fuzzy control on mechanical ventilation.

Science.gov (United States)

Guler, Hasan; Ata, Fikret

2014-09-01

The aim of this article is to develop a knowledge-based therapy for management of rats with respiratory distress. A mechanical ventilator was designed to achieve this aim. The designed ventilator is called an intelligent mechanical ventilator since fuzzy logic was used to control the pneumatic equipment according to the rat's status. LabVIEW software was used to control all equipments in the ventilator prototype and to monitor respiratory variables in the experiment. The designed ventilator can be controlled both manually and by fuzzy logic. Eight female Wistar-Albino rats were used to test the designed ventilator and to show the effectiveness of fuzzy control over manual control on pressure control ventilation mode. The anesthetized rats were first ventilated for 20 min manually. After that time, they were ventilated for 20 min by fuzzy logic. Student's t-test for p < 0.05 was applied to the measured minimum, maximum and mean peak inspiration pressures to analyze the obtained results. The results show that there is no statistical difference in the rat's lung parameters before and after the experiments. It can be said that the designed ventilator and developed knowledge-based therapy support artificial respiration of living things successfully. © IMechE 2014.

How Participation Creates Citizens: Participatory Governance as Performative Practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esther Turnhout

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Participation is a prominent feature of many decision-making and planning processes. Among its proclaimed benefits is its potential to strengthen public support and involvement. However, participation is also known for having unintended consequences which lead to failures in meeting its objectives. This article takes a critical perspective on participation by discussing how participation may influence the ways in which citizens can become involved. Participation unavoidably involves (1 restrictions about who should be involved and about the space for negotiation, (2 assumptions about what the issue at stake is, and (3 expectations about what the outcome of participation should be and how the participants are expected to behave. This is illustrated by a case study about the Dutch nature area, the Drentsche Aa. The case study demonstrates how the participatory process that took place and the restrictions, assumptions, and expectations that were involved resulted in six forms of citizen involvement, both intended and unintended, which ranged between creativity, passivity, and entrenchment. Based on these findings, the article argues that participation does not merely serve as a neutral place in which citizens are represented, but instead creates different categories of citizens. Recognizing this means reconceiving participation as performative practice. Such a perspective goes beyond overly optimistic views of participation as a technique whose application can be perfected, as well as pessimistic views of participation as repression or domination. Instead, it appreciates both intended and unintended forms of citizen involvement as meaningful and legitimate, and recognizes citizenship as being constituted in interaction in the context of participation.

Expecting reciprocity: Towards a model of the participants' perspective on participatory journalism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Borger, M.; van Hoof, A.M.J.; Sanders, J.

2014-01-01

This study examines ‘participatory journalism’ from the perspective of participants. Through a series of in-depth interviews with 32 participants from two different participatory journalistic environments set up by professional news organizations, we investigated how participants view and evaluate

Can Designing Self-Representations through Creative Computing Promote an Incremental View of Intelligence and Enhance Creativity among At-Risk Youth?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ina Blau

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Creative computing is one of the rapidly growing educational trends around the world. Previous studies have shown that creative computing can empower disadvantaged children and youth. At-risk youth tend to hold a negative view of self and perceive their abilities as inferior compared to “normative” pupils. The Implicit Theories of Intelligence approach (ITI; Dweck, 1999, 2008 suggests a way of changing beliefs regarding one’s abilities. This paper reports findings from an experiment that explores the impact of a short intervention among at-risk youth and “normative” high-school students on (1 changing ITI from being perceived as fixed (entity view of intelligence to more flexible (incremental view of intelligence and (2 the quality of digital self-representations programmed though a creative computing app. The participants were 117 Israeli youth aged 14-17, half of whom were at-risk youth. The participants were randomly assigned to the experimental and control conditions. The experimental group watched a video of a lecture regarding brain plasticity that emphasized flexibility and the potential of human intelligence to be cultivated. The control group watched a neutral lecture about brain-functioning and creativity. Following the intervention, all of the participants watched screencasts of basic training for the Scratch programming app, designed artifacts that digitally represented themselves five years later and reported their ITI. The results showed more incremental ITI in the experimental group compared to the control group and among normative students compared to at-risk youth. In contrast to the research hypothesis, the Scratch projects of the at-risk youth, especially in the experimental condition, were rated by neutral judges as being more creative, more aesthetically designed, and more clearly conveying their message. The results suggest that creative computing combined with the ITI intervention is a way of developing

LabVIEW interface with Tango control system for a multi-technique X-ray spectrometry IAEA beamline end-station at Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wrobel, P.M. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, al. A. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow (Poland); Bogovac, M. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Sghaier, H. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Institut Superieur d’Informatique et de Mathematiques de Monastir (ISIMM), Departement de technologie, 5000 Monastir (Tunisia); Leani, J.J. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); IFEG – CONICET, Facultad de Matematica Astronomia y Fisica, Universidad Nacional de Cordoba, 5000 Cordoba (Argentina); Migliori, A.; Padilla-Alvarez, R. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Czyzycki, M. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, al. A. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow (Poland); Osan, J. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); Environmental Physics Department, Hungarian Academy of Sciences Centre for Energy Research, Konkoly-Thege M. út 29-33., H-1121 Budapest (Hungary); Kaiser, R.B. [Physics Section, Nuclear Science and Instrumentation Laboratory (NSIL), IAEA Laboratories, A-2444 Seibersdorf (Austria); and others

2016-10-11

A new synchrotron beamline end-station for multipurpose X-ray spectrometry applications has been recently commissioned and it is currently accessible by end-users at the XRF beamline of Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste. The end-station consists of an ultra-high vacuum chamber that includes as main instrument a seven-axis motorized manipulator for sample and detectors positioning, different kinds of X-ray detectors and optical cameras. The beamline end-station allows performing measurements in different X-ray spectrometry techniques such as Microscopic X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (µXRF), Total Reflection X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (TXRF), Grazing Incidence/Exit X-Ray Fluorescence analysis (GI-XRF/GE-XRF), X-Ray Reflectometry (XRR), and X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS). A LabVIEW Graphical User Interface (GUI) bound with Tango control system consisted of many custom made software modules is utilized as a user-friendly tool for control of the entire end-station hardware components. The present work describes this advanced Tango and LabVIEW software platform that utilizes in an optimal synergistic manner the merits and functionality of these well-established programming and equipment control tools. - Highlights: • A new methodology for control of a synchrotron beamline end-station is shown. • The new control system comprises a novel binding of Tango control system with LabVIEW interface. • The reliability of the control system is demonstrated by examples of analytical applications.

Programming Arduino with LabVIEW

CERN Document Server

Schwartz, Marco

2015-01-01

If you already have some experience with LabVIEW and want to apply your skills to control physical objects and make measurements using the Arduino sensor, this book is for you. Prior knowledge of Arduino and LabVIEW is essential to fully understand the projects detailed in this book.

Low-level RF LabVIEW reg-sign control software user's manual: Version 1.0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-06-01

This document details information on the low-level radio frequency (LLRF) software control package. The chapters in this manual cover the following topics: Chapter one describes the general operating principles of the LabVIEW software package, and also discusses the high-level menu panels which allow access to the individual control panels. Chapter two covers the control panels used for conditioning the cavity, and for controlling the accelerator under normal operating conditions. Chapter three provides information on the resonance detection and reflectometer calibration function, including the setup and status panels for each. Chapter four contain instructions on the use of those panels dedicated to controlling the cavity RF field. Chapter five discusses the control panels that provide setup and status information on the diagnostic monitor subsystem. Chapter six outlines those panels used to control the timing functions provided by the LLRF system. Finally, chapter seven describes the control panels used to monitor and adjust the alarm and limit functions of the system. Throughout the document, it is assumed that the reader has a general working knowledge of accelerators, high-power amplifier equipment, and low-level RF (LLRF) control systems. References are listed as footnotes as they occur in the text

Viewing behaviour of spider phobics and non-phobics in the presence of threat and safety stimuli.

Science.gov (United States)

Lange, W G T; Tierney, K J; Reinhardt-Rutland, A H; Vivekananda-Schmidt, P

2004-09-01

To determine whether spider phobics and spider non-phobics differ in attending to threat and safety stimuli in close proximity, or spatially separated. A sample group of 16 spider-phobic and 16 spider-non-phobic volunteers were drawn from a student population on the basis of their scores on Watts and Sharrock's Spider Phobia Questionnaire. Attention was assessed by way of participants' viewing behaviour using an ASL 501 head-mounted eye-tracking system. In a control condition, participants viewed a neutral stimulus (a TV video) in the absence of the threat stimulus. In two experimental conditions, the threat stimulus (a live Chilean rose tarantula) was introduced (a) immediately beside the safety stimulus (the only exit of the experimental room), or (b) away from the safety stimulus. In the experimental conditions, phobics reduced their viewing of the TV and increased their viewing of the tarantula and of the exit; the biggest changes occurred when tarantula and exit were together. Phobics also made more eye motions across the experimental room. Our results are consistent with previous research employing reaction time to a neutral stimulus as dependent measure. In addition, our results suggest that phobics scan the environment as part of safety behaviour. We suggest that exposure treatments to reduce spider phobia may be facilitated by encouraging patients to stop environmental scanning. Copyright 2004 The British Psychological Society

Predictors of nutrition label viewing during food purchase decision making: an eye tracking investigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Graham, Dan J; Jeffery, Robert W

2012-02-01

Nutrition label use could help consumers eat healthfully. Despite consumers reporting label use, diets are not very healthful and obesity rates continue to rise. The present study investigated whether self-reported label use matches objectively measured label viewing by monitoring the gaze of individuals viewing labels. The present study monitored adults viewing sixty-four food items on a computer equipped with an eye-tracking camera as they made simulated food purchasing decisions. ANOVA and t tests were used to compare label viewing across various subgroups (e.g. normal weight v. overweight v. obese; married v. unmarried) and also across various types of foods (e.g. snacks v. fruits and vegetables). Participants came to the University of Minnesota's Epidemiology Clinical Research Center in spring 2010. The 203 participants were ≥18 years old and capable of reading English words on a computer 76 cm (30 in) away. Participants looked longer at labels for 'meal' items like pizza, soup and yoghurt compared with fruits and vegetables, snack items like crackers and nuts, and dessert items like ice cream and cookies. Participants spent longer looking at labels for foods they decided to purchase compared with foods they decided not to purchase. There were few between-group differences in nutrition label viewing across sex, race, age, BMI, marital status, income or educational attainment. Nutrition label viewing is related to food purchasing, and labels are viewed more when a food's healthfulness is ambiguous. Objectively measuring nutrition label viewing provides new insight into label use by various sociodemographic groups.

Television viewing and snacking.

Science.gov (United States)

Gore, Stacy A; Foster, Jill A; DiLillo, Vicki G; Kirk, Kathy; Smith West, Delia

2003-11-01

With the rise in obesity in America, the search for potential causes for this epidemic has begun to include a focus on environmental factors. Television (TV) viewing is one such factor, partially due to its potential as a stimulus for eating. The current study investigated the relationship between food intake and self-reported TV viewing in an effort to identify the impact of TV viewing on specific eating behaviors. Seventy-four overweight women seeking obesity treatment completed questionnaires assessing dietary habits and TV viewing behaviors. Results suggest that snacking, but not necessarily eating meals, while watching TV is associated with increased overall caloric intake and calories from fat. Therefore, interventions targeting stimulus control techniques to reduce snacking behavior may have an impact on overall caloric intake.

Associations of obesogenic behaviors in mothers and obese children participating in a randomized trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Sonneville, Kendrin R; Rifas-Shiman, Sheryl L; Kleinman, Ken P; Gortmaker, Steven L; Gillman, Matthew W; Taveras, Elsie M

2012-07-01

Relatively little research has assessed the association between obesogenic behaviors in parents and their children. The objective of the present analysis was to examine cross-sectional associations in television (TV)/video viewing, sugar-sweetened beverage intake, and fast food intake between mothers and their preschool aged children. We studied baseline data among 428 participants in High Five for Kids, a randomized controlled trial of behavior change among overweight and obese children of ages 2-6.9 years. The main exposures were whether mothers viewed TV/videos beverages, and ate fast food food beverages (73%), while few mothers viewed food goal (68%), but not the goals for sugar-sweetened beverages (31%) or TV/video viewing (13%). In adjusted models, the odds ratios for a child meeting the goal were 3.2 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.7, 6.2) for TV/video viewing, 5.8 (95% CI 2.8, 12.0) for sugar-sweetened beverage intake, and 17.5 (95% CI 9.8, 31.2) for fast food intake if their mothers met the goal for the same behavior. Obesogenic behaviors of mothers and preschool aged children were strongly associated. Our findings lend support to obesity prevention strategies that target parental behavior and the family environment.

Penerapan Konsep Model View Controller Pada Rancang Bangun Sistem Informasi Klinik Kesehatan Berbasis Web

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Devy Ferdiansyah

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Klinik merupakan sebuah institusi layanan publik yang bergerak dalam bidang jasa kesehatan. Saat ini, masih banyak klinik yang mencatat kegiatan operasional harian secara manual dalam arsip kertas, seperti pendaftaran pasien, pengelolaan data rekam medik, dan sebagainya. Arsip berbagai data klinik menjadi bertumpuk, sehingga membutuhkan ruang penyimpanan yang lebih luas dan pemeliharaan yang lebih ekstra agar kertas catatan tersebut tidak hilang atau mudah rusak. Proses pencarian data pasien dan rekam medik membutuhkan waktu lama, akibat berada di tumpukan arsip yang semakin banyak. Tujuan penelitian adalah membangun sebuah sistem informasi klinik kesehatan berbasis web untuk membantu staff dalam mengelola data klinik kesehatan. Pembangunan Sistem berbasis web ini menggunakan bahasa pemrograman PHP dan database MySQL, dengan menerapkan konsep  Model View Controller(MVC dalam teknik pemrogramannya. Penerapan metode MVC bertujuan untuk memberikan kemudahan bagi pemrogram web dalam membangun website, karena memisahkan data (Model dari tampilannya (View dan cara bagaimana mengolahnya (Controller. Penelitian ini menghasilkan sebuah aplikasi sistem informasi klinik kesehatan berbasis web, yang merubah pola kerja staff dari cara manual dan membutuhkan waktu lama, menjadi terkomputerisasi dengan waktu kerja yang lebih cepat, serta cara kerja yang lebih praktis dan efisien. Penelitian ini memberikan arahan yang jelas tentang bagaimana sebaiknya membangun sebuah sistem informasi berbasis web dengan baik, sehingga tidak menyulitkan pemrogram web saat harus memperbaiki atau mengembangkan sistem di kemudian hari.

Art in time and space: context modulates the relation between art experience and viewing time.

Science.gov (United States)

Brieber, David; Nadal, Marcos; Leder, Helmut; Rosenberg, Raphael

2014-01-01

The experience of art emerges from the interaction of various cognitive and affective processes. The unfolding of these processes in time and their relation with viewing behavior, however, is still poorly understood. Here we examined the effect of context on the relation between the experience of art and viewing time, the most basic indicator of viewing behavior. Two groups of participants viewed an art exhibition in one of two contexts: one in the museum, the other in the laboratory. In both cases viewing time was recorded with a mobile eye tracking system. After freely viewing the exhibition, participants rated each artwork on liking, interest, understanding, and ambiguity scales. Our results show that participants in the museum context liked artworks more, found them more interesting, and viewed them longer than those in the laboratory. Analyses with mixed effects models revealed that aesthetic appreciation (compounding liking and interest), understanding, and ambiguity predicted viewing time for artworks and for their corresponding labels. The effect of aesthetic appreciation and ambiguity on viewing time was modulated by context: Whereas art appreciation tended to predict viewing time better in the laboratory than in museum context, the relation between ambiguity and viewing time was positive in the museum and negative in the laboratory context. Our results suggest that art museums foster an enduring and focused aesthetic experience and demonstrate that context modulates the relation between art experience and viewing behavior.

Chemistry Teachers' Views of Creativity

Science.gov (United States)

Akkanat, Çigdem; Gökdere, Murat

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine chemistry teachers' views of creativity. In this study, phenomenology method, one of the qualitative research patterns, was used. The participants of this study were 13 chemistry teachers working in Amasya. A semi-structured interview form was used for data collection. By using NVivo 9 qualitative…

Native-View Paradigms: Multiple Cultures and Culture Conflicts in Organizations.

Science.gov (United States)

Gregory, Kathleen L.

1983-01-01

After reviewing organizational culture studies done in industrial settings, this paper proposes a native-view paradigm from anthropology for exploring the multiple perspectives of participants in large organizations and describes a study--of Silicon Valley technical professionals' native views--that applies the methods of ethnoscience ethnography.…

An intervention to reduce television viewing by preschool children.

Science.gov (United States)

Dennison, Barbara A; Russo, Theresa J; Burdick, Patrick A; Jenkins, Paul L

2004-02-01

Television viewing has been associated with increased violence in play and higher rates of obesity. Although there are interventions to reduce television viewing by school-aged children, there are none for younger children. To develop and evaluate an intervention to reduce television viewing by preschool children. Randomized controlled trial conducted in 16 preschool and/or day care centers in rural upstate New York. Children aged 2.6 through 5.5 years. Children attending intervention centers received a 7-session program designed to reduce television viewing as part of a health promotion curriculum, whereas children attending the control centers received a safety and injury prevention program. Change in parent-reported child television/video viewing and measured growth variables. Before the intervention, the intervention and control groups viewed 11.9 and 14.0 h/wk of television/videos, respectively. Afterward, children in the intervention group decreased their television/video viewing 3.1 h/wk, whereas children in the control group increased their viewing by 1.6 h/wk, for an adjusted difference between the groups of -4.7 h/wk (95% confidence interval, -8.4 to -1.0 h/wk; P =.02). The percentage of children watching television/videos more than 2 h/d also decreased significantly from 33% to 18% among the intervention group, compared with an increase of 41% to 47% among the control group, for a difference of -21.5% (95% confidence interval, -42.5% to -0.5%; P =.046). There were no statistically significant differences in children's growth between groups. This study is the first to show that a preschool-based intervention can lead to reductions in young children's television/video viewing. Further research is needed to determine the long-term effects associated with reductions in young children's television viewing.

Relative solidarity: Conceptualising communal participation in genomic research among potential research participants in a developing Sub-Saharan African setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Ogunrin, Olubunmi; Woolfall, Kerry; Gabbay, Mark; Frith, Lucy

2018-01-01

As genomic research gathers momentum in sub-Saharan Africa, it has become increasingly important to understand the reasons why individuals wish to participate in this kind of medical research. Against the background of communitarianism conceived as typical of African communities, it is often suggested that individuals consent to participate on the grounds of solidarity and to further the common good. In this paper, we seek to explore this contention by presenting data from focus groups with potential research participants about what would influence their decisions to participate in genomic research. These focus groups were conducted as part of a larger qualitative study with a purposively selected group of participants from a community situated in south west Nigeria. We conducted fifteen focus group sessions comprising 50 participants organized by age and sex, namely: 1) adult (>30 years) males, 2) adult females, 3) youth (18-30 years) males, and 4) youth females. A mixed age-group was conducted to probe different views between the age groups. There was discordance and clear division between the adults and youths regarding the decision to participate in genomic research based on commitment to communal values. Adults based their decision to participate on altruism and furthering the common good while youths based their decisions on personal benefits and preferences and also took into account the views and welfare of family members and neighbours. This discordance suggests a 'generational shift' and we advance a model of 'relative solidarity' among the youths, which is different from the communal solidarity model typical of African communitarianism. Our findings suggest the need for a closer look at strategies for implementation of community engagement and informed consent in genomic research in this region, and we recommend further studies to explore this emerging trend.

Participative management in health care services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Muller

1995-03-01

Full Text Available The need and demand for the highest-quality management of all health care delivery activities requires a participative management approach. The purpose with this article is to explore the process of participative management, to generate and describe a model for such management, focusing mainly on the process of participative management, and to formulate guidelines for operationalisation of the procedure. An exploratory, descriptive and theory-generating research design is pursued. After a brief literature review, inductive reasoning is mainly employed to identify and define central concepts, followed by the formulation of a few applicable statements and guidelines. Participative management is viewed as a process of that constitutes the elements of dynamic interactive decision-making and problem-solving, shared governance, empowerment, organisational transformation, and dynamic communication within the health care organisation. The scientific method of assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation is utilised throughout the process of participative management.

Impact of Chinese Culture on Pre-service Science Teachers' Views of the Nature of Science

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Wan, Dongsheng; Zhang, Hongshia; Wei, Bing

2018-04-01

This study examines Chinese pre-service teachers' (N = 30) views on the nature of science (NOS) and how Chinese culture influences their views. Participants were from two teachers' universities in eastern China. As an exploratory and interpretive study, a scenario-based interview approach was adopted. The results indicated that the participants held unique views about the five key aspects of NOS. Many participants have alternative and contemporary views of NOS, but few possess classical views. In fact, teachers adopted features of the Confucian Doctrine of the Mean either consciously or unconsciously to account for their views of NOS. This research reflects that the Doctrine of the Mean affected Chinese teachers' views of NOS, making them rather deficient in their understandings of classical NOS. Based on empirical data, it is argued that science teacher training in China should focus on the content and objectives of classical NOS, rather than just teaching contemporary views of NOS. Taking Chinese culture into consideration, science teacher education in China cannot entirely import the strategies of teaching the classical views of NOS from the developed world, but should develop, design and contextualize local strategies that are suitable for the training of Chinese science teachers. Some issues for further investigation of learners' views of NOS in non-Western contexts are suggested as implications from this study.

Teleradiology in Southeast Iran: Evaluating the Views of Senior Executives and Radiologists.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadoughi, Farahnaz; Erfannia, Leila; Sancholi, Mahboobe; Salmani, Fatemeh; Sarsarshahi, Aida

Teleradiology is considered as one of the important forms of telemedicine. Positive views of the users and providers of these services play an important role in its successful implementations. The aim of this study was to investigate the views of radiologists used in the radiology departments of teaching hospitals in the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences through teleradiology, as well as evaluate the executive possibility of teleradiology in these hospitals by the views of chief executive officer and comparison between these two views. The current cross-sectional research was performed in 2014 at Zahedan teaching hospitals. The views of 13 chief executive officers on the possibility of the execution of teleradiology and 26 radiologists on the teleradiology process were evaluated by means of two valid and reliable questionnaires. The results of the research revealed that most of the radiologists had knowledge of and positive opinions about teleradiology. Conversely, the view by chief executive officers was that implementation of these processes was not possible in the studied hospitals. Dealing with some issues including data security, controlling or restricting access to clinical information of patients during the process of teleradiology, the possibility of legal protection for the participating radiologists, constitution of executive teams in the organization along with the financial supports, and, subsequently, invitation of the supports from the chief executive officers as the main sponsors of teleradiology implementation in the teaching hospitals are all guidelines for improvement of the successful implementation of teleradiology.

Understanding Ethical Issues of Research Participation from the Perspective of Participating Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Broome, Marion E.

2017-01-01

Background The past twenty years have seen distinct shifts in the way the participation of children and adolescents in research is viewed. This has been emphasized by the growing pediatric research enterprise. Additional information on children’s and adolescents’ experiences during research participation is needed to better inform researchers on the ethical conduct of research with this vulnerable population. Aims The objective of this analysis was to examine ethical issues in research with children and adolescents from their perspective as participants, including: assent, parental consent, risk perception, impact of research participation, and incentives. Methods This systematic review was conducted per the Long et al. framework by means of an iterative searching process. Using the key words ‘research ethics’ and ‘child or pediatric or adolescent’, PubMed, CINAHL, and EBSCOhost databases were searched to identify articles. Limitations placed on the original searches were: English language, year of publication between 2003–2014, humans, abstract available, and age birth–18 years. Findings Twenty-three empiric studies were identified and formed the sample. Included studies represented a diverse range of areas of research, methods, settings, sample demographics, authors, and journals. Discussion Even young children demonstrated the ability to understand essential elements of research, although there is variability in children’s level of understanding. Trust was a significant contributing factor to children’s and adolescents’ participation in research, and also shaped their assessments of risk. Research participation was mainly beneficial for children and adolescents. Incentives were mainly viewed positively, although concerns of possible undue influence were expressed. Linking Evidence to Action This systematic review highlights the importance of including the perspectives of children and adolescents and provides researchers and nurse clinicians

Modulation of Neural Activity during Guided Viewing of Visual Art.

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera-Arcos, Guillermo; Tamez-Duque, Jesús; Acosta-De-Anda, Elsa Y; Kwan-Loo, Kevin; de-Alba, Mayra; Tamez-Duque, Ulises; Contreras-Vidal, Jose L; Soto, Rogelio

2017-01-01

Mobile Brain-Body Imaging (MoBI) technology was deployed to record multi-modal data from 209 participants to examine the brain's response to artistic stimuli at the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo (MARCO) in Monterrey, México. EEG signals were recorded as the subjects walked through the exhibit in guided groups of 6-8 people. Moreover, guided groups were either provided with an explanation of each art piece (Guided-E), or given no explanation (Guided-NE). The study was performed using portable Muse (InteraXon, Inc, Toronto, ON, Canada) headbands with four dry electrodes located at AF7, AF8, TP9, and TP10. Each participant performed a baseline (BL) control condition devoid of artistic stimuli and selected his/her favorite piece of art (FP) during the guided tour. In this study, we report data related to participants' demographic information and aesthetic preference as well as effects of art viewing on neural activity (EEG) in a select subgroup of 18-30 year-old subjects (Nc = 25) that generated high-quality EEG signals, on both BL and FP conditions. Dependencies on gender, sensor placement, and presence or absence of art explanation were also analyzed. After denoising, clustering of spectral EEG models was used to identify neural patterns associated with BL and FP conditions. Results indicate statistically significant suppression of beta band frequencies (15-25 Hz) in the prefrontal electrodes (AF7 and AF8) during appreciation of subjects' favorite painting, compared to the BL condition, which was significantly different from EEG responses to non-favorite paintings (NFP). No significant differences in brain activity in relation to the presence or absence of explanation during exhibit tours were found. Moreover, a frontal to posterior asymmetry in neural activity was observed, for both BL and FP conditions. These findings provide new information about frequency-related effects of preferred art viewing in brain activity, and support the view that art appreciation is

Development of a LabVIEW-based surface with innovative controls for the control system of the spin-polarized electron test source Photo-CATCH

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roesch, Heidi Ayse; Enders, Joachim; Espig, Martin; Fritzsche, Yuliya; Wagner, Markus [TU Darmstadt, Institut fuer Kernphysik (Germany)

2016-07-01

Operations of the spin-polarized electron source of the S-DALINAC will be supported by a photo-cathode activation, test and cleaning system, Photo-CATCH. Besides cathode-performance studies, this teststand produces spin-polarized electron bunches from a GaAs photo-cathode that are then transported, manipulated, and characterized by devices in a low-energy beam line. To set and monitor the various components of the beamline, a control system was developed, based on the EPICS framework. As interfaces, LabVIEW was used in combination with a gamepad as a controlling device.

Participants' perceptions of research benefits in an African genetic epidemiology study.

Science.gov (United States)

Appiah-Poku, John; Newton, Sam; Kass, Nancy

2011-12-01

  Both the Council for International Organization of Medical Sciences and the Helsinki Declaration emphasize that the potential benefits of research should outweigh potential harms; consequently, some work has been conducted on participants' perception of benefits in therapeutic research. However, there appears to be very little work conducted with participants who have joined non-therapeutic research. This work was done to evaluate participants' perception of benefits in a genetic epidemiological study by examining their perception of the potential benefits of enrollment.   In-depth interviews lasting between 45 and 60 minutes were conducted with a convenient sample of 25 ill patients and 25 healthy accompanying relatives enrolled in a genetic epidemiological study of tuberculosis. Recorded interviews were transcribed and analyzed using content analysis.   Participants perceived that research was beneficial and some of the benefits included the generation of new knowledge, finding the cause of diseases, as well as the control, eradication and prevention of disease. Some thought that research was risky whilst others thought that the benefits outweighed the risks.   Participants perceived research to be beneficial and most of them thought that, though it was risky, the benefits outweighed the risks. It is our view that researchers need to give serious consideration to participant's perception of benefits in designing their consent forms, to see to the fulfillment of achievable goals. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Experimental control of Triatoma infestans in poor rural villages of Bolivia through community participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lardeux, Frédéric; Depickère, Stéphanie; Aliaga, Claudia; Chavez, Tamara; Zambrana, Lilian

2015-02-01

Triatoma infestans is the main vector of Chagas disease in the southern cone countries. Present control strategies based on indoor and outdoor residual insecticide spraying are not sufficient to control disease transmission, particularly in Bolivia. Techniques based on the management of the human environment may be good alternatives or supplements. Social and entomological surveys were carried out in four villages of Bolivia situated in the dry inter-Andean Valleys and the Chaco region. Risk factors for house infestation by T. infestans were identified, and an eco-health intervention based on education and community participation was carried out to reduce the risks of house infestation. It consisted of implementing simple and low cost vector control techniques such as coating of mud walls, cleaning activities and removal of poultry that enter rooms to lay eggs. The eco-health intervention significantly reduced the number of infested bedrooms, the mean abundance of T. infestans in bedrooms and beds, especially in the Chaco region. Mud wall coating was well accepted and could be proposed as a supplementary tool to the National Program of Chagas Disease Control to enhance the effects of insecticide sprayings. Even if cleaning activities were still neglected, community participation proved to be effective in reducing house infestation. © The author 2015. The World Health Organization has granted Oxford University Press permission for the reproduction of this article.

Marketing to increase participation in a Web-based continuing medical education cultural competence curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

Estrada, Carlos A; Krishnamoorthy, Periyakaruppan; Smith, Ann; Staton, Lisa; Korf, Michele J; Allison, Jeroan J; Houston, Thomas K

2011-01-01

CME providers may be interested in identifying effective marketing strategies to direct users to specific content. Online advertisements for recruiting participants into activities such as clinical trials, public health programs, and continuing medical education (CME) have been effective in some but not all studies. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of 2 marketing strategies in the context of an online CME cultural competence curriculum (www.c-comp.org). In an interrupted time-series quasi-experimental design, 2 marketing strategies were tested: (1) wide dissemination to relevant organizations over a period of approximately 4 months, and (2) Internet paid search using Google Ads (5 consecutive 8-week periods--control 1, cultural/CME advertisement, control 2, hypertension/ content advertisement, control 3). Outcome measures were CME credit requests, Web traffic (visits per day, page views, pages viewed per visit), and cost. Overall, the site was visited 19,156 times and 78,160 pages were viewed. During the wide dissemination phase, the proportion of visits requesting CME credit decreased between the first (5.3%) and second (3.3%) halves of this phase (p = .04). During the Internet paid search phase, the proportion of visits requesting CME credit was highest during the cultural/CME advertisement period (control 1, 1.4%; cultural/CME ad, 4.3%; control 2, 1.5%; hypertension/content ad, 0.6%; control 3, 0.8%; p advertisement periods. The incremental cost for the cultural advertisement per CME credit requested was US $0.64. Internet advertisement focusing on cultural competence and CME was associated with about a threefold increase in requests for CME credit at an incremental cost of under US $1; however, Web traffic changes were independent of the advertisement strategy. Copyright © 2011 The Alliance for Continuing Medical Education, the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education, and the Council on CME, Association for Hospital Medical

Investigating parameters participating in the infant respiratory control system attractor.

Science.gov (United States)

Terrill, Philip I; Wilson, Stephen J; Suresh, Sadasivam; Cooper, David M; Dakin, Carolyn

2008-01-01

Theoretically, any participating parameter in a non-linear system represents the dynamics of the whole system. Taken's time delay embedding theory provides the fundamental basis for allowing non-linear analysis to be performed on physiological, time-series data. In practice, only one measurable parameter is required to be measured to convey an accurate representation of the system dynamics. In this paper, the infant respiratory control system is represented using three variables-a digitally sampled respiratory inductive plethysmography waveform, and the derived parameters tidal volume and inter-breath interval time series data. For 14 healthy infants, these data streams were analysed using recurrence plot analysis across one night of sleep. The measured attractor size of these variables followed the same qualitative trends across the nights study. Results suggest that the attractor size measures of the derived IBI and tidal volume are representative surrogates for the raw respiratory waveform. The extent to which the relative attractor sizes of IBI and tidal volume remain constant through changing sleep state could potentially be used to quantify pathology, or maturation of breathing control.

Making participation accessible for vulnerable clients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louis Anthony Iaquinto

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Despite forty years of research, community sector service providers still find operationalising participation in their practice confusing and difficult.  This paper presents the results of a preliminary study that begins to question why this is so and what can be done about it?  The study examines the meaning and importance of participation determined by a review of the academic literature, by soliciting feedback from a range of stakeholders in community sector organisations, including service users with complex barriers to participation, staff, and board members.  The participants’ perspectives, views and experience of participation were obtained through the use of semi-structured interviews.  The data generated a number of telling examples of the impact organisational culture has on service delivery and how the values of the leadership shape the organization, as well as illustrations of the principles that underpin participation expressed from the standpoints of the three participant groups.  Study findings underscore the critical importance for service providers to consider their culture and its influences.   Keywords: organisational culture, vulnerable clients, client participation

Effects of affective picture viewing on postural control

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stins, J.F.; Beek, P.J.

2007-01-01

Background: Emotion theory holds that unpleasant events prime withdrawal actions, whereas pleasant events prime approach actions. Recent studies have suggested that passive viewing of emotion eliciting images results in postural adjustments, which become manifest as changes in body center of

Proceedings (slides, posters) of the 7. IAEA Technical Meeting on Control, Data Acquisition, and Remote Participation for Fusion Research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

The main objective of this meeting is to present and discuss new developments and perspectives in the areas of control, data acquisition and remote participation for nuclear research around the world. The following topics have been covered: 1) plasma control, 2) machine control, monitoring, safety and remote manipulation, 3) data acquisition and signal processing, 4) database techniques for information storage and retrieval, 5) advanced computing and massive data analysis, 6) remote participation and virtual laboratory, 7) fast network technology and its application, and 8) ITER

Variable acuity remote viewing system flight demonstration

Science.gov (United States)

Fisher, R. W.

1983-01-01

The Variable Acuity Remote Viewing System (VARVS), originally developed under contract to the Navy (ONR) as a laboratory brassboard, was modified for flight demonstration. The VARVS system was originally conceived as a technique which could circumvent the acuity/field of view/bandwidth tradeoffs that exists in remote viewing to provide a nearly eye limited display in both field of view (160 deg) and resolution (2 min arc) while utilizing conventional TV sensing, transmission, and display equipment. The modifications for flight demonstration consisted of modifying the sensor so it could be installed and flow in a Piper PA20 aircraft, equipped for remote control and modifying the display equipment so it could be integrated with the NASA Research RPB (RPRV) remote control cockpit.

Participation under Compulsion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Franco Rau

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Benefits of Social Software in teaching and learning are a research subject of great interest, especially in higher education. Even though the opportunities to encourage students’ participation are promising, there is a neglected area we intend to illuminate: heteronomy. Compulsion and external control are used to foster participation. In our study we examined 16 international evaluation and research papers which describe the implementation of Social Software to enhance students’ participation within courses. Several contradictions within these descriptions were revealed. One may realise that students pretend to “play the game” due to assessment regulations. The tension between students’ self-responsibility and external control in education needs to be reflected systematically.

The impact of financial incentives on participants' food purchasing patterns in a supermarket-based randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Olstad, Dana Lee; Crawford, David A; Abbott, Gavin; McNaughton, Sarah A; Le, Ha Nd; Ni Mhurchu, Cliona; Pollard, Christina; Ball, Kylie

2017-08-25

The impacts of supermarket-based nutrition promotion interventions might be overestimated if participants shift their proportionate food purchasing away from their usual stores. This study quantified whether participants who received price discounts on fruits and vegetables (FV) in the Supermarket Healthy Eating for Life (SHELf) randomized controlled trial (RCT) shifted their FV purchasing into study supermarkets during the intervention period. Participants were 642 females randomly assigned to a 1) skill-building (n = 160), 2) price reduction (n = 161), 3) combined skill-building and price reduction (n = 160), or 4) control (n = 161) group. Participants self-reported the proportion of FV purchased in study supermarkets at baseline, 3- and 6-months post-intervention. Fisher's exact and χ 2 tests assessed differences among groups in the proportion of FV purchased in study supermarkets at each time point. Multinomial logistic regression assessed differences among groups in the change in proportionate FV purchasing over time. Post-intervention, 49% of participants purchased ≥50% of their FV in study supermarkets. Compared to all other groups, the price reduction group was approximately twice as likely (RRR: 1.8-2.2) to have increased proportionate purchasing of FV in study supermarkets from baseline to post-intervention (psupermarkets during the intervention period. Unless food purchasing data are available for all sources, differential changes in purchasing patterns can make it difficult to discern the true impacts of nutrition interventions. The SHELf trial is registered with Current Controlled Trials Registration ISRCTN39432901, Registered 30 June 2010, Retrospectively registered ( http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN39432901 ).

The significant impact of education, poverty, and race on Internet-based research participant engagement.

Science.gov (United States)

Hartz, Sarah M; Quan, Tiffany; Ibiebele, Abiye; Fisher, Sherri L; Olfson, Emily; Salyer, Patricia; Bierut, Laura J

2017-02-01

Internet-based technologies are increasingly being used for research studies. However, it is not known whether Internet-based approaches will effectively engage participants from diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. A total of 967 participants were recruited and offered genetic ancestry results. We evaluated viewing Internet-based genetic ancestry results among participants who expressed high interest in obtaining the results. Of the participants, 64% stated that they were very or extremely interested in their genetic ancestry results. Among interested participants, individuals with a high school diploma (n = 473) viewed their results 19% of the time relative to 4% of the 145 participants without a diploma (P Internet-based research was low despite high reported interest. This suggests that explicit strategies should be developed to increase diversity in Internet-based research.Genet Med 19 2, 240-243.

Analysis of power and frequency control requirements in view of increased decentralized production and market liberalization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roffel, B.; Boer, W.W. de

2003-01-01

This paper presents a systematic approach of the analysis of the minimum control requirements that are imposed on power producing units in the Netherlands, especially in the case when decentralized production increases. Also some effects of the liberalization on the control behavior are analyzed. First an overview is given of the amount and type of power production in the Netherlands, followed by a review of the control requirements. Next models are described, including a simplified model for the UCTE power system. The model was tested against frequency and power measurements after failure of a 558 MW production unit in the Netherlands. Agreement between measurements and model predictions proved to be good. The model was subsequently used to analyze the primary and secondary control requirements and the impact of an increase in decentralized power production on the fault restoration capabilities of the power system. Since the latter production units are not actively participating in primary and secondary control, fault restoration takes longer and becomes unacceptable when only 35% of the power producing units participate in secondary control. Finally, the model was used to study the impact of deregulation, especially the effect of 'block scheduling', on additional control actions of the secondary control. (Author)

Predictors of long-term benzodiazepine abstinence in participants of a randomized controlled benzodiazepine withdrawal program.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oude Voshaar, R.C.; Gorgels, W.J.M.J.; Mol, A.J.J.; Balkom, A.J.L.M. van; Mulder, J.; Lisdonk, E.H. van de; Breteler, M.H.M.; Zitman, F.G.

2006-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To identify predictors of resumed benzodiazepine use after participation in a benzodiazepine discontinuation trial. METHOD: We performed multiple Cox regression analyses to predict the long-term outcome of a 3-condition, randomized, controlled benzodiazepine discontinuation trial in

Predictors of long-term benzodiazepine abstinence in participants of a randomized controlled benzodiazepine withdrawal program

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oude Voshaar, R.C.; Gorgels, W.J.M.J.; Mol, A.J.J.; Balkom, A.J.L.M. van; Mulder, J.; Lisdonk, E.H. van de; Breteler, M.H.M.; Zitman, F.G.

2006-01-01

Objective: To identify predictors of resumed benzodiazepine use after participation in a benzodiazepine discontinuation trial. Method: We performed multiple Cox regression analyses to predict the long-term outcome of a 3-condition, randomized, controlled benzodiazepine discontinuation trial in

Youths' views on corruption control in China: politics and social censure.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Guoping; Lo, T Wing; Li, Carrie

2013-12-01

It has been asserted that criminal law and common morality are not sufficient terms to describe specific behaviors as corruption because those in power have the capacity to include or exclude certain behavior as a category in the law. Thus, corruption should not be just treated as an objective behavioral category but as a form of social censure. This article reports on a quantitative and qualitative study that collected the views of Chinese youth on the control of corruption in China. It was found that they agreed with the moral-negative judgements behind the censure of corruption, and that bureaucratic forces can be mobilised to punish the corrupt and degrade their status. Mediation analysis discovered that political functions mediate the association between the moral-negative nature and bureaucratic form of the censure of corruption and status degradation of the censured.

Evolving Technologies: A View to Tomorrow

Science.gov (United States)

Tamarkin, Molly; Rodrigo, Shelley

2011-01-01

Technology leaders must participate in strategy creation as well as operational delivery within higher education institutions. The future of higher education--the view to tomorrow--is irrevocably integrated and intertwined with evolving technologies. This article focuses on two specific evolving technologies: (1) alternative IT sourcing; and (2)…

LabVIEW Support at CERN

CERN Multimedia

HR Department

2010-01-01

Since the beginning of 2009, due to the CERN restructuring, LabVIEW support moved from the IT to the EN department, joining the Industrial Controls and Electronics Group (ICE). LabVIEW support has been merged with the Measurement, Test and Analysis (MTA) section which, using LabVIEW, has developed most of the measurement systems to qualify the LHC magnets and components over the past 10 years. The post mortem analysis for the LHC hardware commissioning has also been fully implemented using LabVIEW, customised into a framework, called RADE, for CERN needs. The MTA section has started with a proactive approach sharing its tools and experience with the CERN LabVIEW community. Its framework (RADE) for CERN integrated application development has been made available to the users. Courses on RADE have been integrated into the standard National Instruments training program at CERN. RADE and LabVIEW support were merged together in 2010 on a single email address:labview.support@cern.ch For more information please...

Active control of acoustic field-of-view in a biosonar system.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yossi Yovel

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Active-sensing systems abound in nature, but little is known about systematic strategies that are used by these systems to scan the environment. Here, we addressed this question by studying echolocating bats, animals that have the ability to point their biosonar beam to a confined region of space. We trained Egyptian fruit bats to land on a target, under conditions of varying levels of environmental complexity, and measured their echolocation and flight behavior. The bats modulated the intensity of their biosonar emissions, and the spatial region they sampled, in a task-dependant manner. We report here that Egyptian fruit bats selectively change the emission intensity and the angle between the beam axes of sequentially emitted clicks, according to the distance to the target, and depending on the level of environmental complexity. In so doing, they effectively adjusted the spatial sector sampled by a pair of clicks-the "field-of-view." We suggest that the exact point within the beam that is directed towards an object (e.g., the beam's peak, maximal slope, etc. is influenced by three competing task demands: detection, localization, and angular scanning-where the third factor is modulated by field-of-view. Our results suggest that lingual echolocation (based on tongue clicks is in fact much more sophisticated than previously believed. They also reveal a new parameter under active control in animal sonar-the angle between consecutive beams. Our findings suggest that acoustic scanning of space by mammals is highly flexible and modulated much more selectively than previously recognized.

LabVIEW 8 student edition

CERN Document Server

Bishop, Robert H

2007-01-01

For courses in Measurement and Instrumentation, Electrical Engineering lab, and Physics and Chemistry lab. This revised printing has been updated to include new LabVIEW 8.2 Student Edition. National Instruments' LabVIEW is the defacto industry standard for test, measurement, and automation software solutions. With the Student Edition of LabVIEW, students can design graphical programming solutions to their classroom problems and laboratory experiments with software that delivers the graphical programming capabilites of the LabVIEW professional version. . The Student Edition is also compatible with all National Instruments data acquisition and instrument control hardware. Note: The LabVIEW Student Edition is available to students, faculty, and staff for personal educational use only. It is not intended for research, institutional, or commercial use. For more information about these licensing options, please visit the National Instruments website at (http:www.ni.com/academic/)

Participation of the public and technology policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paschen, H.; Bechmann, G.; Gloede, F.

1989-01-01

Public participation is placed in the context of the government's technology policy whose legitimation can be questioned in view of the dispute in our society about technological development and its role in decision for shaping the future of the industrial society. This lack of legitimation has induced a search for instruments that might help to close the acceptance gap. Participation of the public is one of these instruments and is discussed in connection with technology assessment, early warning system, and environmental impact assessment. (HSCH) [de

Meeting the concerns of the public through participation. The point of view of the consumers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pain, M.

1993-01-01

The public participation in nuclear decision making supposes a previous information of this public. It is also necessary to have this participation when it is still possible to do something. Even if that kind of things are not easy to install, public participation in nuclear matter cannot be anything else but favourable

English Learners' Participation in Mathematical Discussion: Shifting Positionings and Dynamic Identities

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, Erin; Dominguez, Higinio; Maldonado, Luz; Empson, Susan

2013-01-01

This study investigated discursive positioning moves that facilitated Latino/a English learners' (ELs) opportunities to take on agentive problem-solving roles in group mathematical discussion. A focus on mechanisms that support students' agentive participation is consistent with the authors' view that recurrent experiences participating and being…

Television viewing time and risk of incident diabetes mellitus: the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, L; Hamer, M

2014-12-01

To investigate the longitudinal association between television viewing time and risk of incident diabetes mellitus in an elderly sample of adults in England. Analyses of data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. At baseline (2008), participants reported their television viewing time and physical activity level. Diabetes mellitus was recorded from self-reported physician diagnosis at 2-year follow-up. Associations between television viewing time and combined television viewing time and physical activity level with risk of incident diabetes mellitus at follow-up were examined using adjusted logistic regression models. A total of 5964 participants (mean ± sd age 65 ± 9 years at baseline, 44% male) were included in the analyses. There was an association between baseline television viewing time and risk of incident diabetes mellitus at 2-year follow-up (≥ 6 h/day compared with television viewing time at baseline were almost twice as likely to have diabetes mellitus at 2-year follow-up than those who were active/had low television viewing time (fully adjusted odds ratio 1.94, 95% CI 1.02, 3.68), although active participants reporting high television viewing were not at risk. Interventions to reduce the incidence of diabetes in the elderly that focus on both increasing physical activity and reducing television viewing time might prove useful. © 2014 The Authors. Diabetic Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Diabetes UK.

Advanced LabVIEW Labs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, Eric D.

1999-01-01

In the world of computer-based data acquisition and control, the graphical interface program LabVIEW from National Instruments is so ubiquitous that in many ways it has almost become the laboratory standard. To date, there have been approximately fifteen books concerning LabVIEW, but Professor Essick's treatise takes on a completely different tack than all of the previous discussions. In the more standard treatments of the ways and wherefores of LabVIEW such as LabVIEW Graphical Programming: Practical Applications in Instrumentation and Control by Gary W. Johnson (McGraw Hill, NY 1997), the emphasis has been instructing the reader how to program LabVIEW to create a Virtual Instrument (VI) on the computer for interfacing to a particular instruments. LabVIEW is written in ''G'' a graphical programming language developed by National Instruments. In the past the emphasis has been on training the experimenter to learn ''G''. Without going into details here, ''G'' incorporates the usual loops, arithmetic expressions, etc., found in many programming languages, but in an icon (graphical) environment. The net result being that LabVIEW contains all of the standard methods needed for interfacing to instruments, data acquisition, data analysis, graphics, and also methodology to incorporate programs written in other languages into LabVIEW. Historically, according to Professor Essick, he developed a series of experiments for an upper division laboratory course for computer-based instrumentation. His observation was that while many students had the necessary background in computer programming languages, there were students who had virtually no concept about writing a computer program let alone a computer- based interfacing program. Thus the beginnings of a concept for not only teaching computer- based instrumentation techniques, but aiso a method for the beginner to experience writing a com- puter program. Professor Essick saw LabVIEW as the ''perfect environment in which to

Effects of Viewing Displays from Different Distances on Human Visual System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Z. Ramadan

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The current stereoscopic 3D displays have several human-factor issues including visual-fatigue symptoms such as eyestrain, headache, fatigue, nausea, and malaise. The viewing time and viewing distance are factors that considerably affect the visual fatigue associated with 3D displays. Hence, this study analyzes the effects of display type (2D vs. 3D and viewing distance on visual fatigue during a 60-min viewing session based on electroencephalogram (EEG relative beta power, and alpha/beta power ratio. In this study, twenty male participants watched four videos. The EEGs were recorded at two occipital lobes (O1 and O2 of each participant in the pre-session (3 min, post-session (3 min, and during a 60-min viewing session. The results showed that the decrease in relative beta power of the EEG and the increase in the alpha/beta ratio from the start until the end of the viewing session were significantly higher when watching the 3D display. When the viewing distance was increased from 1.95 m to 3.90 m, the visual fatigue was decreased in the case of the 3D-display, whereas the fatigue was increased in the case of the 2D-display. Moreover, there was approximately the same level of visual fatigue when watching videos in 2D or 3D from a long viewing distance (3.90 m.

From physical and functional to continuity with pre-stroke self and participation in valued activities: a qualitative exploration of stroke survivors', carers' and physiotherapists' perceptions of physical activity after stroke.

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, Jacqui H; Oliver, Tracey; Kroll, Thilo; Joice, Sara; Williams, Brian

2015-01-01

Physical activity (PA) improves fitness, functioning, health and wellbeing after stroke. However, many survivors are inactive. This study explored survivors', carers' and physiotherapists' beliefs about PA to identify how these support or hinder PA participation. Semi-structured in-depth interviews with community dwelling stroke survivors (n = 38); two focus groups involving six carers each; two focus groups, respectively, involving seven and eight stroke rehabilitation physiotherapists from clinical and community settings. Data were audio-recorded and transcribed. Analysis was structured using the Framework Approach to identify themes and a dynamic, conceptual model. Desired outcomes and control over outcome achievement were key concepts. For survivors and carers, PA supported participation in valued activities, providing continuity with pre-stroke sense of self. Carers adopted motivating strategies for PA to support recovery and participation in shared activities. In contrast, physiotherapists prioritised physical and functional outcomes and viewed survivors' control of outcomes as limited which was reflected by the support they provided. Individualised interventions that account for social and environmental influences on behaviour appear vital to enabling survivors to participate in meaningful physical activities. Such interventions should facilitate development of shared perspectives among physiotherapists, carers and survivors of PA and related outcomes and provide tailored strategies to facilitate PA participation. Implications for Rehabilitation Physical activity after stroke rehabilitation is important for fitness, health, functioning and well-being. Reasons for survivors participating or not in physical activity after stroke are complex and varied. Physiotherapists and carers influence survivors' participation in physical activity but their views about how to do this do not always match, or do they always complement the views of survivors. Integrated

Spike-train acquisition, analysis and real-time experimental control using a graphical programming language (LabView).

Science.gov (United States)

Nordstrom, M A; Mapletoft, E A; Miles, T S

1995-11-01

A solution is described for the acquisition on a personal computer of standard pulses derived from neuronal discharge, measurement of neuronal discharge times, real-time control of stimulus delivery based on specified inter-pulse interval conditions in the neuronal spike train, and on-line display and analysis of the experimental data. The hardware consisted of an Apple Macintosh IIci computer and a plug-in card (National Instruments NB-MIO16) that supports A/D, D/A, digital I/O and timer functions. The software was written in the object-oriented graphical programming language LabView. Essential elements of the source code of the LabView program are presented and explained. The use of the system is demonstrated in an experiment in which the reflex responses to muscle stretch are assessed for a single motor unit in the human masseter muscle.

Undergraduate physiotherapy education in Malawi--the views of students on disability.

Science.gov (United States)

Amosun, S; Kambalametore, S; Maart, S; Ferguson, G

2013-06-01

The College of Medicine in Malawi offers an undergraduate physiotherapy programme which started in 2010. The programme aims at training competent physiotherapists who can address the needs of people with disabilities. Therefore it is important to ensure that the perceptions of physiotherapy students towards disability are appropriate. The study explored the views of the first cohort of physiotherapy students (n=19) in the pre-medical class in the College of Medicine, University of Malawi, on disability. An audit of the views of premedical physiotherapy students was carried out in 2010 using the Q methodology. Two independent factors emerged which captured the views of 19 students on disability. Most of the views expressed suggest that the students empathised with people with disabilities. Participants perceived that people with disabilities can have a good quality of life like everyone else, and are as intelligent as people without disabilities. However, some participants also expressed some discomfort when around people with disabilities. While there was consensus on some positive views, the negative viewpoints have the potential to act as a barrier to the rehabilitation of people with disabilities. The curriculum should ensure that the positive views are reinforced throughout the training programme, while the negative viewpoints are reversed.

Effect of sports participation on Internet addiction mediated by self-control: A case of Korean adolescents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jae-Ahm Park

2016-09-01

SEM indicated a significant effect of sports participation on Internet addiction mediated by self-control. The results suggest the effectiveness of and need for sport and physical activity in Internet addiction treatment programs and for other addictions as well. Moreover, sports participation has a wider variety of psychological and physical benefits unlike intervention strategies or pharmacological treatments. Thus, the adoption of sports needs to be broadened from physical development to treating diverse psychological problems among adolescents.

Pilot study to determine interest of adult civilian dependents of active duty military personnel in participation in a weight control program.

Science.gov (United States)

Bukhari, Asma; Roberts, Susan B; Young, Andrew J; McGraw, Susan; Dallal, Gerard E; Das, Sai Krupa

2014-03-01

Adult civilian dependents of active duty military personnel (ADMP) may play a central role in influencing the home food environment and the risk of overweight and obesity in American Warfighters and military families. However, there is no information on whether this group would be receptive to weight control programs. We conducted a survey to determine the level of interest of adult civilian dependents of ADMP in participating in a group weight control program. Subjects were a convenience sample of 191 adult civilian dependents of ADMP (94% women, 6% men) based in Massachusetts and aged 33.8 ± 8.4 years, body mass index 25.5 ± 5.5 kg/m(2). Overall, there was a significant effect of body mass index on interest in program participation (p = 0.004). Eighty five percent of overweight participants and 100% of obese participants reported being Moderately Likely or Very Likely to participate in a provided weight control program. In overweight and obese survey respondents there was no significant effect of ADMP rank on interest in program participation (p = 0.34). These findings suggest that overweight and obese adult civilian dependents of ADMP may be very receptive targets for programs to control overweight and obesity in military families. Reprint & Copyright © 2014 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

Sanitation and Civic Participation

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José Antonio Peña Barreto

2016-08-01

Full Text Available This research is proposed in order to propose an action plan for environmental sanitation citizen participation in the "Manuela Sáenz" Concentrating National Basic School Parish Municipality City Bolivia Pedraza Barinas state. It is part of the qualitative approach in the form of participatory action research and supported by a narrative descriptive design. The selected scenario for performance of work was the Concentrating National School "Manuela Sáenz" key informants consist of 1 member of the community, 1 member of the community council and one teacher of the institution. The techniques used are observation and depth interview, using as instruments a field notebook and an interview script. For the presentation and analysis of results he was categorized, triangulated and theorized the information obtained, performing a thorough and detailed report on the integrated management of solid waste diagnosis. Subsequently, the proposal called Action Plan for environmental sanitation was developed with citizen participation in concentrated Manuela Saenz National Basic School. Then the proposal where participants expressed the view that activities allowed to obtain very important basic knowledge on environmental sanitation was run.

Importance of Active Participation in Obesity Management Through Mobile Health Care Programs: Substudy of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, Bumjo; Yi, Ga-Hye; Han, Min Kyu; Kim, Jong Seung; Lee, Chang Hee; Cho, Belong; Kang, Hee Cheol

2018-01-03

Due to the prevalence of the westernized dietary pattern and lack of physical activity, the numbers of overweight or obese individuals are increasing, resulting in a growing health burden because of various related diseases. A lifestyle modification approach has additional advantages compared with pharmacological therapies or bariatric surgery. In our randomized controlled trial conducted in 2015, we successfully used a ubiquitous health care (SmartCare) service for patients with metabolic syndrome to achieve a significant weight loss effect. Various useful apps have been developed for the SmartCare Service, which involves using a mobile phone to manage chronic diseases, minimizing time and space restrictions. Many studies have demonstrated weight loss effects using a SmartCare service, but limited data are available regarding the effect of active participation in relation to weight loss. We aimed to assess the weight loss effect achieved after using the SmartCare service in terms of adherence and participation. We divided the intervention group of the previous study according to participation level, and analyzed whether there was a significant difference in the outcome. We classified participants into 3 groups according to their adherence. Within the intervention group using the SmartCare service, the active group comprised those transmitting anthropometric measurement data using a mobile phone 3 or more times per week or who had a health consultation 5 or more times during a 24-week period. The passive group comprised those who did not adhere to these levels of engagement. The control group comprised those who did not use the SmartCare service. We compared changes in body weight, body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage, waist circumference, and lipid profile among the 3 groups. We identified 422 participants and analyzed 405, excluding 17 who were missing necessary data for analysis. The active group consisted of 116 participants, compared with 80 in the

Barriers to treatment and control of hypertension among hypertensive participants: A community based cross-sectional mixed method study in municipalities of Kathmandu, Nepal

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Surya Devkota

2016-08-01

Full Text Available AbstractIntroduction: Despite the established evidence on benefits of controlling raised blood pressure and development of several guidelines on detection and management of hypertension, people often have untreated or uncontrolled hypertension. In this context, we undertook this study to identify the barriers existing in hypertension treatment and control in the municipalities of Kathmandu district in Nepal. Methods: This was a community based, cross-sectional mixed method study conducted in the municipalities of Kathmandu district in Nepal between January and July 2015. Among 587 randomly selected participants, the aware hypertensive participants were further assessed for the treatment and control of hypertension. For qualitative component, 20 participants having uncontrolled hypertension took part in two focused group discussions and two cardiac physicians participated in in-depth interviews.Results: Out of 587 participants screened, 191 (32.5% were identified as hypertensive. Among 191 hypertensive participants, 118 (61.8% were aware of their problem. Of the 118 aware hypertensive participants, 93 (78.8% were taking medicines, and among those treated, 46 (49.6% had controlled hypertension. Proportions of participants taking anti-hypertensive medications varied significantly with age groups, ethnicity, occupation and income. Hypertension control was significantly associated with use of combination therapy, adherence to medication, follow-up care, counseling by healthcare providers and waiting time in hospital. Being worried that the medicine needs to be taken life-long, perceived side effects of drugs, non-adherence to medication, lost to follow-up, inadequate counseling from physician, and lack of national guidelines for hypertension treatment were the most commonly cited barriers for treatment and control of hypertension in qualitative component of the research.Conclusion: Large proportion of the hypertensive population has the untreated and

Effectiveness of energy conservation management on fatigue and participation in multiple sclerosis: A randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Blikman, Lyan Jm; van Meeteren, Jetty; Twisk, Jos Wr; de Laat, Fred Aj; de Groot, Vincent; Beckerman, Heleen; Stam, Henk J; Bussmann, Johannes Bj

2017-10-01

Fatigue is a frequently reported and disabling symptom in multiple sclerosis (MS). To investigate the effectiveness of an individual energy conservation management (ECM) intervention on fatigue and participation in persons with primary MS-related fatigue. A total of 86 severely fatigued and ambulatory adults with a definite diagnosis of MS were randomized in a single-blind, two-parallel-arm randomized clinical trial to the ECM group or the information-only control group in outpatient rehabilitation departments. Blinded assessments were carried out at baseline and at 8, 16, 26 and 52 weeks after randomization. Primary outcomes were fatigue (fatigue subscale of Checklist Individual Strength - CIS20r) and participation (Impact on Participation and Autonomy scale - IPA). Modified intention-to-treat analysis was based on 76 randomized patients (ECM, n = 36; MS nurse, n=40). No significant ECM effects were found for fatigue (overall difference CIS20r between the groups = -0.81; 95% confidence interval (CI), -3.71 to 2.11) or for four out of five IPA domains. An overall unfavourable effect was found in the ECM group for the IPA domain social relations (difference between the groups = 0.19; 95% CI, 0.03 to 0.35). The individual ECM format used in this study did not reduce MS-related fatigue and restrictions in participation more than an information-only control condition.

Forming perceptions and the limits to public participation on ocean commons

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hadjimichael, Maria; Delaney, Alyne

2017-01-01

Public views of, and public participation in, the management of commons are increasingly being recommended and sought after in environmental management processes. Yet, given the limits of today’s liberal democracy, what are the weaknesses? This article presents data from a citizens jury......-inspired deliberative workshop held to tease out stakeholder views of management priorities for a section of the North Sea: the Dogger Bank. As this article reveals, the lessons learned from the Dogger Bank workshop advocate not simply what is required for managing one particular ocean commons, but also highlight some...... of the public participation research design failings, taking public participation in resource management further by adding to the literature and theoretical discussions on the public sphere (Habermas 1989). Analysis of the citizens jury-inspired deliberative workshop also highlights the critical issue of power...

Recruitment of Participants and Delivery of Online Mental Health Resources for Depressed Individuals Using Tumblr: Pilot Randomized Control Trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Kelleher, Erin; Moreno, Megan; Wilt, Megan Pumper

2018-04-12

Adolescents and young adults frequently post depression symptom references on social media; previous studies show positive associations between depression posts and self-reported depression symptoms. Depression is common among young people and this population often experiences many barriers to mental health care. Thus, social media may be a new resource to identify, recruit, and intervene with young people at risk for depression. The purpose of this pilot study was to test a social media intervention on Tumblr. We used social media to identify and recruit participants and to deliver the intervention of online depression resources. This randomized pilot intervention identified Tumblr users age 15-23 who posted about depression using the search term "#depress". Eligible participants were recruited via Tumblr messages; consented participants completed depression surveys and were then randomized to an intervention of online mental health resources delivered via a Tumblr message, while control participants did not receive resources. Postintervention online surveys assessed resource access and usefulness and control groups were asked whether they would have liked to receive resources. Analyses included t tests. A total of 25 participants met eligibility criteria. The mean age of the participants was 17.5 (SD 1.9) and 65% were female with average score on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 of 17.5 (SD 5.9). Among the 11 intervention participants, 36% (4/11) reported accessing intervention resources and 64% (7/11) felt the intervention was acceptable. Among the 14 control participants, only 29% (4/14) of reported that receiving resources online would be acceptable (P=.02). Participants suggested anonymity and ease of use as important characteristics in an online depression resource. The intervention was appropriately targeted to young people at risk for depression, and recruitment via Tumblr was feasible. Most participants in the intervention group felt the social media

Stereoscopic optical viewing system

Science.gov (United States)

Tallman, C.S.

1986-05-02

An improved optical system which provides the operator with a stereoscopic viewing field and depth of vision, particularly suitable for use in various machines such as electron or laser beam welding and drilling machines. The system features two separate but independently controlled optical viewing assemblies from the eyepiece to a spot directly above the working surface. Each optical assembly comprises a combination of eye pieces, turning prisms, telephoto lenses for providing magnification, achromatic imaging relay lenses and final stage pentagonal turning prisms. Adjustment for variations in distance from the turning prisms to the workpiece, necessitated by varying part sizes and configurations and by the operator's visual accuity, is provided separately for each optical assembly by means of separate manual controls at the operator console or within easy reach of the operator.

Effect of hippotherapy on motor control, adaptive behaviors, and participation in children with autism spectrum disorder: a pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ajzenman, Heather F; Standeven, John W; Shurtleff, Tim L

2013-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether hippotherapy increased function and participation in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We hypothesized improvements in motor control, which might increase adaptive behaviors and participation in daily activities. Six children with ASD ages 5-12 participated in 12 weekly 45-min hippotherapy sessions. Measures pre- and post-hippotherapy included the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II and the Child Activity Card Sort. Motor control was measured preintervention and postintervention using a video motion capture system and force plates. Postural sway significantly decreased postintervention. Significant increases were observed in overall adaptive behaviors (receptive communication and coping) and in participation in self-care, low-demand leisure, and social interactions. These results suggest that hippotherapy has a positive influence on children with ASD and can be a useful treatment tool for this population. Copyright © 2013 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

The Adoption of Internal Audit as a Governance Control Mechanism in Australian Public Universities--Views from the CEOs

Science.gov (United States)

Christopher, Joe

2012-01-01

This study draws on the multi-theoretical approach to governance and the views of university chief executive officers (CEOs) to examine the extent to which internal auditing as a control mechanism is adopted in Australian public universities under an environment of change management. The findings highlight negative consequences of change and their…

Does different information disclosure on placebo control affect blinding and trial outcomes? A case study of participant information leaflets of randomized placebo-controlled trials of acupuncture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Soyeon Cheon

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background While full disclosure of information on placebo control in participant information leaflets (PILs in a clinical trial is ethically required during informed consent, there have been concerning voices such complete disclosures may increase unnecessary nocebo responses, breach double-blind designs, and/or affect direction of trial outcomes. Taking an example of acupuncture studies, we aimed to examine what participants are told about placebo controls in randomized, placebo-controlled trials, and how it may affect blinding and trial outcomes. Methods Authors of published randomized, placebo-controlled trials of acupuncture were identified from PubMed search and invited to provide PILs for their trials. The collected PILs were subjected to content analysis and categorized based on degree of information disclosure on placebo. Blinding index (BI as a chance-corrected measurement of blinding was calculated and its association with different information disclosure was examined. The impact of different information disclosure from PILs on primary outcomes was estimated using a random effects model. Results In 65 collected PILs, approximately 57% of trials fully informed the participants of placebo control, i.e. full disclosure, while the rest gave deceitful or no information on placebo, i.e. no disclosure. Placebo groups in the studies with no disclosure tended to make more opposite guesses on the type of received intervention than those with disclosure, which may reflect wishful thinking (BI −0.21 vs. −0.16; p = 0.38. In outcome analysis, studies with no disclosure significantly favored acupuncture than those with full disclosure (standardized mean difference − 0.43 vs. −0.12; p = 0.03, probably due to enhanced expectations. Conclusions How participants are told about placebos can be another potential factor that may influence participant blinding and study outcomes by possibly modulating patient expectation. As we

LabVIEW-based control and acquisition system for the dosimetric characterization of a silicon strip detector.

Science.gov (United States)

Ovejero, M C; Pérez Vega-Leal, A; Gallardo, M I; Espino, J M; Selva, A; Cortés-Giraldo, M A; Arráns, R

2017-02-01

The aim of this work is to present a new data acquisition, control, and analysis software system written in LabVIEW. This system has been designed to obtain the dosimetry of a silicon strip detector in polyethylene. It allows the full automation of the experiments and data analysis required for the dosimetric characterization of silicon detectors. It becomes a useful tool that can be applied in the daily routine check of a beam accelerator.

The Transformation of Employee Participation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Busck, Ole Gunni; Knudsen, Herman; Lind, Jens

2010-01-01

-model. However, more recent research into psychosocial work environment problems questions the model’s assumption of high job control compensating for high job demands. Taking its point of departure in a `deconstruction´ of the concept of participation based on research on employee participation from the past......This article reviews the research literature on the relationship between employee participation, influence and the work environment. The main part of the literature points to a positive connection in line with how it has been almost institutionalised in Karasek and Theorell´s demand control...... few decades, the article discuss what factors and changes have resulted in that increased employee participation does not seem to result in a healthy work environment. The article concludes on the limitations of the demand control-model in modern working life given contextual changes in the employer...

An Emergent Framework: Views of Mathematical Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Sanchez, Wendy B.; Lischka, Alyson E.; Edenfield, Kelly W.; Gammill, Rebecca

2015-01-01

The findings reported in this paper were generated from a case study of teacher leaders at a state-level mathematics conference. Investigation focused on how participants viewed the mathematical processes of communication, connections, representations, problem solving, and reasoning and proof. Purposeful sampling was employed to select nine…

Employee participation in decision-making in architectural firms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adedapo Oluwatayo

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In this study, the participation of employee architects in decision-making in architectural firms is investigated. This is with a view to identifying the organisational contexts that enhance employee participation in decision making. The impact of such participation on the performances of the firms was also assessed. This study was carried out through a questionnaire survey of employers of architects in Nigeria. In agreement with findings of previous studies, participation of the employees of the architectural firms in the study in decision making is low. Employee participation in decision making in the firms was dependent on the staffing strategy and proportion of junior staff in many cases. The positive impact of employee participation in decision making on firm performance varied with the nature of the decision. This study concludes that there is need for employers in architectural firms to identify the categories of decision that employees should be involved in and to modify their firm contexts to encourage participation where desired.

Design considerations for a backlight with switchable viewing angles

Science.gov (United States)

Fujieda, Ichiro; Takagi, Yoshihiko; Rahadian, Fanny

2006-08-01

Small-sized liquid crystal displays are widely used for mobile applications such as cell phones. Electronic control of a viewing angle range is desired in order to maintain privacy for viewing in public as well as to provide wide viewing angles for solitary viewing. Conventionally, a polymer-dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) panel is inserted between a backlight and a liquid crystal panel. The PDLC layer either transmits or scatters the light from the backlight, thus providing an electronic control of viewing angles. However, such a display system is obviously thick and expensive. Here, we propose to place an electronically-controlled, light-deflecting device between an LED and a light-guide of a backlight. For example, a liquid crystal lens is investigated for other applications and its focal length is controlled electronically. A liquid crystal phase grating either transmits or diffracts an incoming light depending on whether or not a periodic phase distribution is formed inside its liquid crystal layer. A bias applied to such a device will control the angular distribution of the light propagating inside a light-guide. Output couplers built in the light-guide extract the propagating light to outside. They can be V-shaped grooves, pyramids, or any other structures that can refract, reflect or diffract light. When any of such interactions occur, the output couplers translate the changes in the propagation angles into the angular distribution of the output light. Hence the viewing-angle characteristic can be switched. The designs of the output couplers and the LC devices are important for such a backlight system.

Active ocular vergence improves postural control in elderly as close viewing distance with or without a single cognitive task.

Science.gov (United States)

Matheron, Eric; Yang, Qing; Delpit-Baraut, Vincent; Dailly, Olivier; Kapoula, Zoï

2016-01-01

Performance of the vestibular, visual, and somatosensory systems decreases with age, reducing the capacity of postural control, and increasing the risk of falling. The purpose of this study is to measure the effects of vision, active vergence eye movements, viewing distance/vergence angle and a simple cognitive task on postural control during an upright stance, in completely autonomous elderly individuals. Participated in the study, 23 elderly subjects (73.4 ± 6.8 years) who were enrolled in a center dedicated to the prevention of falling. Their body oscillations were measured with the DynaPort(®) device, with three accelerometers, placed at the lumbosacral level, near the center of mass. The conditions were the following: eyes open fixating on LED at 20 cm or 150 cm (vergence angle 17.0° and 2.3° respectively) with or without additional cognitive tasks (counting down from one hundred), performing active vergence by alternating the fixation between the far and the near LED (convergence and divergence), eyes closed after having fixated the far LED. The results showed that the postural stability significantly decreased when fixating on the LED at a far distance (weak convergence angle) with or without cognitive tasks; active convergence-divergence between the LEDs improved the postural stability while eye closure decreased it. The privilege of proximity (with increased convergence at near), previously established with foot posturography, is shown here to be valid for accelerometry with the center of mass in elderly. Another major result is the beneficial contribution of active vergence eye movements to better postural stability. The results bring new perspectives for the role of eye movement training to preserve postural control and autonomy in elderly. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Skateboard Park Participation: A Means-end Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marni Goldenberg

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Skateboarding has become a highly visible and popular activity. However, many negative stereotypes remain associated with the activity and its participants (Jones & Graves, 2000. In contrast to the negative stereotypes, skateboarding seems to provide many individuals, and youth in particular, with an important outlet for physical activity, leisure, and personal development. The purpose of this study was to investigate why skateboarders chose to visit skateboard parks, to identify outcomes of participating in skateboarding at skateboard parks, and to identify the underlying values that guide skateboarders’ choice of this specific setting. The conceptual framework for the reported study was provided by a means-end model, which views values as the key force influencing an individual’s decision to engage in a particular behavior (Gutman, 1982; Manyiwa & Crawford, 2002. The results indicate that this sample of skateboarders received a number of important benefits and, despite stereotypical views, may seek positive outcomes through skateboarding at skateboard parks. A socio-ecological model and a positive youth development framework provide a platform for interpreting the results and implications.

Owning the body in the mirror: The effect of visual perspective and mirror view on the full-body illusion.

Science.gov (United States)

Preston, Catherine; Kuper-Smith, Benjamin J; Ehrsson, Henrik H

2015-12-17

Mirrors allow us to view our own body from a third-person (observer) perspective. However, how viewing ourselves through a mirror affects central body representations compared with true third-person perspective is not fully understood. Across a series of experiments, multisensory full-body illusions were used to modulate feelings of ownership over a mannequin body that was viewed from a third-person perspective through a mirror, from a third-person perspective without a mirror, and from a first-person perspective. In contrast to non-mirror third-person perspective, synchronously touching the participant's actual body and the mannequin body viewed in the mirror elicited strong feelings of ownership over the mannequin and increased physiological responses to the mannequin being threatened compared to the equivalent asynchronous (non-ownership) control condition. Subjective reports of ownership viewing the mannequin through a mirror were also statistically equivalent to those following the first-person perspective illusion. These findings suggest that mirrors have a special role for viewing the self. The results also support the importance of egocentric reference frames for body ownership and suggest that mirror reflections of one's own body are related to peripersonal space, which enables updating of central body representations.

Early Careerist Interest and Participation in Health Care Leadership Development Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, Jon M; Temple, April

2015-01-01

Health care organizations are increasingly embracing leadership development programs. These programs include a variety of specific activities, such as formally structured leadership development, as well as mentoring, personal development and coaching, 360-degree feedback, and job enlargement, in order to increase the leadership skills of managers and high-potential staff. However, there is a lack of information on how early careerists in health care management view these programs and the degree to which they participate. This article reports on a study undertaken to determine how early careerists working in health care organizations view leadership development programs and their participation in such programs offered by their employers. Study findings are based on a survey of 126 early careerists who are graduates of an undergraduate health services administration program. We found varying levels of interest and participation in specific leadership development activities. In addition, we found that respondents with graduate degrees and those with higher compensation were more likely to participate in selected leadership development program activities. Implications of study findings for health care organizations and early careerists in the offering of, and participation in, leadership development programs are discussed.

International study on nurses' views and experiences of compassion.

Science.gov (United States)

Papadopoulos, I; Zorba, A; Koulouglioti, C; Ali, S; Aagard, M; Akman, O; Alpers, L-M; Apostolara, P; Biles, J; Martín-García, Á; González-Gil, T; Kouta, C; Krepinska, R; Kumar, B N; Lesińska-Sawicka, M; Lopez, L; Malliarou, M; Nagórska, M; Nissim, S; Nortvedt, L; Oter-Quintana, C; Ozturk, C; Pangilinan, S B; Papp, K; Eldar Regev, O; Rubiano, F O; Tolentino Diaz, M Y; Tóthová, V; Vasiliou, M

2016-09-01

Compassion is considered the cornerstone of nursing practice. However, the recent failures in delivering high-quality compassionate nursing care in the UK's National Health Service have brought the topic of compassion to the attention of the public, service providers, policy makers and academics. The aim of this study was to explore the nurses' views and experiences of a number of compassion-related issues in nursing and describe similarities and differences at an international level as well as from the different nursing roles of the participating nurses. An exploratory, cross-sectional descriptive study, using the International Online Compassion Questionnaire. A total of 1323 nurses from 15 countries completed the questionnaire. The majority of participants (59.5%) defined compassion as "Deep awareness of the suffering of others and wish to alleviate it" but definitions of compassion varied by country. Of participants, 69.6% thought compassion was very important in nursing and more than half (59.6%) of them argued that compassion could be taught. However, only 26.8% reported that the correct amount and level of teaching is provided. The majority of the participants (82.6%) stated that their patients prefer knowledgeable nurses with good interpersonal skills. Only 4.3% noted that they are receiving compassion from their managers. A significant relationship was found between nurses' experiences of compassion and their views about teaching of compassion. Our study is unique in identifying the views and experiences of nurses from 15 different countries worldwide. The findings reveal that compassion is neither addressed adequately in nursing education nor supported in the practice environment by managers. Self-report bias was inherent to our survey study design. Furthermore, the individual cultural differences and similarities in the findings are difficult to extrapolate owing to the fact that our analysis was at country level, as well as at the level of the

The moderating role of autonomy and control on the benefits of written emotion expression.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinstein, Netta; Hodgins, Holley S

2009-03-01

Two studies examined the hypothesis that relative to control motivation, autonomy motivation is associated with effective written expression and regulation, leading to positive emotional, physical, and cognitive outcomes over time. Participants viewed a Hiroshima-Nagasaki documentary in each of two sessions. Study 1 showed that dispositionally autonomous participants, particularly those who expressed, had positive well-being, energy, and memory after the second viewing. Study 2 explored benefits of situational motivation by priming autonomy and control. Results showed that dispositionally controlled individuals received the same benefits as autonomous individuals only when primed with autonomy and encouraged to express. Coding of writing content revealed that the benefits of autonomy were mediated by nondefensive and effective emotional processing, as reflected in greater use of self-referencing and cognitive mechanism words and lower use of concrete words. Results support the expectation that autonomy relates to effective expression and emotion regulation, leading to positive functioning over time.

Application of LabVIEW on Ionization Chamber to Measurement Radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerdchockchai, P.; Soodprasert, T.; Hoonnivathana, E.; Naemchnthara, P.; Limsuwan, P.; Naemchanthara, K.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this research was to apply LabVIEW program to control an ionization chamber. LabVIEW was used to compose a block diagram and front panel. The block diagram was programmed to be controlled by the front panel. Radiation dose of Cs -137 at 1.00, 1.50, 2.00, 2.50, 3.00 and 4.00 meter were compared from LabViEW and manual system. The results show that the different percentages of Pb filter of thickness 0, 20 and 39 mm are 0.68, 0.68 and 0.48, respectively. This experiment results indicated that the LabVIEW can be used in assisting radiation measurement. Furthermore, by controlling the ionization chamber by LabVIEW, the radiation dose received by operator is reduced.

View all initiatives | IDRC - International Development Research ...

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

View all initiatives. You are looking at projects supported by The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Displaying 1 - 2 of 2. Growth and Economic Opportunities for Women. Initiative. Women around the world increasingly participate in economic activities, but they continue to face significant challenges in pursuing better ...

LabVIEW Real-Time

CERN Multimedia

CERN. Geneva; Flockhart, Ronald Bruce; Seppey, P

2003-01-01

With LabVIEW Real-Time, you can choose from a variety of RT Series hardware. Add a real-time data acquisition component into a larger measurement and automation system or create a single stand-alone real-time solution with data acquisition, signal conditioning, motion control, RS-232, GPIB instrumentation, and Ethernet connectivity. With the various hardware options, you can create a system to meet your precise needs today, while the modularity of the system means you can add to the solution as your system requirements grow. If you are interested in Reliable and Deterministic systems for Measurement and Automation, you will profit from this seminar. Agenda: Real-Time Overview LabVIEW RT Hardware Platforms - Linux on PXI Programming with LabVIEW RT Real-Time Operating Systems concepts Timing Applications Data Transfer

Genre-Specific Cultivation Effects: Lagged Associations between Overall TV Viewing, Local TV News Viewing, and Fatalistic Beliefs about Cancer Prevention.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Chul-Joo; Niederdeppe, Jeff

2011-12-01

Cultivation theory and research has been criticized for its failure to consider variation in effects by genre, employ appropriate third-variable controls, and determine causal direction. Recent studies, controlling for a variety of demographic characteristics and media use variables, have found that exposure to local television (TV) newscasts is associated with a variety of problematic "real-world" beliefs. However, many of these studies have not adequately assessed causal direction. Redressing this limitation, we analyzed data from a two-wave national representative survey which permitted tests of lagged association between overall TV viewing, local TV news viewing, and fatalistic beliefs about cancer prevention. We first replicated the original cultivation effect and found a positive association between overall TV viewing at time 1 and increased fatalistic beliefs about cancer prevention at time 2. Analyses also provided evidence that local TV news viewing at time 1 predicts increased fatalistic beliefs about cancer prevention at time 2. There was little evidence for reverse causation in predicting changes in overall TV viewing or local TV news viewing. The paper concludes with a discussion of theoretical and practical implications of these findings.

Maternal Characteristics Associated with Television Viewing Habits of Low-Income Preschool Children

Science.gov (United States)

Conners, Nicola A.; Tripathi, Shanti P.; Clubb, Richard; Bradley, Robert H.

2007-01-01

Few studies have examined maternal characteristics associated with heavy or inappropriate television viewing on the part of their children. We investigated the relationship between children's television viewing habits and maternal depressive symptoms and parenting beliefs. The participants were 175 low income children (mean age = 62.1 months) and…

Public Participation Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-07-01

The purpose of this Public Participation Plan is to describe the US Department of Energy's (DOE) plan for involving the public in the decision-making process for the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project. The plan describes how the DOE will meet the public participation requirements of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) of 1978, as amended, and of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. It includes the UMTRA Project Office plans for complying with DOE Order 5440.1D and for implementing the DOE's Public Participation Policy for Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (1992) and Public Participation Guidance for Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (1993)

Quality Control and Due Diligence in Project Management: Getting Decisions Right by Taking the Outside View

OpenAIRE

Bent Flyvbjerg

2013-01-01

This paper explores how theories of the planning fallacy and the outside view may be used to conduct quality control and due diligence in project management. First, a much-neglected issue in project management is identified, namely that the front-end estimates of costs and benefits--used in the business cases, cost-benefit analyses, and social and environmental impact assessments that typically support decisions on projects--are typically significantly different from actual ex post costs and ...

Beliefs and attitudes towards participating in genetic research – a population based cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kerath Samantha M

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Biobanks have the potential to offer a venue for chronic disease biomarker discovery, which would allow for disease early detection and for identification of carriers of a certain predictor biomarker. To assess the general attitudes towards genetic research and participation in biobanks in the Long Island/Queens area of New York, and what factors would predict a positive view of such research, participants from the NSLIJ hospital system were surveyed. Methods Participants were recruited at six hospital centers in the NSLIJ system during the summers of 2009 and again in 2011 (n = 1,041. Those who opted to participate were given a questionnaire containing 22 questions assessing demographics, lifestyle and attitudes towards genetic research. These questions addressed individual participant’s beliefs about the importance of genetic research, willingness to participate in genetic research themselves, and their views on informed consent issues. Results Respondents took a generally positive view of genetic research in general, as well as their own participation in such research. Those with reservations were most likely to cite concerns over the privacy of their medical and genetic information. Those who were married tended to view genetic research as important, while those in the younger age group viewed it as less important. Prior blood donation of respondents was found to be a predictor of their approval for genetic research. Demographic factors were not found to be predictive of personal willingness to participate in genetic research, or of approval for the opt-out approach to consent. Conclusions While respondents were generally inclined to approve of genetic research, and those who disapproved did not do so based on an underlying moral objection to such research, there is a disconnect between the belief in the importance of genetic research and the willingness of individuals to participate themselves. This indicates a

The effect of 5E-SWH learning model on students' view of nature of science

Science.gov (United States)

Sinthuwa, Waralee; Sangpradit, Theerapong

2018-01-01

View of Nature of Science (NOS) is one of key factors to support students' scientific literacy. So, it includes in scientific learning goals internationally. As in the literature, the many potential benefits associated with appropriate view of NOS. For instance, it influences students' learning achievement in science and lets students see how science connected to their real world. The aim of this study was to develop the 5E-SWH learning model to enhance 12th grade students' view of NOS. Eighty-eight students participated in this study. They were separated into two groups. Forty-four students had learnt biology by using 5E-SWH learning unit, but another group had learnt by using traditional 5E. View of NOS questionnaire that was adapted from the Views of NOS Questionnaire (VNOS-C) was applied with the both groups as pretest and posttest. The questionnaire consisted of ten open-ended items. The semi-structured interview protocol was also used with thirty students and feedback on the lesson record was provided in order to triangulate students' view of NOS. The analyzed results were approved by peer review. In addition, the during the implementation, data from voice recorder was transcribed and used discourse analysis to show students' NOS views. There were three aspects that relate to genetics technology content. These aspects included the subjective, empirical, and social and culture. Students' responses were categorized into 3 groups including informed, adequate and inadequate view. The results showed that the majority of participants held inadequate views of the subjective and empirical aspect at the beginning of the study. In addition, almost student as well as held adequate view of the social and culture aspect and they had misconception in some target NOS aspects. After that, they had learnt genetics technology content by using 5E-SWH learning model for 15 periods (50 min/ period). Both student groups' view of NOS was compared with each other. The study showed

LabVIEW Library to EPICS Channel Access

CERN Document Server

Liyu, Andrei; Thompson, Dave H

2005-01-01

The Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) accelerator systems will deliver a 1.0 GeV, 1.4 MW proton beam to a liquid mercury target for neutron scattering research. The accelerator complex consists of a 1 GeV linear accelerator, an accumulator ring and associated transport lines. The SNS diagnostics platform is PC-based and will run Windows for its OS and LabVIEW as its programming language. Data acquisition hardware will be based on PCI cards. There will be about 300 rack-mounted computers. The Channel Access (CA) protocol of the Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) is the SNS control system communication standard. This paper describes the approaches, implementation, and features of LabVIEW library to CA for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. We also discuss how the library implements the asynchronous CA monitor routine using LabVIEW's occurrence mechanism instead of a callback function (which is not available in LabVIEW). The library is used to acquire accelerator data and applications have been ...

BPMN process views construction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yongchareon, S.; Liu, Chengfei; Zhao, X.; Kowalkiewicz, M.; Kitagawa, H.; Ishikawa, Y.

2010-01-01

Process view technology is catching more attentions in modern business process management, as it enables the customisation of business process representation. This capability helps improve the privacy protection, authority control, flexible display, etc., in business process modelling. One of

The 'diverse, dynamic new world of global tobacco control'? An analysis of participation in the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

Science.gov (United States)

Plotnikova, Evgeniya; Hill, Sarah E; Collin, Jeff

2014-03-01

The increasingly inequitable impacts of tobacco use highlight the importance of ensuring developing countries' ongoing participation in global tobacco control. The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) has been widely regarded as reflecting the high engagement and effective influence of developing countries. We examined participation in FCTC governance based on records from the first four meetings of the Conference of the Parties (COP), comparing representation and delegate diversity across income levels and WHO regions. While attendance at the COP sessions is high, there are substantial disparities in the relative representation of different income levels and regions, with lower middle and low income countries contributing only 18% and 10% of total meeting delegates, respectively. In regional terms, Europe provided the single largest share of delegates at all except the Durban (2008) meeting. Thirty-nine percent of low income countries and 27% of those from Africa were only ever represented by a single person delegation compared with 10% for high income countries and 11% for Europe. Rotation of the COP meeting location outside of Europe is associated with better representation of other regions and a stronger presence of delegates from national ministries of health and focal points for tobacco control. Developing countries face particular barriers to participating in the COP process, and their engagement in global tobacco control is likely to diminish in the absence of specific measures to support their effective participation.

PS Main Control Room (partial view)

CERN Multimedia

1974-01-01

Jean-Pierre Potier (turning buttons) and Bertran Frammery (telephoning) on shift. The 26 GeV Synchrotron and later also its related machines (Linacs 1,2,3; PS-Booster; LEP-Injector Linacs and Electron-Positron Accumulator; Antiproton Accumulator, Antiproton Collector, Low Energy Antiproton Ring and more recently Antiproton Decelerator) were all controlled from the PS control room situated on the Meyrin site. The SPS and LEP were controlled from a separat control centre on the Prevessin site. In 2005 all controls were transferred to the Prevessin centre.

Does aerobic training alleviate fatigue and improve societal participation in patients with multiple sclerosis? A randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Heine, Martin; Verschuren, Olaf; Hoogervorst, Erwin Lj; van Munster, Erik; Hacking, Hub Ga; Visser-Meily, Anne; Twisk, Jos Wr; Beckerman, Heleen; de Groot, Vincent; Kwakkel, Gert

2017-10-01

Evidence supporting the effectiveness of aerobic training, specific for fatigue, in severely fatigued patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is lacking. To estimate the effectiveness of aerobic training on MS-related fatigue and societal participation in ambulant patients with severe MS-related fatigue. Patients ( N = 90) with severe MS-related fatigue were allocated to 16-week aerobic training or control intervention. Primary outcomes were perceived fatigue (Checklist Individual Strength (CIS20r) fatigue subscale) and societal participation. An improvement of ⩾8 points on the CIS20r fatigue subscale was considered clinically relevant. Outcomes were assessed by a blinded observer at baseline, 2, 4, 6 and 12 months. Of the 89 patients that started treatment (median Expanded Disability Status Scale (interquartile range), 3.0 (2.0-3.6); mean CIS20r fatigue subscale (standard deviation (SD)), 42.6 (8.0)), 43 received aerobic training and 46 received the control intervention. A significant post-intervention between-group mean difference (MD) on the CIS20r fatigue subscale of 4.708 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.003-8.412; p  = 0.014) points was found in favour of aerobic training that, however, was not sustained during follow-up. No effect was found on societal participation. Aerobic training in MS patients with severe fatigue does not lead to a clinically meaningful reduction in fatigue or societal participation when compared to a low-intensity control intervention.

Perception of young adults with sickle cell disease or sickle cell trait about participation in the CHOICES randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Hershberger, Patricia E; Gallo, Agatha M; Molokie, Robert; Thompson, Alexis A; Suarez, Marie L; Yao, Yingwei; Wilkie, Diana J

2016-06-01

To gain an in-depth understanding of the perceptions of young adults with sickle cell disease and sickle cell trait about parenthood and participating in the CHOICES randomized controlled trial that used computer-based, educational programmes. In the USA, there is insufficient education to assure that all young adults with sickle cell disease or sickle cell trait understand genetic inheritance risks and reproductive options to make informed reproductive decisions. To address this educational need, we developed a computer-based, multimedia program (CHOICES) and reformatted usual care into a computer-based (e-Book) program. We then conducted a two-year randomized controlled trial that included a qualitative component that would deepen understanding of young adults' perceptions of parenthood and use of computer-based, educational programmes. A qualitative descriptive approach completed after a randomized controlled trial. Sixty-eight men and women of childbearing age participated in semi-structured interviews at the completion of the randomized controlled trial from 2012-2013. Thematic content analysis guided the qualitative description. Three main themes were identified: (1) increasing knowledge and new ways of thinking and behaving; (2) rethinking parenting plans; and (3) appraising the program design and delivery. Most participants reported increased knowledge and rethinking of their parenting plans and were supportive of computer-based learning. Some participants expressed difficulty in determining individual transmission risks. Participants perceived the computer programs as beneficial to their learning. Future development of an Internet-based educational programme is warranted, with emphasis on providing tailored education or memory boosters about individual transmission risks. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Users' behavior in ExsiteView. Internet-based multi-agent technique for building management; Gebruikersgedrag centraal bij ExsiteView. Internetgebaseerde multi-agenttechniek voor gebouwbeheer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wortel, W.; Van der Velden, J.A.P.; Zeiler, W. [Kropman Installatietechniek, Rijswijk (Netherlands)

2006-05-15

Within the ExsiteView project attention is paid to internet-based multi-agent techniques for an optimal control of climate installations in the built environment. It is expected that by means of this technique energy consumption in the built environment can be reduced, focusing on the behavior of the users of the building and its facilities. The aim of the ExsiteView project is to realize innovative forms of building management systems and remote control. Sub-projects are InsiteView, EcoView and Smart. [Dutch] Binnen het ExsiteView-project wordt specifiek onderzoek verricht naar internetgebaseerde multi-agenttechniek voor optimale besturing tijdens de beheerfase van de klimaatinstallaties in de gebouwde omgeving. De verwachting is dat met de nieuwe techniek het gebruik van energie in de gebouwde omgeving vooral gedurende de gebruiksfase sterk beperkt kan blijven. Kenmerkend hierbij is de aandacht voor het gedrag van de gebruiker. Het doel van het ExsiteView project is innovatieve vormen van gebouwbeheer en besturing op afstand te realiseren. Onderdelen van dit project zijn InsiteView, EcoView en Smart.

Television viewing and forms of bullying among adolescents from eight countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuntsche, Emmanuel; Pickett, William; Overpeck, Mary; Craig, Wendy; Boyce, William; de Matos, Margarida Gaspar

2006-12-01

Based on theories suggesting that frequent television viewers act and react in hostile, malicious, malevolent, or verbally aggressive ways rather than being physically violent, the present study investigates relationships between television viewing and different forms of bullying. Multilevel regression models were estimated based on cross-sectional data from 31,177 adolescents aged 11, 13, and 15 years from Canada, Estonia, Israel, Latvia, Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, and the United States who participated in the 2001-2002 Health Behavior in School-aged Children Survey. Although all different forms of bullying were associated with television viewing in bivariate analyses, only the verbal forms (i.e. "calling mean names" and "spreading rumors") remained significant in multiple regression models. These relationships were observed consistently in all eight participating countries. However, the association between television viewing and physical forms of bullying such as kicking, pushing, or shoving around, varied across countries. In most weekend TV viewing cultures, frequent television viewers were prone to kick or push another student in addition to verbal forms of bullying, which was not the case in weekday viewing cultures. These results demonstrate the importance of limiting adolescents' time engaged in unsupervised television watching, and the need to motivate adolescents to engage in joint family activities or organized after-school activities.

Remote Viewing and Computer Communications--An Experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

Vallee, Jacques

1988-01-01

A series of remote viewing experiments were run with 12 participants who communicated through a computer conferencing network. The correct target sample was identified in 8 out of 33 cases. This represented more than double the pure chance expectation. Appendices present protocol, instructions, and results of the experiments. (Author/YP)

Understanding Study Participants Views on Co-Creation of Data and Use of EHR in Clinical Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Scott Duncan, Therese; Hägglund, Maria

2018-01-01

In order to increase clinical trial participation, the reasons for participating need to be observed. Since there is rather inadequate information concerning how individuals such as patients, decides to participate in clinical trials semi-structured interviews have been done. Examining the use of EHR in clinical trials and co-creation of data, the result showed that it is important for the researches to have access to the patients' EHR and for the patients to contribute with their own ideas of research. Important aspects of further participation in clinical trials were that it should be fun and informative. The patients agreed on that the effort of participating could decrease with the use of electronically collection and self-reporting of data, e.g. through a patient portal.

Elucidating elementary science teachers' conceptions of the nature of science: A view to beliefs about both science and teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Keske, Kristina Palmer

The purpose of this interpretive case study was to elucidate the conceptions of the nature of science held by seven elementary science teachers. The constructivist paradigm provided the philosophical and methodological foundation for the study. Interviews were employed to collect data from the participants about their formal and informal experiences with science. In addition, the participants contributed their perspectives on four aspects of the nature of science: what is science; who is a scientist; what are the methods of science; and how is scientific knowledge constructed. Data analysis not only revealed these teachers' views of science, but also provided insights into how they viewed science teaching. Four themes emerged from the data. The first theme developed around the participants' portrayals of the content of science, with participant views falling on a continuum of limited to universal application of science as procedure. The second theme dealt with the participants' views of the absolute nature of scientific knowledge. Participants' perceptions of the tentative nature of science teaching provided the basis for the third theme concerning the need for absolutes in practice. The fourth theme drew parallels between participants' views of science and science teaching, with two participants demonstrating a consistency in beliefs about knowledge construction across contexts. This study revealed both personal and contextual factors which impacted how the participants saw science and science teaching. Many of the participants' memories of formal science revolved around the memorization of content and were viewed negatively. All the participants had limited formal training in science. Of the seven participants, only two had chosen to be science teachers at the beginning of their careers. The participants' limited formal experiences with science provided little time for exploration into historical, philosophical, and sociological studies of science, a necessary

Laboratory animal science course in Switzerland: participants' points of view and implications for organizers.

Science.gov (United States)

Crettaz von Roten, Fabienne

2018-02-01

Switzerland has implemented a mandatory training in laboratory animal science since 1999; however a comprehensive assessment of its effects has never been undertaken so far. The results from the analysis of participants in the Swiss Federation of European Laboratory Animal Science Associations (FELASA) Category B compulsory courses in laboratory animal science run in 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016 showed that the participants fully appreciated all elements of the course. The use of live animals during the course was supported and explained by six arguments characterized with cognitive, emotional and forward-looking factors. A large majority considered that the 3R (replacement, reduction and refinement) principles were adequately applied during the course. Responses to an open question offered some ideas for improvements. This overall positive picture, however, revealed divergent answers from different subpopulations in our sample (for example, scientists with more hindsight, scientists trained in biology, or participants from Asian countries).

Psychodrama Participants' Perception of Therapeutic Factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Kellermann, Peter Felix

1987-01-01

Administered questionnaire to 40 psychodrama participants and 42 controls with no psychotherapy experience to assess which specific events they would find helpful in psychotherapy. Psychodrama participants perceived emotional abreaction and cognitive insight most helpful while controls considered nonspecific healing aids most helpful. Suggests…

TEACHERS' VIEWS ON THE POTENTIAL USE OF ONLINE IN-SERVICE EDUCATION AND TRAINING ACTIVITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet KOKOC

2011-10-01

Full Text Available This study examined teacher’s views on the potential use of online in-service education and training (INSET activities. The study used a qualitative approach. A total of 13 in-service teachers from primary school, vocational school, science and art center, high school in Trabzon (on the Black Sea coast of Turkey participated in the study. To determine opinions of participants about the potential use of online INSET activities, a online conference was held to determine teachers’ views. The participants who had experienced traditional and face to face INSET courses discussed their INSET experiences and thoughts about online INSET activities. These views were transcribed and then analyzed using content analysis. The main conclusions are: with online INSET activities, especially time and place dependency can be overcome, and accommodation and transportation issues can be resolved. Teachers feel that online INSET activities can promote effective use of resources.

Stereo Viewing System. Innovative Technology Summary Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

None

2000-01-01

The Stereo Viewing System provides stereoscopic viewing of Light Duty Utility Arm activities. Stereoscopic viewing allows operators to see the depth of objects. This capability improves the control of the Light Duty Utility Arm performed in DOE's underground radioactive waste storage tanks and allows operators to evaluate the depth of pits, seams, and other anomalies. Potential applications include Light Duty Utility Arm deployment operations at the Oak Ridge Reservation, Hanford Site, and the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory

Randomized controlled trial of a video decision support tool for cardiopulmonary resuscitation decision making in advanced cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Volandes, Angelo E; Paasche-Orlow, Michael K; Mitchell, Susan L; El-Jawahri, Areej; Davis, Aretha Delight; Barry, Michael J; Hartshorn, Kevan L; Jackson, Vicki Ann; Gillick, Muriel R; Walker-Corkery, Elizabeth S; Chang, Yuchiao; López, Lenny; Kemeny, Margaret; Bulone, Linda; Mann, Eileen; Misra, Sumi; Peachey, Matt; Abbo, Elmer D; Eichler, April F; Epstein, Andrew S; Noy, Ariela; Levin, Tomer T; Temel, Jennifer S

2013-01-20

Decision making regarding cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is challenging. This study examined the effect of a video decision support tool on CPR preferences among patients with advanced cancer. We performed a randomized controlled trial of 150 patients with advanced cancer from four oncology centers. Participants in the control arm (n = 80) listened to a verbal narrative describing CPR and the likelihood of successful resuscitation. Participants in the intervention arm (n = 70) listened to the identical narrative and viewed a 3-minute video depicting a patient on a ventilator and CPR being performed on a simulated patient. The primary outcome was participants' preference for or against CPR measured immediately after exposure to either modality. Secondary outcomes were participants' knowledge of CPR (score range of 0 to 4, with higher score indicating more knowledge) and comfort with video. The mean age of participants was 62 years (standard deviation, 11 years); 49% were women, 44% were African American or Latino, and 47% had lung or colon cancer. After the verbal narrative, in the control arm, 38 participants (48%) wanted CPR, 41 (51%) wanted no CPR, and one (1%) was uncertain. In contrast, in the intervention arm, 14 participants (20%) wanted CPR, 55 (79%) wanted no CPR, and 1 (1%) was uncertain (unadjusted odds ratio, 3.5; 95% CI, 1.7 to 7.2; P advanced cancer who viewed a video of CPR were less likely to opt for CPR than those who listened to a verbal narrative.

Playing the computer game Tetris prior to viewing traumatic film material and subsequent intrusive memories: Examining proactive interference.

Science.gov (United States)

James, Ella L; Lau-Zhu, Alex; Tickle, Hannah; Horsch, Antje; Holmes, Emily A

2016-12-01

Visuospatial working memory (WM) tasks performed concurrently or after an experimental trauma (traumatic film viewing) have been shown to reduce subsequent intrusive memories (concurrent or retroactive interference, respectively). This effect is thought to arise because, during the time window of memory consolidation, the film memory is labile and vulnerable to interference by the WM task. However, it is not known whether tasks before an experimental trauma (i.e. proactive interference) would also be effective. Therefore, we tested if a visuospatial WM task given before a traumatic film reduced intrusions. Findings are relevant to the development of preventative strategies to reduce intrusive memories of trauma for groups who are routinely exposed to trauma (e.g. emergency services personnel) and for whom tasks prior to trauma exposure might be beneficial. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions. In the Tetris condition (n = 28), participants engaged in the computer game for 11 min immediately before viewing a 12-min traumatic film, whereas those in the Control condition (n = 28) had no task during this period. Intrusive memory frequency was assessed using an intrusion diary over 1-week and an Intrusion Provocation Task at 1-week follow-up. Recognition memory for the film was also assessed at 1-week. Compared to the Control condition, participants in the Tetris condition did not report statistically significant difference in intrusive memories of the trauma film on either measure. There was also no statistically significant difference in recognition memory scores between conditions. The study used an experimental trauma paradigm and findings may not be generalizable to a clinical population. Compared to control, playing Tetris before viewing a trauma film did not lead to a statistically significant reduction in the frequency of later intrusive memories of the film. It is unlikely that proactive interference, at least with this task

The relationship between parents' and children's television viewing.

Science.gov (United States)

Bleakley, Amy; Jordan, Amy B; Hennessy, Michael

2013-08-01

To examine the effect of parental television viewing on children's television viewing compared with traditional predictors such as household television access, parental rules, and demographic characteristics of the child, parent, and household. An online survey using national samples of 1550 parents with children in 3 age groups (children ≤ 5 years, children aged 6-11 years, and adolescents aged 12-17 years), weighted to be representative of US parents with children in each age group. Adolescents (n = 629) of participating parents were also surveyed. Parent television time is associated with child television time and had a stronger relationship to child time than access to television in the home or the child's bedroom, as well as parental rules about television viewing and coviewing. This pattern persisted across all age groups of children. Educating parents about the relationship between their own and their child's viewing may be a useful strategy for interventions that aim to reduce children's excessive television viewing. Additionally, health professionals can engage parents in a discussion about how family television time is associated with increased television time for children.

Interfacing LabVIEW With Instrumentation for Electronic Failure Analysis and Beyond

Science.gov (United States)

Buchanan, Randy K.; Bryan, Coleman; Ludwig, Larry

1996-01-01

The Laboratory Virtual Instrumentation Engineering Workstation (LabVIEW) software is designed such that equipment and processes related to control systems can be operationally lined and controlled by the use of a computer. Various processes within the failure analysis laboratories of NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) demonstrate the need for modernization and, in some cases, automation, using LabVIEW. An examination of procedures and practices with the Failure Analaysis Laboratory resulted in the conclusion that some device was necessary to elevate the potential users of LabVIEW to an operational level in minimum time. This paper outlines the process involved in creating a tutorial application to enable personnel to apply LabVIEW to their specific projects. Suggestions for furthering the extent to which LabVIEW is used are provided in the areas of data acquisition and process control.

Lower extremity function during gait in participants with first time acute lateral ankle sprain compared to controls.

Science.gov (United States)

Doherty, Cailbhe; Bleakley, Chris; Hertel, Jay; Caulfield, Brian; Ryan, John; Delahunt, Eamonn

2015-02-01

Laboratory analyses of chronic ankle instability populations during gait have elucidated a number of anomalous movement patterns. No current research exists analysing these movement patterns in a group in the acute phase of lateral ankle sprain (LAS) injury. It is possible that participants with an acute LAS display movement patterns continuous with their chronically impaired counterparts. Sixty eight participants with acute LAS and nineteen non-injured participants completed five gait trials. 3D lower extremity temporal kinematic and kinetic data were collected from 200 ms pre- to 200 ms post-heel strike (period 1) and from 200 ms pre- to 200 ms post-toe off (period 2). During period 1, the LAS group displayed increased knee flexion with increased net extensor pattern at the knee joint, increased ankle inversion with a greater inversion moment, and reduced ankle plantar flexion, compared to the non-injured control group. During period 2, the LAS group displayed decreased hip extension with a decrease in the flexor moment at the hip, and decreased ankle plantar flexion with a decrease in the net plantar flexion moment, compared to the non-injured control group. These results indicate that participants with acute LAS display coordination strategies which may play a role in the onset of chronicity or recovery. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Teachers' tendencies to promote student-led science projects: Associations with their views about science

Science.gov (United States)

Bencze, J. Lawrence; Bowen, G. Michael; Alsop, Steve

2006-05-01

School science students can benefit greatly from participation in student-directed, open-ended scientific inquiry projects. For various possible reasons, however, students tend not to be engaged in such inquiries. Among factors that may limit their opportunities to engage in open-ended inquiries of their design are teachers' conceptions about science. To explore possible relationships between teachers' conceptions about science and the types of inquiry activities in which they engage students, instrumental case studies of five secondary science teachers were developed, using field notes, repertory grids, samples of lesson plans and student activities, and semistructured interviews. Based on constructivist grounded theory analysis, participating teachers' tendencies to promote student-directed, open-ended scientific inquiry projects seemed to correspond with positions about the nature of science to which they indicated adherence. A tendency to encourage and enable students to carry out student-directed, open-ended scientific inquiry projects appeared to be associated with adherence to social constructivist views about science. Teachers who opposed social constructivist views tended to prefer tight control of student knowledge building procedures and conclusions. We suggest that these results can be explained with reference to human psychological factors, including those associated with teachers' self-esteem and their relationships with knowledge-building processes in the discipline of their teaching.

Influence of management style on employee views of corporate reputation. Application to audit firms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isabel Olmedo-Cifuentes

2014-10-01

Full Text Available In the current economic context where the behaviour of firms is carefully examined by the markets, the corporate reputation which is generated by organisations among their stakeholders may facilitate their success. Since employees are actively involved in its shaping and influence the overall perception of the firm's corporate reputation, the aim of this research is to improve the management of the employee views of reputation in order to increase its global evaluation. To do this, we analyse whether the existence of a characteristic management style influences the employee views of reputation, studying the effect of control variables such as employee age, gender, level of education or job position. Using a sample of 148 employees of Spanish accounting audit firms, we develop a specific tool for measuring the reputation from the employee perspective of service SMEs, as well as confirming that a strong participative management style promotes a better perception of reputation by employees than a competitive style. Hence, this study reflects that men prefer a competitive management style. Also, a high level of education along with job position has a positive impact on the preference of a participative style with the job position being the main moderating variable of the proposed model.

Bookmakers and a Duty of Care: Customers' Views in England.

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Brooks, Graham; Sparrow, Paul

2016-06-01

This paper focuses on customers' views on the extent that bookmakers and individuals are responsible for a duty of care. 72 participants from seven bookmakers in one city in England were interviewed that illustrates customers expect bookmakers to take 'reasonable steps' to avoid exploiting all customers. However, the customers' views recorded in this paper illustrate a range of views on what a duty of care should actually comprise with differences of opinion on the level of bookmakers and individuals level of responsibility, dealing with intoxicated customers, illegal gambling, prevention of excessive and problem gambling and self-exclusion.

Change in quality of life in older people with dementia participating in Paro-activity: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Jøranson, Nina; Pedersen, Ingeborg; Rokstad, Anne Marie Mork; Ihlebaek, Camilla

2016-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate effects of robot-assisted group activity with Paro on quality of life in older people with dementia. Nursing home residents with severe dementia often experience social withdrawal and lower quality of life, which are suggested to be enhanced by non-pharmacological interventions. A cluster-randomized controlled trial. Ten nursing home units were randomized to robot-assisted intervention or control group (treatment as usual). Data were collected between March 2013-September 2014. 27 participants participated in group activity for 30 minutes twice a week over 12 weeks, 26 participated in the control group. Change in quality of life was assessed by local nurses through the Quality of Life in Late-Stage Dementia scale at baseline, after end of intervention and at 3 months follow-up. The scale and regular psychotropic medication were analysed stratified by dementia severity. Analysis using mixed model, one-way anova and linear regression were performed. An effect was found among participants with severe dementia from baseline to follow-up showing stable quality of life in the intervention group compared with a decrease in the control group. The intervention explained most of the variance in change in the total scale and in the subscales describing Tension and Well-being for the group with severe dementia. The intervention group used significantly less psychotropic medication compared with the control group after end of intervention. Pleasant and engaging activities facilitated by nursing staff, such as group activity with Paro, could improve quality of life in people with severe dementia. The trial is in adherence with the CONSORT statement and is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov (study ID number: NCT02008630). © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Interventions implemented through sporting organisations for increasing participation in sport.

Science.gov (United States)

Priest, Naomi; Armstrong, Rebecca; Doyle, Jodie; Waters, Elizabeth

2008-07-16

There is now compelling scientific evidence that increased levels of physical activity can bring wide-ranging health benefits. These benefits can extend beyond physical health to include other positive impacts relating to mental health and personal development. The sport and recreation sector is viewed as a priority area for increasing rates of physical activity. Participation rates in organised sport have been shown to be lower in females and to decline with age, and are reduced in lower socio-economic and minority groups including people from non-English speaking and Indigenous backgrounds. It is important to determine the most effective interventions that sporting organisations can use to increase people's participation. To update a review of all controlled studies evaluating interventions implemented through sporting organisations to increase participation. We updated the original (2004) searches in May 2007. We searched: The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL, The Cochrane Library, Issue 2 2007); MEDLINE and MEDLINE In-Process and Other Non-Indexed Citations (2004 to Week 3 April 2007); EMBASE (2004 to Week 17 2007); PsyclNFO (2004 to April Week 1 2007); CINAHL (2004 to Week 1 May 2007); SPORTDiscus (2004 to April 2007); Sociological Abstracts (2004 to 2007); Dissertation Abstracts (2004 to May 2007), and a number of freely-available online health promotion and sports-related databases. We used the internet extensively to search for studies and locate information generated by sporting bodies throughout the world. Controlled studies evaluating any intervention designed to increase active and/ or non-active participation in sport by people of all ages. Interventions could include: mass media campaigns; information or education sessions; management or organisational change strategies; policy changes, for example to improve the socio-cultural environment to encourage people of specific age, gender or ethnicity to participate; changes to

Community participation in mosquito breeding site control: an interdisciplinary mixed methods study in Curaçao.

Science.gov (United States)

Elsinga, Jelte; van der Veen, Henry T; Gerstenbluth, Izzy; Burgerhof, Johannes G M; Dijkstra, Arie; Grobusch, Martin P; Tami, Adriana; Bailey, Ajay

2017-09-19

As the arboviral diseases dengue, chikungunya and Zika emerge in the Americas, so does the need for sustainable vector control policies. To successfully achieve mosquito control, joint efforts of both communities and governments are essential. This study investigates this important, but by-and-large neglected topic. In June and July 2015, a cross-sectional mixed methods study applying a survey questionnaire (response rate of 82.5%; n = 339), in-depth interviews (n = 20) and focus group discussions (n = 7; 50 participants) was performed in Curaçao. The study was designed based on an integrated theoretical framework of the Health Belief Model and the Theory of Planned Behaviour. Participants showed a good knowledge of, and a high-level performance of mosquito breeding site control (MBSC) practices. Personal protection against mosquitoes (e.g. topical repellents) was perceived as relatively less effective thus practiced to lower extent compared to MBSC practices (i.e. larval source management). A lower intention to perform MBSC was independently associated with: (i) satisfaction on governmental MBSC (P = 0.012); (ii) barriers to perform MBSC practices, i.e. 'Government doesn't control other breeding sites' (P = 0.005), 'Don't know how to control breeding sites' (P = 0.041), and 'a mosquito does not transmit dengue' (P = 0.016), (iii) attitudes towards MBSC (P = 0.001) and self-efficacy (person's perceived ability to act) to perform MBSC (P = 0.002). Mixed-methods evidence highlights three possible ways of improving community participation in MBSC. First, it highlights the need for ongoing media coverage, targeting (i) communities' perceptions on transmission routes of dengue and chikungunya, and (ii) presence of car tires in yards. Secondly, it shows that promotion of governmental activities in MBSC can enhance MBSC of communities, if people develop a sense of responsibility to perform MBSC at their own properties. Thirdly, this study describes

Surgical model-view-controller simulation software framework for local and collaborative applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Maciel, Anderson; Sankaranarayanan, Ganesh; Halic, Tansel; Arikatla, Venkata Sreekanth; Lu, Zhonghua; De, Suvranu

2011-07-01

Surgical simulations require haptic interactions and collaboration in a shared virtual environment. A software framework for decoupled surgical simulation based on a multi-controller and multi-viewer model-view-controller (MVC) pattern was developed and tested. A software framework for multimodal virtual environments was designed, supporting both visual interactions and haptic feedback while providing developers with an integration tool for heterogeneous architectures maintaining high performance, simplicity of implementation, and straightforward extension. The framework uses decoupled simulation with updates of over 1,000 Hz for haptics and accommodates networked simulation with delays of over 1,000 ms without performance penalty. The simulation software framework was implemented and was used to support the design of virtual reality-based surgery simulation systems. The framework supports the high level of complexity of such applications and the fast response required for interaction with haptics. The efficacy of the framework was tested by implementation of a minimally invasive surgery simulator. A decoupled simulation approach can be implemented as a framework to handle simultaneous processes of the system at the various frame rates each process requires. The framework was successfully used to develop collaborative virtual environments (VEs) involving geographically distributed users connected through a network, with the results comparable to VEs for local users.

Parent-Child Co-Viewing of Television and Cognitive Development of the Chinese Child

Science.gov (United States)

Jinqiu, Zhao; Xiaoming, Hao

2004-01-01

This study examined the relationship between parent-child co-viewing of television and the cognitive development of the child. Both survey and experiment methods were employed to determine the participants' television viewing habits and their cognitive achievements after watching a pre-recorded programme under different conditions. The…

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND WATER USE RIGHTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Phillipa King

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The conservation and protection of water resources is paramount in the safeguarding of environmental rights and the attainment of sustainable development in South Africa. Although the National Water Act 36 of 1998 (the NWA seeks to provide a framework for ensuring the sustainable use of water resources, its application has been hindered by capacity and enforcement constraints, a legacy of water pollution (primarily as a result of mining and industrial activities, and poor resource management. To aggravate this situation, the difficulties in effectively implementing the NWA are exacerbated by inadequate public participation in water use licensing processes. Public participation in environmental decision-making has increasingly received recognition for its role in ensuring administrative justice and the protection of environmental rights. While environmental legislation (in many cases sets out procedures for ensuring that public views are taken into account in environmental decision-making processes, the judiciary has also recognised the pivotal role of public engagement in ensuring administrative justice where environmental rights are at stake. Sound public participation practices play an important role in identifying issues requiring consideration in the context of environmental assessment processes, as well as in ensuring that communities are empowered to monitor, identify and report on potential contraventions of environmental legislation. Water is a vital natural resource which is under significant pressure in South Africa. In the circumstances, effective public participation is crucial to ensuring the protection and equitable use of water resources. It follows that provision for comprehensive public engagement in water use licensing processes is integral to ensuring the sustainable management of water resources. While provision is made in the NWA for public engagement in the context of water use licensing processes, such participation is

Smartphone viewing distance and sleep: an experimental study utilizing motion capture technology.

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Yoshimura, Michitaka; Kitazawa, Momoko; Maeda, Yasuhiro; Mimura, Masaru; Tsubota, Kazuo; Kishimoto, Taishiro

2017-01-01

There are studies reporting the negative impact of smartphone utilization on sleep. It is considered that reduction of melatonin secretion under the blue light exposure from smart-phone displays is one of the causes. The viewing distance may cause sleep disturbance, because the viewing distance determines the screen illuminance and/or asthenopia. However, to date, there has been no study closely investigating the impact of viewing distance on sleep; therefore, we sought to determine the relationship between smartphone viewing distance and subjective sleep status. Twenty-three nursing students (mean age ± standard deviation of 19.7±3.1 years) participated in the study. Subjective sleep status was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, morningness-eveningness questionnaire, and the Epworth sleepiness scale. We used the distance between the head and the hand while holding a smartphone to measure the viewing distance while using smartphones in sitting and lying positions. The distance was calculated using the three-dimensional coordinates obtained by a noncontact motion-sensing device. The viewing distance of smartphones in the sitting position ranged from 13.3 to 32.9 cm among participants. In the lying position, it ranged from 9.9 to 21.3cm. The viewing distance was longer in the sitting position than in the lying position (mean ± standard deviation: 20.3±4.7 vs 16.4±2.7, respectively, P sleep state ( R 2 =0.27, P sleep efficiency ( R 2 =0.35, P sleep latency ( R 2 =0.38, P smartphone viewing distances in lying position correlated negatively with subjective sleep status. Therefore, when recommending ideal smartphone use in lying position, one should take into account the viewing distances.

Connecting self-efficacy and views about the nature of science in undergraduate research experiences

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Quan, Gina M.; Elby, Andrew

2016-12-01

Undergraduate research can support students' more central participation in physics. We analyze markers of two coupled shifts in participation: changes in students' views about the nature of science coupled to shifts in self-efficacy toward physics research. Students in the study worked with faculty and graduate student mentors on research projects while also participating in a seminar where they learned about research and reflected on their experiences. In classroom discussions and in clinical interviews, students described gaining more nuanced views about the nature of science, specifically related to who can participate in research and what participation in research looks like. This shift was coupled to gains in self-efficacy toward their ability to contribute to research; they felt like their contributions as novices mattered. We present two case studies of students who experienced coupled shifts in self-efficacy and views about nature-of-science shifts, and a case study of a student for whom we did not see either shift, to illustrate both the existence of the coupling and the different ways it can play out. After making the case that this coupling occurs, we discuss some potential underlying mechanisms. Finally, we use these results to argue for more nuanced interpretations of self-efficacy measurements.

Facebook's Spiral of Silence and Participation: The Role of Political Expression on Facebook and Partisan Strength in Political Participation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Mihee

2016-12-01

This study investigated how Facebook's spiral of silence influences political participation. For doing so, this study focused on the roles of politically expressive activities on Facebook and individuals' levels of partisan strength. An online survey (N = 277) was conducted with Facebook users. Results showed that a perceived hostile opinion climate on Facebook was negatively associated with political expression on Facebook, which, in turn, was positively related with political participation. This indirect relationship was conditioned by the degree of Facebook users' partisan strength. Those with weak or moderate levels of partisan strength were less likely to express their minority views, which led to decrease their political participation in the real world. Such indirect relationship was not the case for those with high levels of partisan strength. Theoretical and political implications of these findings were discussed.

Locus of Control and Self-Esteem as Predictors of Teacher ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Individual's perception of self has potential to enhance or impede his or her success at work. In view of this, there is a need to examine the relationship between locus of control and self-esteem as they jointly influence teachers' frustration in Lagos state, Nigeria. The participants were two hundred (200) teachers (100 males ...

Wide angle view of MOCR activity during STS-3 mission

Science.gov (United States)

1982-01-01

Wide angle view of Mission Operation Control Room (MOCR) activity during Day 2 of STS-3 mission. This view shows many of th consoles, tracking map, and Eidophor-controlled data screens. Flight controllers in the foreground are (l.r.) R. John Rector and Chares L. Dumie. They are seated at the EECOM console. The 'thermodillo' contraption, used by flight controllers to indicate the Shuttle's position in relation to the sun for various tests, can be seen at right (28732); closeup view of the 'thermodillo'. The position of the armadillo's tail indicates position of the orbiter in relation to sun (28733); Mission Specialist/Astronaut Sally K. Ride, STS-3 orbit team spacecraft communicator (CAPCOM), talks to flight director during mission control center activity. Mission Specialist/Astronaut George D. Nelson, backup orbit team CAPCOM, watches the monitor at his console (28734).

Using Balance Tests to Discriminate Between Participants With a Recent Index Lateral Ankle Sprain and Healthy Control Participants: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Pourkazemi, Fereshteh; Hiller, Claire; Raymond, Jacqueline; Black, Deborah; Nightingale, Elizabeth; Refshauge, Kathryn

2016-03-01

The first step to identifying factors that increase the risk of recurrent ankle sprains is to identify impairments after a first sprain and compare performance with individuals who have never sustained a sprain. Few researchers have restricted recruitment to a homogeneous group of patients with first sprains, thereby introducing the potential for confounding. To identify impairments that differ in participants with a recent index lateral ankle sprain versus participants with no history of ankle sprain. Cross-sectional study. We recruited a sample of convenience from May 2010 to April 2013 that included 70 volunteers (age = 27.4 ± 8.3 years, height = 168.7 ± 9.5 cm, mass = 65.0 ± 12.5 kg) serving as controls and 30 volunteers (age = 31.1 ± 13.3 years, height = 168.3 ± 9.1 cm, mass = 67.3 ± 13.7 kg) with index ankle sprains. We collected demographic and physical performance variables, including ankle-joint range of motion, balance (time to balance after perturbation, Star Excursion Balance Test, foot lifts during single-legged stance, demi-pointe balance test), proprioception, motor planning, inversion-eversion peak power, and timed stair tests. Discriminant analysis was conducted to determine the relationship between explanatory variables and sprain status. Sequential discriminant analysis was performed to identify the most relevant variables that explained the greatest variance. The average time since the sprain was 3.5 ± 1.5 months. The model, including all variables, correctly predicted a sprain status of 77% (n = 23) of the sprain group and 80% (n = 56) of the control group and explained 40% of the variance between groups ([Formula: see text] = 42.16, P = .03). Backward stepwise discriminant analysis revealed associations between sprain status and only 2 tests: Star Excursion Balance Test in the anterior direction and foot lifts during single-legged stance ([Formula: see text] = 15.2, P = .001). These 2 tests explained 15% of the between-groups variance

The Conversations About Cancer (CAC) Project-Phase II: National findings from viewing When Cancer Calls…and implications for Entertainment-Education (E-E).

Science.gov (United States)

Beach, Wayne A; Dozier, David M; Buller, Mary K; Gutzmer, Kyle; Fluharty, Lyndsay; Myers, Valerie H; Buller, David B

2016-03-01

We address cancer communication by creating and assessing the impacts of a theatrical production, When Cancer Calls…(WCC…), anchored in conversations from the first natural history of a patient and family members talking through cancer on the telephone. A national study was conducted using a multi-site and randomized controlled trial. An 80-minute video was produced to assess viewing impacts across cancer patients, survivors, and family members. Comparisons were made with a control video on cancer nutrition and diet. Pretest-posttest sample size was 1006, and 669 participants completed a 30-day follow-up impacts assessment. All five family and communication indices increased significantly for WCC…. When compared to the placebo, average pretest-posttest change scores were higher for self-efficacy (775%), family fabric (665%), outside support (189%), and family communication (97%). One month following viewings, WCC…participants reported 30% more conversations about cancer among patients and family members about cancer. A new genre of Entertainment-Education (E-E) was created that triggers positive reactions from audience members. Managing delicate and often complex communication about the trials, tribulations, hopes, and triumphs of cancer journeys is fundamentally important for everyday living. Unique opportunities exist to make WCC… available to national and global audiences, create tailored curricula, and integrate these viewings into educational programs for patients, family members, and care-provider teams across diverse health, corporate, and governmental systems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effects of gamelike features and test location on cognitive test performance and participant enjoyment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jim Lumsden

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Computerised cognitive assessments are a vital tool in the behavioural sciences, but participants often view them as effortful and unengaging. One potential solution is to add gamelike elements to these tasks in order to make them more intrinsically enjoyable, and some researchers have posited that a more engaging task might produce higher quality data. This assumption, however, remains largely untested. We investigated the effects of gamelike features and test location on the data and enjoyment ratings from a simple cognitive task. We tested three gamified variants of the Go-No-Go task, delivered both in the laboratory and online. In the first version of the task participants were rewarded with points for performing optimally. The second version of the task was framed as a cowboy shootout. The third version was a standard Go-No-Go task, used as a control condition. We compared reaction time, accuracy and subjective measures of enjoyment and engagement between task variants and study location. We found points to be a highly suitable game mechanic for gamified cognitive testing because they did not disrupt the validity of the data collected but increased participant enjoyment. However, we found no evidence that gamelike features could increase engagement to the point where participant performance improved. We also found that while participants enjoyed the cowboy themed task, the difficulty of categorising the gamelike stimuli adversely affected participant performance, increasing No-Go error rates by 28% compared to the non-game control. Responses collected online vs. in the laboratory had slightly longer reaction times but were otherwise very similar, supporting other findings that online crowdsourcing is an acceptable method of data collection for this type of research.

What motivates participation in violent political action: selective incentives or parochial altruism?

Science.gov (United States)

Ginges, Jeremy; Atran, Scott

2009-06-01

In standard models of decision making, participation in violent political action is understood as the product of instrumentally rational reasoning. According to this line of thinking, instrumentally rational individuals will participate in violent political action only if there are selective incentives that are limited to participants. We argue in favor of an alternate model of political violence where participants are motivated by moral commitments to collective sacred values. Correlative and experimental empirical evidence in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict strongly supports this alternate view.

Participation of the public in licensing procedures under the Atomic Energy Act and the Federal Emission Control Act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hett, F.T.

1994-01-01

Section 7 of the Atomic Energy Act (AtG), section 4 of the Federal Emission Control Act (BImSchG), the Nuclear Installations Licensing Ordinance (AtVfV), and the Ninth Ordinance on the Implementation of the BImSchG (Principles of the licensing procedure) require participation of the public in the procedure before administrative provisions or decisions are issued. The book presents the legally prescribed steps at which participation of the public is mandatory, for the simple case (only one license on the agenda), and for the multi-stage licensing procedure: preliminary negotiations / filling of applications for a license and filing of documents / public announcement of projects / access to files / objections / preclusion of delayed objections / public hearing and other expert discussions / termination of procedure, decision-making by the authorities / decisions on subdivision of procedure into defined stages / modification of the procedure. The analysis of the functions of participation of the public examines the following goals: information / representation of interests / reconciliation of interests / legitimation / control / protection of rights / support. Finally, the book explains the principles of the Constitution demanding participation of the public: human dignity / democracy / rule of law / anticipated effects of the right to have recourse to the courts / civil rights. (orig./HP) [de

[Ethical problems surrounding decision making by means of patient participation and public health oriented overall risk approaches].

Science.gov (United States)

Wehkamp, Karl-Heinz

2008-01-01

Strengthening citizen participation, patient rights and patient autonomy places more and more responsibility for achieving certain health care goals on the health care consumer ('customer'). Public health based governance using tools and concepts of health economics consider this a responsibility of physicians and hospitals. The two concepts are not fully compatible. Holding health care providers responsible for goals which, in part, are beyond their control is unfair from an ethical point of view. Politics should accept that physicians are responsible for the quality of their services, and not for the health of the individual.

The network approach for prevention of healthcare-associated infections: long-term effect of participation in the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Deverick J; Miller, Becky A; Chen, Luke F; Adcock, Linda H; Cook, Evelyn; Cromer, A Lynn; Louis, Susan; Thacker, Paul A; Sexton, Daniel J

2011-04-01

To describe the rates of several key outcomes and healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) among hospitals that participated in the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network (DICON). Prospective, observational cohort study of patients admitted to 24 community hospitals from 2003 through 2009. The following data were collected and analyzed: incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), and HAIs caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA); employee exposures to bloodborne pathogens (EBBPs); physician EBBPs; patient-days; central line-days; ventilator-days; and urinary catheter-days. Poisson regression was used to determine whether incidence rates of these HAIs and exposures changed during the first 5 and 7 years of participation in DICON; nonrandom clustering of each outcome was controlled for. Cost saved and lives saved were calculated on the basis of published estimates. In total, we analyzed 6.5 million patient-days, 4,783 EBPPs, 2,948 HAIs due to MRSA, and 2,076 device-related infections. Rates of employee EBBPs, HAIs due to MRSA, and device-related infections decreased significantly during the first 5 years of participation in DICON (Pprevented. Each hospital saved approximately $100,000 per year of participation, and collectively the hospitals may have prevented 52-105 deaths from CLABSI or VAP. The 7-year analysis demonstrated that these trends continued with further participation. Hospitals with long-term participation in an infection control network decreased rates of significant HAIs by approximately 50%, decreased costs, and saved lives.

ChiMS: Open-source instrument control software platform on LabVIEW for imaging/depth profiling mass spectrometers.

Science.gov (United States)

Cui, Yang; Hanley, Luke

2015-06-01

ChiMS is an open-source data acquisition and control software program written within LabVIEW for high speed imaging and depth profiling mass spectrometers. ChiMS can also transfer large datasets from a digitizer to computer memory at high repetition rate, save data to hard disk at high throughput, and perform high speed data processing. The data acquisition mode generally simulates a digital oscilloscope, but with peripheral devices integrated for control as well as advanced data sorting and processing capabilities. Customized user-designed experiments can be easily written based on several included templates. ChiMS is additionally well suited to non-laser based mass spectrometers imaging and various other experiments in laser physics, physical chemistry, and surface science.

Enhanced Choice for Viewing Cocaine Pictures in Cocaine Addiction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moeller, S.J.; Goldstein, R.; Moeller, S.J.; Maloney, T.; Parvaz, M.A.; Dunning, J.P.; Alia-Klein, N.; Woicik, P.A.; Hajcak, G.; Telang, F.; Wang, G.-J.; Volkow, N.D.; Goldstein, R.Z.

2009-01-01

Individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD) chose cocaine over nondrug rewards. In two newly designed laboratory tasks with pictures, we document this modified choice outside of a cocaine administration paradigm. Choice for viewing cocaine, pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral pictures-under explicit contingencies (choice made between two fully visible side-by-side images) and under more implicit contingencies (selections made between pictures hidden under flipped-over cards)-was examined in 20 CUD and 20 matched healthy control subjects. Subjects also provided self-reported ratings of each picture's pleasantness and arousal. Under both contingencies, CUD subjects chose to view more cocaine pictures than control subjects, group differences that were not fully explained by the self-reported picture ratings. Furthermore, whereas CUD subjects choice for viewing cocaine pictures exceeded choice for viewing unpleasant pictures (but did not exceed choice for viewing pleasant pictures, in contrast to their self-reported ratings), healthy control subjects avoided viewing cocaine pictures as frequently as, or even more than, unpleasant pictures. Finally, CUD subjects with the most cocaine viewing selections, even when directly compared with selections of the pleasant pictures, also reported the most frequent recent cocaine use. Enhanced drug-related choice in cocaine addiction can be demonstrated even for nonpharmacologic (pictorial) stimuli. This choice, which is modulated by alternative stimuli, partly transcends self-reports (possibly indicative of a disconnect in cocaine addiction between self-reports and objective behavior) to provide an objective marker of addiction severity. Neuroimaging studies are needed to establish the neural underpinnings of such enhanced cocaine-related choice.

Enhanced Choice for Viewing Cocaine Pictures in Cocaine Addiction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moeller, S.J.; Goldstein, R.; Moeller, S.J.; Maloney, T. Parvaz, M.A.; Dunning, J.P.; Alia-Klein, N.; Woicik, P.A.; Hajcak, G.; Telang, F.; Wang, G.-J.; Volkow, N.D.; Goldstein, R.Z.

2009-02-01

Individuals with cocaine use disorder (CUD) chose cocaine over nondrug rewards. In two newly designed laboratory tasks with pictures, we document this modified choice outside of a cocaine administration paradigm. Choice for viewing cocaine, pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral pictures-under explicit contingencies (choice made between two fully visible side-by-side images) and under more implicit contingencies (selections made between pictures hidden under flipped-over cards)-was examined in 20 CUD and 20 matched healthy control subjects. Subjects also provided self-reported ratings of each picture's pleasantness and arousal. Under both contingencies, CUD subjects chose to view more cocaine pictures than control subjects, group differences that were not fully explained by the self-reported picture ratings. Furthermore, whereas CUD subjects choice for viewing cocaine pictures exceeded choice for viewing unpleasant pictures (but did not exceed choice for viewing pleasant pictures, in contrast to their self-reported ratings), healthy control subjects avoided viewing cocaine pictures as frequently as, or even more than, unpleasant pictures. Finally, CUD subjects with the most cocaine viewing selections, even when directly compared with selections of the pleasant pictures, also reported the most frequent recent cocaine use. Enhanced drug-related choice in cocaine addiction can be demonstrated even for nonpharmacologic (pictorial) stimuli. This choice, which is modulated by alternative stimuli, partly transcends self-reports (possibly indicative of a disconnect in cocaine addiction between self-reports and objective behavior) to provide an objective marker of addiction severity. Neuroimaging studies are needed to establish the neural underpinnings of such enhanced cocaine-related choice.

Associations of Physical Activity, Sports Participation and Active Commuting on Mathematic Performance and Inhibitory Control in Adolescents

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Domazet, Sidsel L; Tarp, Jakob; Huang, Tao

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVES: To examine objectively measured physical activity level, organized sports participation and active commuting to school in relation to mathematic performance and inhibitory control in adolescents. METHODS: The design was cross-sectional. A convenient sample of 869 sixth and seventh gra...

To View or Not To View: The Influence of Social Networks and Subjective Norms on Online Pornography Consumption

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wan-Ying Lin

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the influence of social networks and subjective norms on an individual’s online pornography consumption. The empirical survey results of 324 voluntary participants indicated that the individual’s positive outcome evaluation was associated with a higher level of online pornography exposure. Social pressure also plays a significant, but negative, role in one’s viewing decision.

Dutch pediatricians' views on the use of neuromuscular blockers for dying neonates: a qualitative study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

ten Cate, K.; van de Vathorst, S.

2015-01-01

To assess Dutch pediatricians' views on neuromuscular blockers for dying neonates. Qualitative study involving in-depth interviews with 10 Dutch pediatricians working with severely ill neonates. Data were analyzed using appropriate qualitative research techniques. Participants explained their view

A Descriptive Survey of Weight Control Participants at a U.S. Army Community Hospital.

Science.gov (United States)

1983-08-01

participation in the survey was strictly voluntary; 3. only active duty Army personnel who were on the Army’s weight control program could volunteer ...A.R. 600-9 limit 2 I was singled out because I looked overweight 3 I volunteered for the program 4 Other, specify 18. Where was your initial weight...33. Wing, Rena R., and Epstein, Leonard H. "Prescribed Level of Caloric Restriction in Bahavioral Weight Loss Programs. Addictive Behaviors 6

Evaluation of viewing experiences induced by a curved three-dimensional display

Science.gov (United States)

Mun, Sungchul; Park, Min-Chul; Yano, Sumio

2015-10-01

Despite an increased need for three-dimensional (3-D) functionality in curved displays, comparisons pertinent to human factors between curved and flat panel 3-D displays have rarely been tested. This study compared stereoscopic 3-D viewing experiences induced by a curved display with those of a flat panel display by evaluating subjective and objective measures. Twenty-four participants took part in the experiments and viewed 3-D content with two different displays (flat and curved 3-D display) within a counterbalanced and within-subject design. For the 30-min viewing condition, a paired t-test showed significantly reduced P300 amplitudes, which were caused by engagement rather than cognitive fatigue, in the curved 3-D viewing condition compared to the flat 3-D viewing condition at P3 and P4. No significant differences in P300 amplitudes were observed for 60-min viewing. Subjective ratings of realness and engagement were also significantly higher in the curved 3-D viewing condition than in the flat 3-D viewing condition for 30-min viewing. Our findings support that curved 3-D displays can be effective for enhancing engagement among viewers based on specific viewing times and environments.

An investigation of the neural substrates of mind wandering induced by viewing traditional Chinese landscape paintings

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Tingting eWang

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The present study was conducted to investigate whether the calming effect induced by viewing traditional Chinese landscape paintings would make disengagement from that mental state more difficult, as measured by performance on a cognitive control task. In Experiment 1 we examined the subjective experience of viewing traditional Chinese landscape paintings vs. realistic oil landscape paintings in a behavioral study. Our results confirmed that, as predicted, traditional Chinese landscape paintings induce greater levels of relaxation and mind wandering and lower levels of object-oriented absorption and recognition, compared to realistic oil landscape paintings. In Experiment 2 we used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI to explore the behavioural and neural effects of viewing traditional Chinese landscape paintings on a task requiring cognitive control (i.e., the flanker task—administered immediately following exposure to paintings. Contrary to our prediction, the behavioural data demonstrated that compared to realistic oil landscape paintings, exposure to traditional Chinese landscape paintings had no effect on performance on the flanker task. However, the neural data demonstrated an interaction effect such that there was greater activation in the inferior parietal cortex (IPC and the superior frontal gyrus (SFG on incongruent compared with congruent flanker trials when participants switched from viewing traditional Chinese landscape paintings to the flanker task than when they switched from realistic oil landscape paintings. These results suggest that switching from traditional Chinese landscape paintings placed greater demands on the brain’s attention and working memory networks during the flanker task than did switching from realistic oil landscape paintings.

Challenges of maintaining research protocol fidelity in a clinical care setting: A qualitative study of the experiences and views of patients and staff participating in a randomized controlled trial

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Farmer Andrew J

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Trial research has predominantly focused on patient and staff understandings of trial concepts and/or motivations for taking part, rather than why treatment recommendations may or may not be followed during trial delivery. This study sought to understand why there was limited attainment of the glycaemic target (HbA1c ≤6.5% among patients who participated in the Treating to Target in Type 2 Diabetes Trial (4-T. The objective was to inform interpretation of trial outcomes and provide recommendations for future trial delivery. Methods In-depth interviews were conducted with 45 patients and 21 health professionals recruited from 11 of 58 trial centres in the UK. Patients were broadly representative of those in the main trial in terms of treatment allocation, demographics and glycaemic control. Both physicians and research nurses were interviewed. Results Most patients were committed to taking insulin as recommended by 4-T staff. To avoid hypoglycaemia, patients occasionally altered or skipped insulin doses, normally in consultation with staff. Patients were usually unaware of the trial's glycaemic target. Positive staff feedback could lead patients to believe they had been 'successful' trial participants even when their HbA1c exceeded 6.5%. While some staff felt that the 4-T automated insulin dose adjustment algorithm had increased their confidence to prescribe larger insulin doses than in routine clinical practice, all described situations where they had not followed its recommendations. Staff regarded the application of a 'one size fits all' glycaemic target during the trial as contradicting routine clinical practice where they would tailor treatments to individuals. Staff also expressed concerns that 'tight' glycaemic control might impose an unacceptably high risk of hypoglycaemia, thus compromising trust and safety, especially amongst older patients. To address these concerns, staff tended to adapt the trial protocol to

The implement of the interface between EPICS and LabVIEW

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Jia; Wang Chunhong

2009-01-01

The control system of BEPCII (Beijing Electron Positron Collider) is based on EPICS (Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System). LabVIEW is often used to develop data acquisition system on Windows platform. EPICS IOC version 3.14 or later, can be currently running on windows. The SharedMemory developed by SNS (Spallation Neutron Source) can implement the interface between Windows IOC and LabVIEW. The paper describes the method how to use SharedMemory and a application of magnet measurement system, so that LabVIEW and EPICS can share data each other. (authors)

Employment and paid work among participants in a randomized controlled trial comparing diacetylmorphine and hydromorphone.

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Nikoo, Mohammadali; Vogel, Marc; Choi, Fiona; Song, Michael J; Burghardt, Jensen; Zafari, Zafar; Tabi, Katarina; Frank, Anastasia; Barbic, Skye; Schütz, Christian; Jang, Kerry; Krausz, Michael

2018-04-12

Employment is one of the less studied but a significant outcome of medication-assisted treatment. Thus, we aimed to explore employment outcomes of medication-assisted treatment with hydromorphone (HDM) or diacetylmorphine (DAM). The secondary aim was to estimate characteristics of this population as well as treatment-related factors associated with these outcomes. This was a secondary analysis of a randomized, double blind controlled trial. A total of 102 and 100 participants were randomized to receive injectable DAM or HDM for 6 months respectively. In stage 2, 144 participants were randomized again to receive either oral or injectable forms of the medication they received for another 6 months. Participants were interviewed at 5 timepoints: before and 3, 6, 9 and 12 months after treatment assignment. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) with a logit link was fitted to determine factors related to paid work in the past 30 days. Mean age of participants was 44.3 (SD = 9.6) and 59 (29.2%) participants were men. At each timepoint, 6-8 (3.6%-4.1%) participants reported employment in the past 30 days and 40 to 52 (19.7%-26.7%) reported minimum 1 day of paid work. University or college education [OR = 2.12: 95% CI = (1.25, 3.62), P = 0.01] was significantly associated with paid work after adjustment for age, gender, treatment arms, timepoints, days receiving study treatment, physical health, psychological health and crack cocaine use in the past 30 days. The rate of employment was lower among participants of this study compared to similar studies on heroin-assisted treatment. Higher education was associated with increased odds of paid work. A large gap exists between employment rate and the proportion of participants who reported paid work. Supported employment and occupational therapy could optimize the employment outcomes of this population. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Young people's views about consenting to data linkage: findings from the PEARL qualitative study.

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Audrey, Suzanne; Brown, Lindsey; Campbell, Rona; Boyd, Andy; Macleod, John

2016-03-21

Electronic administrative data exist in several domains which, if linked, are potentially useful for research. However, benefits from data linkage should be considered alongside risks such as the threat to privacy. Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) is a birth cohort study. The Project to Enhance ALSPAC through Record Linkage (PEARL) was established to enrich the ALSPAC resource through linkage between ALSPAC participants and routine sources of health and social data. Qualitative research was incorporated in the PEARL study to examine participants' views about data linkage and inform approaches to information sharing. This paper focusses on issues of consent. Digitally recorded interviews were conducted with 55 participants aged 17-19 years. Terms and processes relating to consent, anonymization and data linkage were explained to interviewees. Scenarios were used to prompt consideration of linking different sources of data, and whether consent should be requested. Interview recordings were fully transcribed. Thematic analysis was undertaken using the Framework approach. Participant views on data linkage appeared to be most influenced by: considerations around the social sensitivity of the research question, and; the possibility of tangible health benefits in the public interest. Some participants appeared unsure about the effectiveness of anonymization, or did not always view effective anonymization as making consent unnecessary. This was related to notions of ownership of personal information and etiquette around asking permission for secondary use. Despite different consent procedures being explained, participants tended to equate consent with 'opt-in' consent through which participants are 'asked' if their data can be used for a specific study. Participants raising similar concerns came to differing conclusions about whether consent was needed. Views changed when presented with different scenarios, and were sometimes inconsistent. Findings

The Need for Popular Participation Effectiveness and Social Control in Public Administration for the Brazilian Democratic Process Consolidation

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Flávia Couto de Oliveira Contigli

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The current article aims to seek the correlation between popular participation and social control in public administration in the consolidation of the Brazilian democratic process, from the perspective of participatory democracy, as well as conditions for increasing this participation. In participatory democracy, having as the theoretical framework Bobbio (2006, p.30 and Santos (2002, p.62 and 63, it emphasizes public participation as one of the forms of management, where it plays an important role, as legitimating the decisions. This article discusses the ways of popular participation in government, with no claim to exhaust the subject, and was based on Perez settings (2004, Enterría (1998 and Di Pietro (1993, plus other institutes of participation popular. Search thus contribute including other popular participation instruments besides those already mentioned by these authors, emphasize the difficulties and to suggest some measures to minimize them. The methodology used to develop the work, dogmatic and legal, was developed through bibliographic research, done through a literature review and analytical reading on the subject.

USING ONLINE MARKETING TO INCREASE PARTICIPATION IN A WEB-BASED CONTINUING MEDICAL EDUCATION CULTURAL COMPETENCE CURRICULUM

Science.gov (United States)

Estrada, Carlos A.; Krishnamoorthy, Periyakaruppan; Smith, Ann; Staton, Lisa; Korf, Michele J.; Allison, Jeroan J.; Houston, Thomas K.

2012-01-01

Introduction CME providers may be interested in identifying effective marketing strategies to direct users to specific content. The use of online advertisements to recruit participants for clinical trials, public health programs, and Continuing Medical Education (CME) has been shown to be effective in some but not all studies. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of two marketing strategies in the context of an online CME cultural competence curriculum (www.c-comp.org). Methods In an interrupted time-series quasi-experimental design, two marketing strategies were tested: a) wide dissemination to relevant organizations over a period of approximately four months, and b) Internet paid search using Google Ads (five consecutive eight-week periods--control 1, cultural/ CME advertisement, control 2, hypertension/ content advertisement, control 3). Outcome measures were CME credit requests, Web traffic (visits per day, page views, pages viewed per visit), and cost. Results Overall, the site was visited 19,156 times and 78,160 pages were viewed. During the wide dissemination phase, the proportion of visits requesting CME credit decreased between the first (5.3%) and second halves (3.3%) of this phase (p= .04). During the Internet paid search phase, the proportion of visits requesting CME credit was highest during the cultural/ CME advertisement period (control 1, 1.4%; cultural/CME ad, 4.3%; control 2, 1.5%; hypertension/content ad, 0.6%; control 3, 0.8%; p<.001). All measures of Web traffic changed during the Internet paid search phase (p<.01); however, changes were independent of the advertisement periods. The incremental cost for the cultural advertisement per CME credit requested was $0.64US. Discussion Internet advertisement focusing on cultural competence and CME was associated with about a three-fold increase in requests for CME credit at an incremental cost of under $1; however, Web traffic changes were independent of the advertisement strategy. PMID

Health education and community participation in the control of urinary schistosomiasis in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Aryeetey, M E; Aholu, C; Wagatsuma, Y; Bentil, G; Nkrumah, F K; Kojima, S

1999-06-01

To study the role of health education and community participation for the provision of facilities necessary for the control of urinary schistosomiasis in southern Ghana. Health education facilitates community participation in the provision of facilities for the control of bilharzia. Three rural communities drained by the Densu river in southern Ghana. Individuals aged 14 years and above formed groups of 10-12 persons by age, sex, ethnic and educational background; 15-16 groups were formed. Based on existing structures, one community received active, another passive health education and the third had no education. All three communities received chemotherapy. Study was carried out in three phases: pre-intervention phase--during which baseline data on residents' knowledge, attitude, beliefs and perception about bilharzia were collected using focus group discussions (FGD) prior to the second phase, intervention. Another FGD was held after 18 months to evaluate the intervention--third phase. This study suggests that most community members were aware of schistosomiasis but not as a disease. Before the health education, some residents believed bilharzia was a sign of manhood while others attributed the red colour of the urine to the red colour of a variety of sugar cane eaten in the area. After the health education, residents in the three areas constructed hand-dug wells. In addition, those who received active health education constructed two toilets for the schools and weeded the banks of the rivers. Residents also associated the disease with the water snail. Health education was useful in changing community perception on bilharzia.

Organizational Responsibility for Age-Friendly Social Participation: Views of Australian Rural Community Stakeholders.

Science.gov (United States)

Winterton, Rachel

2016-01-01

This qualitative study critically explores the barriers experienced by diverse rural community stakeholders in facilitating environments that enable age-friendly social participation. Twenty-six semi-structured interviews were conducted across two rural Australian communities with stakeholders from local government, health, social care, and community organizations. Findings identify that rural community stakeholders face significant difficulties in securing resources for groups and activities catering to older adults, which subsequently impacts their capacity to undertake outreach to older adults. However, in discussing these issues, questions were raised in relation to whose responsibility it is to provide resources for community groups and organizations providing social initiatives and whose responsibility it is to engage isolated seniors. These findings provide a much-needed critical perspective on current age-friendly research by acknowledging the responsibilities of various macro-level social structures-different community-level organizations, local government, and policy in fostering environments to enable participation of diverse rural older adults.

Associations of Physical Activity, Sports Participation and Active Commuting on Mathematic Performance and Inhibitory Control in Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Domazet, Sidsel L; Tarp, Jakob; Huang, Tao; Gejl, Anne Kær; Andersen, Lars Bo; Froberg, Karsten; Bugge, Anna

2016-01-01

To examine objectively measured physical activity level, organized sports participation and active commuting to school in relation to mathematic performance and inhibitory control in adolescents. The design was cross-sectional. A convenient sample of 869 sixth and seventh grade students (12-14 years) was invited to participate in the study. A total of 568 students fulfilled the inclusion criteria and comprised the final sample for this study. Mathematic performance was assessed by a customized test and inhibitory control was assessed by a modified Eriksen flanker task. Physical activity was assessed with GT3X and GT3X+ accelerometers presented in sex-specific quartiles of mean counts per minute and mean minutes per day in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Active commuting and sports participation was self-reported. Mixed model regression was applied. Total physical activity level was stratified by bicycling status in order to bypass measurement error subject to the accelerometer. Non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute displayed a higher mathematic score, so did cyclists in the 2nd and 3rd quartile of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity relative to the least active quartile. Non-cyclists in the 3rd quartile of counts per minute had an improved reaction time and cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity displayed an improved accuracy, whereas non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute showed an inferior accuracy relative to the least active quartile. Bicycling to school and organized sports participation were positively associated with mathematic performance. Sports participation and bicycling were positively associated with mathematic performance. Results regarding objectively measured physical activity were mixed. Although, no linear nor dose-response relationship was observed there was no indication of a higher activity level impairing the scholastic or cognitive performance.

Associations of Physical Activity, Sports Participation and Active Commuting on Mathematic Performance and Inhibitory Control in Adolescents.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sidsel L Domazet

Full Text Available To examine objectively measured physical activity level, organized sports participation and active commuting to school in relation to mathematic performance and inhibitory control in adolescents.The design was cross-sectional. A convenient sample of 869 sixth and seventh grade students (12-14 years was invited to participate in the study. A total of 568 students fulfilled the inclusion criteria and comprised the final sample for this study. Mathematic performance was assessed by a customized test and inhibitory control was assessed by a modified Eriksen flanker task. Physical activity was assessed with GT3X and GT3X+ accelerometers presented in sex-specific quartiles of mean counts per minute and mean minutes per day in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Active commuting and sports participation was self-reported. Mixed model regression was applied. Total physical activity level was stratified by bicycling status in order to bypass measurement error subject to the accelerometer.Non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute displayed a higher mathematic score, so did cyclists in the 2nd and 3rd quartile of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity relative to the least active quartile. Non-cyclists in the 3rd quartile of counts per minute had an improved reaction time and cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity displayed an improved accuracy, whereas non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute showed an inferior accuracy relative to the least active quartile. Bicycling to school and organized sports participation were positively associated with mathematic performance.Sports participation and bicycling were positively associated with mathematic performance. Results regarding objectively measured physical activity were mixed. Although, no linear nor dose-response relationship was observed there was no indication of a higher activity level impairing the scholastic or cognitive

Participation of women in neurochemistry societies.

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Lees, Marjorie B

2002-11-01

Women have made important scientific contributions to the field of neurochemistry, and they have also been leaders in neurochemical societies throughout the world. Here I discuss women's involvement and leadership in six neurochemistry societies: American Society for Neurochemistry, Argentine Society for Neurochemistry, International Society for Neurochemistry, European Society for Neurochemistry, Japanese Society for Neurochemistry, and Asian-Pacific Society for Neurochemistry. The number of women who have been active in these societies and the level of their activity vary considerably. Neurochemical societies in the Western hemisphere, i.e., the American and the Argentine Society for Neurochemistry, have much greater numbers of women who have held office, been on council, or engaged in other leadership activities than in the rest of the world. The limited participation of women in the Japanese Neurochemistry Society relates to Japanese cultural views and was not unexpected. However, the relatively few women leaders in the International Society for Neurochemistry was a surprise. The European Society had a somewhat better record of female participation than did the International Society. The reasons for these differences are partly cultural, but factors related to when each society was formed, how it is organized, and how elections are structured undoubtedly play a role. Further analysis of these observations would be of interest from a sociological and a women's studies point of view.

Men's Perceptions of Women's Participation in Development Initiatives in Rural Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Karim, Rabiul; Lindberg, Lene; Wamala, Sarah; Emmelin, Maria

2018-03-01

Without taking masculine issues into account, women's participation in development initiatives does not always guarantee their empowerment, health, and welfare in a male-dominated society. This study aimed to explore men's perceptions of women's participation in development (WPD) in rural Bangladesh. In adopting a qualitative approach, the study examined 48 purposively selected married and unmarried men aged 20-76 years in three northwest villages. Data collection was accomplished through four focus group discussions (FGDs) with 43 men clustered into four groups and through individual interviews with five other men. A qualitative content analysis of the data revealed an overall theme of "feeling challenged by fears and hopes," indicating variations in men's views on women's participation in development initiatives as represented by three main categories: (a) fearing the loss of male authority, (b) recognizing women's roles in enhancing family welfare, and (c) valuing women's independence. In the context of dominant patriarchal traditions in Bangladesh, these findings provide new insight into dynamics and variations of men's views, suggesting a need to better engage men during different stages of women-focused development initiatives.

Do people's world views matter? The why and how.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Sylvia Xiaohua; Lam, Ben C P; Wu, Wesley C H; Ng, Jacky C K; Buchtel, Emma E; Guan, Yanjun; Deng, Hong

2016-05-01

Over the past decades, personality and social psychologists have extensively investigated the role of self-views in individual functioning. Research on world views, however, has been less well studied due to overly specific conceptualizations, and little research about how and why they impact life outcomes. To answer why and how world views matter, we conducted 7 studies to examine the functions, antecedents, and consequences of generalized beliefs about the world, operationalized as social axioms (Leung et al., 2002). This research focused on 2 axiom factors, namely, social cynicism and reward for application. These axioms were found to explain individual differences in self-views over and above personality traits in Hong Kong and U.S. samples (Study 1) and to explain cultural differences in self-views in addition to self-construals among Mainland Chinese, Hong Kong Chinese, East Asian Canadians, and European Canadians (Study 2). Endorsement of social axioms by participants, their parents, and close friends was collected from Mainland China, Hong Kong, and Canada to infer parental and peer influences on world views (Study 3). World views affected psychological well-being through the mediation of positive self-views across 3 age groups, including children, adolescents, and young adults (Study 4) and over time (Study 5). The mediation of negative self-views was through comparative self-criticism rather than internalized self-criticism (Study 6). Holistic thinking moderated the effect of social cynicism on self-views and psychological well-being (Study 7). These results converge to show that world views as a distal force and self-views as a proximal force matter in people's subjective evaluation of their lives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

THE VIEWS OF FOREST OUTSKIRT COMMUNITY ON AGROFORESTRY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

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Dewa Oka Suparwata

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, development of agroforestry has been focused on the people living near forest. Positive views from community may have a good impact on agroforestry development program. This research aims to study the views of the forest outskrit community on the agroforestry development program in Dulamayo Barat village, Telaga Sub District, Gorontalo Regency, Gorontalo Province. The study used survey approach and focus group discussion (FGD method. Respondents were all the members of agroforestry farmer group. The entire population were taken for interview (10 respondents while FGD was attended by 26 participants. Data were analyzed descriptively. The result showed that 100% of the respondents want the program to be sustainable, although from the socio economic point of view the impact has not contributed significantly. From the respondents views of its benefit, 50% believe that the program is for critical land rehabilitation, 30% have a view for the improvement of environmental service, 10% view to increase community economy, and 10% view that the program is to eliminate erosion. These indicate that the community is concerned with agroforestry development, therefore, continuous facilitation is needed. Furthermore, the community expects to be actively involved in the agroforestry development program.

Influence of adapted sports on quality of life and life satisfaction in sport participants and non-sport participants with physical disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Yazicioglu, Kamil; Yavuz, Ferdi; Goktepe, Ahmet Salim; Tan, Arif Kenan

2012-10-01

The lack of controlled trials in the relationship between participation in adapted sports, and quality of life (QoL) and life satisfaction in people with physical disabilities encouraged us to consider conducting this study. The aim of this study was to compare the QoL and life satisfaction scores between people with physical disabilities who participated in adapted sports and those who did not participate in any adapted sports. This cross-sectional controlled study included 60 individuals with physical disabilities (paraplegia and amputee). Participants were divided into two groups based on sports participation and non-sports participation. Group one included 30 disabled elite athletes who participated in adapted sports. The control group included 30 disabled individuals not involved in any adapted sports. We compared scores on the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life Scale (WHOQoL-BREF) and the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) between the two groups. Participation in the community and QoL was examined as a reflection of participant's priority on sports participation. We found that WHOQoL-BREF physical, psychological, and social domain scores were significantly higher in group one than in the control group (p sports had significantly higher QoL and life satisfaction scores compared to people with physical disabilities not involved in any adapted sports. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Viewing-position effects in the Stroop task: Initial fixation position modulates Stroop effects in fully colored words.

Science.gov (United States)

Perret, Patrick; Ducrot, Stéphanie

2010-08-01

In two experiments that we conducted with adult (Experiment 1) and child (Experiment 2) participants, we experimentally controlled the eyes' first fixation in the word using a variable viewing-position technique in a classical all-letter-coloring Stroop procedure. We explored the impact of initial-fixation position (optimal viewing position [OVP] vs. end of the word) on the magnitude of Stroop effects (both interference and facilitation). The results showed that both interference and facilitation effects were reduced when the first fixation was located at the end of the word rather than at the OVP. These data make a new contribution to the study of the role of low-level processes in Stroop effects and add support to the growing body of research indicating that oculomotor processes can act as moderators of cognitive processes in the determination of Stroop effects.

Postural Control in Children with Dyslexia: Effects of Emotional Stimuli in a Dual-Task Environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Goulème, Nathalie; Gerard, Christophe-Loïc; Bucci, Maria Pia

2017-08-01

The aim of this study was to compare the visual exploration strategies used during a postural control task across participants with and without dyslexia. We simultaneously recorded eye movements and postural control while children were viewing different types of emotional faces. Twenty-two children with dyslexia and twenty-two aged-matched children without dyslexia participated in the study. We analysed the surface area, the length and the mean velocity of the centre of pressure for balance in parallel with visual saccadic latency, the number of saccades and the time spent in regions of interest. Our results showed that postural stability in children with dyslexia was weaker and the surface area of their centre of pressure increased significantly when they viewed an unpleasant face. Moreover, children with dyslexia had different strategies to those used by children without dyslexia during visual exploration, and in particular when they viewed unpleasant emotional faces. We suggest that lower performance in emotional face processing in children with dyslexia could be due to a difference in their visual strategies, linked to their identification of unpleasant emotional faces. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Autonomous acquisition systems for TJ-II: controlling instrumentation with a fourth generation language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanchez, E.; Portas, A.B.; Vega, J.; Agudo, J.M.; McCarthy, K.J.; Ruiz, M.; Barrera, E.; Lopez, S.

2004-01-01

Recently, 536 new acquisition channels, made-up of three different channel types, have been incorporated into the TJ-II data acquisition system (DAQ). Dedicated software has also been developed to permit experimentalists to program and control the data acquisition in these systems. The software has been developed using LabView and runs under the Windows 2000 operating system in both personal computer (PC) and PXI controllers. In addition, LabView software has been developed to control TJ-II VXI channels from a PC using a MXI connection. This new software environment will also aid future integration of acquisition channels into the TJ-II remote participation system. All of these acquisition devices work autonomously and are connected to the TJ-II central server via a local area network. In addition, they can be remotely controlled from the TJ-II control-room using Virtual Network Computing (VNC) software

Functional brain response to food images in successful adolescent weight losers compared with normal-weight and overweight controls.

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Chad D; Kirwan, C Brock

2015-03-01

Research conducted with adults suggests that successful weight losers demonstrate greater activation in brain regions associated with executive control in response to viewing high-energy foods. No previous studies have examined these associations in adolescents. Functional neuroimaging was used to assess brain response to food images among groups of overweight (OW), normal-weight (NW), and successful weight-losing (SWL) adolescents. Eleven SWL, 12 NW, and 11 OW participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while viewing images of high- and low-energy foods. When viewing high-energy food images, SWLs demonstrated greater activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) compared with OW and NW controls. Compared with NW and SWL groups, OW individuals demonstrated greater activation in the ventral striatum and anterior cingulate in response to food images. Adolescent SWLs demonstrated greater neural activation in the DLPFC compared with OW/NW controls when viewing high-energy food stimuli, which may indicate enhanced executive control. OW individuals' brain responses to food stimuli may indicate greater reward incentive processes than either SWL or NW groups. © 2015 The Obesity Society.

Singing Ability, Musical Self-Concept, and Future Music Participation

Science.gov (United States)

Demorest, Steven M.; Kelley, Jamey; Pfordresher, Peter Q.

2017-01-01

Research on adults who identify as "tone deaf" suggest that their poor musical self-concept is shaped by a view of themselves as nonsingers even when their perceptual skills and singing ability are not significantly worse than the general population. Many of these adults self-selected out of further participation as children but…

Healthcare professionals' views of smart glasses in intensive care: A qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Romare, Charlotte; Hass, Ursula; Skär, Lisa

2018-04-01

The aim of this study was to describe healthcare professionals' views of smart glasses before their implementation in an intensive care unit, both regarding quality of use of the glasses and to identify possible intensive care situations where the glasses could be used to increase patient safety. Data were generated through focus group interviews and analysed using thematic content analysis. The findings describe participants' views of smart glasses divided into three categories; Smart glasses to facilitate work at intensive care unit; Quality of use and Utilisation. Participants assumed smart glasses to cause both effect and affect in intensive care. Participants' concern for patients arose recurrently and through their concern intention to work to promote patient safety. Smart glasses are suggested as a complement to existing monitoring and routines and cannot replace human presence in intensive care. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Public Participation: Methods Matter; A Response to Boaz et al.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul Burton

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The commentary on our paper from Boaz et al. is both welcome and pertinent, especially in its call for greater critical attention to be paid to some of the underlying principles of participation as well as to techniques and methods (1,2. In some respects our paper and subsequent research was designed to allow us to measure and better understand the impact of participating in a citizen’s jury on the jurors’ views and expressed preferences (1,3.

Views of the Child Reports: Hearing Directly from Children Involved in Post-Separation Disputes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel Birnbaum

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Views of the Child reports are being increasingly used in Canada and other countries as a means of directly obtaining the child’s perspective on disputes between their parents and/or guardians. The reports provide information about the child’s perspective based on one or more interviews with a social worker. Yet, little research exists about their use and impact, the benefits and limitations of the approach, and less about what factors need to be considered in establishing practices and protocols to safely advance children’s views before the court. This article draws on the direct experiences of 24 children between the ages of 6–17 years about their views and preferences during family breakdown. The children describe how they wanted to speak to someone about their views and preferences, raised questions about the accuracy of the reporting of their views, the need for protecting their confidentiality by having a say of what is included in the report, and their support for children’s participation in decision-making post-separation. Practice, research and policy considerations are also highlighted in order for children’s participation to be truly meaningful to them, their parents and the courts.

The software developing method for multichannel computer-aided system for physical experiments control, realized by resources of national instruments LabVIEW instrumental package

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gorskaya, E.A.; Samojlov, V.N.

1999-01-01

This work is describing the method of developing the computer-aided control system in integrated environment of LabVIEW. Using the object-oriented design of complex systems, the hypothetical model for methods of developing the software for computer-aided system for physical experiments control was constructed. Within the framework of that model architecture solutions and implementations of suggested method were described. (author)

Using children's literature to enhance views of nature of science and scientific attitude in fourth graders

Science.gov (United States)

Hampton, Kathryn Walker

This project was an effort to study the effect of integrating children's trade books into the fourth grade science curriculum on the students' views of the nature of science and their scientific attitude. The effect on the students' reading and language achievement, and science content knowledge was also analyzed. This was done by comparing the nature of science views and scientific attitudes, reading and language achievement scores, and the science grades of the treatment group, prior to and immediately following the intervention period, with the control group which did not participate in the integration of children's books. The science teacher's views on the nature of science and her attitude towards teaching science were also evaluated prior to and after the intervention. The selected trade books were evaluated for their coverage of nature of science aspects. Three intact classes of fourth grade students from a local elementary school were involved in the study along with their science and reading teacher. Two of the classes made up the experimental group and the remaining class served as the control group. All students were assessed prior to the intervention phase on their views of the nature of science and scientific attitudes. The experimental group was engaged in reading selected science trade books during their science class and study hall over a semester period. The results of the study showed a significant difference in the groups' initial reading and language achievement, which may have affected the lack of an effect from the intervention. The instrument selected to assess the student's views on the nature of science and scientific attitude (SAI II) was not reliable with this group. There was no significant difference on the students' science content knowledge as measured by their semester grade averages. The results from the teacher's response on the STAS II did indicate slight changes on her views on the nature of science. Sixty-nine of the eighty

The Impact of a Course on Nature of Science Pedagogical Views and Rationales. Comparing Preservice Teachers in Their First Versus Second Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Kruse, Jerrid W.; Easter, Jaclyn M.; Edgerly, Hallie S.; Seebach, Colin; Patel, Neal

2017-08-01

This study explored changes in preservice teachers' (PSTs) nature of science pedagogical (NOSP) views and nature of science (NOS) rationales using pre- and post-course written responses as well as interview data. Through systematic analysis, themes were generated and compared to the NOS literature. Comparisons between pre- and post-course data demonstrate improved and deepened NOS views, NOSP views that are more aligned with NOS literature, and a greater number of rationales for including NOS. All participants were enrolled in the "Inquiry and Natures of Science, Technology, and Engineering" (INSTE) course. However, six participants were enrolled in INSTE as their first course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed. The other six participants were enrolled in INSTE as their second course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed, with science methods as their first course in which NOS and NOSP were addressed. By comparing participants enrolled in INSTE as their first course to those enrolled in INSTE as their second course, we observed that NOS understanding seemed to develop in a first experience alongside some NOS rationales, but NOSP views lagged for participants in INSTE as their first course. Participants enrolled in INSTE as their second course developed more robust and literature-aligned NOSP views and more multifaceted NOS rationales. Therefore, this study bolsters arguments that teachers need to receive extended NOS and NOSP instruction.

A Comparison of the Views of Internal Controllers/Auditors and Branch/Call Center Personnel of the Banks for Operational Risk: A Case for Turkish Banking Sector

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Sinemis Zengin

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to compare the views of internal controllers/auditors and branch/call center personnel of the banks with respect to the operational risk. Within this scope, we made two different surveys to the personnel in Turkish banks in order to achieve this objective. The first survey was conducted by 310 branch and call center personnel whereas 151 personnel in internal control and audit departments of the banks carried out the second survey. The major finding in this study is that there is a difference in the views of these two groups regarding the evaluation of operational risk. In general, internal controllers/auditors look at the operational risk more negatively than branch/call center personnel. The personnel who control and audit operations in the bank think that operational risk knowledge level of branch/call center personnel is less sufficient, operational risk levels are higher, the controls to avoid this risk are less efficient than branch/call center personnel consider.

Participation des jeunes femmes à la vie politique en Tunisie ...

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

Imagining the Political : Young Women, Participation and the Crafting of the Political in Egypt. IDRC's Women's Rights and Citizenship (WRC) program initiative is supporting a body of comparative research on whether and how democracy and governance institutions are responding to... View moreImagining the Political ...

Digital Controller Development Methodology Based on Real-Time Simulations with LabVIEW FPGA Hardware-Software Toolset

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Tommaso Caldognetto

2013-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we exemplify the use of NI Lab-VIEW FPGA as a rapid prototyping environment for digital controllers. In our power electronics laboratory, it has been successfully employed in the development, debugging, and test of different power converter controllers for microgrid applications.The paper shows how this high level programming language,together with its target hardware platforms, including CompactRIO and Single Board RIO systems, allows researchers and students to develop even complex applications in reasonable times. The availability of efficient drivers for the considered hardware platforms frees the users from the burden of low level programming. At the same time, the high level programming approach facilitates software re-utilization, allowing the laboratory know-how to steadily grow along time. Furthermore, it allows hardware-in-the-loop real-time simulation, that proved to be effective, and safe, in debugging even complex hardware and software co-designed controllers. To illustrate the effectiveness of these hardware-software toolsets and of the methodology based upon them, two case studies are

Internet trials: participant experiences and perspectives.

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Mathieu, Erin; Barratt, Alexandra; Carter, Stacy M; Jamtvedt, Gro

2012-10-23

Use of the Internet to conduct randomised controlled trials is increasing, and provides potential to increase equity of access to medical research, increase the generalisability of trial results and decrease the costs involved in conducting large scale trials. Several studies have compared response rates, completeness of data, and reliability of surveys using the Internet and traditional methods, but very little is known about participants' attitudes towards Internet-based randomised trials or their experience of participating in an Internet-based trial. To obtain insights into the experiences and perspectives of participants in an Internet-based randomised controlled trial, their attitudes to the use of the Internet to conduct medical research, and their intentions regarding future participation in Internet research. All English speaking participants in a recently completed Internet randomised controlled trial were invited to participate in an online survey. 1246 invitations were emailed. 416 participants completed the survey between May and October 2009 (33% response rate). Reasons given for participating in the Internet RCT fell into 4 main areas: personal interest in the research question and outcome, ease of participation, an appreciation of the importance of research and altruistic reasons. Participants' comments and reflections on their experience of participating in a fully online trial were positive and less than half of participants would have participated in the trial had it been conducted using other means of data collection. However participants identified trade-offs between the benefits and downsides of participating in Internet-based trials. The main trade-off was between flexibility and convenience - a perceived benefit - and a lack connectedness and understanding - a perceived disadvantage. The other tradeoffs were in the areas of: ease or difficulty in use of the Internet; security, privacy and confidentiality issues; perceived benefits and

Thinking Change Inclusively: Views of Educational Administrators on Inclusive Education as a Reform Initiative

Science.gov (United States)

Sakiz, Halis

2016-01-01

This paper is an attempt to delve into the debate about educational change and evaluate this concept around the paradigms introduced by inclusive education. The paper embarks on views of 27 educational administrators working in different educational institutions in Turkey. Participants are asked to provide their views on educational change and the…

Netflix and Engage? Implications for Streaming Television on Political Participation during the 2016 US Presidential Campaign

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob Groshek

2016-10-01

Full Text Available A large body of existing research has consistently demonstrated that the use of social networking sites (SNS by citizens in elections is positively related to different forms of both offline and online participation. The opposite argument, however, is often advanced with regard to increased viewing broadcast or cable television, particularly entertainment programming. This study proceeds from this broad vantage point by examining survey-based indicators of active SNS use and conventional television viewing in the 2016 presidential primaries, as well as the frequency of streaming television viewing during the early stages of this campaign. Data for this study was drawn from a representative nationwide online panel, and findings observed here suggest that more personalized communication through the ongoing morphology of social networking sites and streaming both political and apolitical television content are significant factors in positively shaping both online and offline participation. Comparisons with other media including conventional television viewing are introduced, and theoretical implications from a media system dependency framework are discussed.

Assessing a cognitive music training for older participants: a randomised controlled trial.

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Biasutti, Michele; Mangiacotti, Anthony

2018-02-01

In a randomised controlled trial, we investigated whether a cognitive training based on rhythm-music and music improvisation exercises had positive effects on executive functions in older participants. Thirty-five residents in a guest home with mild-moderate cognitive impairment and healthy ageing were randomly assigned to an experimental group (n = 18) featuring cognitive music training composed of 12 bi-weekly 70-min sessions, and a control group (n = 17) attended 12 bi-weekly 45-min sessions of gymnastic activities offered by the institute. A neuropsychological test battery was administered at baseline and at the end of treatment, including the Mini-Mental State Examination, verbal fluency test, Trail Making Test A, attentional matrices test and clock-drawing test. Pre-test and post-test comparison showed a significant improvement for the experimental group reflected in the Mini-Mental State Examination (F(1,33) = 13.906; p music-rhythmic exercises and music improvisation exercises is associated with improved cognitive functions in older people with mild-moderate cognitive impairment regardless of the individual's degree of cognitive reserve. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Age-related trends of inhibitory control in Stroop-like big–small task in 3- to 12-year-old children and young adults

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Yoshifumi eIkeda

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Inhibitory control is the ability to suppress competing, dominant, automatic or prepotent cognitive processing at perceptual, intermediate, and output stages. Inhibitory control is a key cognitive function of typical and atypical child development. This study examined age-related trends of Stroop-like interference in 3–12-year-old children and young adults by administration of a computerized Stroop-like big–small task with reduced working memory demand. This task used a set of pictures displaying a big and small circle in black and included the same condition and the opposite condition. In the same condition, each participant was instructed to say ‘big’ when viewing the big circle and to say ‘small’ when viewing the small circle. In the opposite condition, each participant was instructed to say ‘small’ when viewing the big circle and to say ‘big’ when viewing the small circle. The opposite condition required participants to inhibit the prepotent response of saying the same, a familiar response to a perceptual stimulus. Results of this study showed that Stroop-like interference decreased markedly in children in terms of error rates and correct RT. There was no deterioration of performance occurring between the early trials and the late trials in the sessions of the day–night task. Moreover, pre-test failure rate was relatively low in this study. The Stroop-like big–small task is a useful tool to assess the development of inhibitory control in young children in that the task is easy to understand and has small working memory demand.

Point of View: Does Popular Music Have Educational Value?

Science.gov (United States)

Music Educators Journal, 1979

1979-01-01

Eight music educators offer their views on the pros and cons of including pop/rock music in the curriculum. Some participants describe methods they've developed to highlight or to integrate contemporary music in their courses. This article is part of a theme issue on popular music. (SJL)

Module for Learning Integral Calculus with Maple: Lecturers' Views

Science.gov (United States)

Awang, Tuan Salwani; Zakaria, Effandi

2012-01-01

Engineering technology students can attain a meaningful mathematics learning if they are allowed to actively participate in hands-on activities. However, the current dissemination of knowledge in the classroom still focuses on teacher-centered paradigm of teaching. A study to explore lecturers' views regarding a newly developed integral calculus…

Clinicians' views and experiences of offering two alternative consent pathways for participation in a preterm intrapartum trial: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Chhoa, Celine Y; Sawyer, Alexandra; Ayers, Susan; Pushpa-Rajah, Angela; Duley, Lelia

2017-04-26

The Cord Pilot Trial compared alternative policies for timing of cord clamping at very preterm birth at eight UK hospitals. Preterm birth can be rapid and unexpected, allowing little time for the usual consent process. Therefore, in addition to the usual procedure for written consent, a two-stage pathway for consent for use when birth was imminent was developed. The aims of this study were to explore clinicians' views and experiences of offering two consent pathways for recruitment to a randomised trial of timing of cord clamping at very preterm birth. This was a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. Clinicians from eight hospitals in the UK who had been involved in offering consent to the Cord Pilot Trial were invited to take part in an interview. Clinicians were interviewed in person or by telephone. Interviews were analysed using inductive systematic thematic analysis. Seventeen clinicians who had either offered usual written consent only (n = 6) or both the two-stage pathway (with oral assent before the birth and written consent after the birth) and usual written consent (n = 11) were interviewed. Six themes were identified: (1) team approach to offering participation; (2) consent form as a record; (3) consent and participation as a continual process; (4) different consent pathways for different trials; (5) balance between time, information, and understanding; and (6) validity of consent. Overall, clinicians were supportive of the two-stage consent pathway. Some clinicians felt that in time-critical situations oral assent presented an advantage over the usual written consent as they provided information on a "need to know" basis. However, there was some concern about how much information should be given for oral assent, and how this is understood by women when birth is imminent. The two-stage pathway for consent developed for use in the Cord Pilot Trial when birth was imminent was acceptable to clinicians for comparable low-risk studies

Viewing experience of 3DTV: An exploration of the feeling of sickness and presence in a shopping mall.

Science.gov (United States)

Obrist, Marianna; Wurhofer, Daniela; Meneweger, Thomas; Grill, Thomas; Tscheligi, Manfred

2013-02-01

The adoption and deployment of 3DTV can be seen as a major step in the history of television, comparable to the transition from analogue to digital and standard to high definition TV. Although 3D is expected to emerge from the cinema to peoples' home, there is still a lack of knowledge on how people (future end users) perceive 3DTV and how this influences their viewing experience as well as their acceptance of 3DTV. Within this paper, findings from a three-day field evaluation study on people's 3DTV experiences, focusing on the feeling of sickness and presence, are presented. Contrary to the traditional controlled laboratory setting, the study was conducted in the public setting of a shopping center and involved 700 participants. The study revealed initial insights on users' feeling of presence and sickness when watching 3DTV content. Results from this explorative study show that most of the participants reported symptoms of sickness after watching 3DTV with an effect of gender and age on the reported feeling of sickness. Our results further suggest that the users' previous experience with 3D content has an influence on how realistic people rate the viewing experience and how involved they feel. The particularities of the study environment, a shopping mall, are reflected in our findings and future research directions and action points for investigating people's viewing experiences of 3DTV are summarized.

The effects of left and right monocular viewing on hemispheric activation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chao; Burtis, D Brandon; Ding, Mingzhou; Mo, Jue; Williamson, John B; Heilman, Kenneth M

2018-03-01

Prior research has revealed that whereas activation of the left hemisphere primarily increases the activity of the parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system, right-hemisphere activation increases the activity of the sympathetic division. In addition, each hemisphere primarily receives retinocollicular projections from the contralateral eye. A prior study reported that pupillary dilation was greater with left- than with right-eye monocular viewing. The goal of this study was to test the alternative hypotheses that this asymmetric pupil dilation with left-eye viewing was induced by activation of the right-hemispheric-mediated sympathetic activity, versus a reduction of left-hemisphere-mediated parasympathetic activity. Thus, this study was designed to learn whether there are changes in hemispheric activation, as measured by alteration of spontaneous alpha activity, during right versus left monocular viewing. High-density electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded from healthy participants viewing a crosshair with their right, left, or both eyes. There was a significantly less alpha power over the right hemisphere's parietal-occipital area with left and binocular viewing than with right-eye monocular viewing. The greater relative reduction of right-hemisphere alpha activity during left than during right monocular viewing provides further evidence that left-eye viewing induces greater increase in right-hemisphere activation than does right-eye viewing.

Abrupt onsets capture attention independent of top-down control settings 11: Additivity is no evidence for filtering

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schreij, D.; Theeuwes, J.; Olivers, C.N.L.

2010-01-01

Is attentional capture contingent on top-down control settings or involuntarily driven by salient stimuli? Supporting the stimulus-driven attentional capture view, Schreij, Owens, and Theeuwes (2008) found that an onset distractor caused a response delay, in spite of participants' having adopted an

The Internet, Political Participation, and E-Government in Comparative Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma, Mukul

2010-01-01

This dissertation addresses three important questions, together with optimistic and pessimistic views, about people's access/use of the Internet, its ability to promote their participation in politics, and its role in government provision of information and public services. Chapter Two addresses the question of the determinants of people's access…

Participation in novelty-seeking leisure activities and Alzheimer's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Fritsch, Thomas; Smyth, Kathleen A; Debanne, Sara M; Petot, Grace J; Friedland, Robert P

2005-09-01

The objective was to study the associations between participation in different types of mentally stimulating leisure activities and status as Alzheimer's disease (AD) case or normal control. Research suggests that participation in leisure activities, especially mentally stimulating activities, is associated with a lower risk for AD. However, no study has yet evaluated associations between AD and different types of mental leisure activities, especially those involving "novelty seeking." The authors used a case-control design to compare participation in activities across the life span in persons with AD and normal controls. Cases (n = 264) were recruited from clinical settings and from the community. Controls were drawn from 2 populations. Control group A members (n = 364) were the friends or neighbors of the cases or members of the same organizations to which the cases belonged. Control group B members (n = 181) were randomly drawn from the community. The 2 control groups did not differ in their responses to most activity questions, so they were combined. Factor analysis of activity questions identified 3 activity factors: (1) novelty seeking; (2) exchange of ideas; and (3) social. Logistic regression analysis indicated that, adjusting for control variables, greater participation in novelty-seeking and exchange-of-ideas activities was significantly associated with decreased odds of AD. The odds of AD were lower among those who more often participated in activities involving exchange of ideas and were lower yet for those who more frequently participated in novelty-seeking activities. We conclude that participation in a variety of mental activities across the life span may lower one's chances of developing AD.

Developments in remote participation in plasma physics experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blackwell, B.

1999-01-01

Recent growth in the size of plasma experiments and developments in network based software have contributed to a high level of interest in remote participation. Highlights of the recent conferences on this subject, and the ensuing 'white paper' are presented, with demonstrations of various Data Server/Web/Java based remote access techniques. These not only allow AINSE/AFRG users convenient access to H-1NF data from their home laboratory, but are (or soon will be) available to and from many overseas laboratories with similar systems. Many large plasma laboratories predict a large increase in remote access in the next two years. Several demonstrations of remote experiment control have been performed over medium speed networks, and several new experiments are planning on remote access from the beginning. In this paper we consider data access rights and security, access to common documents, and access to processed and raw data. The full version of this document can be viewed on the ANU's H-1NF web page at: http://rsphysse.anu.edu.au/

Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents' Views On HIV Research Participation and Parental Permission: A Mixed-Methods Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mustanski, Brian; Coventry, Ryan; Macapagal, Kathryn; Arbeit, Miriam R; Fisher, Celia B

2017-06-01

Sexual and gender minority adolescents are underrepresented in HIV research, partly because institutional review boards (IRBs) are reluctant to waive parental permission requirements for these studies. Understanding teenagers' perspectives on parental permission and the risks and benefits of participating in HIV research is critical to informing evidence-based IRB decisions. Data from 74 sexual and gender minority adolescents aged 14-17 who participated in an online focus group in 2015 were used to examine perspectives on the risks and benefits of participation in a hypothetical HIV surveillance study and the need for parental permission and adequate protections. Data were analyzed thematically; mixed methods analyses examined whether concerns about parental permission differed by whether teenagers were out to their parents. Most adolescents, especially those who were not out to their parents, would be unwilling to participate in an HIV study if parental permission were required. Perceived benefits of participation included overcoming barriers to HIV testing and contributing to the health of sexual and gender minority youth. Few risks of participation were identified. Adolescents suggested steps that researchers could take to facilitate informed decision making about research participation and ensure minors' safety in the absence of parental permission; these included incorporating multimedia presentations into the consent process and explaining researchers' motivations for conducting the study. Respondents believed that the benefits of HIV surveillance research outweighed the risks. Requiring parental permission may exclude many sexual and gender minority teenagers from taking part in HIV research, especially if they are not out. Copyright © 2017 by the Guttmacher Institute.

Comparison of mailed invitation strategies to improve fecal occult blood test participation in men: protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Duncan, Amy; Zajac, Ian; Flight, Ingrid; Stewart, Benjamin J R; Wilson, Carlene; Turnbull, Deborah

2013-07-31

Men have a significantly increased risk of being diagnosed with, and dying from, colorectal cancer (CRC) than women. Men also participate in fecal occult blood test (FOBT) screening at a lower rate than women. This study will determine whether strategies that target men's attitudes toward screening, and matched to stage of readiness to screen, increase men's FOBT participation compared to a standard approach. Eligible trial participants will be a national sample of 9,200 men aged 50 to 74 years, living in urban Australia and randomly selected from the Australian electoral roll. Trial participants will be mailed an advance notification letter, followed 2 weeks later by an invitation letter and a free fecal immunochemical test (FIT) kit. The intervention is a factorial design, randomized controlled trial (RCT) with four trial arms, including a control. The content of the advance notification and invitation letters will differ by trial arm as follows: 1) standard advance notification and standard invitation (control arm); 2) targeted advance notification and standard invitation; 3) standard advance notification and targeted invitation; and 4) targeted advance notification and targeted invitation. The standard letters will replicate as closely as possible the letters included in the Australian National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP). Modified advance notification and invitation letters will incorporate additional messages to target men in the precontemplation (advance notification) and contemplation stages (invitation). The primary outcome is return of the completed FIT within 12 weeks of invitation. Analysts will be blinded to trial assignment and participants will be blinded to the use of varying invitational materials. Subsamples from each trial arm will complete baseline and endpoint surveys to measure the psychological impact of the intervention, and qualitative interviews will be conducted to evaluate attitudes toward the intervention. The outcomes of

College science teachers' views of classroom inquiry

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Patrick L.; Abell, Sandra K.; Demir, Abdulkadir; Schmidt, Francis J.

2006-09-01

The purposes of this study were to (a) gain an understanding of the views of inquiry held by faculty members involved in undergraduate science teaching and (b) describe the challenges, constraints, and opportunities that they perceived in designing and teaching inquiry-based laboratories. Participants included 19 college professors, representing both life and physical science disciplines, from (a) 2-year community college, (b) small, private nonprofit liberal arts college, (c) public master's granting university, and (d) public doctoral/research extensive university. We collected data through semistructured interviews and applied an iterative data analysis process. College science faculty members held a full and open inquiry view, seeing classroom inquiry as time consuming, unstructured, and student directed. They believed that inquiry was more appropriate for upper level science majors than for introductory or nonscience majors. Although faculty members valued inquiry, they perceived limitations of time, class size, student motivation, and student ability. These limitations, coupled with their view of inquiry, constrained them from implementing inquiry-based laboratories. Our proposed inquiry continuum represents a broader view of inquiry that recognizes the interaction between two dimensions of inquiry: (a) the degree of inquiry and (b) the level of student directedness, and provides for a range of inquiry-based classroom activities.

Lessons in participant retention in the course of a randomized controlled clinical trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Idoko, Olubukola T; Owolabi, Olumuyiwa A; Odutola, Aderonke A; Ogundare, Olatunde; Worwui, Archibald; Saidu, Yauba; Smith-Sanneh, Alison; Tunkara, Abdoulie; Sey, Gibbi; Sanyang, Assan; Mendy, Philip; Ota, Martin O C

2014-10-09

Clinical trials are increasingly being conducted as new products seek to enter the market. Deployment of such interventions is based on evidence obtained mainly from the gold standard of randomized controlled clinical trials (RCCT). A crucial factor in the ability of RCCTs to provide credible and generalisable data is sample size and retention of the required number of subjects at completion of the follow-up period. However, recruitment and retention in clinical trials are hindered by prevalent peculiar challenges in Africa that need to be circumvented. This article shares experiences from a phase II trial that recorded a high retention rate at 14 months follow-up at a new clinical trial site. Mothers bringing children less than two months of age to the health facility were given information and invited to have their child enrolled if the inclusion criteria were fulfilled. Participants were enrolled over 8 months. Trial procedures, duration and risks/benefits were painstakingly and sequentially explained to the communities, parents and relevant relatives before and during the trial period. The proportions of participants that completed or did not complete the trial were analyzed including the reasons for failure to complete all trial procedures. 1044 individuals received information regarding the trial of which 371 returned for screening. 300 (81%) of them who fulfilled the inclusion criteria and did not meet any exclusion criteria were enrolled and 94% of these completed the trial. Consent withdrawal was the main reason for not completing the trial largely (75%) due to the father not being involved at the point of consenting or parents no longer being comfortable with blood sampling. Participant retention in clinical trials remains a crucial factor in ensuring generalisability of trial data. Appropriate measures to enhance retention should include continuous community involvement in the process, adequate explanation of trial procedures and risks/benefits; and

Community participation of patients 12 months post-stroke in Johannesburg, South Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Witness Mudzi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Improvement in health-related quality of life (HRQL is the main goal of rehabilitation. The ability of the stroke-patient to participate in various situations signifies successful rehabilitation. The aim of the study was to establish the extent of communityparticipation and the barriers and facilitators to the participation for stroke patients after their discharge.Method: This study formed part of a larger study focusing on the impact of caregiver education on stroke survivors and their careers. This was a longitudinal study comprising 200 patients with first-time ischaemic stroke. Although the patients were followed up at home at 3 months, 6 months and 12 months post-stroke, this paper focuses on the 12-months follow-up participation results. Patient functional ability was measured by using the Barthel Index (BI and the Rivermead Mobility Index (RMI, whereas participation was measured by using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF checklist. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the data.Results: Patients experienced severe to complete difficulty when undertaking single and multiple tasks without help 12-months post-discharge. They struggled with the preparation of meals, household work and interpersonal interactions, and they had difficulties withcommunity life and partaking in recreation and leisure activities. Immediate family and societal attitudes were viewed as facilitators to community participation whereas friends, transportation services and social security services were viewed as barriers to communityparticipation.Conclusion: The patient-ability to socialise and participate in community issues is currently poor. The identified barriers to community participation need to be addressed in order toimprove patient-participation in the community post-stroke.

Concert Viewing Headphones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazuya Atsuta

2011-01-01

Full Text Available An audiovisual interface equipped with a projector, an inclina-tion sensor, and a distance sensor for zoom control has been developed that enables a user to selectively view and listen to specific performers in a video-taped group performance. Dubbed Concert Viewing Headphones, it has both image and sound processing functions. The image processing extracts the portion of the image indicated by the user and projects it free of distortion on the front and side walls. The sound processing creates imaginary microphones for those performers without one so that the user can hear the sound from any performer. Testing using images and sounds captured using a fisheye-lens camera and 37 lavalier microphones showed that sound locali-zation was fastest when an inverse square function was used for the sound mixing and that the zoom function was useful for locating the desired sound performance.

Associations of Physical Activity, Sports Participation and Active Commuting on Mathematic Performance and Inhibitory Control in Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Tao; Gejl, Anne Kær; Froberg, Karsten

2016-01-01

Objectives To examine objectively measured physical activity level, organized sports participation and active commuting to school in relation to mathematic performance and inhibitory control in adolescents. Methods The design was cross-sectional. A convenient sample of 869 sixth and seventh grade students (12–14 years) was invited to participate in the study. A total of 568 students fulfilled the inclusion criteria and comprised the final sample for this study. Mathematic performance was assessed by a customized test and inhibitory control was assessed by a modified Eriksen flanker task. Physical activity was assessed with GT3X and GT3X+ accelerometers presented in sex-specific quartiles of mean counts per minute and mean minutes per day in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Active commuting and sports participation was self-reported. Mixed model regression was applied. Total physical activity level was stratified by bicycling status in order to bypass measurement error subject to the accelerometer. Results Non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute displayed a higher mathematic score, so did cyclists in the 2nd and 3rd quartile of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity relative to the least active quartile. Non-cyclists in the 3rd quartile of counts per minute had an improved reaction time and cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity displayed an improved accuracy, whereas non-cyclists in the 2nd quartile of counts per minute showed an inferior accuracy relative to the least active quartile. Bicycling to school and organized sports participation were positively associated with mathematic performance. Conclusions Sports participation and bicycling were positively associated with mathematic performance. Results regarding objectively measured physical activity were mixed. Although, no linear nor dose-response relationship was observed there was no indication of a higher activity level impairing the

Views of female breast cancer patients who donated biologic samples regarding storage and use of samples for genetic research.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaphingst, K A; Janoff, J M; Harris, L N; Emmons, K M

2006-05-01

Although social and ethical issues related to the storage and use of biologic specimens for genetic research have been discussed extensively in the medical literature, few empiric data exist describing patients' views. This qualitative study explored the views of 26 female breast cancer patients who had consented to donate blood or tissue samples for breast cancer research. Participants generally did not expect personal benefits from research and had few unprompted concerns. Few participants had concerns about use of samples for studies not planned at the time of consent. Some participants did express concerns about insurance or employment discrimination, while others believed that current privacy protections might actually slow breast cancer research. Participants were generally more interested in receiving individual genetic test results from research studies than aggregate results. Most participants did not want individual results of uncertain clinical significance, although others believed that they should be able to receive such information. These data examined the range of participants' views regarding the storage and use of biologic samples. Further research with different and diverse patient populations is critical to establishing an appropriate balance between protecting the rights of human subjects in genetic research and allowing research to progress.

The power of Kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hiroshi Nittono

Full Text Available Kawaii (a Japanese word meaning "cute" things are popular because they produce positive feelings. However, their effect on behavior remains unclear. In this study, three experiments were conducted to examine the effects of viewing cute images on subsequent task performance. In the first experiment, university students performed a fine motor dexterity task before and after viewing images of baby or adult animals. Performance indexed by the number of successful trials increased after viewing cute images (puppies and kittens; M ± SE=43.9 ± 10.3% improvement more than after viewing images that were less cute (dogs and cats; 11.9 ± 5.5% improvement. In the second experiment, this finding was replicated by using a non-motor visual search task. Performance improved more after viewing cute images (15.7 ± 2.2% improvement than after viewing less cute images (1.4 ± 2.1% improvement. Viewing images of pleasant foods was ineffective in improving performance (1.2 ± 2.1%. In the third experiment, participants performed a global-local letter task after viewing images of baby animals, adult animals, and neutral objects. In general, global features were processed faster than local features. However, this global precedence effect was reduced after viewing cute images. Results show that participants performed tasks requiring focused attention more carefully after viewing cute images. This is interpreted as the result of a narrowed attentional focus induced by the cuteness-triggered positive emotion that is associated with approach motivation and the tendency toward systematic processing. For future applications, cute objects may be used as an emotion elicitor to induce careful behavioral tendencies in specific situations, such as driving and office work.

The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus

Science.gov (United States)

Nittono, Hiroshi; Fukushima, Michiko; Yano, Akihiro; Moriya, Hiroki

2012-01-01

Kawaii (a Japanese word meaning “cute”) things are popular because they produce positive feelings. However, their effect on behavior remains unclear. In this study, three experiments were conducted to examine the effects of viewing cute images on subsequent task performance. In the first experiment, university students performed a fine motor dexterity task before and after viewing images of baby or adult animals. Performance indexed by the number of successful trials increased after viewing cute images (puppies and kittens; M ± SE = 43.9±10.3% improvement) more than after viewing images that were less cute (dogs and cats; 11.9±5.5% improvement). In the second experiment, this finding was replicated by using a non-motor visual search task. Performance improved more after viewing cute images (15.7±2.2% improvement) than after viewing less cute images (1.4±2.1% improvement). Viewing images of pleasant foods was ineffective in improving performance (1.2±2.1%). In the third experiment, participants performed a global–local letter task after viewing images of baby animals, adult animals, and neutral objects. In general, global features were processed faster than local features. However, this global precedence effect was reduced after viewing cute images. Results show that participants performed tasks requiring focused attention more carefully after viewing cute images. This is interpreted as the result of a narrowed attentional focus induced by the cuteness-triggered positive emotion that is associated with approach motivation and the tendency toward systematic processing. For future applications, cute objects may be used as an emotion elicitor to induce careful behavioral tendencies in specific situations, such as driving and office work. PMID:23050022

The power of Kawaii: viewing cute images promotes a careful behavior and narrows attentional focus.

Science.gov (United States)

Nittono, Hiroshi; Fukushima, Michiko; Yano, Akihiro; Moriya, Hiroki

2012-01-01

Kawaii (a Japanese word meaning "cute") things are popular because they produce positive feelings. However, their effect on behavior remains unclear. In this study, three experiments were conducted to examine the effects of viewing cute images on subsequent task performance. In the first experiment, university students performed a fine motor dexterity task before and after viewing images of baby or adult animals. Performance indexed by the number of successful trials increased after viewing cute images (puppies and kittens; M ± SE=43.9 ± 10.3% improvement) more than after viewing images that were less cute (dogs and cats; 11.9 ± 5.5% improvement). In the second experiment, this finding was replicated by using a non-motor visual search task. Performance improved more after viewing cute images (15.7 ± 2.2% improvement) than after viewing less cute images (1.4 ± 2.1% improvement). Viewing images of pleasant foods was ineffective in improving performance (1.2 ± 2.1%). In the third experiment, participants performed a global-local letter task after viewing images of baby animals, adult animals, and neutral objects. In general, global features were processed faster than local features. However, this global precedence effect was reduced after viewing cute images. Results show that participants performed tasks requiring focused attention more carefully after viewing cute images. This is interpreted as the result of a narrowed attentional focus induced by the cuteness-triggered positive emotion that is associated with approach motivation and the tendency toward systematic processing. For future applications, cute objects may be used as an emotion elicitor to induce careful behavioral tendencies in specific situations, such as driving and office work.

Young people’s views about consenting to data linkage: findings from the PEARL qualitative study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suzanne Audrey

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Electronic administrative data exist in several domains which, if linked, are potentially useful for research. However, benefits from data linkage should be considered alongside risks such as the threat to privacy. Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC is a birth cohort study. The Project to Enhance ALSPAC through Record Linkage (PEARL was established to enrich the ALSPAC resource through linkage between ALSPAC participants and routine sources of health and social data. Qualitative research was incorporated in the PEARL study to examine participants’ views about data linkage and inform approaches to information sharing. This paper focusses on issues of consent. Methods Digitally recorded interviews were conducted with 55 participants aged 17–19 years. Terms and processes relating to consent, anonymization and data linkage were explained to interviewees. Scenarios were used to prompt consideration of linking different sources of data, and whether consent should be requested. Interview recordings were fully transcribed. Thematic analysis was undertaken using the Framework approach. Results Participant views on data linkage appeared to be most influenced by: considerations around the social sensitivity of the research question, and; the possibility of tangible health benefits in the public interest. Some participants appeared unsure about the effectiveness of anonymization, or did not always view effective anonymization as making consent unnecessary. This was related to notions of ownership of personal information and etiquette around asking permission for secondary use. Despite different consent procedures being explained, participants tended to equate consent with ‘opt-in’ consent through which participants are ‘asked’ if their data can be used for a specific study. Participants raising similar concerns came to differing conclusions about whether consent was needed. Views changed when presented

Association between childhood and adolescent television viewing and unemployment in adulthood

Science.gov (United States)

Landhuis, C Erik; Perry, David K; Hancox, Robert J

2012-01-01

Objective To assess the long-term association between childhood television viewing and adult unemployment, and if this association is mediated by educational achievement. Method Study members were a general-population birth cohort of 1037 participants born in New Zealand in 1972/1973. Hours of weekday television viewing were reported at ages 5–15. Since age 18, unemployment was assessed retrospectively using life-history calendars to age 32. Information on educational qualifications was collected at age 32. Results Childhood and adolescent television viewing predicted adult unemployment. This association was significant for male study members only (β=0.20, ptelevision viewing remained a predictor of unemployment after adjusting for this (p=0.0035). By logistic regression, each additional hour of daily television viewing was associated with an increased likelihood of spending at least 6 months in unemployment between ages 18–32 years (OR=1.36, 95%, CI=1.06, 1.76, p=0.0157). Conclusion Childhood and adolescent television viewing may have long-lasting consequences for adult unemployment for boys. This association is only partially explained by the association between television viewing and educational achievement. PMID:22178044

Public perceptions of health care professionals' participation in pharmaceutical marketing.

Science.gov (United States)

Crigger, Nancy J; Courter, Laura; Hayes, Kristen; Shepherd, K

2009-09-01

Trust in the nurse-patient relationship is maintained not by how professionals perceive their actions but rather by how the public perceives them. However, little is known about the public's view of nurses and other health care professionals who participate in pharmaceutical marketing. Our study describes public perceptions of health care providers' role in pharmaceutical marketing and compares their responses with those of a random sample of licensed family nurse practitioners. The family nurse practitioners perceived their participation in marketing activities as significantly more ethically appropriate than did the public responders. Further research is warranted before conclusions can be drawn, but these early findings suggest that nurse practitioners should consider a conservative approach to participating in pharmaceutical marketing.

P1-1: The Effect of Convergence Training on Visual Discomfort in 3D TV Viewing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyun Min Jeon

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The present study investigated whether convergence training has an effect on reducing visual discomfort in viewing a stereoscopic TV. Participants were assigned into either a training group or a control group. In the training group, one of the two different training procedures is provided: gradual change or random change in the disparities of bar stimulus which was used for convergence training. Training itself was very effective so that convergence fusional range was improved after 3 repeated trainings with intervals of two weeks. In order to evaluate the effect of convergence training on visual discomfort, the visual discomfort in 3D TV viewing was measured before and after training sessions. The results showed that a significant reduction in visual discomfort was found after training only in one training group. These results demonstrated a repeated convergence training might be helpful in reducing the visual discomfort. Further studies should be needed to set the most effective parameters of training of this pattern.

A comparative design view for accurate control of servos using a field programmable gate array

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tickle, A J; Harvey, P K; Smith, J S; Wu, F; Buckle, J R

2009-01-01

An embedded system is a special-purpose computer system designed to perform one or a few dedicated functions. Altera DSP Builder presents designers and users with an alternate approach when creating their systems by employing a blockset similar to that already used in Simulink. The application considered in this paper is the design of a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) system for use in stereo vision. PWM can replace a digital-to-analogue converter to control audio speakers, LED intensity, motor speed, and servo position. Rather than the conventional HDL coding approach this Simulink approach provides an easy understanding platform to the PWM design. This paper includes a comparison between two approaches regarding resource usage and flexibility etc. Included is how DSP Builder manipulates an onboard clock signal, in order to create the control pulses to the 'raw' coding of a PWM generator in VHDL. Both methods were shown to a selection of people and their views on which version they would subsequently use in their relative fields is discussed.

Prospective Teachers' Views about Video-Enhanced General Biology Instruction

Science.gov (United States)

Çetin, Gülcan

2014-01-01

The aim of the study is to determine the views of the prospective physics and chemistry teachers about the video-enhanced General Biology instruction. The participants included 19 second-year prospective teachers (10 in Physics and 9 in Chemistry Education) at Necatibey Faculty of Education, Balikesir University, Turkey in the 2011-2012 academic…

Investigation of Pre-Service Teachers Views of Teaching as Profession

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. Akarsu

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The teaching profession has been transformed in the last century in terms of its approaches and structures, such as its instructional methods and learning settings. Such transformations affect the motivations that promote choosing it as a career. Recent studies conducted on the reasons for choosing the teaching profession have been carried out with pre- and in-service teachers’ perspectives. The current study explores similar issues within broader views in terms of prospective teachers’ personal views about two essential facets: “Prevailing views that teacher candidates hold about the profession”; “If any correlation exists between reasons for choosing teaching as a career and their disciplines”. Participants were asked to identify their teaching philosophies and reasons for determining this career path in college. The data collection process took place between 2012 and 2014. A total of 253 pre-service teachers enrolled in teacher preparation programs agreed to participate in the study. The results of data analysis indicated that teacher candidates in different disciplines hold similar viewpoints on both research questions. In addition, they stated that they chose the teaching profession because ‘It is a sacred job; the country needs better education; it is an ideal job for females’. Some correlation according to gender emerged for both of the research questions.

[The nurse's administrative point of view in the hospitalar macro system: a reflexive study].

Science.gov (United States)

de Souza, Fábia Maria; Soares, Enedina

2006-01-01

The study aimed at investigating the nurses' administration points of view concerning managing activities in the hospital macro-system, based on the Administration Contingent Theory A group of 9 nurses responsible for the administration of nursing services at 6 reference hospitals in Fortaleza/Ceara, participated of the study. Data were assessed by means of free interview techniques, from August to December 2001. The results suggest that the administrative approach focused the development of Leadership and Control activities. The interview outcomes reveal that nursing administration in a Hospital Macro-system was not perceived as an easy task, but feasible nevertheless. The greatest difficulty seemed to be due to a poor reflexive practice about the nurse's administrative attributions.

Effect of sports participation on Internet addiction mediated by self-control: A case of Korean adolescents

OpenAIRE

Jae-Ahm Park; Mi-Hyang Park; Ji-Hye Shin; Bo Li; David Thomas Rolfe; Jong-Yeol Yoo; Stephen W. Dittmore

2016-01-01

Internet addiction among adolescents has become a major social problem. Thus, more effective Internet addiction treatment programs through sports are required. This study tried to identify the relationship among sports participation, self-control, and Internet addiction among Korean adolescents. In total, 345 students (aged 15–18 years) from two middle schools and two high schools in South Korea were analyzed using Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). ...

Association between television viewing and self-esteem in children.

Science.gov (United States)

Tin, Sze Pui Pamela; Ho, Daniel Sai Yin; Mak, Kwok Hang; Wan, Ka Leung; Lam, Tai Hing

2012-07-01

Few studies have examined the effect of excess television (TV) viewing on specific mental health outcomes, such as self-esteem. We explored the cross-sectional association between TV viewing hours and self-esteem in young children. A total of 70,210 primary 4 (US grade 4) participants of the Department of Health Student Health Service, Hong Kong, in 1998-2000 reported TV viewing hours in a standardized questionnaire. Self-esteem was assessed using the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories for Children (SEI) with 4 subscales. Multivariate linear regression yielded beta coefficients (β) for SEI subscale scores by TV hours, adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, lifestyle characteristics, and highest parental education and occupational status. Only 10.9% of children watched >4 hours per day, while 45.3% watched TV for 1 to ≤2 hours per day. Compared with children who watched Children who watched >2 hours of TV per day had lower SEI scores than those who watched self-esteem among young children. The development of self-esteem among children who report little or excessive TV viewing should be further studied.

Connecting Self-Efficacy and Views about the Nature of Science in Undergraduate Research Experiences

Science.gov (United States)

Quan, Gina M.; Elby, Andrew

2016-01-01

Undergraduate research can support students' more central participation in physics. We analyze markers of two coupled shifts in participation: changes in students' views about the nature of science coupled to shifts in self-efficacy toward physics research. Students in the study worked with faculty and graduate student mentors on research projects…

Female labour force participation in Peru: an analysis using the world fertility survey.

OpenAIRE

Rodgers G; Viry D

1980-01-01

ILO pub-WEP pub. Working paper analysing woman worker labour force participation trends in Peru based on a world fertility survey - examines female wages employment, unpaid work, occupational structure, labour supply determinants such as population variables (incl. Family structure, marital status, age, internal migration and educational level), husband's characteristics, etc., in rural areas and urban areas, with a view to estimating participation economic models. References.

Internet trials: participant experiences and perspectives

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Use of the Internet to conduct randomised controlled trials is increasing, and provides potential to increase equity of access to medical research, increase the generalisability of trial results and decrease the costs involved in conducting large scale trials. Several studies have compared response rates, completeness of data, and reliability of surveys using the Internet and traditional methods, but very little is known about participants’ attitudes towards Internet-based randomised trials or their experience of participating in an Internet-based trial. Objective To obtain insights into the experiences and perspectives of participants in an Internet-based randomised controlled trial, their attitudes to the use of the Internet to conduct medical research, and their intentions regarding future participation in Internet research. Methods All English speaking participants in a recently completed Internet randomised controlled trial were invited to participate in an online survey. Results 1246 invitations were emailed. 416 participants completed the survey between May and October 2009 (33% response rate). Reasons given for participating in the Internet RCT fell into 4 main areas: personal interest in the research question and outcome, ease of participation, an appreciation of the importance of research and altruistic reasons. Participants’ comments and reflections on their experience of participating in a fully online trial were positive and less than half of participants would have participated in the trial had it been conducted using other means of data collection. However participants identified trade-offs between the benefits and downsides of participating in Internet-based trials. The main trade-off was between flexibility and convenience – a perceived benefit – and a lack connectedness and understanding – a perceived disadvantage. The other tradeoffs were in the areas of: ease or difficulty in use of the Internet; security, privacy and

Internet trials: participant experiences and perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mathieu Erin

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Use of the Internet to conduct randomised controlled trials is increasing, and provides potential to increase equity of access to medical research, increase the generalisability of trial results and decrease the costs involved in conducting large scale trials. Several studies have compared response rates, completeness of data, and reliability of surveys using the Internet and traditional methods, but very little is known about participants’ attitudes towards Internet-based randomised trials or their experience of participating in an Internet-based trial. Objective To obtain insights into the experiences and perspectives of participants in an Internet-based randomised controlled trial, their attitudes to the use of the Internet to conduct medical research, and their intentions regarding future participation in Internet research. Methods All English speaking participants in a recently completed Internet randomised controlled trial were invited to participate in an online survey. Results 1246 invitations were emailed. 416 participants completed the survey between May and October 2009 (33% response rate. Reasons given for participating in the Internet RCT fell into 4 main areas: personal interest in the research question and outcome, ease of participation, an appreciation of the importance of research and altruistic reasons. Participants’ comments and reflections on their experience of participating in a fully online trial were positive and less than half of participants would have participated in the trial had it been conducted using other means of data collection. However participants identified trade-offs between the benefits and downsides of participating in Internet-based trials. The main trade-off was between flexibility and convenience – a perceived benefit – and a lack connectedness and understanding – a perceived disadvantage. The other tradeoffs were in the areas of: ease or difficulty in use of the Internet

Views of pharmacists on involvement in ward rounds in selected ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Pharmacist participation in ward rounds is of increasing interest for better pharmaceutical care, yet most pharmacists do not engage in this activity. Objective: The objective was to obtain public sector pharmacistsf views and perceptions on their involvement in ward rounds. Method: A rapid assessment was ...

Novel Networked Remote Laboratory Architecture for Open Connectivity Based on PLC-OPC-LabVIEW-EJS Integration. Application in Remote Fuzzy Control and Sensors Data Acquisition.

Science.gov (United States)

González, Isaías; Calderón, Antonio José; Mejías, Andrés; Andújar, José Manuel

2016-10-31

In this paper the design and implementation of a network for integrating Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC), the Object-Linking and Embedding for Process Control protocol (OPC) and the open-source Easy Java Simulations (EJS) package is presented. A LabVIEW interface and the Java-Internet-LabVIEW (JIL) server complete the scheme for data exchange. This configuration allows the user to remotely interact with the PLC. Such integration can be considered a novelty in scientific literature for remote control and sensor data acquisition of industrial plants. An experimental application devoted to remote laboratories is developed to demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of the proposed approach. The experiment to be conducted is the parameterization and supervision of a fuzzy controller of a DC servomotor. The graphical user interface has been developed with EJS and the fuzzy control is carried out by our own PLC. In fact, the distinctive features of the proposed novel network application are the integration of the OPC protocol to share information with the PLC and the application under control. The user can perform the tuning of the controller parameters online and observe in real time the effect on the servomotor behavior. The target group is engineering remote users, specifically in control- and automation-related tasks. The proposed architecture system is described and experimental results are presented.

Novel Networked Remote Laboratory Architecture for Open Connectivity Based on PLC-OPC-LabVIEW-EJS Integration. Application in Remote Fuzzy Control and Sensors Data Acquisition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isaías González

2016-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper the design and implementation of a network for integrating Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC, the Object-Linking and Embedding for Process Control protocol (OPC and the open-source Easy Java Simulations (EJS package is presented. A LabVIEW interface and the Java-Internet-LabVIEW (JIL server complete the scheme for data exchange. This configuration allows the user to remotely interact with the PLC. Such integration can be considered a novelty in scientific literature for remote control and sensor data acquisition of industrial plants. An experimental application devoted to remote laboratories is developed to demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of the proposed approach. The experiment to be conducted is the parameterization and supervision of a fuzzy controller of a DC servomotor. The graphical user interface has been developed with EJS and the fuzzy control is carried out by our own PLC. In fact, the distinctive features of the proposed novel network application are the integration of the OPC protocol to share information with the PLC and the application under control. The user can perform the tuning of the controller parameters online and observe in real time the effect on the servomotor behavior. The target group is engineering remote users, specifically in control- and automation-related tasks. The proposed architecture system is described and experimental results are presented.

Novel Networked Remote Laboratory Architecture for Open Connectivity Based on PLC-OPC-LabVIEW-EJS Integration. Application in Remote Fuzzy Control and Sensors Data Acquisition

Science.gov (United States)

González, Isaías; Calderón, Antonio José; Mejías, Andrés; Andújar, José Manuel

2016-01-01

In this paper the design and implementation of a network for integrating Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC), the Object-Linking and Embedding for Process Control protocol (OPC) and the open-source Easy Java Simulations (EJS) package is presented. A LabVIEW interface and the Java-Internet-LabVIEW (JIL) server complete the scheme for data exchange. This configuration allows the user to remotely interact with the PLC. Such integration can be considered a novelty in scientific literature for remote control and sensor data acquisition of industrial plants. An experimental application devoted to remote laboratories is developed to demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of the proposed approach. The experiment to be conducted is the parameterization and supervision of a fuzzy controller of a DC servomotor. The graphical user interface has been developed with EJS and the fuzzy control is carried out by our own PLC. In fact, the distinctive features of the proposed novel network application are the integration of the OPC protocol to share information with the PLC and the application under control. The user can perform the tuning of the controller parameters online and observe in real time the effect on the servomotor behavior. The target group is engineering remote users, specifically in control- and automation-related tasks. The proposed architecture system is described and experimental results are presented. PMID:27809229

Data-Driven Participation: Algorithms, Cities, Citizens, and Corporate Control

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew Tenney

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we critically explore the interplay of algorithms and civic participation in visions of a city governed by equation, sensor and tweet. We begin by discussing the rhetoric surrounding techno-enabled paths to participatory democracy. This leads to us interrogating how the city is impacted by a discourse that promises to harness social/human capital through data science. We move to a praxis level and examine the motivations of local planners to adopt and increasingly automate forms of VGI as a form of citizen engagement. We ground theory and praxis with a report on the uneven impacts of algorithmic civic participation underway in the Canadian city of Toronto.

Association of Television Viewing Time with Body Composition and Calcified Subclinical Atherosclerosis in Singapore Chinese.

Science.gov (United States)

Nang, Ei Ei Khaing; van Dam, Rob M; Tan, Chuen Seng; Mueller-Riemenschneider, Falk; Lim, Yi Ting; Ong, Kai Zhi; Ee, Siqing; Lee, Jeannette; Tai, E Shyong

2015-01-01

Sedentary behavior such as television viewing may be an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease. However, few studies have assessed the impact of television viewing time on coronary artery calcification and it remains unclear how body fat contributes to this relationship. The aim of this study is to evaluate the association between television viewing time and subclinical atherosclerosis and whether effects on visceral or subcutaneous fat may mediate any associations observed. This was a cross-sectional study of 398 Chinese participants (192 men and 206 women) from Singapore prospective study. Participants were free from known cardiovascular diseases and underwent interview, health screening, computed tomography scans of coronary arteries and abdomen. Spearman's correlation was used to test the correlation between television viewing time, physical activity, body composition and abdominal fat distribution. The association between television viewing time and subclinical atherosclerosis was assessed by multiple logistic regression analysis. In men, television viewing time was significantly correlated with higher body fat mass index, percent body fat, subcutaneous and visceral fat. These associations were in the same direction, but weaker and not statistically significant in women. Television viewing time (hours/day) was associated with subclinical atherosclerosis in men (odds ratio: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.03-1.93) but no significant association was observed in women (odds ratio: 0.88, 95% CI: 0.59-1.31) after adjusting for potential socio-demographic and lifestyle confounders. Further adjustments for biological factors did not affect these associations. Television viewing time was associated with greater adiposity and higher subcutaneous and visceral fat in men. TV viewing time was also associated with subclinical atherosclerosis in men and the potential mechanisms underlying this association require further investigation.

Participation of concerned citizens in site selection decisions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Appel, D.

2003-01-01

The contribution presents preliminary results of two international projects aimed at integrating the general public, or parts thereof, in the decision process of selecting ultimate storage sites. The author participated in these projects and is a former member of the task group for selection of ultimate storage sites (Arbeitskreis Auswahlverfahren Endlagerstandorte - AkEnd). The two projects are: Forum on Stakeholder Confidence (FSC) of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) OECD, Project 'COWAM' (Community Waste Management) of the European Commission. The participants, goals and methods of the two projects were different, but they both presented concrete methods of selecting ultimate storage sites from the view of different actors in the form of case studies. The focus was on the participation of the public and its importance for success. Apart from meeting technical requirements the selection process should also take account of the requirements of democracy and citizens' participation in order to gain wide acceptance for its results. Deficiencies and advantages of the proposed selection processes are analyzed, and general requirements on the decision process in site selection are derived. (orig.) [de

American and Japanese Kindergartners' Views of Play through the Use of Photo Elicitation Interviews (PEIs)

Science.gov (United States)

Izumi-Taylor, Satomi; Ito, Yoko; Krisell, Meredith

2016-01-01

The purpose of the study was to examine American and Japanese kindergarteners' views of play. The participants consisted of 44 kindergarteners and their five teachers in the southeastern United States and 50 kindergarteners and their three teachers on Japan's main island. Both groups of children were asked to photograph their views of play and to…