Analyses of Research Topics in the Field of Informetrics Based on the Method of Topic Modeling

OpenAIRE

Sung-Chien Lin

2014-01-01

In this study, we used the approach of topic modeling to uncover the possible structure of research topics in the field of Informetrics, to explore the distribution of the topics over years, and to compare the core journals. In order to infer the structure of the topics in the field, the data of the papers published in the Journal of Informetricsand Scientometrics during 2007 to 2013 are retrieved from the database of the Web of Science as input of the approach of topic modeling. The results ...

Current and Emerging Topics in Sports Video Processing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Xinguo, Yu; Farin, D.S.

2005-01-01

Sports video processing is an interesting topic for research, since the clearly defined game rules in sports provide the rich domain knowledge for analysis. Moreover, it is interesting because many specialized applications for sports video processing are emerging. This paper gives an overview of

a Survey on Topics, Researchers and Cultures in the Field of Digital Heritage

Science.gov (United States)

Münster, S.

2017-08-01

Digital heritage comprises a broad variety of approaches and topics and involves researchers from multiple disciplines. While the use of digital methods in the text-oriented disciplines dealing with cultural heritage is widely discussed and canonized, an up-to-date investigation on cultural heritage as a scholarly field is currently missing. The extended abstract is about a three-stage investigation on standards, publications, disciplinary cultures as well as scholars in the field of digital heritage, carried out in 2016 and 2017. It includes results of a workshop-based survey involving 44 researchers, 15 qualitative interviews as well as an online survey with nearly 1000 participants. As an overall finding, a community is driven by researchers from European countries and especially Italy with a background in humanities, dealing with topics of data acquisition, data management and visualization. Moreover, conference series are most relevant for a scientific discourse, and especially EU projects set pace as most important research endeavours.

Current developments in environmental psychology : topics and researchers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Werff, Ellen; Perlaviciute, Goda; Muinos, Gabriel

2016-01-01

The aim of this special issue is to bring the work of early-career researchers in environmental psychology to the spotlight. These young researchers come from different countries and cultures, have their own theoretical approaches and employ different research methods to increase knowledge on the

EDITORIAL: International Workshop on Current Topics in Monte Carlo Treatment Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Verhaegen, Frank; Seuntjens, Jan

2005-03-01

The use of Monte Carlo particle transport simulations in radiotherapy was pioneered in the early nineteen-seventies, but it was not until the eighties that they gained recognition as an essential research tool for radiation dosimetry, health physics and later on for radiation therapy treatment planning. Since the mid-nineties, there has been a boom in the number of workers using MC techniques in radiotherapy, and the quantity of papers published on the subject. Research and applications of MC techniques in radiotherapy span a very wide range from fundamental studies of cross sections and development of particle transport algorithms, to clinical evaluation of treatment plans for a variety of radiotherapy modalities. The International Workshop on Current Topics in Monte Carlo Treatment Planning took place at Montreal General Hospital, which is part of McGill University, halfway up Mount Royal on Montreal Island. It was held from 3-5 May, 2004, right after the freezing winter has lost its grip on Canada. About 120 workers attended the Workshop, representing 18 countries. Most of the pioneers in the field were present but also a large group of young scientists. In a very full programme, 41 long papers were presented (of which 12 were invited) and 20 posters were on display during the whole meeting. The topics covered included the latest developments in MC algorithms, statistical issues, source modelling and MC treatment planning for photon, electron and proton treatments. The final day was entirely devoted to clinical implementation issues. Monte Carlo radiotherapy treatment planning has only now made a slow entrée in the clinical environment, taking considerably longer than envisaged ten years ago. Of the twenty-five papers in this dedicated special issue, about a quarter deal with this topic, with probably many more studies to follow in the near future. If anything, we hope the Workshop served as an accelerator for more clinical evaluation of MC applications. The

Current topics in pure and computational complex analysis

CERN Document Server

Dorff, Michael; Lahiri, Indrajit

2014-01-01

The book contains 13 articles, some of which are survey articles and others research papers. Written by eminent mathematicians, these articles were presented at the International Workshop on Complex Analysis and Its Applications held at Walchand College of Engineering, Sangli. All the contributing authors are actively engaged in research fields related to the topic of the book. The workshop offered a comprehensive exposition of the recent developments in geometric functions theory, planar harmonic mappings, entire and meromorphic functions and their applications, both theoretical and computational. The recent developments in complex analysis and its applications play a crucial role in research in many disciplines.

Analyzing research trends on drug safety using topic modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Chen

2018-04-06

Published drug safety data has evolved in the past decade due to scientific and technological advances in the relevant research fields. Considering that a vast amount of scientific literature has been published in this area, it is not easy to identify the key information. Topic modeling has emerged as a powerful tool to extract meaningful information from a large volume of unstructured texts. Areas covered: We analyzed the titles and abstracts of 4347 articles in four journals dedicated to drug safety from 2007 to 2016. We applied Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) model to extract 50 main topics, and conducted trend analysis to explore the temporal popularity of these topics over years. Expert Opinion/Commentary: We found that 'benefit-risk assessment and communication', 'diabetes' and 'biologic therapy for autoimmune diseases' are the top 3 most published topics. The topics relevant to the use of electronic health records/observational data for safety surveillance are becoming increasingly popular over time. Meanwhile, there is a slight decrease in research on signal detection based on spontaneous reporting, although spontaneous reporting still plays an important role in benefit-risk assessment. The topics related to medical conditions and treatment showed highly dynamic patterns over time.

Integrated fundamental research on current collection

Science.gov (United States)

Kuhlmann-Wilsdorf, Doris; Tran, Leo

1993-06-01

The aim of our research was to add to the basic understanding in the area of current collection with particular emphasis on topics likely to benefit practical objectives. Under sponsorship of this contract, 23 papers were published in the international literature. Additionally, 13 invited lectures and 11 contributed lectures on various aspects of this research were delivered at universities, research laboratories, and international conferences by the principal investigator and co-workers. The development of a novel metal fiber material for sliding electrical contacts was continued with much success. This is expected to become very useful for making metal fiber brushed for homopolar motors/generators, as well as for EML armatures. Included in this report are title pages (and abstracts) for the 23 published papers.

Topical Treatment of Degenerative Knee Osteoarthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Meng, Zengdong; Huang, Rongzhong

2018-01-01

This article reviews topical management strategies for degenerative osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. A search of Pubmed, Embase and the Cochrane library using MeSH terms including "topical," "treatment," "knee" and "osteoarthritis" was carried out. Original research and review articles on the effectiveness and safety, recommendations from international published guidelines and acceptability studies of topical preparations were included. Current topical treatments included for the management of knee OA include topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, capsaicin, salicylates and physical treatments such as hot or cold therapy. Current treatment guidelines recommend topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs as an alternative and even first-line therapy for OA management, especially among elderly patients. Guidelines on other topical treatments vary, from recommendations against their use, to in favor as alternative or simultaneous therapy, especially for patients with contraindications to other analgesics. Although often well-tolerated and preferred by many patients, clinical care still lags in the adoption of topical treatments. Aspects of efficacy, safety and patient quality of life data require further research. Copyright © 2018 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Analyses of Research Topics in the Field of Informetrics Based on the Method of Topic Modeling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sung-Chien Lin

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In this study, we used the approach of topic modeling to uncover the possible structure of research topics in the field of Informetrics, to explore the distribution of the topics over years, and to compare the core journals. In order to infer the structure of the topics in the field, the data of the papers published in the Journal of Informetricsand Scientometrics during 2007 to 2013 are retrieved from the database of the Web of Science as input of the approach of topic modeling. The results of this study show that when the number of topics was set to 10, the topic model has the smallest perplexity. Although data scopes and analysis methodsare different to previous studies, the generating topics of this study are consistent with those results produced by analyses of experts. Empirical case studies and measurements of bibliometric indicators were concerned important in every year during the whole analytic period, and the field was increasing stability. Both the two core journals broadly paid more attention to all of the topics in the field of Informetrics. The Journal of Informetricsput particular emphasis on construction and applications ofbibliometric indicators and Scientometrics focused on the evaluation and the factors of productivity of countries, institutions, domains, and journals.

Topic Detection Based on Weak Tie Analysis: A Case Study of LIS Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ling Wei

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Purpose: Based on the weak tie theory, this paper proposes a series of connection indicators of weak tie subnets and weak tie nodes to detect research topics, recognize their connections, and understand their evolution. Design/methodology/approach: First, keywords are extracted from article titles and preprocessed. Second, high-frequency keywords are selected to generate weak tie co-occurrence networks. By removing the internal lines of clustered sub-topic networks, we focus on the analysis of weak tie subnets' composition and functions and the weak tie nodes' roles. Findings: The research topics' clusters and themes changed yearly; the subnets clustered with technique-related and methodology-related topics have been the core, important subnets for years; while close subnets are highly independent, research topics are generally concentrated and most topics are application-related; the roles and functions of nodes and weak ties are diversified. Research limitations: The parameter values are somewhat inconsistent; the weak tie subnets and nodes are classified based on empirical observations, and the conclusions are not verified or compared to other methods. Practical implications: The research is valuable for detecting important research topics as well as their roles, interrelations, and evolution trends. Originality/value: To contribute to the strength of weak tie theory, the research translates weak and strong ties concepts to co-occurrence strength, and analyzes weak ties' functions. Also, the research proposes a quantitative method to classify and measure the topics' clusters and nodes.

Solid-State Lighting 2017 Suggested Research Topics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

2017-09-29

A 2017 update to the Solid-State Lighting R&D Plan that is divided into two documents. The first document describes a list of suggested SSL priority research topics and the second document provides context and background, including information drawn from technical, market, and economic studies. Widely referenced by industry and government both here and abroad, these documents reflect SSL stakeholder inputs on key R&D topics that will improve efficacy, reduce cost, remove barriers to adoption, and add value for LED and OLED lighting solutions over the next three to five years, and discuss those applications that drive and prioritize the specific R&D.

Institutional Barriers to Research on Sensitive Topics: Case of Sex Communication Research Among University Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carey M. Noland

2012-11-01

Full Text Available When conducting research on sensitive topics, it is challenging to use new methods of data collection given the apprehensions of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs. This is especially worrying because sensitive topics of research often require novel approaches. In this article a brief personal history of navigating the IRB process for conducting sex communication research is presented, along with data from a survey that tested the assumptions long held by many IRBs. Results support some of the assumptions IRBs hold about sex communication research, but do not support some other assumptions.

Reflexive journaling on emotional research topics: ethical issues for team researchers.

Science.gov (United States)

Malacrida, Claudia

2007-12-01

Traditional epistemological concerns in qualitative research focus on the effects of researchers' values and emotions on choices of research topics, power relations with research participants, and the influence of researcher standpoints on data collection and analysis. However, the research process also affects the researchers' values, emotions, and standpoints. Drawing on reflexive journal entries of assistant researchers involved in emotionally demanding team research, this article explores issues of emotional fallout for research team members, the implications of hierarchical power imbalances on research teams, and the importance of providing ethical opportunities for reflexive writing about the challenges of doing emotional research. Such reflexive approaches ensure the emotional safety of research team members and foster opportunities for emancipatory consciousness among research team members.

In touch with psoriasis: topical treatments and current guidelines.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Murphy, G

2012-02-01

This article describes topical therapies and treatment guidelines for psoriasis and is based on a presentation given by the authors at a satellite symposium held during the 19th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, 6-10 October, 2010, in Gothenburg, Sweden. The highly variable nature of psoriasis and its individual presentation in patients can make it difficult to choose the most appropriate treatment. There are many treatment options, from topical treatment with emollients for very mild psoriasis, to systemic therapy with fumaric acid esters, methotrexate or biologics for severe disease. For the treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis, topical therapy is generally the most appropriate and a variety of options, both historical and recent, are available. Newer therapies offer greater convenience and fewer side-effects. Of the more recently available therapies, vitamin D analogues and topical corticosteroids are the two with the greatest proven efficacy in randomized clinical trials. A recent Cochrane review showed the highest efficacy overall with the fixed combination vitamin D analogue (calcipotriol) and corticosteroid (betamethasone dipropionate). Indeed, clinical trials have shown that two-compound calcipotriol\\/betamethasone dipropionate ointment has higher efficacy than calcipotriol or betamethasone dipropionate alone. With regard to safety, two-compound calcipotriol\\/betamethasone dipropionate was shown to be suitable for intermittent long-term treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis. The findings of the Cochrane review are reflected in the current treatment guidelines from the USA and Germany regarding the treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis. In both these guidelines, which will be discussed in this article, the recommended treatments for this patient group are vitamin D analogues and corticosteroids, particularly when used in combination.

In touch with psoriasis: topical treatments and current guidelines.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Murphy, G

2011-06-01

This article describes topical therapies and treatment guidelines for psoriasis and is based on a presentation given by the authors at a satellite symposium held during the 19th Congress of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, 6-10 October, 2010, in Gothenburg, Sweden. The highly variable nature of psoriasis and its individual presentation in patients can make it difficult to choose the most appropriate treatment. There are many treatment options, from topical treatment with emollients for very mild psoriasis, to systemic therapy with fumaric acid esters, methotrexate or biologics for severe disease. For the treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis, topical therapy is generally the most appropriate and a variety of options, both historical and recent, are available. Newer therapies offer greater convenience and fewer side-effects. Of the more recently available therapies, vitamin D analogues and topical corticosteroids are the two with the greatest proven efficacy in randomized clinical trials. A recent Cochrane review showed the highest efficacy overall with the fixed combination vitamin D analogue (calcipotriol) and corticosteroid (betamethasone dipropionate). Indeed, clinical trials have shown that two-compound calcipotriol\\/betamethasone dipropionate ointment has higher efficacy than calcipotriol or betamethasone dipropionate alone. With regard to safety, two-compound calcipotriol\\/betamethasone dipropionate was shown to be suitable for intermittent long-term treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis. The findings of the Cochrane review are reflected in the current treatment guidelines from the USA and Germany regarding the treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis. In both these guidelines, which will be discussed in this article, the recommended treatments for this patient group are vitamin D analogues and corticosteroids, particularly when used in combination.

How are topics born? Understanding the research dynamics preceding the emergence of new areas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angelo A. Salatino

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The ability to promptly recognise new research trends is strategic for many stakeholders, including universities, institutional funding bodies, academic publishers and companies. While the literature describes several approaches which aim to identify the emergence of new research topics early in their lifecycle, these rely on the assumption that the topic in question is already associated with a number of publications and consistently referred to by a community of researchers. Hence, detecting the emergence of a new research area at an embryonic stage, i.e., before the topic has been consistently labelled by a community of researchers and associated with a number of publications, is still an open challenge. In this paper, we begin to address this challenge by performing a study of the dynamics preceding the creation of new topics. This study indicates that the emergence of a new topic is anticipated by a significant increase in the pace of collaboration between relevant research areas, which can be seen as the ‘parents’ of the new topic. These initial findings (i confirm our hypothesis that it is possible in principle to detect the emergence of a new topic at the embryonic stage, (ii provide new empirical evidence supporting relevant theories in Philosophy of Science, and also (iii suggest that new topics tend to emerge in an environment in which weakly interconnected research areas begin to cross-fertilise.

Current cancer research 1998

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stamatiadis-Smidt, H. [ed.

1998-12-31

Topics from the Contents: The Fight against Cancer in Germany - A Critical Review. Conditions and Structures in Research. Familial Breast Cancer - A Critical Assessment. Research without Animal Experiments. Cancer Prevention. New Approaches for Tumor Therapy. Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer. Therapy of Brain Tumors with Laser Neurosurgery. The Genome Project. (orig.)

Current cancer research 1998

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stamatiadis-Smidt, H.

1998-01-01

Topics from the Contents: The Fight against Cancer in Germany - A Critical Review. Conditions and Structures in Research. Familial Breast Cancer - A Critical Assessment. Research without Animal Experiments. Cancer Prevention. New Approaches for Tumor Therapy. Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer. Therapy of Brain Tumors with Laser Neurosurgery. The Genome Project. (orig.)

A bibliometric model for identifying emerging research topics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Qi

2018-01-01

–1843, 2015), the most serious problems are the lack of an acknowledged definition of emergence and incomplete elaboration of the linkages between the definitions that are used and the indicators that are created. With these issues in mind, this study first adjusts the definition of an emerging technology...... that Rotolo et al. (2015) have proposed to accommodate the analysis. Next, a set of criteria for the identification of emerging topics is proposed according to the adjusted definition and attributes of emergence. Using two sets of parameter values, several emerging research topics are identified. Finally...

International topical meeting. Research Reactor Fuel Management (RRFM) and meeting of the International Group on Reactor Research (IGORR)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-07-01

Nuclear research and test reactors have been in operation for over 60 years, over 270 research reactors are currently operating in more than 50 countries. This meeting is dedicated to different aspects of research reactor fuels: new fuels for new reactors, the conversion to low enriched uranium fuels, spent fuel management and computational tools for core simulation. About 80 contributions are reported in this document, they are organized into 7 sessions: 1) international topics and overview on new projects and fuel, 2) new projects and upgrades, 3) fuel development, 4) optimisation and research reactor utilisation, 5) innovative methods in research reactors physics, 6) safety, operation and research reactor conversion, 7) fuel back-end management, and a poster session. Experience from Australian, Romanian, Libyan, Syrian, Vietnamese, South-African and Ghana research reactors are reported among other things. The Russian program for research reactor spent fuel management is described and the status of the American-driven program for the conversion to low enriched uranium fuels is presented. (A.C.)

An Investigation of Prioritizing Research Topics in Professional Communication

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Buschagen, Richard

1997-01-01

.... This effort was intended to address possible causes of this problem by establishing the importance of nine research topic areas, six data collection methods/sources, and three data analysis methods...

Current Research in Resistivity Inversion Techniques by the Lab. Of Exploration Geophysics in Thessaloniki, Greece

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsokas, G.N.; Tsourlos, P.

2007-01-01

The current research in various topics of ERT methods is described. The main directions of this research have been imposed by exploration problems met in practice. Therefore, it is aimed towards the construction of reliable, accurate and easy to apply procedures and algorithms

Topic Model for Graph Mining.

Science.gov (United States)

Xuan, Junyu; Lu, Jie; Zhang, Guangquan; Luo, Xiangfeng

2015-12-01

Graph mining has been a popular research area because of its numerous application scenarios. Many unstructured and structured data can be represented as graphs, such as, documents, chemical molecular structures, and images. However, an issue in relation to current research on graphs is that they cannot adequately discover the topics hidden in graph-structured data which can be beneficial for both the unsupervised learning and supervised learning of the graphs. Although topic models have proved to be very successful in discovering latent topics, the standard topic models cannot be directly applied to graph-structured data due to the "bag-of-word" assumption. In this paper, an innovative graph topic model (GTM) is proposed to address this issue, which uses Bernoulli distributions to model the edges between nodes in a graph. It can, therefore, make the edges in a graph contribute to latent topic discovery and further improve the accuracy of the supervised and unsupervised learning of graphs. The experimental results on two different types of graph datasets show that the proposed GTM outperforms the latent Dirichlet allocation on classification by using the unveiled topics of these two models to represent graphs.

Uncovering the Topic Landscape of Product-Service System Research: from Sustainability to Value Creation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hakyeon Lee

2018-03-01

Full Text Available As the product-service system (PSS is considered a promising business model that can create more value for customers, PSS research has enjoyed remarkable growth in its volume and coverage over the last decade. This study aims to delineate the thematic landscape of PSS research by identifying latent topics from a large amount of scholarly data. Ten topics of PSS research are identified by applying the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA model to 1229 PSS publications published between 2000 and 2016. The ten PSS topics are briefly reviewed to provide an overview of what has previously been studied in PSS research. We also investigate which topics rise or fall in popularity by identifying hot and cold topics of PSS research. It is observed that the focus of discussions on the benefits of PSS has shifted from sustainability to value creation. Also, increasing attention has been paid to more practical topics such as PSS implementation. The areas of subspecialty of the top ten PSS journals are also examined to explore the interdisciplinary nature of PSS research and thematic differences across disciplines. The findings of this study can provide rich implications for both academia and practice in the field of PSS.

Research on Quality of Transaction Standards : The Maturity of a Research Topic

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Folmer, E.J.A.; Berends, W.; Oude Luttighuis, P.; Hillegersberg, J. van; Lammers, R.

2010-01-01

This paper contains the results of a systematic literature review executed to determine the coverage of transaction standards in top information systems (IS) and management journals. Specifically, it aims to identify a research gap with respect to this topic. The top 25 journals are thoroughly

Current Research Studies

Science.gov (United States)

... Success Home > Explore Research > Current Research Studies Current Research Studies Email Print + Share The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation ... conducted online. Learn more about IBD Partners. Clinical Research Alliance The Clinical Research Alliance is a network ...

Emergency planning and management in health care: priority research topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, Alan; Chambers, Naomi; French, Simon; Shaw, Duncan; King, Russell; Whitehead, Alison

2014-06-01

Many major incidents have significant impacts on people's health, placing additional demands on health-care organisations. The main aim of this paper is to suggest a prioritised agenda for organisational and management research on emergency planning and management relevant to U.K. health care, based on a scoping study. A secondary aim is to enhance knowledge and understanding of health-care emergency planning among the wider research community, by highlighting key issues and perspectives on the subject and presenting a conceptual model. The study findings have much in common with those of previous U.S.-focused scoping reviews, and with a recent U.K.-based review, confirming the relative paucity of U.K.-based research. No individual research topic scored highly on all of the key measures identified, with communities and organisations appearing to differ about which topics are the most important. Four broad research priorities are suggested: the affected public; inter- and intra-organisational collaboration; preparing responders and their organisations; and prioritisation and decision making.

Animal Research on Nicotine Reduction: Current Evidence and Research Gaps.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Tracy T; Rupprecht, Laura E; Denlinger-Apte, Rachel L; Weeks, Jillian J; Panas, Rachel S; Donny, Eric C; Sved, Alan F

2017-09-01

A mandated reduction in the nicotine content of cigarettes may improve public health by reducing the prevalence of smoking. Animal self-administration research is an important complement to clinical research on nicotine reduction. It can fill research gaps that may be difficult to address with clinical research, guide clinical researchers about variables that are likely to be important in their own research, and provide policy makers with converging evidence between clinical and preclinical studies about the potential impact of a nicotine reduction policy. Convergence between clinical and preclinical research is important, given the ease with which clinical trial participants can access nonstudy tobacco products in the current marketplace. Herein, we review contributions of preclinical animal research, with a focus on rodent self-administration, to the science of nicotine reduction. Throughout this review, we highlight areas where clinical and preclinical research converge and areas where the two differ. Preclinical research has provided data on many important topics such as the threshold for nicotine reinforcement, the likelihood of compensation, moderators of the impact of nicotine reduction, the impact of environmental stimuli on nicotine reduction, the impact of nonnicotine cigarette smoke constituents on nicotine reduction, and the impact of nicotine reduction on vulnerable populations. Special attention is paid to current research gaps including the dramatic rise in alternative tobacco products, including electronic nicotine delivery systems (ie, e-cigarettes). The evidence reviewed here will be critical for policy makers as well as clinical researchers interested in nicotine reduction. This review will provide policy makers and clinical researchers interested in nicotine reduction with an overview of the preclinical animal research conducted on nicotine reduction and the regulatory implications of that research. The review also highlights the utility of

Proceedings of first SWCR-KURRI academic seminar on research reactors and related research topics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Itsuro; Cong, Zhebao

1986-01-01

These are the proceedings of an academic seminar on research reactors and related research topics held at the Southwest Centre for Reactor Engineering Research and Design in Chengdu, Sichuan, People's Republic of China in September 24-26 in 1985. Included are the chairmen's addresses and 10 papers presented at the seminar in English. The titles of these papers are: (1) Nuclear Safety and Safeguards, (2) General Review of Thorium Research in Japanese Universities, (3) Comprehensive Utilization and Economic Analysis of the High Flux Engineering Test Reactor, (4) Present States of Applied Health Physics in Japan, (5) Neutron Radiography with Kyoto University Reactor, (6) Topics of Experimental Works with Kyoto University Reactor, (7) Integral Check of Nuclear Data for Reactor Structural Materials, (8) The Reactor Core, Physical Experiments and the Operation Safety Regulation of the Zero Energy Thermal Reactor for PWR Nuclear Power Plant, (9) HFETR Core Physical Parameters at Power, (10) Physical Consideration for Loads of Operated Ten Cycles in HFETR. (author)

Quantum mechanics II advanced topics

CERN Document Server

Rajasekar, S

2015-01-01

Quantum Mechanics II: Advanced Topics uses more than a decade of research and the authors’ own teaching experience to expound on some of the more advanced topics and current research in quantum mechanics. A follow-up to the authors introductory book Quantum Mechanics I: The Fundamentals, this book begins with a chapter on quantum field theory, and goes on to present basic principles, key features, and applications. It outlines recent quantum technologies and phenomena, and introduces growing topics of interest in quantum mechanics. The authors describe promising applications that include ghost imaging, detection of weak amplitude objects, entangled two-photon microscopy, detection of small displacements, lithography, metrology, and teleportation of optical images. They also present worked-out examples and provide numerous problems at the end of each chapter.

Agriculture for improved nutrition: the current research landscape.

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, Rachel; Hawkes, Corinna; Jeff, Waage; Ferguson, Elaine; Haseen, Farhana; Homans, Hilary; Hussein, Julia; Johnston, Deborah; Marais, Debbi; McNeill, Geraldine; Shankar, Bhavani

2013-12-01

Concern about food security and its effect on persistent undernutrition has increased interest in how agriculture could be used to improve nutritional outcomes in developing countries. Yet the evidence base for the impact of agricultural interventions targeted at improved nutrition is currently poor. To map the extent and nature of current and planned research on agriculture for improved nutrition in order to identify gaps where more research might be useful. The research, which was conducted from April to August 2012, involved developing a conceptual framework linking agriculture and nutrition, identifying relevant research projects and programs, devising and populating a "template" with details of the research projects in relation to the conceptual framework, classifying the projects, and conducting a gap analysis. The study identified a large number of research projects covering a broad range of themes and topics. There was a strong geographic focus on sub-Saharan Africa, and many studies were explicitly concerned with nutritional impacts on women and children. Although the study revealed a diverse and growing body of research, it also identified research gaps. Few projects consider the entire evidence chain linking agricultural input or practice to nutritional outcomes. There is comparatively little current research on indirect effects of agriculture on nutrition, or the effect of policies or governance, rather than technical interventions. Most research is focused on undernutrition and small farmer households, and few studies target consumers generally, urban populations, or nutrition-related non-communicable diseases. There is very little work on the cost-effectiveness of agricultural interventions. On the basis of these findings, we make suggestions for research investment and for broader engagement of researchers and disciplines in developing approaches to design and evaluate agricultural programs for improved nutrition.

Safety of research reactors. Topical issues paper no. 4

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alcala-Ruiz, F.; Ferraz-Bastos, J.L.; Kim, S.C.; Voth, M.; Boeck, H.; Dimeglio, F.; Litai, D.

2001-01-01

topic is timely and important because a large number of research reactors currently face not only these concerns but also the problem of spent fuel disposal following completion of the current US take-back programme, and the Russian take-back programme which is expected to commence in the near future. Many countries will need to make decisions soon concerning the future of their reactors to take advantage of these spent fuel options

Risk to researchers in qualitative research on sensitive topics: issues and strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Dickson-Swift, Virginia; James, Erica L; Kippen, Sandra; Liamputtong, Pranee

2008-01-01

Traditionally, risk assessments in research have been limited to examining the risks to the research participants. Although doing so is appropriate and important, there is growing recognition that undertaking research can pose risks to researchers as well. A grounded theory study involving a range of researchers who had undertaken qualitative health research on a sensitive topic was completed. Analysis of the in-depth, face-to-face unstructured individual interviews with 30 Australian public health researchers provided evidence that researchers do confront a number of physical and emotional risks when undertaking research. Training, preparation, and supervision must be taken into account so that the risk to researchers can be minimized. Researchers need to consider occupational health and safety issues in designing research projects that deal with physical and emotional risks. Recommendations for professional supervision, policy development, and minimum training standards for researchers are provided.

Recreational 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine or 'ecstasy': Current perspective and future research prospects.

Science.gov (United States)

Parrott, Andrew C; Downey, Luke A; Roberts, Carl A; Montgomery, Cathy; Bruno, Raimondo; Fox, Helen C

2017-08-01

The purpose of this article is to debate current understandings about the psychobiological effects of recreational 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or 'ecstasy'), and recommend theoretically-driven topics for future research. Recent empirical findings, especially those from novel topic areas were reviewed. Potential causes for the high variance often found in group findings were also examined. The first empirical reports into psychobiological and psychiatric aspects from the early 1990s concluded that regular users demonstrated some selective psychobiological deficits, for instance worse declarative memory, or heightened depression. More recent research has covered a far wider range of psychobiological functions, and deficits have emerged in aspects of vision, higher cognitive skill, neurohormonal functioning, and foetal developmental outcomes. However, variance levels are often high, indicating that while some recreational users develop problems, others are less affected. Potential reasons for this high variance are debated. An explanatory model based on multi-factorial causation is then proposed. A number of theoretically driven research topics are suggested, in order to empirically investigate the potential causes for these diverse psychobiological deficits. Future neuroimaging studies should study the practical implications of any serotonergic and/or neurohormonal changes, using a wide range of functional measures.

Academic Users' Information Searching on Research Topics: Characteristics of Research Tasks and Search Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Jia Tina; Evans, Nina

2011-01-01

This project investigated how academic users search for information on their real-life research tasks. This article presents the findings of the first of two studies. The study data were collected in the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) in Brisbane, Australia. Eleven PhD students' searching behaviors on personal research topics were…

CYBERQUEER – MAJOR TOPICS AND ISSUES IN CURRENT RESEARCH

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SIMONA RODAT

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The emergence of the opportunities opened by the internet raises also questions of interest for research regarding the extent to which these have an impact on the formations of non heterosexual life and on the experience of marginalised sexual identities. There have been different approaches in this regard and answers vary from optimistic and utopian appraisals concerning cyberspace in the early 90s to the more moderate and sceptic visions in the 2000s. Starting from this framework of debates, the present paper aims to explore the meaning of the term “cyberqueer”, including the theoretical context of its occurrence, to briefly highlight some critical considerations relating to cyberqueer research and to look over the main recurrent themes linked up with this concept, such as queer and cyberqueer identity, body and (disembodied practices and the forthcoming process of blurring the dividing boundaries between real/virtual, online/offline and public/private

Current Research in Southeast Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Beh, Yolanda

1990-01-01

Summaries of eight language-related research projects are presented from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Topics include children's reading, nonstandard spoken Indonesian, English speech act performance, classroom verbal interaction, journal writing, and listening comprehension. (LB)

An Analysis of Research Topics within a Community : the Example of Knowledge Science

OpenAIRE

NIE, Kun; JI, Zhe; NAKAMORI, Yoshiteru

2007-01-01

This Paper presents a new approach how to analyze research topics within a given research community. Under the guidance of the I-system methodology, this paper conducts both top-down and bottom-up analysis. For the bottom-up analysis, similarity measurement and hierarchical clustering are applied to obtain a tree-like dendrogram structure of research topics; for the top-down analysis, the experts' knowledge is included. Then resulting from the iterative dialogue between the above two stages o...

Current status of topical antiretroviral chemoprophylaxis.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Damme, Lut; Szpir, Michael

2012-11-01

Recent studies suggest that the vaginal delivery of antiretroviral (ARV) agents - such as tenofovir, dapivirine and UC781 - may be a promising way to reduce the high rates of HIV infection among women in developing countries. This review examines these developments. The Microbicide Trials Network 003 study, a large phase IIb trial, was unable to show that daily dosing with 1% tenofovir vaginal gel was effective for HIV prevention. Nevertheless, preclinical and early-phase clinical trials suggest that ARV drugs - formulated in vaginal gels, rings, films, tablets and diaphragms - could be effective for HIV chemoprophylaxis. Investigations of topical chemoprophylaxis methods have seen mixed results in the past 12-18 months. Product adherence may prove to be one of the field's greatest challenges. Phase II and III trials continue to explore different dosing strategies for topical products that contain one or more ARV agents.

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-08-01

This report provides industry with procedures for submitting topical reports, guidance on how the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) processes and responds to topical report submittals, and an accounting, with review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review by the NRC. This report will be published annually. Each sponsoring organization with one or more topical reports accepted for review copies

Semantic Web research anno 2006 : Main streams, popular fallacies, current status and future challenges

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Harmelen, Frank

2006-01-01

In this topical paper we try to give an analysis and overview of the current state of Semantic Web research. We point to different interpretations of the Semantic Web as the reason underlying many controversies, we list (and debunk) four false objections which are often raised against the Semantic

Current Research in Southeast Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Beh, Yolanda

1992-01-01

Summaries of eight language-related research projects are presented from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Topics include a sociolinguistic profile, teacher and learner views of language lessons, Malay-accented English and employability, reading difficulties, language culture disjunction, placement interviews, and…

Current Research in Southeast Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Beh, Yolanda

1991-01-01

Summaries of seven language-related research projects are presented from Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Topics include a lexicon of Kelabit, cognitive theory for second-language acquisition, academic writing in Filipino, cultural politics of English instruction, use of conjunctions, and communicative grammar. (LB)

Current Research in Southeast Asia.

Science.gov (United States)

Beh, Yolanda

1991-01-01

Summaries of five language-related research projects are presented from Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Topics include teaching/learning Bahasa Malaysia; English-language programs in Malaysian teacher education colleges; interlanguage variability in verbs; reading/writing theories; and cross-cultural strategies and English in written business…

Mapping the Landscape of Emerging Research Topics in Supply Chain Management

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wieland, Andreas; Handfield, Robert B.; Durach, Christian F.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this article is to identify research topics that are emerging in the field of supply chain management [SCM]. The analysis is based on survey data collected from leading SCM researchers. It is found that big data analytics, sustainability, risk management, health care, emerging mark...

[Current topics on cancer biology and research strategies for anti-cancer traditional Chinese medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xiu-ping; Tang, Zheng-hai; Shi, Zhe; Lu, Jin-jian; Su, Huan-xing; Chen, Xin; Wang, Yi-tao

2015-09-01

Cancer, an abnormal cell proliferation resulted from multi-factors,has the highest morbidity and mortality among all the serious diseases. Considerable progress has been made in cancer biology in recent years. Tumor immunology, cancer stem cells (CSCs), autophagy, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) have become hot topics of interests in this area. Detailed dissection of these biological processes will provide novel directions, targets, and strategies for the pharmacological evaluation, mechanism elucidation, and new drug development of traditional Chinese medicine.

Machine Learning-Based Classification of 38 Years of Spine-Related Literature Into 100 Research Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Sing, David C; Metz, Lionel N; Dudli, Stefan

2017-06-01

Retrospective review. To identify the top 100 spine research topics. Recent advances in "machine learning," or computers learning without explicit instructions, have yielded broad technological advances. Topic modeling algorithms can be applied to large volumes of text to discover quantifiable themes and trends. Abstracts were extracted from the National Library of Medicine PubMed database from five prominent peer-reviewed spine journals (European Spine Journal [ESJ], The Spine Journal [SpineJ], Spine, Journal of Spinal Disorders and Techniques [JSDT], Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine [JNS]). Each abstract was entered into a latent Dirichlet allocation model specified to discover 100 topics, resulting in each abstract being assigned a probability of belonging in a topic. Topics were named using the five most frequently appearing terms within that topic. Significance of increasing ("hot") or decreasing ("cold") topic popularity over time was evaluated with simple linear regression. From 1978 to 2015, 25,805 spine-related research articles were extracted and classified into 100 topics. Top two most published topics included "clinical, surgeons, guidelines, information, care" (n = 496 articles) and "pain, back, low, treatment, chronic" (424). Top two hot trends included "disc, cervical, replacement, level, arthroplasty" (+0.05%/yr, P < 0.001), and "minimally, invasive, approach, technique" (+0.05%/yr, P < 0.001). By journal, the most published topics were ESJ-"operative, surgery, postoperative, underwent, preoperative"; SpineJ-"clinical, surgeons, guidelines, information, care"; Spine-"pain, back, low, treatment, chronic"; JNS- "tumor, lesions, rare, present, diagnosis"; JSDT-"cervical, anterior, plate, fusion, ACDF." Topics discovered through latent Dirichlet allocation modeling represent unbiased meaningful themes relevant to spine care. Topic dynamics can provide historical context and direction for future research for aspiring investigators and trainees

Lecture Notes on Topics in Accelerator Physics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chao, Alex W.

2002-01-01

These are lecture notes that cover a selection of topics, some of them under current research, in accelerator physics. I try to derive the results from first principles, although the students are assumed to have an introductory knowledge of the basics. The topics covered are: (1) Panofsky-Wenzel and Planar Wake Theorems; (2) Echo Effect; (3) Crystalline Beam; (4) Fast Ion Instability; (5) Lawson-Woodward Theorem and Laser Acceleration in Free Space; (6) Spin Dynamics and Siberian Snakes; (7) Symplectic Approximation of Maps; (8) Truncated Power Series Algebra; and (9) Lie Algebra Technique for nonlinear Dynamics. The purpose of these lectures is not to elaborate, but to prepare the students so that they can do their own research. Each topic can be read independently of the others

Lecture Notes on Topics in Accelerator Physics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chao, Alex W.

2002-11-15

These are lecture notes that cover a selection of topics, some of them under current research, in accelerator physics. I try to derive the results from first principles, although the students are assumed to have an introductory knowledge of the basics. The topics covered are: (1) Panofsky-Wenzel and Planar Wake Theorems; (2) Echo Effect; (3) Crystalline Beam; (4) Fast Ion Instability; (5) Lawson-Woodward Theorem and Laser Acceleration in Free Space; (6) Spin Dynamics and Siberian Snakes; (7) Symplectic Approximation of Maps; (8) Truncated Power Series Algebra; and (9) Lie Algebra Technique for nonlinear Dynamics. The purpose of these lectures is not to elaborate, but to prepare the students so that they can do their own research. Each topic can be read independently of the others.

Human memory research: Current hypotheses and new perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antônio Jaeger

Full Text Available Abstract Research on human memory has increased significantly in the last few decades. Inconsistencies and controversies inherent to such research, however, are rarely articulated on published reports. The goal of the present article is to present and discuss a series of open questions related to major topics on human memory research that can be addressed by future research. The topics covered here are visual working memory, recognition memory, emotion and memory interaction, and methodological issues of false memories studies. Overall, the present work reveals a series of open questions and alternative analysis which could be useful for the process of hypothesis generation, and consequently for the design and implementation of future research on human memory.

Food reward system: current perspectives and future research needs.

Science.gov (United States)

Alonso-Alonso, Miguel; Woods, Stephen C; Pelchat, Marcia; Grigson, Patricia Sue; Stice, Eric; Farooqi, Sadaf; Khoo, Chor San; Mattes, Richard D; Beauchamp, Gary K

2015-05-01

This article reviews current research and cross-disciplinary perspectives on the neuroscience of food reward in animals and humans, examines the scientific hypothesis of food addiction, discusses methodological and terminology challenges, and identifies knowledge gaps and future research needs. Topics addressed herein include the role of reward and hedonic aspects in the regulation of food intake, neuroanatomy and neurobiology of the reward system in animals and humans, responsivity of the brain reward system to palatable foods and drugs, translation of craving versus addiction, and cognitive control of food reward. The content is based on a workshop held in 2013 by the North American Branch of the International Life Sciences Institute. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the International Life Sciences Institute.

Advanced alarm system design and human performance: Guidance development and current research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O` Hara, J M [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)

1997-09-01

This paper describes a research program sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to address the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of nuclear power plant alarm systems. The overall objective of the program is to develop HFE review guidance for advanced alarm systems. Guidance has been developed based on a broad base of technical and research literature. As part of the development effort, aspects of alarm system design for which the technical basis was insufficient to support guidance development were identified and prioritized. Research is currently underway to address the highest priority topics: alarm processing and display characteristics. (author). 29 refs, 2 figs.

Advanced alarm system design and human performance: Guidance development and current research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Hara, J.M.

1997-01-01

This paper describes a research program sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to address the human factors engineering (HFE) aspects of nuclear power plant alarm systems. The overall objective of the program is to develop HFE review guidance for advanced alarm systems. Guidance has been developed based on a broad base of technical and research literature. As part of the development effort, aspects of alarm system design for which the technical basis was insufficient to support guidance development were identified and prioritized. Research is currently underway to address the highest priority topics: alarm processing and display characteristics. (author). 29 refs, 2 figs

Chemistry {ampersand} Materials Science progress report summary of selected research and development topics, FY97

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Newkirk, L.

1997-12-01

This report contains summaries of research performed in the Chemistry and Materials Science division. Topics include Metals and Ceramics, High Explosives, Organic Synthesis, Instrument Development, and other topics.

Energy Drinks: Topical Domain in the Emerging Literature and Neglected Areas of Research

Science.gov (United States)

Piotrowski, Chris

2014-01-01

Prevalence statistics indicate that consumption of Energy drinks (EDs), often in combination with alcohol, is quite popular in the younger generation and particularly with college students. As literature on this topic is advancing at a rapid pace, it seemed instructive to examine which topics are emphasized in emerging EDs research. To that end, a…

Visualized analysis of developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Shi; Cheng, Changxiu; Yang, Jing; Yang, Shanli

2018-01-01

This study visualized and analyzed the developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research. 19694 natural disaster-related articles (January 1900 to June 2015) are indexed in the Web of Science database. The first step in this study is using complex networks to visualize and analyze these articles. CiteSpace and Gephi were employed to generate a countries collaboration network and a disciplines collaboration network, and then attached hot topics to countries and disciplines, respectively. The results show that USA, China, and Italy are the three major contributors to natural disaster research. "Prediction model", "social vulnerability", and "landslide inventory map" are three hot topics in recent years. They have attracted attention not only from large countries like China but also from small countries like Panama and Turkey. Comparing two hybrid networks provides details of natural disaster research. Scientists from USA and China use image data to research earthquakes. Indonesia and Germany collaboratively study tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. However, Indonesian studies focus on modeling and simulations, while German research focuses on early warning technology. This study also introduces an activity index (AI) and an attractive index (AAI) to generate time evolution trajectories of some major countries from 2000 to 2013 and evaluate their trends and performance. Four patterns of evolution are visible during this 14-year period. China and India show steadily rising contributions and impacts, USA and England show relatively decreasing research efforts and impacts, Japan and Australia show fluctuating activities and stable attraction, and Spain and Germany show fluctuating activities and increasing impacts.

Visualized analysis of developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shi Shen

Full Text Available This study visualized and analyzed the developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research. 19694 natural disaster-related articles (January 1900 to June 2015 are indexed in the Web of Science database. The first step in this study is using complex networks to visualize and analyze these articles. CiteSpace and Gephi were employed to generate a countries collaboration network and a disciplines collaboration network, and then attached hot topics to countries and disciplines, respectively. The results show that USA, China, and Italy are the three major contributors to natural disaster research. "Prediction model", "social vulnerability", and "landslide inventory map" are three hot topics in recent years. They have attracted attention not only from large countries like China but also from small countries like Panama and Turkey. Comparing two hybrid networks provides details of natural disaster research. Scientists from USA and China use image data to research earthquakes. Indonesia and Germany collaboratively study tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. However, Indonesian studies focus on modeling and simulations, while German research focuses on early warning technology. This study also introduces an activity index (AI and an attractive index (AAI to generate time evolution trajectories of some major countries from 2000 to 2013 and evaluate their trends and performance. Four patterns of evolution are visible during this 14-year period. China and India show steadily rising contributions and impacts, USA and England show relatively decreasing research efforts and impacts, Japan and Australia show fluctuating activities and stable attraction, and Spain and Germany show fluctuating activities and increasing impacts.

Visualized analysis of developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Shi; Cheng, Changxiu; Yang, Jing; Yang, Shanli

2018-01-01

This study visualized and analyzed the developing trends and hot topics in natural disaster research. 19694 natural disaster-related articles (January 1900 to June 2015) are indexed in the Web of Science database. The first step in this study is using complex networks to visualize and analyze these articles. CiteSpace and Gephi were employed to generate a countries collaboration network and a disciplines collaboration network, and then attached hot topics to countries and disciplines, respectively. The results show that USA, China, and Italy are the three major contributors to natural disaster research. “Prediction model”, “social vulnerability”, and “landslide inventory map” are three hot topics in recent years. They have attracted attention not only from large countries like China but also from small countries like Panama and Turkey. Comparing two hybrid networks provides details of natural disaster research. Scientists from USA and China use image data to research earthquakes. Indonesia and Germany collaboratively study tsunamis in the Indian Ocean. However, Indonesian studies focus on modeling and simulations, while German research focuses on early warning technology. This study also introduces an activity index (AI) and an attractive index (AAI) to generate time evolution trajectories of some major countries from 2000 to 2013 and evaluate their trends and performance. Four patterns of evolution are visible during this 14-year period. China and India show steadily rising contributions and impacts, USA and England show relatively decreasing research efforts and impacts, Japan and Australia show fluctuating activities and stable attraction, and Spain and Germany show fluctuating activities and increasing impacts. PMID:29351350

Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Arbaugh, J. B.; Fornaciari, Charles J.; Hwang, Alvin

2016-01-01

Although the volume of business and management education (BME) research has expanded substantially, concerns remain about the field's legitimacy and its ability to attract new and dedicated scholars. An obstacle that may impede field development is lack of knowledge about influential works and authors to frame topical areas of inquiry and future…

Summary of SMIRT20 Preconference Topical Workshop - Identifying Structural Issues in Advanced Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richins, William; Novascone, Stephen; O'Brien, Cheryl

2009-01-01

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL, USA) and IASMiRT sponsored an international forum Nov 5-6, 2008 in Porvoo, Finland for nuclear industry, academic, and regulatory representatives to identify structural issues in current and future advanced reactor design, especially for extreme conditions and external threats. The purpose of this Topical Workshop was to articulate research, engineering, and regulatory Code development needs. The topics addressed by the Workshop were selected to address critical industry needs specific to advanced reactor structures that have long lead times and can be the subject of future SMiRT technical sessions. The topics were; (1) structural/materials needs for extreme conditions and external threats in contemporary (Gen. III) and future (Gen. IV and NGNP) advanced reactors and (2) calibrating simulation software and methods that address topic 1. The workshop discussions and research needs identified are presented. The Workshop successfully produced interactive discussion on the two topics resulting in a list of research and technology needs. It is recommended that IASMiRT communicate the results of the discussion to industry and researchers to encourage new ideas and projects. In addition, opportunities exist to retrieve research reports and information that currently exists, and encourage more international cooperation and collaboration. It is recommended that IASMiRT continue with an off-year workshop series on select topics.

Regulatory cross-cutting topics for fuel cycle facilities.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Denman, Matthew R.; Brown, Jason; Goldmann, Andrew Scott; Louie, David

2013-10-01

This report overviews crosscutting regulatory topics for nuclear fuel cycle facilities for use in the Fuel Cycle Research & Development Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation and Screening study. In particular, the regulatory infrastructure and analysis capability is assessed for the following topical areas: Fire Regulations (i.e., how applicable are current Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and/or International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) fire regulations to advance fuel cycle facilities) Consequence Assessment (i.e., how applicable are current radionuclide transportation tools to support risk-informed regulations and Level 2 and/or 3 PRA) While not addressed in detail, the following regulatory topic is also discussed: Integrated Security, Safeguard and Safety Requirement (i.e., how applicable are current Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) regulations to future fuel cycle facilities which will likely be required to balance the sometimes conflicting Material Accountability, Security, and Safety requirements.)

Current cancer research. Reports from the German Cancer Research Center 1998

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

Topics from the Contents: The Fight against Cancer in Germany - A Critical Review. Conditions and Structures in Research. Familial Breast Cancer - A Critical Assessment. Research without Animal Experiments. Cancer Prevention. New Approaches for Tumor Therapy. Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer. Therapy of Brain Tumors with Laser Neurosurgery. The Genome Project. (orig.) [de

Environmental Justice Research: Contemporary Issues and Emerging Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Chakraborty, Jayajit; Collins, Timothy W; Grineski, Sara E

2016-11-01

Environmental justice (EJ) research seeks to document and redress the disproportionate environmental burdens and benefits associated with social inequalities. Although its initial focus was on disparities in exposure to anthropogenic pollution, the scope of EJ research has expanded. In the context of intensifying social inequalities and environmental problems, there is a need to further strengthen the EJ research framework and diversify its application. This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) incorporates 19 articles that broaden EJ research by considering emerging topics such as energy, food, drinking water, flooding, sustainability, and gender dynamics, including issues in Canada, the UK, and Eastern Europe. Additionally, the articles contribute to three research themes: (1) documenting connections between unjust environmental exposures and health impacts by examining unsafe infrastructure, substance use, and children's obesity and academic performance; (2) promoting and achieving EJ by implementing interventions to improve environmental knowledge and health, identifying avenues for sustainable community change, and incorporating EJ metrics in government programs; and (3) clarifying stakeholder perceptions of EJ issues to extend research beyond the documentation of unjust conditions and processes. Collectively, the articles highlight potentially compounding injustices and an array of approaches being employed to achieve EJ.

Environmental Justice Research: Contemporary Issues and Emerging Topics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jayajit Chakraborty

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Environmental justice (EJ research seeks to document and redress the disproportionate environmental burdens and benefits associated with social inequalities. Although its initial focus was on disparities in exposure to anthropogenic pollution, the scope of EJ research has expanded. In the context of intensifying social inequalities and environmental problems, there is a need to further strengthen the EJ research framework and diversify its application. This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH incorporates 19 articles that broaden EJ research by considering emerging topics such as energy, food, drinking water, flooding, sustainability, and gender dynamics, including issues in Canada, the UK, and Eastern Europe. Additionally, the articles contribute to three research themes: (1 documenting connections between unjust environmental exposures and health impacts by examining unsafe infrastructure, substance use, and children’s obesity and academic performance; (2 promoting and achieving EJ by implementing interventions to improve environmental knowledge and health, identifying avenues for sustainable community change, and incorporating EJ metrics in government programs; and (3 clarifying stakeholder perceptions of EJ issues to extend research beyond the documentation of unjust conditions and processes. Collectively, the articles highlight potentially compounding injustices and an array of approaches being employed to achieve EJ.

Topical anti-infective sinonasal irrigations: update and literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jivianne T; Chiu, Alexander G

2014-01-01

Sinonasal anti-infective irrigations have emerged as a promising therapeutic modality in the comprehensive management of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), particularly in the context of recalcitrant disease. The purpose of this article was to delineate the current spectrum of topical anti-infective therapies available and evaluate their role in the treatment of CRS. A systematic literature review was performed on all studies investigating the use of topical antimicrobial solutions in the medical therapy of CRS. Anti-infective irrigations were stratified into topical antibacterial, antifungal, and additive preparations according to their composition and respective microbicidal properties. The use of topical antibiotic irrigations has been supported by low-level studies in the treatment of refractory CRS, with optimal results achieved in patients who have undergone prior functional endoscopic sinus surgery and received culture-directed therapy. Multiple evidence-based reviews have not established any clinical benefit with the administration of topical antifungals, and their use is not currently recommended in the management of routine CRS. Topical additives including surfactants may be beneficial as adjunctive treatment for recalcitrant CRS, but additional research is needed to investigate their efficacy in comparison with other agents and establish safety profiles. Topical anti-infective solutions are not recommended as first-line therapy for routine CRS but may be considered as a potential option for patients with refractory CRS who have failed traditional medical and surgical intervention. Additional research is necessary to determine which patient populations would derive the most benefit from each respective irrigation regimen and identify potential toxicities associated with prolonged use.

To What Extent Does Current Scientific Research and Textbook Content Align? A Methodology and Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Bierema, Andrea M.-K.; Schwartz, Renee S.; Gill, Sharon A.

2017-01-01

Recent calls for reform in education recommend science curricula to be based on central ideas instead of a larger number of topics and for alignment between current scientific research and curricula. Because alignment is rarely studied, especially for central ideas, we developed a methodology to discover the extent of alignment between primary…

Selected Topics on Business Informatics Research: Editorial Introduction to Issue 6 of CSIMQ

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabrizio Maria Maggi

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Business informatics research bridges management and engineering domains and facilitates communication between scientific and practical applications. The sixth issue of the journal of Complex Systems Informatics and Modeling Quarterly contains four publications that present the extended papers from the workshops of the 14th International Conference on Perspectives in Business Informatics Research (BIR 2015 that was organized in Tartu, Estonia, 26-28 August, 2015. The BIR 2015 workshops captured important and novel topics on information logistics and knowledge supply, security and compliance in business processes, and use of ontologies in information systems. Within this context the fifth publication included in this issue complements the topic of the business informatics research with the investigation of a model-driven approach on the gesture-based interaction in information systems.

Current Topics in Canine and Feline Obesity.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamper, Beth

2016-09-01

The domestication and urbanization of dogs and cats has dramatically altered their environment and behavior. Human and pet obesity is a global concern, particularly in developed countries. An increased incidence of chronic disease is associated with obesity secondary to low-grade systemic inflammation. This article reviews current research into the genetic, dietary, and physiologic factors associated with obesity, along with use of "omics" technology to better understand and characterize this disease. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Exploring Current Issues through the Hot Topics Poster

Science.gov (United States)

Nisbett, Nancy

2012-01-01

This paper describes a research paper and poster assignment used in an undergraduate leisure and human behavior course. The intent of this learning activity is to increase student knowledge of current issues within the industry as well as to enhance students' professional communication skills. A description of the assignment is shared along with…

Leadership: current theories, research, and future directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Avolio, Bruce J; Walumbwa, Fred O; Weber, Todd J

2009-01-01

This review examines recent theoretical and empirical developments in the leadership literature, beginning with topics that are currently receiving attention in terms of research, theory, and practice. We begin by examining authentic leadership and its development, followed by work that takes a cognitive science approach. We then examine new-genre leadership theories, complexity leadership, and leadership that is shared, collective, or distributed. We examine the role of relationships through our review of leader member exchange and the emerging work on followership. Finally, we examine work that has been done on substitutes for leadership, servant leadership, spirituality and leadership, cross-cultural leadership, and e-leadership. This structure has the benefit of creating a future focus as well as providing an interesting way to examine the development of the field. Each section ends with an identification of issues to be addressed in the future, in addition to the overall integration of the literature we provide at the end of the article.

Recent topics in nonlinear PDE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mimura, Masayasu; Nishida, Takaaki

1984-01-01

The meeting on the subject of nonlinear partial differential equations was held at Hiroshima University in February, 1983. Leading and active mathematicians were invited to talk on their current research interests in nonlinear pdes occuring in the areas of fluid dynamics, free boundary problems, population dynamics and mathematical physics. This volume contains the theory of nonlinear pdes and the related topics which have been recently developed in Japan. (Auth.)

[Research priorities and research topics for cardiovascular nursing: the Swiss Research Agenda for Nursing].

Science.gov (United States)

Mahrer-Imhof, Romy; Imhof, Lorenz

2008-12-01

Cardiovascular diseases are worldwide a major challenge for the health care system and the number one reason for premature mortality and lost life years. Many accomplishments to reduce risk factors and improve treatment in acute and chronic disease and rehabilitation have been initiated by medical research but were also embraced by nursing research, which provided valuable knowledge about supporting risk factor modification and patients' self-management. Nursing research in the cardiovascular field has a long tradition in the US. In Europe cardiovascular nursing research also developed over the past decade, with increasing participation of Swiss nurse researchers. Efforts in this field of cardiovascular nursing have been made to convey projects in nursing research that help to enhance the health of the population sustainably and improve well-being in patients with acute and chronic courses of cardiovascular disease. Scientific knowledge is pivotal in developing evidence-based nursing interventions. Since both the German and the French speaking part of Switzerland have been lacking a literature-based and expert-supported agenda for nursing research, the aim of the Swiss Research Agenda for Nursing (SRAN) project was to develop an agenda providing researchers, funding agencies, and politics with orientation. This article takes the seven priorities of the SRAN project and links them to the topics of risk factor modification, rehabilitation programs, self-care, and patient education. The article presents the first agenda for cardiovascular nursing for the years 2007 to 2017. The agenda will serve to develop an action plan and to promote nursing research projects in the field of cardiovascular nursing in Switzerland.

Topical vs. systemic treatments for acute otitis media.

Science.gov (United States)

Thornton, Kathy; Parrish, Francie; Swords, Christine

2011-01-01

Acute otitis media (AOM) is a common condition in children that is often treated with systemic antibiotic therapy; however, research suggests that non-complicated AOM will resolve spontaneously using only eardrops. To determine best practice for the use of systematic antibiotics compared to topical treatment of AOM, a systematic review of evidence was conducted. Cochrane, Medline, CINAHL, and other databases were searched. Inclusion criteria were studies published from 1995-2010 that included children with AOM and were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Five systematic reviews and five RCTs were included in the review. Current evidence recommends using topical and other alternative approaches for treating non-complicated AOM in children 2 years of age or older; however, many practitioners are not currently following these recommendations for various reasons. Additional research to address these reasons may help determine how to improve practitioner adherence to best practice evidence and guidelines to help reduce the unnecessary use of systemic antibiotics.

Economic Education within the BME Research Community: Rejoinder to "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory"

Science.gov (United States)

Asarta, Carlos J.

2016-01-01

Carlos Asarta comments here that Arbaugh, Fornaciari, and Hwang (2016) are to be commended for their work ("Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory" "Journal of Management Education," Dec 2016, see EJ1118407). Asarta says that they make several…

ENS RRFM 2005: 9th international topical meeting on research reactor fuel management. Transactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

The ENS topical meeting on research reactor fuel management is an annual conference launched successfully in 1997. It has since then grown into well established international forum for the exchange and expertise on all significant aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle of research reactors. Oral presentations at this meeting were divided in the following four sessions: International Topics; Fuel Development, Qualification, Fabrication and Licensing; Reactor Operation, Fuel Safety and Core Conversion; Spent Fuel Management, Back-end Options, Transportation. The three poster sessions were devoted to fuel development, qualification, fabrication and licensing; reactor operation, fuel safety, core conversion, spent fuel; spent fuel management, fuel cycle back-end options, transportation

New guidelines for topical NSAIDs in the osteoarthritis treatment paradigm.

Science.gov (United States)

Altman, Roy D

2010-12-01

Osteoarthritis (OA), the most common form of arthritis, often affects hands, hips, and knees and involves an estimated 26.9 million US adults. Women have a higher prevalence of OA, and the risk of developing OA increases with age, obesity, and joint malalignment. OA typically presents with pain and reduced function. Therapeutic programs are often multimodal and must take into account pharmaceutical toxicities and patient comorbidities. For example, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are associated with cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and renal adverse events. Topical NSAIDs offer efficacy with reduced systemic drug exposure. This is a review of current guideline recommendations regarding the use of topical NSAIDs in OA of the hand and knee. Articles were identified by PubMed search (January 1, 2000 to May 21, 2010). Several current guidelines for management of OA recommend topical NSAIDs, indicating them as a safe and effective treatment. One guideline recommends that topical NSAIDs be considered as first-line pharmacologic therapy. A US guideline for knee OA recommends topical NSAIDs in older patients and in patients with increased gastrointestinal risk. The consensus across US and European OA guidelines is that topical NSAIDs are a safe and effective treatment for OA. Because the research base on topical NSAIDs for OA is small, guidelines will continue to evolve.

An overview of current research on EU ETS: Evidence from its operating mechanism and economic effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Yue-Jun; Wei, Yi-Ming

2010-01-01

The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is supposed to be an important mechanism for addressing climate change. Up to now, the theoretical foundation of EU ETS has been widely acknowledged, but empirical research on its current situation has only been published recently or is forthcoming. Therefore, this paper is aimed to summarize the main arguments of empirical studies on the EU ETS, in terms of two aspects, i.e., the operating mechanism and economic effect of the EU ETS, which are two crucial topics and have been attached much attention. Based on the shortcomings of current research and future requirements of the EU ETS evolution, finally, we also present some further directions of the EU ETS research. Overall, the research overview here may be helpful to recognize the features of the EU ETS and its effect on others. (author)

Where Is Current Research on Blockchain Technology?-A Systematic Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Yli-Huumo, Jesse; Ko, Deokyoon; Choi, Sujin; Park, Sooyong; Smolander, Kari

2016-01-01

Blockchain is a decentralized transaction and data management technology developed first for Bitcoin cryptocurrency. The interest in Blockchain technology has been increasing since the idea was coined in 2008. The reason for the interest in Blockchain is its central attributes that provide security, anonymity and data integrity without any third party organization in control of the transactions, and therefore it creates interesting research areas, especially from the perspective of technical challenges and limitations. In this research, we have conducted a systematic mapping study with the goal of collecting all relevant research on Blockchain technology. Our objective is to understand the current research topics, challenges and future directions regarding Blockchain technology from the technical perspective. We have extracted 41 primary papers from scientific databases. The results show that focus in over 80% of the papers is on Bitcoin system and less than 20% deals with other Blockchain applications including e.g. smart contracts and licensing. The majority of research is focusing on revealing and improving limitations of Blockchain from privacy and security perspectives, but many of the proposed solutions lack concrete evaluation on their effectiveness. Many other Blockchain scalability related challenges including throughput and latency have been left unstudied. On the basis of this study, recommendations on future research directions are provided for researchers.

Solid-State Lighting 2017 Suggested Research Topics Supplement: Technology and Market Context

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

2017-09-29

A 2017 update to the Solid-State Lighting R&D Plan that is divided into two documents. The first document describes a list of suggested SSL priority research topics and the second document provides context and background, including information drawn from technical, market, and economic studies. Widely referenced by industry and government both here and abroad, these documents reflect SSL stakeholder inputs on key R&D topics that will improve efficacy, reduce cost, remove barriers to adoption, and add value for LED and OLED lighting solutions over the next three to five years, and discuss those applications that drive and prioritize the specific R&D.

International topical meeting on nuclear research applications and utilization of accelerators. Book of abstracts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

Applications of particle accelerators cover a number of areas, from strategic and applied research, safety and security, environmental applications, materials research and analytical sciences, to radioisotope production and radiation processing. Accelerator based techniques and pulsed neutron sources are expected to lead to new initiatives in materials research of relevance for both the nuclear and non-nuclear fields. Material science studies with the use of accelerators, neutron beams and other nuclear analytical methods are relevant to the development of advanced reactors, nuclear fuel cycle needs and fusion research. In this regard, a better understanding of the irradiation effects in materials for energy and non-energy applications is needed, and is reflected in accelerator techniques for modification and analysis of materials for nuclear technologies. Accelerator applications for innovative nuclear systems aiming at rad-waste transmutation (e.g., accelerator driven systems) are being pursued in many countries. Research and development using accelerators involves a broad spectrum of skills to build a cadre of trained experts in nuclear techniques in IAEA Member States, and to generate knowledge for innovative methodologies and tools. The present conference is also being held in cooperation with the American Nuclear Society (ANS), which successfully organized the series of accelerator applications conferences known as AccApp. The ANS series of topical meetings has provided a forum for the global exchange of scientific and technical knowledge on a wide variety of related topics since the first AccApp took place in 1997 in Albuquerque, USA. The last conference which was held in 2007 in Pocatello, USA, was jointly organized by the ANS and the IAEA. The main objectives of the conference are to promote exchange of information among IAEA Member States representatives/delegates and to discuss new trends in accelerator applications including nuclear materials research

The ENTRIA project. Selected disciplinary and interdisciplinary research topics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roehlig, Klaus-Juergen; Hocke, Peter; Walther, Clemens

2015-01-01

ENTRIA (''Disposal Options for Radioactive Residues: Interdisciplinary Analyses and Development of Evaluation Principles'', www.entria.de) is a joint research project carried out by twelve departments and institutes from German universities and major research institutions and one partner from Switzerland. It is financed by the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Scientists representing natural sciences, civil engineering, philosophy, law, social and political sciences, and technology assessment carry out disciplinary and interdisciplinary research addressing three options to manage especially high-level radioactive waste: - Final disposal in deep geological formations without any arrangements for retrieval, - disposal in deep geological formations with arrangements for monitoring and retrieval, and - (prolonged) surface (or near-surface) storage. In the paper, the following selected research topics - both disciplinary and interdisciplinary - are briefly introduced in order to provide an impression of the project scope: - Surface storage, - reference concepts for emplacement in deep geological formations with retrievability and monitoring, - radiation exposure and justification of measures, - interdisciplinary perspectives on dose limits, - comparative studies on nuclear waste governance, - nuclear waste governance in Switzerland, - public involvement and the German Site Selection Act, and - citizens' jury.

Students’ mental model in electric current

Science.gov (United States)

Pramesti, Y. S.; Setyowidodo, I.

2018-05-01

Electricity is one of essential topic in learning physics. This topic was studied in elementary until university level. Although electricity was related to our daily activities, but it doesn’t ensure that students have the correct concept. The aim of this research was to investigate and then categorized the students’ mental model. Subject consisted of 59 students of mechanical engineering that studied Physics for Engineering. This study was used a qualitative approach that used in this research is phenomenology. Data were analyzed qualitatively by using pre-test, post-test, and investigation for discovering further information. Three models were reported, showing a pattern which related to individual way of thinking about electric current. The mental model that was discovered in this research are: 1) electric current as a flow; 2) electric current as a source of energy, 3) electric current as a moving charge.

Introduction to four reviews addressing critical topics identified by the 2015 Nurse Practitioner Research Agenda Roundtable: Priorities for policy, workforce, education, and practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Buchholz, Susan W; Klein, Tracy; Cooke, Cindy; Cook, Michelle L; Knestrick, Joyce; Dickins, Kirsten

2018-05-04

In 2015, an invitational think tank was convened by the Fellows of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners to update the 2010 Nurse Practitioner (NP) Research Agenda Roundtable. This effort was undertaken to provide guidance for future health care research. The purpose of this article is to introduce the process used for conducting four reviews that address critical topics related to specific research priorities emanating from the 2015 NP Research Agenda Roundtable. The four reviews are published in this issue of Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (JAANP) to address the state of current research relevant to NP policy, workforce, education, and practice. This introductory article provides an overview of the systematic process used to evaluate the four topical area. The type of review selected, the search strategy, critical appraisal, data extraction, and data synthesis will be further described in the four review articles. Four reviews that examine literature regarding specific aims important to NPs will address strengths as well as gaps in the literature. The knowledge offered by the four reviews has the potential to inform future research, which will benefit NPs and other health care stakeholders.

Analysis of the EPSRC Principles of Robotics in regard to key research topics

Science.gov (United States)

Gning, A.; Davis, D. N.; Cheng, Y.; Robinson, P.

2017-07-01

In this paper, we review the five rules published in EPSRC Principles of Robotics with a specific focus on future robotics research topics. It is demonstrated through a pictorial representation of the five rules that these rules are questionably not sufficient, overlapping and not explicitly reflecting the true challenges of robotics ethics in relation to the future of robotics research.

African primary care research: Choosing a topic and developing a proposal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bob Mash

2014-02-01

Full Text Available This is the first in a series of articles on primary care research in the African context. The aim of the series is to help build capacity for primary care research amongst the emerging departments of family medicine and primary care on the continent. Many of the departments are developing Masters of Medicine programmes in Family Medicine and their students will all be required to complete research studies as part of their degree. This series is being written with this audience in particular in mind – both the students who must conceptualise and implement a research project as well as their supervisors who must assist them.This article gives an overview of the African primary care context, followed by a typology of primary care research. The article then goes on to assist the reader with choosing a topic and defining their research question. Finally the article addresses the structure and contents of a  research proposal and the ethical issues that should be considered.

Current Topics and Trends in Military Dental Research: A Tri-Service Panel Discussion

Science.gov (United States)

2016-05-09

Tri- Service Panel Discussion presented at/published to SURF 2016 (San Antonio Military Health System & Universities Research Forum), UT San Antonio...meting.) SURF 2016 (San Antonio Mili tary Health System & U niversities Research Forum), UT San Antonio, TX; 20 May 2016 D 11e. OTHER (Describe...if you are a Graduate Health Sciences Education student and your department has told you they cannot fund your publication, the 59th Clinical Research

Where Is Current Research on Blockchain Technology?-A Systematic Review.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jesse Yli-Huumo

Full Text Available Blockchain is a decentralized transaction and data management technology developed first for Bitcoin cryptocurrency. The interest in Blockchain technology has been increasing since the idea was coined in 2008. The reason for the interest in Blockchain is its central attributes that provide security, anonymity and data integrity without any third party organization in control of the transactions, and therefore it creates interesting research areas, especially from the perspective of technical challenges and limitations. In this research, we have conducted a systematic mapping study with the goal of collecting all relevant research on Blockchain technology. Our objective is to understand the current research topics, challenges and future directions regarding Blockchain technology from the technical perspective. We have extracted 41 primary papers from scientific databases. The results show that focus in over 80% of the papers is on Bitcoin system and less than 20% deals with other Blockchain applications including e.g. smart contracts and licensing. The majority of research is focusing on revealing and improving limitations of Blockchain from privacy and security perspectives, but many of the proposed solutions lack concrete evaluation on their effectiveness. Many other Blockchain scalability related challenges including throughput and latency have been left unstudied. On the basis of this study, recommendations on future research directions are provided for researchers.

Current research work at the TRIGA reactor in Ljubljana

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Najzer, M.; Dimic, V.

1978-01-01

The research programmes at this TRIGA reactor cover quite broad and different research fields. They can be grouped in the following topics: reactor dynamics and operation, neutron activation analysis, solid state physics research, reactor dosimetry, radiography and fuel burn-up determination. In this presentation a short overview is given of those investigations which are not described in detail in separate papers

Assessment of research needs for advanced heterogeneous catalysts for energy applications. Final report: Volume 2, Topic reports

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mills, G.A.

1994-04-01

This report assesses the direction, technical content, and priority of research needs judged to provide the best chance of yielding new and improved heterogeneous catalysts for energy-related applications over the period of 5-20 years. It addresses issues of energy conservation, alternate fuels and feedstocks, and the economics and applications that could alleviate pollution from energy processes. Recommended goals are defined in 3 research thrusts: catalytic science, environmental protection by catalysis, and industrial catalytic applications. This study was conducted by an 11-member panel of experts from industry and academia, including one each from Japan and Europe. This volume first presents an in-depth overview of the role of catalysis in future energy technology in chapter 1; then current catalytic research is critically reviewed and research recommended in 8 topic chapters: catalyst preparation (design and synthesis), catalyst characterization (structure/function), catalyst performance testing, reaction kinetics/reactor design, catalysis for industrial chemicals, catalysis for electrical applications (clean fuels, pollution remediation), catalysis for control of exhaust emissions, and catalysts for liquid transportation fuels from petroleum, coal, residual oil, and biomass.

Where Is Current Research on Blockchain Technology?—A Systematic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Yli-Huumo, Jesse; Ko, Deokyoon; Park, Sooyong; Smolander, Kari

2016-01-01

Blockchain is a decentralized transaction and data management technology developed first for Bitcoin cryptocurrency. The interest in Blockchain technology has been increasing since the idea was coined in 2008. The reason for the interest in Blockchain is its central attributes that provide security, anonymity and data integrity without any third party organization in control of the transactions, and therefore it creates interesting research areas, especially from the perspective of technical challenges and limitations. In this research, we have conducted a systematic mapping study with the goal of collecting all relevant research on Blockchain technology. Our objective is to understand the current research topics, challenges and future directions regarding Blockchain technology from the technical perspective. We have extracted 41 primary papers from scientific databases. The results show that focus in over 80% of the papers is on Bitcoin system and less than 20% deals with other Blockchain applications including e.g. smart contracts and licensing. The majority of research is focusing on revealing and improving limitations of Blockchain from privacy and security perspectives, but many of the proposed solutions lack concrete evaluation on their effectiveness. Many other Blockchain scalability related challenges including throughput and latency have been left unstudied. On the basis of this study, recommendations on future research directions are provided for researchers. PMID:27695049

Topics in cement and concrete research

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwers, Jos; Russel, M.I.; Basheer, P.A.M.

2007-01-01

The present paper addresses several topics in regard to the sustainable design and use of concrete. First, major features concerning the sustainable aspects of the material concrete are summarised. Then the major constituent, from an environmental point of view, cement is discussed in detail,

Current status of oral health research in Africa: an overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Kanoute, Aïda; Faye, Daouda; Bourgeois, Denis

2012-12-01

Research in oral health contributes effectively to decisions and strategies aimed at improving the oral health of populations. Further contributions to enhance current knowledge of oral health in Africa are required. The principal objective of this study was to produce an analysis of oral health research published from different subregions of Africa and to estimate bilateral and multilateral international cooperation in oral health research during the period 2005-2010. The PubMed database was searched for published articles on topics related to oral health in Africa. A total of 935 oral health-related articles were retrieved during April and May 2011. Publications emanating from Nigeria and South Africa accounted for a striking 68% of all oral health-related material published from Africa during the study period. Researchers from 30 different countries had participated in collaboration on at least one published article. A total of 262 journals had published at least one item examining oral health in Africa, but only 29 journals had published more than seven articles. These 29 journals accounted for 66% of all published material and induced non-African reviews (26%) and African reviews (40%). This study shows strong variation among countries in the production of articles on oral health whereby rich countries produce greater quantities of published research and poorer nations more frequently develop research partnerships with other countries. © 2012 FDI World Dental Federation.

Current and Emerging Topical Antibacterials and Antiseptics: Agents, Action, and Resistance Patterns.

Science.gov (United States)

Williamson, Deborah A; Carter, Glen P; Howden, Benjamin P

2017-07-01

Bacterial skin infections represent some of the most common infectious diseases globally. Prevention and treatment of skin infections can involve application of a topical antimicrobial, which may be an antibiotic (such as mupirocin or fusidic acid) or an antiseptic (such as chlorhexidine or alcohol). However, there is limited evidence to support the widespread prophylactic or therapeutic use of topical agents. Challenges involved in the use of topical antimicrobials include increasing rates of bacterial resistance, local hypersensitivity reactions (particularly to older agents, such as bacitracin), and concerns about the indiscriminate use of antiseptics potentially coselecting for antibiotic resistance. We review the evidence for the major clinical uses of topical antibiotics and antiseptics. In addition, we review the mechanisms of action of common topical agents and define the clinical and molecular epidemiology of antimicrobial resistance in these agents. Moreover, we review the potential use of newer and emerging agents, such as retapamulin and ebselen, and discuss the role of antiseptic agents in preventing bacterial skin infections. A comprehensive understanding of the clinical efficacy and drivers of resistance to topical agents will inform the optimal use of these agents to preserve their activity in the future. Copyright © 2017 American Society for Microbiology.

Using ASM Podcasts to Excite Undergraduate Students about Current Microbiological Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stacey E. Lettini

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Innovative technology is often used as a mechanism to engage students in and out of the classroom and can be used to increase critical thinking skills. Podcasts are an excellent way to introduce students to current topics and research in microbiology. The American Society for Microbiology (ASM produces three podcasts that are microbiologically focused: This Week in Microbiology (TWiM, This Week in Parasitology (TWiP, and This Week in Virology (TWiV. These podcasts are usually presented in a manner similar to a journal club, as the presenters regularly invite guests to discuss current research papers. Since students often find reading scientific literature difficult and get bogged down in the details rather than seeing the over-arching purpose of a paper, these podcasts have been used in a General Microbiology course to introduce recent research articles. The students were first assigned an original research article to read and review, and they were asked to generate questions pertaining to things they did not understand. Next, students listened to the corresponding podcast that discussed the article and used it to answer their questions. This was followed by a classroom discussion of the article and the podcast. The ASM podcast helped to demystify original research by providing details of the experimental design and presentation of the results in a language that is more casual and relatable. Students demonstrated greater critical thinking and comprehension of microbiology literature after listening to the podcast. This activity can be used in a variety of courses in the biology curriculum.

Teachers, Mentors, Researchers, Popularizers, Publicists and Their Publications on Educational Topics [In Bulgarian

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B.V. Toshev

2009-06-01

Full Text Available There are two professions in education – teachers who do it and researchers who study it. Teachers and researchers both write papers but those papers are quite different. In addition there exist other people who attempt to write on educational topics: mentors, involved in teachers training, popularizers of science, publicists. The paper stresses in the peculiarities of these literature works. The problems of the professional identification of teachers and educational researchers are also considered in detail. Who is the successful teacher, who is the successful researcher – the paper gives answers of such questions.

Clinical Research with Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS): Challenges and Future Directions

Science.gov (United States)

Brunoni, Andre Russowsky; Nitsche, Michael A.; Bolognini, Nadia; Bikson, Marom; Wagner, Tim; Merabet, Lotfi; Edwards, Dylan J.; Valero-Cabre, Antoni; Rotenberg, Alexander; Pascual-Leone, Alvaro; Ferrucci, Roberta; Priori, Alberto; Boggio, Paulo; Fregni, Felipe

2011-01-01

Background Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a neuromodulatory technique that delivers low-intensity, direct current to cortical areas facilitating or inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity. In the past ten years, tDCS physiological mechanisms of action have been intensively investigated giving support for the investigation of its applications in clinical neuropsychiatry and rehabilitation. However, new methodological, ethical, and regulatory issues emerge when translating the findings of preclinical and phase I studies into phase II and III clinical studies. The aim of this comprehensive review is to discuss the key challenges of this process and possible methods to address them. Methods We convened a workgroup of researchers in the field to review, discuss and provide updates and key challenges of neuromodulation use for clinical research. Main Findings/Discussion We reviewed several basic and clinical studies in the field and identified potential limitations, taking into account the particularities of the technique. We review and discuss the findings into four topics: (i) mechanisms of action of tDCS, parameters of use and computer-based human brain modeling investigating electric current fields and magnitude induced by tDCS; (ii) methodological aspects related to the clinical research of tDCS as divided according to study phase (i.e., preclinical, phase I, phase II and phase III studies); (iii) ethical and regulatory concerns; (iv) future directions regarding novel approaches, novel devices, and future studies involving tDCS. Finally, we propose some alternative methods to facilitate clinical research on tDCS. PMID:22037126

Nanocrystal: a novel approach to overcome skin barriers for improved topical drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Viral; Sharma, Om Prakash; Mehta, Tejal

2018-04-01

Skin is an important route of drug delivery for the treatment of various dermatological conditions. The advent of nanotechnology is paving the roadmaps for topical drug delivery by providing sustained release as well as maintaining a localized effect, outweighing the toxicity concern. Area covered: This review highlighted the morphology of skin, its barrier nature as well as drug penetration pathways after topical application of formulations. The existing methods to improve topical drug delivery, by infringing or permeating the skin barriers, are discussed. This context concretes the foundation to accentuate the need for the development of nanocrystal-based topical formulation. The mechanism of drug release, immediate as well as sustained release, after topical administration of drug nanocrystals is also elaborated. The special emphasis is given on the breakthrough achieved, in topical drug delivery using drug nanocrystals, so far in the plethora of literature, patents, and products, under clinical trial as well as in the market. Expert opinion: The current research on nanocrystals for topical drug delivery is highlighting the breakthroughs achieved so far. The output of these research envisages that topical nanocrystals based formulations can be a novel strategy for the drugs which are facing solubility, bioavailability and toxicity concerns.

Progress in the Legitimacy of Business and Management Education Research: Rejoinder to "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory"

Science.gov (United States)

Bacon, Donald R.

2016-01-01

In this rejoinder to "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory," published in the "Journal of Management Education," Dec 2016 (see EJ1118407), Donald R. Bacon discusses the similarities between Arbaugh et al.'s (2016) findings and the scholarship…

Topical report review status: Volume 10

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-03-01

This report provides industry with procedures for submitting topical reports, guidance on how the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) processes and responds to topical report submittals, and an accounting, with review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review by the NRC. This report is published annually

The Current Status of STEM Education Research

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Josh

2012-01-01

This paper explores the current Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education research base through an analysis of articles from eight journals focused on the STEM disciplines. Analyzed are both practitioner and research publications to determine the current scope of STEM education research, where current STEM education…

Some topics on radioecological research in marine environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimizu, Makoto

1993-01-01

In Japan, systematic researches on marine environmental radioactivity started in 1954 when 'Bikini incidence' occurred. After several years of handling emergency situations, basic studies were carried out to understand processes and mechanisms of contamination of aquatic organisms by radionuclides. At this period 'Hiyama Group' had a large contribution to the development of this new field of research. Important concepts and items have already been dealt with in this Grant Group. Toward the end of 'Hiyama Group', a new project started in Nuclear Safety Research Association. This project, so-called 'Kaihohtoku', aimed at gathering necessary information for safety assessment on the release of low-level radioactive liquid wastes from a newly planned spent-fuel reprocessing plant at Tokai. NIRS-Nakaminato Branch was established first as Marine Radioecological Station in this project. The term 'radioecology' got popularity also in this period. Many important results were obtained and scientific basis of the safety assessment was established in this project. Today we have not any urgent matter to be handled concerning radioecology in our coastal environment. Nuclides found are exclusively of fallout and of a quite low level. We have also established methodology of radiological assessment. So, what is the problem? The problem is 'from conservative to realistic', which is the trend in the world. Here, from this viewpoint, some topics such as models and parameters including concentration factors and their validation and verification in the natural environment were discussed. (author)

Topic Visualization and Survival Analysis

OpenAIRE

Wang, Ping Jr

2017-01-01

Latent semantic structure in a text collection is called a topic. In this thesis, we aim to visualize topics in the scientific literature and detect active or inactive research areas based on their lifetime. Topics were extracted from over 1 million abstracts from the arXiv.org database using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA). Hellinger distance measures similarity between two topics. Topics are determined to be relevant if their pairwise distances are smaller than the threshold of Hellinger ...

Topic Modeling of NASA Space System Problem Reports: Research in Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Layman, Lucas; Nikora, Allen P.; Meek, Joshua; Menzies, Tim

2016-01-01

Problem reports at NASA are similar to bug reports: they capture defects found during test, post-launch operational anomalies, and document the investigation and corrective action of the issue. These artifacts are a rich source of lessons learned for NASA, but are expensive to analyze since problem reports are comprised primarily of natural language text. We apply topic modeling to a corpus of NASA problem reports to extract trends in testing and operational failures. We collected 16,669 problem reports from six NASA space flight missions and applied Latent Dirichlet Allocation topic modeling to the document corpus. We analyze the most popular topics within and across missions, and how popular topics changed over the lifetime of a mission. We find that hardware material and flight software issues are common during the integration and testing phase, while ground station software and equipment issues are more common during the operations phase. We identify a number of challenges in topic modeling for trend analysis: 1) that the process of selecting the topic modeling parameters lacks definitive guidance, 2) defining semantically-meaningful topic labels requires nontrivial effort and domain expertise, 3) topic models derived from the combined corpus of the six missions were biased toward the larger missions, and 4) topics must be semantically distinct as well as cohesive to be useful. Nonetheless,topic modeling can identify problem themes within missions and across mission lifetimes, providing useful feedback to engineers and project managers.

Resources for Topics in Architecture.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Noate, Judith, Comp.

This guide for conducting library research on topics in architecture or on the work of a particular architect presents suggestions for utilizing four categories of resources: books, dictionaries and encyclopedias, indexes, and a periodicals and series list (PASL). Two topics are researched as examples: the contemporary architect Richard Meier, and…

GeneTopics - interpretation of gene sets via literature-driven topic models

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Annotation of a set of genes is often accomplished through comparison to a library of labelled gene sets such as biological processes or canonical pathways. However, this approach might fail if the employed libraries are not up to date with the latest research, don't capture relevant biological themes or are curated at a different level of granularity than is required to appropriately analyze the input gene set. At the same time, the vast biomedical literature offers an unstructured repository of the latest research findings that can be tapped to provide thematic sub-groupings for any input gene set. Methods Our proposed method relies on a gene-specific text corpus and extracts commonalities between documents in an unsupervised manner using a topic model approach. We automatically determine the number of topics summarizing the corpus and calculate a gene relevancy score for each topic allowing us to eliminate non-specific topics. As a result we obtain a set of literature topics in which each topic is associated with a subset of the input genes providing directly interpretable keywords and corresponding documents for literature research. Results We validate our method based on labelled gene sets from the KEGG metabolic pathway collection and the genetic association database (GAD) and show that the approach is able to detect topics consistent with the labelled annotation. Furthermore, we discuss the results on three different types of experimentally derived gene sets, (1) differentially expressed genes from a cardiac hypertrophy experiment in mice, (2) altered transcript abundance in human pancreatic beta cells, and (3) genes implicated by GWA studies to be associated with metabolite levels in a healthy population. In all three cases, we are able to replicate findings from the original papers in a quick and semi-automated manner. Conclusions Our approach provides a novel way of automatically generating meaningful annotations for gene sets that are directly

Bibliographic analysis of scientific research on selected topics in public health nutrition in West Africa: Review of articles published from 1998 to 2008.

Science.gov (United States)

Aaron, Grant J; Wilson, Shelby E; Brown, Kenneth H

2010-01-01

Few countries in West Africa have the capacity for carrying out advanced training in nutrition and public health. To provide additional information on current regional applied nutrition research capacity and productivity, we analysed peer-reviewed articles on key public health nutrition topics that were published from 1998 to 2008. Using MEDLINE/PubMed, the following terms were searched: 'breast feeding', 'infant nutrition physiology' (comprising complementary feeding and weaning), 'protein energy malnutrition', 'nutrition and infection', 'vitamin A', 'iodine', 'zinc' and 'overweight', each linked with the term 'Western Africa'. In total, 412 unique articles (37±6 articles per year) were identified. Most research focused on infant and young child feeding practices, selected micronutrient deficiencies, and the emerging problem of overweight and obesity. The primary author of nearly half (46%) the publications was located in an institution outside of West Africa. Most articles were published in English (90%), and nearly half of all articles (41%) were cross-sectional studies. Our findings indicate that few peer-reviewed research studies are being published on key public health topics in the West African region, considering the magnitude of nutrition problems in this region. New approaches are needed to encourage and support research capacity and output in West Africa.

Recent Topical Research on Global, Energy, Health & Medical, and Tourism Economics, and Global Software

NARCIS (Netherlands)

C-L. Chang (Chia-Lin); M.J. McAleer (Michael)

2017-01-01

textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted “global” in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on

Uses of technology in lower secondary mathematics education : a concise topical survey

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Drijvers, P.H.M.; Ball, Lynda; Barzel, Barbel; Heid, M. Kathleen; Cao, Yiming; Maschietto, Michela

2016-01-01

This topical survey provides an overview of the current state of the art in technology use in mathematics education, including both practice-oriented experiences and research-based evidence, as seen from an international perspective. Three core themes are discussed: Evidence of effectiveness;

COMET strongly supported the development and implementation of medium-term topical research roadmaps consistent with the ALLIANCE Strategic Research Agenda.

Science.gov (United States)

Garnier-Laplace, J; Vandenhove, H; Beresford, N; Muikku, M; Real, A

2018-03-01

The ALLIANCE 6 Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) initiated by the STAR 7 Network of Excellence and integrated in the research strategy implemented by the COMET consortium, defines a long-term vision of the needs for, and implementation of, research in radioecology. This reference document, reflecting views from many stakeholders groups and researchers, serves as an input to those responsible for defining EU research call topics through the ALLIANCE SRA statement delivered each year to the EJP-CONCERT 8 (2015-2020). This statement highlights a focused number of priorities for funding. Research in radioecology and related sciences is justified by various drivers, such as policy changes, scientific advances and knowledge gaps, radiological risk perception by the public, and a growing awareness of interconnections between human and ecosystem health. The SRA is being complemented by topical roadmaps that have been initiated by the COMET 9 EC-funded project, with the help and endorsement of the ALLIANCE. The strategy underlying roadmap development is driven by the need for improved mechanistic understanding across radioecology. By meeting this need, we can provide fit-for-purpose human and environmental impact/risk assessments in support of the protection of man and the environment in interaction with society and for the three exposure situations defined by the ICRP (i.e., planned, existing and emergency). Within the framework of the EJP-CONCERT the development of a joint roadmap is under discussion among all the European research platforms and will highlight the major research needs for the whole radiation protection field and how these are likely to be addressed by 2030.

Evaluation of research topic evolution in psychiatry using co-word analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Ying; Jin, Xing; Xue, Yunzhen

2017-06-01

With the rapid increase in the incidence of mental disorders and mental issues, psychiatry has become one of the fastest growing clinical medical disciplines. Development priorities and research foci in this field have evolved over different periods.All the articles in 10 psychiatric journals with the highest impact factors were selected from the Science Citation Index (SCI) in Web of Science from 2001 to 2015. The information visualization software Sci was used to conduct co-word and clustering analyses on these articles. The articles were divided into 3 periods: 2001 to 2005, 2006 to 2010, and 2011 to 2015. Each bibliographic record contained a title, author names, abstract, keywords, references, and other information.During the 3 periods between 2001 and 2015, child and adolescent psychiatry, major depression, schizophrenia, and prefrontal cortex were constant research foci. The brain and meta-analysis gradually became new research foci, although research on symptoms slowly decreased. Molecular genetics was also an area of interest.Using scientometrics technology to visualize research foci can provide us with new ideas and research methods. Co-word analysis for the preliminary exploration of research foci and developmental trends in psychiatry is helpful in finding developmental rules, choices of topics, and innovative research. Our study had some limitations. In the future, we should expand our research scope and use a variety of research methods to enrich our results.

Mixed methods research in tobacco control with youth and young adults: A methodological review of current strategies.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Craig S Fryer

Full Text Available Tobacco use among young people is a complex and serious global dilemma that demands innovative and diverse research approaches. The purpose of this methodological review was to examine the current use of mixed methods research in tobacco control with youth and young adult populations and to develop practical recommendations for tobacco control researchers interested in this methodology.Using PubMed, we searched five peer-reviewed journals that publish tobacco control empirical literature for the use of mixed methods research to study young populations, age 12-25 years. Our team analyzed the features of each article in terms of tobacco control topic, population, youth engagement strategies, and several essential elements of mixed methods research.We identified 23 mixed methods studies published by authors from five different countries reported between 2004 and 2015. These 23 articles examined various topics that included tobacco use behavior, tobacco marketing and branding, and cessation among youth and young adults. The most common mixed methods approach was variations of the concurrent design in which the qualitative and quantitative strands were administered at the same time and given equal priority. This review documented several innovative applications of mixed methods research as well as challenges in the reporting of the complex research designs.The use of mixed methods research in tobacco control has great potential for advancing the understanding of complex behavioral and sociocultural issues for all groups, especially youth and young adults.

Mixed methods research in tobacco control with youth and young adults: A methodological review of current strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Fryer, Craig S; Seaman, Elizabeth L; Clark, Rachael S; Plano Clark, Vicki L

2017-01-01

Tobacco use among young people is a complex and serious global dilemma that demands innovative and diverse research approaches. The purpose of this methodological review was to examine the current use of mixed methods research in tobacco control with youth and young adult populations and to develop practical recommendations for tobacco control researchers interested in this methodology. Using PubMed, we searched five peer-reviewed journals that publish tobacco control empirical literature for the use of mixed methods research to study young populations, age 12-25 years. Our team analyzed the features of each article in terms of tobacco control topic, population, youth engagement strategies, and several essential elements of mixed methods research. We identified 23 mixed methods studies published by authors from five different countries reported between 2004 and 2015. These 23 articles examined various topics that included tobacco use behavior, tobacco marketing and branding, and cessation among youth and young adults. The most common mixed methods approach was variations of the concurrent design in which the qualitative and quantitative strands were administered at the same time and given equal priority. This review documented several innovative applications of mixed methods research as well as challenges in the reporting of the complex research designs. The use of mixed methods research in tobacco control has great potential for advancing the understanding of complex behavioral and sociocultural issues for all groups, especially youth and young adults.

Genes, molecules and patients—Emerging topics to guide clinical pain research

Science.gov (United States)

Sikandar, Shafaq; Patel, Ryan; Patel, Sital; Sikander, Sanam; Bennett, David L.H.; Dickenson, Anthony H.

2013-01-01

This review selectively explores some areas of pain research that, until recently, have been poorly understood. We have chosen four topics that relate to clinical pain and we discuss the underlying mechanisms and related pathophysiologies contributing to these pain states. A key issue in pain medicine involves crucial events and mediators that contribute to normal and abnormal pain signaling, but remain unseen without genetic, biomarker or imaging analysis. Here we consider how the altered genetic make-up of familial pains reveals the human importance of channels discovered by preclinical research, followed by the contribution of receptors as stimulus transducers in cold sensing and cold pain. Finally we review recent data on the neuro-immune interactions in chronic pain and the potential targets for treatment in cancer-induced bone pain. PMID:23500200

Science Education Research vs. Physics Education Research: A Structural Comparison

Science.gov (United States)

Akarsu, Bayram

2010-01-01

The main goal of this article is to introduce physics education research (PER) to researchers in other fields. Topics include discussion of differences between science education research (SER) and physics education research (PER), physics educators, research design and methodology in physics education research and current research traditions and…

Topics in cement and concrete research

OpenAIRE

Brouwers, Jos; Russel, M.I.; Basheer, P.A.M.

2007-01-01

The present paper addresses several topics in regard to the sustainable design and use of concrete. First, major features concerning the sustainable aspects of the material concrete are summarised. Then the major constituent, from an environmental point of view, cement is discussed in detail, particularly the hydration and application of slag cement. The intelligent combining of mineral oxides, which are found in clinker, slag, fly ashes etc., is designated as mineral oxide engineering. It re...

Advancing materials research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langford, H.D.; Psaras, P.A.

1987-01-01

The topics discussed in this volume include historical perspectives in the fields of materials research and development, the status of selected scientific and technical areas, and current topics in materials research. Papers are presentd on progress and prospects in metallurgical research, microstructure and mechanical properties of metals, condensed-matter physics and materials research, quasi-periodic crystals, and new and artifically structured electronic and magnetic materials. Consideration is also given to materials research in catalysis, advanced ceramics, organic polymers, new ways of looking at surfaces, and materials synthesis and processing

The International Permafrost Association: current initiatives for cryospheric research

Science.gov (United States)

Schollaen, Karina; Lewkowicz, Antoni G.; Christiansen, Hanne H.; Romanovsky, Vladimir E.; Lantuit, Hugues; Schrott, Lothar; Sergeev, Dimitry; Wei, Ma

2015-04-01

The International Permafrost Association (IPA), founded in 1983, has as its objectives to foster the dissemination of knowledge concerning permafrost and to promote cooperation among persons and national or international organizations engaged in scientific investigation and engineering work on permafrost. The IPA's primary responsibilities are convening International Permafrost Conferences, undertaking special projects such as preparing databases, maps, bibliographies, and glossaries, and coordinating international field programs and networks. Membership is through adhering national or multinational organizations or as individuals in countries where no Adhering Body exists. The IPA is governed by its Executive Committee and a Council consisting of representatives from 26 Adhering Bodies having interests in some aspect of theoretical, basic and applied frozen ground research, including permafrost, seasonal frost, artificial freezing and periglacial phenomena. This presentation details the IPA core products, achievements and activities as well as current projects in cryospheric research. One of the most important core products is the circumpolar permafrost map. The IPA also fosters and supports the activities of the Global Terrestrial Network on Permafrost (GTN-P) sponsored by the Global Terrestrial Observing System, GTOS, and the Global Climate Observing System, GCOS, whose long-term goal is to obtain a comprehensive view of the spatial structure, trends, and variability of changes in the active layer thickness and permafrost temperature. A further important initiative of the IPA are the biannually competitively-funded Action Groups which work towards the production of well-defined products over a period of two years. Current IPA Action Groups are working on highly topical and interdisciplinary issues, such as the development of a regional Palaeo-map of Permafrost in Eurasia, the integration of multidisciplinary knowledge about the use of thermokarst and permafrost

Review of Research on Educational Leadership and Management in Asia: A Comparative Analysis of Research Topics and Methods, 1995-2012

Science.gov (United States)

Hallinger, Philip; Chen, Junjun

2015-01-01

Over the past two decades scholars have called for a more concerted effort to develop an empirically grounded literature on educational leadership outside of mainstream "Western" contexts. This paper reports the results of a review of research topics and methods that comprise the literature on educational leadership and management in…

A Study of the Information Literacy of Biomedical Graduate Students: Based on the Thesis Topic Discovery Process in Molecular Biology Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jhao-Yen Huang

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The biomedical information environment is in a state of constant and rapid change due to the increase in research data and rapid technological advances. In Taiwan, few research has investigated the information literacy of biomedical graduate students. This exploratory study examined the information literacy abilities and training of biomedical graduate students in Taiwan. Semi-structured interviews based on the Association of College and Research Libraries Information Literacy Competency Standards for Science and Engineering/Technology were conducted with 20 molecular biological graduate students. The interview inquired about their information-seeking channels and information literacy education. The findings show that the biomedical graduate students developed a workable thesis topic with their advisors. Through various information-seeking channels and retrieval strategies, they obtained and critically evaluated information to address different information needs for their thesis research. Through seminars, annual conferences and papers, the interviewees were informed of current developments in their field. Subsequently, through written or oral communications, they were able to integrate and exchange the information. Most interviewees cared about the social, economic, legal, and ethical issues surrounding the use of information. College courses and labs were the main information literacy education environment for them to learn about research skills and knowledge. The study concludes four areas to address for the information literacy of biomedical graduate students, i.e., using professional information, using the current information, efficiency in assessing the domain information, and utilization of diverse information channels. Currently, the interviewees showed rather low usage of library resources, which is a concern for biomedical educators and libraries. [Article content in Chinese

Review of current drive theory: selected topics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fisch, N.J.

1993-01-01

Two themes in current drive theory in tokamaks are reviewed, both relevant to the progression of tokamak experiments toward the reactor regime. First, the physics of the tail electrons is reviewed. These electrons are capable of carrying enormous rf-driven electric current, and, in the course of current-drive experiments worldwide not only has the current drive effect been demonstrated, but the underlying physical description of these tail electrons has been established. Second, anticipating the presence of the energetic alpha particles that result from D-T reactions in a reactor, certain mechanisms through which these alpha particles can be used to facilitate current-drive are reviewed. (Author)

JSC Advanced Curation: Research and Development for Current Collections and Future Sample Return Mission Demands

Science.gov (United States)

Fries, M. D.; Allen, C. C.; Calaway, M. J.; Evans, C. A.; Stansbery, E. K.

2015-01-01

Curation of NASA's astromaterials sample collections is a demanding and evolving activity that supports valuable science from NASA missions for generations, long after the samples are returned to Earth. For example, NASA continues to loan hundreds of Apollo program samples to investigators every year and those samples are often analyzed using instruments that did not exist at the time of the Apollo missions themselves. The samples are curated in a manner that minimizes overall contamination, enabling clean, new high-sensitivity measurements and new science results over 40 years after their return to Earth. As our exploration of the Solar System progresses, upcoming and future NASA sample return missions will return new samples with stringent contamination control, sample environmental control, and Planetary Protection requirements. Therefore, an essential element of a healthy astromaterials curation program is a research and development (R&D) effort that characterizes and employs new technologies to maintain current collections and enable new missions - an Advanced Curation effort. JSC's Astromaterials Acquisition & Curation Office is continually performing Advanced Curation research, identifying and defining knowledge gaps about research, development, and validation/verification topics that are critical to support current and future NASA astromaterials sample collections. The following are highlighted knowledge gaps and research opportunities.

A Current Look at Phenylketonuria (PKU).

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, Margaret

Research was reviewed on the current status of phenylketonuria, an hereditary amino acid metabolic disorder that can cause severe mental retardation, physical complications, and emotional difficulties if not detected and treated early in childhood. A majority of the research cited was published in the 1960's. Topics covered were: discovery of…

The evolution of strategic management research: Recent trends and current directions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luis Ángel Guerras-Martín

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Strategic management is a relatively youthful discipline that has steadily matured over the past fifty years. The field has become consolidated over this period, while simultaneously expanding the range of topics analyzed and research methodologies used. Different theories and approaches, addressing different research topics, have been developed to explain the reasons underlying firms’ competitive advantage and success. In this paper, we posit the existence of two pendulums in constant motion that, on the one hand, reflect the tension that has historically existed between the focus on internal firm factors and external environmental attributes respectively and, on the other hand, the tension between a more macro level of analysis, i.e., the firm and its environment, and a more micro level one, i.e., individuals and their relations within the firm. The frontier of research in strategic management is shaped by the simultaneous movement of both pendulums.

Compilation status and research topics in Hokkaido University Nuclear Reaction Data Centre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aikawa, M.; Furutachi, N.; Katō, K.; Ebata, S.; Ichinkhorloo, D.; Imai, S.; Sarsembayeva, A.; Zhou, B.; Otuka, N.

2015-01-01

Nuclear reaction data are necessary and applicable for many application fields. The nuclear reaction data must be compiled into a database for convenient availability. One such database is the EXFOR database maintained by the International Network of Nuclear Reaction Data Centres (NRDC). As a member of the NRDC, the Hokkaido University Nuclear Reaction Data Centre (JCPRG) compiles charged-particle induced reaction data and contributes about 10 percent of the EXFOR database. In this paper, we show the recent compilation status and related research topics of JCPRG. (author)

Low-rank coal research, Task 5.1. Topical report, April 1986--December 1992

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1993-02-01

This document is a topical progress report for Low-Rank Coal Research performed April 1986 - December 1992. Control Technology and Coal Preparation Research is described for Flue Gas Cleanup, Waste Management, Regional Energy Policy Program for the Northern Great Plains, and Hot-Gas Cleanup. Advanced Research and Technology Development was conducted on Turbine Combustion Phenomena, Combustion Inorganic Transformation (two sections), Liquefaction Reactivity of Low-Rank Coals, Gasification Ash and Slag Characterization, and Coal Science. Combustion Research is described for Atmospheric Fluidized-Bed Combustion, Beneficiation of Low-Rank Coals, Combustion Characterization of Low-Rank Fuels (completed 10/31/90), Diesel Utilization of Low-Rank Coals (completed 12/31/90), Produce and Characterize HWD (hot-water drying) Fuels for Heat Engine Applications (completed 10/31/90), Nitrous Oxide Emission, and Pressurized Fluidized-Bed Combustion. Liquefaction Research in Low-Rank Coal Direct Liquefaction is discussed. Gasification Research was conducted in Production of Hydrogen and By-Products from Coals and in Sulfur Forms in Coal.

Topical report review status. Volume 9, No. 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-02-01

This report provides industry with procedures for submitting topical reports, guidance on how the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) processes and responds to topical report submittals, and an accounting, with review schedules, of all topical reports currently accepted for review by the NRC. This report is published semiannually

Trends in information behaviour research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Greifeneder, Elke Susanne

2014-01-01

behaviour related publication venues between 2012 and 2014. Analysis. Publication titles, authors, years, publication venue, methods and topics were collected and quantitatively analysed. Results. Qualitative methods still dominate information behaviour research. Content analysis and participatory designs......Introduction. This paper traces current trends in information behaviour research, both in terms of methods and topics. Results are put into relation to the previous trend analysis by Julien et al. (2011) and Vakkari (2008). Method. Trends derive from a publication analysis taken from information...... are gaining terrain. Information seeking is still the major topic of interest. Important newer topics are studies focusing on users’ context and on special needs. Conclusion. Information behaviour research has evolved a great deal over the last years and has taken on new methods and new topics. A discussion...

Topics in Finance Part VII--Dividend Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Laux, Judy

2011-01-01

This series inspects the major topics in finance, reviewing the roles of stockholder wealth maximization, the risk-return tradeoff, and agency conflicts. The current article, devoted to dividend policy, also reviews the topic as presented in textbooks and the literature.

Rehabilitation Of Stroke Aphasia: Topics Of Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fariba Yadegari

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Background: Stroke may result in aphasia, an acquired language disorder which affects receptive and expressive language. The symptoms are observed in the auditory-verbal processing, oral expression, written expression and written language processing. As spoken language is the strongest tool of human communication, loss of it may cause great destructive consequences in the social and personal life of the affected individual. People with aphasia (PWA and their carers seek rehabilitation in an effort to remove or reduce the effects. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs are professional in offering such service. This paper aims at addressing new approaches and current research questions about the factors affecting the therapy. Main points: The issues which aphasia therapy research and reviews have addressed are the ones that are asked frequently in clinical settings and research areas. These include the intensity of treatment, the best post-onset time to start, quality of individualized treatment, efficacy of newly-introduced interventions, and the interventions based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF model with emphasis on activity/participation. Findings: The results of studies have revealed that compact therapy in a short period of time might result in better recovery of aphasia. Studies also indicated that starting treatments very early with intensive programs leads to the best therapy results. Chronic stage is good for some intervention strategies as well; however, the effectiveness of these interventions requires further investigations. Moreover, better treatment results could be attained by tailoring the program to match with individual needs. Manipulation of word frequency, personal relevance, and considering reaction time are among important factors in tailor-made therapies. Besides, the conceptual model of ICF which incorporates impairment (body structure and function, activity and participation

Topics of Bioengineering in Wikipedia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vassia Atanassova

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The present report aims to give a snapshot of how topics from the field of bioengineering (bioinformatics, bioprocess systems, biomedical engineering, biotechnology, etc. are currently covered in the free electronic encyclopedia Wikipedia. It also offers insights and information about what Wikipedia is, how it functions, how and when to cite Wikipedian articles, if necessary. Several external wikis, devoted to topics of bioengineering, are also listed and reviewed.

Topic Modeling of Hierarchical Corpora /

OpenAIRE

Kim, Do-kyum

2014-01-01

The sizes of modern digital libraries have grown beyond our capacity to comprehend manually. Thus we need new tools to help us in organizing and browsing large corpora of text that do not require manually examining each document. To this end, machine learning researchers have developed topic models, statistical learning algorithms for automatic comprehension of large collections of text. Topic models provide both global and local views of a corpus; they discover topics that run through the co...

A Network Analysis of the Teachers and Graduate Students’ Research Topics in the Field of Mass Communication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ming-Shu Yuan

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The completion of a master’s thesis requires the advisor’s guidance on topic selection, data collection, analysis, interpretation and writing. The advisory committee’s input also contributes to the work. This study conducted content analysis and network analysis on a sample of 547 master’s theses from eight departments of the College of Journalism and Communications of Shih Hsin University to examine the relationships between the advisors and committee members as well as the connections of research topics. The results showed that the topic “lifestyle” have attracted cross-department research interests in the college. The academic network of the college is rather loose, and serving university administration duties may have broadened a faculty member’s centrality in the network. The Department of Communications Management and the Graduate Institute of Communications served as the bridges for the inter-departmental communication in the network. One can understand the interrelations among professors and departments through study on network analysis of thesis as to identify the characteristics of each department, as well as to reveal invisible relations of academic network and scholarly communication. [Article content in Chinese

Recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software: An overview

NARCIS (Netherlands)

C-L. Chang (Chia-Lin); M.J. McAleer (Michael)

2017-01-01

textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted "global" in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on

Rediscovering Paideia and the Meaning of a Scholarly Career: Rejoinder to "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory"

Science.gov (United States)

Antonacopoulou, Elena P.

2016-01-01

In "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory," authors J.B. Arbaugh, Charles J. Fornaciari, and Alvin Hwang ("Journal of Management Education," December 2016 vol. 40 no. 6 p654-691, see EJ1118407) used citation analysis to track the development of…

Automated Text Data Mining Analysis of Five Decades of Educational Leadership Research Literature: Probabilistic Topic Modeling of "EAQ" Articles From 1965 to 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yinying; Bowers, Alex J.; Fikis, David J.

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe the underlying topics and the topic evolution in the 50-year history of educational leadership research literature. Method: We used automated text data mining with probabilistic latent topic models to examine the full text of the entire publication history of all 1,539 articles published in…

THE 4th SCHIZOPHRENIA INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH SOCIETY CONFERENCE, 5–9 APRIL 2014, FLORENCE, ITALY: A summary of topics and trends

Science.gov (United States)

Abayomi, Olukayode; Amato, Davide; Bailey, Candace; Bitanihirwe, Byron; Bowen, Lynneice; Burshtein, Shimon; Cullen, Alexis; Fusté, Montserrat; Herrmann, Ana P; Khodaie, Babak; Kilian, Sanja; Lang, Qortni A; Manning, Elizabeth E; Massuda, Raffael; Nurjono, Milawaty; Sadiq, Sarosh; Sanchez-Gutierrez, Teresa; Sheinbaum, Tamara; Shivakumar, Venkataram; Simon, Nicholas; Spiteri-Staines, Anneliese; Sirijit, Suttajit; Toftdahl, Nanna Gilliam; Wadehra, Sunali; Wang, Yi; Wigton, Rebekah; Wright, Susan; Yagoda, Sergey; Zaytseva, Yuliya; O’Shea, Anne; DeLisi, Lynn E.

2015-01-01

The 4th Schizophrenia International Research Society Conference was held in Florence, Italy, April 5–9, 2014.and this year had as its emphasis, “Fostering Collaboration in Schizophrenia Research”. Student travel awardees served as rapporteurs for each oral session, summarized the important contributions of each session and then each report was integrated into a final summary of data discussed at the entire conference by topic. It is hoped that by combining data from different presentations, patterns of interest will emerge and thus lead to new progress for the future. In addition, the following report provides an overview of the conference for those who were present, but could not participate in all sessions, and those who did not have the opportunity to attend, but who would be interested in an update on current investigations ongoing in the field of schizophrenia research. PMID:25306204

Mental Mechanisms for Topics Identification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Louis Massey

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Topics identification (TI is the process that consists in determining the main themes present in natural language documents. The current TI modeling paradigm aims at acquiring semantic information from statistic properties of large text datasets. We investigate the mental mechanisms responsible for the identification of topics in a single document given existing knowledge. Our main hypothesis is that topics are the result of accumulated neural activation of loosely organized information stored in long-term memory (LTM. We experimentally tested our hypothesis with a computational model that simulates LTM activation. The model assumes activation decay as an unavoidable phenomenon originating from the bioelectric nature of neural systems. Since decay should negatively affect the quality of topics, the model predicts the presence of short-term memory (STM to keep the focus of attention on a few words, with the expected outcome of restoring quality to a baseline level. Our experiments measured topics quality of over 300 documents with various decay rates and STM capacity. Our results showed that accumulated activation of loosely organized information was an effective mental computational commodity to identify topics. It was furthermore confirmed that rapid decay is detrimental to topics quality but that limited capacity STM restores quality to a baseline level, even exceeding it slightly.

Prioritizing multiple health behavior change research topics: expert opinions in behavior change science.

Science.gov (United States)

Amato, Katie; Park, Eunhee; Nigg, Claudio R

2016-06-01

Multiple health behavior change (MHBC) approaches are understudied. The purpose of this study is to provide strategic MHBC research direction. This cross-sectional study contacted participants through the Society of Behavioral Medicine email listservs and rated the importance of 24 MHBC research topics (1 = not at all important, 5 = extremely important) separately for general and underserved populations. Participants (n = 76) were 79 % female; 76 % White, 10 % Asian, 8 % African American, 5 % Hispanic, and 1 % Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander. Top MHBC research priorities were predictors of behavior change and the sustainability, long-term effects, and dissemination/translation of interventions for both populations. Recruitment and retention of participants (t(68) = 2.17, p = 0.000), multi-behavioral indices (t(68) = 3.54, p = 0.001), and measurement burden (t(67) = 5.04, p = 0.001) were important for the underserved. Results identified the same top research priorities across populations. For the underserved, research should emphasize recruitment, retention, and measurement burden.

Dynamic pricing and learning: Historical origins, current research, and new directions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

den Boer, A.V.

The topic of dynamic pricing and learning has received a considerable amount of attention in recent years, from different scientific communities. We survey these literature streams: we provide a brief introduction to the historical origins of quantitative research on pricing and demand estimation,

Trends in gel dosimetry: Preliminary bibliometric overview of active growth areas, research trends and hot topics from Gore’s 1984 paper onwards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baldock, C

2017-01-01

John Gore’s seminal 1984 paper on gel dosimetry spawned a vibrant research field ranging from fundamental science through to clinical applications. A preliminary bibliometric study was undertaken of the gel dosimetry family of publications inspired by, and resulting from, Gore’s original 1984 paper to determine active growth areas, research trends and hot topics from Gore’s paper up to and including 2016. Themes and trends of the gel dosimetry research field were bibliometrically explored by way of co-occurrence term maps using the titles and abstracts text corpora from the Web of Science database for all relevant papers from 1984 to 2016. Visualisation of similarities was used by way of the VOSviewer visualisation tool to generate cluster maps of gel dosimetry knowledge domains and the associated citation impact of topics within the domains. Heat maps were then generated to assist in the understanding of active growth areas, research trends, and emerging and hot topics in gel dosimetry. (paper)

Topical therapy of atopic dermatitis: controversies from Hippocrates to topical immunomodulators.

Science.gov (United States)

Tilles, Gérard; Wallach, Daniel; Taïeb, Alain

2007-02-01

Although atopic dermatitis can be treated efficiently, there is still much controversy about the risk/benefit ratio of both topical corticosteroids and topical immunomodulators. Conflicting data may be found about the usefulness of bathing, diet regulation, and other therapeutic interventions. These controversies result in part from the persistence of Hippocratic doctrines in modern medical thinking. Humoralist and diathetic doctrines, as they pertain to eczema, are reviewed. The paradoxical worsening of oozing and the deadly hazards of hospitalization before the era of antibiotics are brought to mind. We hope that this historical review will improve the understanding of current controversies and help dermatologists to manage patients with atopic dermatitis and other chronic skin diseases.

Topics in Banach space theory

CERN Document Server

Albiac, Fernando

2016-01-01

This text provides the reader with the necessary technical tools and background to reach the frontiers of research without the introduction of too many extraneous concepts. Detailed and accessible proofs are included, as are a variety of exercises and problems. The two new chapters in this second edition are devoted to two topics of much current interest amongst functional analysts: Greedy approximation with respect to bases in Banach spaces and nonlinear geometry of Banach spaces. This new material is intended to present these two directions of research for their intrinsic importance within Banach space theory, and to motivate graduate students interested in learning more about them. This textbook assumes only a basic knowledge of functional analysis, giving the reader a self-contained overview of the ideas and techniques in the development of modern Banach space theory. Special emphasis is placed on the study of the classical Lebesgue spaces Lp (and their sequence space analogues) and spaces of continuous f...

Current status on health sciences research productivity pertaining to Angola up to 2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Sambo, Maria do Rosário; Ferreira, Albano V L

2015-07-01

Health research driven by the healthcare demands of the population can provide an informative evidence base to support decision-making processes on health policies, programmes, and practices. This paper surveyed the production of scientific research concerning health in Angola, specifically to access the publication rate over time, the main research topics and scientific fields, and the contribution of Angolan researchers and institutions. The study focused on data collected in a retrospective literature search in Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS) as of June 8, 2014, with the keyword "Angola" and on content information in correspondent publications deposited in PubMed. BVS generated 1,029 hits, 74.6 % of which were deposited in PubMed where 301 abstracts were described. From 1979 to 2003, there were 62 publications and in 2004-2013 the quantity increased four-fold (n = 232); malaria was the most frequent topic (n = 42). Angola was the country with the largest number of publications, taking into account the primary affiliation of the first author (n = 45). Universities, institutes, or research centres accounted for 65 % of the publications and in descending order Portugal, Brazil, and the United States of America occupied the three first positions. Epidemiology was by far the most frequent field of research (n = 165). The number of publications has increased steadily over the past 10 years, with predominance on malaria topics. Angola was the country with the largest number of major affiliations of the first author, but the contribution of Angolan institutions was relatively low, indicating a need to reinforce academic research institutions in the country.

Topics in Finance Part VI--Capital Budgeting

Science.gov (United States)

Laux, Judy

2011-01-01

This series on the theory of financial management offers insight into the roles of stockholder wealth maximization, the risk-return tradeoff, and agency conflicts as they apply to major topics in finance. The current article investigates capital budgeting. Much literature addresses this topic, with a number of articles challenging mainstream…

Marijuana: Current Concepts†

OpenAIRE

Greydanus, Donald E.; Hawver, Elizabeth K.; Greydanus, Megan M.; Merrick, Joav

2013-01-01

Marijuana (cannabis) remains a controversial drug in the twenty-first century. This paper considers current research on use of Cannabis sativa and its constituents such as the cannabinoids. Topics reviewed include prevalence of cannabis (pot) use, other drugs consumed with pot, the endocannabinoid system, use of medicinal marijuana, medical adverse effects of cannabis, and psychiatric adverse effects of cannabis use. Treatment of cannabis withdrawal and dependence is difficult and remains mai...

Do scientists trace hot topics?

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Tian; Li, Menghui; Wu, Chensheng; Yan, Xiao-Yong; Fan, Ying; Di, Zengru; Wu, Jinshan

2013-01-01

Do scientists follow hot topics in their scientific investigations? In this paper, by performing analysis to papers published in the American Physical Society (APS) Physical Review journals, it is found that papers are more likely to be attracted by hot fields, where the hotness of a field is measured by the number of papers belonging to the field. This indicates that scientists generally do follow hot topics. However, there are qualitative differences among scientists from various countries, among research works regarding different number of authors, different number of affiliations and different number of references. These observations could be valuable for policy makers when deciding research funding and also for individual researchers when searching for scientific projects.

NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Approximation by Solutions of Partial Differential Equations, Quadrature Formulae, and Related Topics

CERN Document Server

Goldstein, M; Haussmann, W; Hayman, W; Rogge, L

1992-01-01

This volume consists of the proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Approximation by Solutions of Partial Differential Equations, Quadrature Formulae, and Related Topics, which was held at Hanstholm, Denmark. These proceedings include the main invited talks and contributed papers given during the workshop. The aim of these lectures was to present a selection of results of the latest research in the field. In addition to covering topics in approximation by solutions of partial differential equations and quadrature formulae, this volume is also concerned with related areas, such as Gaussian quadratures, the Pompelu problem, rational approximation to the Fresnel integral, boundary correspondence of univalent harmonic mappings, the application of the Hilbert transform in two dimensional aerodynamics, finely open sets in the limit set of a finitely generated Kleinian group, scattering theory, harmonic and maximal measures for rational functions and the solution of the classical Dirichlet problem. In ...

Topical treatment of psoriasis: questionnaire results on topical therapy accessibility and influence of body surface area on usage.

Science.gov (United States)

Iversen, L; Lange, M M; Bissonette, R; Carvalho, A V E; van de Kerkhof, P C; Kirby, B; Kleyn, C E; Lynde, C W; van der Walt, J M; Wu, J J

2017-07-01

Topical treatment of mild to moderate psoriasis is first-line treatment and exhibits varying degrees of success across patient groups. Key factors influencing treatment success are physician topical treatment choice (high efficacy, low adverse events) and strict patient adherence. Currently, no formalized, international consensus guidelines exist to direct optimal topical treatment, although many countries have national guidelines. To describe and analyse cross-regional variations in the use and access of psoriasis topical therapies. The study was conducted as an observational cross-sectional study. A survey was distributed to dermatologists from the International Psoriasis Council (IPC) to assess topical therapy accessibility in 26 countries and to understand how body surface area (BSA) categories guide clinical decisions on topical use. Variation in the availability of tars, topical retinoids, dithranol and balneotherapy was reported. The vast majority of respondents (100% and 88.4%) used topical therapy as first-line monotherapy in situations with BSA 10%, the number of respondents who prescribe topical therapy decreased considerably. In addition, combination therapy of a topical drug and a systemic drug was frequently reported when BSA measured >10%. This physician survey provides new evidence on topical access and the influence of disease severity on topical usage in an effort to improve treatment strategies on a global level. © 2017 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

The International Journal of Health Research is an online international journal ... research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special ... formulated as Gastroretentive Drug Delivery System ...... In vivo gastric studies were run.

Topics in the Journal of Counseling Psychology, 1963-2015.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, JungSu; Stewart, Alan E; Phelps, Rosemary E

2017-11-01

Historical trends in a scientific field should be apparent in the changing content of journal articles over time. Using a topic modeling approach, a statistical method for quantifying the thematic content of text, 70 topics were extracted from the abstracts of 3,603 articles published in the Journal of Counseling Psychology from 1963 to 2015. After examining interpretability of 70 topics derived from the model, 64 meaningful topics and their trends were named. In addition, the authors also classified some of the related topics into 4 categories-counseling process and outcome, multiculturalism, research methodology, and vocational psychology. Counseling process and outcome related topics have decreased recently, while topics relating to multiculturalism and diversity have shown increasing trends. The authors also discussed trends that were observed and tried to account for the changing frequencies of some important research topics within these categories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Recent Topical Research on Global, Energy, Health & Medical, and Tourism Economics, and Global Software

OpenAIRE

Chang, Chia-Lin; McAleer, Michael

2017-01-01

textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted “global” in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on economics, thereby making it “global economics”. In this sense, the paper is concerned with papers on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, as well as global software algorithms that have...

A comparison of evaluation metrics for biomedical journals, articles, and websites in terms of sensitivity to topic.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Lawrence D; Aphinyanaphongs, Yindalon; Wang, Lily; Aliferis, Constantin F

2011-08-01

Evaluating the biomedical literature and health-related websites for quality are challenging information retrieval tasks. Current commonly used methods include impact factor for journals, PubMed's clinical query filters and machine learning-based filter models for articles, and PageRank for websites. Previous work has focused on the average performance of these methods without considering the topic, and it is unknown how performance varies for specific topics or focused searches. Clinicians, researchers, and users should be aware when expected performance is not achieved for specific topics. The present work analyzes the behavior of these methods for a variety of topics. Impact factor, clinical query filters, and PageRank vary widely across different topics while a topic-specific impact factor and machine learning-based filter models are more stable. The results demonstrate that a method may perform excellently on average but struggle when used on a number of narrower topics. Topic-adjusted metrics and other topic robust methods have an advantage in such situations. Users of traditional topic-sensitive metrics should be aware of their limitations. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Comparison of Evaluation Metrics for Biomedical Journals, Articles, and Websites in Terms of Sensitivity to Topic

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Lawrence D.; Aphinyanaphongs, Yindalon; Wang, Lily; Aliferis, Constantin F.

2011-01-01

Evaluating the biomedical literature and health-related websites for quality are challenging information retrieval tasks. Current commonly used methods include impact factor for journals, PubMed’s clinical query filters and machine learning-based filter models for articles, and PageRank for websites. Previous work has focused on the average performance of these methods without considering the topic, and it is unknown how performance varies for specific topics or focused searches. Clinicians, researchers, and users should be aware when expected performance is not achieved for specific topics. The present work analyzes the behavior of these methods for a variety of topics. Impact factor, clinical query filters, and PageRank vary widely across different topics while a topic-specific impact factor and machine learning-based filter models are more stable. The results demonstrate that a method may perform excellently on average but struggle when used on a number of narrower topics. Topic adjusted metrics and other topic robust methods have an advantage in such situations. Users of traditional topic-sensitive metrics should be aware of their limitations. PMID:21419864

Gastroesophageal reflux disease in pediatric practice: current topical issues

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O.Yu. Bielousova

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In recent years, much attention has been paid to the upper digestive tract diseases in children, particularly gastroesophageal reflux disease, as a cause that has an impact on the quality of life, even in children of school age, and thereafter in young adults. Consequently, there are searches for optimization of early detection, new me-thods of non-invasive diagnosis, screening of this pathology in children’s population in order to determine persons with risk factors and to control disease development and complicated course, as well as searches for the formation of preventive activities algorithm. Scientists came to a consensus that all examinations, which are used in pediatric practice, must be maximally available, simple and non-invasive to the extent of child’s condition. The question about advisability of performing esophagogastroduodenoscopy for all patients with complaints of heartburn and with other symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease, the question relative to performing ultrasonography of the esophagus in children as an additional method of examination, usage of questionnaire in pediatric practice, formation of disease course prediction algorithm, and identification of preventive measures specific to every patient remain open. In order to explain their application, the developmental mechanisms of this pathology must be well-understood, and individual risk factors that may influence disease severity and disease course prediction, which occur in children in different periods of life, must be taken into account. Therefore, the goal of this research is to provide an overview of modern literature with reference to topical issues of clinical evidence, risk factors, diagnosis, prediction of gastroesophageal reflux disease course in children of different ages (regarding main causative and pathogenic factors, clinical evidence (esophageal and extra-esophageal, diagnostic methods and modern approaches to gastroesophageal reflux disease

Relative efficacy of topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and topical capsaicin in osteoarthritis: Protocol for an individual patient data meta-analysis

OpenAIRE

Persson, M.S.M. (Monica); Fu, Y. (Yu); Bhattacharya, A. (Archan); Goh, S.-L. (Siew-Li); Middelkoop, Marienke; Bierma-Zeinstra, Sita; Walsh, D. (David); Doherty, Michael; Zhang, Weiya

2016-01-01

Background Pain is the most troubling issue to patients with osteoarthritis (OA), yet current pharmacological treatments offer only small-to-moderate pain reduction. Current guidelines therefore emphasise the need to identify predictors of treatment response. In line with these recommendations, an individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis will be conducted. The study aims to investigate the relative treatment effects of topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and topical caps...

Topical diclofenac in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Niklas Schuelert

2011-02-01

Full Text Available Niklas Schuelert, Fiona A Russell, Jason J McDougallDepartment of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, CanadaAbstract: Osteoarthritis (OA is a common disease that affects millions of people worldwide. As there is no cure for OA, drug treatment to relieve symptoms is the main form of management. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs such as diclofenac are the most commonly used drugs to treat knee OA pain. Unfortunately, these agents are associated with gastrointestinal and cardiovascular risks, which limit their chronic use. Topical NSAIDs are emerging as a viable alternative for managing OA pain. Because a pharmacologically effective dose can be restricted to the site of pain, there is superfluous systemic absorption, and the risk of related adverse effects is minimized. This article reviews the currently available preclinical and clinical information on topical diclofenac for the treatment of OA pain, including data from recently published randomized controlled trials regarding the efficacy and safety of topical diclofenac. Most studies confirm topical diclofenac to be as effective as oral diclofenac with significantly reduced side effects; however, the efficacy of NSAIDs is far from optimal, and more research needs to be done to investigate the underlying mechanisms of OA in order to improve treatment options, especially for patients with NSAID-resistant OA pain.Keywords: osteoarthritis, topical diclofenac, NSAID, joint pain 

Current issues in perturbative QCD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinchliffe, I.

1994-12-01

This review talk discusses some issues of active research in perturbative QCD. The following topics are discussed: (1) current value of αs; (2) heavy quark production in hadron collisions; (3) production of Ψ and Υ in p anti p collisions; (4) prompt photon production; (5) small-x and related phenomena; and (6) particle multiplicity in heavy quark jets

Topic Space: Rapid Prototyping a Mobile Augmented Reality Recommendation App

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jim Hahn

2015-10-01

Full Text Available With funding from an Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS Sparks! Ignition Grant, researchers from the University of Illinois Library designed and tested a mobile recommender app with augmented reality features. By embedding open source optical character recognition software into a “Topic Space” module, the augmented reality app can recognize call numbers on a book in the library and suggest relevant items that are not shelved nearby. Topic Space can also show users items that are normally shelved in the starting location but that are currently checked out. Using formative UX methods, grant staff shaped app interface and functionality through early user testing. This paper reports results of UX testing; a redesigned mobile interface, and provides considerations on the future development of personalized recommendation functionality.

Topical Botanical Agents for the Treatment of Psoriasis: A Systematic Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Farahnik, Benjamin; Sharma, Divya; Alban, Joseph; Sivamani, Raja K

2017-08-01

Patients with psoriasis often enquire about the use of numerous botanical therapeutics. It is important for dermatologists to be aware of the current evidence regarding these agents. We conducted a systematic literature search using the PubMed, MEDLINE, and EMBASE databases for controlled and uncontrolled clinical trials that assessed the use of topical botanical therapeutics for psoriasis. The search included the following keywords: 'psoriasis' and 'plant' or 'herbal' or 'botanical'. We also reviewed citations within articles to identify additional relevant sources. We then further refined the results by route of administration and the topical botanical agents are reviewed herein. A total of 27 controlled and uncontrolled clinical trials addressing the use of topical botanical agents for psoriasis were assessed in this review. We found that the most highly studied and most efficacious topical botanical therapeutics were Mahonia aquifolium, indigo naturalis, aloe vera, and, to a lesser degree, capsaicin. The most commonly reported adverse effects were local skin irritation, erythema, pruritus, burning, and pain. However, the overall evidence for these therapeutics remains limited in quantity and quality. The literature addresses a large number of studies in regard to botanicals for the treatment of psoriasis. While most agents appear to be safe, further research is necessary before topical botanical agents can be consistently recommended to patients.

NATO Advanced Study Institute on Topics in Atomic and Nuclear Collisions

CERN Document Server

Rémaud, B; Zoran, V

1994-01-01

The ASI 'Topics in Atomic and Nuclear Collisions' was organized in Predeal from August 31 to September 11. It brought together people with a broad interest in Atomic and Nuclear Physics from several research institutes and universities in Ro­ mania and 16 other countries. The school continues a tradition that started on a small scale back in 1968, fo­ cussing mainly on current problems in nuclear physics. Though the organizing of this edition started very late and in very uncertain economic and financial conditions, it turned out to be the largest meeting of this type ever organized in Romania, both in topics and participation. There were many applicants for participation and grants, considerably more than could be handled. The selection made by the local organizing committee was based on the following criteria: a proper balance of atomic and nuclear physicists, a broad representation of people from Research Institutes and Universities, a balanced par­ ticipat!on with respect to age, sex, nationali...

Final Technical Report summarizing Purdue research activities as part of the DOE JET Topical Collaboration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Molnar, Denes

2015-01-01

This report summarizes research activities at Purdue University done as part of the DOE JET Topical Collaboration. These mainly involve calculation of covariant radiative energy loss in the (Djordjevic-)Gyulassy-Levai-Vitev ((D)GLV) framework for relativistic A+A reactions at RHIC and LHC energies using realistic bulk medium evolution with both transverse and longitudinal expansion. The single PDF file provided also includes a report from the entire JET Collaboration.

Final Technical Report summarizing Purdue research activities as part of the DOE JET Topical Collaboration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Molnar, Denes [Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy

2015-09-01

This report summarizes research activities at Purdue University done as part of the DOE JET Topical Collaboration. These mainly involve calculation of covariant radiative energy loss in the (Djordjevic-)Gyulassy-Levai-Vitev ((D)GLV) framework for relativistic A+A reactions at RHIC and LHC energies using realistic bulk medium evolution with both transverse and longitudinal expansion. The single PDF file provided also includes a report from the entire JET Collaboration.

Reconciling current approaches to blindsight

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Overgaard, Morten; Mogensen, Jesper

2015-01-01

After decades of research, blindsight is still a mysterious and controversial topic in consciousness research. Currently, many researchers tend to think of it as an ideal phenomenon to investigate neural correlates of consciousness, whereas others believe that blindsight is in fact a kind...... of degraded vision rather than "truly blind". This article considers both perspectives and finds that both have difficulties understanding all existing evidence about blindsight. In order to reconcile the perspectives, we suggest two specific criteria for a good model of blindsight, able to encompass all...

Current developments in bovine mastitis treatment and control.

Science.gov (United States)

Wager, L A; Linquist, W E; Hayes, G L; Britten, A M; Whitehead, R G; Webster, D E; Barnes, F D

1978-01-01

Mastitis in its complexity has managed to forestall all efforts of eradication in spite of years of research, antibiotics and practical control measures. This minisymposium will touch on seven topics current to treatment and control of this economically important disease.

Biological variability in biomechanical engineering research: Significance and meta-analysis of current modeling practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Cook, Douglas; Julias, Margaret; Nauman, Eric

2014-04-11

Biological systems are characterized by high levels of variability, which can affect the results of biomechanical analyses. As a review of this topic, we first surveyed levels of variation in materials relevant to biomechanics, and compared these values to standard engineered materials. As expected, we found significantly higher levels of variation in biological materials. A meta-analysis was then performed based on thorough reviews of 60 research studies from the field of biomechanics to assess the methods and manner in which biological variation is currently handled in our field. The results of our meta-analysis revealed interesting trends in modeling practices, and suggest a need for more biomechanical studies that fully incorporate biological variation in biomechanical models and analyses. Finally, we provide some case study example of how biological variability may provide valuable insights or lead to surprising results. The purpose of this study is to promote the advancement of biomechanics research by encouraging broader treatment of biological variability in biomechanical modeling. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Topic prominence in Chinese EFL learners’ interlanguage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaopeng Li

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The present study aims to investigate the general characteristics of topicprominent typological interlanguage development of Chinese learners of English in terms of acquiring subject-prominent English structures from a discourse perspective. Topic structures mainly appear in Chinese discourse in the form of topic chains (Wang, 2002; 2004. The research target are the topic chain, which is the main topic-prominent structure in Chinese discourse, and zero anaphora, which is the most common topic anaphora in the topic chain. Two important findings emerged from the present study. First, the characteristics of Chinese topic chains are transferrable to the interlanguage of Chinese EFL learners, thus resulting in overgeneralization of the zero anaphora. Second, the interlanguage discourse of Chinese EFL learners reflects a change of the second language acquisition process from topic-prominence to subject-prominence, thus lending support to the discourse transfer hypothesis.

Insitut fuer Stroemungsmechanik und Hydraulische Stroemungsmaschinen, University of Stuttgart - topical research; Aktuelle Forschungsarbeiten des Instituts fuer Stroemungsmechanik und Hydraulische Stroemungsmaschinen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1994-12-31

Number 9 of the communications of the institute offers an overview of its fields of research. Described are both projects lately finalized but which are still topical, and investigations currently under way which have already provided useful results. Part of the contributions will be submitted in their full versions as theses, others are condensations of reports commissioned by industry. (orig./GL) [Deutsch] Das vorliegende Heft Nr. 9 der Institutsmitteilungen bietet einen Ueberblick ueber die Arbeitsgebiete des Institutes. Es wurden sowohl Arbeiten aufgenommen, die in letzter Zeit abgeschlossen wurden, aber noch nicht an Aktualitaet verloren haben, als auch solche Untersuchungen, die noch im Gange sind, aber bereits zu brauchbaren Ergebnissen gefuehrt haben. Ein Teil der Beitraege wird ausfuehrlich in Form von Dissertationen vorgelegt werden, bei anderen handelt es sich um Kurzfassungen von Berichten, die im Rahmen von Industrieauftraegen erstellt wurden. (orig./GL)

Current status of ion source development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishikawa, Junzo

2001-01-01

In this report, the current status of ion source development will be discussed. In September 2001, the 9th International Conference on Ion Sources (ICIS01) was held in Oakland, U.S.A. Referring the talks presented at ICIS01, recent topics in the ion source research fields will be described. (author)

Current activities at the MIT Research Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Linwen; Bernard, John A.; Harling, Otto K.; Kohse, Gordon E.; Ames, Michael; Olmez, Ilhan

1998-01-01

The MIT Research Reactor (MITR) is a MW nuclear research reactor that is owned and operated by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to further its educational and research goals at both the undergraduate and graduate level. The reactor first achieved criticality in 1958. It was largely rebuilt in 1973/1974 by MIT staff and students, and its current license expires in August 1999. The current facility, which is designated as the MITR-H, uses a compact core with finned, aluminum-clad, plate-type fuel that is cooled and moderated by light water and reflected by heavy water. The reactor core can hold twenty-seven fuel elements. However, the normal configuration is twenty-four elements. A maximum of four fuel elements can be replaced with in-core experimental facilities. A unique feature of the MITR-II's design is that fixed absorber plates can be inserted in the upper half of the core. These cause the flux to peak in the lower half which benefits experimenters and also facilitates a fuel strategy that involves inversion of fuel elements midway through their life cycle. The MITR-II currently operates continuously for four weeks followed by shutdown of a few days for maintenance. This paper provides an overview of current activities at the MITR including preparations for re-licensing. The status of an on-going Phase-I clinical trial of boron neutron capture therapy for both glioblastoma multiforme and metastatic melanoma is described as well as the design of a fission converter facility for BNCT. Environmental research using neutron activation analysis is summarized as well as in-pile research focussed on LWR water chemistry and structural materials. (author)

The Global Evidence Mapping Initiative: Scoping research in broad topic areas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tavender Emma

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Evidence mapping describes the quantity, design and characteristics of research in broad topic areas, in contrast to systematic reviews, which usually address narrowly-focused research questions. The breadth of evidence mapping helps to identify evidence gaps, and may guide future research efforts. The Global Evidence Mapping (GEM Initiative was established in 2007 to create evidence maps providing an overview of existing research in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI. Methods The GEM evidence mapping method involved three core tasks: 1. Setting the boundaries and context of the map: Definitions for the fields of TBI and SCI were clarified, the prehospital, acute inhospital and rehabilitation phases of care were delineated and relevant stakeholders (patients, carers, clinicians, researchers and policymakers who could contribute to the mapping were identified. Researchable clinical questions were developed through consultation with key stakeholders and a broad literature search. 2. Searching for and selection of relevant studies: Evidence search and selection involved development of specific search strategies, development of inclusion and exclusion criteria, searching of relevant databases and independent screening and selection by two researchers. 3. Reporting on yield and study characteristics: Data extraction was performed at two levels - 'interventions and study design' and 'detailed study characteristics'. The evidence map and commentary reflected the depth of data extraction. Results One hundred and twenty-nine researchable clinical questions in TBI and SCI were identified. These questions were then prioritised into high (n = 60 and low (n = 69 importance by the stakeholders involved in question development. Since 2007, 58 263 abstracts have been screened, 3 731 full text articles have been reviewed and 1 644 relevant neurotrauma publications have been mapped, covering fifty-three high priority

The Global Evidence Mapping Initiative: scoping research in broad topic areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Bragge, Peter; Clavisi, Ornella; Turner, Tari; Tavender, Emma; Collie, Alex; Gruen, Russell L

2011-06-17

Evidence mapping describes the quantity, design and characteristics of research in broad topic areas, in contrast to systematic reviews, which usually address narrowly-focused research questions. The breadth of evidence mapping helps to identify evidence gaps, and may guide future research efforts. The Global Evidence Mapping (GEM) Initiative was established in 2007 to create evidence maps providing an overview of existing research in Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). The GEM evidence mapping method involved three core tasks:1. Setting the boundaries and context of the map: Definitions for the fields of TBI and SCI were clarified, the prehospital, acute inhospital and rehabilitation phases of care were delineated and relevant stakeholders (patients, carers, clinicians, researchers and policymakers) who could contribute to the mapping were identified. Researchable clinical questions were developed through consultation with key stakeholders and a broad literature search. 2. Searching for and selection of relevant studies: Evidence search and selection involved development of specific search strategies, development of inclusion and exclusion criteria, searching of relevant databases and independent screening and selection by two researchers. 3. Reporting on yield and study characteristics: Data extraction was performed at two levels - 'interventions and study design' and 'detailed study characteristics'. The evidence map and commentary reflected the depth of data extraction. One hundred and twenty-nine researchable clinical questions in TBI and SCI were identified. These questions were then prioritised into high (n = 60) and low (n = 69) importance by the stakeholders involved in question development. Since 2007, 58 263 abstracts have been screened, 3 731 full text articles have been reviewed and 1 644 relevant neurotrauma publications have been mapped, covering fifty-three high priority questions. GEM Initiative evidence maps have a broad

Preface for Special Topic: Perovskite solar cells—A research update

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lukas Schmidt-Mende

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Over the last few years, tremendous progress has been made in the research field of perovskite solar cells. Not only are record power conversion efficiencies now exceeding 20%, but our understanding about the different mechanisms leading to this extraordinary performance has improved phenomenally. The aim of this special issue is to review the current state-of-the-art understanding of perovskite solar cells. Most of the presented articles are research updates giving a succinct overview over different aspects concerning perovskite solar cells.

Current situation on the glueball research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen Qixing

1991-01-01

The current situation on the glueball research is reviewed. The emphases are some qualitative guidances to identify the glueball and several possible candidate states for the glueball which have been discovered in the experiments

Marijuana: Current concepts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Donald eGreydanus

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Marijuana (cannabis remains a controversial drug in the 21st century. This paper considers current research on use of Cannabis sativa and its constituents such as the cannabinoids. Topics reviewed include prevalence of cannabis use, other drugs consumed with pot, the endocannabinoid system, use of medicinal marijuana, medical adverse effects of cannabis, and psychiatric adverse effects of cannabis use. Treatment of cannabis withdrawal and dependence is difficult and remains mainly based on psychological therapy; current research on pharmacologic management of problems related to cannabis consumption is also considered. The potential role of specific cannabinoids for medical benefit will be revealed as the 21st century matures. However, potential dangerous adverse effects from smoking marijuana are well known and should be clearly taught to a public often confused by a media-driven, though false message and promise of benign pot consumption.

Media reporting of neuroscience depends on timing, topic and newspaper type.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nienke M van Atteveldt

Full Text Available The rapid developments in neuroscientific techniques raise high expectations among the general public and therefore warrant close monitoring of the translation to the media and daily-life applications. The need of empirical research into neuroscience communication is emphasized by its susceptibility to evoke misconceptions and polarized beliefs. As the mass media are the main sources of information about (neuro-science for a majority of the general public, the objective of the current research is to quantify how critically and accurately newspapers report on neuroscience as a function of the timing of publication (within or outside of periods of heightened media attention to neuroscience, termed "news waves", the topic of the research (e.g. development, health, law and the newspaper type (quality, popular, free newspapers. The results show that articles published during neuroscience news waves were less neutral and more optimistic, but not different in accuracy. Furthermore, the overall tone and accuracy of articles depended on the topic; for example, articles on development often had an optimistic tone whereas articles on law were often skeptical or balanced, and articles on health care had highest accuracy. Average accuracy was rather low, but articles in quality newspapers were relatively more accurate than in popular and free newspapers. Our results provide specific recommendations for researchers and science communicators, to improve the translation of neuroscience findings through the media: 1 Caution is warranted during periods of heightened attention (news waves, as reporting tends to be more optimistic; 2 Caution is also warranted not to follow topic-related biases in optimism (e.g., development or skepticism (e.g., law; 3 Researchers should keep in mind that overall accuracy of reporting is low, and especially articles in popular and free newspapers provide a minimal amount of details. This indicates that researchers themselves may

Media Reporting of Neuroscience Depends on Timing, Topic and Newspaper Type

Science.gov (United States)

van Atteveldt, Nienke M.; van Aalderen-Smeets, Sandra I.; Jacobi, Carina; Ruigrok, Nel

2014-01-01

The rapid developments in neuroscientific techniques raise high expectations among the general public and therefore warrant close monitoring of the translation to the media and daily-life applications. The need of empirical research into neuroscience communication is emphasized by its susceptibility to evoke misconceptions and polarized beliefs. As the mass media are the main sources of information about (neuro-)science for a majority of the general public, the objective of the current research is to quantify how critically and accurately newspapers report on neuroscience as a function of the timing of publication (within or outside of periods of heightened media attention to neuroscience, termed “news waves”), the topic of the research (e.g. development, health, law) and the newspaper type (quality, popular, free newspapers). The results show that articles published during neuroscience news waves were less neutral and more optimistic, but not different in accuracy. Furthermore, the overall tone and accuracy of articles depended on the topic; for example, articles on development often had an optimistic tone whereas articles on law were often skeptical or balanced, and articles on health care had highest accuracy. Average accuracy was rather low, but articles in quality newspapers were relatively more accurate than in popular and free newspapers. Our results provide specific recommendations for researchers and science communicators, to improve the translation of neuroscience findings through the media: 1) Caution is warranted during periods of heightened attention (news waves), as reporting tends to be more optimistic; 2) Caution is also warranted not to follow topic-related biases in optimism (e.g., development) or skepticism (e.g., law); 3) Researchers should keep in mind that overall accuracy of reporting is low, and especially articles in popular and free newspapers provide a minimal amount of details. This indicates that researchers themselves may need to

Oral Versus Topical Diclofenac Sodium in the Treatment of Osteoarthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Tieppo Francio, Vinicius; Davani, Saeid; Towery, Chris; Brown, Tony L

2017-06-01

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common causes of joint pain in the United States and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs), such as Diclofenac sodium, which is currently available in two main routes of administration; oral and topical distribution have been established as one of the standard treatments for OA. Generally, oral NSAIDs are well tolerated; however our narrative review suggests that the topical solution had a better tolerability property than oral Diclofenac sodium, especially due to side effects of gastrointestinal bleeding with the utilization of the oral format. In addition, the topical route may be considered a reasonable selection by clinicians for management of musculoskeletal pain in those patients with a history of potential risk and adverse side effects. Most studies reviewed comparing oral versus topical solution of Diclofenac sodium revealed comparable efficacy, with minimal side effects utilizing the topical route. The key point of this narrative review is to help clinicians that currently must decide between very inexpensive diclofenac oral presentations and expensive topical presentations especially in the elderly population and the pros and cons of such decision-making process.

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

engineering fields). It seeks particularly (but not exclusively) to encourage multidisciplinary research and collaboration among scientists, the industry and the healthcare ... The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special .... software package version 6.1 (CDC, Atlanta,.

Parent Refusal of Topical Fluoride for Their Children: Clinical Strategies and Future Research Priorities to Improve Evidence-Based Pediatric Dental Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Chi, Donald L

2017-07-01

A growing number of parents are refusing topical fluoride for their children during preventive dental and medical visits. This nascent clinical and public health problem warrants attention from dental professionals and the scientific community. Clinical and community-based strategies are available to improve fluoride-related communications with parents and the public. In terms of future research priorities, there is a need to develop screening tools to identify parents who are likely to refuse topical fluoride and diagnostic instruments to uncover the reasons for topical fluoride refusal. This knowledge will lead to evidence-based strategies that can be widely disseminated into clinical practice. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of Novel Antimicrobial Peptides as Topical Anti-Infectives with Broad Spectrum Activity Against Combat-Related Bacterial and Fungal Wound Infections

Science.gov (United States)

2016-10-01

Inc. Vallejo, CA 94592 REPORT DATE: October 2016 TYPE OF REPORT: Annual PREPARED FOR: U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command Fort...2016 2. REPORT TYPE Annual 3. DATES COVERED 30 Sep 2015 - 29 Sep 2016 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Evaluation of Novel Antimicrobial Peptides as Topical...antibiotics and early debridement has been associated with a large reduction in burn wound infections. Current topical antibiotics include

Gaps in Current Knowledge and Priorities for Future Research in Dry Eye.

Science.gov (United States)

Saldanha, Ian J; Dickersin, Kay; Hutfless, Susan T; Akpek, Esen K

2017-12-01

Dry eye, a common yet underrecognized and evolving field, has few recommended treatment algorithms, mostly based on expert consensus rather than robust research evidence. There are high costs associated with managing dry eye and conducting research to identify effective and safe long-term treatments. To support evidence-based management of dry eye, our purpose was to identify and prioritize important clinical research questions for future clinical research. We translated recommendations from the American Academy of Ophthalmology's 2013 Preferred Practice Patterns for dry eye into answerable clinical research questions about treatment effectiveness. Clinicians around the world who manage patients with dry eye rated each question's importance from 0 (not important) to 10 (very important) using a 2-round online Delphi survey. We considered questions as "important" if ≥75% of respondents assigned a rating of 6 or more in round 2. We mapped the identified important clinical research questions to reliable systematic reviews published up to March 2016. Seventy-five clinicians from at least 21 countries completed both Delphi rounds. Among the 58 questions, 24 met our definition of "important": 9/24 and 7/24 addressed topical and systemic treatments, respectively. All 4 questions with the highest 25th percentiles addressed topical treatments. Although 6/24 "important" questions were associated with 4 existing reliable systematic reviews, none of these reviews came to a definitive conclusion about treatment effectiveness. We identified gaps pertaining to treatment options for dry eye. Future clinical research on the management of dry eye should strongly consider these prioritized questions.

Topics and topic prominence in two sign languages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kimmelman, V.

2015-01-01

In this paper we describe topic marking in Russian Sign Language (RSL) and Sign Language of the Netherlands (NGT) and discuss whether these languages should be considered topic prominent. The formal markers of topics in RSL are sentence-initial position, a prosodic break following the topic, and

Current status of nuclear physics research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bertulani, Carlos A.; Hussein, Mahir S.

2015-01-01

In this review, we discuss the current status of research in nuclear physics which is being carried out in different centers in the world. For this purpose, we supply a short account of the development in the area which evolved over the last nine decades, since the discovery of the neutron. The evolution of the physics of the atomic nucleus went through many stages as more data became available. We briefly discuss models introduced to discern the physics behind the experimental discoveries, such as the shell model, the collective model, the statistical model, the interacting boson model, etc., some of these models may be seemingly in conflict with each other, but this was shown to be only apparent. The richness of the ideas and abundance of theoretical models attests to the important fact that the nucleus is a really singular system in the sense that it evolves from two-body bound states such as the deuteron, to few-body bound states, such as 4 He, 7 Li, 9 Be, etc. and up the ladder to heavier bound nuclei containing up to more than 200 nucleons. Clearly, statistical mechanics, usually employed in systems with very large number of particles, would seemingly not work for such finite systems as the nuclei, neither do other theories which are applicable to condensed matter. The richness of nuclear physics stems from these restrictions. New theories and models are presently being developed. Theories of the structure and reactions of neutron-rich and proton-rich nuclei, called exotic nuclei, halo nuclei, or Borromean nuclei, deal with the wealth of experimental data that became available in the last 35 years. Furthermore, nuclear astrophysics and stellar and Big Bang nucleosynthesis have become a more mature subject. Due to limited space, this review only covers a few selected topics, mainly those with which the authors have worked on. Our aimed potential readers of this review are nuclear physicists and physicists in other areas, as well as graduate students interested

Current status of nuclear physics research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bertulani, Carlos A. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A and M University-Commerce (United States); Hussein, Mahir S., E-mail: hussein@if.usp.br [Instituto Tecnologico de Aeronautica (ITA), Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil). Dept. de Fisica

2015-12-15

In this review, we discuss the current status of research in nuclear physics which is being carried out in different centers in the world. For this purpose, we supply a short account of the development in the area which evolved over the last nine decades, since the discovery of the neutron. The evolution of the physics of the atomic nucleus went through many stages as more data became available. We briefly discuss models introduced to discern the physics behind the experimental discoveries, such as the shell model, the collective model, the statistical model, the interacting boson model, etc., some of these models may be seemingly in conflict with each other, but this was shown to be only apparent. The richness of the ideas and abundance of theoretical models attests to the important fact that the nucleus is a really singular system in the sense that it evolves from two-body bound states such as the deuteron, to few-body bound states, such as {sup 4}He, {sup 7}Li, {sup 9}Be, etc. and up the ladder to heavier bound nuclei containing up to more than 200 nucleons. Clearly, statistical mechanics, usually employed in systems with very large number of particles, would seemingly not work for such finite systems as the nuclei, neither do other theories which are applicable to condensed matter. The richness of nuclear physics stems from these restrictions. New theories and models are presently being developed. Theories of the structure and reactions of neutron-rich and proton-rich nuclei, called exotic nuclei, halo nuclei, or Borromean nuclei, deal with the wealth of experimental data that became available in the last 35 years. Furthermore, nuclear astrophysics and stellar and Big Bang nucleosynthesis have become a more mature subject. Due to limited space, this review only covers a few selected topics, mainly those with which the authors have worked on. Our aimed potential readers of this review are nuclear physicists and physicists in other areas, as well as graduate

AECL research programs in chemistry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crocker, I.H.; Eastwood, T.A.; Smith, D.R.; Stewart, R.B.; Tomlinson, M.; Torgerson, D.F.

1980-09-01

Fundamental or underlying research in chemistry is being done in AECL laboratories to further the understanding of processes involved in current nuclear energy systems and maintain an awareness of progress at the frontiers of chemical research so that new advances can be turned to advantage in future AECL endeavours. The report introduces the current research topics and describes them briefly under the following headings: radiation chemistry, isotope separation, high temperature solution chemistry, fuel reprocessing chemistry, and analytical chemistry. (auth)

Structural Learning Theory: Current Status and New Perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Scandura, Joseph M.

2001-01-01

Presents the current status and new perspectives on the Structured Learning Theory (SLT), with special consideration given to how SLT has been influenced by recent research in software engineering. Topics include theoretical constructs; content domains; structural analysis; cognition; assessing behavior potential; and teaching and learning issues,…

Social networks user: current research

OpenAIRE

Agadullina E.R.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this article is to review current research studies focusing on the users of Facebook and their behaviors in social networks. This review is organized into two sections: 1) social-demographic characteristics (Age, Gender, Nationality); 2) personality characteristics (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness-to-Experience, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Narcissism, Self-esteem). The results showed that the information in the personal profile and online behavior are strongly connect...

Fostering Topic Knowledge: Essential for Academic Writing

Science.gov (United States)

Proske, Antje; Kapp, Felix

2013-01-01

Several researchers emphasize the role of the writer's topic knowledge for writing. In academic writing topic knowledge is often constructed by studying source texts. One possibility to support that essential phase of the writing process is to provide interactive learning questions which facilitate the construction of an adequate situation…

A Discourse Perspective of Topic-prominence in Chinese EFL Learners’ Interlanguage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaopeng Li

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The present study aims to investigate the general characteristics of topic-prominent typological interlanguage development of Chinese learners of English in terms of acquiring subject-prominent English structures from the discourse perspective. We have selected as the research target “topic chain” which is the main topic-prominent structure in Chinese discourse and “zero anaphora” which is the most common topic anaphor of topic chain. Topic structures mainly appear in Chinese discourse in the form of “topic chain” (Wang, 2002; 2004. Actually, in the event of a topic chain, research on topic structures should go into the typical range of discourse. Two important findings were yielded by the present study. First, the characteristics of Chinese topic chain are transferrable to the interlanguage of Chinese EFL learners, thus resulting in overgeneralization of zero anaphora; second, interlanguage discourse of Chinese EFL learners reflects the characteristics of a second language acquisition process from topic-prominence to subject-prominence, thus lending support to the discourse transfer hypothesis.

Research trends on Big Data in Marketing: A text mining and topic modeling based literature analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra Amado

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Given the research interest on Big Data in Marketing, we present a research literature analysis based on a text mining semi-automated approach with the goal of identifying the main trends in this domain. In particular, the analysis focuses on relevant terms and topics related with five dimensions: Big Data, Marketing, Geographic location of authors’ affiliation (countries and continents, Products, and Sectors. A total of 1560 articles published from 2010 to 2015 were scrutinized. The findings revealed that research is bipartite between technological and research domains, with Big Data publications not clearly aligning cutting edge techniques toward Marketing benefits. Also, few inter-continental co-authored publications were found. Moreover, findings show that research in Big Data applications to Marketing is still in an embryonic stage, thus making it essential to develop more direct efforts toward business for Big Data to thrive in the Marketing arena.

Marijuana: Current Concepts†

Science.gov (United States)

Greydanus, Donald E.; Hawver, Elizabeth K.; Greydanus, Megan M.; Merrick, Joav

2013-01-01

Marijuana (cannabis) remains a controversial drug in the twenty-first century. This paper considers current research on use of Cannabis sativa and its constituents such as the cannabinoids. Topics reviewed include prevalence of cannabis (pot) use, other drugs consumed with pot, the endocannabinoid system, use of medicinal marijuana, medical adverse effects of cannabis, and psychiatric adverse effects of cannabis use. Treatment of cannabis withdrawal and dependence is difficult and remains mainly based on psychological therapy; current research on pharmacologic management of problems related to cannabis consumption is also considered. The potential role of specific cannabinoids for medical benefit will be revealed as the twenty-first century matures. However, potential dangerous adverse effects from smoking marijuana are well known and should be clearly taught to a public that is often confused by a media-driven, though false message and promise of benign pot consumption. PMID:24350211

Information retrieval for systematic reviews in food and feed topics: A narrative review.

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Hannah; O'Connor, Annette; Sargeant, Jan; Glanville, Julie

2018-01-09

Systematic review methods are now being used for reviews of food production, food safety and security, plant health, and animal health and welfare. Information retrieval methods in this context have been informed by human health-care approaches and ideally should be based on relevant research and experience. This narrative review seeks to identify and summarize current research-based evidence and experience on information retrieval for systematic reviews in food and feed topics. MEDLINE (Ovid), Science Citation Index (Web of Science), and ScienceDirect (http://www.sciencedirect.com/) were searched in 2012 and 2016. We also contacted topic experts and undertook citation searches. We selected and summarized studies reporting research on information retrieval, as well as published guidance and experience. There is little published evidence on the most efficient way to conduct searches for food and feed topics. There are few available study design search filters, and their use may be problematic given poor or inconsistent reporting of study methods. Food and feed research makes use of a wide range of study designs so it might be best to focus strategy development on capturing study populations, although this also has challenges. There is limited guidance on which resources should be searched and whether publication bias in disciplines relevant to food and feed necessitates extensive searching of the gray literature. There is some limited evidence on information retrieval approaches, but more research is required to inform effective and efficient approaches to searching to populate food and feed reviews. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Topic structure for information retrieval

NARCIS (Netherlands)

He, J.; Sanderson, M.; Zhai, C.; Zobel, J.; Allan, J.; Aslam, J.A.

2009-01-01

In my research, I propose a coherence measure, with the goal of discovering and using topic structures within and between documents, of which I explore its extensions and applications in information retrieval.

Research on high beam-current accelerators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keefe, D.

1981-01-01

In this review of research being undertaken at present in the US on accelerating devices and concepts of a novel nature, both non-collective systems, including high-current rf linacs and a variety of induction linacs, and also collective systems are considered. (U.K.)

Nanorobotics current approaches and techniques

CERN Document Server

Ferreira, Antoine

2013-01-01

Nanorobot devices now perform a wide variety of tasks at the nanoscale in a wide variety of fields including but not limited to fields such as manufacturing, medicine, supply chain, biology, and outer space. Nanorobotics: Current Approaches and Techniques is a comprehensive overview of this interdisciplinary field with a wide ranging discussion that includes nano-manipulation and industrial nanorobotics, nanorobotics in biology and medicine, nanorobotic sensing, navigation and swarm behavior, and protein and DNA-based nanorobotics. Also included is the latest on topics such as bio-nano-actuators and propulsion and navigation of nanorobotic systems using magnetic fields. Nanorobotics: Current Approaches and Techniques is an ideal book for scientists, researchers, and engineers actively involved in applied and robotic research and development.

Twenty Years of Creativity Research in Human-Computer Interaction: Current State and Future Directions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frich Pedersen, Jonas; Biskjaer, Michael Mose; Dalsgaard, Peter

2018-01-01

Creativity has been a growing topic within the ACM community since the 1990s. However, no clear overview of this trend has been offered. We present a thorough survey of 998 creativity-related publications in the ACM Digital Library collected using keyword search to determine prevailing approaches......, topics, and characteristics of creativity-oriented Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research. . A selected sample based on yearly citations yielded 221 publications, which were analyzed using constant comparison analysis. We found that HCI is almost exclusively responsible for creativity......-oriented publications; they focus on collaborative creativity rather than individual creativity; there is a general lack of definition of the term ‘creativity’; empirically based contributions are prevalent; and many publications focus on new tools, often developed by researchers. On this basis, we present three...

Navy Telemedicine: Current Research and Future Directions

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Reed, Cheryl

2002-01-01

.... This report reviews military and civilian models for evaluating telemedicine systems in order to determine future directions for Navy telemedicine research within the current funding environment...

Recent advances and perspectives in topical oral anesthesia.

Science.gov (United States)

Franz-Montan, Michelle; Ribeiro, Lígia Nunes de Morais; Volpato, Maria Cristina; Cereda, Cintia Maria Saia; Groppo, Francisco Carlos; Tofoli, Giovana Randomille; de Araújo, Daniele Ribeiro; Santi, Patrizia; Padula, Cristina; de Paula, Eneida

2017-05-01

Topical anesthesia is widely used in dentistry to reduce pain caused by needle insertion and injection of the anesthetic. However, successful anesthesia is not always achieved using the formulations that are currently commercially available. As a result, local anesthesia is still one of the procedures that is most feared by dental patients. Drug delivery systems (DDSs) provide ways of improving the efficacy of topical agents. Areas covered: An overview of the structure and permeability of oral mucosa is given, followed by a review of DDSs designed for dental topical anesthesia and their related clinical trials. Chemical approaches to enhance permeation and anesthesia efficacy, or to promote superficial anesthesia, include nanostructured carriers (liposomes, cyclodextrins, polymeric nanoparticle systems, solid lipid nanoparticles, and nanostructured lipid carriers) and different pharmaceutical dosage forms (patches, bio- and mucoadhesive systems, and hydrogels). Physical methods include pre-cooling, vibration, iontophoresis, and microneedle arrays. Expert opinion: The combination of different chemical and physical methods is an attractive option for effective topical anesthesia in oral mucosa. This comprehensive review should provide the readers with the most relevant options currently available to assist pain-free dental anesthesia. The findings should be considered for future clinical trials.

Curating research data a handbook of current practice

CERN Document Server

Johnston, Lisa R

2017-01-01

Curating Research Data, Volume Two: A Handbook of Current Practice guides you across the data lifecycle through the practical strategies and techniques for curating research data in a digital repository setting. The data curation steps for receiving, appraising, selecting, ingesting, transforming, describing, contextualizing, disseminating, and preserving digital research data are each explored, and then supplemented with detailed case studies written by more than forty international practitioners from national, disciplinary, and institutional data repositories. The steps in this volume detail the sequential actions that you might take to curate a data set from receiving the data (Step 1) to eventual reuse (Step 8). Data curators, archivists, research data management specialists, subject librarians, institutional repository managers, and digital library staff will benefit from these current and practical approaches to data curation.

Basic and applied research at NTT and postgraduate education

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimura, Tatsuya

1995-01-01

Several current research topics, which are studied at NTT Basic Research Laboratories, are reviewed in the fields of semiconductor physics, quantum optics and biophysics. These topics include the surface structure transition of GaAs, InAs and Si, electron transport in low-dimensional structure, microcavity quantum-wire semiconductor lasers, quantum nondemolition measurement of fibre solitons, and artificial network development of cultivated neural cells. 32 refs., 33 fig

Stochastic Analysis and Related Topics

CERN Document Server

Ustunel, Ali

1988-01-01

The Silvri Workshop was divided into a short summer school and a working conference, producing lectures and research papers on recent developments in stochastic analysis on Wiener space. The topics treated in the lectures relate to the Malliavin calculus, the Skorohod integral and nonlinear functionals of white noise. Most of the research papers are applications of these subjects. This volume addresses researchers and graduate students in stochastic processes and theoretical physics.

Current Challenges and Future of Lipid nanoparticles formulations for topical drug application to oral mucosa, skin, and eye.

Science.gov (United States)

Guilherme, Viviane A; Ribeiro, Ligia N M; Tofoli, Giovana Radomille; Franz-Montan, Michelle; de Paula, Eneida; de Jesus, Marcelo Bispo

2017-11-21

Topical drug administration offers an attractive route with minimal invasiveness. It also avoids limitations of intravenous administration such as the first pass metabolism and presystemic elimination within the gastrointestinal tract. Furthermore, topical drug administration is safe, have few side effects, is easy to apply, and offers a fast onset of action. However, the development of effective topical formulations still represents a challenge for the desired effect to be reached, locally or systemically. Solid lipid nanoparticles and nanostructured lipid carriers are particular candidates to overcome the problem of topical drug administration. The nanometric particle size of lipid nanoparticles favors the physical adhesion to the skin or mucosal, what can also be attained with the formation of hybrid (nanoparticles/polymer) systems. In this review, we discuss the major challenges for lipid nanoparticles formulations for topical application to oral mucosa, skin, and eye, highlighting the strategies to improve the performance of lipid nanoparticles for topical applications. Next, we critically analyzed the in vitro and in vivo approaches used to evaluate lipid nanoparticles performance and toxicity. We addressed some major drawbacks related to lipid nanoparticle topical formulations and concluded the key points that have to be overcome to help them to reach the market in topical formulations to oral mucosa, skin and eye. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Tracking topic birth and death in LDA.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wilson, Andrew T.; Robinson, David Gerald

2011-09-01

Most topic modeling algorithms that address the evolution of documents over time use the same number of topics at all times. This obscures the common occurrence in the data where new subjects arise and old ones diminish or disappear entirely. We propose an algorithm to model the birth and death of topics within an LDA-like framework. The user selects an initial number of topics, after which new topics are created and retired without further supervision. Our approach also accommodates many of the acceleration and parallelization schemes developed in recent years for standard LDA. In recent years, topic modeling algorithms such as latent semantic analysis (LSA)[17], latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA)[10] and their descendants have offered a powerful way to explore and interrogate corpora far too large for any human to grasp without assistance. Using such algorithms we are able to search for similar documents, model and track the volume of topics over time, search for correlated topics or model them with a hierarchy. Most of these algorithms are intended for use with static corpora where the number of documents and the size of the vocabulary are known in advance. Moreover, almost all current topic modeling algorithms fix the number of topics as one of the input parameters and keep it fixed across the entire corpus. While this is appropriate for static corpora, it becomes a serious handicap when analyzing time-varying data sets where topics come and go as a matter of course. This is doubly true for online algorithms that may not have the option of revising earlier results in light of new data. To be sure, these algorithms will account for changing data one way or another, but without the ability to adapt to structural changes such as entirely new topics they may do so in counterintuitive ways.

Emerging topics and practical aspects for an appropriate use of amyloid PET in the current italian context.

Science.gov (United States)

Nobili, Flavio; Cagnin, Annachiara; Calcagni, Maria L; Chincarini, Andrea; Guerra, Ugo P; Morbelli, Silvia; Padovani, Alessandro; Paghera, Barbara; Pappatà, Sabina; Parnetti, Lucilla; Sestini, Stelvio; Schillaci, Orazio

2018-04-24

In May, 2017 some representatives of the Italian nuclear medicine and neurological communities spontaneously met to discuss the issues emerged during the first two years of routine application of amyloid PET with fluorinated radiopharmaceuticals in the real world. The limitations of a binary classification of scans, the possibility to obtain early images as a surrogate marker of regional cerebral bloos flow, the need for (semi-)quantification and, thus, the opportunity of ranking brain amyloidosis, the correlation with Aβ42 levels in the cerebrospinal fluid, the occurrence and biological meaning of uncertain/boderline scans, the issue of incidental amyloidosis, the technical pittfalls leading to false negative/positive results, the position of the tool in the diagnostic flow- chart in the national reality, are the main topics that have been discussed. Also, a card to justify the examination to be filled by the dementia specialist and a card for the nuclear medicine physician to report the exam in detail have been approved and are available in the web, which should facilitate the creation of a national register, as previewed by the 2015 intersocietal recommendation on the use of amyloid PET in Italy. The content of this discussion could stimulate both public institutions and companies to support further research on these topics.

Social networks user: current research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agadullina E.R.

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to review current research studies focusing on the users of Facebook and their behaviors in social networks. This review is organized into two sections: 1 social-demographic characteristics (Age, Gender, Nationality; 2 personality characteristics (Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness-to-Experience, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Narcissism, Self-esteem. The results showed that the information in the personal profile and online behavior are strongly connected with socio-demographic and personality characteristics

An evaluation of current methods of diagnosing colorectal cancer in the United Kingdom

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bond, Janet; Tuckey, Mandy

2009-01-01

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a highly conversed topic, particularly since implementation of screening for CRC is imminent within the U.K. Aims: The aim of this research project was to examine the diagnostic tools currently used within the UK to detect CRC and their impact on the aetiology and epidemiology of CRC. Methodology: The complexity of the research topic lent itself towards a literature review. A systematic approach of researching was therefore adopted to analyse and critically evaluate the reliability and validity of articles. Electronic databases including AMED, Cancerlit, CINHAL, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, MEDLINE and EBM-Reviews were utilised to provide a wide spectrum of recent and relevant articles. Other research strategies involved looking for books relating to the topics, which were kept to within 6 years of publication to maintain accuracy of information. Selected websites, such as NICE, the Department of Health, NHS websites and Cancer Research U.K. were useful at explaining current and future screening plans and trials within Britain and allowed the study of reliable U.K. statistics. The research articles were then outlined and placed into sections of similar topic areas, which enabled the author to compare, contrast and evaluate the hypotheses. By organising the research in this way, a thorough review of the existing research for CRC was resultant. Results: A range of diagnostic tools is currently in use for detecting CRC within the UK. Screening for asymptomatic individuals aged 55-60 years+, (the age range where CRC incidence is higher), would provide the most effective reduction in CRC incidence and mortality rates. Conclusions: The use of a multi-phasic screening programme consisting of faecal occult blood tests (FOBt) and a whole bowel examination is considered to be the most effective diagnostic tools. However, preventative schemes, such as better education of the risks and symptoms of CRC, supported by the NHS Cancer Plan (2000), have

Review of Priority Research & Development Topics: R&D related to the use of Remote Sensing in National Forest Monitoring

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mitchell, A.; Hoekman, D.H.

2014-01-01

This document reviews the potential of the various remote sensing-derived forest map products that can be used in implementing and improving national forest monitoring systems8 and help meet the requirements of the IPCC Guidelines. It identifies any research and development topics that need to be

Affinity between information retrieval system and search topic

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ebinuma, Yukio

1979-01-01

Ten search profiles are tested on the INIS system at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. The results are plotted on recall-precision chart ranging from 100% recall to 100% precision. The curves are not purely systems-dependent nor search-dependent, and are determined substantially by the ''affinity'' between the system and the search topic. The curves are named ''Affinity curves of search topics with information retrieval systems'', and hence retrieval affinity factors are derived. They are obtained not only for individual search topics but also for averages in the system. By such a quantitative examination, the difference of affinity among search topics in a given system, that of the same search topic among various systems, and that of systems to the same group of search topics can be compared reasonably. (author)

Heavy-ion fusion accelerator research, 1989

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-06-01

This report discusses the following topics on heavy-ion fusion accelerator research: MBE-4: the induction-linac approach; transverse beam dynamics and current amplification; scaling up the results; through ILSE to a driver; ion-source and injector development; and accelerator component research and development

Topical reports on Louisiana salt domes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-09-01

The Institute for Environmental Studies at Louisiana State University conducted research into the potential use of Louisiana salt domes for disposal of nuclear waste material. Topical reports generated in 1981 and 1982 related to Vacherie and Rayburn's domes are compiled and presented, which address palynological studies, tiltmeter monitoring, precise releveling, saline springs, and surface hydrology. The latter two are basically a compilation of references related to these topics. Individual reports are abstracted

Recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software: An overview

OpenAIRE

Chang, Chia-Lin; McAleer, Michael

2017-01-01

textabstractThe paper presents an overview of recent topical research on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, and global software. We have interpreted "global" in the title of the Journal of Reviews on Global Economics to cover contributions that have a global impact on economics, thereby making it "global economics". In this sense, the paper is concerned with papers on global, energy, health & medical, and tourism economics, as well as global software algorithms that have...

Electrocautery Superior to Topical Treatments for Precancerous Anal Lesions

Science.gov (United States)

... Professional Anal Cancer Treatment Anal Cancer Prevention Research Electrocautery Superior to Topical Treatments for Precancerous Anal Lesions ... randomized clinical trial conducted in Amsterdam suggest that electrocautery is better than topical imiquimod or fluorouracil at ...

Topical Valproate Solution for Hair Growth

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anil Kakunje

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Valproate is used regularly in the treatment of various seizure disorders, bipolar disorder, migraine prophylaxis and off label in many other conditions. Alopecia or hair loss is cosmetic side effect of oral valproate administration. Hair loss with valproate is diffused, non-scarring and dose related. A large number of drugs may interfere with the hair cycle and produce hair loss. We have only a few drugs like Minoxidil, Finasteride used for hair regeneration and both have its own side effects and limitations. In contrast to oral ingestions of valproate causing hair loss, early experiments with topical Valproic acid cream showed hair regeneration. Valproic acid cream is currently unavailable in the market, alternatively, we do have valproate and divalproex solutions available in various strengths which have a potential to be used topically for hair regeneration. The side effects and cost of topical valproate solution could be much less than the available options in the market. Valproate solution topically has the potential to be used for hair growth.

Setting the research agenda for governmental communication

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M. Vos

2006-01-01

The Research Group for Governmental Communication has carried out a trend study of governmental communication within The Netherlands (1). Research topics were: the major tasks for communication, current issues, profiling the communication department, and policy plans for communication. Another study

Research development, current hotspots, and future directions of water research based on MODIS images: a critical review with a bibliometric analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yibo; Zhang, Yunlin; Shi, Kun; Yao, Xiaolong

2017-06-01

Water is essential for life as it provides drinking water and food for humans and animals. Additionally, the water environment provides habitats for numerous species and plays an important role in hydrological, nutrient, and carbon cycles. Among the existing natural resources on Earth's surface, water is the most extensive as it covers more than 70% of the Earth. To gather a comprehensive understanding of the focus of past, present, and future directions of remote sensing water research, we provide an alternative perspective on water research using moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) imagery by conducting a comparative quantitative and qualitative analysis of research development, current hotspots, and future directions using a bibliometric analysis. Our study suggests that there has been a rapid growth in the scientific outputs of water research using MODIS imagery over the past 15 years compared to other popular satellites around the world. The analysis indicated that Remote Sensing of Environment was the most active journal, and "remote sensing," "imaging science photographic technology," "environmental sciences ecology," "meteorology atmospheric sciences," and "geology" are the top 5 most popular subject categories. The Chinese Academy of Sciences was the most productive institution with a total of 477 papers, and Hu CM (Chinese) was the most productive author with 76 papers. A keyword analysis indicated that "vegetation index," "evapotranspiration," and "phytoplankton" were the most active research topics throughout the study period. In addition, it is predicted that more attention will be paid to research on climate change and phenology in the future. Based on the keyword analysis and in consideration of current environmental problems, more studies should focus on the following three aspects: (1) develop methods suitable for data assimilation to fully explain climate or phenological phenomena at continental or global scales rather than at

Selected topics in research program on the IBR-2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luschikov, V.I.; Pikelner, L.B.; Popov, Yu.P.; Frank, I.M.; Sharapov, E.I.; Yazvitskii, Yu.S.

1979-01-01

The physical parameters of the IBR-2 fast pulsed reactor and research programs carried out on the reactor are described. Design values for an instantaneous thermal neutron fluxes are: 10 17 and 10 16 cm -2 s -1 inside and from the surface of the moderator respectively. In combination with the heavy current, short pulse injector (electron induction accelerator LIU-30 being under construction now) it will become a unique neutron source for the time-of-flight investigations in the energy range from 10 -7 to 10 6 eV. The characteristics of the complex IBR-2 + LIU-30 are described. The neutron beams are numbered and their use in the condensed matter and applied research is mentioned. The program for the experiments on the IBR-2 connected with nα, nγ and nf cross section measurements as well as neutron cross section study for few nucleon systems are reported. The prospects for nuclear physics research on the LIU-30 nonmultiplying target facility are outlined using as examples the experiments with polarized neutrons and nuclei and some others. The description is illustrated with the results obtained recently on the IBR-30 operating pulsed reactor

Public health services and systems research: current state of finance research.

Science.gov (United States)

Ingram, Richard C; Bernet, Patrick M; Costich, Julia F

2012-11-01

There is a growing recognition that the US public health system should strive for efficiency-that it should determine the optimal ways to utilize limited resources to improve and protect public health. The field of public health finance research is a critical part of efforts to understand the most efficient ways to use resources. This article discusses the current state of public health finance research through a review of public health finance literature, chronicles important lessons learned from public health finance research to date, discusses the challenges faced by those seeking to conduct financial research on the public health system, and discusses the role of public health finance research in relation to the broader endeavor of Public Health Services and Systems Research.

Current topics in autoimmune hepatitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Muratori, Luigi; Muratori, Paolo; Granito, Alessandro; Pappas, Giorgios; Cassani, Fabio; Lenzi, Marco

2010-11-01

Autoimmune hepatitis is a chronic liver disease of unknown aetiology characterized by interface hepatitis, hypergammaglobulinaemia and circulating autoantibodies. In the last decade a number of advancements have been made in the field of clinical and basic research: the simplified diagnostic criteria, the complete response defined as normalization of transaminase levels, the molecular identification of the antigenic targets of anti-liver cytosol antibody type 1 and anti-soluble liver antigen, the detection of anti-actin antibodies, the description of de novo autoimmune hepatitis after liver transplantation for non-autoimmune liver diseases, the characterization of autoimmune hepatitis with overlapping features of primary biliary cirrhosis or primary sclerosing cholangitis, the preliminary experience with novel treatment strategies based on cyclosporine, mycophenolate mofetil and budesonide, the role played by "impaired" regulatory T cells and the development of novel animal models of autoimmune hepatitis. Copyright © 2010 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Topics in computational linear optimization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hultberg, Tim Helge

2000-01-01

Linear optimization has been an active area of research ever since the pioneering work of G. Dantzig more than 50 years ago. This research has produced a long sequence of practical as well as theoretical improvements of the solution techniques avilable for solving linear optimization problems...... of high quality solvers and the use of algebraic modelling systems to handle the communication between the modeller and the solver. This dissertation features four topics in computational linear optimization: A) automatic reformulation of mixed 0/1 linear programs, B) direct solution of sparse unsymmetric...... systems of linear equations, C) reduction of linear programs and D) integration of algebraic modelling of linear optimization problems in C++. Each of these topics is treated in a separate paper included in this dissertation. The efficiency of solving mixed 0-1 linear programs by linear programming based...

Hydroclimatic variability and predictability: a survey of recent research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. D. Koster

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Recent research in large-scale hydroclimatic variability is surveyed, focusing on five topics: (i variability in general, (ii droughts, (iii floods, (iv land–atmosphere coupling, and (v hydroclimatic prediction. Each surveyed topic is supplemented by illustrative examples of recent research, as presented at a 2016 symposium honoring the career of Professor Eric Wood. Taken together, the recent literature and the illustrative examples clearly show that current research into hydroclimatic variability is strong, vibrant, and multifaceted.

Current cancer research. Reports from the German Cancer Research Center 1998; Krebsforschung heute. Berichte aus dem Deutschen Krebsforschungszentrum 1998

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-12-31

Topics from the Contents: The Fight against Cancer in Germany - A Critical Review. Conditions and Structures in Research. Familial Breast Cancer - A Critical Assessment. Research without Animal Experiments. Cancer Prevention. New Approaches for Tumor Therapy. Genes, Chromosomes and Cancer. Therapy of Brain Tumors with Laser Neurosurgery. The Genome Project. (orig.) [Deutsch] Krebsbekaempfung in Deutschland - kritische Ueberlegungen. Forschungsbedingungen und -strukturen. Forschung ohne Tierversuche. Familiaerer Brustkrebs - eine Risikoabschaetzung. Krebspraevention. Neue Therapieansaetze. Laser-Neurochirurgie bei Hirntumoren. Das Genomprojekt. Gene, Chromosomen und Krebs. (orig.)

Topic models: A novel method for modeling couple and family text data

Science.gov (United States)

Atkins, David C.; Rubin, Tim N.; Steyvers, Mark; Doeden, Michelle A.; Baucom, Brian R.; Christensen, Andrew

2012-01-01

Couple and family researchers often collect open-ended linguistic data – either through free response questionnaire items or transcripts of interviews or therapy sessions. Because participant's responses are not forced into a set number of categories, text-based data can be very rich and revealing of psychological processes. At the same time it is highly unstructured and challenging to analyze. Within family psychology analyzing text data typically means applying a coding system, which can quantify text data but also has several limitations, including the time needed for coding, difficulties with inter-rater reliability, and defining a priori what should be coded. The current article presents an alternative method for analyzing text data called topic models (Steyvers & Griffiths, 2006), which has not yet been applied within couple and family psychology. Topic models have similarities with factor analysis and cluster analysis in that topic models identify underlying clusters of words with semantic similarities (i.e., the “topics”). In the present article, a non-technical introduction to topic models is provided, highlighting how these models can be used for text exploration and indexing (e.g., quickly locating text passages that share semantic meaning) and how output from topic models can be used to predict behavioral codes or other types of outcomes. Throughout the article a collection of transcripts from a large couple therapy trial (Christensen et al., 2004) is used as example data to highlight potential applications. Practical resources for learning more about topic models and how to apply them are discussed. PMID:22888778

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special interest and relevance. ... Lipid solubility and molecular size are the major limiting factors for ... as natural digestive aids and as carriers for.

Current research projects on traffic conflicts technique studies.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hondel, M. van den & and Kraay, J.H.

1979-01-01

A review of current research concerning the development, evaluation and use of the traffic conflicts technique is presented. The 32 studies, selected from the IRRD data base, are listed alphabetically by names of countries and under countries by names of research organizations. The IRRD descriptions

Biotechnological research in Europe

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rehm, H J

1982-01-01

The current research possibilities in the expanding field of biotechnology in Europe are very briefly described. Remarks on research and development are limited to six topics: fermented food products; biomass production; product formation; bioreactors; waste-water treatment, environmental processes and methane formation; central research institutions. It is summarised that increased efforts at co-operation on all levels are vital for an improved development in the field of biotechnology throughout Europe.

Social and online media research – data, metrics and methods

OpenAIRE

Georgeta Drula

2012-01-01

Studies and current researches in online digital media and communication science are related to Web 2.0 at least from two perspectives: either to better understand this medium as research object, or to collect data on different topics. Social media can be a tremendous data source and topics for researchers. At the same time, these data are found in multimedia formats on different platforms, are updated continuously, and could be posted by professionals or users. This situation requires differ...

Topic-Specific Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TSPCK) in Redox and Electrochemistry of Experienced Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

O'Brien, Stephanie

Topic specific pedagogical content knowledge (TSPCK) is the basis by which knowledge of subject matter of a particular topic is conveyed to students. This includes students' prior knowledge, curricular saliency, what makes a topic easy or difficult to teach, representations, and teaching strategies. The goal of this study is to assess the pedagogical content knowledge of chemistry teachers in a professional learning community in the areas of redox and electrochemistry, as this has been regarded in previous literature as conceptually challenging for students to learn. By acquiring information regarding the PCK development of experienced chemistry teachers, the education and practice of all science teachers can be advanced. This study builds upon previous research that developed validated instruments to evaluate TSPCK. The research questions sought to determine which components of TSPCK were evidenced by the instructional design decisions teachers made, what shared patterns and trends were evident, and how TSPCK related to student learning outcomes. To answer the research questions subjects completed a background questionnaire, a TSPCK assessment, and interview tasks to elicit information about pedagogical decision making and processes that influenced student learning in their classrooms. The TSPCK exam and interview responses were coded to align with thematic constructs. To determine the effect of TSPCK on student learning gains, pre/post-assessment data on redox and electrochemistry were compared to teachers' TSPCK. The chemistry teachers displayed varying levels of TSPCK in redox and electrochemistry, as evidenced by their knowledge of student learning obstacles, curricular saliency, and teaching methodologies. There was evidence of experienced teachers lacking in certain areas of TSPCK, such as the ability to identify student misconceptions, suggesting the need for programmatic improvements in pre-service and in-service training to address the needs of current

Equipment aging: an overview of status and research needs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carfagno, S.P.

1982-01-01

The problem of equipment aging in nuclear power generating stations is viewed from the standpoint of the qualification of safety-related equipment. A brief summary of developments related to equipment aging and qualification (in industry, the regulatory arena, and in the research area) is presented to focus on the current status of the problem. Several research topics are suggested for consideration as components of any general plan of research on plant aging. Among these is a topic concerned with an effort to establish the relative merit of different approaches to account for the functional degradation of equipment in terms of their cost and their contribution to assurance of public safety and a topic to investigate ways to improve the monitoring of functional degradation of equipment in service. Some factors to be considered in choosing among research topics and in establishing funding levels are mentioned

Developments in functional equations and related topics

CERN Document Server

Ciepliński, Krzysztof; Rassias, Themistocles

2017-01-01

This book presents current research on Ulam stability for functional equations and inequalities. Contributions from renowned scientists emphasize fundamental and new results, methods and techniques. Detailed examples are given to theories to further understanding at the graduate level for students in mathematics, physics, and engineering. Key topics covered in this book include: Quasi means Approximate isometries Functional equations in hypergroups Stability of functional equations Fischer-Muszély equation Haar meager sets and Haar null sets Dynamical systems Functional equations in probability theory Stochastic convex ordering Dhombres functional equation Nonstandard analysis and Ulam stability This book is dedicated in memory of Staniłsaw Marcin Ulam, who posed the fundamental problem concerning approximate homomorphisms of groups in 1940; which has provided the stimulus for studies in the stability of functional equations and inequalities.

What can we learn from corporate sustainability reporting? Deriving propositions for research and practice from over 9,500 corporate sustainability reports published between 1999 and 2015 using topic modelling technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Székely, Nadine; Vom Brocke, Jan

2017-01-01

Organizations are increasingly using sustainability reports to inform their stakeholders and the public about their sustainability practices. We apply topic modelling to 9,514 sustainability reports published between 1999 and 2015 in order to identify common topics and, thus, the most common practices described in these reports. In particular, we identify forty-two topics that reflect sustainability and focus on the coverage and trends of economic, environmental, and social sustainability topics. Among the first to analyse such a large amount of data on organizations' sustainability reporting, the paper serves as an example of how to apply natural language processing as a strategy of inquiry in sustainability research. The paper also derives from the data analysis ten propositions for future research and practice that are of immediate value for organizations and researchers.

Small business innovation research: Program solicitation

Science.gov (United States)

1989-01-01

This, the seventh annual SBIR solicitation by NASA, describes the program, identifies eligibility requirements, outlines the required proposal format and content, states proposal preparation and submission requirements, describes the proposal evaluation and award selection process, and provides other information to assist those interested in participating in NASA's SBIR program. It also identifies the Technical Topics and Subtopics in which SBIR Phase 1 proposals are solicited in 1989. These Topics and Subtopics cover a broad range of current NASA interests, but do not necessarily include all areas in which NASA plans or currently conducts research. High-risk high pay-off innovations are desired.

Image Information Retrieval: An Overview of Current Research

OpenAIRE

Abby A. Goodrum

2000-01-01

This paper provides an overview of current research in image information retrieval and provides an outline of areas for future research. The approach is broad and interdisciplinary and focuses on three aspects of image research (IR): text-based retrieval, content-based retrieval, and user interactions with image information retrieval systems. The review concludes with a call for image retrieval evaluation studies similar to TREC.

The Effectiveness of Guided Inquiry Learning for Comparison Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Asnidar; Khabibah, S.; Sulaiman, R.

2018-01-01

This research aims at producing a good quality learning device using guided inquiry for comparison topics and describing the effectiveness of guided inquiry learning for comparison topics. This research is a developmental research using 4-D model. The result is learning device consisting of lesson plan, student’s worksheet, and achievement test. The subjects of the study were class VII students, each of which has 46 students. Based on the result in the experimental class, the learning device using guided inquiry for comparison topics has good quality. The learning device has met the valid, practical, and effective aspects. The result, especially in the implementation class, showed that the learning process with guided inquiry has fulfilled the effectiveness indicators. The ability of the teacher to manage the learning process has fulfilled the criteria good. In addition, the students’ activity has fulfilled the criteria of, at least, good. Moreover, the students’ responses to the learning device and the learning activities were positive, and the students were able to complete the classical learning. Based on the result of this research, it is expected that the learning device resulted can be used as an alternative learning device for teachers in implementing mathematic learning for comparison topics.

Selected topics in grand unification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seckel, D.

1983-01-01

This dissertation is a collection of four pieces of research dealing with grand unification. The topics are neutron oscillation, CP violation, magnetic monopole abundance and distribution in neutron stars, and a proposal for an inflationary cosmology driven by stress-energy in domain walls

Topical and transdermal drug delivery: principles and practice

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Benson, Heather A. E; Watkinson, Adam C

2012-01-01

.... Providing an overview of the current science in drug and cosmetic application to and through the skin, Topical and Transdermal Drug Delivery includes treatment of skin conditions, skin permeation...

Selected topics from classical bacterial genetics.

Science.gov (United States)

Raleigh, Elisabeth A; Elbing, Karen; Brent, Roger

2002-08-01

Current cloning technology exploits many facts learned from classical bacterial genetics. This unit covers those that are critical to understanding the techniques described in this book. Topics include antibiotics, the LAC operon, the F factor, nonsense suppressors, genetic markers, genotype and phenotype, DNA restriction, modification and methylation and recombination.

[Science and research in academic plastic surgery in Germany].

Science.gov (United States)

Giunta, R E; Machens, H-G

2009-12-01

Plastic surgery has passed through a very positive evolution in the last decades on the solid fundament of constantly developing academic plastic surgery. Aim of this paper is an objective evaluation of the current status of academic plastic surgery regarding research topics, currently available ressources and scientific outcome based on a questionnaire. The return rate of the questionnaire in academic departments was 92%. Main topics in research besides wound healing were topics from regenerative medicine such as tissue engineering, biomaterials, genetherapy and angiogenesis with the main focus on skin and fat tissues. In the past five years a total of 25 million Euros of third party research grants were raised. Research relied mainly on interdisciplinary research facilities. Regarding the scientific outcome more than 200 scientific papers were published in basic science research journals having an impactfactor higher than two. These results clearly demonstrate that plastic surgery is scientifically highly productive in academic surroundings where independent departments are established. Considering that independent units of plastic surgery exist in a relatively small number of all 36 university hospitals in germany, it has to be claimed for further independent departments so to provide adequate research facilities for further evolution of academic plastic surgery.

Identifying and prioritising systematic review topics with public health stakeholders: A protocol for a modified Delphi study in Switzerland to inform future research agendas.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoekstra, Dyon; Mütsch, Margot; Kien, Christina; Gerhardus, Ansgar; Lhachimi, Stefan K

2017-08-04

The Cochrane Collaboration aims to produce relevant and top priority evidence that responds to existing evidence gaps. Hence, research priority setting (RPS) is important to identify which potential research gaps are deemed most important. Moreover, RPS supports future health research to conform both health and health evidence needs. However, studies that are prioritising systematic review topics in public health are surprisingly rare. Therefore, to inform the research agenda of Cochrane Public Health Europe (CPHE), we introduce the protocol of a priority setting study on systematic review topics in several European countries, which is conceptualised as pilot. We will conduct a two-round modified Delphi study in Switzerland, incorporating an anonymous web-based questionnaire, to assess which topics should be prioritised for systematic reviews in public health. In the first Delphi round public health stakeholders will suggest relevant assessment criteria and potential priority topics. In the second Delphi round the participants indicate their (dis)agreement to the aggregated results of the first round and rate the potential review topics with the predetermined criteria on a four-point Likert scale. As we invite a wide variety of stakeholders we will compare the results between the different stakeholder groups. We have received ethical approval from the ethical board of the University of Bremen, Germany (principal investigation is conducted at the University of Bremen) and a certificate of non-objection from the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland (fieldwork will be conducted in Switzerland). The results of this study will be further disseminated through peer reviewed publication and will support systematic review author groups (i.a. CPHE) to improve the relevance of the groups´ future review work. Finally, the proposed priority setting study can be used as a framework by other systematic review groups when conducting a priority setting study in a different context. �

Interactional Organization and Topic Control in Conciliation Hearings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wânia Terezinha Ladeira

2011-07-01

Full Text Available We analyse discursive topic in talk-in-interaction within the institutional setting of three conciliation hearings held in a kind of small claims court for consumption conflict resolution. This research is based on Interactional Sociolinguistics and Conversation Analysis theories. The analysis shows that the participants of those meetings have asymmetric rights regarding the choice of discussion topics. Thus, the mediator is the one who has the right to suggest and control the discursive topics of the conversation. This topic control is the most important institutional procedure that can cause a reduction in accusations and adjacent replies. Consequently, the chance of mediators achieving their institutional task of reaching an agreement between parts in conflict is increased.

Current Issues in LPP Research and Their Impact on Society

Science.gov (United States)

Darquennes, Jeroen

2013-01-01

After a very broad description of what language policy and planning is about this paper presents an overview of some of the current preoccupations of researchers focusing on language policy and planning as one of the blooming fields of applied linguistics. The current issues in language policy and planning research that are dealt with include…

Satellite DNA: An Evolving Topic.

Science.gov (United States)

Garrido-Ramos, Manuel A

2017-09-18

Satellite DNA represents one of the most fascinating parts of the repetitive fraction of the eukaryotic genome. Since the discovery of highly repetitive tandem DNA in the 1960s, a lot of literature has extensively covered various topics related to the structure, organization, function, and evolution of such sequences. Today, with the advent of genomic tools, the study of satellite DNA has regained a great interest. Thus, Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS), together with high-throughput in silico analysis of the information contained in NGS reads, has revolutionized the analysis of the repetitive fraction of the eukaryotic genomes. The whole of the historical and current approaches to the topic gives us a broad view of the function and evolution of satellite DNA and its role in chromosomal evolution. Currently, we have extensive information on the molecular, chromosomal, biological, and population factors that affect the evolutionary fate of satellite DNA, knowledge that gives rise to a series of hypotheses that get on well with each other about the origin, spreading, and evolution of satellite DNA. In this paper, I review these hypotheses from a methodological, conceptual, and historical perspective and frame them in the context of chromosomal organization and evolution.

Topical tags vs non-topical tags : Towards a bipartite classification?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Basile, Valerio; Peroni, Silvio; Tamburini, Fabio; Vitali, Fabio

2015-01-01

In this paper we investigate whether it is possible to create a computational approach that allows us to distinguish topical tags (i.e. talking about the topic of a resource) and non-topical tags (i.e. describing aspects of a resource that are not related to its topic) in folksonomies, in a way that

Topics on continua

CERN Document Server

Macias, Sergio

2005-01-01

Specialized as it might be, continuum theory is one of the most intriguing areas in mathematics. However, despite being popular journal fare, few books have thoroughly explored this interesting aspect of topology. In Topics on Continua, Sergio Macías, one of the field's leading scholars, presents four of his favorite continuum topics: inverse limits, Jones's set function T, homogenous continua, and n-fold hyperspaces, and in doing so, presents the most complete set of theorems and proofs ever contained in a single topology volume. Many of the results presented have previously appeared only in research papers, and some appear here for the first time. After building the requisite background and exploring the inverse limits of continua, the discussions focus on Professor Jones''s set function T and continua for which T is continuous. An introduction to topological groups and group actions lead to a proof of Effros''s Theorem, followed by a presentation of two decomposition theorems. The author then offers an...

Thematic network on the analysis of thorium and its isotopes in workplace materials. Interim report on current research activity and future research needs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Howe, A.; Rosen, P.; White, M.

1999-12-01

The task of Work Package 1 (WP 1) of the EC Thematic Network 'The analysis of thorium and its isotopes in workplace materials' was to prepare an 'Inventory of current research activities in participating member states concerning thorium analysis in the workplace and environment'. The specific objective of WP 1 was 'to identify common research areas and co-ordinate activity for better management of resources'. This was to be achieved by carrying out a survey of network and national laboratories to establish the extent of current and proposed research activity in the field, evaluation of survey by network members, and production of a report containing results and conclusions. A preliminary literature review revealed that the majority of thorium analysis is carried out by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) or a radiochemical technique, alpha counting and neutron activation being the most popular. In many instances there is a preconcentration or separation step, which usually involves an ion exchange column to isolate the thorium and remove the majority of the matrix. Papers concerned with the application of ICP-MS were found to feature prominently amongst recent publications, which is not surprising, as the technique is fairly newly established. Thorium was most commonly measured in geological matrixes, including soil and ores. On the basis of the results of the literature review and survey of research activity, the Network identified two key areas of priority for further research: sample preparation methods for thorium analysis; and traceable standards and certified reference materials for thorium analysis. The Network considered how best to distribute the results to interested parties to facilitate links between laboratories with common research areas, and decided that: at this stage, the findings should simply be published in the form of this interim report, which is freely available to all interested parties; the Network should continue to

Digital library research : current developments and trends

OpenAIRE

Shiri, Ali

2003-01-01

This column gives an overview of current trends in digital library research under the following headings: digital library architecture, systems, tools and technologies; digital content and collections; metadata; interoperability; standards; knowledge organisation systems; users and usability; legal, organisational, economic, and social issues in digital libraries.

Nanoparticles and nanofibers for topical drug delivery

Science.gov (United States)

Goyal, Ritu; Macri, Lauren K.; Kaplan, Hilton M.; Kohn, Joachim

2016-01-01

This review provides the first comprehensive overview of the use of both nanoparticles and nanofibers for topical drug delivery. Researchers have explored the use of nanotechnology, specifically nanoparticles and nanofibers, as drug delivery systems for topical and transdermal applications. This approach employs increased drug concentration in the carrier, in order to increase drug flux into and through the skin. Both nanoparticles and nanofibers can be used to deliver hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs and are capable of controlled release for a prolonged period of time. The examples presented provide significant evidence that this area of research has—and will continue to have — a profound impact on both clinical outcomes and the development of new products. PMID:26518723

Current status of nuclear safety research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1977-01-01

Efforts at nuclear safety research have expanded year by year in Japan, in term of money and technical achievement. The Atomic Energy Commission set last year the five year nuclear safety research program, a guideline by which various research institutes will be able to develop their own efforts in a concerted manner. From the results of the nuclear safety research which cover very wide areas ranging from reactor engineering safety, safety of nuclear fuel cycle facilities, prevention of radiation hazards to the adequate treatment and disposal of radioactive wastes, AIJ hereafter focuses of LWR engineering safety and prevents two articles, one introducing the current results of the NSSR program developed by JAERI and the other reporting the LWR reliability demonstration testing projects being promoted by MITI. The outline of these demonstration tests was reported in this report. The tests consist of earthquake resistance reliability test of nuclear power plants, steam generator reliability tests, valve integrity tests, fuel assembly reliability tests, reliability tests of heat affected zones and reliability tests of pumps. (Kobatake, H.)

Pressure ulcer research : current and future perspectives

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bader, D.L.; Bouten, C.V.C.; Colin, D.; Oomens, C.W.J.

2005-01-01

This book provides an up-to-date scientific account of all aspects related to pressure ulcers and pressure ulcer research, as well as evidence-based knowledge of pressure ulcer aetiology. Further, it describes current and future tools for evaluating patients at risk. It comprises 20 chapters by

Tourette syndrome research highlights 2015

Science.gov (United States)

Richards, Cheryl A.; Black, Kevin J.

2016-01-01

We present selected highlights from research that appeared during 2015 on Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders. Topics include phenomenology, comorbidities, developmental course, genetics, animal models, neuroimaging, electrophysiology, pharmacology, and treatment. We briefly summarize articles whose results we believe may lead to new treatments, additional research or modifications in current models of TS. PMID:27429744

Upgrades, Current Capabilities and Near-Term Plans of the NASA ARC Mars Climate

Science.gov (United States)

Hollingsworth, J. L.; Kahre, Melinda April; Haberle, Robert M.; Schaeffer, James R.

2012-01-01

We describe and review recent upgrades to the ARC Mars climate modeling framework, in particular, with regards to physical parameterizations (i.e., testing, implementation, modularization and documentation); the current climate modeling capabilities; selected research topics regarding current/past climates; and then, our near-term plans related to the NASA ARC Mars general circulation modeling (GCM) project.

Ocean Science for Decision-Making: Current Activities of the National Research Council's Ocean Studies Board

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, S.; Glickson, D.; Mengelt, C.; Forrest, S.; Waddell, K.

2012-12-01

The National Research Council is a private, nonprofit organization chartered by Congress in 1916 as an expansion of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. Its mission is to improve the use of science in government decision making and public policy, increase public understanding, and promote the acquisition and dissemination of knowledge in matters involving science, engineering, technology, and health. Within the National Research Council, the Ocean Studies Board (OSB) mission is to explore the science, policies, and infrastructure needed to understand, manage, and conserve coastal and marine environments and resources. OSB undertakes studies and workshops on emerging scientific and policy issues at the request of federal agencies, Congress, and others; provides program reviews and guidance; and facilitates communication on oceanographic issues among different sectors. OSB also serves as the U.S. National Committee to the international, nongovernmental Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research (SCOR). OSB has produced reports on a wide range of topics of interest to researchers and educators, the federal government, the non-profit sector, and industry. Recent reports have focused on ecosystem services in the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, sea level rise on the U.S. west coast, scientific ocean drilling needs and accomplishments, requirements for sustained ocean color measurements, critical infrastructure for ocean research, tsunami warning and preparedness, ocean acidification, and marine and hydrokinetic power resource assessments. Studies that are currently underway include responding to oil spills in the Arctic, evaluating the effectiveness of fishery stock rebuilding plans, and reviewing the National Ocean Acidification Research Plan. OSB plays an important role in helping create policy decisions and disseminating important information regarding various aspects of ocean science.

The Development and Current State of Translation Process Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lykke Jakobsen, Arnt

2014-01-01

The development and current state of translation process research ch Arnt Lykke Jakobsen Copenhagen Business School lInterest in process-oriented translation studies has been intense for the past almost half a century. Translation process research (TPR) is the label we have used to refer to a spe...... itself, into regions like cognitive psychology, psycho- and neurolinguistics, and neuroscience, where the interest in what goes on in our heads is also very strong.......The development and current state of translation process research ch Arnt Lykke Jakobsen Copenhagen Business School lInterest in process-oriented translation studies has been intense for the past almost half a century. Translation process research (TPR) is the label we have used to refer...... which simultaneously tracks the translator’s eye movements across a screen displaying both a source text and the translator’s emerging translation. This research method was developed as a means of qualifying and strengthening translation process hypotheses based on verbal reports by providing additional...

A Call to Action: Setting the Research Agenda for Addressing Obesity and Weight-Related Topics in Children with Physical Disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

McPherson, Amy C; Ball, Geoff D C; Maltais, Désirée B; Swift, Judy A; Cairney, John; Knibbe, Tara Joy; Krog, Kim

2016-02-01

Pediatric obesity is a world-wide challenge. Children with physical disabilities are particularly at risk of obesity, which is worrisome because obesity can result in serious secondary conditions that decrease health status, reduce independence, and increase impact on healthcare systems. However, the determinants of obesity and the health promotion needs of children with physical disabilities are relatively unexplored compared with their typically developing peers. This white paper describes a Canadian multi-stakeholder workshop on the topic of obesity and health in children with physical disabilities and provides recommendations for future research in this understudied area. Seventy-one knowledge gaps identified by attendees using a modified nominal group technique clustered into six themes: (1) early, sustained engagement of families; (2) rethinking determinants of obesity and health; (3) maximizing impact of research; (4) inclusive integrated interventions; (5) evidence-informed measurement and outcomes; and (6) reducing weight biases. Attendees worked together to develop research plans in more detail for three areas identified through consensus as high priority: "early, sustained engagement of families;" "rethinking determinants of obesity and health;" and "evidence informed measurement and outcomes." Using the workshop described here as a call to action, Canadian researchers are now well positioned to work toward a greater understanding of weight-related topics in children with physical disabilities, with the aim of developing evidence-based and salient obesity prevention and treatment approaches.

Fuels and Space Propellants for Reusable Launch Vehicles: A Small Business Innovation Research Topic and Its Commercial Vision

Science.gov (United States)

Palaszewski, Bryan A.

1997-01-01

Under its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program (and with NASA Headquarters support), the NASA Lewis Research Center has initiated a topic entitled "Fuels and Space Propellants for Reusable Launch Vehicles." The aim of this project would be to assist in demonstrating and then commercializing new rocket propellants that are safer and more environmentally sound and that make space operations easier. Soon it will be possible to commercialize many new propellants and their related component technologies because of the large investments being made throughout the Government in rocket propellants and the technologies for using them. This article discusses the commercial vision for these fuels and propellants, the potential for these propellants to reduce space access costs, the options for commercial development, and the benefits to nonaerospace industries. This SBIR topic is designed to foster the development of propellants that provide improved safety, less environmental impact, higher density, higher I(sub sp), and simpler vehicle operations. In the development of aeronautics and space technology, there have been limits to vehicle performance imposed by traditionally used propellants and fuels. Increases in performance are possible with either increased propellant specific impulse, increased density, or both. Flight system safety will also be increased by the use of denser, more viscous propellants and fuels.

Topics in Bioethics: A Development of Student Perspectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keith A. Johnson

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Exposing students to current biotechnological and medical issues is eye-opening for many students in a way that is not always achieved through lecture-based learning. Lecture or investigative teaching styles provide a tremendous knowledge base for the students, but sometimes these teaching styles do not allow the student to fully develop, especially personal attitudes to issues in bioethics. Through online videos, Hollywood movies, guided readings and classroom discussions, students in this course are informed of some bioethical topics, encouraged to learn about other topics, and use this gained knowledge to develop personal positions regarding the value and/or risk of the issues. This course has been well-received by previous students as a favorite in terms of both topics covered and style.

Magnetic materials in Japan research, applications and potential

CERN Document Server

2013-01-01

Please note this is a Short Discount publication. This, the third report in Elsevier's Materials Technology in Japan series, concentrates on magnetic materials as a topic gaining worldwide attention, and each chapter looks not only at current research, but also describes the technology as it is being applied and its future potential. Magnetic-related research is the second largest field of research in Japan after semiconductors, with the estimated number of researchers and engineers engaged in magnetics-related activities currently at 20,000. This research report serves as both a review of

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

disciplines. The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special ... software to allow authors track the changes to their submission. All manuscripts must ... and Drug Development, University .... Table 2: Knowledge of emergency contraception methods among the study group.

Topical Session on Materials Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

At its second meeting, in Paris, 5-7 December 2001, the WPDD held two topical sessions on the D and D Safety Case and on the Management of Materials from D and D, respectively. This report documents the topical session on the management of materials. Presentations during the topical session covered key aspects of the management of materials and meant to provide an exchange of information and experience, including: Experience and lessons learnt from VLLW and non-radioactive material management in Spain and Germany with special attention to recycling (How specific solutions came about? Are there 'generic' examples for wider adoption?); Risk assessment of recycling and non-recycling: a CPD study; Waste acceptance issues within different national contexts (What constraints are there on the waste receiving body and what flexibility can the latter have? What constraints does this impose on D and D implementers? What about wastes are without current solution? What needs to be done? What about large items and 'difficult' waste in general?); Radiological characterisation of materials during decommissioning, particularly difficult situations - large volumes, large items,.. wastes, heterogeneous streams (What examples of established practice? What are the approaches or aspects that set the regulatory requirements? How can the flow rates be large but the answers acceptable? How much is needed to be known for later action, e. g., disposal, release, protection of worker, etc.); Radiological characterisation of buildings as they stand, in order to allow conventional demolition (What are strategies for optimisation of characterisation? How much needs to be known to take action later? e.g. for storage, disposal, release, cost estimation and ALARA? What needs to be done in advance and after decommissioning/dismantling?). At the end of each presentation time was allotted for discussion of the paper. Integral to the Topical Session was a facilitated plenary discussion on the topical

What, Who, or Where? Rejoinder to "Identifying Research Topic Development in Business and Management Education Research Using Legitimation Code Theory"

Science.gov (United States)

Harzing, Anne-Wil

2016-01-01

This brief commentary investigates whether article topic, author profile, or journal rank significantly influence an article's citation levels. Anne-Wil Harzing's regression analysis shows that, when all factors are taken into account at the same time, it is "what" is published (topic) and "who" has published it (author) that…

Rheumatic Fever and Rheumatic Heart Disease: Collaboration Patterns and Research Core Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Salinas, Alejandro; González, Gregorio; Manuel Ramos, Jose

2016-09-01

Rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) are important health problems in developing countries. The study aim was to provide a review and content analysis of the scientific literature on rheumatic fever and RHD over a 70-year period. Medline was employed via the online PubMed service of the US National Library of Medicine, to search for all documents containing the MeSH terms 'rheumatic fever' or 'rheumatic heart disease' between January 1945 and December 2013. A total of 18,552 references was retrieved. Between 1945 and 1970 the number of annual publications containing the search terms increased, but decreased between 1971 and 2013. Between 1990 and 2013, national collaboration (co-authorship) was greatly increased, from 8.7% to 41.7% of the total reports. International collaboration also increased, from 2.5% to 14.8% (p = 0.001). The United States was the main collaborating country, sharing ties mainly with India, South Africa and Brazil. A content analysis led to the identification of three prominent core research topics, chief among which were heart diseases (rheumatic fever diseases, mitral valve diseases and endocarditis). Other areas of note included streptococcal infections and rheumatic diseases (which, in addition to rheumatic fever, also highlighted arthritis and juvenile arthritis). Publications on rheumatic fever and RHD had a major impact during the 1960s, but research groups interest has since declined overall, in line with a decreasing interest in these diseases in developed countries. In contrast, national and international collaboration has increased, a phenomenon that should be encouraged for research into these and other diseases that affect developing countries.

Pharmaceutical lobbying in Brazil: a missing topic in the public health research agenda.

Science.gov (United States)

Paumgartten, Francisco José Roma

2016-12-22

In the US, where registration of lobbyists is mandatory, the pharmaceutical industry and private health-care providers spend huge amounts of money seeking to influence health policies and government decisions. In Brazil, where lobbying lacks transparency, there is virtually no data on drug industry expenditure to persuade legislators and government officials of their viewpoints and to influence decision-making according to commercial interests. Since 1990, however, the Associação da Indústria Farmacêutica de Pesquisa (Interfarma - Pharmaceutical Research Industry Association), Brazilian counterpart of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), main lobbying organization of the US pharmaceutical industry, has played a major role in the advocacy of interests of major drug companies. The main goals of Interfarma lobbying activities are: shortening the average time taken by the Brazilian regulatory agency (ANVISA) to approve marketing authorization for a new drug; making the criteria for incorporation of new drugs into SUS (Brazilian Unified Health System) more flexible and speeding up technology incorporation; changing the Country's ethical clearance system and the ethical requirements for clinical trials to meet the need of the innovative drug industry, and establishing a National Policy for Rare Diseases that allows a prompt incorporation of orphan drugs into SUS. Although lobbying affects community health and well-being, this topic is not in the public health research agenda. The impacts of pharmaceutical lobbying on health policies and health-care costs are of great importance for SUS and deserve to be investigated.

Health policy and systems research agendas in developing countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gonzalez-Block Miguel A

2004-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Health policy and systems research (HPSR is an international public good with potential to orient investments and performance at national level. Identifying research trends and priorities at international level is therefore important. This paper offers a conceptual framework and defines the HPSR portfolio as a set of research projects under implementation. The research portfolio is influenced by factors external to the research system as well as internal to it. These last include the capacity of research institutions, the momentum of research programs, funding opportunities and the influence of stakeholder priorities and public opinion. These dimensions can vary in their degree of coordination, leading to a complementary or a fragmented research portfolio. Objective The main objective is to identify the themes currently being pursued in the research portfolio and agendas within developing countries and to quantify their frequency in an effort to identify current research topics and their underlying influences. Methods HPSR topics being pursued by developing country producer institutions and their perceived priorities were identified through a survey between 2000 and 2002. The response to a call for letters of intent issued by the Alliance in 2000 for a broad range of topics was also analyzed. The institutions that were the universe of this study consisted of the 176 institutional partners of the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research producing research in low and middle income countries outside Europe. HPSR topics as well as the beneficiaries or issues and the health problems addressed were content analyzed. Topics were classified into 19 categories and their frequency analyzed across groups of countries with similar per capita income. Agendas were identified by analyzing the source of funding and of project initiation for projects under implementation. Results The highest ranking topic at the aggregate level is

Proceedings of the Twenty-First Water Reactor Safety Information Meeting: Volume 1, Plenary session; Advanced reactor research; advanced control system technology; advanced instrumentation and control hardware; human factors research; probabilistic risk assessment topics; thermal hydraulics; thermal hydraulic research for advanced passive LWRs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Monteleone, S.

1994-04-01

This three-volume report contains 90 papers out of the 102 that were presented at the Twenty-First Water Reactor Safety Information Meeting held at the Bethesda Marriott Hotel, Bethesda, Maryland, during the week of October 25--27, 1993. The papers are printed in the order of their presentation in each session and describe progress and results of programs in nuclear safety research conducted in this country and abroad. Foreign participation in the meeting included papers presented by researchers from France, Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland, Taiwan, and United Kingdom. The titles of the papers and the names of the authors have been updated and may differ from those that appeared in the final program of the meeting. Individual papers have been cataloged separately. This document, Volume 1 covers the following topics: Advanced Reactor Research; Advanced Instrumentation and Control Hardware; Advanced Control System Technology; Human Factors Research; Probabilistic Risk Assessment Topics; Thermal Hydraulics; and Thermal Hydraulic Research for Advanced Passive Light Water Reactors

Proceedings of the Twenty-First Water Reactor Safety Information Meeting: Volume 1, Plenary session; Advanced reactor research; advanced control system technology; advanced instrumentation and control hardware; human factors research; probabilistic risk assessment topics; thermal hydraulics; thermal hydraulic research for advanced passive LWRs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Monteleone, S. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)] [comp.

1994-04-01

This three-volume report contains 90 papers out of the 102 that were presented at the Twenty-First Water Reactor Safety Information Meeting held at the Bethesda Marriott Hotel, Bethesda, Maryland, during the week of October 25--27, 1993. The papers are printed in the order of their presentation in each session and describe progress and results of programs in nuclear safety research conducted in this country and abroad. Foreign participation in the meeting included papers presented by researchers from France, Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland, Taiwan, and United Kingdom. The titles of the papers and the names of the authors have been updated and may differ from those that appeared in the final program of the meeting. Individual papers have been cataloged separately. This document, Volume 1 covers the following topics: Advanced Reactor Research; Advanced Instrumentation and Control Hardware; Advanced Control System Technology; Human Factors Research; Probabilistic Risk Assessment Topics; Thermal Hydraulics; and Thermal Hydraulic Research for Advanced Passive Light Water Reactors.

Topics in Finance. Part V--Capital Structure

Science.gov (United States)

Laux, Judy

2011-01-01

Continuing this series on the theory of financial management, the current article investigates capital structure, offering insight into the roles of stockholder wealth maximization, the risk-return tradeoff, and agency conflicts. Much literature addresses this topic, and some of the most recent literature challenges certain theoretical…

Topical macrolide immunomodulators: a role in the treatment of vitiligo?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tjioe, M.; Vissers, W.H.P.M.; Gerritsen, M.J.P.

2006-01-01

Recently, topical macrolide immunomodulators have been successfully introduced in the treatment of atopic dermatitis. With the growing interest in this new line of topical immunosuppressants, research into the efficacy of these medicines in other T-cell-mediated skin diseases, such as psoriasis,

DIII-D Research Operations annual report to the US Department of Energy, October 1, 1990--September 30, 1991. Magnetic Fusion Research Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simonen, T.C.; Evans, T.E. [eds.

1992-03-01

This report discusses the following topics on Doublet-3 research operations: DIII-D Program Overview; Boundary Plasma Research Program/Scientific Progress; Radio Frequency Heating and Current Drive; Core Physics; DIII-D Operations; Program Development; Support Services; ITER Contributions; Burning Plasma Experiment Contributions; and Collaborative Efforts.

Weight Control: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... loss medications Show More Show Less Related Health Topics Body Weight Diets Eating Disorders Exercise and Physical Fitness Nutrition Obesity Weight Loss Surgery National Institutes of Health The primary NIH organization for research on Weight Control is the National Institute of ...

EMaCC: FY-1978 topical area report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-04-01

Materials research and development in the energy program are briefly described. Topics reviewed include joining of materials, elastomers, catalysts and catalytic effect, radiation effects, superconductivity, cement, concrete, and alternate materials

Conference on Stochastic Analysis and Related Topics

CERN Document Server

Peterson, Jonathon

2017-01-01

The articles in this collection are a sampling of some of the research presented during the conference “Stochastic Analysis and Related Topics”, held in May of 2015 at Purdue University in honor of the 60th birthday of Rodrigo Bañuelos. A wide variety of topics in probability theory is covered in these proceedings, including heat kernel estimates, Malliavin calculus, rough paths differential equations, Lévy processes, Brownian motion on manifolds, and spin glasses, among other topics.

Changing the Topic. Topic Position in Ancient Greek Word Order

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Allan, R.J.

2014-01-01

Ancient Greek, topics can be expressed as intra-clausal constituents but they can also precede or follow the main clause as extra-clausal constituents. Together, these various topic expressions constitute a coherent system of complementary pragmatic functions. For a comprehensive account of topic

Utilizing mixed methods research in analyzing Iranian researchers’ informarion search behaviour in the Web and presenting current pattern

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maryam Asadi

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Using mixed methods research design, the current study has analyzed Iranian researchers’ information searching behaviour on the Web.Then based on extracted concepts, the model of their information searching behavior was revealed. . Forty-four participants, including academic staff from universities and research centers were recruited for this study selected by purposive sampling. Data were gathered from questionnairs including ten questions and semi-structured interview. Each participant’s memos were analyzed using grounded theory methods adapted from Strauss & Corbin (1998. Results showed that the main objectives of subjects were doing a research, writing a paper, studying, doing assignments, downloading files and acquiring public information in using Web. The most important of learning about how to search and retrieve information were trial and error and get help from friends among the subjects. Information resources are identified by searching in information resources (e.g. search engines, references in papers, and search in Online database… communications facilities & tools (e.g. contact with colleagues, seminars & workshops, social networking..., and information services (e.g. RSS, Alerting, and SDI. Also, Findings indicated that searching by search engines, reviewing references, searching in online databases, and contact with colleagues and studying last issue of the electronic journals were the most important for searching. The most important strategies were using search engines and scientific tools such as Google Scholar. In addition, utilizing from simple (Quick search method was the most common among subjects. Using of topic, keywords, title of paper were most important of elements for retrieval information. Analysis of interview showed that there were nine stages in researchers’ information searching behaviour: topic selection, initiating search, formulating search query, information retrieval, access to information

Work-related reproductive, musculoskeletal and mental disorders among working women--history, current issues and future research directions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kishi, Reiko; Kitahara, Teruyo; Masuchi, Ayumi; Kasai, Setsuko

2002-04-01

According to the recent changes of working environments and socio-economical conditions, the proportion of working women are increasing in Japan. Characteristics of occupational workload and stress of Japanese working women are consistent with those in many industrialized countries except man-dominant culture. In this review we describe the history, current issues, and future research directions on occupational health of working women, especially focused on reproductive health, work-related musculo-skeletal disorders (WMSDs), and mental disorders. In the reproductive health survey, traditionally main concern was about pregnancy outcomes, then fecundity studies, such as time to pregnancy, became topics recently. Future research will be shifted to outcomes not only during pregnancy but also disorders of hormonal balance and climacterium or health conditions after menopause. WMSDs are reviewed on mainly gender difference and its causative factors. Historically, mental health of working women in Japan has focused on the job stress of nurses. We compare results with a lot of recent researches in Europe and U.S.A., where interaction between occupational stress and family roles were studied. It is not easy to predict the prospective status of female workers in Japan, but social, workplace and familial supports will enhance their health promotion.

Update on the Systemic Risks of Superpotent Topical Steroids.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamura, Mio; Abrouk, Michael; Zhu, Henry; Farahnik, Benjamin; Koo, John; Bhutani, Tina

2017-07-01

INTRODUCTION: The potential for systemic effects due to percutaneous absorption of superpotent topical steroids has been a longstanding concern. The Food and Drug Administration currently recommends limiting the use of superpotent topical steroids to 50g per week for 2 or 4 consecutive weeks depending on the formulation, which is mostly based on the exact duration with which phase 3 clinical trials were allowed to be conducted per the FDA. This article reviews all published clinical incidence of adrenal adverse effects in the medical literature, specifically Cushing's syndrome (CS) and pathologic adrenal suppression (PAAS), to try to ascertain a more realistic limit for the safe use of superpotent topical steroids as it pertains to its potential systemic effects. METHODS: Literature search was conducted using PubMed. Only cases of CS and PAAS secondary to the use of Class I superpotent topical steroids were included. Pediatric cases and full articles unavailable in English were excluded. RESULTS: There were a total of 14 cases of CS and 5 cases of subsequent PAAS found in the current literature. DISCUSSION: From our review of these cases, if the amount used per week is within FDA guidelines, it appears that patients needed to use superpotent topical steroids for far greater than 2 or 4 weeks to develop CS or PAAS. CS did not necessarily predict occurrence of PAAS, but in all cases CS appeared to be a prerequisite for developing PAAS. All cases of CS and all but one case of PAAS were reversible. If excessive amount of greater than 50g per week is avoided, it appears that superpotent topical steroids may be safe to use consecutively for months, perhaps even years, without causing systemic effects. J Drugs Dermatol. 2017;16(7):643-648..

Testosterone therapy in microphallic hypospadias: topical or parenteral?

Science.gov (United States)

Chalapathi, G; Rao, K L N; Chowdhary, S K; Narasimhan, K L; Samujh, Ram; Mahajan, J K

2003-02-01

Local or systemic application of testosterone is reported to stimulate penile growth. Intramuscular testosterone has been found to be effective in 50% of patients; however, variable results have been reported with topical testosterone. The current study is an attempt to compare the efficacy of intramuscular versus topical testosterone application. A total of 26 consecutive patients with hypospadias and small penis (enlargement was observed in 60% children in group A and 75% in group B. Although the desired therapeutic effect of testosterone was achieved in both the groups, this study failed to show any significant difference between the 2 routes of administration. However, in group A, (topical) serum testosterone crossed the normal range in 15% of patients and was associated with significant reversible side effects. Copyright 2003, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.

Topics in Finance: Part VIII--Mergers & Acquisitions

Science.gov (United States)

Laux, Judy

2012-01-01

In this series, three key axioms--stockholder wealth maximization, the risk-return tradeoff, and agency conflicts--are applied to the major topics in financial management. The current article looks at mergers and acquisitions, reviewing the presumed motivations, the ethical challenges, and the literature dedicated to this financial activity.

Atomic Processes in Plasmas: Tenth Topical Conference. Proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osterheld, A.L.; Goldstein, W.H.

1997-01-01

These proceedings contain the papers presented at the 10th topical conference on atomic processes in plasmas held in San Francisco, California. This conference series provides a forum for those whose research overlaps atomic and plasma physics. The topics discussed included tokamak plasmas, x-ray sources and x-ray lasers, dense plasmas, laser plasmas, radiative opacity and atomic databases. Among the sponsors of this conference were the Office of Fusion Energy and the Office of Energy Research of the U.S. department of Energy and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. There were 30 papers presented and 28 have been abstracted for the Energy Science and Technology database

Fifty Years of Quasars From Early Observations and Ideas to Future Research

CERN Document Server

Marziani, Paola; Sulentic, Jack

2012-01-01

The 50th anniversary of the discovery of quasars in 1963 presents an interesting opportunity to ask questions about the current state of quasar research. Formatted as a series of interviews with noted researchers in the field, each of them asked to address a specific set of questions covering topics selected by the editors, this book deals with the historical development of quasar research and discusses how advances in instrumentation and computational capabilities have benefitted quasar astronomy and have changed our basic understanding of quasars. In the last part of the book the interviews address the current topic of the role of quasars in galaxy evolution. They summarise open issues in understanding active galactic nuclei and quasars and present an outlook regarding what future observational facilities both on the ground and in space might reveal. Its interview format, the fascinating topic of quasars and black holes, and the lively recollections and at times controversial views of the contributors make ...

A review of the quantum current standard

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaneko, Nobu-Hisa; Nakamura, Shuji; Okazaki, Yuma

2016-01-01

The electric current, voltage, and resistance standards are the most important standards related to electricity and magnetism. Of these three standards, only the ampere, which is the unit of electric current, is an International System of Units (SI) base unit. However, even with modern technology, relatively large uncertainty exists regarding the generation and measurement of current. As a result of various innovative techniques based on nanotechnology and novel materials, new types of junctions for quantum current generation and single-electron current sources have recently been proposed. These newly developed methods are also being used to investigate the consistency of the three quantum electrical effects, i.e. the Josephson, quantum Hall, and single-electron tunneling effects, which are also known as ‘the quantum metrology triangle’. This article describes recent research and related developments regarding current standards and quantum-metrology-triangle experiments. (topical review)

Applying a Network-Lens to Hospitality Business Research: A New Research Agenda

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Florian AUBKE

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Hospitality businesses are first and foremost places of social interaction. This paper argues for an inclusion of network methodology into the tool kit of hospitality researchers. This methodology focuses on the interaction of people rather than applying an actor-focused view, which currently seems dominant in hospitality research. Outside the field, a solid research basis has been formed, upon which hospitality researchers can build. The paper introduces the foundations of network theory and its applicability to the study of organizations. A brief methodological introduction is provided and potential applications and research topics relevant to the hospitality field are suggested.

What Patients Can Tell Us: Topic Analysis for Social Media on Breast Cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Tapi Nzali, Mike Donald; Bringay, Sandra; Lavergne, Christian; Mollevi, Caroline; Opitz, Thomas

2017-07-31

Social media dedicated to health are increasingly used by patients and health professionals. They are rich textual resources with content generated through free exchange between patients. We are proposing a method to tackle the problem of retrieving clinically relevant information from such social media in order to analyze the quality of life of patients with breast cancer. Our aim was to detect the different topics discussed by patients on social media and to relate them to functional and symptomatic dimensions assessed in the internationally standardized self-administered questionnaires used in cancer clinical trials (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer [EORTC] Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 [QLQ-C30] and breast cancer module [QLQ-BR23]). First, we applied a classic text mining technique, latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA), to detect the different topics discussed on social media dealing with breast cancer. We applied the LDA model to 2 datasets composed of messages extracted from public Facebook groups and from a public health forum (cancerdusein.org, a French breast cancer forum) with relevant preprocessing. Second, we applied a customized Jaccard coefficient to automatically compute similarity distance between the topics detected with LDA and the questions in the self-administered questionnaires used to study quality of life. Among the 23 topics present in the self-administered questionnaires, 22 matched with the topics discussed by patients on social media. Interestingly, these topics corresponded to 95% (22/23) of the forum and 86% (20/23) of the Facebook group topics. These figures underline that topics related to quality of life are an important concern for patients. However, 5 social media topics had no corresponding topic in the questionnaires, which do not cover all of the patients' concerns. Of these 5 topics, 2 could potentially be used in the questionnaires, and these 2 topics corresponded to a total of 3.10% (523

Land use and cover change as an overarching topic in the Dutch National Research Programme on Global Air Pollution and Climate Change : issues for implementation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fresco, L.O.; Berg, van den M.M.; Zeijl-Rozema, van A.E.

1996-01-01

The integration study 'Land Use and Cover Change as an overarching topic in the Dutch National Research Programme on Global Air Pollution and Climate Change (NRP)' aims at identifying research fields in which the NRP can contribute most effectively to the international scientific

Describing Pre-Service Teachers' Developing Understanding of Elementary Number Theory Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Feldman, Ziv

2012-01-01

Although elementary number theory topics are closely linked to foundational topics in number and operations and are prevalent in elementary and middle grades mathematics curricula, little is currently known about how students and teachers make sense of them. This study investigated pre-service elementary teachers' developing understanding of…

Ageing management of nuclear power plant concrete structures - Overview and suggested research topics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naus, J.

2009-01-01

Nuclear power plant concrete structures are described and their operating experience noted. Primary considerations related to management of their ageing are noted and an indication of their status provided: degradation mechanisms, damage models, and material performance; assessment and remediation (i.e., component selection, in-service inspection, non-destructive examinations, and remedial actions); and estimation of performance at present or some future point in time (i.e., application of structural reliability theory to the design and optimisation of in-service inspection/maintenance strategies, and determination of the effects of degradation on plant risk). Several activities are identified that provide background information and data on areas of concern with respect to non-destructive examination of nuclear power plant concrete structures: inspection of thick-walled, heavily-reinforced sections; basemat; and inaccessible areas of the containment metallic pressure boundary. Topics are noted where additional research would be of benefit to ageing management of nuclear power plant concrete structures. (author)

Resources for Topics in Nursing.

Science.gov (United States)

Riordan, Dale B.

This guide is intended to help the user become familiar with a selected group of reference tools and resources which are useful in nursing education and practice. It is important for students to use the correct medical or scientific terminology, understand the scope of a topic, and then utilize the tools necessary to research subjects of interest.…

Labour Market Effects of Employment Protection. IAB Labour Market Research Topics.

Science.gov (United States)

Walwei, Ulrich

The labor market effects of employment protection were examined in a study of Germany's employment protection regulations and their impact on employment practices and patterns. The following topics were considered: (1) the question of whether Germany's labor market problems are a result of regulations; (2) employment security as a subject of labor…

The Role of Computers in Research and Development at Langley Research Center

Science.gov (United States)

Wieseman, Carol D. (Compiler)

1994-01-01

This document is a compilation of presentations given at a workshop on the role cf computers in research and development at the Langley Research Center. The objectives of the workshop were to inform the Langley Research Center community of the current software systems and software practices in use at Langley. The workshop was organized in 10 sessions: Software Engineering; Software Engineering Standards, methods, and CASE tools; Solutions of Equations; Automatic Differentiation; Mosaic and the World Wide Web; Graphics and Image Processing; System Design Integration; CAE Tools; Languages; and Advanced Topics.

Exercise for Seniors: MedlinePlus Health Topic

Science.gov (United States)

... GO MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA Exercise and age Related Health Topics Exercise and Physical Fitness Seniors' Health Sports Fitness National Institutes of Health The primary NIH organization for research on Exercise for Seniors is the National Institute ...

International Journal of Health Research

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erah

The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special ... demand in the market. .... Phase solubility studies showed the effect of three CD .... can be easily scaled up to the industrial level ... the drug caused by kneading process and ... Influence of cyclodextrins and chitosan on.

The ENTRIA project. Selected disciplinary and interdisciplinary research topics; Das ENTRIA-Projekt. Ausgewaehlte disziplinaere und interdisziplinaere Forschungsthemen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roehlig, Klaus-Juergen [Technical Univ. Clausthal, Clausthal-Zellerfeld (Germany); Hocke, Peter [KIT Karlsruhe (Germany). Inst. for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis; Smeddinck, Ulrich [Braunschweig Technical Univ. Braunschweig (Germany); Walther, Clemens [Hannover Univ. (Germany). Inst. for Radioecology and Radiation Protection

2015-07-01

ENTRIA (''Disposal Options for Radioactive Residues: Interdisciplinary Analyses and Development of Evaluation Principles'', www.entria.de) is a joint research project carried out by twelve departments and institutes from German universities and major research institutions and one partner from Switzerland. It is financed by the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Scientists representing natural sciences, civil engineering, philosophy, law, social and political sciences, and technology assessment carry out disciplinary and interdisciplinary research addressing three options to manage especially high-level radioactive waste: - Final disposal in deep geological formations without any arrangements for retrieval, - disposal in deep geological formations with arrangements for monitoring and retrieval, and - (prolonged) surface (or near-surface) storage. In the paper, the following selected research topics - both disciplinary and interdisciplinary - are briefly introduced in order to provide an impression of the project scope: - Surface storage, - reference concepts for emplacement in deep geological formations with retrievability and monitoring, - radiation exposure and justification of measures, - interdisciplinary perspectives on dose limits, - comparative studies on nuclear waste governance, - nuclear waste governance in Switzerland, - public involvement and the German Site Selection Act, and - citizens' jury.

2002–2012: 10 Years of Research Progress in Horizontal-Axis Marine Current Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kai-Wern Ng

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Research in marine current energy, including tidal and ocean currents, has undergone significant growth in the past decade. The horizontal-axis marine current turbine is one of the machines used to harness marine current energy, which appears to be the most technologically and economically viable one at this stage. A number of large-scale marine current turbines rated at more than 1 MW have been deployed around the World. Parallel to the development of industry, academic research on horizontal-axis marine current turbines has also shown positive growth. This paper reviews previous research on horizontal-axis marine current turbines and provides a concise overview for future researchers who might be interested in horizontal-axis marine current turbines. The review covers several main aspects, such as: energy assessment, turbine design, wakes, generators, novel modifications and environmental impact. Future trends for research on horizontal-axis marine current turbines are also discussed.

Familiar communication partners' facilitation of topic management in conversations with individuals with dementia.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Karinna; Lind, Christopher; Young, Jessica A; Okell, Elise; van Steenbrugge, Willem

2018-05-01

Language and memory impairments affect everyday interactions between individuals with dementia and their communication partners. Impaired topic management, which compromises individuals' construction of relevant, meaningful discourse, is commonly reported amongst individuals with dementia. Currently, limited empirical evidence describes the sequential patterns of behaviour comprising topic-management practices in everyday conversation between individuals with dementia and their communication partners. To describe the sequential patterns of behaviour relating to the manifestation of topic-management impairments and facilitative behaviours in everyday interactions between individuals with dementia and their familiar communication partners (FCPs). Three 20-min conversations between individuals with moderate to severe dementia and their FCPs were recorded. Conversation Analysis was used to examine sequences in which topic-management appeared to be impaired. Conversational behaviours that reflected a difficulty in contributing on-topic talk were pervasive in the talk of the three individuals with dementia. FCPs responded to these conversational difficulties by using two categories of facilitative behaviours. The first involved responding to an individual with dementia's explicit repair-initiation by performing repair. In the second category, explicit repair-initiation was absent; instead, the distance of the conversational difficulty from the prior topic-shifting turn mediated the form and outcome of the FCPs' facilitative behaviours. Each category successfully facilitated the individual with dementia to contribute on-topic talk. The findings contribute to a growing understanding of topic-management abilities in everyday interactions involving individuals with dementia. Individuals with dementia took a proactive role in eliciting topic-management support. The FCPs responded with turns that facilitated the individuals with dementia to talk on-topic. Clinically, the

Topics in theoretical and applied statistics

CERN Document Server

Giommi, Andrea

2016-01-01

This book highlights the latest research findings from the 46th International Meeting of the Italian Statistical Society (SIS) in Rome, during which both methodological and applied statistical research was discussed. This selection of fully peer-reviewed papers, originally presented at the meeting, addresses a broad range of topics, including the theory of statistical inference; data mining and multivariate statistical analysis; survey methodologies; analysis of social, demographic and health data; and economic statistics and econometrics.

Special Operations Research Topics 2014

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

ally government-sponsored and funded roles such as post-traumatic stress/traumatic brain injury research and treatment, family/child counseling, other...connected young adults in their teens and twenties versus the old man in the coffee shop? Which social media venues are best suited to interfacing

An Undergraduate Research Experience on Studying Variable Stars

Science.gov (United States)

Amaral, A.; Percy, J. R.

2016-06-01

We describe and evaluate a summer undergraduate research project and experience by one of us (AA), under the supervision of the other (JP). The aim of the project was to sample current approaches to analyzing variable star data, and topics related to the study of Mira variable stars and their astrophysical importance. This project was done through the Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP) in astronomy at the University of Toronto. SURP allowed undergraduate students to explore and learn about many topics within astronomy and astrophysics, from instrumentation to cosmology. SURP introduced students to key skills which are essential for students hoping to pursue graduate studies in any scientific field. Variable stars proved to be an excellent topic for a research project. For beginners to independent research, it introduces key concepts in research such as critical thinking and problem solving, while illuminating previously learned topics in stellar physics. The focus of this summer project was to compare observations with structural and evolutionary models, including modelling the random walk behavior exhibited in the (O-C) diagrams of most Mira stars. We found that the random walk could be modelled by using random fluctuations of the period. This explanation agreed well with observations.

Adolescent suicide prevention. Current research and social policy implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Garland, A F; Zigler, E

1993-02-01

The rate of adolescent suicide has increased dramatically in the past few decades, prompting several interventions to curb the increase. Unfortunately, many of the intervention efforts have not benefited from current research findings because the communication between researchers and those who develop the interventions is inadequate. Of specific concern are the increasingly popular curriculum-based suicide prevention programs, which have not demonstrated effectiveness and may contain potentially deleterious components. This article reviews the current epidemiological research in adolescent suicide and suggests how this knowledge could be used more effectively to reduce the rate of adolescent suicide. Recommendations include support for integrated primary prevention efforts; suicide prevention education for professionals; education and policies on firearm management; education for the media about adolescent suicide; more efficient identification and treatment of at-risk youth, including those exposed to suicidal behavior; crisis intervention; and treatment for suicide attempters.

Consciousness and working memory: Current trends and research perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Velichkovsky, Boris B

2017-10-01

Working memory has long been thought to be closely related to consciousness. However, recent empirical studies show that unconscious content may be maintained within working memory and that complex cognitive computations may be performed on-line. This promotes research on the exact relationships between consciousness and working memory. Current evidence for working memory being a conscious as well as an unconscious process is reviewed. Consciousness is shown to be considered a subset of working memory by major current theories of working memory. Evidence for unconscious elements in working memory is shown to come from visual masking and attentional blink paradigms, and from the studies of implicit working memory. It is concluded that more research is needed to explicate the relationship between consciousness and working memory. Future research directions regarding the relationship between consciousness and working memory are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A critique of current developments in simultaneous localization and mapping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shoudong Huang

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The number of research publications dealing with the simultaneous localization and mapping problem has grown significantly over the past 15 years. Many fundamental and practical aspects of simultaneous localization and mapping have been addressed, and some efficient algorithms and practical solutions have been demonstrated. The aim of this paper is to provide a critical review of current theoretical understanding of the fundamental properties of the SLAM problem, such as observability, convergence, achievable accuracy and consistency. Recent research outcomes associated with these topics are briefly discussed together with potential future research directions.

Potential Collaborative Research topics with Korea’s Agency for Defense Development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Farrar, Charles R. [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Todd, Michael D. [Univ. of California, San Diego

2012-08-23

This presentation provides a high level summary of current research activities at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL)-University of California Jacobs School of Engineering (UCSD) Engineering Institute that will be presented at Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD). These research activities are at the basic engineering science level with different level of maturity ranging from initial concepts to field proof-of-concept demonstrations. We believe that all of these activities are appropriate for collaborative research activities with ADD subject to approval by each institution. All the activities summarized herein have the common theme that they are multi-disciplinary in nature and typically involved the integration of high-fidelity predictive modeling, advanced sensing technologies and new development in information technology. These activities include: Wireless Sensor Systems, Swarming Robot sensor systems, Advanced signal processing (compressed sensing) and pattern recognition, Model Verification and Validation, Optimal/robust sensor system design, Haptic systems for large-scale data processing, Cyber-physical security for robots, Multi-source energy harvesting, Reliability-based approaches to damage prognosis, SHMTools software development, and Cyber-physical systems advanced study institute.

Current and Future Research at DANCE

Science.gov (United States)

Jandel, M.; Baramsai, B.; Bredeweg, T. A.; Couture, A.; Hayes, A.; Kawano, T.; Mosby, S.; Rusev, G.; Stetcu, I.; Taddeucci, T. N.; Talou, P.; Ullmann, J. L.; Walker, C. L.; Wilhelmy, J. B.

2015-05-01

An overview of the current experimental program on measurements of neutron capture and neutron induced fission at the Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments (DANCE) is presented. Three major projects are currently under way: 1) high precision measurements of neutron capture cross sections on Uranium isotopes, 2) research aimed at studies of the short-lived actinide isomer production in neutron capture on 235U and 3) measurements of correlated data of fission observables. New projects include developments of auxiliary detectors to improve the capability of DANCE. We are building a compact, segmented NEUtron detector Array at DANCE (NEUANCE), which will be installed in the central cavity of the DANCE array. It will provide experimental information on prompt fission neutrons in coincidence with the prompt fission gamma-rays measured by 160 BaF2 crystals of DANCE. Unique correlated data will be obtained for neutron capture and neutron-induced fission using the DANCE-NEUANCE experimental set up in the future.

Introduction to the Issue on Current Trends in Terahertz Photonics and Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2013-01-01

Since the last special issue on terahertz science and technology, nearly three years have been passed. During this period, while there have been further developments in terahertz (THz) sources, detectors, materials, and applications, there have been new discoveries. The purpose of this issue of t...... reviews on recent THz research, the contributed papers cover a wide range of the cutting-edge research in the topics described earlier....... of the IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics (JSTQE) is to highlight the advances in materials, devices, and applications and new directions in the THz domain within the last three years. Broad technical areas include: 1) materials; 2) matamaterials, plasmonics, and plasmons; 3) techniques...... and effects; 4) generation and power scaling; 5) detectors; 6) devices; 7) applications. These key THz topics are discussed in both invited and contributed papers published in this issue, providing comprehensive overviews of the current status and future directions as well as publishing original results...

Freshman Health Topics

Science.gov (United States)

Hovde, Karen

2011-01-01

This article examines a cluster of health topics that are frequently selected by students in lower division classes. Topics address issues relating to addictive substances, including alcohol and tobacco, eating disorders, obesity, and dieting. Analysis of the topics examines their interrelationships and organization in the reference literature.…

Special topics in the theory of piezoelectricity

CERN Document Server

Yang, Jiashi

2009-01-01

Piezoelectricity has been a steadily growing field, with recent advances made by researchers from applied physics, acoustics, materials science, and engineering. This collective work presents a comprehensive treatment of selected advanced topics in the subject. The book is written for an intermediate graduate level and is intended for researchers, mechanical engineers, and applied mathematicians interested in the advances and new applications in piezoelectricity.

Plant invasions in China: an emerging hot topic in invasion science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian Liu

2012-12-01

Full Text Available China has shown a rapid economic development in recent decades, and several drivers of this change are known to enhance biological invasions, a major cause of biodiversity loss. Here we review the current state of research on plant invasions in China by analyzing papers referenced in the ISI Web of Knowledge. Since 2001, the number of papers has increased exponentially, indicating that plant invasions in China are an emerging hot topic in invasion science. The analyzed papers cover a broad range of methodological approaches and research topics. While more that 250 invasive plant species with negative impacts have been reported from China, only a few species have been considered in more than a handful of papers (in order of decreasing number of references: Spartina alterniflora, Ageratina adenophora, Mikania micrantha, Alternanthera philoxeroides, Solidago canadensis, Eichhornia crassipes. Yet this selection might rather reflect the location of research teams than the most invasive plant species in China. Considering the previous achievements in China found in our analysis research in plant invasions could be expanded by (1 compiling comprehensive lists of non-native plant species at the provincial and national scales and to include species that are native to one part of China but non-native to others in these lists; (2 strengthening pathways studies (primary introduction to the country, secondary releases within the country to enhance prevention and management; and (3 assessing impacts of invasive species at different spatial scales (habitats, regions and in relation to conservation resources.

Current trends in chloroplast genome research | Khan | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

comprise of DOGMA for annotation, SCAN-SE, ARAGON and PREP suit for RNA analyses and CG viewer for circular map construction/comparative analysis. Faster algorithms for gene-order based phylogenetic reconstruction and bootstrap analysis have attracted the attention of research community. Current trends in ...

Twenty-third water reactor safety information meeting: Volume 2, Human factors research; Advanced I and C hardware and software; Severe accident research; Probabilistic risk assessment topics; Individual plant examination: Proceedings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Monteleone, S. [comp.] [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)

1996-03-01

This three-volume report contains papers presented at the Twenty- Third Water Reactor Safety Information Meeting held at the Bethesda Marriott Hotel, Bethesda, Maryland, October 23-25, 1995. The papers are printed in the order of their presentation in each session and describe progress and results of programs in nuclear safety research conducted in this country and abroad. Foreign participation in the meeting included papers presented by researchers from France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland. This document, Volume 2, present topics in human factors research, advanced instrumentation and control hardware and software, severe accident research, probabilistic risk assessment, and individual plant examination. Individual papers have been cataloged separately.

75 FR 80819 - Draft Current Intelligence Bulletin “Occupational Exposure to Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers”

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-23

... protective equipment; (4) Current exposure measurement methods and challenges in measuring workplace exposures to carbon nanotubes and nanofibers; (5) Areas for future collaborative efforts (e.g., research... business affiliations of the presenter, topic of the presentation, and [[Page 80820

Getting Started with Topic Modeling and MALLET

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shawn Graham

2012-09-01

Full Text Available In this lesson you will first learn what topic modeling is and why you might want to employ it in your research. You will then learn how to install and work with the MALLET natural language processing toolkit to do so. MALLET involves modifying an environment variable (essentially, setting up a short-cut so that your computer always knows where to find the MALLET program and working with the command line (ie, by typing in commands manually, rather than clicking on icons or menus. We will run the topic modeller on some example files, and look at the kinds of outputs that MALLET installed. This will give us a good idea of how it can be used on a corpus of texts to identify topics found in the documents without reading them individually.

Topic modeling for cluster analysis of large biological and medical datasets.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Weizhong; Zou, Wen; Chen, James J

2014-01-01

The big data moniker is nowhere better deserved than to describe the ever-increasing prodigiousness and complexity of biological and medical datasets. New methods are needed to generate and test hypotheses, foster biological interpretation, and build validated predictors. Although multivariate techniques such as cluster analysis may allow researchers to identify groups, or clusters, of related variables, the accuracies and effectiveness of traditional clustering methods diminish for large and hyper dimensional datasets. Topic modeling is an active research field in machine learning and has been mainly used as an analytical tool to structure large textual corpora for data mining. Its ability to reduce high dimensionality to a small number of latent variables makes it suitable as a means for clustering or overcoming clustering difficulties in large biological and medical datasets. In this study, three topic model-derived clustering methods, highest probable topic assignment, feature selection and feature extraction, are proposed and tested on the cluster analysis of three large datasets: Salmonella pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) dataset, lung cancer dataset, and breast cancer dataset, which represent various types of large biological or medical datasets. All three various methods are shown to improve the efficacy/effectiveness of clustering results on the three datasets in comparison to traditional methods. A preferable cluster analysis method emerged for each of the three datasets on the basis of replicating known biological truths. Topic modeling could be advantageously applied to the large datasets of biological or medical research. The three proposed topic model-derived clustering methods, highest probable topic assignment, feature selection and feature extraction, yield clustering improvements for the three different data types. Clusters more efficaciously represent truthful groupings and subgroupings in the data than traditional methods, suggesting

Efficacy, tolerability and consumer acceptability of terbinafine topical spray versus terbinafine topical solution: a phase IIa, randomised, observer-blind, comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Marc; Evans, Charles; Muddle, Andrew; Turner, Rob; Lim, Sian; Reed, Jessica; Traynor, Matt

2013-10-01

Tinea pedis is one of the world's most prevalent dermatophyte infections. MedSpray™ tinea pedis 1 % w/w (topical spray) is a novel, easy-to-use propellant-based spray formulation containing 1 % w/w terbinafine, requiring no manipulation at the site of infection. This is in contrast to the only formulation currently approved in Europe for single application (none are approved in the USA for single use), which is Lamisil(®) Once 1 % w/w (topical solution), containing 1 % w/w terbinafine hydrochloride, which requires manipulation on the affected area. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, tolerability and consumer acceptability of a topical spray versus a topical solution in the treatment of tinea pedis. This study is a phase IIa, randomised, observer-blind, non-inferiority comparative study of the topical spray compared with the topical solution over a 12-week study period. The study was conducted at Bioskin GmbH, Hamburg and Berlin. Patients (n = 120) who presented with the presence of interdigital tinea pedis caused by dermatophytes on one or both feet were enrolled in the study. Patients were randomly assigned between the two treatment groups. Either the topical spray or the topical solution was administered by the study nurse and consisted of a single application (equivalent to 20 mg of terbinafine per foot) on day 1 of the study. No further applications were made for the duration of the study. The hypothesis formulated before commencement of the study was that the topical spray would prove to be non-inferior to the topical solution. Efficacy assessments, including clinical signs and symptoms, mycology and microscopy were performed at baseline and 1, 6 and 12 weeks after treatment. The rate of mycological cure at week 1 was statistically equivalent for both treatments. There was a significant reduction in the overall clinical score as assessed by the Physician's Global Assessment of signs and symptoms for both treatment groups. The topical

Book Review: Current Issues in International Human Resource Management and Strategy Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gretzinger, Susanne

2009-01-01

The article reviews the book "Current Issues in International Human Resource Management and Strategy Research," edited by Marion Festing and Susanne Royer.......The article reviews the book "Current Issues in International Human Resource Management and Strategy Research," edited by Marion Festing and Susanne Royer....

Publication analysis of the contact lens field: what are the current topics of interest?

Science.gov (United States)

Cardona, Genís; Sanz, Joan P

2015-01-01

To determine the main current research interests of scientists working in the contact lens field. All articles published in the 2011 issues of all journals included in the Journal Citation Reports subject category Ophthalmology were inspected to expose those papers related to the contact lens field. Information regarding source journal was obtained and authorship details were recorded to determine the top most prolific authors, institutions and countries. A comprehensive list of key words was compiled to generate a two-dimensional term map in which the frequency of occurrence of a particular term is defined by label size and the distance between two terms is an indication of the relatedness of these terms, based on their co-occurrences within groups of key words. Clusters of related terms were also identified. Visual examination of all articles uncovered a total of 156 papers, published in 28 different journals. Contact Lens & Anterior Eye, Eye & Contact Lens and Optometry and Vision Science had 27 articles each. The most prolific authors and institutions revealed the predominance of countries with long research tradition in the contact lens field. Ten different word clusters or areas of interest were identified, including both traditional, yet unresolved issues (e.g., comfort or dry eye), and the latest research efforts (e.g., myopia control). These findings, which revealed contact lenses to be a fertile area of research, may be of relevance to new researchers as well as to those interested in exploring the latest research trends in this scientific discipline. Copyright © 2013 Spanish General Council of Optometry. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Topical Antimycotics for Oral Candidiasis in Warfarin Users

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hellfritzsch, Maja; Pottegård, Anton; Pedersen, Andreas James Thestrup

2017-01-01

Treatment for oral candidiasis in warfarin users may be complicated by drug-drug interactions (DDIs) between warfarin and topically applied antimycotics. However, current knowledge of these putative DDIs is merely based on case series. We therefore performed a cohort cross-over study with the obj......Treatment for oral candidiasis in warfarin users may be complicated by drug-drug interactions (DDIs) between warfarin and topically applied antimycotics. However, current knowledge of these putative DDIs is merely based on case series. We therefore performed a cohort cross-over study...... increased from 2.5 (95% CI: 2.1-2.8) to 3.8 (95% CI: 2.8-4.8) after exposure, corresponding to a mean INR increase of 1.4 (95% CI: 0.3-2.4). Among 30 warfarin users exposed to nystatin oral solution, the mean INR was 2.7 (95% CI: 2.3-3.1) before and 2.5 (95% CI: 2.2-2.9) after exposure. In conclusion, we...

Proceedings of the topical meeting on reactivity initiated accidents (RIA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-01-01

The topical meeting was devoted to RIA fuel acceptance criteria, in particular to the fuel fragmentation enthalpy limit and the PCMI failure enthalpy limit in relation to high burnup fuel. In total 50 participants attended. Research and industry organisations from France, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Japan, the Russian Federation, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the USA including the Swiss regulatory body, HSK, and the Halden reactor project, presented 16 papers in all. The papers covered three main areas: 'best estimate' core calculations for RIA energy deposition in high burnup fuels, the technical background of current and new RIA fuel safety criteria, and ongoing RIA experimental programmes. A number of open issues were identified, whose resolution is expected from ongoing and planned national and international experimental programmes

Water management: Current and future challenges and research directions

Science.gov (United States)

Cosgrove, William J.; Loucks, Daniel P.

2015-06-01

Water distinguishes our planet compared to all the others we know about. While the global supply of available freshwater is more than adequate to meet all current and foreseeable water demands, its spatial and temporal distributions are not. There are many regions where our freshwater resources are inadequate to meet domestic, economic development and environmental needs. In such regions, the lack of adequate clean water to meet human drinking water and sanitation needs is indeed a constraint on human health and productivity and hence on economic development as well as on the maintenance of a clean environment and healthy ecosystems. All of us involved in research must find ways to remove these constraints. We face multiple challenges in doing that, especially given a changing and uncertain future climate, and a rapidly growing population that is driving increased social and economic development, globalization, and urbanization. How best to meet these challenges requires research in all aspects of water management. Since 1965, the journal Water Resources Research has played an important role in reporting and disseminating current research related to managing the quantity and quality and cost of this resource. This paper identifies the issues facing water managers today and future research needed to better inform those who strive to create a more sustainable and desirable future.

Nordic Migration and Integration Research

OpenAIRE

Pyrhönen, Niko; Martikainen, Tuomas; Leinonen, Johanna

2017-01-01

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Migration and integration are currently highly contentious topics in political, public and scientific arenas, and will remain so in the near future. However, many common migration-related prejudices and inefficien¬cies in the integration of the migrant population are due to the lack of sound, tested and accessible scientific research. Therefore, the study of migration – by developing basic research and by properly resourcing novel methodological approaches and interventions ...

Topical problems of corrosion research for nuclear power purposes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eremias, B.

1978-01-01

Currently, research is focused on stress corrosion, intergranular corrosion, corrosion in water and steam, hydrogen-induced corrosion and corrosion in liquid sodium. The effort to limit stress corrosion resulted in the application of high nickel content austenitic steels. In these steels, the susceptibility to stress corrosion is mainly affected by previous heat treatment and the presence of chloride ions. Attention is also paid to medium and high-alloy chromium steels and susceptibility is studied to intergranular corrosion and stress corrosion. Of low-alloy steels the 21/4Cr-1Mo type steels stabilized with Nb or nonstabilized are studied with respect to decarburization kinetics and changes in mechanical properties in the presence of hydrogen. Of nonferrous metals zirconium alloys are studied used as cladding materials for fuel elements, mainly Zircaloy 2 and 4, with regard to their resistance to high-temperature oxidation, high-pressure steam action, etc. (J.F.)

Evaluating topic models with stability

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

De Waal, A

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Topic models are unsupervised techniques that extract likely topics from text corpora, by creating probabilistic word-topic and topic-document associations. Evaluation of topic models is a challenge because (a) topic models are often employed...

Influence of number of topics, topic duration, and curricular focus on biology achievement of Population 3 TIMSS countries

Science.gov (United States)

Hodges, Eddie Louis

The purposes of this study were to determine if a relationship exists between biology achievement and (1) number of topics, (2) topic duration, (3) curricular focus, and (4) science achievement using TIMSS data from Population 3---the final year of secondary school. Students included in this study were subsets of the 55,675 students from 22 countries who participated in the science literacy portion of TIMSS at the Population 3 level (IEA, 1997). The sample included in this study for the four research questions were comprised of between (1) 17,769 and 37,794 students from 15 countries, (2) 17,769 and 37,794 students from 15 countries, (3) 21,715 and 46,458 students from 18 countries, and (4) 19,518 and 46,458 students from 18 countries, respectively. A Pearson's product moment correlation was used to determine whether a relationship exists between the number of biology topics addressed by intended national science curricula and mean student achievement on selected items by country. No statistically significant correlation was found by country between biology achievement and number of topics. To determine whether a relationship exists between the topic duration of biology topics addressed by released, biology-oriented, Population 3 Science Literacy items and student achievement on those items, a Pearson's product moment correlation was also used. A statistically significant correlation between biology achievement and topic duration for only one topic (Interdependence of Life) was found at the .05 level of significance. A possible relationship between the degree of curricular focus of Population 3 TIMSS countries and student achievement on selected items by country was evaluated using a Pearson's product moment correlation. No statistically significant correlation by country between biology achievement and degree of curricular focus was found. A Pearson's product moment correlation was used to determine whether a relationship exists between science literacy

An Introduction to Topic Modeling as an Unsupervised Machine Learning Way to Organize Text Information

Science.gov (United States)

Snyder, Robin M.

2015-01-01

The field of topic modeling has become increasingly important over the past few years. Topic modeling is an unsupervised machine learning way to organize text (or image or DNA, etc.) information such that related pieces of text can be identified. This paper/session will present/discuss the current state of topic modeling, why it is important, and…

Evaluating topic model interpretability from a primary care physician perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, Corey W; Oh, Andrea; Chen, Shawn; Speier, William

2016-02-01

Probabilistic topic models provide an unsupervised method for analyzing unstructured text. These models discover semantically coherent combinations of words (topics) that could be integrated in a clinical automatic summarization system for primary care physicians performing chart review. However, the human interpretability of topics discovered from clinical reports is unknown. Our objective is to assess the coherence of topics and their ability to represent the contents of clinical reports from a primary care physician's point of view. Three latent Dirichlet allocation models (50 topics, 100 topics, and 150 topics) were fit to a large collection of clinical reports. Topics were manually evaluated by primary care physicians and graduate students. Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Tests for Paired Samples were used to evaluate differences between different topic models, while differences in performance between students and primary care physicians (PCPs) were tested using Mann-Whitney U tests for each of the tasks. While the 150-topic model produced the best log likelihood, participants were most accurate at identifying words that did not belong in topics learned by the 100-topic model, suggesting that 100 topics provides better relative granularity of discovered semantic themes for the data set used in this study. Models were comparable in their ability to represent the contents of documents. Primary care physicians significantly outperformed students in both tasks. This work establishes a baseline of interpretability for topic models trained with clinical reports, and provides insights on the appropriateness of using topic models for informatics applications. Our results indicate that PCPs find discovered topics more coherent and representative of clinical reports relative to students, warranting further research into their use for automatic summarization. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The role of quantum information in thermodynamics—a topical review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goold, John; Huber, Marcus; Riera, Arnau; Skrzypczyk, Paul; Rio, Lídia del

2016-01-01

This topical review article gives an overview of the interplay between quantum information theory and thermodynamics of quantum systems. We focus on several trending topics including the foundations of statistical mechanics, resource theories, entanglement in thermodynamic settings, fluctuation theorems and thermal machines. This is not a comprehensive review of the diverse field of quantum thermodynamics; rather, it is a convenient entry point for the thermo-curious information theorist. Furthermore this review should facilitate the unification and understanding of different interdisciplinary approaches emerging in research groups around the world. (topical review)

Relationship between Usefulness Assessments and Perceptions of Work Task Complexity and Search Topic Specificity: An Exploratory Study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ingwersen, Peter; Wang, Peiling

2012-01-01

This research investigates the relations between the usefulness assessments of retrieved documents and the perceptions of task complexity and search topic specificity. Twenty-three academic researchers submitted 65 real task-based information search topics. These task topics were searched...... in an integrated document collection consisting of full text research articles in PDFs, abstracts, and bibliographic records (the iSearch Test Collection in Physics). The search results were provided to the researchers who, as task performers, made assessments of usefulness using a four-point sale (highly, fairly......, marginally, or not useful). In addition, they also assessed the perceived task complexity (highly, fairly, and routine/low) and the perceived specificity of the search topic (highly, fairly, and generic/low). It is found that highly specific topics associate with all degrees of task complexity, whereas...

Design of New-Generation Usable Forms of Topical Haemostatic Agents Containing Chitosan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dorota Zielińska

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Designing usable forms of topical haemostatic agents is the most important activity during the design process, resulting in strengthened functional properties of the final medical devices. This study aimed to propose indications for a research programme based on risk management supporting the development of two usable forms of a topical haemostatic agent: chitosan/alginate lyophilized foam and chitosan/alginate impregnated gauze. Both of the usable forms of the topical haemostatic agent, being the main part of the modified combat gauze, were fabricated using the chitosan/alginate complex. Risk analysis is helpful in developing an appropriate research programme, significantly reducing the risk to an acceptable level.

Topical steroids in the current clinical practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. A. Belousova

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article discusses issues related to current criteria for selection of glucocorticosteroids for external use as the basic therapy for a great number of allergic and inflammatory skin diseases. The authors emphasize that non-fluorinated GCSs having the best efficacy-to-safety ratio must be the drugs of first choice. The article provides data on a positive clinical experience of using a non-halogenated glucocorticosteroid for external use - hydrocortisone 17-butyrate (Laticort - for treatment of steroid-sensitive dermatoses in children and adults. The drug has a high anti-inflammatory action and minimum risk of the development of side effects, which is sufficient for using it in sensitive areas of skin (face, neck, folds, genitals both in children and in adults. The availability of three forms of the drug (solution, cream and ointment ensures the expedience and convenience of its application at any stage of the inflammatory process and for any localization.

Mind Wandering and Reading Comprehension: Examining the Roles of Working Memory Capacity, Interest, Motivation, and Topic Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Unsworth, Nash; McMillan, Brittany D.

2013-01-01

Individual differences in mind wandering and reading comprehension were examined in the current study. In particular, individual differences in mind wandering, working memory capacity, interest in the current topic, motivation to do well on the task, and topic experience and their relations with reading comprehension were examined in the current…

Syntacticized topics in Kurmuk

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Torben

2015-01-01

This article argues that Kurmuk, a little-described Western Nilotic language, is characterized by a syntacticized topic whose grammatical relation is variable. In this language, declarative clauses have as topic an obligatory preverbal NP which is either a subject, an object or an adjunct....... The grammatical relation of the topic is expressed by a voice-like inflection of the verb, here called orientation. While subject-orientation is morphologically unmarked, object-oriented and adjunct-oriented verbs are marked by a subject suffix or by a suffix indicating that the topic is not subject, and adjunct......-orientation differs from object-orientation by a marked tone pattern. Topic choice largely reflects information structure by indicating topic continuity. The topic also plays a crucial role in relative clauses and in clauses with contrastive constituent focus, in that objects and adjuncts can only be relativized...

Graduate Students' Research Interest in Business Ethics: A Study of Dissertations

Science.gov (United States)

Piotrowski, Chris; Guyette, Roger W.

2014-01-01

Research on the nature of business ethics education during graduate-level training is somewhat limited. One approach in determining advanced students' research interest in the area is to examine the selection of "business ethics" topics for dissertation research. The current study addressed this issue by conducting a topical…

Leadership theory and research in the new millennium : current theoretical trends and changing perspectives.

OpenAIRE

Dinh, J.; Lord, R.; Garnder, W.; Meuser, J.; Liden, R.C.; Hu, J.

2014-01-01

Scholarly research on the topic of leadership has witnessed a dramatic increase over the last decade, resulting in the development of diverse leadership theories. To take stock of established and developing theories since the beginning of the new millennium, we conducted an extensive qualitative review of leadership theory across 10 top-tier academic publishing outlets that included The Leadership Quarterly, Administrative Science Quarterly, American Psychologist, Journal of Management, Acade...

Proceedings of the 8th topical meeting on nuclear code development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-03-01

The 8th Topical Meeting on Nuclear Code Development, organized by Committee on Reactor Physics and Nuclear Codes Committee of Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), was held at Tokai Research Establishment of JAERI, on 11th and 12th of November, 1992. In the meeting, 14 papers were presented on the topics of (1) the next generation nuclear reactor design system and (2) advances of the nuclear fuel reprocessing safety analysis codes. These papers are compiled in this proceedings. (author)

Nonsteroidal Topical Immunomodulators in Allergology and Dermatology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Jovanović

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to review currently available literature data concerning pathomechanisms of action, indications, treatment efficacy, as well as side effects of nonsteroidal immunomodulators used in dermatology, primarily for the treatment of allergic dermatoses. MEDLINE search was undertaken using the key words “Topical Immunomodulators, Dermatology and Allergy”. Full articles, and nothing but full articles, were used.

Reprioritizing current research trends in medical education: a reflection on research activities in Saudi Arabia.

Science.gov (United States)

Obeidat, Akef S; Alhaqwi, Ali Ibrahim; Abdulghani, Hamza Mohammad

2015-04-01

There are numerous national efforts to determine and develop research priorities of medical education in Saudi Arabia. These priorities were first proposed in 2010 by "Dr Al-Khuli's Chair for Developing Medical Education in Saudi Arabia". The proposed priority domains were: curriculum, students, faculty, and quality assurance and accreditation. To investigate publications in medical education at the national and international levels in areas relating to these proposed priorities. Electronic search within PubMed database for papers relating to each domain of priority was conducted at national and international levels in the last three years, using the same keywords as the priority domains, but only confined to undergraduate medical education. Out of 3145 articles retrieved when searching with keyword as broad as "undergraduate medical curriculum" only 81 articles worldwide and 3 articles from Saudi Arabia were dealing with curriculum related issues as a whole. Further search on the sub-domains "effective strategies to manage undergraduate curriculum" and "undergraduate medical education models", resulted in the retrieval of few articles worldwide and none from Saudi Arabia. At the national level, there were 63 publications from Saudi Arabia that were either course (topic)-specific or could not be classified under the four domains specified by Dr Al-Khuli's Chair. Research activities in medical education in Saudi Arabia in the last 3 years showed diversity and lack of focus in the research priorities. Efforts of academic and research centers should continue to monitor and encourage these activities toward achieving the recommended priorities.

Current Research on Adolescence and its Program Implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Cvetkovich, George; Grote, Barbara

This paper discusses program implications of research on adolescents. A brief historical review of teenage sexuality is presented in order to put current information in perspective. The present increase in teenage fertility is seen as part of a larger epidemic failure of socialization. A number of recent studies are reviewed and synthesized,…

Correlated Topics in a Scalable Multidimensional Text Cube: Algorithms and Aviation Safety Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Bo; Lin, Cindy X.; Srivastava, Ashok N.; Oza, Nikunj C.; Han, Jiawei

2010-01-01

As world-wide air traffic continues to grow even at a modest pace, the overall complexity of the system will increase significantly. This increased complexity can lead to a larger number of fatalities per year even if the extremely low fatality rate that we currently enjoy is maintained. One important source of information about the safety of the aviation system is in Aviation Safety Text Reports which are written by members of the flight crew, air traffic controllers, and other parties involved with the aviation system. These anonymized narrative reports contain fixed-field contextual information about the flight but also contain free-form narratives that describe, in the author s own words, the nature of the safety incident and, in many cases, the contributing factors that led to the safety incident. Several thousand such reports are filed each month, each of which is read and analyzed by highly trained experts. However, it is possible that there are emerging safety issues due to the fact that they may be reported very infrequently and in different contexts with different descriptions. The goal of this research paper is to develop correlated topic models which uncover correlations in the subspaces defined by the intersection of numerous fixed fields and discovered correlated topics. This task requires the discovery of latent topics in the text reports and the creation of a topic cube. Furthermore, because the number of potential cells in the topic cube is very large, we discuss novel methods of pruning the search space in the topic cells, thereby making the analysis feasible. We demonstrate the new algorithms on an analysis of pilot fatigue and its contributing factors, as well as the safety incidents that are correlated with this phenomenon.

Reactor safety research program. A description of current and planned reactor safety research sponsored by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Division of Reactor Safety Research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-06-01

The reactor safety research program, sponsored by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Division of Reactor Safety Research, is described in terms of its program objectives, current status, and future plans. Elements of safety research work applicable to water reactors, fast reactors, and gas cooled reactors are presented together with brief descriptions of current and planned test facilities. (U.S.)

Current status and future prospects for thermal-hydraulics and safety research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, G.C.

2000-01-01

The present paper is to outline the current activities in Korea for the thermal-hydraulics and safety researches, and furthermore illuminate the future aspect of those field under the umbrella of worldwide nuclear prospect. In Korea, a long-term nuclear research plan has been established since 1992, which was recently funded with a fixed monetary rate of Korean won 1.20 per kWh of electricity produced with nuclear power. 11.5% of the fund is assigned for nuclear safety research in 6 areas. Under this program, 3 axes of research body (KAERI, KINS, University) has been operated with close cooperation. Their role, current activities and long-term plan of each body are introduced in the point of thermal-hydraulics' view. (author)

The Use of Topical Hemostatic Agents in Cardiothoracic Surgery

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bracey, Art; Shander, Aryeh; Aronson, Solomon

2017-01-01

Topical hemostatic agents are used in conjunction with conventional procedures to reduce blood loss. They are often used in cardiothoracic surgery, which is particularly prone to bleeding risks. Variation in their use exists because detailed policy and practice guidelines reflecting the current...

[Physiotherapeutic care marketing research: current state-of-the art].

Science.gov (United States)

Babaskin, D V

2011-01-01

Successful introduction of modern technologies into the national health care systems strongly depends on the current pharmaceutical market situation. The present article is focused on the peculiarities of marketing research with special reference to physiotherapeutic services and commodities. Analysis of the structure and sequence of marketing research processes is described along with the methods applied for the purpose including their support by the use of Internet resources and technologies.

Selected papers on analysis and related topics

CERN Document Server

2008-01-01

This volume contains translations of papers that originally appeared in the Japanese journal Sūgaku. The papers range over a variety of topics, including operator algebras, analysis, and statistics. This volume is suitable for graduate students and research mathematicians interested in analysis and its applications.

Educational Research in Mainland China: Current Situation and Developmental Trends

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Miantao

2011-01-01

The influence of Confucian culture in Chinese Mainland China is reflected in the current situation and contextual trends of educational research content of educational thought of Confucianism, educational issues grounded on theoretical views of Confucianism, and the influence of the inclusiveness of Confucianism. In terms of research method, the…

Water reactor safety research program. A description of current and planned research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-07-01

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) sponsors confirmatory safety research on lightwater reactors in support of the NRC regulatory program. The principal responsibility of the NRC, as implemented through its regulatory program is to ensure that public health, public safety, and the environment are adequately protected. The NRC performs this function by defining conditions for the use of nuclear power and by ensuring through technical review, audit, and follow-up that these conditions are met. The NRC research program provides technical information, independent of the nuclear industry, to aid in discharging these regulatory responsibilities. The objectives of NRC's research program are the following: (1) to maintain a confirmatory research program that supports assurance of public health and safety, and public confidence in the regulatory program, (2) to provide objectively evaluated safety data and analytical methods that meet the needs of regulatory activities, (3) to provide better quantified estimates of the margins of safety for reactor systems, fuel cycle facilities, and transportation systems, (4) to establish a broad and coherent exchange of safety research information with other Federal agencies, industry, and foreign organization. Current and planned research toward these goals is described

Topical Drugs for Pain Relief

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anjali Srinivasan

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Topical therapy helps patients with oral and perioral pain problems such as ulcers, burning mouth syndrome, temporomandibular disorders, neuromas, neuropathies and neuralgias. Topical drugs used in the field of dentistry are topical anaesthetics, topical analgesics, topical antibiotics and topical corticosteroids. It provides symptomatic/curative effect. Topical drugs are easy to apply, avoids hepatic first pass metabolism and more sites specific. But it can only be used for medications that require low plasma concentrations to achieve a therapeutic effect.

Safety research in nuclear fuel cycle at PNC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-09-01

This report collects the results of safety research in nuclear fuel cycle at Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation, in order to answer to the Questionnaire of OECD/NEA. The Questionnaire request to include information concerning to research topic, description, main results (if available), reference documents, research institutes involved, sponsoring organization and other pertinent information about followings: a) Recently completed research projects. b) Ongoing (current) research projects. Achievements on following items are omitted by the request of OECD/NEA, uranium mining and milling, uranium refining and conversion to UF{sub 6}, uranium enrichment, fuel manufacturers, spent fuel storage, radioactive waste management, transport of radioactive materials, decommissioning. We select topics from the fields of a) nuclear installation, b) seismic, and c) PSA, in projects from frame of annual safety research plan for nuclear installations established by Nuclear Safety Commission. We apply for the above a) and b) projects as follows: a) Achievements in Safety Research, fiscal 1991-1995, b) fiscal 1996 Safety Research Achievements: Progress. (author)

Safety research in nuclear fuel cycle at PNC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-09-01

This report collects the results of safety research in nuclear fuel cycle at Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation, in order to answer to the Questionnaire of OECD/NEA. The Questionnaire request to include information concerning to research topic, description, main results (if available), reference documents, research institutes involved, sponsoring organization and other pertinent information about followings: a) Recently completed research projects. b) Ongoing (current) research projects. Achievements on following items are omitted by the request of OECD/NEA, uranium mining and milling, uranium refining and conversion to UF 6 , uranium enrichment, fuel manufacturers, spent fuel storage, radioactive waste management, transport of radioactive materials, decommissioning. We select topics from the fields of a) nuclear installation, b) seismic, and c) PSA, in projects from frame of annual safety research plan for nuclear installations established by Nuclear Safety Commission. We apply for the above a) and b) projects as follows: a) Achievements in Safety Research, fiscal 1991-1995, b) fiscal 1996 Safety Research Achievements: Progress. (author)

Topics in Finance Part IX--Working Capital Management

Science.gov (United States)

Laux, Judy

2012-01-01

The final topic in a series looking at financial management from a theoretical perspective, working capital management provides the focus of the current article. We investigate how three key axioms--the risk-return tradeoff, agency conflicts, and stockholder wealth maximization--relate to this activity that occupies much of the financial manager's…

InfoPoems: Various Topics | | South African Family Practice

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Topics: 1.Medications help passage of kidney stones. 2.Limited data on probiotics to prevent antibiotic induced diarrhea in kids. 3.Best way to perform lumbar puncture and analyze results. 4.Acupuncture effective for long-term back pain relief. InfoPOEMs® keep you current and answers your clinical medicine questions at ...

[Current Research Activities on Person-Centered Medicine in Academic Institutes of General Practice in Germany and Austria].

Science.gov (United States)

Weber, Annemarie; Schelling, Jörg; Kohls, Niko; van Dyck, Marcus; Poggenburg, Stephanie; Vajda, Christian; Hirsch, Jameson; Sirois, Fuschia; Toussaint, Loren; Offenbächer, Martin

2017-10-11

Aim of study Person-centered medicine (PCM) with its focus on humanistic-biographical-oriented medicine and integrated, positive-salutogenic health is a central aspect in the patient-physician relationship in general practice. The objective of this analysis is to assess the prevalence and type of research project in academic institutions of general practice in Germany (Ger) and Austria (At) and the thematic priorities of the projects in the areas PCM, health promotion (HP), prevention (PRE) and conventional medicine (CM). Methods A search was conducted (September-December 2015) on the websites of 30 institutes and divisions of general medicine for their current research projects. The retrieved projects were assigned to five categories: PCM, HP, PRE, CM and others. Subsequently, we identified the targeted patient groups of the projects as well as the thematic focus in the categories PCM, HP, PRE and CM with focus on PCM and HP. Results 541 research projects were identified, 452 in Germany and 89 in Austria. Research projects were only included if they were explicitly indicated as research-oriented. Seventy projects addressed PCM aspects, 15 projects HP aspects, 32 projects PRE aspects and 396 projects CM aspects. The most frequently target groups in the categories PCM (24 of 70) and HP (7 of 15) were chronically ill patients. The most common thematic focus in PCM was communication (13 of 70) and in HP, physical activity (6 of 15). Conclusion The vast majority of research projects investigated conventional medical topics. The percentage of research activities in the field of PCM (13%) or PCM including HP (16%) in Ger and At is below the European average of 20%. From our point of view, PCM and HP need to be implemented to a greater extent in general practice. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Review of Doctoral Research on Second Language Teaching and Learning in Spain (2008-2010)

Science.gov (United States)

Serrano, Raquel; Miralpeix, Imma

2013-01-01

This paper reviews a selection of doctoral theses on language learning and teaching completed in Spain between 2008 and 2010. A total of 16 theses have been identified as representative--in terms of the topics under investigation and the methodology employed--of the doctoral research undertaken in Spain. Current topics include the development of…

Computational psychotherapy research: scaling up the evaluation of patient-provider interactions.

Science.gov (United States)

Imel, Zac E; Steyvers, Mark; Atkins, David C

2015-03-01

In psychotherapy, the patient-provider interaction contains the treatment's active ingredients. However, the technology for analyzing the content of this interaction has not fundamentally changed in decades, limiting both the scale and specificity of psychotherapy research. New methods are required to "scale up" to larger evaluation tasks and "drill down" into the raw linguistic data of patient-therapist interactions. In the current article, we demonstrate the utility of statistical text analysis models called topic models for discovering the underlying linguistic structure in psychotherapy. Topic models identify semantic themes (or topics) in a collection of documents (here, transcripts). We used topic models to summarize and visualize 1,553 psychotherapy and drug therapy (i.e., medication management) transcripts. Results showed that topic models identified clinically relevant content, including affective, relational, and intervention related topics. In addition, topic models learned to identify specific types of therapist statements associated with treatment-related codes (e.g., different treatment approaches, patient-therapist discussions about the therapeutic relationship). Visualizations of semantic similarity across sessions indicate that topic models identify content that discriminates between broad classes of therapy (e.g., cognitive-behavioral therapy vs. psychodynamic therapy). Finally, predictive modeling demonstrated that topic model-derived features can classify therapy type with a high degree of accuracy. Computational psychotherapy research has the potential to scale up the study of psychotherapy to thousands of sessions at a time. We conclude by discussing the implications of computational methods such as topic models for the future of psychotherapy research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Liquid crystals: a new topic in physics for undergraduates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pavlin, Jerneja; Čepič, Mojca; Vaupotič, Nataša

2013-01-01

This paper presents a teaching module about liquid crystals. Since liquid crystals are linked to everyday student experiences and are also a topic of current scientific research, they are an excellent candidate for a modern topic to be introduced into education. We show that liquid crystals can provide a pathway through several fields of physics such as thermodynamics, optics and electromagnetism. We discuss what students should learn about liquid crystals and what physical concepts they should know before considering them. In the presentation of the teaching module, which consists of a lecture and experimental work in a chemistry and physics laboratory, we focus on experiments on phase transitions, polarization of light, double refraction and colours. A pilot evaluation of the module was performed among pre-service primary school teachers who have no special preference for natural sciences. The evaluation shows that the module is very efficient in transferring knowledge. A prior study showed that the informally obtained pre-knowledge on liquid crystals of the first-year students from several different fields of study was negligible. Since social science students are the least interested in natural sciences, it can be expected that students in any study programme will on average achieve at least as good qualitative knowledge of phenomena related to liquid crystals as the group involved in the pilot study. (paper)

Aespoe hard rock laboratory. Current research projects 1998

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-12-31

In 1986 SKB decided to construct the Aespoe Hard Rock Laboratory (HRL) in order to provide an opportunity for research, development and demonstration in a realistic and undisturbed underground rock environment down to the depth planned for the future deep repository. The focus of current and future work is on development and testing of site characterization methods, verification of models describing the function of the natural and engineered barriers and development, testing, and demonstration of repository technology. The program has been organised so that all important steps in the development of a repository are covered, in other words the Aespoe HRL constitutes a `dress rehearsal` for the Swedish deep geological repository for spent fuel and other long-lived waste. Geoscientific investigations on Aespoe and nearby islands began in 1986. Aespoe was selected as the site for the laboratory in 1988. Construction of the facility, which reaches a depth of 460 m below the surface, began in 1990 and was completed in 1995. A major milestone had been reached in 1996 with the completion of the pre-investigation and construction phases of the Aespoe HRL. The comprehensive research conducted has permitted valuable development and verification of site characterization methods applied from the ground surface, boreholes, and underground excavations. The results of this research are summarised in the book `Aespoe Hard Rock Laboratory - 10 years of Research` published by SKB in 1996. The Operating Phase of the Aespoe HRL began in 1995 and is expected to continue for 15-20 years, that is until the first stage of the development of the Swedish deep geological repository for spent nuclear fuel is expected to be completed. A number of research projects were initiated at the start of the Operating Phase. Most of these projects have made substantial progress since then and important results have been obtained. The purpose of this brochure is to provide a brief presentation of the

Aespoe hard rock laboratory. Current research projects 1998

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

In 1986 SKB decided to construct the Aespoe Hard Rock Laboratory (HRL) in order to provide an opportunity for research, development and demonstration in a realistic and undisturbed underground rock environment down to the depth planned for the future deep repository. The focus of current and future work is on development and testing of site characterization methods, verification of models describing the function of the natural and engineered barriers and development, testing, and demonstration of repository technology. The program has been organised so that all important steps in the development of a repository are covered, in other words the Aespoe HRL constitutes a 'dress rehearsal' for the Swedish deep geological repository for spent fuel and other long-lived waste. Geoscientific investigations on Aespoe and nearby islands began in 1986. Aespoe was selected as the site for the laboratory in 1988. Construction of the facility, which reaches a depth of 460 m below the surface, began in 1990 and was completed in 1995. A major milestone had been reached in 1996 with the completion of the pre-investigation and construction phases of the Aespoe HRL. The comprehensive research conducted has permitted valuable development and verification of site characterization methods applied from the ground surface, boreholes, and underground excavations. The results of this research are summarised in the book 'Aespoe Hard Rock Laboratory - 10 years of Research' published by SKB in 1996. The Operating Phase of the Aespoe HRL began in 1995 and is expected to continue for 15-20 years, that is until the first stage of the development of the Swedish deep geological repository for spent nuclear fuel is expected to be completed. A number of research projects were initiated at the start of the Operating Phase. Most of these projects have made substantial progress since then and important results have been obtained. The purpose of this brochure is to provide a brief presentation of the

An Exploratory Study into Perceived Task Complexity, Topic Specificity and Usefulness for Integrated Search

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ingwersen, Peter; Lioma, Christina; Larsen, Birger

2012-01-01

We investigate the relations between user perceptions of work task complexity, topic specificity, and usefulness of retrieved results. 23 academic researchers submitted detailed descriptions of 65 real-life work tasks in the physics domain, and assessed documents retrieved from an integrated...... collection consisting of full text research articles in PDF, abstracts, and bibliographic records [6]. Bibliographic records were found to be more precise than full text PDFs, regardless of task complexity and topic specificity. PDFs were found to be more useful. Overall, for higher task complexity and topic...

Safety evaluation of topical applications of ethanol on the skin and inside the oral cavity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lachenmeier Dirk W

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Ethanol is widely used in all kinds of products with direct exposure to the human skin (e.g. medicinal products like hand disinfectants in occupational settings, cosmetics like hairsprays or mouthwashes, pharmaceutical preparations, and many household products. Contradictory evidence about the safety of such topical applications of the alcohol can be found in the scientific literature, yet an up-to-date risk assessment of ethanol application on the skin and inside the oral cavity is currently lacking. The first and foremost concerns of topical ethanol applications for public health are its carcinogenic effects, as there is unambiguous evidence for the carcinogenicity of ethanol orally consumed in the form of alcoholic beverages. So far there is a lack of evidence to associate topical ethanol use with an increased risk of skin cancer. Limited and conflicting epidemiological evidence is available on the link between the use of ethanol in the oral cavity in the form of mouthwashes or mouthrinses and oral cancer. Some studies pointed to an increased risk of oral cancer due to locally produced acetaldehyde, operating via a similar mechanism to that found after alcoholic beverage ingestion. In addition, topically applied ethanol acts as a skin penetration enhancer and may facilitate the transdermal absorption of xenobiotics (e.g. carcinogenic contaminants in cosmetic formulations. Ethanol use is associated with skin irritation or contact dermatitis, especially in humans with an aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH deficiency. After regular application of ethanol on the skin (e.g. in the form of hand disinfectants relatively low but measurable blood concentrations of ethanol and its metabolite acetaldehyde may occur, which are, however, below acute toxic levels. Only in children, especially through lacerated skin, can percutaneous toxicity occur. As there might be industry bias in many studies about the safety of topical ethanol applications, as well

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-08-01

A Topical Report Review Status is scheduled to be published semi-annually. The primary purpose of this document is to provide periodic progress reports of on-going topical report reviews, to identify those topical reports for which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff review has been completed and, to the extent practicable, to provide NRC management with sufficient information regarding the conduct of the topical report program to permit taking whatever actions deemed necessary or appropriate. This document is also intended to be a source of information to NRC Licensing Project Managers and other NRC personnel regarding the status of topical reports which may be referenced in applications for which they have responsibility. This status report is published primarily for internal NRC use in managing the topical report program, but is also used by NRC to advise the industry of report review status

Topical report review status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-01-01

A Topical Report Review Status is scheduled to be published semi-annually. The primary purpose of this document is to provide periodic progress reports of on-going topical report reviews, to identify those topical reports for which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff review has been completed and, to the extent practicable, to provide NRC management with sufficient information regarding the conduct of the topical report program to permit taking whatever actions deemed necessary or appropriate. This document is also intended to be a source of information to NRC Licensing Project Managers and other NRC personnel regarding the status of topical reports which may be referenced in applications for which they have responsibility. This status report is published primarily for internal NRC use in managing the topical report program, but is also used by NRC to advise the industry of report review status

Teachers' opinion about learning continuum based on student's level of competence and specific pedagogical material in classification topics

Science.gov (United States)

Andriani, Aldina Eka; Subali, Bambang

2017-08-01

This research discusses learning continuum development for designing a curriculum. The objective of this study is to gather the opinion of public junior and senior high school teachers about learning continuum based on student's level of competence and specific pedagogical material in classification topics. This research was conducted in Yogyakarta province from October 2016 to January 2017. This research utilizes a descriptive survey method. Respondents in this study consist of 281 science teachers at junior and senior high school in Yogyakarta city and 4 regencies namely Sleman, Bantul, Kulonprogo, and Gunung Kidul. The sample were taken using a census. The collection of data used questionnaire that had been validated from the aspects of construct validity and experts judgements. Data were analyzed using a descriptive analysis technique. The results of the analysis show that the opinions of teachers regarding specific pedagogical material in classification topics of living things at the junior high school taught in grade VII to the ability level of C2 (Understanding). At senior high school level, it is taught in grade X with the ability level C2 (Understanding). Based on these results, it can be concluded that the opinions of teachers still refer to the current syllabus and curriculum so that the teachers do not have pure opinions about the student's competence level in classification topics that should be taught at the level of the grade in accordance with the level of corresponding competency.

Topics in Operator Theory

CERN Document Server

Ball, Joseph A; Helton, JWilliam; Rodman, Leiba; Spitkovsky, Iiya

2010-01-01

This is the first volume of a collection of original and review articles on recent advances and new directions in a multifaceted and interconnected area of mathematics and its applications. It encompasses many topics in theoretical developments in operator theory and its diverse applications in applied mathematics, physics, engineering, and other disciplines. The purpose is to bring in one volume many important original results of cutting edge research as well as authoritative review of recent achievements, challenges, and future directions in the area of operator theory and its applications.

Current topics in the radiology of joint replacement surgery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weissman, B.N.

1990-01-01

Several methods of total hip joint replacement are currently used. Radiographic appearances after cemented, bone ingrowth, press-fit, and bipolar hip prostheses are reviewed. The roles of nuclear medicine and arthrographic procedures for identifying complications are discussed. Total knee prostheses and, in particular, complications related to the patellar component are described.115 references

Current topics in DNA double-strand break repair

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kobayashi, Junya; Takata, Minoru; Iwabuchi, Kuniyoshi; Miyagawa, Kiyoshi; Sonoda, Eiichiro; Suzuki, Keiji; Tauchi, Hiroshi

2008-01-01

DNA double strand break (DSB) is one of the most critical types of damage which is induced by ionizing radiation. In this review, we summarize current progress in investigations on the function of DSB repair-related proteins. We focused on recent findings in the analysis of the function of proteins such as 53BP1, histone H2AX, Mus81-Eme1, Fanc complex, and UBC13, which are found to be related to homologous recombination repair or to non-homologous end joining. In addition to the function of these proteins in DSB repair, the biological function of nuclear foci formation following DSB induction is discussed. (author)

Experimental model of the burn wound topical treatment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amra Čabaravdić

2003-11-01

Full Text Available AbstractBACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:Clinical research of drugs is a researching step subsequent to the preclinical studies in experimental animals. The aim of our research was to evaluate animal model of wound healing process after the burninducement and effects of the ointment containing natural plants on the process of burn healing.MATERIAL AND METHODS:Burn wounds were experimentally induced in two species of experimental animals which were treated with topically applied herbal preparation with concomitant monitoring of the healing process. Experimental groups (1 of 15 animals each (mice and rats, while control group (2 of 10 animals each (mice and rats that were not being treated with herbal ointment. After the hair removal, burn was induced on the back of animals by heated brass seal. Different clinical symptoms including oedema of surrounding tissue, redness, exudation, size of the burn surface, histological and microbiological findings were monitored on the days 1, 3, 7, 14 and 21. A statistically significant difference was observed throughout descriptive statistics and paired Student's t-test.CONCLUSION:Physiological healing processes of the acute burn wound following the topical application of herbal preparation can be monitored on the utilized animal model. A three-week treatment resulted in the 90% of completed epithelization in both animal species, indicating the effectiveness of topically applied herbal preparation.

75 FR 26647 - Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-12

.... FDA-2010-N-0002] Ophthalmic and Topical Dosage Form New Animal Drugs; Ivermectin Topical Solution... are treated with a topical solution of ivermectin. DATES: This rule is effective May 12, 2010. FOR... ANADA 200-340 for PRIVERMECTIN (ivermectin), a topical solution used on cattle to control infestations...

Science teacher orientations and PCK across science topics in grade 9 earth science

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Todd; Melville, Wayne; Goodwin, Dawne

2017-07-01

While the literature is replete with studies examining teacher knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), few studies have investigated how science teacher orientations (STOs) shape classroom instruction. Therefore, this research explores the interplay between a STOs and the topic specificity of PCK across two science topics within a grade 9 earth science course. Through interviews and observations of one teacher's classroom across two sequentially taught, this research contests the notion that teachers hold a single way of conceptualising science teaching and learning. In this, we consider if multiple ontologies can provide potential explanatory power for characterising instructional enactments. In earlier work with the teacher in this study, using generic interview prompts and general discussions about science teaching and learning, we accepted the existence of a unitary STO and its promise of consistent reformed instruction in the classroom. However, upon close examination of instruction focused on different science topics, evidence was found to demonstrate the explanatory power of multiple ontologies for shaping characteristically different epistemological constructions across science topics. This research points to the need for care in generalising about teacher practice, as it reveals that a teacher's practice, and orientation, can vary, dependent on the context and science topics taught.

User Participation and Participatory Design: Topics in Computing Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Kautz, Karlheinz

1996-01-01

Discusses user participation and participatory design in the context of formal education for computing professionals. Topics include the current curriculum debate; mathematical- and engineering-based education; traditional system-development training; and an example of a course program that includes computers and society, and prototyping. (53…

Research capacity for childhood obesity prevention in Latin America: an area for growth.

Science.gov (United States)

Parra, Diana C; Vorkoper, Susan; Kohl, Harold W; Caballero, Benjamin; Batis, Carolina; Jauregui, Alejandra; Mason, Jessica; Pratt, Michael

2017-07-01

The rise of childhood obesity in Latin America calls for research capacity to understand, monitor and implement strategies, policies and programmes to address it. The objective of the study was to assess current research capacity in Latin America related to childhood obesity, nutrition and physical activity. We conducted a search of peer-reviewed articles on childhood obesity in Latin America with at least one Latin American author from 2010 to May 2015. We coded 484 published articles for author affiliation, study subjects' nationality, research topic and study design and extracted a series of networks per research topic, study design and collaborating country for each of the countries. Obesity is the most frequently explored topic. Nutrition and obesity are somewhat better developed compared with physical activity and sedentary behaviour. There are numerous observational and cross-sectional studies, indicating either a lack of capacity required for more complex research or the extent of the problem and associated factors is still unknown. The low number of intervention studies and the near absence of policy articles suggest a void in research capacity. For childhood obesity, there is a clear need to build research capacity that documents the current state of the problem and design evidence-based prevention and intervention efforts. © 2017 The Authors. Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of World Obesity Federation.

Current status of neutron capture therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-05-01

There are about 6000 new glioblastoma multiform brain tumours diagnosed each year in the United States of America alone. This cancer is usually fatal within six months of diagnosis even with current standard treatments. Research on boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) has been considered as a method of potentially curing such cancers. There is a great interest at under-utilised research reactors institutions to identify new medical utilization, attractive to the general public. Neutron capture therapy is a true multidisciplinary topic with a large variety of individuals involved. This publication attempts to provide current information for all those thinking about being involved with NCT, based on the knowledge and experience of those who have pioneered the treatment. It covers the whole range of NCT from designing reactor conversions or new facilities, through to clinical trials and their effectiveness. However, since most work has been done with boron capture therapy for brain tumours using modified thermal research reactors, this tends to be the focus of the report. One of the factors which need to be addressed at the beginning is the timing of the further development of NCT facilities. It should be emphasised that all current work is still at the research stage. Many of those now involved believe that there is little need for many more research facilities until such time as the treatment shows more promising results. For this and other reasons discussed in the report, very serious consideration should be given by research reactor owners and operators before spending large sums of money converting their facilities for NCT.

Current status of neutron capture therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-05-01

There are about 6000 new glioblastoma multiform brain tumours diagnosed each year in the United States of America alone. This cancer is usually fatal within six months of diagnosis even with current standard treatments. Research on boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) has been considered as a method of potentially curing such cancers. There is a great interest at under-utilised research reactors institutions to identify new medical utilization, attractive to the general public. Neutron capture therapy is a true multidisciplinary topic with a large variety of individuals involved. This publication attempts to provide current information for all those thinking about being involved with NCT, based on the knowledge and experience of those who have pioneered the treatment. It covers the whole range of NCT from designing reactor conversions or new facilities, through to clinical trials and their effectiveness. However, since most work has been done with boron capture therapy for brain tumours using modified thermal research reactors, this tends to be the focus of the report. One of the factors which need to be addressed at the beginning is the timing of the further development of NCT facilities. It should be emphasised that all current work is still at the research stage. Many of those now involved believe that there is little need for many more research facilities until such time as the treatment shows more promising results. For this and other reasons discussed in the report, very serious consideration should be given by research reactor owners and operators before spending large sums of money converting their facilities for NCT

Topic Modeling in Sentiment Analysis: A Systematic Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toqir Ahmad Rana

2016-06-01

Full Text Available With the expansion and acceptance of Word Wide Web, sentiment analysis has become progressively popular research area in information retrieval and web data analysis. Due to the huge amount of user-generated contents over blogs, forums, social media, etc., sentiment analysis has attracted researchers both in academia and industry, since it deals with the extraction of opinions and sentiments. In this paper, we have presented a review of topic modeling, especially LDA-based techniques, in sentiment analysis. We have presented a detailed analysis of diverse approaches and techniques, and compared the accuracy of different systems among them. The results of different approaches have been summarized, analyzed and presented in a sophisticated fashion. This is the really effort to explore different topic modeling techniques in the capacity of sentiment analysis and imparting a comprehensive comparison among them.

Current directions in radiopharmaceutical research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mather, S J [Department of Nuclear Medicine, St. Bartholomew` s Hospital, London (United Kingdom)

1998-08-01

Much of current radiopharmaceutical research is directed towards the development of receptor-binding tracers which are targeted towards biochemical processes. These may be extra or intracellular in nature and hold promise for an imaging approach to tissue characterisation in-vivo. Many of these products are based on proteins which range in size from large monoclonal antibodies to small neuropeptides and share a radiolabelling chemistry based on the use of bifunctional chelating agents. Although developed initially for use with indium-111, considerations of cost and isotope availability have continued to direct the efforts of many researchers towards the use of technetium-99m. While polypeptide-based radiopharmaceuticals may be useful for imaging peripheral cell-surface receptors, access to sites of interest within the cell, or in the brain, requires the development of small lipophilic molecules with retained ability to interact with intracellular targets. The design and synthesis of these compounds presents a particular challenge to the radiopharmaceutical chemist which is being met through either a pendant or integrated approach to the use of technetium coordination with particular emphasis on technetium (v) cores. Progress continues to be made in the application of targeted radionuclide therapy particularly in the development of radiopharmaceuticals for the treatment of malignant bone disease. methods for labelling antibodies with a great variety of cytotoxic radionuclides have now been refined and their use for radioimmunotherapy in the treatment of haematological malignancies shows great promise. The major medical areas for application of these new radiopharmaceuticals will be in oncology, neurology and inflammation but the increasingly difficult regulatory climate in which drug development and health-care now operate will make it essential for researchers to direct their products toward specific clinical problems as well as biological targets. (author) 36 refs

Current directions in radiopharmaceutical research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mather, S.J.

1998-01-01

Much of current radiopharmaceutical research is directed towards the development of receptor-binding tracers which are targeted towards biochemical processes. These may be extra or intracellular in nature and hold promise for an imaging approach to tissue characterisation in-vivo. Many of these products are based on proteins which range in size from large monoclonal antibodies to small neuropeptides and share a radiolabelling chemistry based on the use of bifunctional chelating agents. Although developed initially for use with indium-111, considerations of cost and isotope availability have continued to direct the efforts of many researchers towards the use of technetium-99m. While polypeptide-based radiopharmaceuticals may be useful for imaging peripheral cell-surface receptors, access to sites of interest within the cell, or in the brain, requires the development of small lipophilic molecules with retained ability to interact with intracellular targets. The design and synthesis of these compounds presents a particular challenge to the radiopharmaceutical chemist which is being met through either a pendant or integrated approach to the use of technetium coordination with particular emphasis on technetium (v) cores. Progress continues to be made in the application of targeted radionuclide therapy particularly in the development of radiopharmaceuticals for the treatment of malignant bone disease. methods for labelling antibodies with a great variety of cytotoxic radionuclides have now been refined and their use for radioimmunotherapy in the treatment of haematological malignancies shows great promise. The major medical areas for application of these new radiopharmaceuticals will be in oncology, neurology and inflammation but the increasingly difficult regulatory climate in which drug development and health-care now operate will make it essential for researchers to direct their products toward specific clinical problems as well as biological targets. (author)

Women's Health Topics

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... Information by Audience For Women Women's Health Topics Women's Health Topics Share Tweet Linkedin Pin it More sharing options Linkedin Pin it Email Print National Women's Health Week May 13 - 19, 2018 Join us ...

Investigator Bias and Theory-Ladenness in Cross-Cultural Research: Insights from Wittgenstein

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Charlene

2016-01-01

A relatively under-explored topic in the current literature on and methods for research in the field of comparative and international education is the problem of investigator bias in cross-cultural research. This article discusses the nature of and an approach to address investigator bias in research that originates from the theory-ladenness of…

Data Mining Activities for Bone Discipline - Current Status

Science.gov (United States)

Sibonga, J. D.; Pietrzyk, R. A.; Johnston, S. L.; Arnaud, S. B.

2008-01-01

The disciplinary goals of the Human Research Program are broadly discussed. There is a critical need to identify gaps in the evidence that would substantiate a skeletal health risk during and after spaceflight missions. As a result, data mining activities will be engaged to gather reviews of medical data and flight analog data and to propose additional measures and specific analyses. Several studies are briefly reviewed which have topics that partially address these gaps in knowledge, including bone strength recovery with recovery of bone mass density, current renal stone formation knowledge, herniated discs, and a review of bed rest studies conducted at Ames Human Research Facility.

Research Experience in Psychiatry Residency Programs Across Canada: Current Status

Science.gov (United States)

Shanmugalingam, Arany; Ferreria, Sharon G; Norman, Ross M G; Vasudev, Kamini

2014-01-01

Objective: To determine the current status of research experience in psychiatry residency programs across Canada. Method: Coordinators of Psychiatric Education (COPE) resident representatives from all 17 psychiatry residency programs in Canada were asked to complete a survey regarding research training requirements in their programs. Results: Among the 17 COPE representatives, 15 completed the survey, representing 88% of the Canadian medical schools that have a psychiatry residency program. Among the 15 programs, 11 (73%) require residents to conduct a scholarly activity to complete residency. Some of these programs incorporated such a requirement in the past 5 years. Ten respondents (67%) reported availability of official policy and (or) guidelines on resident research requirements. Among the 11 programs that have a research requirement, 10 (91%) require residents to complete 1 scholarly activity; 1 requires completion of 2 scholarly activities. Eight (53%) residency programs reported having a separate research track. All of the programs have a research coordinator and 14 (93%) programs provide protected time to residents for conducting research. The 3 most common types of scholarly activities that qualify for the mandatory research requirement are a full independent project (10 programs), a quality improvement project (8 programs), and assisting in a faculty project (8 programs). Six programs expect their residents to present their final work in a departmental forum. None of the residency programs require publication of residents’ final work. Conclusions: The current status of the research experience during psychiatry residency in Canada is encouraging but there is heterogeneity across the programs. PMID:25565474

Comprehensive review on additives of topical dosage forms for drug delivery.

Science.gov (United States)

Garg, Tarun; Rath, Goutam; Goyal, Amit K

2015-12-01

Skin is the largest organ of the human body and plays the most important role in protecting against pathogen and foreign matter. Three important modes such as topical, regional and transdermal are widely used for delivery of various dosage forms. Among these modes, the topical dosage forms are preferred because it provides local therapeutic activity when applied to the skin or mucous membranes. Additives or pharmaceutical excipients (non-drug component of dosage form) are used as inactive ingredients in dosage form or tools for structuring dosage forms. The main use of topical dosage form additives are controling the extent of absorption, maintaining the viscosity, improving the stability as well as organoleptic property and increasing the bulk of the formulation. The overall goal of this article is to provide the clinician with information related to the topical dosage form additives and their current major applications against various diseases.

Scientific research in school psychology: Leading researchers weigh in on its past, present, and future.

Science.gov (United States)

McIntosh, Kent; Martinez, Rebecca S; Ty, Sophie V; McClain, Maryellen B

2013-06-01

A survey of established researchers in school psychology was conducted to reflect on the state of the science of school psychology research. A total of 54 members of the Society for the Study of School Psychology shared their perceptions of (a) the most significant findings of the past 25years that have influenced research and practice in school psychology, (b) current, exciting research topics, and (c) topics that are likely to guide the future of research in school psychology. Qualitative analyses revealed 6 major categories and 17 minor categories within the major categories. Four major categories were present across each of the three time periods: (a) Data-Informed Practices and their Implementation, (b) Theory Development, (c) Changing Role and Function, and (d) Biological Bases of Behavior. Additional major categories included Advances in Research Methodology and Psychometrics (found across past and present time periods) and There is Not One Single Most Important Idea (found during only the past time period). Quotations are provided to illustrate these categories and share the respondents' ideas in their own words. Copyright © 2013 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Plant cell engineering: current research, application and future prospects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Xunqing; Liu Luxiang

2008-01-01

This paper reviewed the current status of basic research in plant cell engineering, highlighted the application of embryo culture, double haploid (DH) technology, protoplast culture and somatic hybridization, somaclonal variation, rapid propagation, and bio-products production of plant-origin, and t he prospects. (authors)

Topics in clinical oncology. 15

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cepcek, P.

1987-12-01

The monograph comprising primarily papers on topical subjects of oncology and cancer research, contains also a selection of papers presented at the 2. Congress of the Czechoslovak Society of Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Hygiene. Seven papers were selected on behalf of their subject related to clinical oncology. All of them were iputted in INIS; five of them deal with the scintiscanning of the skeleton of cancer patients, one with radioimmunodetection of tumors, and one with radionuclide lymphography. (A.K.)

A Data-Based Approach to Discovering Multi-Topic Influential Leaders.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xing Tang

Full Text Available Recently, increasing numbers of users have adopted microblogging services as their main information source. However, most of them find themselves drowning in the millions of posts produced by other users every day. To cope with this, identifying a set of the most influential people is paramount. Moreover, finding a set of related influential users to expand the coverage of one particular topic is required in real world scenarios. Most of the existing algorithms in this area focus on topology-related methods such as PageRank. These methods mine link structures to find the expected influential rank of users. However, because they ignore the interaction data, these methods turn out to be less effective in social networks. In reality, a variety of topics exist within the information diffusing through the network. Because they have different interests, users play different roles in the diffusion of information related to different topics. As a result, distinguishing influential leaders according to different topics is also worthy of research. In this paper, we propose a multi-topic influence diffusion model (MTID based on traces acquired from historic information. We decompose the influential scores of users into two parts: the direct influence determined by information propagation along the link structure and indirect influence that extends beyond the restrictions of direct follower relationships. To model the network from a multi-topical viewpoint, we introduce topic pools, each of which represents a particular topic information source. Then, we extract the topic distributions from the traces of tweets, determining the influence propagation probability and content generation probability. In the network, we adopt multiple ground nodes representing topic pools to connect every user through bidirectional links. Based on this multi-topical view of the network, we further introduce the topic-dependent rank (TD-Rank algorithm to identify the multi-topic

A Data-Based Approach to Discovering Multi-Topic Influential Leaders.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Xing; Miao, Qiguang; Yu, Shangshang; Quan, Yining

2016-01-01

Recently, increasing numbers of users have adopted microblogging services as their main information source. However, most of them find themselves drowning in the millions of posts produced by other users every day. To cope with this, identifying a set of the most influential people is paramount. Moreover, finding a set of related influential users to expand the coverage of one particular topic is required in real world scenarios. Most of the existing algorithms in this area focus on topology-related methods such as PageRank. These methods mine link structures to find the expected influential rank of users. However, because they ignore the interaction data, these methods turn out to be less effective in social networks. In reality, a variety of topics exist within the information diffusing through the network. Because they have different interests, users play different roles in the diffusion of information related to different topics. As a result, distinguishing influential leaders according to different topics is also worthy of research. In this paper, we propose a multi-topic influence diffusion model (MTID) based on traces acquired from historic information. We decompose the influential scores of users into two parts: the direct influence determined by information propagation along the link structure and indirect influence that extends beyond the restrictions of direct follower relationships. To model the network from a multi-topical viewpoint, we introduce topic pools, each of which represents a particular topic information source. Then, we extract the topic distributions from the traces of tweets, determining the influence propagation probability and content generation probability. In the network, we adopt multiple ground nodes representing topic pools to connect every user through bidirectional links. Based on this multi-topical view of the network, we further introduce the topic-dependent rank (TD-Rank) algorithm to identify the multi-topic influential users

Homeschooling in the United States: A review of select research topics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Milton Gaither

Full Text Available Abstract The U.S. homeschooling movement has grown steadily since the early 1980s. In that time, a growing body of academic literature has been published that assesses various aspects of the phenomenon. This article first explains some of the methodological issues surrounding this literature as it has developed. It then summarizes the findings of the literature with respect to the following topics: the history of homeschooling, demographics (including parental motivation, academic achievement, and transition to college/adulthood.

Current status of research on power-frequency electric and magnetic fields of research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1991-01-01

Recent scientific literature has suggested a number of possible human health effects which might be associated with exposure to power frequency electric and magnetic fields. Several authoritative reviews of this subject have been published. currently, the major uncertainty and the major research effort is directed to the issue of these fields and cancer. Therefore, this review will be limited to examining the evidence relating prolonged power-frequency electric and magnetic field exposure to cancer in human populations. This paper reports that the CIGRE expert Group has assessed the research literature in the following areas: epidemiological evidence, animal studies, cellular effects, knowledge of mechanisms

Topical cyclosporine for atopic keratoconjunctivitis.

Science.gov (United States)

González-López, Julio J; López-Alcalde, Jesús; Morcillo Laiz, Rafael; Fernández Buenaga, Roberto; Rebolleda Fernández, Gema

2012-09-12

Atopic keratoconjunctivitis (AKC) is a chronic ocular surface non-infectious inflammatory condition that atopic dermatitis patients may suffer at any time point in the course of their dermatologic disease and is independent of its degree of severity. AKC is usually not self resolving and it poses a higher risk of corneal injuries and severe sequelae. Management of AKC should prevent or treat corneal damage. Although topical corticosteroids remain the standard treatment for patients with AKC, prolonged use may lead to complications. Topical cyclosporine A (CsA) may improve AKC signs and symptoms, and be used as a corticosteroid sparing agent. To determine the efficacy and gather evidence on safety from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of topical CsA in patients with AKC. We searched CENTRAL (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Group Trials Register) (The Cochrane Library 2012, Issue 6), MEDLINE (January 1946 to July 2012), EMBASE (January 1980 to July 2012), Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences (LILACS) (January 1982 to July 2012), Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) (January 1937 to July 2012), OpenGrey (System for Information on Grey Literature in Europe) (www.opengrey.eu/), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (www.controlled-trials.com), ClinicalTrials.gov (www.clinicaltrials.gov), the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (www.who.int/ictrp/search/en), the IFPMA Clinical Trials Portal (http://clinicaltrials.ifpma.org/no_cache/en/myportal/index.htm) and Web of Science Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (CPCI-S). We did not use any date or language restrictions in the electronic searches for trials. The electronic databases were last searched on 9 July 2012. We also handsearched the following conference proceedings: American Academy of Ophthalmology, Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, International Council of Opthalmology and Societas

Current status and perspectives of cysticercosis and taeniasis in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamasaki, Hiroshi

2013-02-01

This mini-review describes recent epidemiological trends in cysticercosis and taeniasis in Japan. Some of the topics discussed herein were presented at the first symposium on "Current perspectives of Taenia asiatica researches", that was held in Osong in Chungbuk Province, South Korea, in October 2011 and organized by Prof. K. S. Eom, Chungbuk National University School of Medicine. To better understand the trends in the occurrence of cysticercosis and taeniasis in Japan, clinical cases reported in 2005 have been updated. In addition, the current status of Taenia asiatica infections successively occurring in Japan since 2010 is also discussed.

Experiments with eddy currents: the eddy current brake

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gonzalez, Manuel I

2004-01-01

A moderate-cost experimental setup is presented to help students to understand some qualitative and quantitative aspects of eddy currents. The setup operates like an eddy current brake, a device commonly used in heavy vehicles to dissipate kinetic energy by generating eddy currents. A set of simple experiments is proposed to measure eddy current losses and to relate them to various relevant parameters. Typical results for each of the experiments are presented, and comparisons with theoretical predictions are included. The experiments, which are devoted to first-year undergraduate students, deal also with other pedagogically relevant topics in electricity and magnetism, such as basic laws, electrical measurement techniques, the sources of the magnetic field and others

Medical Robots: Current Systems and Research Directions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ryan A. Beasley

2012-01-01

Full Text Available First used medically in 1985, robots now make an impact in laparoscopy, neurosurgery, orthopedic surgery, emergency response, and various other medical disciplines. This paper provides a review of medical robot history and surveys the capabilities of current medical robot systems, primarily focusing on commercially available systems while covering a few prominent research projects. By examining robotic systems across time and disciplines, trends are discernible that imply future capabilities of medical robots, for example, increased usage of intraoperative images, improved robot arm design, and haptic feedback to guide the surgeon.

Current-driven dynamics in molecular-scale devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seideman, Tamar

2003-01-01

We review recent theoretical work on current-triggered processes in molecular-scale devices - a field at the interface between solid state physics and chemical dynamics with potential applications in diverse areas, including artificial molecular machines, unimolecular transport, surface nanochemistry and nanolithography. The qualitative physics underlying current-triggered dynamics is first discussed and placed in context with several well-studied phenomena with which it shares aspects. A theory for modelling these dynamics is next formulated within a time-dependent scattering approach. Our end result provides useful insight into the system properties that determine the reaction outcome as well as a computationally convenient framework for numerical realization. The theory is applied to study single-molecule surface reactions induced by a scanning tunnelling microscope and current-triggered dynamics in single-molecule transistors. We close with a discussion of several potential applications of current-induced dynamics in molecular devices and several opportunities for future research. (topical review)

Topical therapy for facial allergic dermatoses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. S. Kondratyeva

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The research goal is to assess clinical dynamics and morphofunctional skin parameters of patients with facial allergic dermatoses on the background of combined topical therapy. Materials and methods. 45 patients with various facial allergic dermatoses in dry and sensitive skin took part in the research. The methods included anamnesis taking, poll, objective examination and assessment of morphofunctional parameters of skin, as well as estimation of life quality dynamic index (LQDI. Main results. After a course of treatment with 0,05% solution of alclometasone dipropionate inflammation of dermatosis ceased in 45 (100% patients, itching and pains in 39 (86,7% patients, but complaints about dryness and peeling of facial skin remained in 41 (91,1% and 40 (88,8% patients respectively. On the background of therapy including emollient Aflocream the above mentioned symptoms did not appear in 43 (95,6% patients, wherein maximum effect was achieved in patients with allergic contact dermatitis - 14 (93,3%. After a course of topical therapy all patients showed statistically significant increase of epidermal moisture level, alongside with reduction of skin relief and degree of keratinization. During the assessment of LQDI a tendency to reduction of proportion of patients on whom the disease has a strong and extremely strong impact was noted in 10 patients (i.e. 22,2%, moderate influence - in 5 of them (11,45%, insignificant influence or its absence - in 30 (66,7% people. Conclusion. Combined therapy including the use of a topical corticosteroid Afloderm and an emollient Aflocream showed good clinical efficiency in patients with facial allergic dermatoses. The efficiency is also confirmed with improvements in morphofunctional characteristics of patients’ skin on the background of therapy.

Proceedings of the international symposium on research reactor safety operations and modifications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-03-01

The International Symposium on Research Reactor Safety, Operations and Modifications was organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency in cooperation with Atomic Energy of Canada Limited-Research Company. The main objectives of this Symposium were: (1) to exchange information and to discuss current perspectives and concerns relating to all aspects to research reactor safety, operations, and modifications; and, (2) to present views and to discuss future initiatives and directions for research reactor design, operations, utilization, and safety. The symposium topics included: research reactor programmes and experience; research reactor design safety and analysis; research reactor modifications and decommissioning; research reactor licensing; and new research reactors. These topics were covered during eight oral sessions and three poster sessions. These Proceedings include the full text of the 93 papers presented. The subject of Symposium was quite wide-ranging in that it covered essentially all aspects of research reactor safety, operations, and modifications. This was considered to be appropriate and timely given the 326 research reactors currently in operation in some 56 countries; given the degree of their utilization which ranges from pure and applied research to radioisotopes production to basic training and manpower development; and given that many of these reactors are undergoing extensive modifications, core conversions, power upratings, and are becoming the subject of safety reassessment and regulatory reviews. Although the Symposium covered many topics, the majority of papers and discussions tended to focus mainly on research reactor safety. This was seen as a clear sign of the continuing recognition of the fundamental importance of identifying and addressing, particularly through international cooperation, issues and concerns associated with research reactor safety

Topical Review: Translating Translational Research in Behavioral Science.

Science.gov (United States)

Hommel, Kevin A; Modi, Avani C; Piazza-Waggoner, Carrie; Myers, James D

2015-01-01

To present a model of translational research for behavioral science that communicates the role of behavioral research at each phase of translation. A task force identified gaps in knowledge regarding behavioral translational research processes and made recommendations regarding advancement of knowledge. A comprehensive model of translational behavioral research was developed. This model represents T1, T2, and T3 research activities, as well as Phase 1, 2, 3, and 4 clinical trials. Clinical illustrations of translational processes are also offered as support for the model. Behavioral science has struggled with defining a translational research model that effectively articulates each stage of translation and complements biomedical research. Our model defines key activities at each phase of translation from basic discovery to dissemination/implementation. This should be a starting point for communicating the role of behavioral science in translational research and a catalyst for better integration of biomedical and behavioral research. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Human-competitive automatic topic indexing

CERN Document Server

Medelyan, Olena

2009-01-01

Topic indexing is the task of identifying the main topics covered by a document. These are useful for many purposes: as subject headings in libraries, as keywords in academic publications and as tags on the web. Knowing a document’s topics helps people judge its relevance quickly. However, assigning topics manually is labor intensive. This thesis shows how to generate them automatically in a way that competes with human performance. Three kinds of indexing are investigated: term assignment, a task commonly performed by librarians, who select topics from a controlled vocabulary; tagging, a popular activity of web users, who choose topics freely; and a new method of keyphrase extraction, where topics are equated to Wikipedia article names. A general two-stage algorithm is introduced that first selects candidate topics and then ranks them by significance based on their properties. These properties draw on statistical, semantic, domain-specific and encyclopedic knowledge. They are combined using a machine learn...

Transdermal and Topical Drug Administration in the Treatment of Pain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wojciech Leppert

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The comprehensive treatment of pain is multidimodal, with pharmacotherapy playing a key role. An effective therapy for pain depends on the intensity and type of pain, the patients’ age, comorbidities, and appropriate choice of analgesic, its dose and route of administration. This review is aimed at presenting current knowledge on analgesics administered by transdermal and topical routes for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and other health care professionals dealing with patients suffering from pain. Analgesics administered transdermally or topically act through different mechanisms. Opioids administered transdermally are absorbed into vessels located in subcutaneous tissue and, subsequently, are conveyed in the blood to opioid receptors localized in the central and peripheral nervous system. Non–steroidal anti–inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs applied topically render analgesia mainly through a high concentration in the structures of the joint and a provision of local anti–inflammatory effects. Topically administered drugs such as lidocaine and capsaicin in patches, capsaicin in cream, EMLA cream, and creams containing antidepressants (i.e., doxepin, amitriptyline act mainly locally in tissues through receptors and/or ion channels. Transdermal and topical routes offer some advantages over systemic analgesic administration. Analgesics administered topically have a much better profile for adverse effects as they relieve local pain with minimal systemic effects. The transdermal route apart from the above-mentioned advantages and provision of long period of analgesia may be more convenient, especially for patients who are unable to take drugs orally. Topically and transdermally administered opioids are characterised by a lower risk of addiction compared to oral and parenteral routes.

Topic shift impairs pronoun resolution during sentence comprehension: Evidence from event-related potentials.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Xiaodong; Zhou, Xiaolin

2016-02-01

This study investigated how topic shift and topic continuation influence pronoun interpretation in Chinese. ERPs recorded on pronouns in topic structure showed stronger and earlier late positive responses (P600) for the topic-shift than for the topic-continuation conditions. However, in nontopic structure where the subject (denoting only subjecthood), rather than the topic (denoting both topichood and subjecthood), acted as the antecedent of the pronoun, almost indistinguishable P600 responses were obtained on the pronoun regardless of whether it was referring to the subject (i.e., subject continuation) or the object (i.e., subject shift). Moreover, stronger and earlier P600 responses were elicited by pronouns in the topic-shift than in the subject-shift conditions, although there was no difference between the topic-continuation and the subject-continuation conditions. These findings suggest that topic shift results in greater difficulty in the resolution stage of referential processing, although the bonding process is not sensitive to the manipulation of topic status, and that topic has a privileged cognitive status relative to other nontopic entities (e.g., subject) in real-time language processing. © 2015 Society for Psychophysiological Research.

Research on Hearing and Balance--Current and Future Developments.

Science.gov (United States)

Snow, James B., Jr.

1997-01-01

This article reviews current research that has located disease genes causing hearing impairments, discovered the ability of sensory cells of the inner ear to regenerate, developed vaccines to prevent otitis media, developed programmable hearing aids, improved cochlear implants, and demonstrated the positive effects of physical therapy with balance…

#Healthy Selfies: Exploration of Health Topics on Instagram.

Science.gov (United States)

Muralidhara, Sachin; Paul, Michael J

2018-06-29

Social media provides a complementary source of information for public health surveillance. The dominate data source for this type of monitoring is the microblogging platform Twitter, which is convenient due to the free availability of public data. Less is known about the utility of other social media platforms, despite their popularity. This work aims to characterize the health topics that are prominently discussed in the image-sharing platform Instagram, as a step toward understanding how this data might be used for public health research. The study uses a topic modeling approach to discover topics in a dataset of 96,426 Instagram posts containing hashtags related to health. We use a polylingual topic model, initially developed for datasets in different natural languages, to model different modalities of data: hashtags, caption words, and image tags automatically extracted using a computer vision tool. We identified 47 health-related topics in the data (kappa=.77), covering ten broad categories: acute illness, alternative medicine, chronic illness and pain, diet, exercise, health care & medicine, mental health, musculoskeletal health and dermatology, sleep, and substance use. The most prevalent topics were related to diet (8,293/96,426; 8.6% of posts) and exercise (7,328/96,426; 7.6% of posts). A large and diverse set of health topics are discussed in Instagram. The extracted image tags were generally too coarse and noisy to be used for identifying posts but were in some cases accurate for identifying images relevant to studying diet and substance use. Instagram shows potential as a source of public health information, though limitations in data collection and metadata availability may limit its use in comparison to platforms like Twitter. ©Sachin Muralidhara, Michael J. Paul. Originally published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance (http://publichealth.jmir.org), 29.06.2018.

Topic Continuity in Informal Conversations between Native and Non-Native Speakers of English

Science.gov (United States)

Morris-Adams, Muna

2013-01-01

Topic management by non-native speakers (NNSs) during informal conversations has received comparatively little attention from researchers, and receives surprisingly little attention in second language learning and teaching. This article reports on one of the topic management strategies employed by international students during informal, social…

Modern topics in electron scattering

CERN Document Server

Frois, Bernard

1991-01-01

This book summarizes the considerable progress recently achieved in the understanding of nucleon and nuclear structure by using high energy electrons as a probe. A collection of papers discusses in detail the new frontiers of this field. Experimental and theoretical articles cover topics such as the structure of the nucleon, nucleon distributions, many-body correlations, non-nucleonic degrees of freedom and few-body systems. This book is an up-to-date introduction to the research planned with continuous beam electron accelerators.

Biographical and Narrative Research in Iberoamerica: Areas of Development and Current Situation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio Bolívar

2006-09-01

Full Text Available Currently, biographical-narrative inquiry has its identity within qualitative research, and it merits attention. This article reviews and describes the biographical-narrative research origin, development and variants in the social sciences of Iberoamerican countries. It offers a broad overview of this field of investigation, defining the main areas of narrative and (autobiographical inquiry. In this context, it is opted to do a synchronic and a diachronic approach to the current situation. It is based on development and experienced training in this field: 1 It offers a biographical-narrative research characterization about diverse and heterogeneous modalities, methodological variants, forms and dimensions 2 It highlights the roots and the reasons for the current relevance of this approach in social research in the Iberoamerican setting. 3 It describes the main questions and the approach progression, adopting a prospective point of view. 4 It describes the most relevant orientations, the most noteworthy instruments and the key characteristics that must be present in this type of investigation. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0604125

Comparing Teaching Approaches About Maxwell's Displacement Current

Science.gov (United States)

Karam, Ricardo; Coimbra, Debora; Pietrocola, Maurício

2014-08-01

Due to its fundamental role for the consolidation of Maxwell's equations, the displacement current is one of the most important topics of any introductory course on electromagnetism. Moreover, this episode is widely used by historians and philosophers of science as a case study to investigate several issues (e.g. the theory-experiment relationship). Despite the consensus among physics educators concerning the relevance of the topic, there are many possible ways to interpret and justify the need for the displacement current term. With the goal of understanding the didactical transposition of this topic more deeply, we investigate three of its domains: (1) The historical development of Maxwell's reasoning; (2) Different approaches to justify the term insertion in physics textbooks; and (3) Four lectures devoted to introduce the topic in undergraduate level given by four different professors. By reflecting on the differences between these three domains, significant evidence for the knowledge transformation caused by the didactization of this episode is provided. The main purpose of this comparative analysis is to assist physics educators in developing an epistemological surveillance regarding the teaching and learning of the displacement current.

Manual Therapy: The Historical, Current, and Future Role in the Treatment of Pain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Russell Smith

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Manual therapy has been an approach in the management of patients with various disorders dating back to ancient times and continues to play a significant role in current health care. The future role of manual therapy in health care is an important area of research. This paper reviews the history of manual therapy, examines the current literature related to the use of manual techniques (including manipulation, massage, and nerve manipulation, and discusses future research topics. The literature related to manual therapy has historically been anecdotal and theoretical, and current research tends to have a generic approach with broad definitions of manual therapy and inconsistencies in the classification of specific disorders. Systematic reviews of various types of manual therapy have differed on their conclusions regarding the effectiveness of this treatment modality. The current demand in health care for evidence-based practice necessitates a movement towards more specificity in the research of the effectiveness of manual therapy, with emphasis on specific patient signs and symptoms and specific manual techniques that result in effective care.

Manual Therapy: The Historical, Current, and Future Role in the Treatment of Pain

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, A. Russell

2007-01-01

Manual therapy has been an approach in the management of patients with various disorders dating back to ancient times and continues to play a significant role in current health care. The future role of manual therapy in health care is an important area of research. This paper reviews the history of manual therapy, examines the current literature related to the use of manual techniques (including manipulation, massage, and nerve manipulation), and discusses future research topics. The literature related to manual therapy has historically been anecdotal and theoretical, and current research tends to have a generic approach with broad definitions of manual therapy and inconsistencies in the classification of specific disorders. Systematic reviews of various types of manual therapy have differed on their conclusions regarding the effectiveness of this treatment modality. The current demand in health care for evidence-based practice necessitates a movement towards more specificity in the research of the effectiveness of manual therapy, with emphasis on specific patient signs and symptoms and specific manual techniques that result in effective care. PMID:17334604

Learning analytics fundaments, applications, and trends : a view of the current state of the art to enhance e-learning

CERN Document Server

2017-01-01

This book provides a conceptual and empirical perspective on learning analytics, its goal being to disseminate the core concepts, research, and outcomes of this emergent field. Divided into nine chapters, it offers reviews oriented on selected topics, recent advances, and innovative applications. It presents the broad learning analytics landscape and in-depth studies on higher education, adaptive assessment, teaching and learning. In addition, it discusses valuable approaches to coping with personalization and huge data, as well as conceptual topics and specialized applications that have shaped the current state of the art. By identifying fundamentals, highlighting applications, and pointing out current trends, the book offers an essential overview of learning analytics to enhance learning achievement in diverse educational settings. As such, it represents a valuable resource for researchers, practitioners, and students interested in updating their knowledge and finding inspirations for their future work.

Original Research Article Prevalence of Neonatal Jaundice on

African Journals Online (AJOL)

HP

The journal welcomes original research papers, reviews and case reports on current topics of special interest and relevance. All manuscripts will be .... also been reported to be the commonest cause of neonatal admission to the Children's ... as a result of the neurologic effect of neonatal jaundice. Methods. This study was ...

Current challenges in health economic modeling of cancer therapies: a research inquiry.

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, Jeffrey D; Foley, Kathleen A; Russell, Mason W

2014-05-01

The demand for economic models that evaluate cancer treatments is increasing, as healthcare decision makers struggle for ways to manage their budgets while providing the best care possible to patients with cancer. Yet, after nearly 2 decades of cultivating and refining techniques for modeling the cost-effectiveness and budget impact of cancer therapies, serious methodologic and policy challenges have emerged that question the adequacy of economic modeling as a sound decision-making tool in oncology. We sought to explore some of the contentious issues associated with the development and use of oncology economic models as informative tools in current healthcare decision-making. Our objective was to draw attention to these complex pharmacoeconomic concerns and to promote discussion within the oncology and health economics research communities. Using our combined expertise in health economics research and economic modeling, we structured our inquiry around the following 4 questions: (1) Are economic models adequately addressing questions relevant to oncology decision makers; (2) What are the methodologic limitations of oncology economic models; (3) What guidelines are followed for developing oncology economic models; and (4) Is the evolution of oncology economic modeling keeping pace with treatment innovation? Within the context of each of these questions, we discuss issues related to the technical limitations of oncology modeling, the availability of adequate data for developing models, and the problems with how modeling analyses and results are presented and interpreted. There is general acceptance that economic models are good, essential tools for decision-making, but the practice of oncology and its rapidly evolving technologies present unique challenges that make assessing and demonstrating value especially complex. There is wide latitude for improvement in oncology modeling methodologies and how model results are presented and interpreted. Complex technical and

Current status and technology development tendency of research reactors in china

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ke Guotu; Shen Feng; Zhao Shouzhi; Zhang Weiguo; Yuan Luzheng

2009-01-01

The current status and development history of domestic and abroad research reactors (RRs) are mentioned. The representative RRs and their respective technology characteristics are introduced. The utilizations of China's RRs, mainly included as nuclear engineering technology, basic research applications of nuclear technology, teaching and personnel training, are explained. (authors)

Anti- and Hypermatter Research at the Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research FAIR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steinheimer, J; Xu, Z; Gudima, K; Botvina, A; Mishustin, I; Bleicher, M; Stöcker, H

2012-01-01

Within the next six years, the Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) is built adjacent to the existing accelerator complex of the GSI Helmholtz Center for Heavy Ion Research at Darmstadt, Germany. Thus, the current research goals and the technical possibilities are substantially expanded. With its worldwide unique accelerator and experimental facilities, FAIR will provide a wide range of unprecedented fore-front research in the fields of hadron, nuclear, atomic, plasma physics and applied sciences which are summarized in this article. As an example this article presents research efforts on strangeness at FAIR using heavy ion collisions, exotic nuclei from fragmentation and antiprotons to tackle various topics in this area. In particular, the creation of hypernuclei and antimatter is investigated.

Dialect topic modeling for improved consumer medical search.

Science.gov (United States)

Crain, Steven P; Yang, Shuang-Hong; Zha, Hongyuan; Jiao, Yu

2010-11-13

Access to health information by consumers is hampered by a fundamental language gap. Current attempts to close the gap leverage consumer oriented health information, which does not, however, have good coverage of slang medical terminology. In this paper, we present a Bayesian model to automatically align documents with different dialects (slang, common and technical) while extracting their semantic topics. The proposed diaTM model enables effective information retrieval, even when the query contains slang words, by explicitly modeling the mixtures of dialects in documents and the joint influence of dialects and topics on word selection. Simulations using consumer questions to retrieve medical information from a corpus of medical documents show that diaTM achieves a 25% improvement in information retrieval relevance by nDCG@5 over an LDA baseline.

Dialect Topic Modeling for Improved Consumer Medical Search

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crain, Steven P. [Georgia Institute of Technology; Yang, Shuang-Hong [Georgia Institute of Technology; Zha, Hongyuan [Georgia Institute of Technology; Jiao, Yu [ORNL

2010-01-01

Access to health information by consumers is ham- pered by a fundamental language gap. Current attempts to close the gap leverage consumer oriented health information, which does not, however, have good coverage of slang medical terminology. In this paper, we present a Bayesian model to automatically align documents with different dialects (slang, com- mon and technical) while extracting their semantic topics. The proposed diaTM model enables effective information retrieval, even when the query contains slang words, by explicitly modeling the mixtures of dialects in documents and the joint influence of dialects and topics on word selection. Simulations us- ing consumer questions to retrieve medical information from a corpus of medical documents show that diaTM achieves a 25% improvement in information retrieval relevance by nDCG@5 over an LDA baseline.

Direct Drive Generator for Renewable Power Conversion from Water Currents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Segergren, Erik

2005-01-01

In this thesis permanent magnet direct drive generator for power conversion from water currents is studied. Water currents as a power source involves a number of constrains as well as possibilities, especially when direct drive and permanent magnets are considered. The high power fluxes and low current velocities of a water current, in combination with its natural variations, will affect the way the generator is operated and, flowingly, the appearance of the generator. The work in this thesis can, thus, be categorized into two general topics, generator technology and optimization. Under the first topic, fundamental generator technology is used to increase the efficiency of a water current generator. Under the latter topic, water current generators are optimized to a specific environment. The conclusion drawn from this work is that it is possible to design very low speed direct drive generators with good electromagnetic properties and wide efficiency peak

Film forming systems for topical and transdermal drug delivery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kashmira Kathe

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Skin is considered as an important route of administration of drugs for both local and systemic effects. The effectiveness of topical therapy depends on the physicochemical properties of the drug and adherence of the patient to the treatment regimen as well as the system's ability to adhere to skin during the therapy so as to promote drug penetration through the skin barrier. Conventional formulations for topical and dermatological administration of drugs have certain limitations like poor adherence to skin, poor permeability and compromised patient compliance. For the treatment of diseases of body tissues and wounds, the drug has to be maintained at the site of treatment for an effective period of time. Topical film forming systems are such developing drug delivery systems meant for topical application to the skin, which adhere to the body, forming a thin transparent film and provide delivery of the active ingredients to the body tissue. These are intended for skin application as emollient or protective and for local action or transdermal penetration of medicament for systemic action. The transparency is an appreciable feature of this polymeric system which greatly influences the patient acceptance. In the current discussion, the film forming systems are described as a promising choice for topical and transdermal drug delivery. Further the various types of film forming systems (sprays/solutions, gels and emulsions along with their evaluation parameters have also been reviewed.

Research in nuclear chemistry: current status and future perspectives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reddy, A.V.R.

2007-01-01

Research in nuclear chemistry has seen a huge growth over the last few decades. The large umbrella of nuclear chemistry includes several research areas such as nuclear fission, reactions, spectroscopy, nuclear probes and nuclear analytical techniques. Currently, nuclear chemistry research has extended its horizon into various applications like nuclear medicine, isotopes for understanding physico chemical processes, and addressing environmental and biomedical problems. Tremendous efforts are going on for synthesizing new elements (isotopes), isolating physically or chemically wherever possible and investigating their properties. Theses studies are useful to understand nuclear and chemical properties at extreme ends of instability. In addition, nuclear chemists are making substantial contribution to astrophysics and other related areas. During this talk, a few of the contributions made by nuclear chemistry group of BARC will be discussed and possible future areas of research will be enumerated. (author)

Research in Humans: Current Perspectives in Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Célia Alcantara Cunha Lima

2016-10-01

Full Text Available This work addressed the norms of ethics for human experimentation in Brazil, operationalized by the National Research Ethics Commission (CONEP of the National Health Council (CNS. It analyzed international principles of bioethics as a theoretical framework for the Brazilian regulation. National and international publications were reviewed, by Capes periodicals, relating to historical ethical infractions, such as reflection to the current day. It analyzed the law (PL 200/2015 of the Senate, which proposes flexibilities in Brazilian legislation and concluded that the requested changes should be discussed in depth by bioethicists, scientists and Brazilian lawyers with extended discussion to society.

On-Going International Research Program on Irradiated Concrete Conducted by DOE, EPRI and Japan Research Institutions. Roadmap, Achievements and Path Forward

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Le Pape, Yann [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Rosseel, Thomas M. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2015-10-01

The Joint Department of Energy (DOE)-Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Program (Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) Program–Material Pathway–Concrete and Long-Term Operation (LTO) Program) and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) research studies aim at understanding the most prominent degradation modes and their effects on the long-term operation of concrete structures to nuclear power generation. Based on the results of the Expanded Materials Degradation Analysis (EMDA), (NUREG/CR-7153, ORNL/TM-2011/545), irradiated concrete and alkali-silica reaction (ASR)-affected concrete structures are the two prioritized topics of on-going research. This report focuses specifically on the topic of irradiated concrete and summarizes the main accomplishments obtained by this joint program, but also provides an overview of current relevant activities domestically and internationally. Possible paths forward are also suggested to help near-future orientation of this program.

On-Going International Research Program on Irradiated Concrete Conducted by DOE, EPRI and Japan Research Institutions. Roadmap, Achievements and Path Forward

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Le Pape, Yann; Rosseel, Thomas M.

2015-01-01

The Joint Department of Energy (DOE)-Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Program (Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) Program Material Pathway Concrete and Long-Term Operation (LTO) Program) and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) research studies aim at understanding the most prominent degradation modes and their effects on the long-term operation of concrete structures to nuclear power generation. Based on the results of the Expanded Materials Degradation Analysis (EMDA), (NUREG/CR-7153, ORNL/TM-2011/545), irradiated concrete and alkali-silica reaction (ASR)-affected concrete structures are the two prioritized topics of on-going research. This report focuses specifically on the topic of irradiated concrete and summarizes the main accomplishments obtained by this joint program, but also provides an overview of current relevant activities domestically and internationally. Possible paths forward are also suggested to help near-future orientation of this program.

Tourette syndrome research highlights 2015 [version 1; referees: 3 approved

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cheryl A. Richards

2016-06-01

Full Text Available We present selected highlights from research that appeared during 2015 on Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders. Topics include phenomenology, comorbidities, developmental course, genetics, animal models, neuroimaging, electrophysiology, pharmacology, and treatment. We briefly summarize articles whose results we believe may lead to new treatments, additional research or modifications in current models of TS.

Topical retapamulin in the management of infected traumatic skin lesions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ribhi Shawar