Urban partnership agreement and congestion reduction demonstration programs : lessons learned on congestion pricing from the Seattle and Atlanta household travel behavior surveys.

Science.gov (United States)

2014-04-01

This paper presents lessons learned from household traveler surveys administered in Seattle and Atlanta as part of the evaluation of the Urban Partnership Agreement and Congestion Reduction Demonstration Programs. The surveys use a two-stage panel su...

THE ROLE OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

IRINA GABRIELA RADULESCU

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Regional and sub-regional groups having an integrative character appeared after the war and they aimed at harmonizing their economic policies, and, at the same time, they ensured, in accordance with the agreed degree of integration, free turnover of goods, products, services, capitals and labor force. By setting up these international economic organizations, the states of the world and especially developing countries wanted to improve their efforts for a sustained economic growth, to counteract the effects of the unequal external affairs and to eliminate underdevelopment. Some of the regional agreements that represent the new regionalism have been motivated politically and they were stimulated by the conviction that good agreements do not necessarily stand for good neighbors. Such agreements consolidate good diplomatic practices and their objective is to reduce the inevitable confrontation that may appear as a result of com

Inter-observer agreement for Crohn's disease sub-phenotypes using the Montreal Classification: How good are we? A multi-centre Australasian study.

Science.gov (United States)

Krishnaprasad, Krupa; Andrews, Jane M; Lawrance, Ian C; Florin, Timothy; Gearry, Richard B; Leong, Rupert W L; Mahy, Gillian; Bampton, Peter; Prosser, Ruth; Leach, Peta; Chitti, Laurie; Cock, Charles; Grafton, Rachel; Croft, Anthony R; Cooke, Sharon; Doecke, James D; Radford-Smith, Graham L

2012-04-01

Crohn's disease (CD) exhibits significant clinical heterogeneity. Classification systems attempt to describe this; however, their utility and reliability depends on inter-observer agreement (IOA). We therefore sought to evaluate IOA using the Montreal Classification (MC). De-identified clinical records of 35 CD patients from 6 Australian IBD centres were presented to 13 expert practitioners from 8 Australia and New Zealand Inflammatory Bowel Disease Consortium (ANZIBDC) centres. Practitioners classified the cases using MC and forwarded data for central blinded analysis. IOA on smoking and medications was also tested. Kappa statistics, with pre-specified outcomes of κ>0.8 excellent; 0.61-0.8 good; 0.41-0.6 moderate and ≤0.4 poor, were used. 97% of study cases had colonoscopy reports, however, only 31% had undergone a complete set of diagnostic investigations (colonoscopy, histology, SB imaging). At diagnosis, IOA was excellent for age, κ=0.84; good for disease location, κ=0.73; only moderate for upper GI disease (κ=0.57) and disease behaviour, κ=0.54; and good for the presence of perianal disease, κ=0.6. At last follow-up, IOA was good for location, κ=0.68; only moderate for upper GI disease (κ=0.43) and disease behaviour, κ=0.46; but excellent for the presence/absence of perianal disease, κ=0.88. IOA for immunosuppressant use ever and presence of stricture were both good (κ=0.79 and 0.64 respectively). IOA using MC is generally good; however some areas are less consistent than others. Omissions and inaccuracies reduce the value of clinical data when comparing cohorts across different centres, and may impair the ability to translate genetic discoveries into clinical practice. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Faith community nursing demonstrates good stewardship of community benefit dollars through cost savings and cost avoidance.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Ameldia R; Coppola, Patricia; Giacona, Marian; Petriches, Anne; Stockwell, Mary Ann

2009-01-01

Health systems seeking responsible stewardship of community benefit dollars supporting Faith Community Nursing Networks require demonstration of positive measurable health outcomes. Faith Community Nurses (FCNs) answer the call for measurable outcomes by documenting cost savings and cost avoidances to families, communities, and health systems associated with their interventions. Using a spreadsheet tool based on Medicare reimbursements and diagnostic-related groupings, 3 networks of FCNs have together shown more than 600 000 (for calendar year 2008) healthcare dollars saved by avoidance of unnecessary acute care visits and extended care placements. The cost-benefit ratio of support dollars to cost savings and cost avoidance demonstrates that support of FCNs is good stewardship of community benefit dollars.

Inter-operator and inter-device agreement and reliability of the SEM Scanner.

Science.gov (United States)

Clendenin, Marta; Jaradeh, Kindah; Shamirian, Anasheh; Rhodes, Shannon L

2015-02-01

The SEM Scanner is a medical device designed for use by healthcare providers as part of pressure ulcer prevention programs. The objective of this study was to evaluate the inter-rater and inter-device agreement and reliability of the SEM Scanner. Thirty-one (31) volunteers free of pressure ulcers or broken skin at the sternum, sacrum, and heels were assessed with the SEM Scanner. Each of three operators utilized each of three devices to collect readings from four anatomical sites (sternum, sacrum, left and right heels) on each subject for a total of 108 readings per subject collected over approximately 30 min. For each combination of operator-device-anatomical site, three SEM readings were collected. Inter-operator and inter-device agreement and reliability were estimated. Over the course of this study, more than 3000 SEM Scanner readings were collected. Agreement between operators was good with mean differences ranging from -0.01 to 0.11. Inter-operator and inter-device reliability exceeded 0.80 at all anatomical sites assessed. The results of this study demonstrate the high reliability and good agreement of the SEM Scanner across different operators and different devices. Given the limitations of current methods to prevent and detect pressure ulcers, the SEM Scanner shows promise as an objective, reliable tool for assessing the presence or absence of pressure-induced tissue damage such as pressure ulcers. Copyright © 2015 Bruin Biometrics, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Inter-observer and intra-observer agreement on interpretation of uroflowmetry curves of kindergarten children.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Shang-Jen; Yang, Stephen S D

2008-12-01

To evaluate the inter-observer and intra-observer agreement on the interpretation of uroflowmetry curves of children. Healthy kindergarten children were enrolled for evaluation of uroflowmetry. Uroflowmetry curves were classified as bell-shaped, tower, plateau, staccato and interrupted. Only the bell-shaped curves were regarded as normal. Two urodynamists evaluated the curves independently after reviewing the definitions of the different types of uroflowmetry curve. The senior urodynamist evaluated the curves twice 3 months apart. The final conclusion was made when consensus was reached. Agreement among observers was analyzed using kappa statistics. Of 190 uroflowmetry curves eligible for analysis, the intra-observer agreement in interpreting each type of curve and interpreting normalcy vs abnormality was good (kappa=0.71 and 0.68, respectively). Very good inter-observer agreement (kappa=0.81) on normalcy and good inter-observer agreement (kappa=0.73) on types of uroflowmetry were observed. Poor inter-observer agreement existed on the classification of specific types of abnormal uroflowmetry curves (kappa=0.07). Uroflowmetry is a good screening tool for normalcy of kindergarten children, while not a good tool to define the specific types of abnormal uroflowmetry.

Regional trade agreements & procurement rules : facilitators or hindrances?

OpenAIRE

ANDERSON, Robert D.; MÜLLER, Anna Caroline; PELLETIER, Philippe

2015-01-01

This Working Paper considers the significance of government procurement chapters in regional trade agreements (RTAs), both in their own right and vis-à-vis the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA). The paper finds, inter alia, that: (i) a strong complementarity exists between government procurement trade commitments and general goods and services trade commitments, making integration of procurement commitments in a more general system such as the WTO Agreements desirable; (ii) govern...

19 CFR 10.531 - Originating goods.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... ARTICLES CONDITIONALLY FREE, SUBJECT TO A REDUCED RATE, ETC. United States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement... (2) The good otherwise satisfies any applicable regional value content or other requirements...

A Good Neighborhood for Cells: Bioreactor Demonstration System (BDS-05)

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Leland W. K.; Goodwin, Thomas J. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Good neighborhoods help you grow. As with a city, the lives of a cell are governed by its neighborhood connections Connections that do not work are implicated in a range of diseases. One of those connections - between prostate cancer and bone cells - will be studied on STS-107 using the Bioreactor Demonstration System (BDS-05). To improve the prospects for finding novel therapies, and to identify biomarkers that predict disease progression, scientists need tissue models that behave the same as metastatic or spreading cancer. This is one of several NASA-sponsored lines of cell science research that use the microgravity environment of orbit in an attempt to grow lifelike tissue models for health research. As cells replicate, they "self associate" to form a complex matrix of collagens, proteins, fibers, and other structures. This highly evolved microenvironment tells each cell who is next door, how it should grow arid into what shapes, and how to respond to bacteria, wounds, and other stimuli. Studying these mechanisms outside the body is difficult because cells do not easily self-associate outside a natural environment. Most cell cultures produce thin, flat specimens that offer limited insight into how cells work together. Ironically, growing cell cultures in the microgravity of space produces cell assemblies that more closely resemble what is found in bodies on Earth. NASA's Bioreactor comprises a miniature life support system and a rotating vessel containing cell specimens in a nutrient medium. Orbital BDS experiments that cultured colon and prostate cancers have been highly promising.

Interobserver agreement of radiologists assessing the response of rectal cancers to preoperative chemoradiation using the MRI tumour regression grading (mrTRG)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siddiqui, M.R.S.; Gormly, K.L.; Bhoday, J.; Balyansikova, S.; Battersby, N.J.; Chand, M.; Rao, S.; Tekkis, P.; Abulafi, A.M.; Brown, G.

2016-01-01

Aim: To investigate whether the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tumour regression grading (mrTRG) scale can be taught effectively resulting in a clinically reasonable interobserver agreement (>0.4; moderate to near perfect agreement). Materials and methods: This study examines the interobserver agreement of mrTRG, between 35 radiologists and a central reviewer. Two workshops were organised for radiologists to assess regression of rectal cancers on MRI staging scans. A range of mrTRGs on 12 patient scans were used for assessment. Results: Kappa agreement ranged from 0.14–0.82 with a median value of 0.57 (95% CI: 0.37–0.77) indicating good overall agreement. Eight (26%) radiologists had very good/near perfect agreement (κ>0.8). Six (19%) radiologists had good agreement (0.8≥κ>0.6) and a further 12 (39%) had moderate agreement (0.6≥κ>0.4). Five (16%) radiologists had a fair agreement (0.4≥κ>0.2) and two had poor agreement (0.2>κ). There was a tendency towards good agreement (skewness: 0.92). In 65.9% and 90% of cases the radiologists were able to correctly highlight good and poor responders, respectively. Conclusions: The assessment of the response of rectal cancers to chemoradiation therapy may be performed effectively using mrTRG. Radiologists can be taught the mrTRG scale. Even with minimal training, good agreement with the central reviewer along with effective differentiation between good and intermediate/poor responders can be achieved. Focus should be on facilitating the identification of good responders. It is predicted that with more intensive interactive case-based learning a κ>0.8 is likely to be achieved. Testing and retesting is recommended. - Highlights: • Inter-observer agreement of radiologists was assessed using MRI rectal tumour regression scale. • Kappa agreement had a median value of 0.57 (95% CI: 0.37–0.77) indicating an overall good agreement. • In 65.9% and 90% of cases the radiologists were able to correctly highlight

19 CFR 10.451 - Originating goods.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... ARTICLES CONDITIONALLY FREE, SUBJECT TO A REDUCED RATE, ETC. United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement Rules... good otherwise satisfies any applicable regional value content or other requirements specified in...

Evaluation of interobserver agreement in Albertoni's classification for mallet finger

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vinícius Alexandre de Souza Almeida

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: To measure the reliability of Albertoni's classification for mallet finger. Methods: Agreement study. Forty-three radiographs of patients with mallet finger were assessed by 19 responders (12 hand surgeons and seven residents. Injuries were classified by Albertoni's classification. For agreement comparison, lesions were grouped as: (A tendon avulsion; (B avulsion fracture; (C fracture of the dorsal lip; and (D physis injury-and subgroups (each group divided into two subgroups. Agreement was assessed by Fleiss's modification for kappa statistics. Results: Agreement was excellent for Group A (k = 0.95 (0.93-0.97 and remained good when separated into A1 and A2. Group B was moderate (k = 0.42 (0.39-0.44 and poor when separated into B1 and B2. In the Group C, agreement was good (k = 0.72 (0.70-0.74, but when separated into C1 and C2, it became moderate. Group D was always poor (k = 0.16 (0.14-0.19. The general agreement was moderate, with (k = 0.57 (0.56-0.58. Conclusion: Albertoni's classification evaluated for interobserver agreement is considered a reproducible classification by the method used in the research.

Effective construction of environmental protection agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

French, H.F.

1995-01-01

By now 170 international agreements are designed to protect air, ground, water and organisms from man-made hazards. Nevertheless are innovative approaches required for global conventions to make the Earth a sanctuary of life for good. (orig.) [de

Intramodality and intermodality agreement in radiography and computed tomography of equine distal limb fractures.

Science.gov (United States)

Crijns, C P; Martens, A; Bergman, H-J; van der Veen, H; Duchateau, L; van Bree, H J J; Gielen, I M V L

2014-01-01

Computed tomography (CT) is increasingly accessible in equine referral hospitals. To document the level of agreement within and between radiography and CT in characterising equine distal limb fractures. Retrospective descriptive study. Images from horses that underwent radiographic and CT evaluation for suspected distal limb fractures were reviewed, including 27 horses and 3 negative controls. Using Cohen's kappa and weighted kappa analysis, the level of agreement among 4 observers for a predefined set of diagnostic characteristics for radiography and CT separately and for the level of agreement between the 2 imaging modalities were documented. Both CT and radiography had very good intramodality agreement in identifying fractures, but intermodality agreement was lower. There was good intermodality and intramodality agreement for anatomical localisation and the identification of fracture displacement. Agreement for articular involvement, fracture comminution and fracture fragment number was towards the lower limit of good agreement. There was poor to fair intermodality agreement regarding fracture orientation, fracture width and coalescing cracks; intramodality agreement was higher for CT than for radiography for these features. Further studies, including comparisons with surgical and/or post mortem findings, are required to determine the sensitivity and specificity of CT and radiography in the diagnosis and characterisation of equine distal limb fractures. © 2013 EVJ Ltd.

Describing Peripancreatic Collections According to the Revised Atlanta Classification of Acute Pancreatitis: An International Interobserver Agreement Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Bouwense, Stefan A; van Brunschot, Sandra; van Santvoort, Hjalmar C; Besselink, Marc G; Bollen, Thomas L; Bakker, Olaf J; Banks, Peter A; Boermeester, Marja A; Cappendijk, Vincent C; Carter, Ross; Charnley, Richard; van Eijck, Casper H; Freeny, Patrick C; Hermans, John J; Hough, David M; Johnson, Colin D; Laméris, Johan S; Lerch, Markus M; Mayerle, Julia; Mortele, Koenraad J; Sarr, Michael G; Stedman, Brian; Vege, Santhi Swaroop; Werner, Jens; Dijkgraaf, Marcel G; Gooszen, Hein G; Horvath, Karen D

2017-08-01

Severe acute pancreatitis is associated with peripancreatic morphologic changes as seen on imaging. Uniform communication regarding these morphologic findings is crucial for accurate diagnosis and treatment. For the original 1992 Atlanta classification, interobserver agreement is poor. We hypothesized that for the revised Atlanta classification, interobserver agreement will be better. An international, interobserver agreement study was performed among expert and nonexpert radiologists (n = 14), surgeons (n = 15), and gastroenterologists (n = 8). Representative computed tomographies of all stages of acute pancreatitis were selected from 55 patients and were assessed according to the revised Atlanta classification. The interobserver agreement was calculated among all reviewers and subgroups, that is, expert and nonexpert reviewers; interobserver agreement was defined as poor (≤0.20), fair (0.21-0.40), moderate (0.41-0.60), good (0.61-0.80), or very good (0.81-1.00). Interobserver agreement among all reviewers was good (0.75 [standard deviation, 0.21]) for describing the type of acute pancreatitis and good (0.62 [standard deviation, 0.19]) for the type of peripancreatic collection. Expert radiologists showed the best and nonexpert clinicians the lowest interobserver agreement. Interobserver agreement was good for the revised Atlanta classification, supporting the importance for widespread adaption of this revised classification for clinical and research communications.

Rater agreement in lung scintigraphy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Christiansen, F.; Andersson, T.; Rydman, H.; Qvarner, N.; Maare, K.

1996-01-01

Purpose: The PIOPED criteria in their original and revised forms are today's standards in the interpretation of ventilation-perfusion scintigraphy. When the PIOPED criteria are used by experienced raters with training in consensus interpretation, the agreement rates have been demonstrated to be excellent. Our purpose was to investigate the rates of agreement between 2 experienced raters from different hospitals who had no training in consensus interpretation. Material and Methods: The 2 raters investigated a population of 195 patients. This group included 72 patients from a previous study who had an intermediate probability of pulmonary embolism and who had also been examined by pulmonary angiography. Results: The results demonstrated moderate agreement rates with a kappa value of 0.54 (0.45-0.63 in a 95% confidence interval), which is similar to the kappa value of the PIOPED study but significantly lower than the kappa values of agreement rates among consensus-trained raters. There was a low consistency in the intermediate probability category, with a proportional agreement rate of 0.39 between the experienced raters. Conclusion: The moderate agreement rates between raters from different hospitals make it difficult to compare study populations of a certain scintigraphic category in different hospitals. Further investigations are mandatory for accurate diagnosis when the scintigrams are in the category of intermediate probability of pulmonary embolism. (orig.)

The political economy of services trade agreements

OpenAIRE

FIORINI, Matteo; LEBRAND, Mathilde

2016-01-01

Why do governments sign services trade agreements? This paper focuses on the role of international agreements in the context of trade in services when services are used as intermediate inputs in downstream industries. Compared to goods, services inputs are mostly non-tradable and complementary to other factors of production. We build a theoretical trade policy framework in which firms use foreign investment to contest foreign markets in services sectors and governments can restrict the entry ...

GPC light shaper: static and dynamic experimental demonstrations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bañas, Andrew Rafael; Kopylov, Oleksii; Villangca, Mark Jayson

2014-01-01

Generalized Phase Contrast (GPC) is an efficient method for generating speckle-free contiguous optical distributions useful in diverse applications such as static beam shaping, optical manipulation and, recently, for excitation in two-photon optogenetics. GPC allows efficient utilization of typical...... Gaussian lasers in such applications using binary-only phase modulation. In this work, we experimentally verify previously derived conditions for photon-efficient light shaping with GPC [Opt. Express 22(5), 5299 (2014)]. We demonstrate a compact implementation of GPC for creating practical illumination...... experiments give ~80% efficiency, ~3x intensity gain, and ~90% energy savings which are in good agreement with previous theoretical estimations....

49 CFR 375.409 - May household goods brokers provide estimates?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false May household goods brokers provide estimates? 375... Estimating Charges § 375.409 May household goods brokers provide estimates? A household goods broker must not... there is a written agreement between the broker and you, the carrier, adopting the broker's estimate as...

Agreement analysis comparing iPad LCVA and Sloan testing in multiple sclerosis patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Sattarnezhad, Neda; Farrow, Samantha; Kimbrough, Dorlan; Glanz, Bonnie; Healy, Brian; Chitnis, Tanuja

2017-06-01

Visual symptoms are common in multiple sclerosis (MS). Low-contrast visual acuity (LCVA) testing using Sloan charts has demonstrated increased sensitivity for visual deficits compared to high-contrast acuity testing. Computerized testing of visual acuity may facilitate use in the clinic setting. To evaluate the agreement between an iPad-based and Sloan testing of LCVA in a cohort of MS patients. A total of 38 patients with relapsing-remitting MS were enrolled after providing informed written consent at Partners MS Center, Brigham and Women's hospital. Monocular LCVA was measured using retroilluminated Sloan chart and iPad-based LogMAR chart. Number of correct letters and agreement between two measurements were assessed for each eye using Bland-Altman analysis and paired t-test. For both eyes, there was no significant difference in number correct between the two measurements using a paired t-test, and there was high correlation between two measurements (oculus dextrus (OD) r = 0.89, p iPad-based LCVA test shows good agreement with Sloan testing in MS patients.

Good-to-Great Superintendents: An Examination of Jim Collins' Good-to-Great Level Five Leadership Attributes as Demonstrated by the Leadership Behaviors of Superintendents of High-Performing California Public Single-School Districts

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, James D.

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine Collins' good-to-great Level Five leadership attributes, as demonstrated by the leadership behaviors of superintendents of high-performing California public single-school districts. Methodology: The researcher used a case study design to conduct this study. Personal interviews were conducted in…

The prospects for the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Government Procurement

OpenAIRE

Davies, Arwel

2000-01-01

This thesis questions the prospects for the World Trade Organisation, Agreement on Government Procurement. This is the most important international agreement seeking to promote cross-border trade in hitherto closed national procurement markets. For the above threshold goods, services and construction services contracts which it covers, the Agreement's principal objective is to require the non-discriminatory treatment of foreign suppliers. It is because of this general insistence on non-discri...

Trade agreements, domestic environmental regulation, and transboundary pollution

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lai, Yu-Bong; Hu, Chia-Hsien [Department of Public Finance, National Taipei University (China)

2008-05-15

This paper investigates a second-best trade agreement between two countries that takes the distortion arising from their non-coordinated environmental policies into consideration. In a reciprocal-markets model with bidirectional transboundary pollution, we find that if the transboundary pollution is sufficiently strong, the second-best trade agreement requires that both countries subsidize the imported goods whose consumption gives rise to pollution. We also find that a bilateral tariff reduction is beneficial to the global environment. (author)

Trade agreements, domestic environmental regulation, and transboundary pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lai, Yu-Bong; Hu, Chia-Hsien

2008-01-01

This paper investigates a second-best trade agreement between two countries that takes the distortion arising from their non-coordinated environmental policies into consideration. In a reciprocal-markets model with bidirectional transboundary pollution, we find that if the transboundary pollution is sufficiently strong, the second-best trade agreement requires that both countries subsidize the imported goods whose consumption gives rise to pollution. We also find that a bilateral tariff reduction is beneficial to the global environment. (author)

Liability in maritime transport of dangerous goods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feldhaus, H.

1985-01-01

The first part contains a description of national liability standards for maritime transport in the French, English, US-American and West German legislation. This is followed up by a detailed review of the existing international agreements. The book is rounded off by a critical evaluation of the presently held discussion and suggested solutions on the problems of liability in the maritime transport of dangerous goods other than mineral oil. The author takes a close look at the 'Entwurf eines Internationalen Uebereinkommens ueber die Haftung und den Schadenersatz bei der Befoerderung schaedlicher und gefaehrlicher Stoffe auf See' ('draft of an international agreement on liability and compensation for damage in maritime transport of noxious and dangerous goods') in the version of May 23, 1983, which was discussed on an international diplomat's conference in London without however, yielding any concrete results. (orig./HP) [de

Agreement between Gonioscopic Examination and Swept Source Fourier Domain Anterior Segment Optical Coherence Tomography Imaging

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammed Rigi

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To evaluate interobserver, intervisit, and interinstrument agreements for gonioscopy and Fourier domain anterior segment optical coherence tomography (FD ASOCT for classifying open and narrow angle eyes. Methods. Eighty-six eyes with open or narrow anterior chamber angles were included. The superior angle was classified open or narrow by 2 of 5 glaucoma specialists using gonioscopy and imaged by FD ASOCT in the dark. The superior angle of each FD ASOCT image was graded as open or narrow by 2 masked readers. The same procedures were repeated within 6 months. Kappas for interobserver and intervisit agreements for each instrument and interinstrument agreements were calculated. Results. The mean age was 50.9 (±18.4 years. Interobserver agreements were moderate to good for both gonioscopy (0.57 and 0.69 and FD ASOCT (0.58 and 0.75. Intervisit agreements were moderate to excellent for both gonioscopy (0.53 to 0.86 and FD ASOCT (0.57 and 0.85. Interinstrument agreements were fair to good (0.34 to 0.63, with FD ASOCT classifying more angles as narrow than gonioscopy. Conclusions. Both gonioscopy and FD ASOCT examiners were internally consistent with similar interobserver and intervisit agreements for angle classification. Agreement between instruments was fair to good, with FD ASOCT classifying more angles as narrow than gonioscopy.

Agreement between Gonioscopic Examination and Swept Source Fourier Domain Anterior Segment Optical Coherence Tomography Imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Donna; Minnal, Vandana R.

2016-01-01

Purpose. To evaluate interobserver, intervisit, and interinstrument agreements for gonioscopy and Fourier domain anterior segment optical coherence tomography (FD ASOCT) for classifying open and narrow angle eyes. Methods. Eighty-six eyes with open or narrow anterior chamber angles were included. The superior angle was classified open or narrow by 2 of 5 glaucoma specialists using gonioscopy and imaged by FD ASOCT in the dark. The superior angle of each FD ASOCT image was graded as open or narrow by 2 masked readers. The same procedures were repeated within 6 months. Kappas for interobserver and intervisit agreements for each instrument and interinstrument agreements were calculated. Results. The mean age was 50.9 (±18.4) years. Interobserver agreements were moderate to good for both gonioscopy (0.57 and 0.69) and FD ASOCT (0.58 and 0.75). Intervisit agreements were moderate to excellent for both gonioscopy (0.53 to 0.86) and FD ASOCT (0.57 and 0.85). Interinstrument agreements were fair to good (0.34 to 0.63), with FD ASOCT classifying more angles as narrow than gonioscopy. Conclusions. Both gonioscopy and FD ASOCT examiners were internally consistent with similar interobserver and intervisit agreements for angle classification. Agreement between instruments was fair to good, with FD ASOCT classifying more angles as narrow than gonioscopy. PMID:27990300

Agreement in the Interpretation of Magnetic Resonance Images of the Lumbar Spine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kovacs, F.M.; Royuela, A.; Jensen, T.S.

2009-01-01

Background: Correlation between clinical features and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings is essential in low-back-pain patients. Most previous studies have analyzed concordance in the interpretation of lumbar MRI among a few radiologists who worked together. This may have overestimated concordance. Purpose: To evaluate intra- and interobserver agreement in the interpretation of lumbar MRI performed in an open 0.2T system. Material and Methods: Seven radiologists from two different geographic settings in Spain interpreted the lumbar MRIs of 50 subjects representative of the general Danish population aged 40 years. The radiologists interpreted the images in routine clinical practice, having no knowledge of the clinical and demographic characteristics of the subjects and blinded to their colleagues' assessments. Six of the radiologists evaluated the same MRIs 14 days later, having no knowledge of the previous results. Data on the existence of disc degeneration, high-intensity zones, disc contour, Schmorl nodes, Modic changes, osteophytes, spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis were collected in the Nordic Modic Consensus Group Classification form. Intra- and interobserver agreement was analyzed for variables with a prevalence =10% and =90% by means of the kappa statistic. Results: Intra- and interobserver agreement was excellent for variables related to Modic changes, and fair to good for disc contour, high-intensity zones, and Schmorl nodes. The evaluations for disc degeneration and osteophytes were found to have fair to good intraobserver agreement and poor interobserver agreement. The agreement for the evaluations of spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis was not analyzed because they were observed in <10% of reports. Conclusion: Images from 0.2T MRIs appear to lead to good agreement in the reporting of disc contour, high-intensity zones, Schmorl nodes, and, in particular, Modic changes, suggesting that they can possibly be reliably used for clinical research

Agreement in the Interpretation of Magnetic Resonance Images of the Lumbar Spine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kovacs, F.M. (Dept. Cientfico, Fundacin Kovacs, Palma de Majorca (Spain)); Royuela, A. (Spanish Back Pain Research Network, Fundacin Kovacs, Palma de Majorca (Spain)); Jensen, T.S. (Back Research Center, Backcenter Funen, Ringe (Denmark)) (and others)

2009-06-15

Background: Correlation between clinical features and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings is essential in low-back-pain patients. Most previous studies have analyzed concordance in the interpretation of lumbar MRI among a few radiologists who worked together. This may have overestimated concordance. Purpose: To evaluate intra- and interobserver agreement in the interpretation of lumbar MRI performed in an open 0.2T system. Material and Methods: Seven radiologists from two different geographic settings in Spain interpreted the lumbar MRIs of 50 subjects representative of the general Danish population aged 40 years. The radiologists interpreted the images in routine clinical practice, having no knowledge of the clinical and demographic characteristics of the subjects and blinded to their colleagues' assessments. Six of the radiologists evaluated the same MRIs 14 days later, having no knowledge of the previous results. Data on the existence of disc degeneration, high-intensity zones, disc contour, Schmorl nodes, Modic changes, osteophytes, spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis were collected in the Nordic Modic Consensus Group Classification form. Intra- and interobserver agreement was analyzed for variables with a prevalence =10% and =90% by means of the kappa statistic. Results: Intra- and interobserver agreement was excellent for variables related to Modic changes, and fair to good for disc contour, high-intensity zones, and Schmorl nodes. The evaluations for disc degeneration and osteophytes were found to have fair to good intraobserver agreement and poor interobserver agreement. The agreement for the evaluations of spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis was not analyzed because they were observed in <10% of reports. Conclusion: Images from 0.2T MRIs appear to lead to good agreement in the reporting of disc contour, high-intensity zones, Schmorl nodes, and, in particular, Modic changes, suggesting that they can possibly be reliably used for clinical

The bilateral trade agreements and export performance of South Asian nations with special reference to India Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhail P

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The regional trade agreements (RTA have been one of the important developments in the world trading system in 1990s. There are number of studies on the effects trade agreements in different contexts. This study is an attempt to analyse the effects of bilateral trade agreements in the intraregional trade in the SAARC region with special reference to the Free Trade Agreements (FTA between India Sri Lanka. The study uses a panel regression analysis by using balance panel data. The study concludes that the FTA between India and Sri Lanka has brought positive results in the trade between these two nations by improving the bilateral trade in goods. The results of the study are important in the context of looking for the prospects of a free trade area in the region by member nations.

Interobserver agreement in ultrasound examination of the biliary tract

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grantcharov, Teodor P; Rasti, Z; Rossen, B

2002-01-01

bile duct (CBD), and presence of CBD stones. RESULTS: None of the radiologists observed CBD stones or fluid around the gallbladder. The CBD was clearly distinguished by both observers in all patients. There was good agreement in the conclusions of the two radiologists regarding the presence...... of gallbladder stones and substantial agreement regarding the filling of the gallbladder and splitting of the gallbladder wall. Significant difference existed in the measurements by the two radiologists regarding the thickness of the gallbladder wall and the diameter of the CBD. CONCLUSION: The novice...... radiologist's expertise in the primary diagnosis of uncomplicated gallstone disease was as good as the one provided by the experienced colleague. The significant interobserver difference in the measurements of the thickness of the gallbladder wall and the CBD diameter might indicate that assessment...

Good interobserver agreement was attainable on outcome adjudication in patients with stable coronary heart disease

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjoller, Erik; Hilden, Jorgen; Winkel, Per

2012-01-01

, unstable angina pectoris, and acute myocardial infarction were treated as one, agreement increased minimally. For fatal outcomes, the pairwise kappa values ranged from 0.65 to 0.90. The three adjudicators had 12%, 9%, and 10% of their death classifications overruled. CONCLUSION: Specialists in cardiology...

Experimental demonstration of interferometric imaging using photonic integrated circuits.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Tiehui; Scott, Ryan P; Ogden, Chad; Thurman, Samuel T; Kendrick, Richard L; Duncan, Alan; Yu, Runxiang; Yoo, S J B

2017-05-29

This paper reports design, fabrication, and demonstration of a silica photonic integrated circuit (PIC) capable of conducting interferometric imaging with multiple baselines around λ = 1550 nm. The PIC consists of four sets of five waveguides (total of twenty waveguides), each leading to a three-band spectrometer (total of sixty waveguides), after which a tunable Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) constructs interferograms from each pair of the waveguides. A total of thirty sets of interferograms (ten pairs of three spectral bands) is collected by the detector array at the output of the PIC. The optical path difference (OPD) of each interferometer baseline is kept to within 1 µm to maximize the visibility of the interference measurement. We constructed an experiment to utilize the two baselines for complex visibility measurement on a point source and a variable width slit. We used the point source to demonstrate near unity value of the PIC instrumental visibility, and used the variable slit to demonstrate visibility measurement for a simple extended object. The experimental result demonstrates the visibility of baseline 5 and 20 mm for a slit width of 0 to 500 µm in good agreement with theoretical predictions.

Good agreement of conventional and gel-based direct agglutination test in immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Piek Christine J

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The aim of this study was to compare a gel-based test with the traditional direct agglutination test (DAT for the diagnosis of immune-mediated haemolytic anaemia (IMHA. Methods Canine (n = 247 and feline (n = 74 blood samples were submitted for DAT testing to two laboratories. A subset of canine samples was categorized as having idiopathic IMHA, secondary IMHA, or no IMHA. Results The kappa values for agreement between the tests were in one laboratory 0.86 for canine and 0.58 for feline samples, and in the other 0.48 for canine samples. The lower agreement in the second laboratory was caused by a high number of positive canine DATs for which the gel test was negative. This group included significantly more dogs with secondary IMHA. Conclusions The gel test might be used as a screening test for idiopathic IMHA and is less often positive in secondary IMHA than the DAT.

Agreement Attraction in Comprehension: Representations and Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Wagers, Matthew W.; Lau, Ellen F.; Phillips, Colin

2009-01-01

Much work has demonstrated so-called attraction errors in the production of subject-verb agreement (e.g., "The key to the cabinets are on the table", [Bock, J. K., & Miller, C. A. (1991). "Broken agreement." "Cognitive Psychology, 23", 45-93]), in which a verb erroneously agrees with an intervening noun. Six self-paced reading experiments examined…

Inter-observer agreement for abdominal CT in unselected patients with acute abdominal pain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Randen, Adrienne van; Lameris, Wytze; Nio, C.Y.; Spijkerboer, Anje M.; Meier, Mark A.; Tutein Nolthenius, Charlotte; Smithuis, Frank; Stoker, Jaap; Bossuyt, Patrick M.; Boermeester, Marja A.

2009-01-01

The level of inter-observer agreement of abdominal computed tomography (CT) in unselected patients presenting with acute abdominal pain at the Emergency Department (ED) was evaluated. Two hundred consecutive patients with acute abdominal pain were prospectively included. Multi-slice CT was performed in all patients with intravenous contrast medium only. Three radiologists independently read all CT examinations. They recorded specific radiological features and a final diagnosis on a case record form. We calculated the proportion of agreement and kappa values, for overall, urgent and frequently occurring diagnoses. The mean age of the evaluated patients was 46 years (range 19-94), of which 54% were women. Overall agreement on diagnoses was good, with a median kappa of 0.66. Kappa values for specific urgent diagnoses were excellent, with median kappa values of 0.84, 0.90 and 0.81, for appendicitis, diverticulitis and bowel obstruction, respectively. Abdominal CT has good inter-observer agreement in unselected patients with acute abdominal pain at the ED, with excellent agreement for specific urgent diagnoses as diverticulitis and appendicitis. (orig.)

Inter-observer agreement for abdominal CT in unselected patients with acute abdominal pain

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Randen, Adrienne van [University of Amsterdam, Department of Radiology, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); University of Amsterdam, Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Lameris, Wytze [University of Amsterdam, Department of Radiology, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); University of Amsterdam, Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Nio, C.Y.; Spijkerboer, Anje M.; Meier, Mark A.; Tutein Nolthenius, Charlotte; Smithuis, Frank; Stoker, Jaap [University of Amsterdam, Department of Radiology, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Bossuyt, Patrick M. [University of Amsterdam, Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Bioinformatics, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands); Boermeester, Marja A. [University of Amsterdam, Department of Surgery, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2009-06-15

The level of inter-observer agreement of abdominal computed tomography (CT) in unselected patients presenting with acute abdominal pain at the Emergency Department (ED) was evaluated. Two hundred consecutive patients with acute abdominal pain were prospectively included. Multi-slice CT was performed in all patients with intravenous contrast medium only. Three radiologists independently read all CT examinations. They recorded specific radiological features and a final diagnosis on a case record form. We calculated the proportion of agreement and kappa values, for overall, urgent and frequently occurring diagnoses. The mean age of the evaluated patients was 46 years (range 19-94), of which 54% were women. Overall agreement on diagnoses was good, with a median kappa of 0.66. Kappa values for specific urgent diagnoses were excellent, with median kappa values of 0.84, 0.90 and 0.81, for appendicitis, diverticulitis and bowel obstruction, respectively. Abdominal CT has good inter-observer agreement in unselected patients with acute abdominal pain at the ED, with excellent agreement for specific urgent diagnoses as diverticulitis and appendicitis. (orig.)

Agreement between questionnaire and medical records on some health and socioeconomic problems among poisoning cases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fathelrahman Ahmed I

2009-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The main objective of the present study was to evaluate the agreement between questionnaire and medical records on some health and socioeconomic problems among poisoning cases. Methods Cross-sectional sample of 100 poisoning cases consecutively admitted to the Hospital Pulau Pinang, Malaysia during the period from September 2003 to February 2004 were studied. Data on health and socioeconomic problems were collected both by self-administered questionnaire and from medical records. Agreement between the two sets of data was assessed by calculating the concordance rate, Kappa (k and PABAK. McNemar statistic was used to test differences between categories. Results Data collected by questionnaire and medical records showed excellent agreement on the "marital status"; good agreements on "chronic illness", "psychiatric illness", and "previous history of poisoning"; and fair agreements on "at least one health problem", and "boy-girl friends problem". PABAK values suggest better agreements' measures. Conclusion There were excellent to good agreements between questionnaire and medical records on the marital status and most of the health problems and fair to poor agreements on the majority of socioeconomic problems. The implications of those findings were discussed.

Towards a ‘Journalism of Opposition’: BBC Northern Ireland, Hearts and Minds and the Good Friday Agreement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julia Paul

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The signing of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement (GFA is regarded as the gateway to Northern Ireland’s path to a re-integrated society. However, it also presented a sizable challenge to the region’s journalists. Newspaper journalism was still divided along sectarian lines, while covering the conflict had led to re-active rather than pro-active reporting. The promise of devolution meant there would eventually be constitutional politics to cover at Stormont. BBC Northern Ireland had recognised this in 1996 with the launch of 'Hearts and Minds', the first television programme devoted to politics produced for a local audience. However, by the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the consociational system of government at Stormont meant the Assembly was beginning to stagnate. I argue that BBC 'Hearts and Minds' paved the way for a change in reporting on politics, which led to some sections of the Northern Ireland media developing a ‘journalism of opposition’. This research offers a departure from much of the previous literature examining the coverage of Northern Ireland focussing as it does on the local media after the GFA. In addition, it offers a unique perspective: I was the assistant producer of 'Hearts and Minds' between 2006 and 2012 when the programme ended. My involvement in the production process means I am uniquely placed to explore its significance. This research draws together my experience with a more analytical framing to draw on the work of, in particular, David Butler (1995 and situates the analysis within this context.

Agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-01-01

These columns summarize the different bilateral and multilateral agreements concluded recently between the different OECD countries and concerning the nuclear energy domain: Argentina - Australia: Agreement concerning Co-operation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (2001). Argentina - Brazil: Joint Declaration regarding the Creation of the Argentinean-Brazilian Agency for Nuclear Energy Applications (2001). Australia - Czech Republic / Australia - Hungary: Agreements on Co-operation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy and the Transfer of Nuclear Material (2001). Australia - Indonesia: Arrangement Concerning Co-operation on Nuclear Safeguards and Related Matters (2001). Austria - Switzerland: Agreement on the Early Exchange of Information in the Field of Nuclear Safety and Radiation. Brazil - United States: Extension of the Agreement concerning Research and Development in Nuclear Material Control, Accountancy, Verification, Physical Protection, and Advanced Containment and Surveillance Technologies for International Safeguards Applications (2001). Czech Republic - Republic of Korea: Agreement for Co-operation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (2001). European Union- Russian Federation: Agreements on Nuclear Safety and Controlled Nuclear Fusion (2001). France - United States: Agreement for Co-operation in Advanced Nuclear Reactor Science and Technology (2001). Japan - United Kingdom: Co-operation Agreement on Advanced Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Fast Breeder Reactor and Other Related Technologies (2001). Republic OF Korea - United States: Annex IV Joint Project on Cintichem Technology (2000). Morocco - United States: Protocol amending the Co-operation Agreement on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (2001). Multilateral Agreements: Agreement for Information Exchange on Radiological Surveillance in Northern Europe (2001). Status of Conventions in the Field of Nuclear Energy. (author)

Agreement between the Swiss Federal Council and the Government of Canada for cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-12-01

This Agreement replaces an Agreement concluded in 1958 and revised several times. It contains no obligations regarding purchase or sale, but establishes non-proliferation safeguards respecting co-operation between private or public undertakings in both States. In particular, the Parties undertake to use the goods exchanged solely for peaceful and non-explosive purposes and entrust the IAEA with verifying this use. Retransfer of such goods to a third country is also subject to very specific conditions. Finally, the Parties undertake to apply adequate security measures to the nuclear goods subject to the Agreement. (NEA) [fr

Modified Chrispin-Norman chest radiography score for cystic fibrosis: observer agreement and correlation with lung function

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jong, P.A. de; Achterberg, J.A.; Kessels, O.A.M.; Beek, F.J.; Ginneken, B. van; Hogeweg, L.; Terheggen-Lagro, S.W.J.

2011-01-01

To test observer agreement and two strategies for possible improvement (consensus meeting and reference images) for the modified Chrispin-Norman score for children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Before and after a consensus meeting and after developing reference images three observers scored sets of 25 chest radiographs from children with CF. Observer agreement was tested for line, ring, mottled and large soft shadows, for overinflation and for the composite modified Chrispin-Norman score. Correlation with lung function was assessed. Before the consensus meeting agreement between observers 1 and 2 was moderate-good, but with observer 3 agreement was poor-fair. Scores correlated significantly with spirometry for observers 1 and 2 (-0.72< R<-0.42, P < 0.05), but not for observer 3. Agreement with observer 3 improved after the consensus meeting. Reference images improved agreement for overinflation and mottled and large shadows and correlation with lung function, but agreement for the modified Chrispin-Norman score did not improve further. Consensus meetings and reference images improve among-observer agreement for the modified Chrispin-Norman score, but good agreement was not achieved among all observers for the modified Chrispin-Norman score and for bronchial line and ring shadows. (orig.)

Modified Chrispin-Norman chest radiography score for cystic fibrosis: observer agreement and correlation with lung function

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jong, P.A. de; Achterberg, J.A.; Kessels, O.A.M.; Beek, F.J. [Department of Radiology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Wilhelmina Children' s Hospital, Utrecht (Netherlands); Ginneken, B. van; Hogeweg, L. [Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Department of Radiology, Nijmegen (Netherlands); Image Sciences Institute, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht (Netherlands); Terheggen-Lagro, S.W.J. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Wilhelmina Children' s Hospital, Department of Pediatric Pulmonology, Utrecht (Netherlands)

2011-04-15

To test observer agreement and two strategies for possible improvement (consensus meeting and reference images) for the modified Chrispin-Norman score for children with cystic fibrosis (CF). Before and after a consensus meeting and after developing reference images three observers scored sets of 25 chest radiographs from children with CF. Observer agreement was tested for line, ring, mottled and large soft shadows, for overinflation and for the composite modified Chrispin-Norman score. Correlation with lung function was assessed. Before the consensus meeting agreement between observers 1 and 2 was moderate-good, but with observer 3 agreement was poor-fair. Scores correlated significantly with spirometry for observers 1 and 2 (-0.72Agreement with observer 3 improved after the consensus meeting. Reference images improved agreement for overinflation and mottled and large shadows and correlation with lung function, but agreement for the modified Chrispin-Norman score did not improve further. Consensus meetings and reference images improve among-observer agreement for the modified Chrispin-Norman score, but good agreement was not achieved among all observers for the modified Chrispin-Norman score and for bronchial line and ring shadows. (orig.)

An inter-laboratory comparison of urinary 3-hydroxypropylmercapturic acid measurement demonstrates good reproducibility between laboratories

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bailey Brian

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Biomarkers have been used extensively in clinical studies to assess toxicant exposure in smokers and non-smokers and have recently been used in the evaluation of novel tobacco products. The urinary metabolite 3-HPMA, a metabolite of the major tobacco smoke toxicity contributor acrolein, is one example of a biomarker used to measure exposure to tobacco smoke. A number of laboratories have developed liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS based methods to measure urinary 3-HPMA; however, it is unclear to what extent the data obtained by these different laboratories are comparable. Findings This report describes an inter-laboratory comparison carried out to evaluate the comparability of 3-HPMA measurement between four laboratories. A common set of spiked and authentic smoker and non-smoker urine samples were used. Each laboratory used their in-house LC-MS/MS method and a common internal standard. A comparison of the repeatability ('r', reproducibility ('R', and coefficient of variation for 3-HPMA demonstrated that within-laboratory variation was consistently lower than between-laboratory variation. The average inter-laboratory coefficient of variation was 7% for fortified urine samples and 16.2% for authentic urine samples. Together, this represents an inter-laboratory variation of 12.2%. Conclusion The results from this first inter-laboratory comparison for the measurement of 3-HPMA in urine demonstrate a reasonably good consensus between laboratories. However, some consistent measurement biases were still observed between laboratories, suggesting that additional work may be required to further reduce the inter-laboratory coefficient of variation.

UNITED STATES/GERMAN TECHNICAL BILATERAL AGREEMENT: PAST, PRESENT & FUTURE

Science.gov (United States)

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) entered into a Bilateral Agreement in 1990 to study each country's efforts in developing and demonstrating remedial technologies. The bilateral agreement is being impl...

A good week for global collaboration in particle physics

CERN Multimedia

2015-01-01

This has been a good week for global collaboration in particle physics. On Wednesday, the CERN family grew by one Associate Member when we received official confirmation that the accession agreement signed last year had been ratified by the Turkish parliament, and on Thursday, we signed a new cooperation agreement with the US.   The signature of a new cooperation agreement between CERN and the US at the White House on Thursday, 7 May marks both a renewal of a long-standing friendship and a commitment to take the partnership further. Signed between CERN, the US Department of Energy and the US National Science Foundation, it is a framework agreement that paves the way for detailed accords on continued US participation in CERN’s scientific programme, and on European collaboration in projects hosted in the US, including prospective neutrino facilities. It is an agreement that is tacitly renewed every five years, unless one of the signatories signals a need to end or amend it. I am part...

Multilateral aspects of advanced regulatory cooperation: considerations for a Canada-EU Comprehensive Trade Agreement (CETA)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mathis, J.

2012-01-01

This article considers equivalency recognition for goods and for services in the context of the applicable WTO agreements and provisions. The discussion of equivalency arises from certain elements presented by the Canada-EU Comprehensive Trade Agreement (CETA), in which economically developed

Diagnostic sensitivity and interobserver agreement of radiography and ultrasonography for detecting trochlear ridge osteochondrosis lesions in the equine stifle.

Science.gov (United States)

Beccati, Francesca; Chalmers, Heather J; Dante, Sara; Lotto, Eleonora; Pepe, Marco

2013-01-01

Osteochondrosis lesions commonly occur on the femoral trochlear ridges in horses and radiography and ultrasonography are routinely used to diagnose these lesions. However, poor correlation has been found between radiographic and arthroscopic findings of affected trochlear ridges. Interobserver agreement for ultrasonographic diagnoses and correlation between ultrasonographic and arthroscopic findings have not been previously described. Objectives of this study were to describe diagnostic sensitivity and interobserver agreement of radiography and ultrasonography for detecting and grading osteochondrosis lesions of the equine trochlear ridges, using arthroscopy as the reference standard. Twenty-two horses were sampled. Two observers independently recorded radiographic and ultrasonographic findings without knowledge of arthroscopic findings. Imaging findings were compared between observers and with arthroscopic findings. Agreement between observers was moderate to excellent (κ 0.48-0.86) for detecting lesions using radiography and good to excellent (κ 0.74-0.87) for grading lesions using radiography. Agreement between observers was good to excellent (κ 0.78-0.94) for detecting lesions using ultrasonography and very good to excellent (κ 0.86-0.93) for grading lesions using ultrasonography. Diagnostic sensitivity was 84-88% for radiography and 100% for ultrasonography. Diagnostic specificity was 89-100% for radiography and 60-82% for ultrasonography. Agreement between radiography and arthroscopy was good (κ 0.64-0.78). Agreement between ultrasonography and arthroscopy was very good to excellent (κ 0.81-0.87). Findings from this study support ultrasound as a preferred method for predicting presence and severity of osteochondrosis lesions involving the femoral trochlear ridges in horses. © 2012 Veterinary Radiology & Ultrasound.

Vaginal vault suspension during hysterectomy for benign indications: a prospective register study of agreement on terminology and surgical procedure.

Science.gov (United States)

Bonde, Lisbeth; Noer, Mette Calundann; Møller, Lars Alling; Ottesen, Bent; Gimbel, Helga

2017-07-01

Several suspension methods are used to try to prevent pelvic organ prolapse (POP) after hysterectomy. We aimed to evaluate agreement on terminology and surgical procedure of these methods. We randomly chose 532 medical records of women with a history of hysterectomy from the Danish Hysterectomy and Hysteroscopy Database (DHHD). Additionally, we video-recorded 36 randomly chosen hysterectomies. The hysterectomies were registered in the DHHD. The material was categorized according to predefined suspension methods. Agreement compared suspension codes in DHHD (gynecologists' registrations) with medical records (gynecologists' descriptions) and with videos (reviewers' categorizations) respectively. Whether the vaginal vault was suspended (pooled suspension) or not (no suspension method + not described) was analyzed, in addition to each suspension method. Regarding medical records, agreement on terminology was good among patients undergoing pooled suspension in cases of hysterectomy via the abdominal and vaginal route (agreement 78.7, 92.3%). Regarding videos, agreement on surgical procedure was good among pooled suspension patients in cases of hysterectomy via the abdominal, laparoscopic, and vaginal routes (agreement 88.9, 97.8, 100%). Agreement on individual suspension methods differed regarding both medical records (agreement 0-90.1%) and videos (agreement 0-100%). Agreement on terminology and surgical procedure regarding suspension method was good in respect of pooled suspension. However, disagreement was observed when individual suspension methods and operative details were scrutinized. Better consensus of terminology and surgical procedure is warranted to enable further research aimed at preventing POP among women undergoing hysterectomy.

The essential elements and the legal structure of master franchise agreement: How to draft a good contract?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kerković-Milenković Tamara

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The creation of the draft and other legal documents in franchising transaction emanates the one of the most stressful challenge for the civil law lawyer. There are many reasons which create big obstacles in process of successfully drafting master franchise agreement. One of the main difficulties faced by the parties engaged in international trade is the lack of uniformed rules for the franchising agreement as well as franchising being anonymous contract in the most of legal systems of the world. Besides that, the franchise (emanating goodwill as the legal object of the franchising agreement is sui generis and fluid derives from the various numbers of rights and licence simmilar to right, such as trade names, trade marks and the shop signs, logos, utility models, designs, copyrights, know-how, etc. The legal structure of the mutual rights and obligations of the parties is extremely sophisticated not only because of the big number of obligations but because of their varieties and complexity. In most of the legal systems of common law as well as in the civil law countries the master franchise contract is not regulated neither with mandatory nor through dispositive norms of relationship laws but at the same time the franchise arrangements are subjected to a considerable number of laws and regulations from different areas of law, majority of which are regulated domestically and at the same time also at international legal context. Those areas of law are general contract law, agency law, leasing and security interests, intelectual property and competiton law, corporate law, insurance and labore law, consumer protection and product liability legislation and always important industry specific laws. In interantional legal practice there are many so-called template franchise agreement which are prepared from the franchisor in advance regulating all possible predictable legal solution and legislation. But, it is advisable for the civil law lawyer to treat

Diagnosis of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis with chest computed tomography: inter-observer agreement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oudkerk, S.F.; Jong, Pim A. de; Attrach, M.; Luijkx, T.; Buckens, C.F.; Mali, W.P.T.M. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Utrecht (Netherlands); Oner, F.C.; Verlaan, J.J. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Department of Orthopedics, Utrecht (Netherlands); Resnick, D.L. [University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, Division of Musculoskeletal Radiology, Department of Radiology, San Diego, CA (United States); Vliegenthart, R. [University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Center for Medical Imaging - North East Netherlands, Groningen (Netherlands); University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Department of Radiology, Groningen (Netherlands)

2017-01-15

To evaluate and improve the interobserver agreement for the CT-based diagnosis of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH). Six hundred participants of the CT arm of a lung cancer screening trial were randomly divided into two groups. The first 300 CTs were scored by five observers for the presence of DISH based on the original Resnick criteria for radiographs. After analysis of the data a consensus meeting was organised and the criteria were slightly modified regarding the definition of 'contiguous', the definition of 'flowing ossifications' and the viewing plane and window level. Subsequently, the second set of 300 CTs was scored by the same observers. κ ≥ 0.61 was considered good agreement. The 600 male participants were on average 63.5 (SD 5.3) years old and had smoked on average 38.0 pack-years. In the first round κ values ranged from 0.32 to 0.74 and 7 out of 10 values were below 0.61. After the consensus meeting the interobserver agreement ranged from 0.51 to 0.86 and 3 out of 10 values were below 0.61. The agreement improved significantly. This is the first study that reports interobserver agreement for the diagnosis of DISH on chest CT, showing mostly good agreement for modified Resnick criteria. (orig.)

Agreement between PRE2DUP register data modeling method and comprehensive drug use interview among older persons

Science.gov (United States)

Taipale, Heidi; Tanskanen, Antti; Koponen, Marjaana; Tolppanen, Anna-Maija; Tiihonen, Jari; Hartikainen, Sirpa

2016-01-01

Background PRE2DUP is a modeling method that generates drug use periods (ie, when drug use started and ended) from drug purchases recorded in dispensing-based register data. It is based on the evaluation of personal drug purchasing patterns and considers hospital stays, possible stockpiling of drugs, and package information. Objective The objective of this study was to investigate person-level agreement between self-reported drug use in the interview and drug use modeled from dispensing data with PRE2DUP method for various drug classes used by older persons. Methods Self-reported drug use was assessed from the GeMS Study including a random sample of persons aged ≥75 years from the city of Kuopio, Finland, in 2006. Drug purchases recorded in the Prescription register data of these persons were modeled to determine drug use periods with PRE2DUP modeling method. Agreement between self-reported drug use on the interview date and drug use calculated from register-based data was compared in order to find the frequently used drugs and drug classes, which was evaluated by Cohen’s kappa. Kappa values 0.61–0.80 were considered to represent good and 0.81–1.00 as very good agreement. Results Among 569 participants with mean age of 82 years, the agreement between interview and register data was very good for 75% and very good or good for 93% of the studied drugs or drug classes. Good or very good agreement was observed for drugs that are typically used on regular bases, whereas “as needed” drugs represented poorer results. Conclusion PRE2DUP modeling method validly describes regular drug use among older persons. For most of drug classes investigated, PRE2DUP-modeled register data described drug use as well as interview-based data which are more time-consuming to collect. Further studies should be conducted by comparing it with other methods and in different drug user populations. PMID:27785101

Good Practice Policy Framework for Energy Technology Research Development and Demonstration (RD and D)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2011-07-01

The transition to a low carbon economy clearly requires accelerating energy innovation and technology adoption. Governments have an important role in this context. They can help by establishing the enabling environment in which innovation can thrive, and within which effective and efficient policies can be identified, with the specific goal of advancing research, development, demonstration and, ultimately, deployment (RDD&D) of clean energy technologies. At the front end of the innovation process, significant increases in, and restructuring of, global RD&D efforts will be required, combined with well-targeted government RD&D policies. The development of a clear policy framework for energy technology RD&D, based on good practices, should include six elements: Coherent energy RD&D strategy and priorities; Adequate government RD&D funding and policy support; Co-ordinated energy RD&D governance; Strong collaborative approach, engaging industry through public private partnerships (PPPs); Effective RD&D monitoring and evaluation; and Strategic international collaboration. While countries have been favouring certain technologies over others, based on decisions on which areas are to receive funding, clear priorities are not always determined through structured analysis and documented processes. A review of stated energy RD&D priorities, based on announced technology programmes and strategies, and recent spending trends reveals some important deviations from stated priorities and actual RD&D funding.

Grading system for migrated lumbar disc herniation on sagittal magnetic resonance imaging. An agreement study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ahn, Y.; Jeong, T.S. [Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Department of Neurosurgery, Incheon (Korea, Republic of); Lim, T.; Jeon, J.Y. [Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Incheon (Korea, Republic of)

2018-01-15

Migrated lumbar disc herniations (LDHs) in the sagittal plane are common. Disc migration grading can be applied as a useful measurement tool in the diagnosis, treatment, and outcome evaluation of migrated LDH. No study has evaluated the reliability of migrated LDH grading. We evaluated the reliability and functionality of the current magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) grading system for migrated LDH. We assessed a six-level grading system developed based on sagittal MRI and graded according to the direction (rostral and caudal) and degree (low, high, and very high) of disc migration. One-hundred and one migrated LDHs treated with minimally invasive endoscopic discectomy were analyzed independently by two experienced radiologists. Intraobserver and interobserver agreements were assessed by kappa statistics. The most common migrated LDH grade was grade 4 (30.94%; caudal, low-grade migration). Rostral and caudal migrations were more common in the upper and lower lumbar levels, respectively. Interobserver agreement in the grading of migrated LDH was good at both the first (kappa = 0.737) and second assessment (kappa = 0.657). The intraobserver agreement for reader 1 was very good (kappa = 0.827) and for reader 2 was good (kappa = 0.620). The current grading system for migrated LDH was found to be reliable and functional with good interobserver and intraobserver agreement. It may be useful in the interpretation of disc migration patterns and outcomes of various minimally invasive surgical procedures. (orig.)

Environmental management technology demonstration and commercialization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daly, D.J.; Erickson, T.A.; Groenewold, G.H.

1995-01-01

The Energy ampersand Environmental Research Center (EERC), a contract-supported organization focused on technology research, development, demonstration, and commercialization (RDD ampersand C), is entering its second year of a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Morgantown Energy Technology Center (METC) to facilitate the development, demonstration, and commercialization of innovative environmental management (EM) technologies in support of the activities of DOE's Office of Environmental Science and Technology (EM-50) under DOE's EM Program. This paper reviews the concept and approach of the program under the METC-EERC EM Cooperative Agreement and profiles the role the program is playing in the commercialization of five EM technologies

Environmental management technology demonstration and commercialization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daly, D.J.; Erickson, T.A.; Groenewold, G.H. [Energy & Environmental Research Center, Grand Forks, ND (United States)] [and others

1995-10-01

The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC), a contract-supported organization focused on technology research, development, demonstration, and commercialization (RDD&C), is entering its second year of a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Morgantown Energy Technology Center (METC) to facilitate the development, demonstration, and commercialization of innovative environmental management (EM) technologies in support of the activities of DOE`s Office of Environmental Science and Technology (EM-50) under DOE`s EM Program. This paper reviews the concept and approach of the program under the METC-EERC EM Cooperative Agreement and profiles the role the program is playing in the commercialization of five EM technologies.

With a little help from our friends?: Independent commissions and the mediation of issues in post-Good Friday Agreement Northern Ireland

OpenAIRE

Walsh, Dawn

2014-01-01

This dissertation uses mediation theory to examine the implementation stage of the Northern Ireland peace process. This highlights the fact that mediation does not end when a peace agreement is signed. The implementation of agreements is also a difficult challenge and an examination of how mediation theory can explain the role of third parties at this significant stage will fill a gap in our understanding of post agreement mediation. It examines how the Independent Commission on Policing, the...

Professor's Page: Do Demonstration Lessons Work?

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, Doug

2011-01-01

As part of a large research and professional development project funded by the Catholic Education Office Melbourne (CEOM), called "Contemporary Teaching and Learning of Mathematics," the ACU team has been leading demonstration lessons. There is certainly not universal agreement on the worth of demonstration lessons in the mathematics…

Integrated test schedule for buried waste integrated demonstration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brown, J.T.; McDonald, J.K.

1992-05-01

The Integrated Test Schedule incorporates the various schedules the Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration (BWID) supports into one document. This document contains the Federal Facilities Agreement and Consent Order schedules for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Hanford Reservation, Oak Ridge Reservation, and Fernald Environmental Materials Center. Included in the Integrated Test Schedule is the Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration ''windows of opportunity'' schedule. The ''windows of opportunity'' schedule shows periods of time in which Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration Program-sponsored technology demonstrations could support key decisions in the Federal Facilities Agreement and Consent Order. Schedules for the Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration-sponsored technology task plans are categorized by technology area and divided by current fiscal year and out-year. Total estimated costs for Buried Waste Integrated Demonstration-sponsored Technology Task Plans for FY-92 through FY-97 are $74.756M

19 CFR 10.787 - Goods re-entered after repair or alteration in Morocco.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... Morocco. 10.787 Section 10.787 Customs Duties U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND... States-Morocco Free Trade Agreement Goods Returned After Repair Or Alteration § 10.787 Goods re-entered after repair or alteration in Morocco. (a) General. This section sets forth the rules that apply for...

19 CFR 10.570 - Goods re-entered after repair or alteration in Singapore.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... Singapore. 10.570 Section 10.570 Customs Duties U.S. CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND... States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement Goods Returned After Repair Or Alteration § 10.570 Goods re-entered after repair or alteration in Singapore. (a) General. This section sets forth the rules which apply for...

Exploring rater agreement: configurations of agreement and disagreement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ALEXANDER VON EYE

2006-03-01

Full Text Available At the level of manifest categorical variables, a large number of coefficients and models for the examination of rater agreement has been proposed and used for descriptive and explanatory purposes. This article focuses on exploring rater agreement. Configural Frequency Analysis (CFA is proposed as a method of exploration of cross-classifications of raters’ judgements. CFA allows researchers to (1 examine individual cells and sets of cells in agreement tables; (2 examine cells that indicate disagreement; and (3 explore agreement and disagreement among three or more raters. Four CFA base models are discussed. The first is the model of rater agreement that is also used for Cohen’s (1960  (kappa. This model proposes independence of raters’ judgements. Deviations from this model suggest agreement or disagreement beyond chance. The second CFA model is based on a log-linear null model. This model is also used for Brennan and Prediger’s (1981 n. It proposes a uniform distribution of ratings. The third model is that of Tanner and Young (1985. This model proposes equal weights for agreement cases and independence otherwise. The fourth model is the quasi-independence model. This model allows one to blank out agreement cells and thus to focus solely on patterns of disagreement. Examples use data from applicant selection.

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY IDENTIFICATION, DEVELOPMENT, DEMONSTRATION, DEPLOYMENT AND EXCHANGE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roy C. Herndon

2001-02-28

Cooperative Agreement (DE-FC21-95EW55101) between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Florida State University's Institute for International Cooperative Environmental Research (IICER) was designed to facilitate a number of joint programmatic goals of both the DOE and the IICER related to international technology identification, development, demonstration and deployment using a variety of mechanisms to accomplish these goals. These mechanisms included: laboratory and field research; technology demonstrations; international training and technical exchanges; data collection, synthesis and evaluation; the conduct of conferences, symposia and high-level meetings; and other appropriate and effective approaches. The DOE utilized the expertise and facilities of the IICER at Florida State University to accomplish its goals related to this cooperative agreement. The IICER has unique and demonstrated capabilities that have been utilized to conduct the tasks for this cooperative agreement. The IICER conducted activities related to technology identification, development, evaluation, demonstration and deployment through its joint centers which link the capabilities at Florida State University with collaborating academic and leading research institutions in the major countries of Central and Eastern Europe (e.g., Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland) and Russia. The activities and accomplishments for this five-year cooperative agreement are summarized in this Final Technical Report.

Intra- and interobserver agreement of computed tomography in assessment of the mandibular condyle

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cho, Bong Hae; Jung, Yun Hoa [Pusan National Univ. College of Dentistry, Pusan (Korea, Republic of)

2007-12-15

To study the intra- and interobserver agreement of multidetector row computed tomography (MDCT) in interpretation of degenerative changes of the mandibular condyle. Five observers independently evaluated one hundred temporomandibular joint MDCT images for signs of osteophytes, erosion, sclerosis and flattening. The intra- and interobserve agreements were calculated by using Kappa statistics. The intraobserver agreement was substantial for erosion (k=0.75), flattening (k=0.74) and sclerosis (k=0.72) and almost perfect for osteophytes (k=0.84). The interobserver agreement was fair for flattening (k=0.39), moderate for erosion (k=0.58) and sclerosis (k=0.48) and substantial for osteophytes (k=0.75). This study shows that we can expert good agreement for the presence of osteophytes, but not for flattening in the interpretation of MDCT images of the condyle.

Response by the energy industry to the Kyoto agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lynch, M.C.

2000-01-01

The Kyoto agreement has called for an appropriate response by the energy industry to the perceived problem of global warming. However, while governments are justify in researching low-probability energy technologies to solve uncertain problems, the private sector has non such luxury. The experience of oil crises in the '70s should be a good lesson [it

Rules for the certification of good practices in clinical laboratories. No regulation. 3-2009. Good Laboratory Practice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

Regulation for Certification of Good Practices in clinical laboratories, hereinafter Regulation establishes the methodology and procedures for clinical laboratories to demonstrate their state of compliance with good practices, according to Regulation 3-2009, and that the CECMED can verify.

Evaluating e-Government and Good Governance Correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhardi Suhardi

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Assessing the achievement of Indonesian government institutions in implementing e-government has been conducted since around a decade ago. Several national assessments are available with almost the same ranking results. There is an agreement that the ultimate goal of e-government implementation is to achieve good government governance (GGG, while success stories of e-government require good governance practices. This study explored the correlation between e-government achievement and GGG achievement in Indonesia. Spearman’s rank correlation was used to characterize the relationship strength between e-government assessment results and good governance assessment results. The data were collected from institutions that participated in e-government and good governance assessments. The results showed that the correlation between these two entities is not very strong. Most cases showed that e-government implementation and the achievement of good governance have only a moderate positive correlation and none of the studied cases indicated a significant connection. This result can be attributed to the lack of emphasis on goals achievement in the assessments. Thus, it is recommended that future Indonesian e-government assessments should involve impact indicators.

Agreement between self-reported data on medicine use and prescription records vary according to method of analysis and therapeutic group

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Merete Willemoes; Søndergaard, Birthe; Kjøller, Mette

2008-01-01

OBJECTIVE: This study compared national self-reported data on medicine use and national prescription records at the individual level. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: Data from the nationally representative Danish health survey conducted in 2000 (n=16,688) were linked at the individual level to national...... prescription records covering 1999-2000. Kappa statistics and 95% confidence intervals were calculated. RESULTS: Applying the legend time method to medicine groups used mainly on a chronic basis revealed good to very good agreement between the two data sources, whereas medicines used as needed showed fair...... to moderate agreement. When a fixed-time window was applied for analysis, agreement was unchanged for medicines used mainly on a chronic basis, whereas agreement increased somewhat compared to the legend time method when analyzing medicines used as needed. CONCLUSION: Agreement between national self...

Bilateral agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

Ten bilateral agreements are presented. These are: 1) Co-operation agreement relating to the peaceful uses of nuclear energy between Argentina and EURATOM (1996); 2) Agreement on co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy between Argentina and Greece (1997); 3) Implementing arrangement for technical exchange and co-operation in the area of peaceful uses of nuclear energy between Argentina and the United States (1997); 4) Agreement concerning co-operation in nuclear science and technology between Australia and Indonesia (1997); 5) Implementation of the 1985 Agreement for co-operation concerning the peaceful uses of nuclear energy between the People's Republic of China and the United States (1998); 6) Protocol of co-operation between France and Lithuania (1997); 7) Agreement on co-operation in energy research, science and technology, and development between Germany and the United States (1998); 8) Agreement on early notification of a nuclear accident and exchange of information on nuclear facilities between Greece and Romania (1997); 9) Agreement on early notification of nuclear accidents and co-operation in the field of nuclear safety between Hungary and the Ukraine (1997); 10) Agreement in the field of radioactive waste management between Switzerland and the United States (1997). (K.A.)

International trade agreements: a threat to tobacco control policy.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaffer, E R; Brenner, J E; Houston, T P

2005-08-01

International covenants establish a role for governments in ensuring the conditions for human health and wellbeing, which has been recognised as a central human right. International trade agreements, conversely, prioritize the rights of corporations over health and human rights. International trade agreements are threatening existing tobacco control policies and restrict the possibility of implementing new controls. This situation is unrecognised by many tobacco control advocates in signatory nations, especially those in developing countries. Recent agreements on eliminating various trade restrictions, including those on tobacco, have expanded far beyond simply international movement of goods to include internal tobacco distribution regulations and intellectual property rules regulating advertising and labelling. Our analysis shows that to the extent trade agreements protect the tobacco industry, in itself a deadly enterprise, they erode human rights principles and contribute to ill health. The tobacco industry has used trade policy to undermine effective barriers to tobacco importation. Trade negotiations provide an unwarranted opportunity for the tobacco industry to assert its interests without public scrutiny. Trade agreements provide the industry with additional tools to obstruct control policies in both developed and developing countries and at every level. The health community should become involved in reversing these trends, and help promote additional measures to protect public health.

Good performance in nuclear projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-01-01

The nuclear industry has demonstrated good performance in many areas relating to the design, engineering, construction and operation of nuclear facilities. This report of an international symposium held in Tokyo highlights examples of good performance in nuclear projects which can aid the industry in seeking even better performance, thus strengthening the contribution nuclear energy can make to sustainable economic growth

Agreement of Anterior Segment Parameters Obtained From Swept-Source Fourier-Domain and Time-Domain Anterior Segment Optical Coherence Tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Chansangpetch, Sunee; Nguyen, Anwell; Mora, Marta; Badr, Mai; He, Mingguang; Porco, Travis C; Lin, Shan C

2018-03-01

To assess the interdevice agreement between swept-source Fourier-domain and time-domain anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). Fifty-three eyes from 41 subjects underwent CASIA2 and Visante OCT imaging. One hundred eighty-degree axis images were measured with the built-in two-dimensional analysis software for the swept-source Fourier-domain AS-OCT (CASIA2) and a customized program for the time-domain AS-OCT (Visante OCT). In both devices, we examined the angle opening distance (AOD), trabecular iris space area (TISA), angle recess area (ARA), anterior chamber depth (ACD), anterior chamber width (ACW), and lens vault (LV). Bland-Altman plots and intraclass correlation (ICC) were performed. Orthogonal linear regression assessed any proportional bias. ICC showed strong correlation for LV (0.925) and ACD (0.992) and moderate agreement for ACW (0.801). ICC suggested good agreement for all angle parameters (0.771-0.878) except temporal AOD500 (0.743) and ARA750 (nasal 0.481; temporal 0.481). There was a proportional bias in nasal ARA750 (slope 2.44, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.95-3.18), temporal ARA750 (slope 2.57, 95% CI: 2.04-3.40), and nasal TISA500 (slope 1.30, 95% CI: 1.12-1.54). Bland-Altman plots demonstrated in all measured parameters a minimal mean difference between the two devices (-0.089 to 0.063); however, evidence of constant bias was found in nasal AOD250, nasal AOD500, nasal AOD750, nasal ARA750, temporal AOD500, temporal AOD750, temporal ARA750, and ACD. Among the parameters with constant biases, CASIA2 tends to give the larger numbers. Both devices had generally good agreement. However, there were proportional and constant biases in most angle parameters. Thus, it is not recommended that values be used interchangeably.

Intra- and interobserver agreement in the diagnosis of malocclusion in sleep-disordered breathing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fernando Rodrigues Carvalho

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB is often related to malocclusion, and dentists should be able to recognize occlusal changes that may be associated with the development, onset, or persistence of SDB. Although clinical examination is routinely used by specialists in orthodontics and functional jaw orthopedics, differences in diagnosis are very common. Method : Two observers, both dentists specializing in functional jaw orthopedics, examined 56 children aged 7 to 9 years. Intra- and interobserver agreement in identification of functional orthopedic and orthodontic conditions were assessed. Results : Intraobserver agreement was strong for all variables. Interobserver agreement was also strong, except for the variable overbite, which showed good agreement. Conclusion : Diagnostic criteria provide an opportunity for dentists to recognize dental malocclusions that may be associated with sleep-disordered breathing.

The impact of the CEFTA trade agreement on economic development in Kosovo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MA. Leonora Vranja

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Given the fact that Kosovo was in a difficult economic situation, it became a member of CEFTA, so that domestic producers could export their goods, benefit from free trade, attract foreign investors, and also it was seen as an opportunity for integration into the European Union (EU. After the signing of this agreement, eventhough expectations were optimistic about economic development, the agreement was not fully implemented. Kosovo, compared to other SouthEast European countries that are also members of this agreement, has been discriminated against in terms of export of domestic products and the number of foreign investors has decreased. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of this agreement on Kosovo's economic development. For analyzing the macroeconomic indicators affected by this agreement, analytical methods were used, and interviews were conducted with a local producer as well as with an economic expert. The results of this research show that the CEFTA 2006 agreement did not have the expected positive impact on the development of the economy in Kosovo.

Decree no 77-698 of 23 June 1977 publishing the amendments to Annexes A and B of the European Agreement on International Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road of 30 September 1957 which came into force on 17 February 1977

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

Annexes A and B of the European Agreement on the Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) of 30th September 1957 were modified by amendments which were published in the French Official Gazette of 3rd July 1977. These amendments refer in particular to the applicable regulations on fissile materials. (NEA) [fr

26 CFR 1.1241-1 - Cancellation of lease or distributor's agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... marketing or marketing and servicing of goods. It does not apply to agreements for selling intangible... his State. The marketing is accomplished by using the warehouse and trucks acquired before he entered... distributes to frozen-food freezer and locker customers. The terms of his distributorship do not make it...

Students' and teachers' cognitions about good teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Beishuizen, J J; Hof, E; van Putten, C M; Bouwmeester, S; Asscher, J J

2001-06-01

Good teachers have been studied ever since Plato described how Socrates taught by asking questions of his audience. Recent findings shed light on two characteristics of good teachers: their personality and their ability. However, more attention has been paid to teachers' practices and opinions than to students' views. The study reported here attempted to deepen our understanding of what students think about good teachers. Students of four age groups (7, 10, 13, and 16 years of age) and teachers from primary and secondary schools were asked to write an essay on the good teacher. The correspondence between conceptual items in the essays was investigated by determining the extent to which they were used in the same essays to describe good teachers. Correspondence analysis revealed two dimensions. The first dimension reflected the preference of students and teachers for describing the good teacher in terms of either personality or ability characteristics. The second dimension was interpreted as an orientation in the essays towards either attachment to, detachment from or commitment to school and teachers. Students and teachers were compared to establish the amount of (dis)agreement about what makes a good teacher. Primary school students described good teachers primarily as competent instructors, focusing on transfer of knowledge and skills, whereas secondary school students emphasised relational aspects of good teachers. Teachers, however, considered good teachers in the first place a matter of establishing personal relationships with their students. Consequently, primary school students and teachers disagreed about the characteristics of good teachers. In secondary education, disagreements between teachers and students were relatively small. The research method of collecting free essays and utilising correspondence analysis to represent conceptual items and groups of participants seems promising as long as a theoretical framework is available to interpret the

Evaluation of Agreement between HRT III and iVue OCT in Glaucoma and Ocular Hypertension Patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Perdicchi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To determine the agreement between Moorfields Regression Analysis (MRA, Glaucoma Probability Score (GPS of Heidelberg retinal tomograph (HRT III, and peripapillary nerve fibers thickness by iVue Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT. Methods. 72 eyes with ocular hypertension or primary open angle glaucoma (POAG were included in the study: 54 eyes had normal visual fields (VF and 18 had VF damage. All subjects performed achromatic 30° VF by Octopus Program G1X dynamic strategy and were imaged with HRT III and iVue OCT. Sectorial and global MRA, GPS, and OCT parameters were used for the analysis. Kappa statistic was used to assess the agreement between methods. Results. A significant agreement between iVue OCT and GPS for the inferotemporal quadrant (κ: 0.555 was found in patients with abnormal VF. A good overall agreement between GPS and MRA was found in all the eyes tested (κ: 0.511. A good agreement between iVue OCT and MRA was shown in the superonasal (κ: 0.656 and nasal (κ: 0.627 quadrants followed by the superotemporal (κ: 0.602 and inferotemporal (κ: 0.586 sectors in all the studied eyes. Conclusion. The highest percentages of agreement were found per quadrant of the MRA and the iVue OCT confirming that in glaucoma damage starts from the temporal hemiretina.

Achieving high value care for all and the perverse incentives of 340B price agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

Whittington, Melanie D; Campbell, Jonathan D; McQueen, R Brett

2018-04-01

Section 340B of the Public Health Service Act requires drug manufacturers to enter into price agreements with the Department of Health and Human Services. These agreements result in variation in the price paid to acquire a drug by sector, which complicates the price used in cost-effectiveness analyses. We describe the transactions and sectors in a 340B agreement using a multiple sclerosis drug. Cost-effectiveness estimates were calculated for the drug using drug prices from the manufacturer and payer perspective. We found the amount paid to the manufacturer (340B price) was a good value ($118,256 per quality-adjusted life-year); however, from the payer drug cost perspective, good value ($196,683 per quality-adjusted life-year) was not achieved. Given that emerging value frameworks incorporate cost-effectiveness, these price variations may have downstream negative consequences, including inaccurate coverage and reimbursement policy recommendations. Upcoming policy changes to the 340B program should incentivize pricing schemes hinged on transparency and value.

Agreement between the Government of Canada and the Swiss Federal Council for co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy (with annexes)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-12-01

This Agreement replaces an Agreement concluded in 1958 and revised several times. The new Agreement which entered into force on 13 June 1989, takes into account the non-proliferation rules agreed between exporting countries these past years. This outline Agreement contains no obligations regarding purchase or sale, but establishes non-proliferation safeguards respecting co-operation between private or public undertakings in both States. In particular, the Parties undertake to use the goods exchanged solely for peaceful and non-explosive purposes and entrust the International Atomic Energy Agency with verifying this use. Retransfer of such goods to a third country is also subject to very specific conditions [fr

"Everyone just ate good food": 'Good food' in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasnain, Saher

2018-08-01

In recent years, consumption of alternatively produced foods has increased in popularity in response to the deleterious effects of rapidly globalising and industrialised food systems. Concerns over food safety in relation to these changes may result from elevated levels of risk and changing perceptions associated with food production practices. This paper explores how the middle class residents of Islamabad, Pakistan, use the concept of 'good food' to reconnect themselves with nature, changing food systems, and traditional values. The paper also demonstrates how these ideas relate to those of organic, local, and traditional food consumption as currently used in more economically developed states in the Global North. Through research based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews, this paper illustrates that besides price and convenience, purity, freshness, association with specific places, and 'Pakistani-ness' were considered as the basis for making decisions about 'good food'. The results show that while individuals are aware of and have some access to imported organic and local food, they prefer using holistic and culturally informed concepts of 'good food' instead that reconnect them with food systems. I argue that through conceptualisations of 'good food', the urban middle class in Islamabad is reducing their disconnection and dis-embeddedness from nature, the food systems, and their social identities. The paper contributes to literature on food anxieties, reconnections in food geography, and 'good food' perceptions, with a focus on Pakistan. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

2 CFR 176.160 - Award term-Required Use of American Iron, Steel, and Manufactured Goods (covered under...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... award term and condition— Designated country—(1) A World Trade Organization Government Procurement..., Steel, and Manufactured Goods (covered under International Agreements)-Section 1605 of the American... Award term—Required Use of American Iron, Steel, and Manufactured Goods (covered under International...

Validation of good agricultural practices (GAP) on Minnesota vegetable farms.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamilton, Karin E; Umber, Jamie; Hultberg, Annalisa; Tong, Cindy; Schermann, Michele; Diez-Gonzalez, Francisco; Bender, Jeff B

2015-02-01

The United States Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture jointly published the "Guide to Minimize Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables," which is used as a basis for Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) audits. To understand barriers to incorporation of GAP by Minnesota vegetable farmers, a mail survey completed in 2008 was validated with visits to a subset of the farms. This was done to determine the extent to which actual practices matched perceived practices. Two hundred forty-six producers completed the mail survey, and 27 participated in the on-farm survey. Over 75% of the on-farm survey respondents produced vegetables on 10 acres or less and had 10 or fewer employees. Of 14 questions, excellent agreement between on-farm interviews and mail survey responses was observed on two questions, four questions had poor or slight agreement, and eight questions had no agreement. Ninety-two percent of respondents by mail said "they took measures to keep animals and pests out of packing and storage buildings." However, with the on-site visit only 45% met this requirement. Similarly, 81% of respondents by mail said "measures were taken to reduce the risk of wild and/or domestic animals entering into fruit and vegetable growing areas." With direct observation, 70% of farms actually had taken measures to keep animals out of the growing areas. Additional, on-farm assessments were done regarding employee hygiene, training, presence of animals, water sources, and composting practices. This validation study demonstrated the challenge of creating nonleading and concise questions that are not open to broad interpretation from the respondents. If mail surveys are used to assess GAP, they should include open-ended questions and ranking systems to better assess farm practices. To provide the most accurate survey data for educational purposes or GAP audits, on-farm visits are recommended.

Test-retest reliability and agreement of the SPI-Questionnaire to detect symptoms of digital ischemia in elite volleyball players.

Science.gov (United States)

van de Pol, Daan; Zacharian, Tigran; Maas, Mario; Kuijer, P Paul F M

2017-06-01

The Shoulder posterior circumflex humeral artery Pathology and digital Ischemia - questionnaire (SPI-Q) has been developed to enable periodic surveillance of elite volleyball players, who are at risk for digital ischemia. Prior to implementation, assessing reliability is mandatory. Therefore, the test-retest reliability and agreement of the SPI-Q were evaluated among the population at risk. A questionnaire survey was performed with a 2-week interval among 65 elite male volleyball players assessing symptoms of cold, pale and blue digits in the dominant hand during or after practice or competition using a 4-point Likert scale (never, sometimes, often and always). Kappa (κ) and percentage of agreement (POA) were calculated for individual symptoms, and to distinguish symptomatic and asymptomatic players. For the individual symptoms, κ ranged from "poor" (0.25) to "good" (0.63), and POA ranged from "moderate" (78%) to "good" (97%). To classify symptomatic players, the SPI-Q showed "good" reliability (κ = 0.83; 95%CI 0.69-0.97) and "good" agreement (POA = 92%). The current study has proven the SPI-Q to be reliable for detecting elite male indoor volleyball players with symptoms of digital ischemia.

The AX-PET demonstrator-Design, construction and characterization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beltrame, P.; Bolle, E.; Braem, A.; Casella, C.; Chesi, E.; Clinthorne, N.; De Leo, R.; Dissertori, G.; Djambazov, L.; Fanti, V.; Heller, M.; Joram, C.; Kagan, H.; Lustermann, W.; Meddi, F.; Nappi, E.; Nessi-Tedaldi, F.; Oliver, J.F.; Pauss, F.; Rafecas, M.

2011-01-01

Axial PET is a novel geometrical concept for Positron Emission Tomography (PET), based on layers of long scintillating crystals axially aligned with the bore axis. The axial coordinate is obtained from arrays of wavelength shifting (WLS) plastic strips placed orthogonally to the crystals. This article describes the design, construction and performance evaluation of a demonstrator set-up which consists of two identical detector modules, used in coincidence. Each module comprises 48 LYSO crystals of 100 mm length and 156 WLS strips. Crystals and strips are readout by Geiger-mode Avalanche Photo Diodes (G-APDs). The signals from the two modules are processed by fully analog front-end electronics and recorded in coincidence by a VME-based data acquisition system. Measurements with point-like 22 Na sources, with the modules used both individually and in coincidence mode, allowed for a complete performance evaluation up to the focal plane reconstruction of point sources. The results obtained are in good agreement with expectations and proved the set-up to be ready for the next evaluation phase with PET phantoms filled with radiotracers.

International agreements on nuclear weapons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dombey, N.

1982-01-01

The satellite detection of a nuclear explosion in the South Atlantic and Israel's destruction of a research reactor in Iraq make it essential to strengthen existing monitoring and enforcement programs to prevent proliferation. While there was no reliable evidence that either South Africa or Iraq was violating non-proliferation agreements, worst case scenarios can demonstrate to unfriendly countries that South Africa had diverted fuel to test a nuclear weapon and that Iraq is intending to produce weapons-grade plutonium 239. The situation can be improved by formulating better terms and conditions for internationalizing access to materials. Nuclear suppliers need to agree on terms that will assure their customers that contracts for civil programs will be honored. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which includes both nuclear suppliers and customers, could achieve stronger agreements that take into account recent technological advances that will expand enrichment and reprocessing activities. 23 references, 1 figure

Agreement and Anti-Agreement in Berber: A Multiple-Feature Inheritance Account

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saleem Abdelhady

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This study proposes understanding Agreement and Anti-Agreement in Berber from Multi-Feature Inheritance (MFI account following Branigan’s (2016 recent approach. The study aims to bridge a misunderstanding in the literature where it has been assumed that Feature Inheritance (FI can only account for Agreement relations while Anti-agreement relations can only be established by a direct Agree between C as a probe and its goal. Under MFI, it can be argued that FI can account for all aspects of Agreement/Anti-agreement. The study, therefore, presents a unification of the three mechanisms proposed by Ouali (2008. The new approach is tested on data from Berber.

Inter-rater agreement of the PEWS tools used in Central Denmark Region

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Claus Sixtus; Aagaard, Hanne; Olesen, Hanne Vebert

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND: Paediatric early warning score (PEWS) assessment tools can assist healthcare providers in the timely detection and recognition of subtle patient condition changes signalling clinical deterioration. However, PEWS tools instrument data are only as reliable and accurate as the caregivers...... agreement. The nurses assigned the exact same aggregated score for both PEWS models in 76% of the cases. In 98% of the PEWS assessments, the aggregated PEWS scores assigned by the nurses were equal to or below 1 point in both models. CONCLUSION: The study showed good to very good inter-rater reliability...

The Outlier Sectors: Areas of Non-Free Trade in the North American Free Trade Agreement

OpenAIRE

Eric T. Miller

2002-01-01

Since its entry into force, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been enormously influential as a model for trade liberalization. While trade in goods among Canada, the United States and Mexico has been liberalized to a significant degree, this most famous of agreements nonetheless contains areas of recalcitrant protectionism. The first part of this paper identifies these "outlier sectors" and classifies them by primary source advocating protectionism, i.e., producer interests ...

Evaluation of hydrogen demonstration systems (Task 18 of IEA Implementing Agreement on Hydrogen)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baker, J N; Carter, S

2005-07-01

Task 18 aims to gather information about the integration of hydrogen into society around the world. As part of subtask B (demonstration projects), EA Technology Limited collected information and data on specific UK hydrogen demonstration projects and case studies. The work involved desk research, a literature review, telephone conversations and meetings with developers and operators of hydrogen-related projects in the UK. Various examples were identified in phase 1 that were either proposed, planned, under construction, commissioned or operational. The main demonstration activities described in the report are: the Clean Urban Transport for Europe (CUTE) refuelling station at Hornchurch in Essex; the Hydrogen and Renewables Integration (HARI) project at West Beacon Farm, Leicestershire; the Promoting Unst Renewable Energy (PURE) project on Unst in the Shetland Isles; the Hunterston Hydrogen Project in North Ayrshire, Scotland; and the Tees Valley Hydrogen Project. The CUTE, HARI and PURE projects were selected for inclusion in the overall Task 18 workplan. The report also covers developments associated with the Fuel Cell House, the Hydrogen Office, INEOS Chlor, the London Hydrogen Partnership and the Wales Hydrogen Project.

Services in Regioanl Trade Agreements: Implications for India

OpenAIRE

Nag, Biswajit; De, Debdeep

2008-01-01

Service sector has emerged as the largest and fastest-growing sector in the global economy in the last two decades, providing more than 60 per cent of global output and, in many countries, an even larger share of employment. The growth in services has also been accompanied by the rising share of services in world transactions. In fact trade in services has grown as fast as trade in goods in the period 1990- 2003 (6% per annum). In recent years the number of international agreements aiming to ...

12 CFR 533.5 - Related agreements considered a single agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS § 533.5 Related agreements considered a single agreement... entered into within the same 12-month period; and (3) Are each in fulfillment of the CRA. (b... in fulfillment of the CRA, if the contracts were negotiated in a coordinated fashion and a NGEP is a...

12 CFR 35.5 - Related agreements considered a single agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS § 35.5 Related agreements considered a single agreement... into within the same 12-month period; and (3) Are each in fulfillment of the CRA. (b) Substantively... the CRA, if the contracts were negotiated in a coordinated fashion and a NGEP is a party to each...

Optimal Provision of Public Goods

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kreiner, Claus Thustrup; Verdelin, Nicolaj

There currently exist two competing approaches in the literature on the optimal provision of public goods. The standard approach highlights the importance of distortionary taxation and distributional concerns. The new approach neutralizes distributional concerns by adjusting the non-linear income...... tax, and finds that this reinvigorates the simple Samuelson rule when preferences are separable in goods and leisure. We provide a synthesis by demonstrating that both approaches derive from the same basic formula. We further develop the new approach by deriving a general, intuitive formula...

Technology transfer: A cooperative agreement and success story

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reno, H.W.; McNeel, K.; Armstrong, A.T.; Vance, J.K.

1996-01-01

This paper describes the cooperative agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and Envirocare of Utah, Inc., wherein the former transferred macroencapsulative technology to the latter for purposes of demonstrating commercialization of treatment and disposal of 225, 000 Kg of radioactive lead stored at departmental installations

The Return of the Cultural Exception and its Impact on International Agreements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marlen Bartsch

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This essay examines the influence of the French concept of the “cultural exception” on European media policy and international agreements. After briefly reviewing the historical background of the cultural exception in France, the essay describes how demands for the cultural exception and those for diversity affect inter-/transnational agreements within the European Union and around the world. Special focus is placed on the current secret EU/US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement (TTIP negotiations that nearly failed because of France’s insistence that media and culture be exempted. The author argues that the concept of the “cultural exception” has been revived in recent years. However, due to the dual character of media (which is both a cultural and economic good, and the lack of a global media policy, the culture and trade debate will continue.

Agreement on Agriculture in the Uruguay Round of GATT, The

OpenAIRE

Zuhair A. Hassan

1994-01-01

The Uruguay Round is the eighth round of multilateral trade negotiations (MTN) under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The previous seven rounds produced significant reductions in tariffs on manufactured goods, but little or no progress was made in opening international markets for agricultural trade (see Appendix A0. However, the distortions in international agricultural trade and domestic agricultural production and the increasing budgetary outlays prompted trade ministers ...

OPEC's response to international climate agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Braaten, J.; Golombek, R.

1998-01-01

This paper studies a game between a group of countries that have agreed to participate in an international climate agreement (the signatories) and OPEC. The purpose of the signatories is to design carbon taxes that maximize their total net income, given a goal on global carbon emissions. As a response to the climate agreement, OPEC imposes an oil tax on its member states that maximizes OPEC's profits. Within a numerical model we find the subgame-perfect equilibrium of a game in which each player chooses when to fix his decision variables. It is shown that in equilibrium the group of signatories chooses to be the leader and OPEC chooses to be the follower. It is demonstrated, however, that for both agents the order of move is of minor (numerical) importance. Hence, the players have limited incentives for strategic behaviour. 17 refs

Agreement between intraoperative measurements and optical coherence tomography of the limbus-insertion distance of the extraocular muscles.

Science.gov (United States)

de-Pablo-Gómez-de-Liaño, L; Fernández-Vigo, J I; Ventura-Abreu, N; Morales-Fernández, L; García-Feijóo, J; Gómez-de-Liaño, R

2016-12-01

To assess the agreement between intraoperative measurements of the limbus-insertion distance of the extraocular muscles with those measured by spectral domain optical coherence tomography. An analysis was made of a total of 67 muscles of 21 patients with strabismus. The limbus-insertion distance of the horizontal rectus muscles were measured using pre-operative SD-OCT and intra-operatively in 2 ways: 1) direct, after a conjunctival dissection in patients who underwent surgery, or 2) transconjunctival in patients who were treated with botulinum toxin, or in those who were not going to be operated. The intraclass correlation coefficient and Bland-Altman plots were calculated to determine the concordance between the 2 methods. The mean age was 45.9 ±20.9 years (range 16 to 85), with 52% being women. The percentage of identification by direct intraoperative measurement was 95.6% (22/23), by transconjunctival intraoperative measurement 90.9% (40/44), and by OCT 85% (57/67), with 22 muscles finally being analysed for the agreement study between direct intraoperative measurement and OCT measurements, and 35 muscles for the agreement between transconjuctival intraoperative measurement and OCT. The intraclass correlation coefficient showed good agreement with OCT and direct intraoperative measurements (0.931; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.839-0.972; P<.001), and with transconjunctival intraoperative measurements (0.889; 95% CI: 0.790-0.942; P<.001). The SD-OCT is an effective technique to measure the distance from the insertion of the horizontal rectus muscles to the limbus, with a high agreement with intraoperative measurements being demonstrated. Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Oftalmología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Optimal Provision of Public Goods

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kreiner, Claus Thustrup; Verdelin, Nicolaj

2012-01-01

The standard approach to the optimal provision of public goods highlights the importance of distortionary taxation and distributional concerns. A new approach neutralizes distributional concerns by adjusting the income tax schedule. We demonstrate that both approaches are derived from the same...... basic formula. We also take the new approach further by deriving an intuitive formula for the optimal level of public goods, without imposing strong assumptions on preferences. This formula shows that distortionary taxation has a role to play, as in the standard approach. However, the main determinants...

``Wow'' is good, but ``I see'' is better - techniques for more effective Physics demonstrations

Science.gov (United States)

Collins, Stephen

2008-03-01

The use of demonstrations to assist in Physics education at all levels is commonplace, but frequently lacks optimal effectiveness. In many cases, the choice of demonstration is not at issue, but rather the manner in which it is presented to the audience. Modern educational research reveals a number of simple ways to improve instruction of this kind, including objective setting, audience evaluation, concept building, and promoting engagement. These techniques and considerations will be reviewed, explained, and modeled through a demonstration of ``Why Mr. Fork and Mr. Microwave Oven don't get along.''

46 CFR 298.38 - Partnership agreements and limited liability company agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 8 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Partnership agreements and limited liability company... liability company agreements. Partnership and limited liability company agreements must be in form and...) Duration of the entity; (b) Adequate partnership or limited liability company funding requirements and...

WVU cooperative agreement, decontamination systems information and research program, deployment support leading to implementation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cook, E.E.

1996-01-01

This program at West Virginia University is a Cooperative Agreement that focuses on R ampersand D associated with hazardous waste remediation problems existing at DOE, Corps of Engineers, and private sector sites. The Agreement builds on a unique combination of resources coupling university researchers with DOE sponsored small businesses, leading toward field tests and large scale technology demonstrations of environmental technologies. Most of the Agreement's projects are categorized in the Technology Maturity Levels under Gates 3-Advanced Development, Gate 4-Engineering Development, and Gate 5-Demonstration. The program includes a diversity of projects: subsurface contaminants; mixed wastes; mixed wastes/efficient separations; mixed wastes/characterization, monitoring, and sensor technologies; and decontamination and decommissioning/efficient separations

Agent-based models of strategies for the emergence and evolution of grammatical agreement.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katrien Beuls

Full Text Available Grammatical agreement means that features associated with one linguistic unit (for example number or gender become associated with another unit and then possibly overtly expressed, typically with morphological markers. It is one of the key mechanisms used in many languages to show that certain linguistic units within an utterance grammatically depend on each other. Agreement systems are puzzling because they can be highly complex in terms of what features they use and how they are expressed. Moreover, agreement systems have undergone considerable change in the historical evolution of languages. This article presents language game models with populations of agents in order to find out for what reasons and by what cultural processes and cognitive strategies agreement systems arise. It demonstrates that agreement systems are motivated by the need to minimize combinatorial search and semantic ambiguity, and it shows, for the first time, that once a population of agents adopts a strategy to invent, acquire and coordinate meaningful markers through social learning, linguistic self-organization leads to the spontaneous emergence and cultural transmission of an agreement system. The article also demonstrates how attested grammaticalization phenomena, such as phonetic reduction and conventionalized use of agreement markers, happens as a side effect of additional economizing principles, in particular minimization of articulatory effort and reduction of the marker inventory. More generally, the article illustrates a novel approach for studying how key features of human languages might emerge.

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Viewer Agreement with Opinionated Television Characters.

Science.gov (United States)

Tate, Eugene D.; Surlin, Stuart H.

This study was conducted to test the relationship between dogmatism and agreement with the television character Archie Bunker among adult Canadians. It was hypothesized that highly dogmatic Canadians would demonstrate the same identification with Archie Bunker that highly dogmatic viewers from the U. S. demonstrate, and it was also hypothesized…

Technology Partnership Agreements | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

Partnership Agreements Technology Partnership Agreements Looking for Funding? We do not fund any projects under a technology partnership agreement. The partner provides the necessary resources and, in using technology partnership agreements. See a summary of our Fiscal Year 2017 technology partnership

On-Farm Demonstrations with a Set of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs Proved Cost-Effective in Reducing Pre-Harvest Aflatoxin Contamination in Groundnut

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vijayaraju Parimi

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Aflatoxin contamination in groundnut is an important qualitative issue posing a threat to food safety. In our present study, we have demonstrated the efficacy of certain good agricultural practices (GAPs in groundnut, such as farmyard manure (5 t/ha, gypsum (500 kg/ha, a protective irrigation at 90 days after sowing (DAS, drying of pods on tarpaulins after harvest in farmers’ fields. During 2013–2015, 89 on-farm demonstrations were conducted advocating GAPs, and compared with farmers’ practices (FP plots. Farmers’ awareness of GAPs, and knowledge on important aspects of groundnut cultivation, were also assessed during our experimentation in the selected villages under study. Pre-harvest kernel infection by Aspergillus flavus, aflatoxin contamination, and pod yields were compared in GAPs plots, vis-à-vis FP plots. The cost of cultivation in both the plots was calculated and compared, based on farmer’s opinion surveys. Results indicate kernel infections and aflatoxins were significantly lower, with 13–58% and 62–94% reduction, respectively, in GAPs plots over FP. Further, a net gain of around $23 per acre was realized through adoption of GAPs by farmers besides quality improvement of groundnuts. Based on our results, it can be concluded that on-farm demonstrations were the best educative tool to convince the farmers about the cost-effectiveness, and adoptability of aflatoxin management technologies.

Analysis of agreement among definitions of metabolic syndrome in nondiabetic Turkish adults: a methodological study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bersot Thomas P

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background We aimed to explore the agreement among World Health Organization (WHO, European Group for the Study of Insulin Resistance (EGIR, National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP, American College of Endocrinology (ACE, and International Diabetes Federation (IDF definitions of the metabolic syndrome. Methods 1568 subjects (532 men, 1036 women, mean age 45 and standard deviation (SD 13 years were evaluated in this cross-sectional, methodological study. Cardiometabolic risk factors were determined. Insulin sensitivity was calculated by HOMA-IR. Agreement among definitions was determined by the kappa statistic. ANOVA and post hoc Tukey's test were used to compare multiple groups. Results The agreement between WHO and EGIR definitions was very good (kappa: 0.83. The agreement between NCEP, ACE, and IDF definitions was substantial to very good (kappa: 0.77–0.84. The agreement between NCEP or ACE or IDF and WHO or EGIR definitions was fair (kappa: 0.32–0.37. The age and sex adjusted prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 38% by NCEP, 42% by ACE and IDF, 20% by EGIR and 19% by WHO definition. The evaluated definitions were dichotomized after analysis of design, agreement and prevalence: insulin measurement requiring definitions (WHO and EGIR and definitions not requiring insulin measurement (NCEP, ACE, IDF. One definition was selected from each set for comparison. WHO-defined subjects were more insulin resistant than subjects without the metabolic syndrome (mean and SD for log HOMA-IR, 0.53 ± 0.14 vs. 0.07 ± 0.23, respectively, p 0.05, but lower log HOMA-IR values (p Conclusion The metabolic syndrome definitions that do not require measurement of insulin levels (NCEP, ACE and IDF identify twice more patients with insulin resistance and increased Framingham risk scores and are more useful than the definitions that require measurement of insulin levels (WHO and EGIR.

Are We Good at Detecting Conflict during Reasoning?

Science.gov (United States)

Pennycook, Gordon; Fugelsang, Jonathan A.; Koehler, Derek J.

2012-01-01

Recent evidence suggests that people are highly efficient at detecting conflicting outputs produced by competing intuitive and analytic reasoning processes. Specifically, De Neys and Glumicic (2008) demonstrated that participants reason longer about problems that are characterized by conflict (as opposed to agreement) between stereotypical…

Good leadership for good quality

OpenAIRE

Franzon, Vilma Maria

2016-01-01

Good leadership is important if you like to have high quality in the results. My experience in the production of the television industry is that conditions for good leadership is insufficient. Therefore, I have tried to get answers for those two questions in my exam report: What are the characteristics of good leadership? What are the prerequisites for good leadership out of production? The method I used is a literature study and observation. I have read a number of books and research studies...

Food for thought: pretty good multispecies yield

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rindorf, Anna; Dichmont, C. M.; Levin, P.S.

2017-01-01

good multidimensional yield to accommodate situations where the yield from a stock affects the ecosystem, economic and social benefits, or sustainability. We demonstrate in a European example that PGMY is a practical concept. As PGMY provides a safe operating space for management that adheres...... that broader ecosystem, economic, and social objectives are addressed. We investigate how the principles of a “pretty good yield” range of fishing mortalities assumed to provide >95% of the average yield for a single stock can be expanded to a pretty good multispecies yield (PGMY) space and further to pretty...

Charlson comorbidity index derived from chart review or administrative data: agreement and prediction of mortality in intensive care patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stavem K

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Knut Stavem,1–3 Henrik Hoel,4 Stein Arve Skjaker,5 Rolf Haagensen6 1Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, 2Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Medical Division, 3Health Services Research Unit, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, 4Department of Surgery, Sykehuset Innlandet Kongsvinger, Kongsvinger, 5Section of Orthopaedic Emergency, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, 6Department of Anaesthesiology, Surgical Division, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway Purpose: This study compared the Charlson comorbidity index (CCI information derived from chart review and administrative systems to assess the completeness and agreement between scores, evaluate the capacity to predict 30-day and 1-year mortality in intensive care unit (ICU patients, and compare the predictive capacity with that of the Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPS II model.Patients and methods: Using data from 959 patients admitted to a general ICU in a Norwegian university hospital from 2007 to 2009, we compared the CCI score derived from chart review and administrative systems. Agreement was assessed using % agreement, kappa, and weighted kappa. The capacity to predict 30-day and 1-year mortality was assessed using logistic regression, model discrimination with the c-statistic, and calibration with a goodness-of-fit statistic.Results: The CCI was complete (n=959 when calculated from chart than from administrative data (n=839. Agreement was good, with a weighted kappa of 0.667 (95% confidence interval: 0.596–0.714. The c-statistics for categorized CCI scores from charts and administrative data were similar in the model that included age, sex, and type of admission: 0.755 and 0.743 for 30-day mortality, respectively, and 0.783 and 0.775, respectively, for 1-year mortality. Goodness-of-fit statistics supported the model fit.Conclusion: The CCI scores from chart review and administrative data showed good agreement

Interobserver agreement on Poser's and the new McDonald's diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zipoli, V; Portaccio, E; Siracusa, G; Pracucci, G; Sorbi, S; Amato, M P

2003-10-01

We assessed the interobserver agreement on the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) in a study sample consisting of 41 MS (15 relapsing remitting, two secondary progressive, five primary progressive and 19 presenting their first clinical attack) and three non-MS cases. Clinical and paraclinical information was recorded in standardized forms. Four neurologists were asked to make a diagnosis using Poser's and McDonald's criteria and to assess MRI scans according to the McDonald's guidelines. In terms of the kappa statistic (kappa), we found a moderate agreement on the overall diagnosis using both Poser's and McDonald's criteria (kappa, respectively 0.57 and 0.52). As for distinct diagnostic categories, we observed a moderate to substantial agreement for the three McDonald categories (range of kappa values 0.49-0.64) and a fair to substantial agreement for the nine Poser categories (range of kappa values 0.37-0.67). Taking into account clinical information, the agreement on dissemination over time was substantially higher (kappa = 0.69) than that found on dissemination over space (kappa = 0.46). In contrast, for MRI assessment, the agreement for spatial dissemination was substantial (kappa = 0.74) compared with the fair agreement (kappa = 0.25) yielded by dissemination over time. The new McDonald's criteria yield a good overall diagnostic reliability, and compare favourably with Poser's classification in terms of agreement on distinct diagnostic categories.

48 CFR 225.403 - World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements. 225.403 Section 225.403 Federal Acquisition... FOREIGN ACQUISITION Trade Agreements 225.403 World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement and... Government Procurement Agreement, acquire only U.S.-made, qualifying country, or designated country end...

Seeing Eye to Eye: Predicting Teacher-Student Agreement on Classroom Social Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Neal, Jennifer Watling; Cappella, Elise; Wagner, Caroline; Atkins, Marc S.

2010-01-01

This study examines the association between classroom characteristics and teacher-student agreement in perceptions of students’ classroom peer networks. Social network, peer nomination, and observational data were collected from a sample of second through fourth grade teachers (N=33) and students (N=669) in 33 classrooms across five high poverty urban schools. Results demonstrate that variation in teacher-student agreement on the structure of students’ peer networks can be explained, in part, by developmental factors and classroom characteristics. Developmental increases in network density partially mediated the positive relationship between grade level and teacher-student agreement. Larger class sizes and higher levels of normative aggressive behavior resulted in lower levels of teacher-student agreement. Teachers’ levels of classroom organization had mixed influences, with behavior management negatively predicting agreement, and productivity positively predicting agreement. These results underscore the importance of the classroom context in shaping teacher and student perceptions of peer networks. PMID:21666768

The Relaunching of Negotiations on Green Goods and Services: Any breakthrough in Sight?

OpenAIRE

De Melo, Jaime; Vijil, Mariana

2014-01-01

The Bali a minima agreement last December has given new hopes that the WTO is not dead. The recent announcement that negotiations on the reductions of tariffs on environmental goods are to resume starting from a list of goods identified by APEC members in September 2012 gives hope that the triple win outcome of the Doha round for trade, for development and for the environment-might materialize, at least partly. Or does it? This brève argues that unless the field of negotiations is widened, th...

Effective construction of environmental protection agreements; Wirksame Gestaltung von Umweltschutzabkommen

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

French, H.F. [Worldwatch Inst., Washington, DC (United States)

1995-02-01

By now 170 international agreements are designed to protect air, ground, water and organisms from man-made hazards. Nevertheless are innovative approaches required for global conventions to make the Earth a sanctuary of life for good. (orig.) [Deutsch] Schon mehr als 170 internationale Vertraege sollen Luft, Boden, Wasser und die Organismen vor Gefaehrdungen durch den Menschen bewahren. Gleichwohl sind innovative Ansaetze fuer globale Vereinbarungen erforderlich, damit die Erde auf Dauer ein sicherer Hort des Lebens ist. (orig.)

Interobserver agreement on the interpretation of automated whole breast ultrasonography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Eun Jeong; KIm, Sung Hun; Kang, Bong Joo; Kim, Yun Ju

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the interobserver agreement on lesion characterization and the final assessment of automated whole breast ultrasonography (ABUS) images. Between March and August 2012, 172 women underwent bilateral ABUS before biopsy guided by handheld ultrasonography (HHUS) and mammography. A total of 206 breast lesions were confirmed histopathologically by biopsy. Three-dimensional volume data from ABUS scans were analyzed by two radiologists without the knowledge of HHUS results or patient clinical information. The two readers described the type, shape, orientation, margin, echogenicity, posterior acoustic features, and categorization of the final assessment of detected breast lesions. Kappa statistics were used to analyze the described characteristics of the breast lesions detected by both of the two readers. Of the 206 histopathologically confirmed lesions, reader 1 detected 166 lesions and reader 2 detected 150 lesions. A total of 145 lesions were detected by both readers using ABUS images. There was substantial agreement on shape (k=0.707), and moderate agreement on type, margin, mass orientation, echogenicity, and posterior acoustic features (k=0.592, 0.438, 0.472, 0.524, and 0.541, respectively). Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System final assessment values yielded a kappa value of 0.3971 when category subdivisions 4A, 4B, and 4C were included. With respect to the C2, C3, C4, and C5 categories, the interobserver agreement was moderate (k=0.505). ABUS is a promising diagnostic tool with a good interobserver agreement, comparable to that of HHUS.

Interobserver agreement on the interpretation of automated whole breast ultrasonography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Eun Jeong; KIm, Sung Hun; Kang, Bong Joo; Kim, Yun Ju [Dept. of Radiology, Seoul St. Mary' s Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-15

The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the interobserver agreement on lesion characterization and the final assessment of automated whole breast ultrasonography (ABUS) images. Between March and August 2012, 172 women underwent bilateral ABUS before biopsy guided by handheld ultrasonography (HHUS) and mammography. A total of 206 breast lesions were confirmed histopathologically by biopsy. Three-dimensional volume data from ABUS scans were analyzed by two radiologists without the knowledge of HHUS results or patient clinical information. The two readers described the type, shape, orientation, margin, echogenicity, posterior acoustic features, and categorization of the final assessment of detected breast lesions. Kappa statistics were used to analyze the described characteristics of the breast lesions detected by both of the two readers. Of the 206 histopathologically confirmed lesions, reader 1 detected 166 lesions and reader 2 detected 150 lesions. A total of 145 lesions were detected by both readers using ABUS images. There was substantial agreement on shape (k=0.707), and moderate agreement on type, margin, mass orientation, echogenicity, and posterior acoustic features (k=0.592, 0.438, 0.472, 0.524, and 0.541, respectively). Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System final assessment values yielded a kappa value of 0.3971 when category subdivisions 4A, 4B, and 4C were included. With respect to the C2, C3, C4, and C5 categories, the interobserver agreement was moderate (k=0.505). ABUS is a promising diagnostic tool with a good interobserver agreement, comparable to that of HHUS.

The Acquisition of Subject-Verb Agreement in Written French: From Novices to Experts' Errors.

Science.gov (United States)

Fayol, Michel; Largy, Pierre; Hupet, Michel

1999-01-01

Aims at demonstrating the gradual automatization of subject-verb agreement operation in young writers by examining developmental changes in the occurrence of agreement errors. Finds that subjects' performance moved from systematic errors to attraction errors through an intermediate phase. Concludes that attraction errors are a byproduct of the…

Shareholders' agreements in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Werlauff, Erik

2010-01-01

’ agreements”) cannot bind the company within the sense of company law under the new state of law, and voting rights agreements, agreements on right of pre-emption etc. will therefore only apply at the level of contract law between the parties to the agreement. This article for European Business Law Review......The article warns that with effect from 1 March 2010, the new Danish Companies Act (on public and private limited companies) has seriously weakened the effect of shareholders’ agreements which have been entered into on Danish companies. These agreements (in the act’s new terminology: “owners...... analyses the consequences of this. Rights and duties in the owners’ agreements must now be reiterated to the greatest possible extent in the company’s articles of association so that the precepts become binding on the company and its management. Whether the parties to the owners’ agreement can be required...

Energy and the NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plourde, A.

1993-01-01

A review is presented of the implications of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) for the energy industry. This agreement expands the coverage accorded to energy in the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA), and is of limited significance with respect to Canada-US relations, but is quite important to these two countries' energy trade with Mexico. With respect to Canada-US trade, the most important departure from the FTA is that NAFTA tends to ensure a greater degree of respect for the terms of negotiated contracts, in particular by requiring the parties to make efforts to secure compliance with the national treatment provisions of the NAFTA by subfederal regulatory entities. Mexico's constitution severely restricts foreign participation in the activities of its energy industries, including basic petrochemicals. While NAFTA accomodates these restrictions, Canadian and US companies will have opportunities to bid on contracts for goods and services and construction in the Mexican energy sector on an equal footing with their Mexican counterparts. NAFTA also provides expanded opportunities for foreign investment and control in electricity generation for own-use, cogeneration and public service purposes. The parties are explicitly allowed to extend activity incentives to their respective oil and gas industries. 9 refs

Policy space for health and trade and investment agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

Koivusalo, Meri

2014-06-01

New trade agreements affect how governments can regulate for health both within health systems and in addressing health protection, promotion and social determinants of health in other policies. It is essential that those responsible for health understand the impacts of these trade negotiations and agreements on policy space for health at a national and local level. While we know more about implications from negotiations concerning intellectual property rights and trade in goods, this paper provides a screening checklist for less-discussed areas of domestic regulation, services, investment and government procurement. As implications are likely to differ on the basis of the organization and structures of national health systems and policy priorities, the emphasis is on finding out key provisions as well as on how exemptions and exclusions can be used to ensure policy space for health. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Everybody needs good neighbours

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoffman, G. [Peabody Energy (United States)

2006-05-15

The paper outlines the possibilities for mines to work with surrounding communities to bring about effective land reclamation. Last year Peabody Energy teams reclaimed more than 5000 acres of land and planted nearly 750,000 trees, demonstrating that sustainable development is possible in a way that is compatible with environmental improvement in coal mining. The company has won over 20 awards over the last two years. The North Antelope Rochelle Mine in Wyoming earned a Gold Good Neighbour Award for promoting best practices in environmental conservation and mining education. The Black Mesa and Kayenta mines, which operate on Navajo and Hopi lands in Arizona, were honoured with a Silver Good Neighbour Award and a National Excellence in Mining and Reclamation Award. These mines partnered with the tribes, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and local residents to give residents access to grazing land still under Peabody's control. The Farmersburg Mine in Indiana received the Bronze Good Neighbour Award for commitment to industry education and outreach activities. 5 photos.

GreenIT Service Level Agreements

Science.gov (United States)

von Laszewski, Gregor; Wang, Lizhe

In this paper we are introducing a framework towards the inclusion of Green IT metrics as part of service level agreements for future Grids and Clouds. As part of this effort we need to revisit Green IT metrics and proxies that we consider optimizing against in order to develop GreenIT as a Services (GaaS) that can be reused as part of a Software as a Service (SaaS) and Infrastructure Infrastructureas a service (IaaS) framework. We report on some of our ongoing efforts and demonstrate how we already achieve impact on the environment with our services.

Demonstration of a High-Order Mode Input Coupler for a 220-GHz Confocal Gyrotron Traveling Wave Tube

Science.gov (United States)

Guan, Xiaotong; Fu, Wenjie; Yan, Yang

2018-02-01

A design of high-order mode input coupler for 220-GHz confocal gyrotron travelling wave tube is proposed, simulated, and demonstrated by experimental tests. This input coupler is designed to excite confocal TE 06 mode from rectangle waveguide TE 10 mode over a broadband frequency range. Simulation results predict that the optimized conversion loss is about 2.72 dB with a mode purity excess of 99%. Considering of the gyrotron interaction theory, an effective bandwidth of 5 GHz is obtained, in which the beam-wave coupling efficiency is higher than half of maximum. The field pattern under low power demonstrates that TE 06 mode is successfully excited in confocal waveguide at 220 GHz. Cold test results from the vector network analyzer perform good agreements with simulation results. Both simulation and experimental results illustrate that the reflection at input port S11 is sensitive to the perpendicular separation of two mirrors. It provides an engineering possibility for estimating the assembly precision.

Agreement between optical coherence tomography and fundus fluorescein angiography in post-cataract surgery cystoid macular edema

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mitne Somaia

2003-01-01

Full Text Available PURPOSE: To evaluate the agreement between optical coherence tomography (OCT and fundus fluorescein angiography (FFA regarding the detection of cystoid macular edema (CME following cataract surgery. METHODS: Retrospective comparative observational series of 25 eyes with suspected CME. Patients with low visual acuity and alterations in fundus biomicroscopy after cataract surgery underwent OCT scanning followed by FFA on the same visit. The diagnosis of CME was established considering fluorescein leakage on FFA and retinal thickness and/or cystoid spaces and/or subretinal fluid on OCT. RESULTS: Twenty-five eyes of 25 patients were enrolled. Twenty-two eyes had similar results on both OCT and FFA, of which 15 eyes had CME and 7 eyes had no CME. Two eyes had CME detected only by FFA and one eye only by OCT. The agreement between the two examinations was good (Kappa = 0.7331; p=0.0001 with no tendency to have neither more positive nor negative findings (p=1.0. CONCLUSION: According to these preliminary data, OCT seems to be as effective as FFA to detect CME with a good agreement between the two techniques.

Experimental demonstration of the finite measurement time effect on the Feynman-{alpha} technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wallerbos, E.J.M.; Hoogenboom, J.E

1998-09-01

The reactivity of a subcritical system is determined by fitting two different theoretical models to a measured Feynman-{alpha} curve. The first model is the expression usually found in the literature, which can be shown to be the expectation value of the experimental quality if the measurement time is infinite. The second model is a new expression which is the expectation value of the experimental quantity for a finite measurement time. The reactivity inferred with the new model is seen to be independent of the length of the fitting interval, whereas the reactivity inferred with the conventional model is seen to vary. This difference demonstrates the effect of the finite measurement time. As a reference, the reactivity is also measured with the pulsed-neutron source method. It is seen to be in good agreement with the reactivity obtained with the Feynman-{alpha} technique when the new expression is applied.

DEMONSTRATION OF PACKAGING MATERIALS ALTERNATIVES TO EXPANDED POLYSTYRENE

Science.gov (United States)

This report represents the second demonstration of cleaner technologies to support the goals of the 33/50 Program under the EPA Cooperative Agreement No. CR-821848. The report presents assessment results of alternative packaging materials which could potentially replace expanded...

Bilateral agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2004-01-01

The bilateral agreements concern Brazil with United States relative to the co operation in nuclear energy, Germany with Russian Federation relative to the elimination and disposal of nuclear weapons; The multilateral agreements concerns the signature of the Protocols to amend the Paris and Brussels Conventions, the multilateral nuclear environmental programme in the Russian Federation, the status of Conventions in the field of nuclear energy. (N.C.)

Luggage and shipped goods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vogel, H.; Haller, D.

2007-01-01

Summary: Purpose: Control of luggage and shipped goods are frequently carried out. The possibilities of X-ray technology shall be demonstrated. Materials and methods: There are different imaging techniques. The main concepts are transmission imaging, backscatter imaging, computed tomography, and dual energy imaging and the combination of different methods The images come from manufacturers and personal collections. Results: The search concerns mainly, weapons, explosives, and drugs; furthermore animals, and stolen goods, Special problems offer the control of letters and the detection of Improvised Explosive Devices (IED). Conclusion: One has to expect that controls will increase and that imaging with X-rays will have their part. Pattern recognition software will be used for analysis enforced by economy and by demand for higher efficiency - man and computer will produce more security than man alone

Good Governance in Public Procurement: A South African Case Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R Roos

2008-08-01

Full Text Available In this article good governance in public procurement, with particular reference to accountability is discussed. The principle of providing adequate remedies in public procurement is put under the spotlight. This is done with reference to the decision in Steenkamp NO v Provincial Tender Board, Eastern Cape. In this case the Constitutional Court had to consider whether an initially successful tenderer could lodge a delictual claim for damages to compensate for expenses incurred after conclusion of a contract, which was subsequently rendered void on an application for review of the tender award. The applicable principles of good governance and the applicable provisions of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Public Procurement and the WTO plurilateral Government Procurement Agreement are analysed. This is done to enable an evaluation of the decision by the Constitutional Court in the above case. It is concluded that the South African public procurement system does in this instance comply with the basic principles of good governance with regard to accountability.

26 CFR 301.6323(c)-2 - Protection for real property construction or improvement financing agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... agreement described in subparagraph (3) of this paragraph (b), the furnishing of goods and services is... SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION PROCEDURE AND ADMINISTRATION... into existence after the tax lien filing, (2) Is in qualified property covered by the terms of a real...

Comfort monitoring? Environmental assessment follow-up under community-industry negotiated environmental agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noble, Bram; Birk, Jasmine

2011-01-01

Negotiated environmental agreements are becoming common practice in the mining industry. In principle, negotiated environmental agreements are said to respond to many of the shortcomings of environmental impact assessment by providing for improved follow-up of project impacts through, among other things, data provision, engaging stakeholders in the monitoring and management of project impacts, and building capacity at the local level to deal with project-induced environmental change. In practice, however, little is known about the efficacy of follow-up under negotiated environmental agreements between proponents and communities and the demonstrated value added to project impact management. This paper examines follow-up practice under negotiated environmental agreements with a view to understanding whether and how community-based monitoring under privatized agreements actually contributes to improved follow-up and impact management. Based on lessons emerging from recent experiences with environmental agreements in Canada's uranium industry, we show that follow-up under negotiated agreements may be described as 'comfort monitoring'. While such monitoring does improve community-industry relations and enhance corporate image, it does little to support effects-based management. If follow-up under negotiated agreements is to be credible over the long term, there is a need to ensure that monitoring results are useful for, and integrated with, regulatory-based monitoring and project impact management practices.

EPA perspective on federal facility agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grundler, C.

1988-01-01

Although DOE's image with Congress and the media concerning environmental compliance may be poor, EPA sees the Department's recent attitude toward the environment as good. DOE and EPA must continue to move forward. In particular, EPA would like to emphasize less study of a problem and more clean-up. Strong, enforceable agreements will allow this goal to be met by letting EPA take more risks in its decision making. Currently EPA is developing an enforcement strategy for Federal facilities. This strategy will address identifying Federal facilities of concern, increasing enforcement and compliance monitoring activities at those facilities, implementing the model agreements, resource planning, and the establishment of an Agency Management System for Federal facilities. There are over 1000 Federal facilities which are listed on the EPA compliance docket. Over 200 Federal facilities are expected to be included on the NPL. Increased EPA attention may increase the ability of the various Federal agencies to obtain the necessary funding. Another subject being addressed by EPA is the liability of government contractors under the environmental statutes. The Agency is developing a GoCo enforcement strategy. In the hazardous waste enforcement program, three criteria are being considered for determining when to proceed against a contractor: Degree of contractor control over the hazardous waste management activity. Who is actually performing the work, and Degree of Departmental cooperation

48 CFR 25.403 - World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements. 25.403 Section 25.403 Federal Acquisition... 25.403 World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement and Free Trade Agreements. (a... in 25.402(a)(1). The WTO GPA and FTAs specify procurement procedures designed to ensure fairness (see...

Malian Crisis and the Lingering Problem of Good Governance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaimie Bleck

2016-11-01

Full Text Available This article draws on an original survey of 892 displaced persons in Bamako and Mopti/Sevare right before the 2013 presidential elections, which ushered Mali back into multi-party democracy. Our data demonstrates their prioritization of good governance reform as an important solution for the Malian crisis. We then leverage public opinion polling between 2014 and 2015 in Bamako to evaluate how far the government has come in good governance reform. We demonstrate Malians’ dissatisfaction with the government’s efforts to reduce corruption as well as concerns about instability in the capital.

Nuclear cooperation agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nuclear cooperation agreements are reviewed in tabular form, especially agreements with developing countries. The reporting countries are the USA, the Federal Republic of Germany, Canada, Australia, Japan, and France. A separate EURATOM list is annexed

International trade and investment law: a new framework for public health and the common good.

Science.gov (United States)

Delany, Louise; Signal, Louise; Thomson, George

2018-05-08

International trade and investment agreements can have positive outcomes, but also have negative consequences that affect global health and influence fundamental health determinants: poverty, inequality and the environment. This article proposes principles and strategies for designing future international law to attain health and common good objectives. Basic principles are needed for international trade and investment agreements that are consistent with the common good, public health, and human rights. These principles should reflect the importance of reducing inequalities, along with social and environmental sustainability. Economic growth should be recognised as a means to common good objectives, rather than an end in itself. Our favoured approach is both radical and comprehensive: we describe what this approach would include and outline the strategies for its implementation, the processes and capacity building necessary for its achievement, and related governance and corporate issues. The comprehensive approach includes significant changes to current models for trade and investment agreements, in particular (i) health, social and environmental objectives would be recognised as legitimate in their own right and implemented accordingly; (ii) changes to dispute-resolution processes, both state-to-state and investor-state; (iii) greater deference to international legal frameworks for health, environmental protection, and human rights; (iv) greater coherence across the international law framework; (v) limitations on investor privileges, and (vi) enforceable corporate responsibilities for contributing to health, environmental, human rights and other common good objectives. We also identify some limited changes that could be considered as an alternative to the proposed comprehensive approach. Future research is needed to develop a range of model treaties, and on the means by which such treaties and reforms might be achieved. Such research would focus also on

Anticollusion Attack Noninteractive Security Hierarchical Key Agreement Scheme in WHMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kefei Mao

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Wireless Health Monitoring Systems (WHMS have potential to change the way of health care and bring numbers of benefits to patients, physicians, hospitals, and society. However, there are crucial barriers not only to transmit the biometric information but also to protect the privacy and security of the patients’ information. The key agreement between two entities is an essential cryptography operation to clear the barriers. In particular, the noninteractive hierarchical key agreement scheme becomes an attractive direction in WHMS because each sensor node or gateway has limited resources and power. Recently, a noninteractive hierarchical key agreement scheme has been proposed by Kim for WHMS. However, we show that Kim’s cryptographic scheme is vulnerable to the collusion attack if the physicians can be corrupted. Obviously, it is a more practical security condition. Therefore, we proposed an improved key agreement scheme against the attack. Security proof, security analysis, and experimental results demonstrate that our proposed scheme gains enhanced security and more efficiency than Kim’s previous scheme while inheriting its qualities of one-round communication and security properties.

International Fisheries Agreements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pintassilgo, Pedro; Kronbak, Lone Grønbæk; Lindroos, Marko

2015-01-01

This paper surveys the application of game theory to the economic analysis of international fisheries agreements. The relevance of this study comes not only from the existence of a vast literature on the topic but especially from the specific features of these agreements. The emphasis of the survey...... is on coalition games, an approach that has become prominent in the fisheries economics literature over the last decade. It is shown that coalition games were first applied to international fisheries agreements in the late 1990s addressing cooperative issues under the framework of characteristic function games...... and stability of international fisheries agreements. A key message that emerges from this literature strand is that self-enforcing cooperative management of internationally shared fish stocks is generally difficult to achieve. Hence, the international legal framework and regulations play a decisive role...

OPEC`s response to international climate agreements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Braaten, J.; Golombek, R.

1996-03-01

This publication studies a game between a group of countries that have agreed to participate in an international climate agreement (the signatories) and OPEC. The task of the signatories is to design carbon taxes that maximize their total net income, given a goal on global carbon emissions. In response to the climate agreement, OPEC imposes an oil tax on its member states that maximizes OPEC`s profits. Within a numerical model, the subgame-perfect equilibrium of a game is found in which each player chooses when to fix his decision variables. It is shown that, in equilibrium, the group of signatories chooses to be the leader and OPEC chooses to be the follower. It is demonstrated, however, that for both agents the order of move is of minor (numerical) importance. Hence, the players have limited incentives for strategic behaviour. 15 refs., 2 figs., 5 tabs.

Medicine use among 11- and 13-year-olds: agreement between parents' reports and children's self-reports

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Anette; Krølner, Rikke; Holstein, Bjørn E

2007-01-01

BACKGROUND: The validity of children's self-reports on medicine use has not been reported. OBJECTIVE: To determine the agreement between parents' and children's reports of medicine use for 5 common complaints and to analyze predictors for disagreement. METHODS: We used the child-parent validation......, difficulties in falling asleep, nervousness, and asthma. RESULTS: The percent agreement was lowest with medicine use for headache (64.6%), but was very high for the other 4 complaints (85.3-91.8%). The simple kappa coefficients were moderate to good for medicine use for headaches, stomachache, and asthma (0...

Dynamic Price Dispersion of Storable Goods

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gao, Cixiu

2014-01-01

with different search costs and willingness to wait. I demonstrate that the high-price-low-price pattern is rational for storable goods. In a Markov-perfect equilibrium, agents’ actions depend on consumer inventory, and purchase decisions are characterized by a critical price. The equilibrium price series...

12 CFR 346.5 - Related agreements considered a single agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... STATEMENTS OF GENERAL POLICY DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS § 346.5 Related agreements...; (2) Were entered into within the same 12-month period; and (3) Are each in fulfillment of the CRA. (b... in fulfillment of the CRA, if the contracts were negotiated in a coordinated fashion and a NGEP is a...

Musculoskeletal ultrasound imaging of the plantar forefoot in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: inter-observer agreement between a podiatrist and a radiologist

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bowen Catherine J

2008-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The use of musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS in the diagnosis and management of foot and ankle musculoskeletal pathology is increasing. Due to the wide use of MSUS and the depth and breadth of training required new proposals advocate tailored learning of the technique to discrete fields of practice. The aims of the study were to evaluate the inter-observer agreement between a MSUS radiologist and a podiatrist, who had completed basic skills training in MSUS, in the MSUS assessment of the forefoot of patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Methods A consecutive sample of thirty-two patients with rheumatoid arthritis was assessed for presence of synovitis, erosions and bursitis within the forefoot using MSUS. All MSUS assessments were performed independently on the same day by a podiatrist and one of two Consultant Radiologists experienced in MSUS. Results Moderate agreement on image acquisition and interpretation was achieved for bursitis (kappa 0.522; p Conclusion This study demonstrated good inter-observer agreement between a podiatrist and radiologist on MSUS assessment of the forefoot, particularly for bursitis and erosions, in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. There is scope to further evaluate and consider the role of podiatrists in the MSUS imaging of the foot following appropriate training and also in the development of reliable protocols for MSUS assessment of the foot.

Regulations of 20 December 1979 relating to domestic carriage of dangerous goods by road

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-01-01

By Royal Decree of 20 December 1979, the provisions of the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Roads (ADR) were adopted for domestic carriage of dangerous goods. The competent authority is the Public Road Administration which may under certain circumstances grant exemptions from the provisions of the Decree. It may also prepare regulations supplementing the Decree. Such Regulations came into force on 1 April 1980. The above mentioned Regulations were issued by the Ministry of Communications pursuant to Act No. 4 of 18th June 1965 concerning road traffic. (NEA) [fr

Interobserver agreement for sonograms of breast lesions obtained by an automated breast volume scanner

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Jing; Lai, Xing-Jian; Zhu, Qing-Li; Wang, Hong-Yan; Jiang, Yu-Xin; Liu, He; Dai, Qing; You, Shan-Shan; Xiao, Meng-Su

2012-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the interobserver agreement of radiologists in the description and final assessment of breast sonograms obtained using an automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) using a unique descriptor of three-dimensional ultrasound (3D US) and the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) US lexicon. Methods: From October to December 2010, 208 patients were subjected to an ABVS examination in the supine position, and data were automatically sent to the ABVS workstation. Two radiologists independently evaluated 234 breast masses (148 benign and 86 malignant masses) using a unique descriptor from the 3D US and the BI-RADS US lexicon. The reviewers were blinded to the patient's mammographic images, medical history, and pathologic findings. The interobserver agreement was measured using kappa statistics. Results: Substantial agreement was obtained for lesion shape, orientation, margin, echo pattern, posterior acoustic features, calcification and final assessment (κ = 0.79, 0.74, 0.76, 0.69, 0.68, 0.71 and 0.70, respectively). Fair agreement was obtained for retraction phenomenon and lesion boundary (κ = 0.54 and 0.42, respectively). Conclusions: The interobserver agreement for breast sonograms obtained by ABVS is good, especially for lesion shape and margin; however, the interobserver agreement for the retraction phenomenon, which is a unique descriptor of coronal-plane 3D US, needs to be improved

A juridical review of partnership agreements that have the elements of work agreements in Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Nugroho, A.; Sulistyowati, E.; Hikmah, N.

2018-01-01

The Partnership Agreements place the parties in an equal position each party has something as the bargaining power. In some cases, employers prefer to use Partnership Agreements to some individuals to complete the work in their company than Work agreements. Practicality and the absence of obligations to fulfil workers’ rights such as the right to join a Union and to get social security are some of the reasons why employers use the Partnership Agreements. Sometimes Partnership Agreement contains jobs, wages and orders which is the characteristic of work agreement. Based on the fact above, the legal issues arise whether the Partnership Agreement can be considered as the Work Agreement or not and which court is authorized to hear in the event of a dispute. To analyze the above legal issues, this research uses normative legal research type with the statute approach. The technique of legal material analysis uses prescriptive techniques to assess the issue and make recommendations. Based on the analysis, it can be concluded that the Partnership Agreement, of which the elements are: wages and orders can be categorized as Work Agreement and therefore in the event of a dispute, the authorized court is Industrial Relations Court.

24 CFR Appendix II to Subpart B of... - Homebuyers Ownership Opportunity Agreement (Turnkey III)

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... reference to Book and Page No. in Recorder of Deeds Recorded]. A. Term of Agreement. The term of this... to exceed 30 days from the date of notice of intention to vacate, or if the Homebuyer failed to give notice of intention to vacate, 30 days from the date the Home is put in good condition for the next...

Revenue, welfare and trade effects of European Union Free Trade Agreement on South Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kore M.A. Guei

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Background: Using the partial equilibrium WITS-SMART Simulation model to assess the impact of liberalisation under the Trade Development and Cooperation Agreement (TDCA of a free trade area between the European Union and South Africa. The identification of the impact of such agreement allows for trade policy negotiation adjustment that can be beneficial for South Africa. Aim: The aim of the study is to estimate and discuss the impact of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA with the European Union and South Africa. More specifically, the study intends to estimate the impact of revenue, welfare, imports, exports, trade creation and to come up with policies options for South Africa that can be used in negotiations and policy formulations. Setting: The study used international trade data (2012 available in the WITS-SMART model to assess bilateral trade agreement between the European Union and South Africa. Methods: To identify the impact on revenue, welfare, imports, exports and trade creation, the study simulated an FTA (0% tariff rate for all goods exchanged between the European Union and South Africa. Also, the elasticity of substitution used for the simulation model was 99%. Results: The findings of the study reveal that total trade effects in South Africa are likely to surge by US$ 1.036 billion with a total welfare valued at US$ 134 million. Dismantling tariffs on all European Union (EU goods would be beneficial to consumers through net trade creation. Total trade creation would be US$ 782 million. However, South African producers are likely to contribute a trade diversion of US$ 254 million which has a negative impact on consumer welfare. The country might also experience a revenue loss amounting to US$ 562 million because of the removal of tariffs. In trade, the country’s exports and imports to the EU are expected to increase by US$ 12.419 million and US$ 1.266 million, respectively. Conclusion: The European Union–South Africa FTA would

Agreement of Tracing and Direct Viewing Techniques for Cervical Vertebral Maturation Assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiwatworakul, Opas; Manosudprasit, Montian; Pisek, Poonsak; Chatrchaiwiwatana, Supaporn; Wangsrimongkol, Tasanee

2015-08-01

This study aimed to evaluate agreement among three methods for cervical vertebral maturation (CVM) assessment, comprising direct viewing, tracing only, and tracing with digitized points. Two examiners received training and tests of reliability with each CVM method before evaluation of agreement among methods. The subjects were 96 female-cleft lateral cephalometric radiographs (films of eight subjects for each age ranged from seven to 18 years). The examiners interpreted CVM stages of the subjects with four-week interval between uses of each method. The range of weighted kappa values for paired comparisons among the three methods were: 0.96-0.98 for direct viewing and tracing only comparison; 0.93-0.94 for direct viewing and tracing with digitized points comparison; and 0.96-0.97 for tracing only and tracing with digitized points comparison. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) value among the three methods was 0.95. These results indicated very good agreement among methods. Use of direct viewing is suitable for CVM assessment without spending more time for tracing. However, the three methods might be used interchangeably.

On the Security of a Two-Factor Authentication and Key Agreement Scheme for Telecare Medicine Information Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Arshad, Hamed; Teymoori, Vahid; Nikooghadam, Morteza; Abbassi, Hassan

2015-08-01

Telecare medicine information systems (TMISs) aim to deliver appropriate healthcare services in an efficient and secure manner to patients. A secure mechanism for authentication and key agreement is required to provide proper security in these systems. Recently, Bin Muhaya demonstrated some security weaknesses of Zhu's authentication and key agreement scheme and proposed a security enhanced authentication and key agreement scheme for TMISs. However, we show that Bin Muhaya's scheme is vulnerable to off-line password guessing attacks and does not provide perfect forward secrecy. Furthermore, in order to overcome the mentioned weaknesses, we propose a new two-factor anonymous authentication and key agreement scheme using the elliptic curve cryptosystem. Security and performance analyses demonstrate that the proposed scheme not only overcomes the weaknesses of Bin Muhaya's scheme, but also is about 2.73 times faster than Bin Muhaya's scheme.

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome in Elderly and Agreement among Four Diagnostic Criteria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saad, Maria Auxiliadora Nogueira; Cardoso, Gilberto Perez; Martins, Wolney de Andrade; Velarde, Luis Guillermo Coca; Cruz, Rubens Antunes Filho da

2014-01-01

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is an aggregation of risk factors that increase the incidence of cardiovascular events and diabetes mellitus (DM). Population aging is accompanied by higher prevalence of MS, which varies depending on the population studied and the diagnostic criteria used. To determine prevalence of MS in the elderly using four diagnostic criteria and agreement between them. Cross-sectional study on 243 patients older than 60 years (180 women) in Niterói, RJ. They were evaluated by clinical examination, fasting glucose, fasting insulin, lipid profile and anthropometric measurements - weight, height, waist circumference and waist/hip ratio. Prevalence of MS was estimated by World Health Organization (WHO) modified, National Cholesterol Education Program - Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III), International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and Joint Interim Statement (JIS) criteria. Prevalence was high with the four criteria WHO (51.9%), NCEP-ATPIII (45.2%), IDF (64.1%) and JIS (69.1%), and agreement between criteria by kappa was moderate in almost all comparisons WHO vs. IDF (k = 0.47;95% confidence interval (CI), 0.35 to 0.58); WHO vs. NCEP-ATPIII (k = 0.51; 95% CI, 0.40 to 0.61); WHO vs. JIS (k = 0.45; 95% CI, 0.33 to 0.56); IDF vs. NCEP-ATPIII (k = 0.55; 95% CI, 0.45 to 0.65) and NCEP-ATPIII vs. JIS (k = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.43-0.64), except between IDF vs. JIS (K = 0.89;95% CI, 0.83 to 0.95), which was considered good. Prevalence of MS was high with the four diagnostic criteria, mainly by JIS. There was good agreement between JIS and IDF criteria and moderate among the others

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome in Elderly and Agreement among Four Diagnostic Criteria

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saad, Maria Auxiliadora Nogueira, E-mail: auxiliadorasaad@yahoo.com.br [Fundação Municipal de Saúde de Niterói, Niterói, RJ (Brazil); Cardoso, Gilberto Perez; Martins, Wolney de Andrade; Velarde, Luis Guillermo Coca; Cruz, Rubens Antunes Filho da [Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ (Brazil)

2014-03-15

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is an aggregation of risk factors that increase the incidence of cardiovascular events and diabetes mellitus (DM). Population aging is accompanied by higher prevalence of MS, which varies depending on the population studied and the diagnostic criteria used. To determine prevalence of MS in the elderly using four diagnostic criteria and agreement between them. Cross-sectional study on 243 patients older than 60 years (180 women) in Niterói, RJ. They were evaluated by clinical examination, fasting glucose, fasting insulin, lipid profile and anthropometric measurements - weight, height, waist circumference and waist/hip ratio. Prevalence of MS was estimated by World Health Organization (WHO) modified, National Cholesterol Education Program - Adult Treatment Panel III (NCEP-ATP III), International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and Joint Interim Statement (JIS) criteria. Prevalence was high with the four criteria WHO (51.9%), NCEP-ATPIII (45.2%), IDF (64.1%) and JIS (69.1%), and agreement between criteria by kappa was moderate in almost all comparisons WHO vs. IDF (k = 0.47;95% confidence interval (CI), 0.35 to 0.58); WHO vs. NCEP-ATPIII (k = 0.51; 95% CI, 0.40 to 0.61); WHO vs. JIS (k = 0.45; 95% CI, 0.33 to 0.56); IDF vs. NCEP-ATPIII (k = 0.55; 95% CI, 0.45 to 0.65) and NCEP-ATPIII vs. JIS (k = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.43-0.64), except between IDF vs. JIS (K = 0.89;95% CI, 0.83 to 0.95), which was considered good. Prevalence of MS was high with the four diagnostic criteria, mainly by JIS. There was good agreement between JIS and IDF criteria and moderate among the others.

Poor agreement between operators on grading of the placenta.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Moran, M

2011-01-01

Abnormal placental grading is associated with poor pregnancy outcome. The aim of this study was to measure intra- and interobserver variability in placental grading. Five expert sonographers independently graded 90 images on two occasions, each viewing separated by 1 week. A number of measures were employed to standardise assessment and minimise potential for variation: prior agreement was established between observers on the classifications for placental grading; a controlled viewing laboratory was used for all viewings; ambient lighting was optimal and monitors were calibrated to the GSDF standard. Kappa (κ) analysis was used to measure observer agreement. Substantial variations between individuals\\' scores were observed. A mean κ-value of 0.34 (range from 0.19 to 0.50) indicated fair interobserver agreement over the two occasions and only nine of the 90 images were graded the same by all five observers. Intraobserver agreement had a moderate mean κ-value of 0.52, with individual comparisons ranging from 0.45 to 0.66. This study demonstrates that, despite standardised viewing conditions, Grannum grading of the placenta is not a reliable technique even among expert observers. The need for new methods to assess placental health is required and work is ongoing to develop 2D and 3D software-based methods.

Voluntary agreements in environmental policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torvanger, Asbjoern

2001-01-01

A typically voluntary agreement is signed between the authorities and an industrial sector in order to reduce the emission of environmentally harmful substances. There are many different types of agreements. Voluntary agreements are not strictly voluntary, since in the background there is often some kind of ''threat'' about taxation or fees if the industry is unwilling to cooperate. This type of agreements has become popular in many OECD countries during the last decades. In Norway there are only a few agreements of this type. Experience with the use of voluntary agreements as well as research show that they are less cost-effective than market-based instruments such as taxes and quota systems. If there are great restrictions on the use of taxes and quota systems because of information- or measurement problems, or because these instruments are not politically acceptable, then voluntary agreements may be an interesting alternative. Thus, voluntary agreements are best used as a supplement to other instruments in some niche areas of the environmental policy. In some cases, voluntary agreements may be used between two countries or at a regional level, for example within the EU

Neighborhood scale quantification of ecosystem goods and ...

Science.gov (United States)

Ecosystem goods and services are those ecological structures and functions that humans can directly relate to their state of well-being. Ecosystem goods and services include, but are not limited to, a sufficient fresh water supply, fertile lands to produce agricultural products, shading, air and water of sufficient quality for designated uses, flood water retention, and places to recreate. The US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Office of Research and Development’s Tampa Bay Ecosystem Services Demonstration Project (TBESDP) modeling efforts organized existing literature values for biophysical attributes and processes related to EGS. The goal was to develop a database for informing mapped-based EGS assessments for current and future land cover/use scenarios at multiple scales. This report serves as a demonstration of applying an EGS assessment approach at the large neighborhood scale (~1,000 acres of residential parcels plus common areas). Here, we present mapped inventories of ecosystem goods and services production at a neighborhood scale within the Tampa Bay, FL region. Comparisons of the inventory between two alternative neighborhood designs are presented as an example of how one might apply EGS concepts at this scale.

Interobserver agreement of semi-automated and manual measurements of functional MRI metrics of treatment response in hepatocellular carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bonekamp, David; Bonekamp, Susanne; Halappa, Vivek Gowdra; Geschwind, Jean-Francois H.; Eng, John; Corona-Villalobos, Celia Pamela; Pawlik, Timothy M.; Kamel, Ihab R.

2014-01-01

Purpose: To assess the interobserver agreement in 50 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) before and 1 month after intra-arterial therapy (IAT) using two semi-automated methods and a manual approach for the following functional, volumetric and morphologic parameters: (1) apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), (2) arterial phase enhancement (AE), (3) portal venous phase enhancement (VE), (4) tumor volume, and assessment according to (5) the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), and (6) the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL). Materials and methods: This HIPAA-compliant retrospective study had institutional review board approval. The requirement for patient informed consent was waived. Tumor ADC, AE, VE, volume, RECIST, and EASL in 50 index lesions was measured by three observers. Interobserver reproducibility was evaluated using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). P < 0.05 was considered to indicate a significant difference. Results: Semi-automated volumetric measurements of functional parameters (ADC, AE, and VE) before and after IAT as well as change in tumor ADC, AE, or VE had better interobserver agreement (ICC = 0.830–0.974) compared with manual ROI-based axial measurements (ICC = 0.157–0.799). Semi-automated measurements of tumor volume and size in the axial plane before and after IAT had better interobserver agreement (ICC = 0.854–0.996) compared with manual size measurements (ICC = 0.543–0.596), and interobserver agreement for change in tumor RECIST size was also higher using semi-automated measurements (ICC = 0.655) compared with manual measurements (ICC = 0.169). EASL measurements of tumor enhancement in the axial plane before and after IAT ((ICC = 0.758–0.809), and changes in EASL after IAT (ICC = 0.653) had good interobserver agreement. Conclusion: Semi-automated measurements of functional changes assessed by ADC and VE based on whole-lesion segmentation demonstrated better reproducibility than

Gravity with Intermediate Goods Trade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sujin Jang

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This paper derives the gravity equation with intermediate goods trade. We extend a standard monopolistic competition model to incorporate intermediate goods trade, and show that the gravity equation with intermediates trade is identical to the one without it except in that gross output should be used as the output measure instead of value added. We also show that the output elasticity of trade is significantly underestimated when value added is used as the output measure. This implies that with the conventional gravity equation, the contribution of output growth can be substantially underestimated and the role of trade costs reduction can be exaggerated in explaining trade expansion, as we demonstrate for the case of Korea's trade growth between 1995 and 2007.

Unwrapping Court-Connected Mediation Agreements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Adrian, Lin; Mykland, Solfrid

2018-01-01

Court-connected mediated agreements seem to both fulfil and fail the ideal of self-determination in mediation theory. In a study of 134 agreements from court-connected mediation, we found that the majority of agreements contain creative elements and display great variation in the provisions...... and understand them. The judicial language is well known for the drafters of the agreement but not the parties. Thus, court-connected mediation seems to fail aspects of self-determination when it comes to drafting agreements. We draw on new-institutional theory when we explore and explain this apparent...... they contain. These results indicate that the parties play an important role in crafting the substance of their agreements. However, we also found that the wording of the agreements is characterised by legal and bureaucratic language to the extent that people without legal training find it difficult to read...

Recommendations from the SoFRa (Societe francaise de radiopharmacie) for transporting radiopharmaceuticals: How to apply the decree on the transport of radioactive goods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barre, E.; Rizzo-Padoin, N.; Delolmo, S.; Debordeaux, F.; Beco, V. de; El Deeb, G.; Gupta, S.; Nguyen, M.L.; Sigrist, S.

2016-01-01

In France, road transport of dangerous goods is regulated by the May 29, 2009 'TMD decree', which enforces the European Agreement concerning the international carriage of dangerous goods by road, known as the 'ADR Agreement' or 'ADR'. This regulation allows packages containing radioactive material to be transported on the French territory, including packages that contain radiopharmaceutical products intended for medical use (radiopharmaceuticals, generators, precursors). However, this regulation is poorly known by radio-pharmacists and nuclear medicine personnel who have to either send or receive these goods on a daily basis. This article aims to set out a summary of the key provisions that apply to radiopharmacy and to make recommendations regarding the reception and shipment of radiopharmaceutical packages. (authors) [fr

EPRI-USDOE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT: COFIRING BIOMASS WITH COAL

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

David A. Tillman

2001-09-01

The entire Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) cofiring program has been in existence of some 9 years. This report presents a summary of the major elements of that program, focusing upon the following questions: (1) In pursuit of increased use of renewable energy in the US economy, why was electricity generation considered the most promising target, and why was cofiring pursued as the most effective near-term technology to use in broadening the use of biomass within the electricity generating arena? (2) What were the unique accomplishments of EPRI before the development of the Cooperative Agreement, which made developing the partnership with EPRI a highly cost-effective approach for USDOE? (3) What were the key accomplishments of the Cooperative Agreement in the development and execution of test and demonstration programs-accomplishments which significantly furthered the process of commercializing cofiring?

Predicting word sense annotation agreement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martinez Alonso, Hector; Johannsen, Anders Trærup; Lopez de Lacalle, Oier

2015-01-01

High agreement is a common objective when annotating data for word senses. However, a number of factors make perfect agreement impossible, e.g. the limitations of the sense inventories, the difficulty of the examples or the interpretation preferences of the annotations. Estimating potential...... agreement is thus a relevant task to supplement the evaluation of sense annotations. In this article we propose two methods to predict agreement on word-annotation instances. We experiment with a continuous representation and a three-way discretization of observed agreement. In spite of the difficulty...

The International Treaty on Global Warming: Is it Good or Bad for the Economy?

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Xinyu; Bao, Wenbin

2018-06-01

Global warming is one of the hottest topics all over the world. International authorities have worked together to negotiate the Paris Agreement on global warming. This Agreement has its supporters and critics. The key question is whether on balance is the Paris Assignment good or bad for the United States economy. This paper begins with some background information leading up to the passage of the treaty. Next, I outline what is in treaty. I then critically analyze the arguments in support of and against the Assignment. Finally, I explain the basis for my opinion that in the long run the treaty will benefit the United States economy.

Financing petroleum agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robson, C.J.V.

1994-01-01

This chapter describes the typical type of financing agreements which are currently used to finance North Sea petroleum projects whether they are in the cause of development or have been developed and are producing. It deals with the agreements which are entered into to finance borrowings for petroleum projects on a non-resource or limited resource basis. (UK)

Agreement Workflow Tool (AWT)

Data.gov (United States)

Social Security Administration — The Agreement Workflow Tool (AWT) is a role-based Intranet application used for processing SSA's Reimbursable Agreements according to SSA's standards. AWT provides...

Ultrasonographic assessment of tendon thickness, Doppler activity and bony spurs of the elbow in patients with lateral epicondylitis and healthy subjects: a reliability and agreement study.

Science.gov (United States)

Krogh, T P; Fredberg, U; Christensen, R; Stengaard-Pedersen, K; Ellingsen, T

2013-10-01

Tennis elbow, also known as lateral epicondylitis (LE), is a common disorder often assessed by ultrasound. The aim of this study was to evaluate the ultrasonographic outcomes and methods used in LE research and clinical practice. This study was designed as an intra- and interobserver reliability and agreement study. Ultrasonographic examination of the common extensor tendon of the elbow was performed. The intraobserver study examined tendon thickness twice in 20 right elbows from 20 healthy individuals at an interval of 7 to 12 days. The interobserver study examined tendon thickness, color Doppler activity, and bony spurs in 18 right elbows in 9 healthy individuals and 9 patients with LE. Two trained rheumatologists performed the interobserver examinations with the same scanner on the same day. The main outcomes were intra- and interclass correlation (ICC) and agreement. In the intraobserver study, the ICC with regard to tendon thickness ranged from 0.76 to 0.81, depending on the measurement techniques used. The agreement ranged from 0.06 to 0.13 mm. In the interobserver study, the tendon thickness ICC ranged from 0.45 to 0.65 and the agreement ranged from -0.17 to 0.13 mm. The ICC for color Doppler activity was 0.93, with agreement in 14/18 (78 %) of the cases. A perfect reliability was demonstrated for bony spurs, with an ICC of 1 and exact agreement in 18/18 (100 %) of the cases. Good to excellent reliability was obtained for all measurements. The ultrasonographic techniques evaluated in this trial can be recommended for use in both research and clinical practice. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Protocol to monitor trade agreement food-related aspects: the Fiji case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ravuvu, Amerita; Friel, Sharon; Thow, Anne Marie; Snowdon, Wendy; Wate, Jillian

2017-04-26

Despite the growing rates of obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases, globally, public health attention has only relatively recently turned to the links between trade agreements and the nutritional risks associated with it. Specific trade agreements appear to have played an influential role in the volume and types of foods entering different countries, yet there is currently no systematic and objective monitoring of trade agreements for their impacts on food environments. Recently, INFORMAS was set up to monitor and benchmark food environments, government policies and private sector actions within countries and globally. One of its projects/modules focuses on trade policy and in particular the food-related aspects of trade agreements. This paper describes the INFORMAS trade protocol, an approach to collecting food-related information about four domains of trade: trade in goods; trade in services and foreign direct investment; domestic supports, and policy space. Specifically, the protocol is tested in Fiji. The development and testing of this protocol in Fiji represents the first effort to set out a framework and process for objectively monitoring trade agreements and their impacts on national food supply and the wider food environment. It has shown that entry into WTO trade agreements contributed to the nutrition transition in Fiji through the increased availability of imported foods with varying nutritional quality. We observed an increase in imports of both healthy and less healthy foods. The application of the monitoring protocol also highlights challenges for data collection associated with each trade domain that should be considered for future data collection and analysis in other low and middle income countries. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Proposal to amend a partner project agreement with ISTC for the CMS collaboration

CERN Document Server

2000-01-01

This document concerns an amendment to a partner project agreement with the ISTC, namely the Partner Project Agreement 1718p for "Technology Reliability Demonstration and Precise CMS Electromagnetic Calorimetry Performance at LHC on a Base of Specified Tungstate (PbWO4) Scintillation Crystals". This Partner Project was approved by Council on 17 December 1999 (cf. CERN/2312). For reasons set out in this document the Finance Committee is invited to authorise CERN to negotiate an amendment to the Partner Project Agreement 1718p. The purpose of the amendment is to increase the production rate of crystals through the acquisition, installation and commissioning of 33 additional crystal growth ovens for a total amount of 1 500 000 US dollars.

Why are Trade Agreements Regional?

OpenAIRE

Zissimos, Ben

2007-01-01

This paper shows how distance may be used to coordinate on a unique equilibrium in which trade agreements are regional. Trade agreement formation is modeled as coalition formation. In a standard trade model with no distance between countries, a familiar problem of coordination failure arises giving rise to multiple equilibria; any one of many possible trade agreements can form. With distance between countries, and through strategic interaction in tariff setting, regional trade agreements gene...

Free Trade Agreements and Firm-Product Markups in Chilean Manufacturing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lamorgese, A.R.; Linarello, A.; Warzynski, Frederic Michel Patrick

In this paper, we use detailed information about firms' product portfolio to study how trade liberalization affects prices, markups and productivity. We document these effects using firm product level data in Chilean manufacturing following two major trade agreements with the EU and the US....... The dataset provides information about the value and quantity of each good produced by the firm, as well as the amount of exports. One additional and unique characteristic of our dataset is that it provides a firm-product level measure of the unit average cost. We use this information to compute a firm...

Good Teaching: Aligning Student and Administrator Perceptions and Expectations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lazarus Nabaho

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Literature attests to limited systematic inquiry into students’ conceptions of good teaching in higher education. Resultantly, there have been calls for engaging students in construing what makes good university teaching and in developing a richer conception of teaching excellence. This interpretivist study that is based on views of final year university students from six academic disciplines investigated students’ conceptions of good teaching at Makerere University in Uganda. Students conceived good teaching as being student-centred, demonstrating strong subject and pedagogical knowledge, being approachable, being responsive, being organised, and being able to communicate well. Most of the conceptions of good teaching hinge  on what the teacher does (the means rather than affording high quality student learning (an end. It can therefore been concluded that good teaching is a multi-dimensional construct that defies a single definition and cannot be assured and assessed using a single indicator.

Validation of the Parental-Caregiver Perceptions Questionnaire: agreement between parental and child reports.

Science.gov (United States)

Barbosa, Taís de Souza; Gavião, Maria Beatriz Duarte

2015-01-01

To test the validity and reliability of Brazilian Portuguese version of the Parental-Caregiver Perceptions Questionnaire (P-CPQ) (Aim 1) and to assess the agreement between parents and children concerning the child's oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) (Aim 2). The P-CPQ and the Brazilian Portuguese versions of the Child Perceptions Questionnaires (CPQ8-10 and CPQ11-14 ) were used. Objective 1 addressed in the study that involved 210 (validity and internal reliability) and 20 (test-retest reliability) parents and Objective 2 in the study that involved 210 pairs of parents and children. Construct validity was calculated using the Spearman's correlation and the Mann-Whitney/Kruskal-Wallis tests. Reliability was determined using Cronbach's alpha and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Agreement between overall and subscale scores derived from the P-CPQ and CPQ was assessed in comparison and correlation analyses. The P-CPQ discriminated among the categories of malocclusion and dmft. The P-CPQ showed good construct validity, good internal consistency reliability, and excellent test-retest reliability. There was systematic under- and overreporting in parents' assessments for younger and older children, respectively. However, the magnitude of the directional differences was just small. At individual level, agreement between parents and children was excellent. However, it ranged from excellent to moderate or substantial in subscales for CPQ8-10 and CPQ11-14 groups, respectively. The Portuguese version of P-CPQ is valid and reliable. Some parents have limited knowledge about child OHRQoL. Given that parental and child reports measure different realities concerning the child's OHRQoL, information provided by parents can complement the child's evaluation. © 2015 American Association of Public Health Dentistry.

International Technology-Oriented Agreements to Address Climate Change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Coninck, H.C.; Fischer, C.; Newell, R.G.; Ueno, T.

2007-01-01

Much discussion has surrounded possible alternatives for international agreements on climate change, particularly post-2012. Among these alternatives, technology-oriented agreements (TOAs) are perhaps the least well defined. We explore what TOAs may consist of, why they might be sensible, which TOAs already exist in international energy and environmental governance, and whether they have the potential to make a valuable contribution to addressing climate change. We conclude that TOAs aimed at knowledge sharing and coordination, research, development, or demonstration could increase the overall efficiency and effectiveness of international climate cooperation, but have limited environmental effectiveness on their own. Technology transfer agreements are likely to have similar properties unless the level of resources expended on them is large, in which case they could be environmentally significant. Technology mandates, standards, or incentives can be environmentally effective, within the applicable sector. However, they are likely to be less cost-effective than broad-based, flexible approaches that place a price on emissions. These results indicate that TOAs have the potential to improve the effectiveness of the global response to climate change. The success of specific TOAs will depend on their design, implementation, and the role they are expected to play relative to other components of the climate policy portfolio

Systems management of facilities agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blundell, A.

1998-01-01

The various types of facilities agreements, the historical obstacles to implementation of agreement management systems and the new opportunities emerging as industry is beginning to make an effort to overcome these obstacles, are reviewed. Barriers to computerized agreement management systems (lack of consistency, lack of standards, scarcity of appropriate computer software) are discussed. Characteristic features of a model facilities agreement management system and the forces driving the changing attitudes towards such systems (e.g. mergers) are also described

Buying and selling exchange goods: Loss aversion and the endowment effect

NARCIS (Netherlands)

E. van Dijk (Eric); D.L. van Knippenberg (Daan)

1996-01-01

textabstractAn experimental market was used to investigate whether exchange goods may be susceptible to the endowment effect. Previous research (Kahneman et al., 1990) suggested that the endowment effect will not be observed in exchange goods. The present study demonstrates that it may be observed,

Agreement between patient self-assessment and physician assessment of shoulder range of motion.

Science.gov (United States)

Uribe, Bastian; El Bitar, Youssef; Wolf, Brian R; Bollier, Matthew; Kuhn, John E; Hettrich, Carolyn M

2016-10-01

Shoulder outcome scores that include range of motion (ROM) and apprehension signs are limited by the need for direct involvement of the physician. Patient-reported outcome measures are patient centered and self-administered, and they can help physicians track the patient's progress between office visits and for long-term follow-up once the patient has been discharged. Thirty consecutive patients completed a form before their 6-month follow-up after surgery on the labrum or capsule as a result of instability or pain related to instability. The form included bilateral ROM, apprehension, and instability episodes. The same parameters were measured by the physician during the visit. The patient's and physician's responses were compared. The primary outcome was the percentage agreement with exact and approximate agreement. Exact agreement was moderate for forward elevation at 56.6%; fair for abduction and external rotation at 90° at 24.5% and 34%, respectively; and poor for internal rotation at 90° and external rotation with the arm at the side at 2.6% and 12%, respectively. Approximate agreement within a range of positive or negative 20° range was very good for forward elevation (94%), abduction (92%), and external rotation at 90° (87%); moderate for external rotation with the arm at the side; and fair for internal rotation at 90°. There was 70% agreement regarding apprehension, 93% regarding subluxation events, and 100% regarding redislocation events. Some measures of shoulder ROM showed a moderate to high level of agreement between patient-reported measurements and the physician's measurements. This method for short- and long-term follow-up could potentially replace routine clinic visits. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

USDOE/EPRI BIOMASS COFIRING COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

D. Tillman; E. Hughes

1999-04-01

During the period of January 1, 1999 through March 31, 1999, construction was performed in support of two major demonstrations. Major progress was made on several projects including cofiring at Seward (GPU Genco), and Bailly (NIPSCO). Most of the work was focused on construction and system commissioning activities at the Seward and Bailly Generating Stations. Additionally, petroleum coke cofiring testing was completed at the Bailly Generating Station. This report summarizes the activities during the first calendar quarter in 1999--the fourth contract quarter in 1998--of the USDOE/EPRI Biomass Cofiring Cooperative Agreement. It focuses upon reporting the results of construction activities and related events.

FFTF Authorization Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DAUTEL, W.A.

2000-01-01

The purpose of the Authorization Agreement is to serve as a mechanism whereby the U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office (RL) and Fluor Hanford (FH) jointly clarify and agree to key conditions for conducting work safely and efficiently in the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF). Work must be accomplished in a manner that achieves high levels of quality while protecting the environment and the safety and health of workers and the public, and complying with applicable contractual and regulatory requirements. It is the intent of this Agreement to address those items of significant importance in establishing and supporting the FFTF Authorization Envelope, but this Agreement in no way alters the terms and conditions of the Project Hanford Management Contract (PHMC), Contract Number DE-AC06-96RL13200

Signalling in international environmental agreements. Using pre-agreement emission level as a signalling device

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Steiner, U.

1997-12-31

This paper addresses the question about strategic incentives in international environmental agreements and tries to give a positive description of how the design of the agreement influences the strategic behaviour of potential participants before they enter the treaty. A common feature of the design of agreements is that the reduction obligations (RO) are made contingent on a pre-agreement or baseline emission. As it is assumed that countries posses better information about their reduction costs than does the international body in charge of deciding the RO, countries might have incentives to signal higher costs by increasing their baseline emission, and thereby reducing the costs of entering the agreement. The appropriate analytical framework is to use a signalling game approach, where the pre-agreement emission level conveys information about the privately informed country`s reduction cost. In this paper two types of agreement design are considered, one with uniform obligations, and one with differentiated obligations. This enables us to make a comparison between two different reduction regimes. The result is that the predicted outcomes vary with regard to both the environmental effectiveness and the associated expected costs for the participating countries. This means that when private information is considered, the anticipation of a given institutional framework has significant impact on the resulting distortion of the total emission level, highlighting the necessity of taking this into consideration when future designs are proposed. (au)

Signalling in international environmental agreements: Using pre-agreement emission level as a signalling device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steiner, U.

1997-01-01

This paper addresses the question about strategic incentives in international environmental agreements and tries to give a positive description of how the design of the agreement influences the strategic behaviour of potential participants before they enter the treaty. A common feature of the design of agreements is that the reduction obligations (RO) are made contingent on a pre-agreement or baseline emission. As it is assumed that countries posses better information about their reduction costs than does the international body in charge of deciding the RO, countries might have incentives to signal higher costs by increasing their baseline emission, and thereby reducing the costs of entering the agreement. The appropriate analytical framework is to use a signalling game approach, where the pre-agreement emission level conveys information about the privately informed country's reduction cost. In this paper two types of agreement design are considered, one with uniform obligations, and one with differentiated obligations. This enables us to make a comparison between two different reduction regimes. The result is that the predicted outcomes vary with regard to both the environmental effectiveness and the associated expected costs for the participating countries. This means that when private information is considered, the anticipation of a given institutional framework has significant impact on the resulting distortion of the total emission level, highlighting the necessity of taking this into consideration when future designs are proposed. (au)

Report of the remote-handled transuranic waste mock retrieval demonstration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-05-01

This report documents the results of the mock, onsite retrieval demonstration that was conducted on May 19 and 20, 1987, for representatives of the New Mexico Environmental Evaluation Group (EEG). Demonstration of the retrievability of remote-handled transuranic (RH TRU) waste is part of a milestone included in the Agreement for Consultation and Cooperation between the state of New Mexico and the United States Department of Energy. Retrieval equipment design documents and a retrievability demonstration plan for RH TRU waste were previously transmitted to the EEG. This report documents the results of the demonstration by evaluating the demonstration against the acceptance criteria that were established in the Demonstration Plan. 1 fig., 2 tabs

A multihop key agreement scheme for wireless ad hoc networks based on channel characteristics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Zhuo; Zhong, Sheng; Yu, Nenghai

2013-01-01

A number of key agreement schemes based on wireless channel characteristics have been proposed recently. However, previous key agreement schemes require that two nodes which need to agree on a key are within the communication range of each other. Hence, they are not suitable for multihop wireless networks, in which nodes do not always have direct connections with each other. In this paper, we first propose a basic multihop key agreement scheme for wireless ad hoc networks. The proposed basic scheme is resistant to external eavesdroppers. Nevertheless, this basic scheme is not secure when there exist internal eavesdroppers or Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) adversaries. In order to cope with these adversaries, we propose an improved multihop key agreement scheme. We show that the improved scheme is secure against internal eavesdroppers and MITM adversaries in a single path. Both performance analysis and simulation results demonstrate that the improved scheme is efficient. Consequently, the improved key agreement scheme is suitable for multihop wireless ad hoc networks.

ASEAN’s Preferential Trade Agreements (PTA Strategy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guanyi Leu

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper provides a diversification explanation in order understand the development of PTAs in Southeast Asia. I argue that an important reason why ASEAN states participate in PTAs has been to diversify existing trade ties and to reduce overdependence on a narrow range of export markets. Southeast Asian countries have formed PTAs with markets with which they had weak or unexplored economic relations, as demonstrated by three case analyses: the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA, the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA and the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (AJCEP. To maximise the economic gains and the diversification effects of PTA participation, ASEAN countries have pursued a strategy of strengthening economic unity while keeping external economic linkages as diversified as possible. Although East Asia, and especially China, was an important alternative market to reduce ASEAN’s dependence on trade with America, ASEAN countries have also pursued PTAs with a number of other trading partners. This paper explains how PTAs have helped ASEAN states to develop more policy autonomy in their trading environment.

The Subaxial Cervical Spine Injury Classification System: an external agreement validation study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Middendorp, J.J. van; Audige, L.; Bartels, R.H.M.A.; Bolger, C.; Deverall, H.; Dhoke, P.; Diekerhof, C.H.; Govaert, G.A.; Guimera, V.; Koller, H.; Morris, S.A.; Setiobudi, T.; Hosman, A.J.F.

2013-01-01

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: In 2007, the Subaxial Cervical Spine Injury Classification (SLIC) system was introduced demonstrating moderate reliability in an internal validation study. PURPOSE: To assess the agreement on the SLIC system using clinical data from a spinal trauma population and whether the SLIC

The Subaxial Cervical Spine Injury Classification System : an external agreement validation study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Middendorp, Joost J.; Audige, Laurent; Bartels, Ronald H.; Bolger, Ciaran; Deverall, Hamish; Dhoke, Priyesh; Diekerhof, Carel H.; Govaert, Geertje A. M.; Guimera, Vicente; Koller, Heiko; Morris, Stephen A. C.; Setiobudi, Tony; Hosman, Allard J. F.

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: In 2007, the Subaxial Cervical Spine Injury Classification (SLIC) system was introduced demonstrating moderate reliability in an internal validation study. PURPOSE: To assess the agreement on the SLIC system using clinical data from a spinal trauma population and whether the SLIC

NUCLA Circulating Atmospheric Fluidized Bed Demonstration Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-02-01

The objective of this DOE Cooperative Agreement is to conduct a cost-shared clean coal technology project to demonstrate the feasibility of circulating fluidized bed combustion technology and to evaluate economic, environmental, and operational benefits of CFB steam generators on a utility scale. At the conclusion of the Phase 2 program, testing related to satisfying these objectives was completed. Data analysis and reporting are scheduled for completion by October 1991. (VC)

Agreement among healthcare professionals in ten European countries in diagnosing case-vignettes of surgical-site infections.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel Birgand

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Although surgical-site infection (SSI rates are advocated as a major evaluation criterion, the reproducibility of SSI diagnosis is unknown. We assessed agreement in diagnosing SSI among specialists involved in SSI surveillance in Europe. METHODS: Twelve case-vignettes based on suspected SSI were submitted to 100 infection-control physicians (ICPs and 86 surgeons in 10 European countries. Each participant scored eight randomly-assigned case-vignettes on a secure online relational database. The intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC was used to assess agreement for SSI diagnosis on a 7-point Likert scale and the kappa coefficient to assess agreement for SSI depth on a three-point scale. RESULTS: Intra-specialty agreement for SSI diagnosis ranged across countries and specialties from 0.00 (95%CI, 0.00-0.35 to 0.65 (0.45-0.82. Inter-specialty agreement varied from 0.04 (0.00-0.62 in to 0.55 (0.37-0.74 in Germany. For all countries pooled, intra-specialty agreement was poor for surgeons (0.24, 0.14-0.42 and good for ICPs (0.41, 0.28-0.61. Reading SSI definitions improved agreement among ICPs (0.57 but not surgeons (0.09. Intra-specialty agreement for SSI depth ranged across countries and specialties from 0.05 (0.00-0.10 to 0.50 (0.45-0.55 and was not improved by reading SSI definition. CONCLUSION: Among ICPs and surgeons evaluating case-vignettes of suspected SSI, considerable disagreement occurred regarding the diagnosis, with variations across specialties and countries.

Multilateral and bilateral agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koponen, H.

1993-01-01

Finland has made both multilateral and bilateral agreements on the exchange of information related to radiation safety. The first arrangements for international agreements and exchange of information were made after the Chernobyl accident. In 1987, Finland joined the convention on early notification of a nuclear power accident coordinated by International Atomic Energy Agency. The convention is applied to accidents that cause of may cause emissions of radioactive substances that might affect the radiation safety of another country. Besides the convention on early notification, some other individual agreements have also been made. These include the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) system and power companies own information exchange systems. Finland has conducted bilateral agreements with the Nordic countries and the Soviet Union on the notification of accidents and exchange of nuclear power plant information. Today, Russia answers for the Soviet Union's contractual obligations. (orig.)

48 CFR 1642.7001 - Management agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS ACQUISITION REGULATION CONTRACT MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION Management Agreement (in Lieu of Novation Agreement) 1642.7001 Management agreement. When it is in the best interest of... day-to-day performance of the contract. Examples of situations in which a Management Agreement may be...

Competition for Assistance Agreements

Science.gov (United States)

It is EPA policy to promote competition in the award of assistance agreements to the maximum extent practicable.When assistance agreements are awarded competitively, it is EPA policy that the competitive process be fair and open & that no applicant receive

29 CFR 1908.10 - Cooperative Agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... CONSULTATION AGREEMENTS § 1908.10 Cooperative Agreements. (a) Who may make Agreements. The Assistant Secretary... consultation services to private sector employers. (3) Renegotiation of existing Agreements funded under this part shall be initiated within 30 days of the effective date of these revisions. (c) Contents of...

Gait Deviation Index, Gait Profile Score and Gait Variable Score in children with spastic cerebral palsy: Intra-rater reliability and agreement across two repeated sessions.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Helle Mätzke; Nielsen, Dennis Brandborg; Pedersen, Niels Wisbech; Overgaard, Søren; Holsgaard-Larsen, Anders

2015-07-01

The Gait Deviation Index (GDI) and Gait Profile Score (GPS) are the most used summary measures of gait in children with cerebral palsy (CP). However, the reliability and agreement of these indices have not been investigated, limiting their clinimetric quality for research and clinical practice. The aim of this study was to investigate the intra-rater reliability and agreement of summary measures of gait (GDI; GPS; and the Gait Variable Score (GVS) derived from the GPS). The intra-rater reliability and agreement were investigated across two repeated sessions in 18 children aged 5-12 years diagnosed with spastic CP. No systematic bias was observed between the sessions and no heteroscedasticity was observed in Bland-Altman plots. For the GDI and GPS, excellent reliability with intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) values of 0.8-0.9 was found, while the GVS was found to have fair to good reliability with ICCs of 0.4-0.7. The agreement for the GDI and the logarithmically transformed GPS, in terms of the standard error of measurement as a percentage of the grand mean (SEM%) varied from 4.1 to 6.7%, whilst the smallest detectable change in percent (SDC%) ranged from 11.3 to 18.5%. For the logarithmically transformed GVS, we found a fair to large variation in SEM% from 7 to 29% and in SDC% from 18 to 81%. The GDI and GPS demonstrated excellent reliability and acceptable agreement proving that they can both be used in research and clinical practice. However, the observed large variability for some of the GVS requires cautious consideration when selecting outcome measures. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Multi-party quantum key agreement with five-qubit brown states

Science.gov (United States)

Cai, Tao; Jiang, Min; Cao, Gang

2018-05-01

In this paper, we propose a multi-party quantum key agreement protocol with five-qubit brown states and single-qubit measurements. Our multi-party protocol ensures each participant to contribute equally to the agreement key. Each party performs three single-qubit unitary operations on three qubits of each brown state. Finally, by measuring brown states and decoding the measurement results, all participants can negotiate a shared secret key without classical bits exchange between them. With the analysis of security, our protocol demonstrates that it can resist against both outsider and participant attacks. Compared with other schemes, it also possesses a higher information efficiency. In terms of physical operation, it requires single-qubit measurements only which weakens the hardware requirements of participant and has a better operating flexibility.

Nuclear arbitration: Interpreting non-proliferation agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tzeng, Peter

2015-01-01

At the core of the nuclear non-proliferation regime lie international agreements. These agreements include, inter alia, the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, nuclear co-operation agreements and nuclear export control agreements.1 States, however, do not always comply with their obligations under these agreements. In response, commentators have proposed various enforcement mechanisms to promote compliance. The inconvenient truth, however, is that states are generally unwilling to consent to enforcement mechanisms concerning issues as critical to national security as nuclear non-proliferation.3 This article suggests an alternative solution to the non-compliance problem: interpretation mechanisms. Although an interpretation mechanism does not have the teeth of an enforcement mechanism, it can induce compliance by providing an authoritative interpretation of a legal obligation. Interpretation mechanisms would help solve the non-compliance problem because, as this article shows, in many cases of alleged non-compliance with a non-proliferation agreement, the fundamental problem has been the lack of an authoritative interpretation of the agreement, not the lack of an enforcement mechanism. Specifically, this article proposes arbitration as the proper interpretation mechanism for non-proliferation agreements. It advocates the establishment of a 'Nuclear Arbitration Centre' as an independent branch of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and recommends the gradual introduction of arbitration clauses into the texts of non-proliferation agreements. Section I begins with a discussion of international agreements in general and the importance of interpretation and enforcement mechanisms. Section II then discusses nuclear non-proliferation agreements and their lack of interpretation and enforcement mechanisms. Section III examines seven case studies of alleged non-compliance with non-proliferation agreements in order to show that the main problem in many cases

48 CFR 2831.109 - Advance agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... proposed agreement. The approved determination will be placed in the contract file. (c) All advance... the agreements. Advance agreements will be signed by both the contractor and the contracting officer, and made a part of the contract file. Copies of executed advance agreements will be distributed to the...

EPRI-USDOE COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT: COFIRING BIOMASS WITH COAL; FINAL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

David A. Tillman

2001-01-01

The entire Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) cofiring program has been in existence of some 9 years. This report presents a summary of the major elements of that program, focusing upon the following questions: (1) In pursuit of increased use of renewable energy in the US economy, why was electricity generation considered the most promising target, and why was cofiring pursued as the most effective near-term technology to use in broadening the use of biomass within the electricity generating arena? (2) What were the unique accomplishments of EPRI before the development of the Cooperative Agreement, which made developing the partnership with EPRI a highly cost-effective approach for USDOE? (3) What were the key accomplishments of the Cooperative Agreement in the development and execution of test and demonstration programs-accomplishments which significantly furthered the process of commercializing cofiring?

A critical analysis of debtor’s right to reinstate a credit agreement & resume possession of property

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hlako Choma

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In terms of section 129(3(a of the South African National Credit Act 34 of 2005 a consumer may reinstate a credit agreement that is in default by paying all the money that is overdue together with default charges incurred by the credit provider and also the costs of enforcing the agreement until the agreement is reinstated. A consumer should pay costs of reinstating agreement if the credit provider has not yet cancelled the agreement. A consumer who paid the required costs will also resume possession of goods that were repossessed by the credit provider pursuant to attachment order. However a consumer is prohibited from reinstating a credit agreement after the property is sold pursuant to attachment order or surrender of property in terms of section 127 (section 129(4. A consumer is also prohibited from reinstating a credit agreement after the execution of court order enforcing that agreement or after termination of agreement in terms of the NCA (section 129(4. Therefore a question arise as to whether a consumer who fell in arrears can reinstate a credit agreement by paying the arrears and preclude a credit provider from proceeding to sell the property. In other words whether a consumer who paid arrears on credit agreement can reinstate such credit agreement and disentitling the credit provider from selling the property. This was the crisp question put to the court in the recent decision in Nkata v Firstrand Bank Limited and Others (CCT73/15 [2016] ZACC 12; 2016 (6 BCLR 794 (CC; 2016 (4 SA 257 (CC (21 April 2016. The purpose this article is to critically analyse the decision in Nkata v Firstrand Bank Limited and Others (CCT73/15 [2016] ZACC 12; 2016 (6 BCLR 794 (CC; 2016 (4 SA 257 (CC (21 April 2016 in view of the application and interpretation of section 129(3 and (4 of the NCA.

Interobserver and intraobserver agreement of ligamentous injuries on conventional MRI after simple elbow dislocation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marc Schnetzke

2017-02-01

conventional MRI technique as demonstrated by a weak inter- and intraobserver agreement. This should be the basis to develop new MRI quality standards with special focus on coronal oblique reconstructions to improve the evaluation of ligament injuries after simple elbow dislocations.

Canadian seismic agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wetmiller, R.J.; Lyons, J.A.; Shannon, W.E.; Munro, P.S.; Thomas, J.T.; Andrew, M.D.; Lamontagne, M.; Wong, C.; Anglin, F.M.; Plouffe, M.; Lapointe, S.P.; Adams, J.; Drysdale, J.A.

1990-04-01

This is the twenty-first progress report under the agreement entitled Canadian Seismic Agreement between the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the Canadian Commercial Corporation. Activities undertaken by the Geophysics Division of the Geological Survey of Canada (GD/GSC) during the period from July 01, 1988 to June 30, 1989 and supported in part by the NRC agreement are described below under four headings; Eastern Canada Telemetred Network and local network developments, Datalab developments, strong motion network developments and earthquake activity. In this time period eastern Canada experienced its largest earthquake in over 50 years. This earthquake, which has been christened the Saguenay earthquake, has provided a wealth of new data pertinent to earthquake engineering studies in eastern North America and is the subject of many continuing studies, which are presently being carried out at GD and elsewhere. 41 refs., 21 figs., 7 tabs

Leveraging Trade Agreements to Meet U.S. Security Aims

Science.gov (United States)

2016-04-08

President George H.W. Bush sought means to influence the policies of Latin American states more effectively. Mexico , particularly in the post-Cold War era...security goals. A review of the U.S. trade policy, and its nesting with the National Security Strategy, demonstrates how President Barack Obama’s... President Barack Obama’s strategic “pivot to Asia,” and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement facilitate U.S. enduring national

Experimental demonstration of the Rayleigh acoustic viscous boundary layer theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Castrejón-Pita, J R; Castrejón-Pita, A A; Huelsz, G; Tovar, R

2006-03-01

Amplitude and phase velocity measurements on the laminar oscillatory viscous boundary layer produced by acoustic waves are presented. The measurements were carried out in acoustic standing waves in air with frequencies of 68.5 and 114.5 Hz using laser Doppler anemometry and particle image velocimetry. The results obtained by these two techniques are in good agreement with the predictions made by the Rayleigh viscous boundary layer theory and confirm the existence of a local maximum of the velocity amplitude and its expected location.

Good Outcome Following Copeland Hemiarthroplasty for Acromegalic Arthropathy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. E. Johnson-Lynn

2011-01-01

Full Text Available We report the unusual case of a patient with acromegalic arthropathy who presented with severe shoulder arthrosis with marked osteophytosis. This patient is currently pain-free and has good shoulder function 4 years following a Copeland shoulder hemiarthroplasty. Acromegaly is a rare condition of growth hormone oversecretion, but arthropathy is a common feature of the natural history of the disease. This is the first published case report of the outcome of shoulder arthroplasty in a patient with acromegalic arthropathy and demonstrated that a good result can be obtained in this patient.

Agreement Execution Process Study: CRADAs and NF-WFO Agreements and the Speed of Business

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harrer, Bruce J.; Cejka, Cheryl L.; Macklin, Richard; Miksovic, Ann

2011-02-01

This report summarizes the findings of a study on the execution of Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs) and Non-Federal Work for Others (NF-WFO) agreements across the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) laboratory complex. The study provides quantitiative estimates of times required to negotiate and execute these agreements across the DOE complex. It identifies factors impacting on cycle times and describes best practicies used at various laboratories and site offices that reduce cycle times.

Agreement among graders on Heidelberg retina tomograph (HRT) topographic change analysis (TCA) glaucoma progression interpretation.

Science.gov (United States)

Iester, Michele M; Wollstein, Gadi; Bilonick, Richard A; Xu, Juan; Ishikawa, Hiroshi; Kagemann, Larry; Schuman, Joel S

2015-04-01

To evaluate agreement among experts of Heidelberg retina tomography's (HRT) topographic change analysis (TCA) printout interpretations of glaucoma progression and explore methods for improving agreement. 109 eyes of glaucoma, glaucoma suspect and healthy subjects with ≥5 visits and 2 good quality HRT scans acquired at each visit were enrolled. TCA printouts were graded as progression or non-progression. Each grader was presented with 2 sets of tests: a randomly selected single test from each visit and both tests from each visit. Furthermore, the TCA printouts were classified with grader's individual criteria and with predefined criteria (reproducible changes within the optic nerve head, disregarding changes along blood vessels or at steep rim locations and signs of image distortion). Agreement among graders was modelled using common latent factor measurement error structural equation models for ordinal data. Assessment of two scans per visit without using the predefined criteria reduced overall agreement, as indicated by a reduction in the slope, reflecting the correlation with the common factor, for all graders with no effect on reducing the range of the intercepts between the graders. Using the predefined criteria improved grader agreement, as indicated by the narrower range of intercepts among the graders compared with assessment using individual grader's criteria. A simple set of predefined common criteria improves agreement between graders in assessing TCA progression. The inclusion of additional scans from each visit does not improve the agreement. We, therefore, recommend setting standardised criteria for TCA progression evaluation. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Peer assessment of aviation performance: inconsistent for good reasons.

Science.gov (United States)

Roth, Wolff-Michael; Mavin, Timothy J

2015-03-01

Research into expertise is relatively common in cognitive science concerning expertise existing across many domains. However, much less research has examined how experts within the same domain assess the performance of their peer experts. We report the results of a modified think-aloud study conducted with 18 pilots (6 first officers, 6 captains, and 6 flight examiners). Pairs of same-ranked pilots were asked to rate the performance of a captain flying in a critical pre-recorded simulator scenario. Findings reveal (a) considerable variance within performance categories, (b) differences in the process used as evidence in support of a performance rating, (c) different numbers and types of facts (cues) identified, and (d) differences in how specific performance events affect choice of performance category and gravity of performance assessment. Such variance is consistent with low inter-rater reliability. Because raters exhibited good, albeit imprecise, reasons and facts, a fuzzy mathematical model of performance rating was developed. The model provides good agreement with observed variations. Copyright © 2014 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

HOW GOOD IS GOODS AND SERVICES TAX

OpenAIRE

Dr. Sreemoyee Guha Roy

2016-01-01

Goods and Services Tax is a broad based and a single comprehensive tax levied on goods and services consumed in an economy. GST is levied at every stage of the production-distribution chain with applicable set offs in respect of the tax remitted at previous stages. It is basically a tax on final consumption. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a value added tax to be implemented in India, the decision on which is pending. GST is the only indirect tax that directly affects all sectors and sect...

48 CFR 1642.1204 - Agreement to recognize a successor in interest (novation agreement).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... that the corporate name of (insert old corporate name) was changed to (insert new corporate name) on... MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION Novation and Change-of-Name Agreements 1642.1204 Agreement to recognize a... corporate name) (Transferor), a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of (insert State...

Inter-observer agreement for the evaluation of bone involvement on Whole Body Low Dose Computed Tomography (WBLDCT) in Multiple Myeloma (MM)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zacchino, M.; Minetti, V.; Dore, R.; Calliada, F. [University of Pavia, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Institute of Radiology, Pavia (Italy); Bonaffini, P.A.; Nasatti, A.; Sironi, S. [University of Milano Bicocca, San Gerardo Hospital, Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Monza (Italy); Corso, A. [University of Pavia, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Division of Hematology, Pavia (Italy); Tinelli, C. [University of Pavia, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Service of Biometry and Statistics, Pavia (Italy)

2015-11-15

We aimed to assess inter-observer agreement in bone involvement evaluation and define accuracy and reproducibility of MDCT images analysis in Multiple Myeloma (MM), by comparing two acquisition protocols at two different institutions. A total of 100 MM patients underwent whole body low-dose computed tomography (WB-LDCT), with two protocols: Group I (50 patients), 80 kV and 200-230 mAs; Group II, 120 kV-40 mAs. Four readers (two experts) retrospectively reviewed 22 anatomical districts, reporting the following for each patient: 1) osteolytic lesions; 2) cortical bone integrity; 3) fractures; 4) risk of vertebral collapse; 5) hyperattenuating bone lesions; and 6) extraosseous extension. Inter-observer agreement (by all readers, expert and young observers and comparison of the two protocols) was then statistically analyzed. According to Cohen's criteria, inter-observer agreement among the four readers and between experts and residents was good for the detection of bone lesions and extra-medullary extension, and for the evaluation of risk of collapse and cortical integrity. There was good agreement when comparing the two protocols. A greater variability was found for the evaluation of hyperattenuating lesions and the presence of fractures. WB-LDCT represents a reproducible and reliable technique that is helpful for defining bone disease in MM patients, with partial influence of readers' experience. (orig.)

Inter-observer agreement for the evaluation of bone involvement on Whole Body Low Dose Computed Tomography (WBLDCT) in Multiple Myeloma (MM)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zacchino, M.; Minetti, V.; Dore, R.; Calliada, F.; Bonaffini, P.A.; Nasatti, A.; Sironi, S.; Corso, A.; Tinelli, C.

2015-01-01

We aimed to assess inter-observer agreement in bone involvement evaluation and define accuracy and reproducibility of MDCT images analysis in Multiple Myeloma (MM), by comparing two acquisition protocols at two different institutions. A total of 100 MM patients underwent whole body low-dose computed tomography (WB-LDCT), with two protocols: Group I (50 patients), 80 kV and 200-230 mAs; Group II, 120 kV-40 mAs. Four readers (two experts) retrospectively reviewed 22 anatomical districts, reporting the following for each patient: 1) osteolytic lesions; 2) cortical bone integrity; 3) fractures; 4) risk of vertebral collapse; 5) hyperattenuating bone lesions; and 6) extraosseous extension. Inter-observer agreement (by all readers, expert and young observers and comparison of the two protocols) was then statistically analyzed. According to Cohen's criteria, inter-observer agreement among the four readers and between experts and residents was good for the detection of bone lesions and extra-medullary extension, and for the evaluation of risk of collapse and cortical integrity. There was good agreement when comparing the two protocols. A greater variability was found for the evaluation of hyperattenuating lesions and the presence of fractures. WB-LDCT represents a reproducible and reliable technique that is helpful for defining bone disease in MM patients, with partial influence of readers' experience. (orig.)

Cooperative monitoring of regional security agreements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pregenzer, A.L.; Vannoni, M.; Biringer, K.L.

1995-08-01

This paper argues that cooperative monitoring plays a critical role in the implementation of regional security agreements and confidence building measures. A framework for developing cooperative monitoring options is proposed and several possibilities for relating bilateral and regional monitoring systems to international monitoring systems are discussed. Three bilateral or regional agreements are analyzed briefly to illustrate different possibilities: (1) the demilitarization of the Sinai region between Israel and Egypt in the 1970s; (2) the 1991 quadripartite agreement for monitoring nuclear facilities among Brazil, Argentina, The Argentine-Brazilian Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials and the International Atomic Energy Agency; and (3) a bilateral Open Skies agreement between Hungary and Romania in 1991. These examples illustrate that the relationship of regional or bilateral arms control or security agreements to international agreements depends on a number of factors: the overlap of provisions between regional and international agreements; the degree of interest in a regional agreement among the international community; efficiency in implementing the agreement; and numerous political considerations.Given the importance of regional security to the international community, regions should be encouraged to develop their own infrastructure for implementing regional arms control and other security agreements. A regional infrastructure need not preclude participation in an international regime. On the contrary, establishing regional institutions for arms control and nonproliferation could result in more proactive participation of regional parties in developing solutions for regional and international problems, thereby strengthening existing and future international regimes. Possible first steps for strengthening regional infrastructures are identified and potential technical requirements are discussed.

The Texts of The Agency's Agreements with the Republic of Austria. I. Headquarters Agreement. Amendments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1970-09-04

The text of the Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Republic of Austria Amending the Agreement of 11 December 1957 Regarding the Headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which was signed on 4 June 1970, is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. Members will be informed of the entry into force of the Amendments to the Headquarters Agreement.

The Texts of The Agency's Agreements with the Republic of Austria. I. Headquarters Agreement. Amendments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1970-01-01

The text of the Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Republic of Austria Amending the Agreement of 11 December 1957 Regarding the Headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which was signed on 4 June 1970, is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. Members will be informed of the entry into force of the Amendments to the Headquarters Agreement

Agreement and reproducibility in identification of endometriosis using magnetic resonance imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saba, Luca; Sulcis, Rosa; Mallarini, Giorgio; Guerriero, Stefano; Ajossa, Silvia; Melis, Gianbenedetto

2010-01-01

Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a promising technique in the study of endometriosis, allowing a complete mapping of lesions before surgery. However, the value of MRI in the diagnosis of endometriosis in the bladder, in superficial peritoneal lesions, and in ovarian foci and uterosacral ligaments is still under debate. Purpose: To assess inter- and intra-observer agreement in the evaluation of endometriosis in different anatomical locations using MRI. Material and Methods: From June 2006 to February 2008, 83 female patients (mean age 39, range 19-49 years) who had undergone MRI examination for suspected endometriosis were evaluated by two radiologists. MRI at 1.5 Tesla was performed with SE and TSE sequences, T1- and T2-weighted with and without fat suppression. Each examination was completed with gadolinium administration. Each dataset was independently evaluated by the radiologists for the presence or absence of endometriosis. The location (ovaries, uterosacral ligaments (USLs), pouch of Douglas, vagina, rectosigmoid, rectovaginal septum, and bladder) of suspected lesions was recorded. Cohen kappa statistical analysis was performed to calculate agreement between measurements. After 2 months the data were analyzed again by the two observers to assess intra-observer agreement. Results: Of the 83 MRI examinations performed, 12 patients demonstrated no evidence of endometriosis. In the remaining 71 studies, 157 endometriotic lesions ranging in size from 0.4 to 6.2 cm were detected. Of the 157 lesions, 53 (33.75% incidence) were smaller than 1 cm. In the ovaries, the inter-observer agreement was 92.77% and the kappa value was 0.802 (95% CI, 0.695-0.91). In the bladder the inter-observer agreement was 96.39% and the kappa value was 0.553 (95% CI 0.056-1). In the USLs the inter-observer agreement was 90.96% and the kappa value 0.583 (95% CI, 0.381-0.784). In the rectovaginal septum the inter-observer agreement was 94.58% and the kappa value 0.739 (95% CI

Agreement and reproducibility in identification of endometriosis using magnetic resonance imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saba, Luca; Sulcis, Rosa; Mallarini, Giorgio (Dept. of Science of the Images, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Cagliari, Cagliari (Italy)), e-mail: lucasaba@tiscali.it; Guerriero, Stefano; Ajossa, Silvia; Melis, Gianbenedetto (Dept. of Gynaecology, Azienda Ospedaliero Universitaria di Cagliari, Cagliari (Italy))

2010-06-15

Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a promising technique in the study of endometriosis, allowing a complete mapping of lesions before surgery. However, the value of MRI in the diagnosis of endometriosis in the bladder, in superficial peritoneal lesions, and in ovarian foci and uterosacral ligaments is still under debate. Purpose: To assess inter- and intra-observer agreement in the evaluation of endometriosis in different anatomical locations using MRI. Material and Methods: From June 2006 to February 2008, 83 female patients (mean age 39, range 19-49 years) who had undergone MRI examination for suspected endometriosis were evaluated by two radiologists. MRI at 1.5 Tesla was performed with SE and TSE sequences, T1- and T2-weighted with and without fat suppression. Each examination was completed with gadolinium administration. Each dataset was independently evaluated by the radiologists for the presence or absence of endometriosis. The location (ovaries, uterosacral ligaments (USLs), pouch of Douglas, vagina, rectosigmoid, rectovaginal septum, and bladder) of suspected lesions was recorded. Cohen kappa statistical analysis was performed to calculate agreement between measurements. After 2 months the data were analyzed again by the two observers to assess intra-observer agreement. Results: Of the 83 MRI examinations performed, 12 patients demonstrated no evidence of endometriosis. In the remaining 71 studies, 157 endometriotic lesions ranging in size from 0.4 to 6.2 cm were detected. Of the 157 lesions, 53 (33.75% incidence) were smaller than 1 cm. In the ovaries, the inter-observer agreement was 92.77% and the kappa value was 0.802 (95% CI, 0.695-0.91). In the bladder the inter-observer agreement was 96.39% and the kappa value was 0.553 (95% CI 0.056-1). In the USLs the inter-observer agreement was 90.96% and the kappa value 0.583 (95% CI, 0.381-0.784). In the rectovaginal septum the inter-observer agreement was 94.58% and the kappa value 0.739 (95% CI

Achieving Agreement in Three Rounds with Bounded-Byzantine Faults

Science.gov (United States)

Malekpour, Mahyar, R.

2017-01-01

A three-round algorithm is presented that guarantees agreement in a system of K greater than or equal to 3F+1 nodes provided each faulty node induces no more than F faults and each good node experiences no more than F faults, where, F is the maximum number of simultaneous faults in the network. The algorithm is based on the Oral Message algorithm of Lamport, Shostak, and Pease and is scalable with respect to the number of nodes in the system and applies equally to traditional node-fault model as well as the link-fault model. We also present a mechanical verification of the algorithm focusing on verifying the correctness of a bounded model of the algorithm as well as confirming claims of determinism.

Agreements on emission of greenhouse gases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aulstad, Johan Greger

2001-01-01

Agreements on emission of greenhouse gases is one of the instruments used by Norwegian authorities to meet their obligations with respect to the Climate Convention and the Kyoto Protocol. This book discusses the legal issues raised by these agreements. A main topic is how the industrial emissions conform to the Pollution Act. Does the Pollution Act apply to these emissions? What is the impact of the sanction rules in this act on the emissions? The book also deals with the following general questions that arise in connection with the application of public authority: (1) Can the administration grant concessions and permits in the form of agreements? (2) What commitments can be imposed on a private party by the administration by agreement? (3) Should the procedures set down in the Pollution Act and in the Public Administration Act be followed fully when the pollution authorities make agreements? Is the opportunity of the administration to reverse more restricted when they make agreements than when they make one-sided decisions? Although this discussion primarily deals with the emission of greenhouse gases, the reasoning and conclusions are relevant in many other types of agreements in which the public administration is one of the parties. The agreement that regulates the emissions of greenhouse gases from the Norwegian aluminium industry is described in a special section. The book also gives a brief account of how agreements are used in the Danish climate policy

Cooperative monitoring of regional security agreements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pregenzer, A.L.; Vannoni, M.; Biringer, K.L. [Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States). Nonproliferation and Arms Control Analysis Dept.

1996-11-01

This paper argues that cooperative monitoring plays a critical role in the implementation of regional security agreements and confidence building measures. A framework for developing cooperative monitoring options is proposed and several possibilities for relating bilateral and regional monitoring systems to international monitoring systems are discussed. Three bilateral or regional agreements are analyzed briefly to illustrate different possibilities. These examples illustrate that the relationship of regional or bilateral arms control or security agreements to international agreements depends on a number of factors: the overlap of provisions between regional and international agreements; the degree of interest in a regional agreement among the international community; efficiency in implementing the agreement; and numerous political considerations. Given the importance of regional security to the international community, regions should be encouraged to develop their own infrastructure for implementing regional arms control and other security agreements. A regional infrastructure need not preclude participation in an international regime. On the contrary, establishing regional institutions for arms control and nonproliferation could result in more proactive participation of regional parties in developing solutions for regional and international problems, thereby strengthening existing and future international regimes. Possible first steps for strengthening regional infrastructures are identified and potential technical requirements are discussed.

International inter-rater agreement in scoring acne severity utilizing cloud-based image sharing of mobile phone photographs.

Science.gov (United States)

Foolad, Negar; Ornelas, Jennifer N; Clark, Ashley K; Ali, Ifrah; Sharon, Victoria R; Al Mubarak, Luluah; Lopez, Andrés; Alikhan, Ali; Al Dabagh, Bishr; Firooz, Alireza; Awasthi, Smita; Liu, Yu; Li, Chin-Shang; Sivamani, Raja K

2017-09-01

Cloud-based image sharing technology allows facilitated sharing of images. Cloud-based image sharing technology has not been well-studied for acne assessments or treatment preferences, among international evaluators. We evaluated inter-rater variability of acne grading and treatment recommendations among an international group of dermatologists that assessed photographs. This is a prospective, single visit photographic study to assess inter-rater agreement of acne photographs shared through an integrated mobile device, cloud-based, and HIPAA-compliant platform. Inter-rater agreements for global acne assessment and acne lesion counts were evaluated by the Kendall's coefficient of concordance while correlations between treatment recommendations and acne severity were calculated by Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. There was good agreement for the evaluation of inflammatory lesions (KCC = 0.62, P cloud-based image sharing for acne assessment. Cloud-based sharing may facilitate acne care and research among international collaborators. © 2017 The International Society of Dermatology.

What is a good midwife? Insights from the literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Borrelli, Sara Elisabetta

2014-01-01

to review the literature around what is considered to be a good midwife and in particular what women value in a midwife, in order to identify the gaps in the evidence for future research. this paper reviews the research in the area of interest over the past 30 years. The literature search focused on the concept of good midwife using synonyms and antonyms. The inclusion criteria included language (English or Italian). The examined databases were Medline, Maternity and Infant Care, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstract and CINAHL. studies conducted in high-income countries were taken into account. A focused review of papers which explicitly investigated what a good midwife means and a thematic analysis on what women value in a midwife were carried out. different standpoints have been considered (midwives, student midwives, women and their partners), focusing in particular on women viewpoint. the literature review reveals information about what is considered to be a good midwife from a range of perspectives and what women value in a midwife. A good midwife should possess several attributes: theoretical knowledge, professional competencies, personal qualities, communication skills and moral/ethical values. According to the thematic analysis around what childbearing women value in a midwife, frequent key-themes emerging from the literature were: support, possibility of choice, feeling in control and having appropriate information. the meaning of good midwife might change according to different actors involved in midwifery care and there is no agreement on the definition of what constitutes a good midwife. Furthermore, it is not clear if what women value in a good midwife corresponds to the midwives' perception of themselves as good professionals. There is a dearth of information around women's expectations and experiences specifically of a good midwife, and even less around whether this changes according to where they give birth. this literature review seeks to

Combining agreement and frequency rating scales to optimize psychometrics in measuring behavioral health functioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Marfeo, Elizabeth E; Ni, Pengsheng; Chan, Leighton; Rasch, Elizabeth K; Jette, Alan M

2014-07-01

The goal of this article was to investigate optimal functioning of using frequency vs. agreement rating scales in two subdomains of the newly developed Work Disability Functional Assessment Battery: the Mood & Emotions and Behavioral Control scales. A psychometric study comparing rating scale performance embedded in a cross-sectional survey used for developing a new instrument to measure behavioral health functioning among adults applying for disability benefits in the United States was performed. Within the sample of 1,017 respondents, the range of response category endorsement was similar for both frequency and agreement item types for both scales. There were fewer missing values in the frequency items than the agreement items. Both frequency and agreement items showed acceptable reliability. The frequency items demonstrated optimal effectiveness around the mean ± 1-2 standard deviation score range; the agreement items performed better at the extreme score ranges. Findings suggest an optimal response format requires a mix of both agreement-based and frequency-based items. Frequency items perform better in the normal range of responses, capturing specific behaviors, reactions, or situations that may elicit a specific response. Agreement items do better for those whose scores are more extreme and capture subjective content related to general attitudes, behaviors, or feelings of work-related behavioral health functioning. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

La opacidad de los acuerdos generales de bienes y servicios en España Opacity of general agreements on goods and services in Spain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Román Andrés Umaña Peña

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Objetivo: Explorar la intensidad del debate parlamentario sobre el Acuerdo General de Comercio de Servicios (AGCS asumido por España ante la Organización Mundial del Comercio (OMC, y compararla con la del Acuerdo General de Bienes (GATT. Métodos: Búsqueda sistemática y análisis del contenido de todas las iniciativas parlamentarias sobre AGCS y GATT realizadas entre 1979 y 2004 en el Congreso de los Diputados y el Senado. Se calculó la frecuencia y porcentaje de iniciativas parlamentarias de ambos temas, resultado de su tramitación y tipo de iniciativa. Resultados: Se presentaron 185 iniciativas parlamentarias sobre los acuerdos multilaterales de bienes y servicios, de las que 120 se referían al GATT, 8 al AGCS y 57 a ambos acuerdos. La mayoría de las iniciativas no fueron discutidas (GATT, 71%; GATS, 55,4% o estuvieron sujetas a un debate político en el que apenas se dieron intervenciones por parte de los grupos parlamentarios. Conclusiones: A pesar de las implicaciones del acuerdo multilateral de servicios para la política sanitaria española, éste se ha asumido con escaso debate parlamentario previo, incluso menos que en el caso de su homólogo sobre bienes. Se requiere en este tema una intensificación de la función de control al gobierno.Objective: To explore the intensity of the debate in the Spanish Parliament on the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS developed by Spain and the World Trade Organization, and to compare it with the debate on the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT. Methods: A systematic search and content analysis were performed of all parliamentary initiatives on GATS and GATT undertaken from 1979 to 2004 in the Spanish Parliament and Senate. The frequency and percentages of initiatives on both issues were calculated, and the final result and kinds of initiative were analyzed. Results: A total of 185 initiatives were presented in the Spanish Parliament on these agreements, of which 120 were

TRIPs Agreement, Important Multilateral WTO Treaty

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oana-Maria Florescu

2006-08-01

Full Text Available This article aims at presenting the content and the frame of the TRIPs. Agreement. It starts by introducing the reader to the terms that defined the world economical climate by the time of the Agreement negociation. Also, it explains the need of having an Agreement on intellectual property rights with impact on the business world. Moreover, the article reviews the main provisions of the Agreement and the most important intellectual property rights.

Mechanical and thermal characteristics of JT-60 tokamak machine demonstrated in its power tests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takatsu, Hideyuki; Yamamoto, Masahiro; Ohkubo, Minoru

1985-09-01

JT-60 power tests were carried out from Dec. 10, 1984 to Feb. 20, 1985 to demonstrate, in advance of actual plasma operation, satisfactory performance of tokamak machine, power suppliers and control system in combination. The tests began with low power test of individual coil systems and progressed to full power tests. Power tests were successfully concluded with the following conclusions. (1) All of the coil systems were raised up to full power operation in combination and system performance was verified including thermal and structural integrity of tokamak machine. (2) Measured strain and deflection showed good agreements with those predicted in the design, which was an evidence that electromagnetic loads were supported adequately as expected in the design. (3) Vibration of lateral port was found to be large up to 50 m/s 2 and caused excessive vibration of gate-valves. (4) A few limitations to machine operation were made clear quantatively. (5) It was found that the existing detectors were insufficient to monitor the machine integrity and a few kinds of detectors were necessary to be installed. (author)

Royal Decree No 2101/1976 of 10 August 1976 implementing the national regulations for the transport of dangerous goods by road

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1976-01-01

This Royal Decree implements the national Regulations for the transport of dangerous goods by road, based on the European Agreement concerning International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR) to which Spain became a party on 22nd November 1972. The implementing provisions lay down that the national regulations do not apply to transport not exceeding 50 km or to loads below one tonne. Furthermore, the Decree prescribes the period within which vehicles and their markings as well as packaging conditions for dangerous goods must comply with its requirements. It is recalled that radioactive materials are classified as dangerous goods in Class 7. (N.E.A.) [fr

Vibration Response Imaging: evaluation of rater agreement in healthy subjects and subjects with pneumonia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bartziokas, Konstantinos; Daenas, Christos; Preau, Sebastien; Zygoulis, Paris; Triantaris, Apostolos; Kerenidi, Theodora; Makris, Demosthenes; Gourgoulianis, Konstantinos I; Daniil, Zoe

2010-01-01

We evaluated pulmonologists variability in the interpretation of Vibration response imaging (VRI) obtained from healthy subjects and patients hospitalized for community acquired pneumonia. The present is a prospective study conducted in a tertiary university hospital. Twenty healthy subjects and twenty three pneumonia cases were included in this study. Six pulmonologists blindly analyzed images of normal subjects and pneumonia cases and evaluated different aspects of VRI images related to the quality of data aquisition, synchronization of the progression of breath sound distribution and agreement between the maximal energy frame (MEF) of VRI (which is the maximal geographical area of lung vibrations produced at maximal inspiration) and chest radiography. For qualitative assessment of VRI images, the raters' evaluations were analyzed by degree of consistency and agreement. The average value for overall identical evaluations of twelve features of the VRI image evaluation, ranged from 87% to 95% per rater (94% to 97% in control cases and from 79% to 93% per rater in pneumonia cases). Inter-rater median (IQR) agreement was 91% (82-96). The level of agreement according to VRI feature evaluated was in most cases over 80%; intra-class correlation (ICC) obtained by using a model of subject/rater for the averaged features was overall 0.86 (0.92 in normal and 0.73 in pneumonia cases). Our findings suggest good agreement in the interpretation of VRI data between different raters. In this respect, VRI might be helpful as a radiation free diagnostic tool for the management of pneumonia

Vibration Response Imaging: evaluation of rater agreement in healthy subjects and subjects with pneumonia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Makris Demosthenes

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background We evaluated pulmonologists variability in the interpretation of Vibration response imaging (VRI obtained from healthy subjects and patients hospitalized for community acquired pneumonia. Methods The present is a prospective study conducted in a tertiary university hospital. Twenty healthy subjects and twenty three pneumonia cases were included in this study. Six pulmonologists blindly analyzed images of normal subjects and pneumonia cases and evaluated different aspects of VRI images related to the quality of data aquisition, synchronization of the progression of breath sound distribution and agreement between the maximal energy frame (MEF of VRI (which is the maximal geographical area of lung vibrations produced at maximal inspiration and chest radiography. For qualitative assessment of VRI images, the raters' evaluations were analyzed by degree of consistency and agreement. Results The average value for overall identical evaluations of twelve features of the VRI image evaluation, ranged from 87% to 95% per rater (94% to 97% in control cases and from 79% to 93% per rater in pneumonia cases. Inter-rater median (IQR agreement was 91% (82-96. The level of agreement according to VRI feature evaluated was in most cases over 80%; intra-class correlation (ICC obtained by using a model of subject/rater for the averaged features was overall 0.86 (0.92 in normal and 0.73 in pneumonia cases. Conclusions Our findings suggest good agreement in the interpretation of VRI data between different raters. In this respect, VRI might be helpful as a radiation free diagnostic tool for the management of pneumonia.

Agreement between ultrasonography and computed tomography in detecting intracranial calcifications in congenital toxoplasmosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lago, E.G. [Department of Pediatrics, Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul School of Medicine, Sao Lucas Hospital, Porto Alegre (Brazil)], E-mail: eglago@pucrs.br; Baldisserotto, M.; Hoefel Filho, J.R.; Santiago, D. [Department of Radiology, Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul School of Medicine, Sao Lucas Hospital, Porto Alegre (Brazil); Jungblut, R. [Department of Pediatrics, Pontificia Universidade Catolica do Rio Grande do Sul School of Medicine, Sao Lucas Hospital, Porto Alegre (Brazil)

2007-10-15

Aim: To evaluate the agreement between ultrasound (US) and computed tomography (CT) in detecting intracranial calcification in infants with congenital toxoplasmosis. Materials and methods: Forty-four infants referred for investigation of congenital toxoplasmosis were prospectively evaluated, and the diagnosis was confirmed or ruled out by serological testing and by follow-up in the first year of life. The investigation protocol included cranial US and cranial CT, and examinations were conducted and interpreted by two radiologists blinded to the results of the other imaging test and to the diagnostic confirmation. Results: The diagnosis of congenital toxoplasmosis was confirmed in 33 patients, and agreement between US and CT findings was found in 31 of these cases. Both methods detected calcifications in 18 patients, and neither detected calcifications in 13 patients. Overall agreement was 94% and the kappa coefficient was 0.88 (95% confidence interval: 0.71, 1; p < 0.001), which revealed almost perfect agreement between the two diagnostic methods. Conclusion: In this study, US and CT demonstrated equal sensitivity in the detection of intracranial calcification in infants with congenital toxoplasmosis.

76 FR 67440 - Market Access Agreement

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2011-11-01

... FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION Market Access Agreement AGENCY: Farm Credit Administration. ACTION: Notice of Draft Second Amended and Restated Market Access Agreement; request for comments. SUMMARY: The... Market Access Agreement (the ``Restated MAA'') is entered into among AgFirst Farm Credit Bank, AgriBank...

50 CFR 81.3 - Cooperative Agreement.

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2010-10-01

...) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE-WILDLIFE SPORT FISH RESTORATION PROGRAM CONSERVATION OF ENDANGERED AND THREATENED SPECIES OF FISH, WILDLIFE, AND PLANTS-COOPERATION WITH THE STATES § 81.3 Cooperative Agreement. Upon... Project Agreement can be approved for endangered or threatened species projects. A cooperative agreement...

Diffusion tensor imaging of the median nerve: intra-, inter-reader agreement, and agreement between two software packages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guggenberger, Roman; Nanz, Daniel; Puippe, Gilbert; Andreisek, Gustav; Rufibach, Kaspar; White, Lawrence M.; Sussman, Marshall S.

2012-01-01

To assess intra-, inter-reader agreement, and the agreement between two software packages for magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measurements of the median nerve. Fifteen healthy volunteers (seven men, eight women; mean age, 31.2 years) underwent DTI of both wrists at 1.5 T. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) of the median nerve were measured by three readers using two commonly used software packages. Measurements were repeated by two readers after 6 weeks. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and Bland-Altman analysis were used for statistical analysis. ICCs for intra-reader agreement ranged from 0.87 to 0.99, for inter-reader agreement from 0.62 to 0.83, and between the two software packages from 0.63 to 0.82. Bland-Altman analysis showed no differences for intra- and inter-reader agreement and agreement between software packages. The intra-, inter-reader, and agreement between software packages for DTI measurements of the median nerve were moderate to substantial suggesting that user- and software-dependent factors contribute little to variance in DTI measurements. (orig.)

Analyzing rater agreement manifest variable methods

CERN Document Server

von Eye, Alexander

2014-01-01

Agreement among raters is of great importance in many domains. For example, in medicine, diagnoses are often provided by more than one doctor to make sure the proposed treatment is optimal. In criminal trials, sentencing depends, among other things, on the complete agreement among the jurors. In observational studies, researchers increase reliability by examining discrepant ratings. This book is intended to help researchers statistically examine rater agreement by reviewing four different approaches to the technique.The first approach introduces readers to calculating coefficients that allow one to summarize agreements in a single score. The second approach involves estimating log-linear models that allow one to test specific hypotheses about the structure of a cross-classification of two or more raters'' judgments. The third approach explores cross-classifications or raters'' agreement for indicators of agreement or disagreement, and for indicators of such characteristics as trends. The fourth approach compa...

VHA Data Sharing Agreement Repository

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Veterans Affairs — The VHA Data Sharing Agreement Repository serves as a centralized location to collect and report on agreements that share VHA data with entities outside of VA. It...

40 CFR 35.3010 - Delegation agreement.

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2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Delegation agreement. 35.3010 Section... STATE AND LOCAL ASSISTANCE Construction Grants Program Delegation to States § 35.3010 Delegation agreement. (a) Before execution of the delegation agreement, the Regional Administrator must determine that...

7 CFR 900.109 - Mediation agreement.

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2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Mediation agreement. 900.109 Section 900.109 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Marketing... Mediation agreement. An agreement arrived at by mediation shall not become effective until approved by the...

Flexible climate agreements after 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vevatne, Jonas

2004-01-01

The Kyoto agreement is only a small step towards much stronger and broader commitments and new creativity is needed to further develop a really global climate policy. A flexible approach is necessary to obtain broad participation and substantial reduction of the emissions of greenhouse gases. Flexibility is also important to ease negotiations, to ensure cost-effectiveness and implement a global climate agreement. The US withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol has rendered the agreement much less effective than the original goal of five per cent reduction of the emission from the industrialized countries. In addition the emissions are increasing much faster in countries that have not committed themselves to the agreement. The agreement runs out in 2012 and should be followed by a new agreement, the negotiations about which are to start up no later than 2005. Attempts by the European Union to begin a discussion about future commitments were very quickly wrecked by the G77 group with strong support from the U.S.A. To formulate a practical climate policy the general goal in the Climate Convention must be interpreted and specified. It may seem impossible to agree upon a long-term goal. But the clarity it provides will be very useful. It will be a guide for short-term goals and a reference for evaluation of success

25 CFR 502.5 - Collateral agreement.

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2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Collateral agreement. 502.5 Section 502.5 Indians NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR GENERAL PROVISIONS DEFINITIONS OF THIS CHAPTER § 502.5 Collateral agreement. Collateral agreement means any contract, whether or not in writing...

75 FR 76729 - Market Access Agreement

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2010-12-09

... FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION Market Access Agreement AGENCY: Farm Credit Administration. ACTION: Notice of approval of the draft amendment to the amended and restated market access agreement. SUMMARY... Credit Bank of Wichita and the Western Farm Credit Bank under Section 7.12 of the Market Access Agreement...

43 CFR 24.5 - International agreements.

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2010-10-01

... WILDLIFE POLICY: STATE-FEDERAL RELATIONSHIPS § 24.5 International agreements. (a) International conventions... 43 Public Lands: Interior 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false International agreements. 24.5 Section 24... shall be to recommend that the United States negotiate and accede to only those international agreements...

A prospective study assessing agreement and reliability of a geriatric evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Locatelli, Isabella; Monod, Stéfanie; Cornuz, Jacques; Büla, Christophe J; Senn, Nicolas

2017-07-19

The present study takes place within a geriatric program, aiming at improving the diagnosis and management of geriatric syndromes in primary care. Within this program it was of prime importance to be able to rely on a robust and reproducible geriatric consultation to use as a gold standard for evaluating a primary care brief assessment tool. The specific objective of the present study was thus assessing the agreement and reliability of a comprehensive geriatric consultation. The study was conducted at the outpatient clinic of the Service of Geriatric Medicine, University of Lausanne, Switzerland. All community-dwelling older persons aged 70 years and above were eligible. Patients were excluded if they hadn't a primary care physician, they were unable to speak French, or they were already assessed by a geriatrician within the last 12 months. A set of 9 geriatricians evaluated 20 patients. Each patient was assessed twice within a 2-month delay. Geriatric consultations were based on a structured evaluation process, leading to rating the following geriatric conditions: functional, cognitive, visual, and hearing impairment, mood disorders, risk of fall, osteoporosis, malnutrition, and urinary incontinence. Reliability and agreement estimates on each of these items were obtained using a three-way Intraclass Correlation and a three-way Observed Disagreement index. The latter allowed a decomposition of overall disagreement into disagreements due to each source of error variability (visit, rater and random). Agreement ranged between 0.62 and 0.85. For most domains, geriatrician-related error variability explained an important proportion of disagreement. Reliability ranged between 0 and 0.8. It was poor/moderate for visual impairment, malnutrition and risk of fall, and good/excellent for functional/cognitive/hearing impairment, osteoporosis, incontinence and mood disorders. Six out of nine items of the geriatric consultation described in this study (functional

Agreement between gonioscopy and ultrasound biomicroscopy in detecting iridotrabecular apposition.

Science.gov (United States)

Barkana, Yaniv; Dorairaj, Syril K; Gerber, Yariv; Liebmann, Jeffrey M; Ritch, Robert

2007-10-01

To assess the agreement between findings obtained at dark-room gonioscopy and ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) in the diagnosis of iridotrabecular apposition in light and dark conditions. We enrolled patients with appositional angle closure at dark-room gonioscopy performed using a 1-mm slitlamp beam that did not cross the pupil. Ultrasound biomicroscopic images were acquired in normal room light and subsequently with all room lights off. Images were evaluated for the presence or absence of iris-cornea contact. The angle opening distance at 500 microm was calculated. Iridotrabecular apposition in at least 1 angle quadrant was demonstrated in all 18 eyes at dark-room gonioscopy, 17 eyes (94%) at dark-room UBM, and only 10 eyes (56%) at UBM in room light. Of 18 superior angles that were appositionally closed at dark-room gonioscopy, apposition was demonstrated on UBM images in 16 (89%) in a dark room but only 6 (33%) in room light. Angle opening distance was less during dark-room gonioscopy in all but the nasal quadrant. We found high agreement between gonioscopy and UBM when both are performed in a completely dark room. Our findings support the recommendation that, in routine clinical practice, gonioscopy be performed in a dark room to avoid misdiagnosis of treatable iridotrabecular apposition.

Agreement Between Serology and Histology for Detection of Helicobacter pylori Infection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iqbal, S.; Fatima, S.; Raheem, A.; Khan, A. H.

2013-01-01

Objective: To determine the percentage agreement between serology and histology for detection of Helicobacter (H.) pylori infection. Study Design: Cross-sectional analytical study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Pathology and Microbiology, The Aga Khan University and Hospital, Karachi, from January to December 2009. Methodology: Fifty subjects were selected by non-probability purposive sampling from laboratory data who had serological testing of H. pylori IgG antibody, prior to histological evaluation of endoscopic gastric or/and duodenal biopsies. Serological Quantification of H. pylori IgG was carried out with HpG screen ELISA kit (Genesis Diagnostics, UK), using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for detection of IgG antibodies against H. pylori. Manufacturer's recommended cutoff value was used and results were considered positive when greater than 7 U/ml. For histological diagnosis, an expert histopathologist characterized the presence of spiral bacteria in the mucosal layer or the surface of epithelial cells on microscopic examination, as a positive test. Results: An agreement of 0.72 was found by Kappa statistics between serology and histopathology results and a good diagnostic accuracy (86%) of serological testing was observed for the diagnosis of H. pylori infection. Conclusion: A substantial agreement was found between serology and histopathology results to detect the H. pylori infection. Laboratory-based serologic testing using ELISA technology to detect IgG antibodies is inexpensive, noninvasive and convenient method to detect the H. pylori infection in primary care setting. (author)

SPSS Macros for Assessing the Reliability and Agreement of Student Evaluations of Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Morley, Donald D.

2009-01-01

This article reports and demonstrates two SPSS macros for calculating Krippendorff's alpha and intraclass reliability coefficients in repetitive situations where numerous coefficients are needed. Specifically, the reported SPSS macros were used to evaluate the interrater agreement and reliability of student evaluations of teaching in thousands of…

76 FR 63618 - Notice of Agreements Filed

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2011-10-13

...; Washington, DC 20036. Synopsis: The amendment removes Korea from the geographic scope of them agreement and... geographic scope of the Agreement to include Taiwan. The parties requested expedited review. Agreement No... and Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore. Agreement No.: 012138. Title: CSAV/CCNI...

22 CFR 120.23 - Distribution agreement.

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2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Distribution agreement. 120.23 Section 120.23... § 120.23 Distribution agreement. An agreement (e.g., a contract) to establish a warehouse or distribution point abroad for defense articles exported from the United States for subsequent distribution to...

Novel Multi-Party Quantum Key Agreement Protocol with G-Like States and Bell States

Science.gov (United States)

Min, Shi-Qi; Chen, Hua-Ying; Gong, Li-Hua

2018-06-01

A significant aspect of quantum cryptography is quantum key agreement (QKA), which ensures the security of key agreement protocols by quantum information theory. The fairness of an absolute security multi-party quantum key agreement (MQKA) protocol demands that all participants can affect the protocol result equally so as to establish a shared key and that nobody can determine the shared key by himself/herself. We found that it is difficult for the existing multi-party quantum key agreement protocol to withstand the collusion attacks. Put differently, it is possible for several cooperated and untruthful participants to determine the final key without being detected. To address this issue, based on the entanglement swapping between G-like state and Bell states, a new multi-party quantum key agreement protocol is put forward. The proposed protocol makes full use of EPR pairs as quantum resources, and adopts Bell measurement and unitary operation to share a secret key. Besides, the proposed protocol is fair, secure and efficient without involving a third party quantum center. It demonstrates that the protocol is capable of protecting users' privacy and meeting the requirement of fairness. Moreover, it is feasible to carry out the protocol with existing technologies.

Novel Multi-Party Quantum Key Agreement Protocol with G-Like States and Bell States

Science.gov (United States)

Min, Shi-Qi; Chen, Hua-Ying; Gong, Li-Hua

2018-03-01

A significant aspect of quantum cryptography is quantum key agreement (QKA), which ensures the security of key agreement protocols by quantum information theory. The fairness of an absolute security multi-party quantum key agreement (MQKA) protocol demands that all participants can affect the protocol result equally so as to establish a shared key and that nobody can determine the shared key by himself/herself. We found that it is difficult for the existing multi-party quantum key agreement protocol to withstand the collusion attacks. Put differently, it is possible for several cooperated and untruthful participants to determine the final key without being detected. To address this issue, based on the entanglement swapping between G-like state and Bell states, a new multi-party quantum key agreement protocol is put forward. The proposed protocol makes full use of EPR pairs as quantum resources, and adopts Bell measurement and unitary operation to share a secret key. Besides, the proposed protocol is fair, secure and efficient without involving a third party quantum center. It demonstrates that the protocol is capable of protecting users' privacy and meeting the requirement of fairness. Moreover, it is feasible to carry out the protocol with existing technologies.

Recognising `good at mathematics': using a performative lens for identity

Science.gov (United States)

Darragh, Lisa

2015-03-01

Many students do not recognise in themselves positive learner identities in mathematics and thus exclude themselves from further mathematics education, limiting their life opportunities. In this study, I use a performance metaphor for identity, drawing on G.H. Mead, Erving Goffman and Judith Butler to analyse interviews with students, taken at four time points as they make the transition from primary to secondary school. The question I focus on is `How do you recognise someone who is "good at mathematics"?' The students' responses reveal that there is a wide variety of scripts available when enacting the role of `good at mathematics', and these include getting high marks, knowing the answer quickly, helping others and demonstrating the confidence to put up their hand to answer questions. Despite the variety of ways in which to demonstrate `good at mathematics', most of the students did not recognise themselves in their own descriptions. This goes some way towards explaining why students may opt out of further study in mathematics, despite high achievement in this subject.

Good Looking Is Looking Good / Märt Milter

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Milter, Märt

1998-01-01

Meloodilist drum ǹ̀bassi viljelevatest välismaa plaadifirmadest Good Looking Recordsist ja Looking Good Recordsist, mida juhib LTJ Bukem ja temaga koostööd tegevatest muusikutest Blame, Seba, Tayla, MC Conrad, Artemis

Inter-rater agreement on PIVC-associated phlebitis signs, symptoms and scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Marsh, Nicole; Mihala, Gabor; Ray-Barruel, Gillian; Webster, Joan; Wallis, Marianne C; Rickard, Claire M

2015-10-01

Many peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC) infusion phlebitis scales and definitions are used internationally, although no existing scale has demonstrated comprehensive reliability and validity. We examined inter-rater agreement between registered nurses on signs, symptoms and scales commonly used in phlebitis assessment. Seven PIVC-associated phlebitis signs/symptoms (pain, tenderness, swelling, erythema, palpable venous cord, purulent discharge and warmth) were observed daily by two raters (a research nurse and registered nurse). These data were modelled into phlebitis scores using 10 different tools. Proportions of agreement (e.g. positive, negative), observed and expected agreements, Cohen's kappa, the maximum achievable kappa, prevalence- and bias-adjusted kappa were calculated. Two hundred ten patients were recruited across three hospitals, with 247 sets of paired observations undertaken. The second rater was blinded to the first's findings. The Catney and Rittenberg scales were the most sensitive (phlebitis in >20% of observations), whereas the Curran, Lanbeck and Rickard scales were the most restrictive (≤2% phlebitis). Only tenderness and the Catney (one of pain, tenderness, erythema or palpable cord) and Rittenberg scales (one of erythema, swelling, tenderness or pain) had acceptable (more than two-thirds, 66.7%) levels of inter-rater agreement. Inter-rater agreement for phlebitis assessment signs/symptoms and scales is low. This likely contributes to the high degree of variability in phlebitis rates in literature. We recommend further research into assessment of infrequent signs/symptoms and the Catney or Rittenberg scales. New approaches to evaluating vein irritation that are valid, reliable and based on their ability to predict complications need exploration. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Agreement processing and attraction errors in aging: evidence from subject-verb agreement in German.

Science.gov (United States)

Reifegerste, Jana; Hauer, Franziska; Felser, Claudia

2017-11-01

Effects of aging on lexical processing are well attested, but the picture is less clear for grammatical processing. Where age differences emerge, these are usually ascribed to working-memory (WM) decline. Previous studies on the influence of WM on agreement computation have yielded inconclusive results, and work on aging and subject-verb agreement processing is lacking. In two experiments (Experiment 1: timed grammaticality judgment, Experiment 2: self-paced reading + WM test), we investigated older (OA) and younger (YA) adults' susceptibility to agreement attraction errors. We found longer reading latencies and judgment reaction times (RTs) for OAs. Further, OAs, particularly those with low WM scores, were more accepting of sentences with attraction errors than YAs. OAs showed longer reading latencies for ungrammatical sentences, again modulated by WM, than YAs. Our results indicate that OAs have greater difficulty blocking intervening nouns from interfering with the computation of agreement dependencies. WM can modulate this effect.

Vienna Agreement law 15.986 it approve Vienna Agreement for Protection ozone layer and annex

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

The Agreement of Vienna is approved with respect to the protection of the Layer of Ozono, definitions,general duties, research and observations systematics, co-operation in the Spheres Scientific Juridical, and information, Technological Conference, transmission from the protocols, amends, secretariat, adoption to the agreement or the protocols, adoption and amendment of controversy, signing, ratify, approve annexes, solution or vote, relation approving, adhesion, rights between the present agreement and its protocols, entrance in vigor, reserves, retirement, deposition, exchange of information [es

Performance analysis of an optical self-interference cancellation system with a directly modulated laser-based demonstration.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Yinghong; Zhang, Yunhao; Huang, Lin; Xiao, Shilin

2018-02-20

In this paper, two main performance indices of the optical self-interference cancellation (OSIC) system are theoretically analyzed: cancellation bandwidth and depth. Delay deviation is investigated to be the determining factor of cancellation bandwidth, based on which the bandwidth advantage of the OSIC system over electrical schemes is also proven theoretically. Cancellation depth in the narrowband is mostly influenced by attenuation and delay-adjusting deviation, while in the broadband case, the performance is mostly limited by frequency-dependent amplitude and phase mismatch. The cancellation performance analysis is suitable for most linear modulation-demodulation OSIC systems, including the directly modulated laser (DML)-based OSIC system verified experimentally in this paper. The cancellation model is well demonstrated by the agreement between experimental cancellation results and predicted performance. For over-the-air demonstration with the employment of antennas, broadband cancellation within 450 MHz bandwidth of 22 dB and 25 dB is achieved at 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz, respectively. In addition, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing signals are employed to show in-band full-duplex transmission with good performance by the DML-based OSIC system, with successful suppression of self-interference and recovery of the signal of interest.

76 FR 553 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-05

... obsolete language on the duration of Agreement, and changes the name and restates the Agreement. By Order... agreement's governing board and would update the corporate addresses of American President Lines, Ltd.; APL.... as a party to the agreement and updates the corporate addresses of American President Lines, Ltd...

The quid-pro-quo of environmental agreements: Reflections on industrial energy efficiency agreements from five countries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Helby, Peter

2001-10-01

This workshop paper reflects on the exchange of values between the government side and the business side, which is a core logic of environmental agreements. The reflections refer to case studies of industrial energy efficiency agreements from Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands and Sweden, originating from the VAIE project (Voluntary Agreements, Implementation and Efficiency). The government bargaining chips discussed are monetary rewards, help to gain competitive advantage, regulatory flexibility and political protection. The business side bargaining chips are emission limits, organisational change, investments, information, submission to control and political pain reduction. The discussion underlines the need for substantial commitments by the government side, as a precondition for achieving effective agreements.

Emerging good practices for Translatability Assessment (TA) of Patient-Reported Outcome (PRO) measures.

Science.gov (United States)

Acquadro, Catherine; Patrick, Donald L; Eremenco, Sonya; Martin, Mona L; Kuliś, Dagmara; Correia, Helena; Conway, Katrin

2017-01-01

This paper presents emerging Good Practices for Translatability Assessment (TA) of Patient-Reported Outcome (PRO) Measures. The ISOQOL Translation and Cultural Adaptation Special Interest Group (TCA-SIG) undertook the review of several TA approaches, with the collaboration of organizations who are involved in conducting TA, and members of the TCA-SIG. The effort led to agreement by the writing group on Good Practices for 1) the terminology to be used in referring to translatability process, 2) the best definition of TA, 3) the methodology that is recommended at each step of the process, 4) the persons involved in TA, 5) the timing of assessment, 6) the review criteria for TA, and 7) the recommendations to be made at the end of the TA process. With input from the TCA-SIG membership and in consultation with experts in the field, these emerging good practices can guide the future use of TA in the development of PROs.

MULTILATERAL ENVIRONMENTAL AGREEMENTS AND THE TRADE MEASURES CONTAINED IN THESE AGREEMENTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Margareta Timbur

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The environmental problems which the society is facing, ozone depletion, biodiversity loss, the spread of persistent organic pollutants, are a result of human activity with a worldwide impact, requiring immediate resolution. In this context, negotiation, signing and implementation of several multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs are one of the best solutions, affordable and reliable. The aim of this study is to analyze the commercial measures, which to some extent, ensure stability, security, and expansion of MEAs. The paper discusses, also, the efficiency, necessity and the influences of trade measures in MEAs and the WTO role in signing these agreements.

Agreement among Goldmann applanation tonometer, iCare, and Icare PRO rebound tonometers; non-contact tonometer; and Tonopen XL in healthy elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, Yoshitake; Nakakura, Shunsuke; Matsuo, Naoko; Yoshitomi, Kayo; Handa, Marina; Tabuchi, Hitoshi; Kiuchi, Yoshiaki

2018-04-01

To evaluate the inter-device agreement among the Goldmann applanation tonometer (GAT), iCare and Icare PRO rebound tonometers, non-contact tonometer (NCT), and Tonopen XL tonometer. Sixty healthy elderly subjects were enrolled. The intraocular pressure (IOP) in each subject's right eye was measured thrice using each of the five tonometers. Intra-device agreement was evaluated by calculating intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs). Inter-device agreement was evaluated by ICC and Bland-Altman analyses. ICCs for intra-device agreement for each tonometer were >0.8. IOP as measured by iCare (mean ± SD, 11.6 ± 2.5 mmHg) was significantly lower (p tonometers (all ICCs tonometers ranged from 14.94 to 16.47 mmHg. Among the other tonometers, however, the widths of 95% limits of agreement ranged from 7.91 to 9.24 mmHg. There was good inter-device agreement among GAT, rebound tonometers, and NCT. Tonopen XL shows the worst agreement with the other tonometers; therefore, we should pay attention to its' respective IOP. Japan Clinical Trials Register; number: UMIN000011544.

77 FR 42310 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-18

...; Washington, DC 20006-4007. Synopsis: The agreement would provide for delivery of data to the Port of Oakland... delivery. Agreement No.: 201217. Title: Port of Long Beach Data Services Agreement. Parties: Port of Long... 1100; Washington, DC 20006-4007. Synopsis: The agreement would provide for delivery of data to the Port...

Client/consultant model services agreement

CERN Document Server

International Federation of Consulting Engineers

2006-01-01

The terms of the Client Consultant Model Services agreement (The White Book) have been prepared by the Fédération Internationale des Ingénieurs-Conseils (FIDIC) and are recommended for general use for the purposes of pre-investment and feasibility studies, designs and administration of construction and project management, where proposals for such services are invited on an international basis. They are equally adaptable for domestic agreements. - See more at: http://fidic.org/books/clientconsultant-model-services-agreement-4th-ed-2006-white-book#sthash.3Uxy5qT3.dpuf

Evaluation of agreement between transvaginal ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging of the pelvis in deep endometriosis with emphasis on intestinal involvement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cardoso, Maene Marcondes; Coutinho Junior, Antonio Carlos; Domingues, Marisa Nassar Aidar; Werner Junior, Heron

2009-01-01

Objective: To compare sonographic and magnetic resonance imaging findings in deep endometriosis with emphasis on intestinal involvement. Materials and methods: Eighteen women aged between 23 and 49 years with clinical suspicion and gynecological signs suggestive of deep endometriosis were submitted to ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging for correlation between findings. Results: Ultrasonography detected 40 lesions while magnetic resonance imaging detected 53 lesions in the pelvis. A comparative study has not shown any statistically significant intermethod difference in the detection of lesions (respectively p > 0.19 and p > 0.14). In the rectosigmoid junction, magnetic resonance imaging has detected one (5.6%) lesion, while ultrasonography has detected four lesions (22.2%). In the rectum, ultrasonography has detected eight lesions (44.4%), and magnetic resonance imaging has detected seven lesions (38.9%). Conclusion: The intermethod agreement has not been good for lesions in the rectosigmoid junction, considering that ultrasonography has detected a higher number of lesions in this region, but a lower number of lesions in the pelvis as compared with magnetic resonance imaging. The global comparative analysis has demonstrated no statistically significant intermethod difference in the detection of lesions. Low cost, good tolerability and high availability make ultrasonography a valuable diagnostic tool in cases of deep endometriosis. (author)

[Innovative medicines and market access agreements].

Science.gov (United States)

Toumi, M; Zard, J; Duvillard, R; Jommi, C

2013-09-01

Market Access Agreements (MAA) for drugs have emerged in response to the need to control health expenditures, as well as to the uncertainty about the true benefit of a drug. It is possible to group MAA in two types of agreements: financial agreements and outcome-based agreements. MAA is a growing trend and is shifting towards conditional access. However, the willingness to use these contracts and their implementation differ across countries, and some are still resistant to put them in place. The MAA challenges to overcome encompass the complexity of the schemes, the administrative burden and the difficulty of evaluating MAA. It is likely that these agreements might experience further evolution in the future to become a faster pathway for therapeutic innovations, at a fair price. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

23 CFR 140.606 - Project agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... Reimbursement for Bond Issue Projects § 140.606 Project agreements. Project Agreements, Form PR-2, shall be... 23 Highways 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Project agreements. 140.606 Section 140.606 Highways... projects. 1 The text of FHWA Form PR-2 is found in 23 CFR part 630, subpart C, appendix A. ...

14 CFR 1274.909 - Term of agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... Agreement, which, by their express terms or by necessary implication, apply for periods of time other than... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Term of agreement. 1274.909 Section 1274... COMMERCIAL FIRMS Other Provisions and Special Conditions § 1274.909 Term of agreement. Term of Agreement July...

Analysis of international negotiations and trade agreements

OpenAIRE

Górriz Gonzalo, Verónica

2014-01-01

This study aims to analyze international trade agreements and negotiations. For that purpose, two agreements made by the United States are chosen to be analyzed. In the first place, the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) agreement, that was signed by the United States, Canada and Mexico in 1994 in order to create a free trade area. In addition, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) will be analyze, an agreement that is still being negotiated between the United Stat...

Good News in Bad News: How Negativity Enhances Economic Efficacy

OpenAIRE

Svensson, H.M.; Albæk, E.; van Dalen, A.; de Vreese, C.

2017-01-01

Negativity is a news ideology, and its negative effects on attitude formation are widely documented. Contrary to this view, the present study demonstrates that negative economic news can in fact be good news. Based on a two-wave national panel survey and a media content analysis, we show that individual exposure to negative economic news enhances internal economic efficacy, a sense of competence in and understanding of the economy. This is good news as internal economic efficacy may facilitat...

Safeguards agreements - Their legal and conceptual basis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanders, B.; Rainer, R.H.

1977-01-01

The application of Agency safeguards requires treaty arrangements (Safeguards Agreements) between the State or States concerned and the Agency. The authority for the Agency to conclude such agreements and to implement them is provided for in the Agency's Statute. On the basis of the statutory provisions safeguards principles and procedures have been elaborated. These have been laid down in: The Agency's Safeguards System 1965, extended in 1966 and 1968; and the basis for negotiating safeguards agreements with NNWS pursuant to NPT. The verification of the undertaking by the State concerned not to use items subject to safeguards for purposes contrary to the terms of the agreement is ensured through the application of various safeguards measures. Containment and surveillance measures are expected to play an increasingly important role. One of the specific features of NPT Safeguards Agreements is the establishment of national systems of accounting and control of nuclear material. The majority of the agreements concluded under the non-NPT safeguards agreements implement obligations undertaken under co-operation agreements between States for peaceful uses of nuclear energy. These agreements naturally reflect approaches adopted by the parties, in particular regarding the circumstances under which safeguards should be applied. Thus, the concepts used in the non-NPT safeguards agreements and the Safeguards System document, which is incorporated in these agreements by reference, are in continuous evolution. The Agency's Safeguards System document (INFCIRC/66/Rev.2) continues to be supplemented in practical application and through explicit decision by the Board. The non-NPT safeguards agreements contain, besides technical safeguards provisions from this document, and further provision for notification, inventories and financial matters, legal and political provisions such as sanctions in the case of non-compliance, and privileges and immunities. The paper discusses the

Thermal performance test of hot gas ducts of helium engineering demonstration loop (HENDEL)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hishida, Makoto; Kunitomi, Kazuhiko; Ioka, Ikuo; Umenishi, Koji; Kondo, Yasuo; Tanaka, Toshiyuki; Shimomura, Hiroaki

1984-01-01

A hot gas duct provided with internal thermal insulation is supposed to be used for an experimental very high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (VHTR) which has been developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI). This type of hot gas duct has not been used so far in industrial facilities, and only a couple of tests on such a large-scale model of hot gas duct have been conducted. The present test was to investigate the thermal performance of the hot gas ducts which are installed as parts of a helium engineering demonstration loop (HENDEL) of JAERI. Uniform temperature and heat flux distributions at the surface of the duct were observed, the experimental correlation being obtained for the effective thermal conductivity of the internal thermal insulation layer. The measured temperature distribution of the pressure tube was in good agreement with the calculation by a TRUMP heat transfer computer code. The temperature distribution of the inner tube of VHTR hot gas duct was evaluated, and no hot spot was detected. These results would be very valuable for the design and development of VHTR. (author)

The Text of the Fifth Agreement to Extend the 1987 Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology (RCA). Extension of Agreement. Latest Status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-01-01

The Text of the Fifth Agreement to Extend the 1987 Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology (RCA). Extension of Agreement. Latest Status [es

Intraobserver and interobserver agreement on the radiographical diagnosis of canine cranial cruciate ligament rupture.

Science.gov (United States)

Bogaerts, Evelien; Van der Vekens, Elke; Verhoeven, Geert; de Rooster, Hilde; Van Ryssen, Bernadette; Samoy, Yves; Putcuyps, Ingrid; Van Tilburg, Johan; Devriendt, Nausikaa; Weekers, Frederik; Bertal, Mileva; Houdellier, Blandine; Scheemaeker, Stephanie; Versteken, Jeroen; Lamerand, Maryline; Feenstra, Laurien; Peelman, Luc; Nieuwerburgh, Filip Van; Saunders, Jimmy H; Broeckx, Bart J G

2018-04-28

Even though radiography is one of the most frequently used imaging techniques for orthopaedic disorders, it has been demonstrated that the interpretation can vary between assessors. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine the intraobserver and interobserver agreement and the influence of level of expertise on the interpretation of radiographs of the stifle in dogs with and without cranial cruciate ligament rupture (CCLR). Sixteen observers, divided in four groups according to their level of experience, evaluated 30 radiographs (15 cases with CCLR and 15 control stifles) twice. Each observer was asked to evaluate joint effusion, presence and location of degenerative joint disease, joint instability and whether CCLR was present or absent. Overall, intraobserver and interobserver agreement ranged from fair to almost perfect with a trend towards increased agreement for more experienced observers. Additionally, it was found that stifles that were classified with high agreement have either overt disease characteristics or no disease characteristics at all, in comparison to the ones that are classified with a low agreement. Overall, the agreement on radiographic interpretation of CCLR was high, which is important, as it is the basis of a correct diagnosis and treatment. © British Veterinary Association (unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Evaluating the agreement between tumour volumetry and the estimated volumes of tumour lesions using an algorithm

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laubender, Ruediger P. [German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Heidelberg (Germany); University Hospital Munich - Campus Grosshadern, Institute of Medical Informatics, Biometry, and Epidemiology (IBE), Munich (Germany); German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg (Germany); Lynghjem, Julia; D' Anastasi, Melvin; Graser, Anno [University Hospital Munich - Campus Grosshadern, Institute for Clinical Radiology, Munich (Germany); Heinemann, Volker; Modest, Dominik P. [University Hospital Munich - Campus Grosshadern, Department of Medical Oncology, Munich (Germany); Mansmann, Ulrich R. [University Hospital Munich - Campus Grosshadern, Institute of Medical Informatics, Biometry, and Epidemiology (IBE), Munich (Germany); Sartorius, Ute; Schlichting, Michael [Merck KGaA, Darmstadt (Germany)

2014-07-15

To evaluate the agreement between tumour volume derived from semiautomated volumetry (SaV) and tumor volume defined by spherical volume using longest lesion diameter (LD) according to Response Evaluation Criteria In Solid Tumors (RECIST) or ellipsoid volume using LD and longest orthogonal diameter (LOD) according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Twenty patients with metastatic colorectal cancer from the CIOX trial were included. A total of 151 target lesions were defined by baseline computed tomography and followed until disease progression. All assessments were performed by a single reader. A variance component model was used to compare the three volume versions. There was a significant difference between the SaV and RECIST-based tumour volumes. The same model showed no significant difference between the SaV and WHO-based volumes. Scatter plots showed that the RECIST-based volumes overestimate lesion volume. The agreement between the SaV and WHO-based relative changes in tumour volume, evaluated by intraclass correlation, showed nearly perfect agreement. Estimating the volume of metastatic lesions using both the LD and LOD (WHO) is more accurate than those based on LD only (RECIST), which overestimates lesion volume. The good agreement between the SaV and WHO-based relative changes in tumour volume enables a reasonable approximation of three-dimensional tumour burden. (orig.)

Poor-to-moderate agreement between self and proxy interviews of mobile phone use.

Science.gov (United States)

Hutter, Hans-Peter; Ehrenhöfer, Lisa; Freuis, Edith; Hartl, Patrik; Kundi, Michael

2012-10-01

In epidemiological studies, cases cannot always be interviewed due to them being too ill or already deceased. Under these circumstances, proxy interviews are often conducted; however, the veridicality of information about mobile phone use gained by proxy interviews has been doubted. The issue is undecided due to the lack of empirical data. We conducted a study of 119 heterosexual couples. Both partners answered two questionnaires about mobile phone use, one about their own use and one about their partner's use. Overall agreement assessed using Cohen's kappa, Passing and Bablok regression, and concordance coefficients between self and proxy data was poor to moderate (e.g., concordance coefficients of 0.55 for duration of use). The only item with good agreement was whether or not a prepaid phone was used (Cohen's kappa 0.78 and 0.63 for male and female estimates, respectively), and to a lesser degree, the onset of mobile phone use (concordance coefficients of 0.66 and 0.61). Poorest agreement was obtained for the side of the head the mobile phone was held during calls (kappa coefficients of 0.20 and 0.24 for female and male estimates, respectively). We conclude that the assessment of mobile phone use by proxy data cannot be relied on except for information about onset of mobile phone use, use of prepaid or contract phones, and, to a lesser degree, duration of daily use. Agreement concerning the important information about side of the head the mobile phone is held during calls was poorest and only slightly better than chance. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Radioactive waste incineration system cold demonstration test

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hozumi, Masahiro; Takaoku, Yoshinobu; Koyama, Shigeru; Nagae, Madoka; Seike, Yasuhiko; Yamanaka, Yasuhiro; Shibata, Kenji; Manabe, Kyoichi

1984-12-01

To demonstrate Waste Incineration System (WIS) which our company has been licensed by Combustion Engineering Inc., USA we installed a demonstration test plant in our Hiratsuka Research Laboratory and started the demonstration test on January 1984. One of the characteristics of this system is to be able to process many kinds of wastes with only one system, and to get high volume reduction factors. In our test plant, we processed paper, cloth, wood, polyethylene sheets as the samples of solid combustible wastes and spent ion exchange resins with incineration and processed condensed liquid wastes with spray drying. We have got good performances and enough Decontamination Factor (DF) data for the dust control equipment. In this paper, we introduce this demonstration test plant and report the test results up to date. (author).

Bioenergy good practice

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Birse, J.; Chambers, K.

2000-07-01

This report gives details of a project to make the Good Practice Guidelines, which were developed to help the UK Bioenergy industry, the national and local governments, and the public, more widely available. Details concerning the designing of a Good Practice Programme, and the proposed codes of Good Practice programme are given, and general relevant good practice guidance documents are discussed. The stakeholder survey and workshop, and the proposed codes of a Good Practice Programme are presented in Annexes. (UK)

Demonstration of short-range wind lidar in a high-performance wind tunnel

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Anders Tegtmeier; Montes, Belen Fernández; Pedersen, Jens Engholm

2012-01-01

-speed regimes very good correlation with reference measurements was found. Furthermore different staring directions were tested and taking a simple geometrical correction into account very good correlation was again found. These measurements all demonstrate the high accuracy of the lidar and indicate a possible...

23 CFR 630.110 - Modification of original agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 23 Highways 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Modification of original agreement. 630.110 Section 630... OPERATIONS PRECONSTRUCTION PROCEDURES Project Authorization and Agreements § 630.110 Modification of original agreement. (a) When changes are needed to the original project agreement, a modification of agreement shall...

78 FR 35270 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-12

... Russia from the geographic scope of the agreement. Agreement No.: 012210. Title: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS/Eukor Car Carriers Inc. Space Charter Agreement. Parties: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS and Eukor...

76 FR 16420 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-23

.... Title: Hanjin and WHS Transpacific Vessel Sharing and Slot Allocation Agreement. Parties: Hanjin... amendment would add COSCON as a party to the Agreement and revise the name of the Agreement to Hanjin/WHS...

A Monte Carlo-adjusted goodness-of-fit test for parametric models describing spatial point patterns

KAUST Repository

Dao, Ngocanh

2014-04-03

Assessing the goodness-of-fit (GOF) for intricate parametric spatial point process models is important for many application fields. When the probability density of the statistic of the GOF test is intractable, a commonly used procedure is the Monte Carlo GOF test. Additionally, if the data comprise a single dataset, a popular version of the test plugs a parameter estimate in the hypothesized parametric model to generate data for theMonte Carlo GOF test. In this case, the test is invalid because the resulting empirical level does not reach the nominal level. In this article, we propose a method consisting of nested Monte Carlo simulations which has the following advantages: the bias of the resulting empirical level of the test is eliminated, hence the empirical levels can always reach the nominal level, and information about inhomogeneity of the data can be provided.We theoretically justify our testing procedure using Taylor expansions and demonstrate that it is correctly sized through various simulation studies. In our first data application, we discover, in agreement with Illian et al., that Phlebocarya filifolia plants near Perth, Australia, can follow a homogeneous Poisson clustered process that provides insight into the propagation mechanism of these plants. In our second data application, we find, in contrast to Diggle, that a pairwise interaction model provides a good fit to the micro-anatomy data of amacrine cells designed for analyzing the developmental growth of immature retina cells in rabbits. This article has supplementary material online. © 2013 American Statistical Association, Institute of Mathematical Statistics, and Interface Foundation of North America.

Modulation of cavity-polaritons by surface acoustic waves

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Lima, M. M.; Poel, Mike van der; Hey, R.

2006-01-01

We modulate cavity-polaritons using surface acoustic waves. The corresponding formation of a mini-Brillouin zone and band folding of the polariton dispersion is demonstrated for the first time. Results are in good agreement with model calculations.......We modulate cavity-polaritons using surface acoustic waves. The corresponding formation of a mini-Brillouin zone and band folding of the polariton dispersion is demonstrated for the first time. Results are in good agreement with model calculations....

The Text of a Safeguards Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Japan and Australia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1973-01-26

The text of a Safeguards Agreement between the Agency, Japan and Australia relating to the agreement of 21 February 1972 between the two Governments for co-operation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members.

Safeguards agreements - their legal and conceptual basis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanders, B.; Rainer, R.

1977-01-01

The application of Agency safeguards requires treaty arrangements (''Safeguards Agreements'') between the State or States concerned and the Agency. The authority for the Agency to conclude such agreements and to implement them is provided for in the Agency's Statute (Articles II, III A.5 and XII). On the basis of the statutory provisions safeguards principles and procedures have been elaborated. These have been laid down in: (a) The Agency's Safeguards System 1965, extended in 1966 and 1968 (INFCIRC/66/Rev.2); and (b) The basis for negotiating safeguards agreements with NNWS pursuant to NPT (INFCIRC/153). The verification of the undertaking by the State concerned not to use items subject to safeguards for purposes contrary to the terms of the agreement is verified through the application of various safeguards measures (design review, records, reports and inspection). Containment and surveillance measures are expected to play an increasingly important role. NPT Safeguards Agreements foresee as one of their specific features the establishment of national systems of accounting and control of nuclear material. The majority of the agreements concluded under document INFCIRC/66/Rev.2 - i.e. the non-NPT safeguards agreements - implement obligations undertaken under co-operation agreements between States for peaceful uses of nuclear energy. These agreements naturally reflect approaches adopted by the parties, in particular as to the circumstances under which safeguards should be applied. Thus, the concepts used in the non-NPT safeguards agreements and the safeguards system of document INFCIRC/66/Rev.2 which is incorporated in these agreements by reference are in continuous evolution. Document INFCIRC/66/Rev.2 continues to be supplemented in practical application and through explicit decision by the Board. The non-NPT safeguards agreements contain, besides technical safeguards provisions from document INFCIRC/66/Rev.2, and further provision for notification, inventories

LHC Report: machine commissioning - looking good

CERN Document Server

CERN Bulletin

2016-01-01

Since first beam was injected on Friday, 25 March, the recommissioning of the LHC has made good progress.   An event display showing the first collisions after the 2015 year-end technical stop as seen by the CMS experiment. At present, work is being performed with either probe bunches (around 1010 protons per bunch) or single nominal bunches (1.1 x 1011 protons per bunch). This procedure is intended to ensure safe operation before full qualification of the machine protection set-up. Beam has been taken up the ramp to 6.5 TeV and through the squeeze to the planned 2016 operating scenario. The optics (i.e. the global focusing properties of the whole ring) have been measured and corrected to an unprecedented level: there is now excellent agreement between the machine model and the actual LHC. Some preliminary measurements of the global aperture have been performed and there are no apparent bottlenecks. The position of the ULO (Unidentified Lying Object) had been probed and it is in a similar positio...

Gender Agreement Attraction in Russian: Production and Comprehension Evidence.

Science.gov (United States)

Slioussar, Natalia; Malko, Anton

2016-01-01

Agreement attraction errors (such as the number error in the example "The key to the cabinets are rusty") have been the object of many studies in the last 20 years. So far, almost all production experiments and all comprehension experiments looked at binary features (primarily at number in Germanic, Romance, and some other languages, in several cases at gender in Romance languages). Among other things, it was noted that both in production and in comprehension, attraction effects are much stronger for some feature combinations than for the others: they can be observed in the sentences with singular heads and plural dependent nouns (e.g.,"The key to the cabinets…"), but not in the sentences with plural heads and singular dependent nouns (e.g., "The keys to the cabinet…"). Almost all proposed explanations of this asymmetry appeal to feature markedness, but existing findings do not allow teasing different approaches to markedness apart. We report the results of four experiments (one on production and three on comprehension) studying subject-verb gender agreement in Russian, a language with three genders. Firstly, we found attraction effects both in production and in comprehension, but, unlike in the case of number agreement, they were not parallel (in production, feminine gender triggered strongest effects, while neuter triggered weakest effects, while in comprehension, masculine triggered weakest effects). Secondly, in the comprehension experiments attraction was observed for all dependent noun genders, but only for a subset of head noun genders. This goes against the traditional assumption that the features of the dependent noun are crucial for attraction, showing the features of the head are more important. We demonstrate that this approach can be extended to previous findings on attraction and that there exists other evidence for it. In total, these findings let us reconsider the question which properties of features are crucial for agreement attraction in

A Population-Based Assessment of the Agreement Between Grading of Goniophotographic Images and Gonioscopy in the Chinese-American Eye Study (CHES).

Science.gov (United States)

Murakami, Yohko; Wang, Dandan; Burkemper, Bruce; Lin, Shan C; Varma, Rohit

2016-08-01

To compare grading of goniophotographic images and gonioscopy in assessing the iridocorneal angle. In a population-based, cross-sectional study, participants underwent gonioscopy and goniophotographic imaging during the same visit. The iridocorneal angle was classified as closed if the posterior trabecular meshwork could not be seen. A single masked observer graded the goniophotographic images, and each eye was classified as having angle closure based on the number of closed quadrants. Agreement between the methods was analyzed by calculating kappa (κ) and first-order agreement coefficient (AC1) statistics and comparison of area under receiver operating characteristic curves (AUC). A total of 4149 Chinese Americans (3994 eyes) were included in this study. The agreement for angle closure diagnosis between gonioscopy and EyeCam was moderate to excellent (κ = 0.60, AC1 0.90, AUC 0.76-0.80). Detection of iridocorneal angle closure based on goniophotographic imaging shows moderate to very good agreement with angle closure assessment using gonioscopy.

Federal Facility Agreement progress report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1993-10-01

The (SRS) Federal Facility Agreement (FFA) was made effective by the US. Environmental Protection Agency Region IV (EPA) on August 16, 1993. To meet the reporting requirements in Section XXV of the Agreement, the FFA Progress Report was developed. The FFA Progress Report is the first of a series of quarterly progress reports to be prepared by the SRS. As such this report describes the information and action taken to September 30, 1993 on the SRS units identified for investigation and remediation in the Agreement. This includes; rubble pits, runoff basins, retention basin, seepage basin, burning pits, H-Area Tank 16, and spill areas.

Federal Facility Agreement progress report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-10-01

The (SRS) Federal Facility Agreement (FFA) was made effective by the US. Environmental Protection Agency Region IV (EPA) on August 16, 1993. To meet the reporting requirements in Section XXV of the Agreement, the FFA Progress Report was developed. The FFA Progress Report is the first of a series of quarterly progress reports to be prepared by the SRS. As such this report describes the information and action taken to September 30, 1993 on the SRS units identified for investigation and remediation in the Agreement. This includes; rubble pits, runoff basins, retention basin, seepage basin, burning pits, H-Area Tank 16, and spill areas

Current statuses of international cooperation activities, and research and development activities, based on IEA's Implementing Agreement for a Program on Research and Demonstration of Advanced Motor Fuels; EIA jidoshayo senshin nenryo jisshi kyotei ni motozuku kokusai kyoryoku katsudo oyobi kenkyu kaihatsu no genjo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1999-09-01

Described herein are current statuses of international cooperation activities, and R and D activities, based on IEA's Implementing Agreement for a Program on Research and Demonstration of Advanced Motor Fuels. This agreement is aimed at efficient implementation of researches, demonstration tests and information exchanges for advanced motor fuels by promoting international cooperation. It raises future environment-compatible diesel fuels and new fuels for new engines as the major R and D themes, which cover information exchanges for engines/vehicles of heavy- duty vehicles, motor fuel information services, toxicity assessments of bio-diesel fuels, feasibility studies on possibility of dimethyl ether as diesel fuel, surveys on barriers in alternative fuel markets, surveys on biodegradable lubricant oils, and effects of new heavy-duty vehicle techniques on the environments. Some of the results reported in FY 1997 are those for comparison between current motor fuels and dimethyl ether in toxicity, analysis of the failure mode effects of dimethyl ether tank in vehicles, and surveys on barriers in alternative fuel markets. (NEDO)

US-India agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

The United States and India acheived a historic agreement for strategic partnership after the completion of negotiations on the bilateral agreement for peaceful nuclear cooperation, also known as the agreement of 123. This agreement regulates the civilian nuclear trade between the two countries and opens the door wide to U.S. and Indian companies for a partnership in every other country in the civil nuclear industry. This agreement has opened the door to complete the remaining steps for the the widest American Indian cooperation in the field of civil uses of atomic energy. Critics to the agreement within the United States say that the agreement reflected serious consequences on the ability of the United States to force other countries to comply with the prevention of nuclear proliferation. The global criticism focused on that the agreement strikes at the heart of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, and is considered a dangerous precedent to break the laws of the International Tribunal, and especially the laws and rules of the International Group of Suppliers, which includes 45 countries. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says that the agreement is an important step towards meeting India's growing energy needs, especially nuclear technology which is the engine of development. Immediately after the completion of the United States and India for their bilateral agreement for nuclear cooperation, Israel announced that it was seeking U.S. help in the establishment of a power reactor while pressing the direction of tightening control over Iran's nuclear program while some Arab countries announced their desire to have nuclear reactors for electricity generation purposes.

Representations of abstract grammatical feature agreement in young children.

Science.gov (United States)

Melançon, Andréane; Shi, Rushen

2015-11-01

A fundamental question in language acquisition research is whether young children have abstract grammatical representations. We tested this question experimentally. French-learning 30-month-olds were first taught novel word-object pairs in the context of a gender-marked determiner (e.g., un MASC ravole 'a ravole'). Test trials presented the objects side-by-side while one of them was named in new phrases containing other determiners and an adjective (e.g., le MASC joli ravole MASC 'the pretty ravole'). The gender agreement between the new determiner and the non-adjacent noun was manipulated in different test trials (e.g., le MASC __ravole MASC; *la FEM __ravole MASC). We found that online comprehension of the named target was facilitated in gender-matched trials but impeded in gender-mismatched trials. That is, children assigned the determiner genders to the novel nouns during word learning. They then processed the non-adjacent gender agreement between the two categories (Det, Noun) during test. The results demonstrate abstract featural representation and grammatical productivity in young children.

Climate Justice and the Paris Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Michelot, Agnes

2016-01-01

The concept of climate justice has been, for the first time, used in an international agreement - namely, the Paris Agreement. But this recognition of the notion of climate justice is extremely restricted by the very way it is formulated. Preamble of the Paris Agreement 'notes' that climate justice is recognized by 'certain cultures'. Does it mean that particular and concrete stakes of climate justice of the pre-COP21 agenda have been recognized or, on the contrary, that the notion so introduced is actually an empty shell without any genuine legal perspective? Considering this uncertainty, it appears relevant to analyze the Paris Agreement through the claims of various groups and coalitions, which influenced the COP21 negotiations

An Assessment of the China-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Implementation Outcome and Influencing Factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meiling Wang

2017-04-01

Full Text Available China-Korea Free Trade Agreement tops the list of trade volume covered by 14 FTAs China has signed with its signatory counterparts. In principle, 100 days of China-Korea Free Trade Agreement (ChKFTA into effect as of December 20, 2015, through two stages of tariff reduction and/or elimination, can result in substantial benefits for Chinese imports and/or exports firms. The paper is a pilot questionnaire study assessing the enforcement outcome of ChKFTA, based on the responding firms’ perceived observations and views of the impact of ChKFTA on their trading activities in the first quarter of 2016, and the role of related rule of origin (RoO. Such an inquiry of the relationship between rule of origin and trade in goods aims at yielding evidence for decision-making on how to optimize the outcome of ChKFTA and China’s increasing number of FTAs as well.

ADR 95. European Agreement on International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road - 1995. Annexes A and B, ADR stipulations, index of materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ridder, K.

1995-01-01

The ADR, (authentic official name: Accord Europeen relatif au Transport des Marchandises Dangereuses par Route), after several amendments has been revised in 1994, the revised version having again be amended in January 1995 within the framework of the 12th amending ADR Ordinance. The amendments include: (1) revised versions of danger categories as listed in the following: category 3 (flammable, liquid substances), category 6.1 (toxic substances), 6.2 (contagious substances), and 8 (caustic substances). Some amendments are of special importance, as e.g. those in category 3 (reduction of ignition limit to 61 C) and 9 (introduction of water-polluting substances). (2) Stipulation requiring goods for dispatch to be labelled with the relevant UN number. (3) Abolition of the danger sign No. 6.1A (crossed-out spicule - hazardous to health), replaced by new sign for contagious goods (3 crescents). (4) New annex B.5 for classification numbers indicating tanks/homogenous bulk goods. The German GGVS and the ADR are now almost identical, the remaining minor deviations planned to be harmonised in 1997. However, as from January 1995 there is a difficult situation created by the effectiveness of the revised ADR, with the amended version of the German GGVS being delayed. (orig./HP) [de

48 CFR 1542.1203 - Processing agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... MANAGEMENT CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION Novation and Change of Name Agreements 1542.1203 Processing agreements. (a... required documentary evidence. (2) Verify the accuracy of the list of contracts through the Contract...

Trade Agreements PTI

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Homeland Security — The objective of the Trade Agreements PTI is to advance CBP’s mission by working with internal and external stakeholders to facilitate legitimate trade and address...

African Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology. Third extension of agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

Pursuant to Article XIV.2, the Agreement 'shall continue in force for a period of five years from the date of its entry into force and may be extended for further periods of five years if the Government Parties so agree'. The third extension of the Agreement entered into force on 4 April 2005, upon expiration of the second extension of the Agreement and will remain in force for an additional period of five years, i.e. through 3 April 2010. As of 10 May 2005, 20 States have notified the Agency of their acceptance of the extension of the Agreement. The status list of the Agreement is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. Members will be notified of further acceptances of the extension of the Agreement by addenda to this information circular

Public goods dilemma in asexual ant societies

OpenAIRE

Dobata, Shigeto; Tsuji, Kazuki

2013-01-01

This study reports experimental evidence for the “public goods dilemma” between cooperators and cheaters in an asexual ant society, in which cheating is always more rewarding for individuals but cooperation at the cost of individual fitness leads to better performance of groups. Although this dilemma provides the basic principle of social evolution, its experimental demonstration with underlying genetics and fitness evaluation for both cooperators and cheaters still lacks in societies other t...

27 CFR 70.485 - Closing agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... Relating to Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Administrative Remedies § 70.485 Closing agreements... disadvantage through consummation of such an agreement. (b) Scope of closing agreement—(1) In general. A...

23 CFR 635.115 - Agreement estimate.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE Contract Procedures § 635.115 Agreement estimate. (a) Following the award of contract, an agreement estimate based on the contract unit prices and estimated quantities shall be...

Community-based naming agreement, familiarity, image agreement and visual complexity ratings among adult Indians

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George Annamma

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The validity of Snodgrass and Vanderwart pictures and their norms derived on a western population on naming, familiarity, imageability and visual-complexity, is not established on a population with cultural background different from the west. We developed, therefore, a set of culturally appropriate pictures for and derived norms on Indians. Line-drawings of 103 concepts (67 from Snodgrass and Vanderwart, 36 new from 10 semantic-categories were normed on 200 community-based older subjects. Only 31% of the Snodgrass and Vanderwart items showed a concept-agreement on the Indians comparable to western norms. Naming, familiarity and image-agreement mutually correlated but not with visual-complexity. Low-education and rural-residence tended to reduced concept-agreement. The output of this study will be of use in national and cross-national studies.

Interobserver agreement for the spine instability neoplastic score varies according to the experience of the evaluator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William Gemio Jacobsen Teixeira

2013-01-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the interobserver agreement for the Neoplastic Spine Instability Score (SINS among spine surgeons with or without experience in vertebral metastasis treatment and physicians in other specialties. METHODS: Case descriptions were produced based on the medical records of 40 patients with vertebral metastases. The descriptions were then published online. Physicians were invited to evaluate the descriptions by answering questions according to the Neoplastic Spine Instability Score (SINS. The agreement among physicians was calculated using the kappa coefficient. RESULTS: Seventeen physicians agreed to participate: three highly experienced spine surgeons, seven less-experienced spine surgeons, three surgeons of other specialties, and four general practitioners (n = 17. The agreement for the final SINS score among all participants was fair, and it varied according to the SINS component. The agreement was substantial for the spine location only. The agreement was higher among experienced surgeons. The agreement was nearly perfect for spinal location among the spine surgeons who were highly experienced in vertebral metastases. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that the experience of the evaluator has an impact on SINS scale classification. The interobserver agreement was only fair among physicians who were not spine surgeons and among spine surgeons who were not experienced in the treatment of vertebral metastases, which may limit the use of the SINS scale for the screening of unstable lesions by less-experienced evaluators.

Depreciation of public goods in spatial public goods games

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Dong-Mei; Zhuang, Yong; Li, Yu-Jian; Wang, Bing-Hong

2011-10-01

In real situations, the value of public goods will be reduced or even lost because of external factors or for intrinsic reasons. In this work, we investigate the evolution of cooperation by considering the effect of depreciation of public goods in spatial public goods games on a square lattice. It is assumed that each individual gains full advantage if the number of the cooperators nc within a group centered on that individual equals or exceeds the critical mass (CM). Otherwise, there is depreciation of the public goods, which is realized by rescaling the multiplication factor r to (nc/CM)r. It is shown that the emergence of cooperation is remarkably promoted for CM > 1 even at small values of r, and a global cooperative level is achieved at an intermediate value of CM = 4 at a small r. We further study the effect of depreciation of public goods on different topologies of a regular lattice, and find that the system always reaches global cooperation at a moderate value of CM = G - 1 regardless of whether or not there exist overlapping triangle structures on the regular lattice, where G is the group size of the associated regular lattice.

Faith-Based Institutions, Institutional Mission, and the Public Good

Science.gov (United States)

Daniels, Jessica Rose; Gustafson, Jacqueline N.

2016-01-01

Rooted in historical foundations and demonstrated by continued government financial support, one purpose of higher education is to contribute to the "public good," or support and further social causes and human flourishing. This notion has received renewed attention in both the literature as well as in professional practice. Given the…

Parent-child agreement on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning (BRIEF) in a community sample of adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Egan, Kaitlyn N; Cohen, L Adelyn; Limbers, Christine

2018-03-06

Despite its widespread use, a minimal amount is known regarding the agreement between parent and youth ratings of youth's executive functioning on the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning (BRIEF) in typically developing youth. The present study examined parent-child agreement on the BRIEF with a community sample of adolescents and their parents. Ninety-seven parent-child dyads (M age  = 13.91 years; SD = .52) completed the BRIEF self- and parent-report forms and a demographic questionnaire. Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICCs) and paired sample t-tests were used to evaluate agreement between self- and parent-reports on the BRIEF. Total sample ICCs indicated moderate to good parent-child agreement (0.46-0.68). Parents from the total sample reported significantly higher mean T-scores for their adolescents on Inhibit, Working Memory, Planning/Organization, Behavioral Regulation Index (BRI), Metacognition Index, and Global Executive Composite. Differences were found in regard to gender and race/ethnicity: ICCs were higher between parent-girl dyads on the scales that comprise the BRI than between parent-boy dyads. Parent-adolescent ICCs were also higher for adolescents who self-identified as White in comparison to those who identified as Non-White/Mixed Race on Emotional Control. These findings suggest gender and racial/ethnic differences should be considered when examining parent-child agreement on the BRIEF in typically developing adolescents.

The Orientation of Gastric Biopsy Samples Improves the Inter-observer Agreement of the OLGA Staging System.

Science.gov (United States)

Cotruta, Bogdan; Gheorghe, Cristian; Iacob, Razvan; Dumbrava, Mona; Radu, Cristina; Bancila, Ion; Becheanu, Gabriel

2017-12-01

Evaluation of severity and extension of gastric atrophy and intestinal metaplasia is recommended to identify subjects with a high risk for gastric cancer. The inter-observer agreement for the assessment of gastric atrophy is reported to be low. The aim of the study was to evaluate the inter-observer agreement for the assessment of severity and extension of gastric atrophy using oriented and unoriented gastric biopsy samples. Furthermore, the quality of biopsy specimens in oriented and unoriented samples was analyzed. A total of 35 subjects with dyspeptic symptoms addressed for gastrointestinal endoscopy that agreed to enter the study were prospectively enrolled. The OLGA/OLGIM gastric biopsies protocol was used. From each subject two sets of biopsies were obtained (four from the antrum, two oriented and two unoriented, two from the gastric incisure, one oriented and one unoriented, four from the gastric body, two oriented and two unoriented). The orientation of the biopsy samples was completed using nitrocellulose filters (Endokit®, BioOptica, Milan, Italy). The samples were blindly examined by two experienced pathologists. Inter-observer agreement was evaluated using kappa statistic for inter-rater agreement. The quality of histopathology specimens taking into account the identification of lamina propria was analyzed in oriented vs. unoriented samples. The samples with detectable lamina propria mucosae were defined as good quality specimens. Categorical data was analyzed using chi-square test and a two-sided p value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. A total of 350 biopsy samples were analyzed (175 oriented / 175 unoriented). The kappa index values for oriented/unoriented OLGA 0/I/II/III and IV stages have been 0.62/0.13, 0.70/0.20, 0.61/0.06, 0.62/0.46, and 0.77/0.50, respectively. For OLGIM 0/I/II/III stages the kappa index values for oriented/unoriented samples were 0.83/0.83, 0.88/0.89, 0.70/0.88 and 0.83/1, respectively. No case of OLGIM IV

Unfolding the phenomenon of inter-rater agreement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Slaug, Bjørn; Schilling, Oliver; Helle, Tina

2011-01-01

Objective: The overall objective was to unfold the phenomenon of inter-rater agreement: to identify potential sources of variation in agreement data and to explore how they can be statistically accounted for. The ultimate aim was to propose recommendations for in-depth examination of agreement, i...

75 FR 78245 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-15

... Mexico, Panama, Jamaica, Colombia, and the Far East, including China, Hong Kong, and Korea. Agreement No.../CSAV Slot Swap Agreement. Parties: China Shipping Container Lines Co. Ltd., China Shipping Container... trade between United States ports and ports in China and Vietnam. Agreement No.: 201208-001. Title...

75 FR 14159 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2010-03-24

... parties to exchange slots in the trade between U.S. East Coast ports and ports in Turkey. Agreement No.: 201048-005. Title: Lease and Operating Agreement between Philadelphia Regional Port Authority and... FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION Notice of Agreements Filed The Commission hereby gives notice of the...

Relationship and inter observer agreement of tooth and face forms in a Saudi subpopulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Habib, Syed Rashid; Shiddi, Ibraheem Al; Al-Sufyani, Mohammed D; Althobaiti, Fahad A

2015-04-01

To determine the relationship of tooth form with the face form by different observers and further investigate the inter observer agreement on tooth forms, face forms, their relationship among male Saudis. A comparative cross-sectional study. Department of Prosthodontics, College of Dentistry, King Saud University, Riyadh, KSA, from February till August 2013. Ninety four male participants aged 18 - 35 years were randomly recruited for the study. Full-face and anterior teeth (intraoral) digital photographs in the frontal plane were recorded. The outline tracings of the face and the tooth were obtained using Autocad (version 2010) software. The outline of the tooth was enlarged proportionately, without altering the length to width ratio to fit the face outline. The outlines were then evaluated visually by 6 prosthodontists and results were tabulated. The most common type of face form (49.65%) and tooth form (56.38%) was square tapering. Using the visual method, a good relationship (31.41%), moderate relationship (35.31%), weak relationship (19.68%) and no relationship (13.65%) between the tooth form and face form was found by the observers. Overall kappa for inter observer agreement on face form, tooth form and their relationship was 0.24, 0.17 and 0.26 respectively. The kappa values showed a fair agreement between the observers. The study results indicated that there was no highly defined relationship between the tooth form and face form in the studied Saudi subpopulation. A fair agreement was found between the observers for classifying the tooth forms, face froms and their relationship.

Agency Agreements Process Champion Support Intern

Science.gov (United States)

Miksa, Ember

2018-01-01

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

"Implicate order" and the good life

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ravn, Ib

people may seek the unity experience. These experiences are proposed as general values: social and psychological conditions ought to be such that these experiences are enhanced in all people. A two-by-two matrix of these experiences demonstrates the danger of pursuing one to the exclusion of the other....... The experience of unity without diversity turns into absolutism, the insistence that one's chosen activities or beliefs are the only right one. The experience of diversity without unity becomes relativism, the excessive tolerance of and indifference to other people's pursuits. The good life lies...

12 CFR 533.6 - Disclosure of covered agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS § 533.6 Disclosure of covered agreements. (a) Applicability date. This... mailing the agreement. (7) Use of CRA public file by insured depository institution or affiliate. An... institution's CRA public file if the institution makes the agreement available in accordance with the...

African Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology. Fourth Extension of Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2010-01-01

Pursuant to Article XIV.2, the Agreement 'shall continue in force for a period of five years from the date of its entry into force and may be extended for further periods of five years if the Government Parties so agree'. The fourth extension of the Agreement entered into force on 4 April 2010, upon expiration of the third extension of the Agreement and will remain in force for an additional period of five years, i.e. through 3 April 2015. As of 30 April 2010, 8 States have notified the Agency of their acceptance of the extension of the Agreement. The status list of the Agreement is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members [es

Fifth Supply Agreement. Agreement for the Transfer of Low Enriched Uranium for a Research Reactor in Romania

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2008-01-01

The text of the Fifth Supply Agreement among the Government of Romania, the Government of the United States of America and the International Atomic Energy Agency for the Transfer of Low Enriched Uranium for a Research Reactor in Romania is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members of the Agency. The Agency's Board of Governors approved the text of the Agreement on 20 November 2003, which was signed by the authorized representatives of Romania and the United States, and by the Director General of the IAEA, on 24 November 2003. Pursuant to Article V of the Agreement, the Agreement entered into force on 24 November 2003, upon signature by the representatives of Romania, the United States and the Director General of the IAEA

The Danish agreements on energy efficiency

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1999-05-01

CO{sub 2}-taxes for industry were introduced in 1993. In 1996, the taxes were increased and an agreement system for energy-intensive companies was implemented. The main purpose of the agreement system has been to allow energy-intensive industry to pay a reduced tax rate, while at the same time improving energy efficiency. The evaluation of the energy tax system has shown that it has been possible to establish an energy tax that has led to a decrease in CO{sub 2}-emissions, without causing a decrease in the competitiveness of trade, industry and services. The agreement system has been a very important element in that it has improved energy efficiency in companies in which taxes would not have been a realistic instrument. In the case of companies with agreements, several studies suggest improvements of approximately 2.7% of the total energy use per agreement (three years). The three sources (concrete projects, special investigation and energy management) contribute approximately one third of this reduction each. The values for special investigation and energy management must be used with great care. It is also predicted that a continuation of the agreement system by 2005, relative to a situation without agreements, can lead to a decrease in CO{sub 2}-emissions corresponding to 6% of total emissions in industry and trade. Of this reduction, the highest amount is due to energy management. However, maintaining the positive effects of energy management systems will require that companies give higher priority to the managerial part of the system and not only focus on energy accounting. Some companies have argued that it is costly to carry out energy audits and to have to audits verified. Therefore, consideration should be given to possibilities for reducing the administrative costs of entering into an agreement, without this causing reduced efforts to save energy. A means of achieving these objectives could be to reduce the requirement for energy audits and verification

45 CFR 162.915 - Trading partner agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Trading partner agreements. 162.915 Section 162... REQUIREMENTS ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS General Provisions for Transactions § 162.915 Trading partner agreements. A covered entity must not enter into a trading partner agreement that would do any of the...

10 CFR 603.1340 - Technology investment agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 4 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Technology investment agreement. 603.1340 Section 603.1340 Energy DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (CONTINUED) ASSISTANCE REGULATIONS TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT AGREEMENTS Definitions of Terms Used in this Part § 603.1340 Technology investment agreement. A TIA is a special type of...

24 CFR 266.15 - Risk-Sharing Agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY RISK-SHARING PROGRAM FOR INSURED AFFORDABLE MULTIFAMILY PROJECT LOANS General Provisions § 266.15 Risk-Sharing Agreement. Execution of a Risk-Sharing Agreement is a prerequisite to... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Risk-Sharing Agreement. 266.15...

7 CFR 3550.205 - Delinquency workout agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Delinquency workout agreements. 3550.205 Section 3550... Delinquency workout agreements. Borrowers with past due accounts may be offered the opportunity to avoid liquidation by entering into a delinquency workout agreement that specifies a plan for bringing the account...

22 CFR 120.21 - Manufacturing license agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Manufacturing license agreement. 120.21 Section... DEFINITIONS § 120.21 Manufacturing license agreement. An agreement (e.g., contract) whereby a U.S. person grants a foreign person an authorization to manufacture defense articles abroad and which involves or...

22 CFR 120.22 - Technical assistance agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Technical assistance agreement. 120.22 Section... DEFINITIONS § 120.22 Technical assistance agreement. An agreement (e.g., contract) for the performance of a... license to manufacture defense articles. Assembly of defense articles is included under this section...

25 CFR 225.33 - Assignment of minerals agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Assignment of minerals agreements. 225.33 Section 225.33 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR ENERGY AND MINERALS OIL AND GAS, GEOTHERMAL, AND SOLID MINERALS AGREEMENTS Minerals Agreements § 225.33 Assignment of minerals agreements. An...

12 CFR 346.6 - Disclosure of covered agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... POLICY DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS § 346.6 Disclosure of covered agreements. (a... exceed the cost of copying and mailing the agreement. (7) Use of CRA public file by insured depository... the insured depository institution's CRA public file if the institution makes the agreement available...

Optional contributions have positive effects for volunteering public goods games

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Qi-Qing; Li, Zhen-Peng; Fu, Chang-He; Wang, Lai-Sheng

2011-11-01

Public goods (PG) games with the volunteering mechanism are referred to as volunteering public goods (VPG) games, in which loners are introduced to the PG games, and a loner obtains a constant payoff but not participating the game. Considering that small contributions may have positive effects to encourage more players with bounded rationality to contribute, this paper introduces optional contributions (high value or low value) to these typical VPG games-a cooperator can contribute a high or low payoff to the public pools. With the low contribution, the logit dynamics show that cooperation can be promoted in a well mixed population comparing to the typical VPG games, furthermore, as the multiplication factor is greater than a threshold, the average payoff of the population is also enhanced. In spatial VPG games, we introduce a new adjusting mechanism that is an approximation to best response. Some results in agreement with the prediction of the logit dynamics are found. These simulation results reveal that for VPG games the option of low contributions may be a better method to stimulate the growth of cooperation frequency and the average payoff of the population.

Product Bundling and Shared Information Goods: A Pricing Exercise

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, William G.

2016-01-01

In this article, the author describes an exercise in which two pricing problems (product bundling and the sharing of digital information goods) can be understood using the same analytical approach. The exercise allows students to calculate the correct numerical answers with relative ease, while the teaching plan demonstrates the importance of the…

The Text of the Safeguards Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between India and the United States of America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1971-01-01

The text of the Safeguards Agreement between the Agency, the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America providing for the Agency to apply safeguards in relation to the agreement between those Governments concerning co-operation in the civil uses of atomic energy, is reproduced in part I of this document for the information of all Members. The text of the co-operation agreement is reproduced in part II. The Safeguards Agreement entered into force on 27 January 1971

The Text of the Safeguards Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between India and the United States of America

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1971-09-03

The text of the Safeguards Agreement between the Agency, the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America providing for the Agency to apply safeguards in relation to the agreement between those Governments concerning co-operation in the civil uses of atomic energy, is reproduced in part I of this document for the information of all Members. The text of the co-operation agreement is reproduced in part II. The Safeguards Agreement entered into force on 27 January 1971.

Increasing seat belt use through state-level demonstration projects : a compendium of initial findings

Science.gov (United States)

2008-08-01

This report summarizes the efforts and results from four of six State-level demonstration projects supported with cooperative agreements from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The projects were intended to increase seat belt use sta...

5 CFR 575.210 - Service agreement requirements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... agreement must specify that if an employee does not successfully complete the training before the service... employee. (c) The service agreement must specify the total amount of the incentive, the method of paying... incentive, an agency must require the employee to sign a written service agreement to complete a specified...

Good government and good governance: record keeping in a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article addresses the challenges that arise when record keeping systems are advocated as a necessary under-pinning for good government and good governance. The relationship between record keeping and accountability is analysed and contextualised in relation to transparency and Freedom of Information ...

Name agreement in picture naming : An ERP study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cheng, Xiaorong; Schafer, Graham; Akyürek, Elkan G.

Name agreement is the extent to which different people agree on a name for a particular picture. Previous studies have found that it takes longer to name low name agreement pictures than high name agreement pictures. To examine the effect of name agreement in the online process of picture naming, we

Team work and collaborative practice agreements among pharmacists and nurse practitioners.

Science.gov (United States)

Funk, Kylee A; Weaver, Krystalyn K

The authors share their knowledge about partnering and establishing collaborative practice agreements with nurse practitioners. State laws and regulations were reviewed that affect pharmacists' ability to fully partner with nurse practitioners. Nurse practitioners' role in primary care is growing, and, in many states, nurse practitioners practice independently. Collaborative practice agreements (CPAs) enable pharmacists to work with prescribers more efficiently. Pharmacists' and nurse practitioners' scope-of-practice laws and regulations may prevent CPAs between pharmacists and nurse practitioners. State pharmacy practice acts were reviewed to demonstrate which states allow for partnership under a CPA. Pharmacists should consider opportunities to partner more closely with nurse practitioners to provide care, sometimes under a CPA. In states where laws or regulations prevent CPAs between pharmacists and nurse practitioners, pharmacists should advocate for policy change. Copyright © 2018 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Depreciation of public goods in spatial public goods games

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi, Dong-Mei; Zhuang, Yong; Li, Yu-Jian; Wang, Bing-Hong

2011-01-01

In real situations, the value of public goods will be reduced or even lost because of external factors or for intrinsic reasons. In this work, we investigate the evolution of cooperation by considering the effect of depreciation of public goods in spatial public goods games on a square lattice. It is assumed that each individual gains full advantage if the number of the cooperators n c within a group centered on that individual equals or exceeds the critical mass (CM). Otherwise, there is depreciation of the public goods, which is realized by rescaling the multiplication factor r to (n c /CM)r. It is shown that the emergence of cooperation is remarkably promoted for CM > 1 even at small values of r, and a global cooperative level is achieved at an intermediate value of CM = 4 at a small r. We further study the effect of depreciation of public goods on different topologies of a regular lattice, and find that the system always reaches global cooperation at a moderate value of CM = G − 1 regardless of whether or not there exist overlapping triangle structures on the regular lattice, where G is the group size of the associated regular lattice

MRI assessment of the alar ligaments in the late stage of whiplash injury - a study of structural abnormalities and observer agreement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Krakenes, J.; Moen, G.; Nordli, H. [Section of Neuroradiology, Department of Radiology, Haukeland University Hospital, University of Bergen Medical School (Norway); Kaale, B.R. [Firda Medical Centre, Sandane (Norway); Gilhus, N.E. [Department of Neurology, Haukeland University Hospital, University of Bergen Medical School (Norway); Rorvik, J. [Department of Radiology, Haukeland University Hospital, University of Bergen Medical School (Norway)

2002-07-01

Our aim was to characterise and classify structural changes in the alar ligaments in the late stage of whiplash injuries by use of a new MRI protocol, and to evaluate the reliability and the validity of this classification. We studied 92 whiplash-injured and 30 uninjured individuals who underwent proton density-weighted MRI of the craniovertebral junction in three orthogonal planes. Changes in the alar ligaments (grades 0-3) based on the ratio between the high signal area and the total cross-sectional area were rated twice at a 4-month interval, independently by three radiologists. Inter- and intraobserver statistics were calculated by ordinary and weighted kappa. Cases classified differently were reviewed to identify potential causes for disagreement. The alar ligaments were satisfactorily demonstrated in all cases (244 ligaments in 122 individuals). The lesions, 2-9 years after the injury, varied from small high-signal spots to high signal throughout the cross-sectional area. Signal was highest near the condylar insertion in 82 of 94 ligaments, indicating a lesion near that insertion, and near the dental insertion in eight, indicating a medial lesion. No grade 2 or 3 lesion was found in the control group. At least two observers assigned the same grade to 214 ligaments (87.7%) on the second occasion. In 30 ligaments (12.3%) this agreement was not obtained. Pair-wise interobserver agreement (weighted kappa) was fair to moderate (0.31-0.54) in the first grading, improving to moderate (0.49-0.57) in the second. Intraobserver agreement (weighted kappa) was moderate to good (0.43-0.70). Whiplash trauma can cause permanent damage to the alar ligaments, which can be shown by high-resolution proton density-weighted MRI. Reliability of classification of alar ligament lesions needs to be improved. (orig.)

MRI assessment of the alar ligaments in the late stage of whiplash injury - a study of structural abnormalities and observer agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krakenes, J.; Moen, G.; Nordli, H.; Kaale, B.R.; Gilhus, N.E.; Rorvik, J.

2002-01-01

Our aim was to characterise and classify structural changes in the alar ligaments in the late stage of whiplash injuries by use of a new MRI protocol, and to evaluate the reliability and the validity of this classification. We studied 92 whiplash-injured and 30 uninjured individuals who underwent proton density-weighted MRI of the craniovertebral junction in three orthogonal planes. Changes in the alar ligaments (grades 0-3) based on the ratio between the high signal area and the total cross-sectional area were rated twice at a 4-month interval, independently by three radiologists. Inter- and intraobserver statistics were calculated by ordinary and weighted kappa. Cases classified differently were reviewed to identify potential causes for disagreement. The alar ligaments were satisfactorily demonstrated in all cases (244 ligaments in 122 individuals). The lesions, 2-9 years after the injury, varied from small high-signal spots to high signal throughout the cross-sectional area. Signal was highest near the condylar insertion in 82 of 94 ligaments, indicating a lesion near that insertion, and near the dental insertion in eight, indicating a medial lesion. No grade 2 or 3 lesion was found in the control group. At least two observers assigned the same grade to 214 ligaments (87.7%) on the second occasion. In 30 ligaments (12.3%) this agreement was not obtained. Pair-wise interobserver agreement (weighted kappa) was fair to moderate (0.31-0.54) in the first grading, improving to moderate (0.49-0.57) in the second. Intraobserver agreement (weighted kappa) was moderate to good (0.43-0.70). Whiplash trauma can cause permanent damage to the alar ligaments, which can be shown by high-resolution proton density-weighted MRI. Reliability of classification of alar ligament lesions needs to be improved. (orig.)

Agreement between Cochrane Neonatal reviews and clinical practice guidelines for newborns in Denmark a cross sectional study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brok, Jesper; Greisen, Gorm; Madsen, Lars P

2007-01-01

for disagreement were numerous; usage of evidence with higher bias risks than randomised trials in guidelines development was the most frequent one. Cochrane reviews were rarely (10%) used during guideline development. Nine guideline topics (5%) revealed diversity among the departments' recommendations....... CONCLUSIONS: There is good agreement between Cochrane reviews and neonatal guidelines in Denmark. The disagreements are few. Cochrane reviews were rarely used for guideline development. Guideline heterogeneity among neonatal departments seems moderate....

29 CFR 215.6 - The Model Agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false The Model Agreement. 215.6 Section 215.6 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor OFFICE OF LABOR-MANAGEMENT STANDARDS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR GUIDELINES, SECTION 5333(b), FEDERAL TRANSIT LAW § 215.6 The Model Agreement. The Model (or National) Agreement mentioned in paragraphs...

Form 6 - gas balancing agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1990-01-01

In 1988, a special Committee of the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation undertook a project to draft a model from gas balancing agreement. This project was initiated at the request of a number of Foundation members who felt that a model form gas balancing agreement would facilitate the negotiation of operating agreement, since gas balancing issues had become sticking points in the process. The Committee was composed of attorneys representing a wide cross-section of the oil and gas industry including both major and independent oil companies, production companies with interstate pipeline affiliates, and private practitioners. The Committee attempted to address the more controversial issues in gas balancing with optional provisions in the Form. To facilitate the negotiation process, the number of optional provisions was minimized. This form may be used as an Appendix to the new A.A.P.L. Form 610-1989 Model Form Operating Agreement. This book includes provision of this Form which are: Ownership of gas production; Balancing of production accounts; Cash balancing upon depletion; Deliverability tests; Nominations; Statements; Payment of taxes; Operating expenses; Overproducing allowable; Payment of leasehold burdens; Operator's liability; Successors and assigns; Audits; Arbitration; and Operator's fees

Level of Agreement and Factors Associated With Discrepancies Between Nationwide Medical History Questionnaires and Hospital Claims Data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yeon-Yong Kim

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Objectives The objectives of this study were to investigate the agreement between medical history questionnaire data and claims data and to identify the factors that were associated with discrepancies between these data types. Methods Data from self-reported questionnaires that assessed an individual’s history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, stroke, heart disease, and pulmonary tuberculosis were collected from a general health screening database for 2014. Data for these diseases were collected from a healthcare utilization claims database between 2009 and 2014. Overall agreement, sensitivity, specificity, and kappa values were calculated. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with discrepancies and was adjusted for age, gender, insurance type, insurance contribution, residential area, and comorbidities. Results Agreement was highest between questionnaire data and claims data based on primary codes up to 1 year before the completion of self-reported questionnaires and was lowest for claims data based on primary and secondary codes up to 5 years before the completion of self-reported questionnaires. When comparing data based on primary codes up to 1 year before the completion of self-reported questionnaires, the overall agreement, sensitivity, specificity, and kappa values ranged from 93.2 to 98.8%, 26.2 to 84.3%, 95.7 to 99.6%, and 0.09 to 0.78, respectively. Agreement was excellent for hypertension and diabetes, fair to good for stroke and heart disease, and poor for pulmonary tuberculosis and dyslipidemia. Women, younger individuals, and employed individuals were most likely to under-report disease. Conclusions Detailed patient characteristics that had an impact on information bias were identified through the differing levels of agreement.

Level of Agreement and Factors Associated With Discrepancies Between Nationwide Medical History Questionnaires and Hospital Claims Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yeon-Yong; Park, Jong Heon; Kang, Hee-Jin; Lee, Eun Joo; Ha, Seongjun; Shin, Soon-Ae

2017-09-01

The objectives of this study were to investigate the agreement between medical history questionnaire data and claims data and to identify the factors that were associated with discrepancies between these data types. Data from self-reported questionnaires that assessed an individual's history of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, stroke, heart disease, and pulmonary tuberculosis were collected from a general health screening database for 2014. Data for these diseases were collected from a healthcare utilization claims database between 2009 and 2014. Overall agreement, sensitivity, specificity, and kappa values were calculated. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with discrepancies and was adjusted for age, gender, insurance type, insurance contribution, residential area, and comorbidities. Agreement was highest between questionnaire data and claims data based on primary codes up to 1 year before the completion of self-reported questionnaires and was lowest for claims data based on primary and secondary codes up to 5 years before the completion of self-reported questionnaires. When comparing data based on primary codes up to 1 year before the completion of self-reported questionnaires, the overall agreement, sensitivity, specificity, and kappa values ranged from 93.2 to 98.8%, 26.2 to 84.3%, 95.7 to 99.6%, and 0.09 to 0.78, respectively. Agreement was excellent for hypertension and diabetes, fair to good for stroke and heart disease, and poor for pulmonary tuberculosis and dyslipidemia. Women, younger individuals, and employed individuals were most likely to under-report disease. Detailed patient characteristics that had an impact on information bias were identified through the differing levels of agreement.

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Pakistan and Canada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1969-11-13

The text of the Safeguard Transfer Agreement between Pakistan, Canada and the Agency relating to the agreement of 14 May 1959 between the two Governments for co-operation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members.

The Text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between France and Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1973-01-01

The text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, France and Japan relating to the agreement of 26 February 1972 between the two Governments for co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy is reproduced in this document for the information or all Members

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Pakistan and Canada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1969-01-01

The text of the Safeguard Transfer Agreement between Pakistan, Canada and the Agency relating to the agreement of 14 May 1959 between the two Governments for co-operation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Canada and Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1966-01-01

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Canada and Japan relating to the agreement between those Governments concerning co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members

The Text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between France and Japan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1973-01-31

The text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, France and Japan relating to the agreement of 26 February 1972 between the two Governments for co-operation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy is reproduced in this document for the information or all Members.

47 CFR 73.1650 - International agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... Agreements for the Broadcasting Service in Region 2: (i) MF Broadcasting 535-1605 kHz, Rio de Janeiro, 1981. (ii) MF Broadcasting 1605-1705 kHz, Rio de Janeiro, 1988. (3) Bi-lateral Agreements between the United...

The text of the third agreement to extend the 1987 Regional Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology (RCA). Extension of agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

The text of the Third Agreement to Extend the 1987 Regional Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology, 'the 1987 RCA', is reproduced herein for the information of all Members. Pursuant to Article 1 of the Third Agreement to Extend the 1987 Regional Co-operative Agreement, the 1987 RCA shall continue in force for a further period of five years with effect from 12 June 2002, i.e., through 11 June 2007. As of 15 May 2002, notifications of acceptance had been received by the Director General from the Governments of Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam. The latest status list is attached

Venous abnormalities demonstrated by computed tomography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ishikawa, T; Tsukune, Y; Ashida, H; Tokuda, M; Oyama, Y [St. Marianna Univ., Kawasaki, Kanagawa (Japan). School of Medicine

1980-05-01

CT is capable of demonstrating various venous changes. However, little have been described on this subject in the literature. Examples of various venous abnormalities such as obstructed jugular vein, superior and inferior vena cava (IVC), tumor invasion of IVC and renal vein and venous changes in portal hypertension were presented. It was stressed that noninvasive CT is a good tool in diagnosis of some of venous changes and may be able to eliminate angiography in such cases.

Power sales contract/energy supply agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wallace, R.B.

1999-01-01

The factors involved in negotiating power purchase/sales arrangements in Ontario's newly deregulated electricity market are described, and the ways in which they will evolve in the future are predicted. Indications are that the trends that will govern the changes in the electric power industry will be the same as those that existed in the natural gas industry. For this reason, a comparative evaluation of purchase and sale agreements in the two industries was provided. Traditional power purchase arrangements, including requests for proposals, the seller's response, the memorandum of understanding, and the principal terms of a traditional bilateral power purchase agreement were examined. The author predicted that over time, and probably fairly fast in power pool jurisdictions, the traditional power purchase agreement will give way to the concept of energy as a pure commodity and to a standard form of agreement. 1 appendix

14 CFR 372.24 - Surety bond, depository agreement, escrow agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... (2) which is listed in Best's Insurance Reports (fire and casualty) with a general policyholders... surety to any charter participant shall not exceed the charter operator's applicable tariff fare. Such... not exceed the charter operator's applicable tariff fare; and (ii) Enter into an agreement with a bank...

12 CFR 207.5 - Related agreements considered a single agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... RESERVE SYSTEM DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS (REGULATION G) § 207.5 Related... of the CRA. (b) Substantively related contracts. All written contracts to which an insured depository... each such contract is in fulfillment of the CRA, if the contracts were negotiated in a coordinated...

"Good mothering" or "good citizenship"?

Science.gov (United States)

Porter, Maree; Kerridge, Ian H; Jordens, Christopher F C

2012-03-01

Umbilical cord blood banking is one of many biomedical innovations that confront pregnant women with new choices about what they should do to secure their own and their child's best interests. Many mothers can now choose to donate their baby's umbilical cord blood (UCB) to a public cord blood bank or pay to store it in a private cord blood bank. Donation to a public bank is widely regarded as an altruistic act of civic responsibility. Paying to store UCB may be regarded as a "unique opportunity" to provide "insurance" for the child's future. This paper reports findings from a survey of Australian women that investigated the decision to either donate or store UCB. We conclude that mothers are faced with competing discourses that force them to choose between being a "good mother" and fulfilling their role as a "good citizen." We discuss this finding with reference to the concept of value pluralism.

7 CFR 3021.620 - Cooperative agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) OFFICE OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE GOVERNMENTWIDE REQUIREMENTS FOR DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE (FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE) Definitions § 3021.620 Cooperative agreement. Cooperative agreement means an award of financial assistance...

Production sharing agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

This paper, which was presented at the Production Sharing Agreement seminar, discusses economic rent, negotiations, trends in fiscal system development, and concessionary systems. Production sharing contracts, risk service contracts, joint ventures and the global market are examined. (UK)

RETHINKING THE ROLE OF CLINICAL TRIAL DATA IN INTERNATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW: THE CASE FOR A PUBLIC GOODS APPROACH

Science.gov (United States)

REICHMAN, JEROME H.

2009-01-01

This article describes the growth and consequences of new intellectual property rights given to pharmaceutical developers, and it advocates treating clinical trials as a public good. Although the soaring cost of clinical trials is well known and discussed, too little attention is given to the underlying rationale for allowing drug developers to recoup their costs through the new intellectual property rights provided in multilateral, regional, and bilateral agreements. Known in the US as “market exclusivity” and in Europe as “data exclusivity,” these rights prohibit would-be generic producers from obtaining regulatory approval based on the original producers’ undisclosed test data. Market and data exclusivity is codified in US and European domestic law as well as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and, to a lesser degree, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). Market and data exclusivity is binding an increasing number of developing countries via Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), which hinder developing countries from manufacturing generic drugs. At a minimum, negotiators should replace the norm of exclusive control over data with a liability rule, or take and pay rule, in which generic manufacturers can use original manufacturers’ clinical trial data in exchange for reasonable compensation. A more fundamental solution requires questioning the status quo of proprietary clinical trial data. The conventional wisdom is that market and data exclusivity, and drug developers’ consequent ability to limit competition from generics above and beyond patent protection, are a necessary incentive for drug developers to fund ever more expensive clinical trials. Clinical trial data, however, are public goods that will be undersupplied and over protected so long as private actors provide them. Moreover, manufacturers have an incentive to present clinical trial data so that they support regulatory approval at the

RETHINKING THE ROLE OF CLINICAL TRIAL DATA IN INTERNATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW: THE CASE FOR A PUBLIC GOODS APPROACH.

Science.gov (United States)

Reichman, Jerome H

2009-01-01

This article describes the growth and consequences of new intellectual property rights given to pharmaceutical developers, and it advocates treating clinical trials as a public good. Although the soaring cost of clinical trials is well known and discussed, too little attention is given to the underlying rationale for allowing drug developers to recoup their costs through the new intellectual property rights provided in multilateral, regional, and bilateral agreements. Known in the US as "market exclusivity" and in Europe as "data exclusivity," these rights prohibit would-be generic producers from obtaining regulatory approval based on the original producers' undisclosed test data. Market and data exclusivity is codified in US and European domestic law as well as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and, to a lesser degree, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). Market and data exclusivity is binding an increasing number of developing countries via Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), which hinder developing countries from manufacturing generic drugs. At a minimum, negotiators should replace the norm of exclusive control over data with a liability rule, or take and pay rule, in which generic manufacturers can use original manufacturers' clinical trial data in exchange for reasonable compensation. A more fundamental solution requires questioning the status quo of proprietary clinical trial data. The conventional wisdom is that market and data exclusivity, and drug developers' consequent ability to limit competition from generics above and beyond patent protection, are a necessary incentive for drug developers to fund ever more expensive clinical trials. Clinical trial data, however, are public goods that will be undersupplied and over protected so long as private actors provide them. Moreover, manufacturers have an incentive to present clinical trial data so that they support regulatory approval at the expense of public

The role of forgetting in undermining good intentions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristina R Olson

Full Text Available Evaluating others is a fundamental feature of human social interaction--we like those who help more than those who hinder. In the present research, we examined social evaluation of those who not only intentionally performed good and bad actions but also those to whom good things have happened (the lucky and those to whom bad things have happened (the unlucky. In Experiment 1a, subjects demonstrated a sympathetic preference for the unlucky. However, under cognitive load (Experiment 1b, no such preference was expressed. Further, in Experiments 2a and 2b, when a time delay between impression formation (learning and evaluation (memory test was introduced, results showed that younger (Experiment 2a and older adults (Experiment 2b showed a significant preference for the lucky. Together these experiments show that a consciously motivated sympathetic preference for those who are unlucky dissolves when memory is disrupted. The observed dissociation provides evidence for the presence of conscious good intentions (favoring the unlucky and the cognitive compromising of such intentions when memory fails.

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Denmark and the United Kingdom

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1965-01-01

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Denmark and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland relating to the agreement between those Governments concerning co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. This Safeguards Transfer Agreement was signed and entered into force on 23 June 1965

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Denmark and the United Kingdom

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1965-07-23

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Denmark and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland relating to the agreement between those Governments concerning co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. This Safeguards Transfer Agreement was signed and entered into force on 23 June 1965.

48 CFR 18.118 - Trade agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Trade agreements. 18.118 Section 18.118 Federal Acquisition Regulations System FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION CONTRACTING METHODS AND CONTRACT TYPES EMERGENCY ACQUISITIONS Available Acquisition Flexibilities 18.118 Trade agreements...

The Carriage of goods by Sea Act 1971 (Commencement, Order 1977)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

This Order (S.I. No 981) brought into force the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1971 giving effect at internal level to the 1968 Protocol to the International Convention on Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading 1924 (the Hague Rules). The 1971 Act introduces an amendment to the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 which lays down, as does the Paris Convention, that none of its provisions shall affect the operation of international transport agreements in force in the United Kingdom, and in particular, the Hague Rules. As of now, and in accordance with the 1968 Protocol, the Nuclear Installations Act 1965 no longer reserves application of the Hague Rules. (NEA) [fr

A framework for nuclear agreement and verification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ali, A.

1991-01-01

This chapter assesses the prospects for a nuclear agreement between India and Pakistan. The chapter opens with a review of past and present political environments of the two countries. The discussion proceeds to describe the linkage of global arms control agreements, prospects for verification of a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, the role of nuclear power in any agreements, the intrusiveness of verification, and possible post-proliferation agreements. Various monitoring and verification technologies are described (mainly satellite oriented). The chapter concludes with an analysis of the likelihood of persuading India and Pakistan to agree to a nonproliferation arrangement

Commercial-Scale Demonstration of the Liquid Phase Methanol (LPMEOH(TM)) Process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1996-12-31

The Liquid Phase Methanol (LPMEOH(TM)) Demonstration Project at Kingsport, Tennessee, is a $213.7 million cooperative agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Air Products Liquid Phase Conversion Company, L.P. (the Partnership). The LPMEOIWM Process Demonstration Unit is being built at a site located at the Eastman Chemical Company (Eastman) complex in Kingsport. During this quarter, the Cooperative Agreement was modified (Mod AO11) on 8 October 1996, authorizing the transition born Budget Period No. 2 (Design and Construction) to the . final Budget Period (Commissioning, Start-up, and Operation), A draft Topical Report on Process Economics Studies concludes that methanol coproduction with integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) electric power utilizing the LPMEOW process technology, will be competitive in serving local market needs. Planning for a proof-of- concept test run of the liquid phase dimethyl ether (DME) process at the LaPorte Alternative Fuels Development Unit (AFDU) was recommended; and a deeision to proceed is pending. Construction (Task 2.2) is 97'Mo complete, asof31 December 1996. Completion of pipe pressure testing has taken longer than expected. This will delay completion of construction by about three weeks. Commissioning activities (Task 2.3) commenced in mid-October of 1996, and the demonstration unit is scheduled to be mechanically complete on 24 January 1997.

Agreement among readers on what is relevant in self-help psychology books.

Science.gov (United States)

Forest, James J; Del Ben, Kevin; Toews, Stuart B

2003-12-01

It was hypothesized that text marking in self-help psychology books would indicate that readers agree on which pages and lines contain relevant information. Previously owned copies of two self-help book titles (n=48, n=38), all with marked text, were collected from second-hand book stores and scored for line and page marking. Chi-squares for goodness-of-fit yielded significant differences between observed and chance agreement in marking behavior. Intraclass and KR-20 correlations were significantly different from zero, suggesting that readers agreed on what information was relevant and irrelevant. Actual users of self-help books may have similar standards because of cultural values, social group relations, or common problem experiences.

The content of arbitration agreement: Facultative elements as an instrument for exercising contractual freedom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janićijević Dejan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The content of an arbitration agreement is of great practical importance, given the effect its provisions may have on the rights and interests of the parties in the arbitration proceedings. Beside the mandatory elements, an arbitration agreement may include numerous facultative provisions, where parties express their contractual freedom, limited only by the imperative law and institutional arbitration rules. Even in cases when contractual provisions are contrary to the imperative law, in many states, the policy of maintaining arbitration agreement would result in ignoring the problematic provisions. The list of facultative elements of an arbitration agreement is practically limitless; among other elements, it may include: time limitations on the validity of an arbitration agreement; determinations referring to the composition of the arbitration tribunal; detailed rules pertaining to the procedure, decision-making processes and content of the arbitration award as well as its annulment; provisions on the choice of law; the right of third parties to intervene; joinder, consolidation and the authority of arbitration tribunal to decide as amiable compositeur or ex aequo et bono. The development of international commerce as well as arbitration legislature and practice, featuring transactions of ever-increasing complexity, have brought about the need to establish dispute resolution mechanisms modulated according to their specific characteristics. The customary practice of concluding arbitration agreements in the form of standardized and simple clauses is being challenged by the growing complexity of international trade. Therefore, not only should a modern arbitration agreement clearly demonstrate the parties' intent to submit a dispute to arbitration but it should also conform the arbitration procedure (as much as possible] to the content of the parties' relationship and the dispute that has emerged or may arise thereof.

FFTF Authorization Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DAUTEL, W.A.

2000-01-01

The purpose of the Authorization Agreement is to serve as a mechanism whereby the U.S. Department of Energy, Richland Operations Office (RL) and Fluor Hanford (FH) jointly clarify and agree to key conditions for conducting work safely and efficiently

76 FR 77998 - Market Access Agreement

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-15

... FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION Market Access Agreement AGENCY: Farm Credit Administration. ACTION: Notice of approval of the Draft Second Amended and Restated Market Access Agreement. SUMMARY: The Farm Credit Administration (FCA) announces that it has approved the Draft Second Amended and Restated Market...

Low agreement among 24 doctors using the Neer-classification; only moderate agreement on displacement, even between specialists

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brorson, S; Bagger, J; Sylvest, A

2002-01-01

Twenty-four orthopaedic surgeons classified 42 pairs of radiographs according to the Neer system for proximal humeral fractures. Mean kappa value for inter-observer agreement was 0.27 (95% CI 0.26-0.28) with no clinically significant difference between orthopaedic residents ( n=9), fellows ( n=6)......) and specialists ( n=9). Mean kappa for agreement of displacement versus non-displacement was 0.41 (95% CI 0.39-0.43) overall, and 0.50 (95% CI 0.45-0.56) within the specialist group. The agreement found in our study is unsatisfactory from a clinical perspective....

The Rules of Origin of Goods as an Instrument of the State Foreign Trade Policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Storozhchuk Volodymyr M.

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The article is aimed at analyzing the types of rules of origin of goods, existing in the international practice, and approaches to assess their impact on the foreign trade flows. The article considers two types of rules for determining the country of origin of goods used in the international practice: non-preferential and preferential. The main characteristics of the non-preferential rules of origin and peculiarities of their application in Ukraine are defined and systematized. The article defines the priority functions of the customs tariff, subject to the use of non-preferential rules of origin of goods, to which are classified: protective, fiscal, and regulatory. The criteria used in the non-preferential rules of origin of goods have been considered. It has been substantiated that the priority functions of the customs tariff subject to the use of preferential rules of origin of goods are the integration and progressive functions. The criteria used in the preferential rules of origin of goods have been considered. Based on the results of the analysis of the rules of origin of goods, it has been substantiated that their use can be considered as a restrictive or an incentive tool of the State foreign trade policy. It has been shown that of special importance, in the context of Ukraine’s integration into the global value chains, is the goods’ acquisition of the status of preferential origin in accordance with the criterion of diagonal cumulation within the framework of the Regional Pan-Euro-Med Convention, which requires Ukraine to conclude a number of bilateral agreements with the identical preferential rules of origin of goods.

NUCLA Circulating Atmospheric Fluidized Bed Demonstration Project. 1990 Annual report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-02-01

The objective of this DOE Cooperative Agreement is to conduct a cost-shared clean coal technology project to demonstrate the feasibility of circulating fluidized bed combustion technology and to evaluate economic, environmental, and operational benefits of CFB steam generators on a utility scale. At the conclusion of the Phase 2 program, testing related to satisfying these objectives was completed. Data analysis and reporting are scheduled for completion by October 1991. (VC)

African Regional Co-operative Agreement for research, development and training related to nuclear science and technology. Extension of agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

Pursuant to Article XIV.2, the Agreement ''shall continue in force for a period of five years from the data of its entry into force and may be extended for further periods of five years if the Government Parties so agree''. The extension of the Agreement entered into force on 4 April 1995, upon expiration of the original Agreement

African Regional Co-operative Agreement for research, development and training related to nuclear science and technology. Extension of agreement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-05-10

Pursuant to Article XIV.2, the Agreement ``shall continue in force for a period of five years from the data of its entry into force and may be extended for further periods of five years if the Government Parties so agree``. The extension of the Agreement entered into force on 4 April 1995, upon expiration of the original Agreement.

The Blend Down Monitoring System Demonstration at the Padijcah Gaseous Diffusion Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benton, J.; Close, D.; Johnson, W. Jr.; Kerr, P.; March-Leuba, J.; Mastal, E.; Moss, C.; Powell, D.; Sumner, J.; Uckan, T.; Vines, R.; Wright, P.D.

1999-01-01

Agreements between the governments of the US and the Russian Federation for the US purchase of low enriched uranium (LEU) derived from highly enriched uranium (HEU) from dismantled Russian nuclear weapons calls for the establishment of transparency measures to provide confidence that nuclear nonproliferation goals are being met. To meet these transparency goals, the agreements call for the installation of nonintrusive US instruments to monitor the down blending of HEU to LEU. The Blend Down Monitoring System (BDMS) has been jointly developed by the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to continuously monitor 235 U enrichments and mass flow rates at Russian blending facilities. Prior to its installation in Russian facilities, the BDMS was installed and operated in a UF 6 flow loop in the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant simulating flow and enrichment conditions expected in a typical down-blending facility. A Russian delegation to the US witnessed the equipment demonstration in June, 1998. To conduct the demonstration in the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP), the BDMS was required to meet stringent Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing, safety and operational requirements. The Paducah demonstration was an important milestone in achieving the operational certification for the BDMS use in Russian facilities

Recovery Act-SmartGrid regional demonstration transmission and distribution (T&D) Infrastructure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hedges, Edward T. [Kansas City Power & Light Company, Kansas City, MO (United States)

2015-01-31

This document represents the Final Technical Report for the Kansas City Power & Light Company (KCP&L) Green Impact Zone SmartGrid Demonstration Project (SGDP). The KCP&L project is partially funded by Department of Energy (DOE) Regional Smart Grid Demonstration Project cooperative agreement DE-OE0000221 in the Transmission and Distribution Infrastructure application area. This Final Technical Report summarizes the KCP&L SGDP as of April 30, 2015 and includes summaries of the project design, implementation, operations, and analysis performed as of that date.

Irradiation of goods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lunt, R.E.

1987-01-01

Mechanical handling apparatus is adapted to handle goods, such as boxed fruit, during a process of irradiation, in palletized form. Palletized goods are loaded onto wheeled vehicles in a loading zone. Four vehicles are wheeled on a track into an irradiation zone via a door in a concrete shield. The vehicles are arranged in orthogonal relationship around a source of square section. Turntables are positioned at corners of the square shaped rail truck around the source selectively to turn the vehicles to align then with track sections. Mechanical manipulating devices are positioned in the track sections opposed to sides of the source. During irradiation, the vehicles and their palletized goods are cylically moved toward the source to offer first sides of the goods for irradiation and are retraced from the source and are pivoted through 90 0 to persent succeeding sides of the goods for irradiation

Designing Comprehensive Partnering Agreements : An Introduction to the Partnering Agreement Scorecard

NARCIS (Netherlands)

S.M. Pfisterer (Stella); N. Payandeh (Nasim); S. Reid

2014-01-01

textabstractAgreements are a key mechanism of partnerships because their role is to govern interactions. They help partnerships become more effective by allowing partners to cope with relational, performance and situational risks that characterise inter-organisational relationships. The

Medicina array demonstrator: calibration and radiation pattern characterization using a UAV-mounted radio-frequency source

Science.gov (United States)

Pupillo, G.; Naldi, G.; Bianchi, G.; Mattana, A.; Monari, J.; Perini, F.; Poloni, M.; Schiaffino, M.; Bolli, P.; Lingua, A.; Aicardi, I.; Bendea, H.; Maschio, P.; Piras, M.; Virone, G.; Paonessa, F.; Farooqui, Z.; Tibaldi, A.; Addamo, G.; Peverini, O. A.; Tascone, R.; Wijnholds, S. J.

2015-06-01

One of the most challenging aspects of the new-generation Low-Frequency Aperture Array (LFAA) radio telescopes is instrument calibration. The operational LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) instrument and the future LFAA element of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) require advanced calibration techniques to reach the expected outstanding performance. In this framework, a small array, called Medicina Array Demonstrator (MAD), has been designed and installed in Italy to provide a test bench for antenna characterization and calibration techniques based on a flying artificial test source. A radio-frequency tone is transmitted through a dipole antenna mounted on a micro Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) (hexacopter) and received by each element of the array. A modern digital FPGA-based back-end is responsible for both data-acquisition and data-reduction. A simple amplitude and phase equalization algorithm is exploited for array calibration owing to the high stability and accuracy of the developed artificial test source. Both the measured embedded element patterns and calibrated array patterns are found to be in good agreement with the simulated data. The successful measurement campaign has demonstrated that a UAV-mounted test source provides a means to accurately validate and calibrate the full-polarized response of an antenna/array in operating conditions, including consequently effects like mutual coupling between the array elements and contribution of the environment to the antenna patterns. A similar system can therefore find a future application in the SKA-LFAA context.

Agreement between clinical estimation and a new quantitative analysis by Photoshop software in fundus and angiographic image variables.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramezani, Alireza; Ahmadieh, Hamid; Azarmina, Mohsen; Soheilian, Masoud; Dehghan, Mohammad H; Mohebbi, Mohammad R

2009-12-01

To evaluate the validity of a new method for the quantitative analysis of fundus or angiographic images using Photoshop 7.0 (Adobe, USA) software by comparing with clinical evaluation. Four hundred and eighteen fundus and angiographic images of diabetic patients were evaluated by three retina specialists and then by computing using Photoshop 7.0 software. Four variables were selected for comparison: amount of hard exudates (HE) on color pictures, amount of HE on red-free pictures, severity of leakage, and the size of the foveal avascular zone (FAZ). The coefficient of agreement (Kappa) between the two methods in the amount of HE on color and red-free photographs were 85% (0.69) and 79% (0.59), respectively. The agreement for severity of leakage was 72% (0.46). In the two methods for the evaluation of the FAZ size using the magic and lasso software tools, the agreement was 54% (0.09) and 89% (0.77), respectively. Agreement in the estimation of the FAZ size by the lasso magnetic tool was excellent and was almost as good in the quantification of HE on color and on red-free images. Considering the agreement of this new technique for the measurement of variables in fundus images using Photoshop software with the clinical evaluation, this method seems to have sufficient validity to be used for the quantitative analysis of HE, leakage, and FAZ size on the angiograms of diabetic patients.

7 CFR 1424.5 - Agreement process.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 10 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Agreement process. 1424.5 Section 1424.5 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) COMMODITY CREDIT CORPORATION, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE LOANS, PURCHASES, AND OTHER OPERATIONS BIOENERGY PROGRAM § 1424.5 Agreement process. (a) To...

Optimalisasi Penerapan Prinsip Good Governance Bidang Akademik dalam Upaya Mewujudkan Good University Governance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hery Harjono Muljo

2014-05-01

Full Text Available This study wants to know and understand whether good governance principles have been well applied as well as the factors influencing optimization of the implementation of good governance principles on the academic field in an effort to realize good university governance in Bina Nusantara University. The study aims to evaluate the implementation of good governance principles on the academic field, know the factors that affect the implementation of good governance principles on the academic field, and improve and develop the academic areas in accordance with good governance principles in order to maximize the role of Bina Nusantara University as Good University Governance. The approach model used to understand the implementation of good governance principles was a model to educational institution using the 8 principles, namely academic freedom, shared governance, clear rights and responsibilities, selection at merit, financial stability, accountability, regular testing of standards, and the importance of close cooperation. Research used qualitative method with descriptive analysis, by analyzing the factors influencing optimization of the implementation of good governance principles, particularly on academic areas. The results achieved there were 18 factors that affect the optimization of the implementation of good governance principles. Then the factors affected the optimization ofthe implementation of good governance principles the most are operational centralization and academic decentralization which were the novelty of this study.

New Danish Company Act on Shareholders' Agreements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Werlauff, Erik

2011-01-01

) organizational rights, (2) financial rights, and (3) rights of disposal, or in plainer words, the corporate (1) power, (2) money, and (3) exit. If a shareholders’ agreement is thoroughly kept and respected by all parties, both in the way they vote at general assemblies and in the way they act when wishing....... The substantial elements in many agreements are clauses on (1) voting for board candidates, (2) voting for dividends of certain proportions, and (3) first refusal rights, respectively, call options for shares in the company. Such clauses are at the very roots of corporate law, dealing with the shareholders’ (1......Section 82 of the Danish Company Act, in force from 1 March 2010, provides that ‘Shareholders’ agreements are neither binding on the company nor on decisions taken by the general assembly’. This has far-reaching consequences for shareholders’ agreements, also for already existing agreements...

Statistical methods for assessing agreement between continuous measurements

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sokolowski, Ineta; Hansen, Rikke Pilegaard; Vedsted, Peter

Background: Clinical research often involves study of agreement amongst observers. Agreement can be measured in different ways, and one can obtain quite different values depending on which method one uses. Objective: We review the approaches that have been discussed to assess the agreement between...... continuous measures and discuss their strengths and weaknesses. Different methods are illustrated using actual data from the `Delay in diagnosis of cancer in general practice´ project in Aarhus, Denmark. Subjects and Methods: We use weighted kappa-statistic, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC......), concordance coefficient, Bland-Altman limits of agreement and percentage of agreement to assess the agreement between patient reported delay and doctor reported delay in diagnosis of cancer in general practice. Key messages: The correct statistical approach is not obvious. Many studies give the product...

International environmental agreements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Zeeuw, Aart

2015-01-01

The regulation of environmental externalities at the global level requires international agreements between sovereign states. Game theory provides an appropriate theoretical tool for analysis. However, game theory can result in a wide range of outcomes, and therefore it is important to discuss the

Good News in Bad News: How Negativity Enhances Economic Efficacy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Svensson, H.M.; Albæk, E.; van Dalen, A.; de Vreese, C.

2017-01-01

Negativity is a news ideology, and its negative effects on attitude formation are widely documented. Contrary to this view, the present study demonstrates that negative economic news can in fact be good news. Based on a two-wave national panel survey and a media content analysis, we show that

A longitudinal study of childhood social behaviour : Inter-informant agreement, inter-context agreement, and social preference linkages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kuppens, Sofie; Grietens, Hans; Onghena, Patrick; Michiels, Daisy

2009-01-01

This study examined inter-informant agreement, inter-context agreement, and social preference linkages for social behaviour subtypes. On two occasions, data was collected on 600 children (8-10 years old) via mother, father, teacher, and peer reports. Informant reports converged within each context

WTO+ commitments on services in Asian PTAs: The role of regulatory homogeneity and goods trade complementarity

OpenAIRE

Shingal, Anirudh; Ro, Martin; Sauvé, Pierre

2018-01-01

This paper looks at the role of applied services regulations in accounting for WTO+ commitments on trade in services in preferential trade agreements (PTAs) among Asian economies. The empirical findings suggest that Asian trading dyads with regulatory frameworks that are more similar and more trade-restrictive tend to undertake higher levels of WTO+ commitments on services in their PTAs. There is also evidence in the results for such WTO+ commitments being driven by goods trade complementarit...

The Sicomines Agreement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jansson, Johanna

of the global political economy have shifted, and that China’s position as a foreign policy actor is now consolidated. Continuity, since the 2009 amendment of the agreement, which came about partly as a result of China’s ambitions to take up an active role in the International Monetary Fund (IMF......), was to the benefit of the policy preferences of the IMF and the World Bank. This case thus indicates that since China’s own aspirations are changeable, its emergence as an alternative development partner may not bring about any substantive change of direction for the DRC’s international relations. Furthermore......The Sicomines multibillion minerals-for-infrastructure deal was struck in 2007 between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and China. The paper investigates the drivers behind the original conception of the agreement, outlines the structure of the contract, analyses the dynamics at play during...

Self-other agreement of personality judgments in job interviews: exploring the effects of trait, gender, age and social desirability.

Science.gov (United States)

Nederström, Mikael; Salmela-Aro, Katariina

2014-10-01

The article investigated agreement between self-reports and stranger ratings of personality. A sample of 139 real-life job applicants was interviewed by expert psychologists upon entrance to the assessment center. The applicants provided self-descriptions on 15 personality factors, and the psychologists rated the same traits of each target based on their impressions in the interview. The results demonstrated that professional judges can reach a substantial self-other agreement (SOA) on several traits even when the targets are strangers, and that the trait being judged, the target's gender, age and social desirability have an effect on the level of agreement. © 2014 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

7 CFR 1290.8 - Grant agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 10 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Grant agreements. 1290.8 Section 1290.8 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (MARKETING AGREEMENTS... minimum the following: (1) The projects in the approved State plan. (2) Total amount of Federal financial...

7 CFR 1291.8 - Grant agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 10 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Grant agreements. 1291.8 Section 1291.8 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (MARKETING AGREEMENTS... minimum the following: (1) The projects in the approved State plan. (2) Total amount of Federal financial...

48 CFR 2131.109 - Advance agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 true Advance agreements. 2131... PRINCIPLES AND PROCEDURES Applicability 2131.109 Advance agreements. FAR 31.109 is applicable to FEGLI Program contracts, except that precontract costs and nonrecurring costs that exceed $100,000 will not be...

Entrepreneurs' self-reported health, social life, and strategies for maintaining good health.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunnarsson, Kristina; Josephson, Malin

2011-01-01

This study investigated the association between self-reported good health and self-valued good social life. An additional aim was to examine entrepreneur's strategies for maintaining good health. The study design included a two-wave questionnaire, with five years between the surveys (2001 and 2006), and qualitative interviews. The study group consisted of 246 entrepreneurs from the central region of Sweden and represented ten different trades. Entrepreneurs reporting good health in both 2001 and 2006 were compared with entrepreneurs reporting poor health on both occasions or with inconsistent answers. Six of the entrepreneurs were strategically chosen for the interview study. Consistent good health was reported by 56% of the entrepreneurs. Good social life in 2001 was associated with an increased odds ratio (OR) for consistent good health when the analyses were adjusted for physical work conditions and job satisfaction (OR 2.12, 95% CI 1.07-4.17). Findings for good leisure time, weekly moderate physical exercise, and a rating of work being less or equally important as other life areas, were similar but not statistically significant when job satisfaction was considered in the analyses. Strategies for maintaining good health included good planning and control over work, flexibility at work, good social contact with family, friends and other entrepreneurs, and regular physical exercise. This study demonstrated an association between self-reported good health and good social life for entrepreneurs in small-scale enterprises. In addition, the entrepreneurs emphasised strategies such as planning and control over work and physical exercise are important for maintaining good health.

McIntosh Unit 4 PCFB demonstration project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dodd, A.M. [Lakeland Electric and Water, FL (United States); Dryden, R.J. [Foster Wheeler Development Corp., San Diego, CA (United States); Morehead, H.T. [Westinghouse Electric Corp., Orlando, FL (United States)

1997-12-31

The City of Lakeland, Foster Wheeler Corporation and Westinghouse Electric Corporation have embarked on a utility scale demonstration of Pressurized Circulating Fluidized Bed (PCFB) technology at Lakeland`s McIntosh Power Station in Lakeland, Florida. The US Department of Energy will be providing approximately $195 million of funding for the project through two Cooperative Agreements under the auspices of the Clean Coal Technology Program. The project will involve the commercial demonstration of Foster Wheeler Pyroflow PCFB technology integrated with Westinghouse`s Hot Gas Filter (HGF) and power generation technologies. The total project duration will be approximately eight years and will be structured into three separate phases; two years of design and permitting, followed by an initial period of two years of fabrication and construction and concluding with a four year demonstration (commercial operation) period. It is expected that the project will show that Foster Wheeler`s Pyroflow PCFB technology coupled with Westinghouse`s HGF and power generation technologies represents a cost effective, high efficiency, low emissions means of adding greenfield generation capacity and that this same technology is also well suited for repowering applications.

The nuclear agreement between the P5+1 and Iran: real progress?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sitt, Bernard

2013-11-01

The joint plan of action signed on the 24 November 2013 by the P5+1 and Iran is good news, and all the States parties to this document have expressed their satisfaction. This 'mutually agreed long-term comprehensive solution' - as it is repeatedly referred to in the preamble - constitutes a concrete materialisation of the softening of Iran's position since the election of Hassan Rouhani as the country's president (with the approval of the Supreme Guide Ali Khamenei). This plan of action was adopted after nearly eleven years of a crisis that was interrupted on one occasion only by the Paris Agreement signed on the 15 November 2004 between the EU3 and Iran (whose chief negotiator at the time was Hassan Rouhani), and which took a more radical turn following Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's accession to power. But this text, written in the conditional tense, is not strictly speaking an agreement. It is rather an agreement on the substance of a future agreement, albeit a precise and detailed one. Negotiations will be carried out over an initial six-month period, and a second phase will finalise a full agreement at most one year on from the adoption of the joint action plan. It is also underlined that this agreement will be an indivisible whole: nothing will be agreed unless everything is agreed. The limitations that Iran is prepared to accept on its nuclear programme would appear to be substantial: the retention of half of its stock of 20%-enriched uranium to produce fuel for the Teheran Research Reactor and the dilution of the other half to no more than 5%; no increase in its existing enrichment capabilities, but it will continue its research and development practices in this field; the suspension of the construction of the Arak heavy-water reactor; no reprocessing; and enhanced monitoring of nuclear activities by the IAEA. In exchange, no new sanctions or crude oil embargoes will be imposed; existing sanctions on petrochemical products and services will be suspended; and

76 FR 44958 - Solicitation for a Cooperative Agreement-Quarterly Publication of a “Corrections Mental Health...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-27

... Agreements,'' which will be included in the award package); (2) Adhere to best practices in technical writing... there evidence of experience in corrections, mental health, or technical writing that would demonstrate... at http://www.nicic.gov . All technical or programmatic questions concerning this announcement should...

The Pfirrmann classification of lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration: an independent inter- and intra-observer agreement assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Urrutia, Julio; Besa, Pablo; Campos, Mauricio; Cikutovic, Pablo; Cabezon, Mario; Molina, Marcelo; Cruz, Juan Pablo

2016-09-01

Grading inter-vertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is important in the evaluation of many degenerative conditions, including patients with low back pain. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is considered the best imaging instrument to evaluate IDD. The Pfirrmann classification is commonly used to grade IDD; the authors describing this classification showed an adequate agreement using it; however, there has been a paucity of independent agreement studies using this grading system. The aim of this study was to perform an independent inter- and intra-observer agreement study using the Pfirrmann classification. T2-weighted sagittal images of 79 patients consecutively studied with lumbar spine MRI were classified using the Pfirrmann grading system by six evaluators (three spine surgeons and three radiologists). After a 6-week interval, the 79 cases were presented to the same evaluators in a random sequence for repeat evaluation. The intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and the weighted kappa (wκ) were used to determine the inter- and intra-observer agreement. The inter-observer agreement was excellent, with an ICC = 0.94 (0.93-0.95) and wκ = 0.83 (0.74-0.91). There were no differences between spine surgeons and radiologists. Likewise, there were no differences in agreement evaluating the different lumbar discs. Most differences among observers were only of one grade. Intra-observer agreement was also excellent with ICC = 0.86 (0.83-0.89) and wκ = 0.89 (0.85-0.93). In this independent study, the Pfirrmann classification demonstrated an adequate agreement among different observers and by the same observer on separate occasions. Furthermore, it allows communication between radiologists and spine surgeons.

Agreement between magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonography in the classification of Schistosomal periportal fibrosis, according to Niamey's criteria

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scortegagna Junior, Eduardo; Leao, Alberto Ribeiro de Souza; Sales, Danilo Moulin; Shigueoka, David Carlos; D' Ippolito, Giuseppe [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (UNIFESP-EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Dept. of Imaging Diagnosis]. E-mail: E-mail: giuseppe_dr@uol.com.br; Santos, Jose Eduardo Mourao; Colleoni Neto, Ramiro [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (UNIFESP-EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Aguiar, Luciane Aparecida Kopke de; Brant, Paulo Eugenio [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (UNIFESP-EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Dept. of Gastroenterology; Borges, Durval Rosa [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (UNIFESP-EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Dept. of Medicine

2008-01-15

Objective: To evaluate the reproducibility of magnetic resonance imaging and the agreement between ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging in the classification of periportal fibrosis in patients with schistosomiasis based on Niamey's qualitative criteria. Materials and methods: A prospective, double-blinded study was conducted between February 2005 and June 2006 with 20 patients (10 men and 10 women, with ages ranging between 24 and 60 years, mean age 42.7 years) diagnosed with schistosomiasis mansoni. Both ultrasound and magnetic resonance images were independently evaluated by two experienced observers. Interobserver agreement was evaluated for findings of periportal fibrosis on magnetic resonance images and in a comparison between magnetic resonance and ultrasound images. Results: The analysis of magnetic resonance images showed total interobserver agreement in 14 patients (70%). The comparison between ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging showed agreement between images in only six cases (30%) by observer 1, and in eight cases (40%) by observer 2. Conclusion: Magnetic resonance imaging presents a good reproducibility in the evaluation of periportal fibrosis in later stages of schistosomiasis, however, the correlation between magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound is poor. (author)

Use of Nondisclosure Agreements in Medical Malpractice Settlements by a Large Academic Health Care System.

Science.gov (United States)

Sage, William M; Jablonski, Joseph S; Thomas, Eric J

2015-07-01

Honesty and transparency are essential aspects of health care, including in physicians' and hospitals' responses to medical error. Biases and habits associated with medical malpractice litigation, however, may work at cross-purposes with compassion in clinical care and with efforts to improve patient safety. To determine the frequency of nondisclosure agreements in medical malpractice settlements and the extent to which the restrictions in these agreements seem incompatible with good patient care. We performed a retrospective review of medical malpractice claim files, including settlement agreements, for claims closed before (fiscal year 2001-2002), during (fiscal year 2006-2007), and after (fiscal years 2009-2012) the implementation of tort reform in Texas. We studied The University of Texas System, which self-insures malpractice claims that involve 6000 physicians at 6 medical campuses in 5 cities. Nondisclosure provisions in medical malpractice settlements. During the 5 study years, The University of Texas System closed 715 malpractice claims and made 150 settlement payments. For the 124 cases that met our selection criteria, the median compensation paid by the university was $100,000 (range, $500-$1.25 million), and the mean compensation was $185,372. A total of 110 settlement agreements (88.7%) included nondisclosure provisions. All the nondisclosure clauses prohibited disclosure of the settlement terms and amount, 61 (55.5%) prohibited disclosure that the settlement had been reached, 51 (46.4%) prohibited disclosure of the facts of the claim, 29 (26.4%) prohibited reporting to regulatory agencies, and 10 (9.1%) prohibited disclosure by the settling physicians and hospitals, not only by the claimant. Three agreements (2.7%) included specific language that prohibited the claimant from disparaging the physicians or hospitals. The 50 settlement agreements signed after tort reform took full effect in Texas (2009-2012) had stricter nondisclosure provisions than the

Rater Agreement Indexes for Performance Assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Burry-Stock, Judith A.; And Others

1996-01-01

It is argued that interrater agreement is a psychometric property which is theoretically different from classic reliability. Formulas are presented to illustrate a set of algebraically equivalent rater agreement indices that are intended to provide educational and psychological researchers with a practical way to establish a measure of rater…

5 CFR 1655.12 - Loan agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 5 Administrative Personnel 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Loan agreement. 1655.12 Section 1655.12 Administrative Personnel FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT INVESTMENT BOARD LOAN PROGRAM § 1655.12 Loan agreement. (a) Upon determining that a loan application meets the requirements of this part, the TSP record keeper...

Agreement Between an Automated Volume Breast Scanner and Handheld Ultrasound for Diagnostic Breast Examinations.

Science.gov (United States)

Barr, Richard G; DeVita, Robert; Destounis, Stamatia; Manzoni, Federica; De Silvestri, Annalisa; Tinelli, Carmine

2017-10-01

To compare the agreement and interobserver variability of diagnostic handheld ultrasound (US) and a single volume on an automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) and to determine whether there was a significant difference if the ABVS was used by a sonographer or mammographic technologist. Ninety patients scheduled for diagnostic US examinations were randomized to either handheld US or the ABVS first. The AVBS was randomized between a sonographer and a mammographic technologist performing the study. The studies were blinded, randomized, and read by 2 radiologists. The lesion with the highest Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) score was used in the analysis. Final diagnoses were made by core biopsy or follow-up for 2 years. Lesions included 9 malignant and 81 benign. The 90 patients had a mean age ± SD of 53.1 ± 16.3 years. The κ value for agreement between the ABVS and handheld US was 0.831 (95% confidence interval, 0.744-0.925), whereas the global agreement for a 7-point BI-RADS score was 0.488 (0.372-0.560). The agreement between the ABVS and handheld US was nearly the same when the ABVS was used by a mammographic technologist (κ = 0.858 [0.723-0.963]) or sonographer (κ = 0.803 [0.596-1.000]; P = .47). The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves for characterization by the ABVS were 0.91 (0.84-0.96) for reader 1 and 0.91 (0.83-0.96) for reader 2; those for handheld US were 0.91 (0.84-0.96) for reader 1 and 0.83 (0.74-0.90) for reader 2, with no statistical difference. The agreement based on pathologic images was κ = 0.831 (0.718-0.944); for handheld US, κ = 0.795 (0.623-0.967); and for the AVBS, κ = 0.869 (0.725-1.000). Performing a single-view diagnostic ABVS examination has good agreement with a handheld diagnostic US workup. There is no difference if the ABVS is used by a sonographer or mammographic technologist. © 2017 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Dry cask storage: a Vepco/DOE/EPRI cooperative demonstration program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, M.L.

1984-01-01

In response to a Department of Energy (DOE) Solicitation for Cooperative Agreement Proposal, Virginia Electric and Power Company (Vepco) proposed to participate in a spent fuel storage demonstration program utilizing the dry cask storage technology. This proposed program includes dry cask storage at Vepco's Surry Nuclear Power Station and research and development activities at a DOE site in support of the licensed program at Surry. Phase I of Vepco's two-phase program involves a demonstration of the licensed dry cask storage of spent fuel in an inert atmosphere at the Surry Power Station site. Phase II of Vepco's proposed program will involve the demonstration of storing unconsolidated and consolidated spent fuel in dry casks filled only with air. This phase of the program will involve DOE site testing similar to Phase I and is expected to require an additional (fourth) cask to demonstrate storage of unconsolidated spent fuel in air-filled casks

Volatility Spillovers in Capesize Forward Freight Agreement Markets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoxing Gong

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper is to investigate spillovers in the Capesize forward freight agreements (FFAs markets before and after the global financial crisis. The paper chooses four Capesize voyage routes FFAs (C3, C4, C5, and C7, two time-charter routes FFAs (BCIT/C average, BPI T/C average, and spot rates as research subjects, covering the periods 3 January 2006 to 24 December 2015. This paper applies Volatility Spillover Multivariate Stochastic Volatility (VS-MSV model to analyze volatility spillover effects and estimates the parameters via software of Bayesian inference using Gibbs Sampling (BUGS, the deviance information criterion (DIC used for goodness-of-fit model. The results suggest that there are volatility spillover effects in certain Capesize FFAs routes, and the effects from spot rates to FFAs take place before crisis, yet they are bilateral after crisis. With the development of shipping markets, the correlations between FFAs and spot rate are enhanced, and it seems that the effects depend on market information and traders’ behavior. So practitioners could make decisions according to the spillovers.

The text of a safeguards transfer agreement relating to a bilateral agreement between Argentina and the United States of America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-06-01

The document reproduces the text of a safeguards transfer agreement of 28 August 1996 relating to a bilateral agreement between Argentina and the United States of America to suspend the application of safeguards pursuant to the agreement of 25 July 1969 between the Agency, Argentina and the United States of America in light of the provisions for the application of safeguards pursuant to the quadripartite safeguards agreement between Argentina, Brazil, the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for the Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials and the IAEA. The Protocol entered into force on 13 January 1997

8 CFR 217.6 - Carrier agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Carrier agreements. 217.6 Section 217.6 Aliens and Nationality DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY IMMIGRATION REGULATIONS VISA WAIVER PROGRAM § 217... may notify a carrier of the existence of a basis for termination of a carrier agreement under this...

23 CFR 710.307 - Project agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 23 Highways 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Project agreement. 710.307 Section 710.307 Highways FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION RIGHT-OF-WAY AND ENVIRONMENT RIGHT-OF-WAY AND REAL ESTATE Project Development § 710.307 Project agreement. As a condition of Federal-aid, the STD...

What Goods Do Countries Trade? New Ricardian Predictions

OpenAIRE

Arnaud Costinot; Ivana Komunjer

2007-01-01

Though one of the pillars of the theory of international trade, the extreme predictions of the Ricardian model have made it unsuitable for empirical purposes. A seminal contribution of Eaton and Kortum (2002) is to demonstrate the stochastic productivity differences at the firm-level are sufficient to make the Ricardian model empirically relevant. While successful at explaining trade volumes, their model remains silent with regards to one important question: What goods do countries trade? ...

What Good Do Countries Trade? New Ricardian Predictions

OpenAIRE

Costinot, Arnaud; Komunjer, Ivana

2006-01-01

Though one of the pillars of the theory of international trade, the extreme predictions of the Ricardian model have made it unsuitable for empirical purposes. A seminal contribution of Eaton and Kortum (2002) is to demonstrate that random productivity shocks are sufficient to make the Ricardian model empirically relevant. While successful at explaining trade volumes, their model remains silent with regards to one important questions: What goods to countries trade? Our main contribution is...

48 CFR 252.225-7020 - Trade Agreements Certificate.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 3 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Trade Agreements... of Provisions And Clauses 252.225-7020 Trade Agreements Certificate. As prescribed in 225.1101(5), use the following provision: Trade Agreements Certificate (JAN 2005) (a) Definitions. Designated...

MRMC analysis of agreement studies

Science.gov (United States)

Gallas, Brandon D.; Anam, Amrita; Chen, Weijie; Wunderlich, Adam; Zhang, Zhiwei

2016-03-01

The purpose of this work is to present and evaluate methods based on U-statistics to compare intra- or inter-reader agreement across different imaging modalities. We apply these methods to multi-reader multi-case (MRMC) studies. We measure reader-averaged agreement and estimate its variance accounting for the variability from readers and cases (an MRMC analysis). In our application, pathologists (readers) evaluate patient tissue mounted on glass slides (cases) in two ways. They evaluate the slides on a microscope (reference modality) and they evaluate digital scans of the slides on a computer display (new modality). In the current work, we consider concordance as the agreement measure, but many of the concepts outlined here apply to other agreement measures. Concordance is the probability that two readers rank two cases in the same order. Concordance can be estimated with a U-statistic and thus it has some nice properties: it is unbiased, asymptotically normal, and its variance is given by an explicit formula. Another property of a U-statistic is that it is symmetric in its inputs; it doesn't matter which reader is listed first or which case is listed first, the result is the same. Using this property and a few tricks while building the U-statistic kernel for concordance, we get a mathematically tractable problem and efficient software. Simulations show that our variance and covariance estimates are unbiased.

Online Education as a Toll Good: An Examination of the South Carolina Virtual School Program

Science.gov (United States)

Rauh, Jonathan

2011-01-01

Education has long been considered merit good; however, inequitable distribution has made it more akin to a toll good. This was most recently demonstrated by Henry, Fortner, and Thompson (2010). Choice requirements designed to remedy the inequitable distribution of education, have largely been confined to brick and mortar schools. Subsequently,…

Environmental agreements in Canada : Aboriginal participation, EIA follow-up and environmental management of major projects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O' Faircheallaigh, C. [Griffith Univ., Brisbane (Australia). Dept. of Politics and Public Policy

2006-05-15

Attempts are now being made to address the historic marginalization of indigenous peoples from the management of resource projects located on their ancestral lands through the use of environmental agreements. However, the rapid pace of resource development in certain regions of Canada has meant that there is an increased need to ensure effective follow-up procedures for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes in order to achieve meaningful Aboriginal participation in the management of large-scale resource projects. Lack of effective follow-up has made it difficult for the relevant agencies to manage risks and uncertainties. This book discussed the use of new policy environmental agreements between industry, government, and Aboriginal peoples. Case studies where environmental agreements were used in the Northwest Territories, Alberta, and Newfoundland were presented in order to demonstrate their efficacy. It was concluded that structures and processes must be designed to encourage Aboriginal participation in consultation processes. refs., tabs.

48 CFR 16.702 - Basic agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... attachment the required and applicable clauses agreed upon in the basic agreement. A basic agreement is not a... Government to place future contracts or orders with the contractor; or (3) Be used in any manner to restrict... (including reference to each amendment) or by attachment. (2) The contracting officer shall include clauses...

75 FR 42445 - Notice of Agreement Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-21

...)-523-5793 or [email protected] . Agreement No.: 012105. Title: SCM Lines Transportes/CCNI Agreement. Parties: Compania Chilena de Navegacion Interoceanica S.A. and SCM Lines Transportes Maritimos Sociedade...

Does parent-child agreement vary based on presenting problems? Results from a UK clinical sample.

Science.gov (United States)

Cleridou, Kalia; Patalay, Praveetha; Martin, Peter

2017-01-01

Discrepancies are often found between child and parent reports of child psychopathology, nevertheless the role of the child's presenting difficulties in relation to these is underexplored. This study investigates whether parent-child agreement on the conduct and emotional scales of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) varied as a result of certain child characteristics, including the child's presenting problems to clinical services, age and gender. The UK-based sample consisted of 16,754 clinical records of children aged 11-17, the majority of which were female (57%) and White (76%). The dataset was provided by the Child Outcomes Research Consortium , which collects outcome measures from child services across the UK. Clinicians reported the child's presenting difficulties, and parents and children completed the SDQ. Using correlation analysis, the main findings indicated that agreement varied as a result of the child's difficulties for reports of conduct problems, and this seemed to be related to the presence or absence of externalising difficulties in the child's presentation. This was not the case for reports of emotional difficulties. In addition, agreement was higher when reporting problems not consistent with the child's presentation; for instance, agreement on conduct problems was greater for children presenting with internalising problems. Lastly, the children's age and gender did not seem to have an impact on agreement. These findings demonstrate that certain child presenting difficulties, and in particular conduct problems, may be related to informant agreement and need to be considered in clinical practice and research. Trial Registration This study was observational and as such did not require trial registration.

On jointly optimising the changes of seasonable goods and inventory replenishment

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhaolin; Tao, Feng; Sun, Daewon

2012-06-01

Retailers often need to replace soon-to-be-unseasonable products with new seasonable goods when the season changes. The trade-off for such activities involves choosing between the salvage loss of the unseasonable product and the profit of selling the seasonable product early. This article develops a periodic-review inventory model for planning the changes of seasonable goods with state-dependent demand and cost parameters. We show that the single-period optimal policy for product changes is a threshold policy based on the initial inventory of the unseasonable goods. The corresponding optimal inventory policy follows a Purchase-Keep-Dispose policy if the incumbent product is kept or a base-stock policy if the incumbent product is replaced. Numerically, we find that the structure of the multi-period optimal policy resembles that of the single-period model. We propose a heuristic to solve the multi-period model and demonstrate its effectiveness. Our research provides insights into dynamically managing seasonable goods.

77 FR 59064 - United States-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-26

...-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland... Trade Promotion Agreement entered into by the United States and the Republic of Colombia. DATES: Interim...-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (``CTPA'' or ``Agreement''), and on June 28, 2007, the Parties signed a...

76 FR 65365 - United States-OMAN Free Trade Agreement

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-21

... Free Trade Agreement AGENCIES: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security... other customs-related provisions of the United States--Oman Free Trade Agreement entered into by the... the U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement (``OFTA'' or ``Agreement''). The provisions of the OFTA were...

78 FR 32356 - United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-30

...-Korea Free Trade Agreement AGENCIES: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security... treatment and other customs-related provisions of the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement entered into...-Korea Free Trade Agreement (hereinafter ``UKFTA'' or the ``Agreement''). On December 3, 2010, the United...

Agreements to work outside the scope of employment

OpenAIRE

Svobodová, Tereza

2010-01-01

Resumé / Summary Title: Agreements on work performed outside an employment relationship Agreements on work performed outside an employment relationship are a specific type of labour relationship allowing the employer to employ an employee on the basis of its actual needs. These agreements are unique in whole Europe; we may find them only in the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, which is caused by the common development until the first half of 1990's. There are two kinds of these agreements ...

The common good

OpenAIRE

Argandoña, Antonio

2011-01-01

The concept of the common good occupied a relevant place in classical social, political and economic philosophy. After losing ground in the Modern age, it has recently reappeared, although with different and sometimes confusing meanings. This paper is the draft of a chapter of a Handbook; it explains the meaning of common good in the Aristotelian-Thomistic philosophy and in the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church; why the common good is relevant; and how it is different from the other uses...

Innovative approaches to structuring the transaction agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Droppo, D.L.

1999-01-01

Several issues regarding the negotiation and structuring of oil and gas property transactions are reviewed. They include: (1) areas of mutual exclusion covenants, (2) use of the short-form term sheet or letter agreement or the longer, more comprehensive formal offer or letter agreement, (3) coping with standard form purchase and sale agreements and property bid packages, (4) allocations of purchase price and their effect on ROFRs, (5) interim operations covenants, including maintaining insurance, contractual relationships and operational integrity, (6) structuring the transaction to facilitate unique financing requirements, (7) making effective use of adjustment clauses, (8) dealing with the cyclicity of commodity prices in the purchase and sale agreement, and (9) using escrow and trust arrangements to meet closure deadlines

12 CFR 207.6 - Disclosure of covered agreements.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... DISCLOSURE AND REPORTING OF CRA-RELATED AGREEMENTS (REGULATION G) § 207.6 Disclosure of covered agreements... CRA public file by insured depository institution or affiliate. An insured depository institution and...) by placing a copy of the covered agreement in the insured depository institution's CRA public file if...

48 CFR 52.225-6 - Trade Agreements Certificate.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Trade Agreements....225-6 Trade Agreements Certificate. As prescribed in 25.1101(c)(2), insert the following provision: Trade Agreements Certificate (JAN 2005) (a) The offeror certifies that each end product, except those...

Evaluation of morphological changes of the biliary tree by magnetic resonance cholangiography in patients with schistosomiasis mansoni: interobserver agreement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sales, Danilo Moulin; Leao, Alberto Ribeiro de Souza; Santos, Jose Eduardo Mourao dos; Shigueoka, David Carlos; Colleoni Neto, Ramiro [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (Unifesp/EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)], e-mail: daniloevaleria@uol.com.br; Borges, Durval Rosa; D' Ippolito, Giuseppe; Szejnfeld, Jacob [Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo (Unifesp/EPM), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Dept. of Medicine

2009-09-15

Objective: To describe changes of the biliary tree demonstrated by magnetic resonance cholangiography (MRC) in patients with the hepatosplenic presentation of schistosomiasis mansoni, and evaluating the interobserver agreement in the detection of schistosomal cholangiopathy. Results: prospective, cross-sectional study involving 24 patients with hepatosplenic schistosomiasis and 6 healthy patients (control group) submitted to biliary tree evaluation by MRC. The following changes of the biliary tree were considered: distortion, thinning, stenosis, dilation and irregularity. The interobserver agreement in the detection of biliary tree changes was calculated with the McNemar's test and the kappa index of agreement ({kappa}). Results: the interobserver agreement in the detection of distortion and thinning of the biliary tree was almost perfect ({kappa} = 0.867; confidence interval [CI] 95% [0.512-1.0] and {kappa} = 0.865; CI 95% [0.51-1.0], respectively). There was a substantial agreement for stenosis ({kappa} = 0.78; CI 95% [0.424-1.0]), moderate agreement for dilation ({kappa} = 0.595; CI 95% [0.247-0.942]) and mild agreement for thinning ({kappa} = 0.229; CI 95% [0.095-0.552]). Conclusion: in a decreasing order of frequency, the changes of the biliary tree were observed: distortion, thinning, stenosis, dilation and irregularity. The interobserver agreement for signs of schistosomal cholangiopathy was almost perfect for distortion and thinning, and substantial for stenosis. (author)

Forms of treaties for organization of innovative goods marketing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Veronika A. Per’kova

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Objective to identify various ways of innovative products marketing as well as the contract forms most demanded by innovative business that are used in innovative products marketing. Methods the methodological basis of the study was both general scientific methods systemic structural dialectical formal logical analysis synthesis deduction induction etc. methods the method of a philosophical nature and specific methods the method of dogmatic analysis interpretation of legal norms and legal structures formallegal structuralfunctional. Results it was stated that marketing is the final stage of innovation process which is commercializing the innovation i.e. obtains profit through its sales therefore it is important to allocate the contractual structures that mediate sales and distribution of innovative products. It is shown that using contractual forms of organization of innovative products sales the parties determine the marketing scheme for the produced goods and thereby create modify and stop the property relations of the parties thus the contracts whose ultimate goal of signing and execution is marketing of innovations can be identified as organizational by their legal nature. The contractual forms that mediate marketing of innovative products include the contracts of sale agency agreements presented in the Russian civil legislation by the contract of agency contract of commission and agency agreements as well as franchising agreements. Besides in the practice of civil turnover there are mixed contracts contracts based on the freedom principle and the connecting elements of several contractual structures. Mixed contracts include distributor contracts. Scientific novelty for the first time the article comprehensively defines contractual forms of organization of innovative products marketing depending on the means of its distribution and describes the legal nature of emerging relationships for innovations marketing. Practical significance the main

Measuring agreement between decision support reminders: the cloud vs. the local expert.

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, Brian Edward; Simonaitis, Linas; Perkins, Susan M; Wright, Adam; Middleton, Blackford

2014-04-10

A cloud-based clinical decision support system (CDSS) was implemented to remotely provide evidence-based guideline reminders in support of preventative health. Following implementation, we measured the agreement between preventive care reminders generated by an existing, local CDSS and the new, cloud-based CDSS operating on the same patient visit data. Electronic health record data for the same set of patients seen in primary care were sent to both the cloud-based web service and local CDSS. The clinical reminders returned by both services were captured for analysis. Cohen's Kappa coefficient was calculated to compare the two sets of reminders. Kappa statistics were further adjusted for prevalence and bias due to the potential effects of bias in the CDS logic and prevalence in the relative small sample of patients. The cloud-based CDSS generated 965 clinical reminders for 405 patient visits over 3 months. The local CDSS returned 889 reminders for the same patient visit data. When adjusted for prevalence and bias, observed agreement varied by reminder from 0.33 (95% CI 0.24 - 0.42) to 0.99 (95% CI 0.97 - 1.00) and demonstrated almost perfect agreement for 7 of the 11 reminders. Preventive care reminders delivered by two disparate CDS systems show substantial agreement. Subtle differences in rule logic and terminology mapping appear to account for much of the discordance. Cloud-based CDSS therefore show promise, opening the door for future development and implementation in support of health care providers with limited resources for knowledge management of complex logic and rules.

WTO’s information technology agreement (ITA and its expansion (ITA II: multilateralizing regionalism

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Camilla Capucio

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Bearing in mind the complex context of the relationship between multilateralism and regionalism, the conclusion of plurilateral agreements within the WTO, open to participation of all interested members, offers a multilateral perspective of regionalism, in which the benefits of partial consensus are to be extended to the multilateral sphere. The ITA - Information Technology Agreement - is mentioned as an example of this possibility, and its recent expansion, through the negotiation of the ITA II, demonstrates the strengthening of this multilateralisation trend of regionalism, although with special features. Thus, this article is developed drawing the context and introduction of the theme of regionalism and multilateralism, and presents the theory of multilateralisation of regionalism and the ITA as one of those experiences, and its recent expansion as a resumption of the relevance of this theory. Considering the impasses for the conclusion of the Doha Round, the expansion of these partial consensus and the continuation of negotiations at the World Trade Organization by the conclusion of sectoral plurilateral agreements emerges as a possible way out, which demands a re-architecture of the interpretation of the role of the WTO in the global economic governance.

Demonstration of the Cascadia G‐FAST geodetic earthquake early warning system for the Nisqually, Washington, earthquake

Science.gov (United States)

Crowell, Brendan; Schmidt, David; Bodin, Paul; Vidale, John; Gomberg, Joan S.; Hartog, Renate; Kress, Victor; Melbourne, Tim; Santillian, Marcelo; Minson, Sarah E.; Jamison, Dylan

2016-01-01

A prototype earthquake early warning (EEW) system is currently in development in the Pacific Northwest. We have taken a two‐stage approach to EEW: (1) detection and initial characterization using strong‐motion data with the Earthquake Alarm Systems (ElarmS) seismic early warning package and (2) the triggering of geodetic modeling modules using Global Navigation Satellite Systems data that help provide robust estimates of large‐magnitude earthquakes. In this article we demonstrate the performance of the latter, the Geodetic First Approximation of Size and Time (G‐FAST) geodetic early warning system, using simulated displacements for the 2001Mw 6.8 Nisqually earthquake. We test the timing and performance of the two G‐FAST source characterization modules, peak ground displacement scaling, and Centroid Moment Tensor‐driven finite‐fault‐slip modeling under ideal, latent, noisy, and incomplete data conditions. We show good agreement between source parameters computed by G‐FAST with previously published and postprocessed seismic and geodetic results for all test cases and modeling modules, and we discuss the challenges with integration into the U.S. Geological Survey’s ShakeAlert EEW system.

77 FR 71001 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-28

.... Agreement No.: 012187-000. Title: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS/Hoegh Autoliners, Inc. Space Charter Agreement. Parties: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS and Hoegh Autoliners, Inc. Filing Party: Ashley W. Craig Esq...

Flexibility of the Paris Agreement on climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lemoine-Schonne, Marion

2016-01-01

The Paris agreement lays the foundation for a new international legal regime on climate change. To achieve a universal agreement, many compromises were made, reflected in the international agreement by signs of flexibility. Firstly, at the temporal level, a 'periodic review mechanism of the National Contributions' is set up. Concerning then the means of implementation of the agreement, a new 'mechanism for sustainable development' has been introduced. This mechanism aims to facilitate the implementation of international legal obligations with a logic of cost-effectiveness, reproducing in this sense the market mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol. At least, at the normative level, flexibility of law is obvious in this agreement, in order to adapt norms to scientific knowledge evolution and political decisions

The practical outfall of DOE compliance agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, Leanne; Henrie, Gregory O.

1992-01-01

Perhaps the significant regulatory issue facing the Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) is the compliant treatment, storage, and disposal of mixed (radioactive and hazardous) waste. Since DOE'S By-Product Rulemaking in 1987, when the Department acknowledged that the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) applied to the hazardous component of mixed waste, DOE has repeatedly communicated to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and host States that, for mixed waste, DOE is not always able to strictly comply with RCRA standards and that bringing treatment on-line in an expeditious manner is proving very difficult. One of the most effective methods used between DOE and its regulators to address mixed waste management issues is the negotiation of compliance agreements. These agreements establish formal mile stones for bringing DOE sites into compliance. The milestones are not completed without overcoming technical roadblocks and a struggle for funding. However, agreements can establish technically attainable compliance methods that take into account the special problems radiation introduces into RCRA waste management. Compliance agreements help promote a cooperative relationship within the Department and between DOE and its regulators in that all parties have reached agreement and have a stake in attaining the same goal. Where agreements exist, mixed waste compliance efforts can proceed in a situation where all parties have a full understanding of each other's needs and expectations. (author)

76 FR 72408 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-23

.... Synopsis: The amendment adds Korea to the geographic scope of the agreement and removes some historical... agreement authorizes the parties to exchange space in the trade between China, Singapore, Vietnam and the U...

78 FR 6325 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-30

... Enterprises LLC. Agreement No.: 012193-000. Title: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS/Compania Sud Americana de Vapores S.A. Space Charter Agreement. Parties: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS and Compania Sud Americana de...

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Colombia and the United States of America

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1971-02-23

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Colombia and the United States of America relating to the agreement between the two Governments for co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. The Safeguards Transfer Agreement entered into force on 9 December 1970.

The Text of the Agreement of 8 July Extending the Asian Regional Co-Operative Project on Food Irradiation. Extension Agreement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-12-01

The text of the Agreement to Extend the Agreement of 23 May 1980 Establishing the Asian Regional Co-operative Project on Food Irradiation within the framework of the Regional Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology of 1972, as extended in 1977 and in 1982, is reproduced herein for the information of all Members

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Colombia and the United States of America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1971-01-01

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Colombia and the United States of America relating to the agreement between the two Governments for co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. The Safeguards Transfer Agreement entered into force on 9 December 1970.

Return on research investments: personal good versus public good

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, P. A.

2017-12-01

For some time the outputs, i.e. what's produced, of publicly and privately funded research while necessary, are far from sufficient, when considering an overall return on (research) investment. At the present time products such as peer-reviewed papers, websites, data, and software are recognized by funders on timescales related to research awards and reporting. However, from a consumer perspective impact and value are determined at the time a product is discovered, accessed, assessed and used. As is often the case, the perspectives of producer and consumer communities can be distinct and not intersect at all. We contrast personal good, i.e. credit, reputation, with that of public good, e.g. interest, leverage, exploitation, and more. This presentation will elaborate on both the metaphorical and idealogical aspects of applying a "return on investment" frame for the topic of assessing "good".

7 CFR 3431.17 - VMLRP service agreement offer.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false VMLRP service agreement offer. 3431.17 Section 3431... Administration of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program § 3431.17 VMLRP service agreement offer. The Secretary will make an offer to successful applicants to enter into an agreement with the Secretary to...

30 CFR 914.30 - State-Federal Cooperative Agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Agreement (Agreement) to read as follows: Article I: Introduction, Purposes and Responsible Agencies A... provided to the DOR under this Agreement will be adjusted in accordance with Office of Management and.... The financial status report submitted pursuant to 30 CFR 735.26 will include a report of the amount of...

41 CFR 109-50.4801 - Equipment Gift Agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 41 Public Contracts and Property Management 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Equipment Gift Agreement... 50-SPECIAL DOE DISPOSAL AUTHORITIES 50.48-Exhibits § 109-50.4801 Equipment Gift Agreement. (a) The following Equipment Gift Agreement format will be used to provide gifts of excess and/or surplus equipment...

Incomplete fissures in severe emphysematous patients evaluated with MDCT: Incidence and interobserver agreement among radiologists and pneumologists

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koenigkam-Santos, Marcel, E-mail: marcelk46@yahoo.com.br [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University of Heidelberg, Neuenheimer Feld 110, 69120 Heidelberg (Germany); Chest Clinic (Thoraxklinik), University of Heidelberg, Amalienstr. 5,69126 Heidelberg (Germany); Department of Radiology, University Hospital of the School of Medicine of Ribeirao Preto - University of Sao Paulo, Av. Bandeirantes 3900, Campus Universitario Monte Alegre, 14048 900 Ribeirao Preto, SP (Brazil); Puderbach, Michael [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University of Heidelberg, Neuenheimer Feld 110, 69120 Heidelberg (Germany); Chest Clinic (Thoraxklinik), University of Heidelberg, Amalienstr. 5,69126 Heidelberg (Germany); Gompelmann, Daniela; Eberhardt, Ralf; Herth, Felix [Chest Clinic (Thoraxklinik), University of Heidelberg, Amalienstr. 5,69126 Heidelberg (Germany); Kauczor, Hans-Ulrich [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University of Heidelberg, Neuenheimer Feld 110, 69120 Heidelberg (Germany); Heussel, Claus Peter [Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University of Heidelberg, Neuenheimer Feld 110, 69120 Heidelberg (Germany); Chest Clinic (Thoraxklinik), University of Heidelberg, Amalienstr. 5,69126 Heidelberg (Germany)

2012-12-15

Objective: Pulmonary fissures completeness predicts efficacy in endobronchial valves (EBV) implantation, a new lobar volume reduction therapy for severe emphysematous patients. We assessed the incidence of incomplete fissures and the interobserver agreement in its evaluation with MDCT, in severe emphysematous patients prior to EBV implantation. Materials and Methods: Volumetric thin-section CT scans of 35 patients (CODP GOLD 3/4, heterogeneous emphysema) were retrospectively reviewed by 2 pneumologists, 1 general and 2 experienced chest radiologists, independently and blinded for treatment outcome, and the pulmonary fissures were classified as either complete or incomplete. Interobserver agreement was assessed with Kappa index (KI). Results: Agreement between all readers for the left oblique, right oblique and horizontal fissure was, respectively, moderate (KI = 0.53), fair (KI = 0.37) and moderate (KI = 0.42). Highest agreement (99/105 fissures) was observed among experienced radiologists, being for left oblique, right oblique and horizontal, respectively, almost perfect (KI = 0.79), perfect (KI = 1.0) and moderate (KI = 0.52). These 2 reviewers found that all of 35 patients had at least one incomplete fissure, with a proportion of incomplete fissures assigned as 74/65%, 85/85% and 91/88%, respectively for the left oblique, right oblique and horizontal fissures. Conclusions: Pneumologists and radiologists agreed fairly to moderately in fissures analysis, while the experienced chest radiologists reached the highest clinically adequate agreement of 94%. We believe that clinical routine visual analysis of the fissures integrity can be done with a good degree of confidence in MDCT images, and experienced readers might be required. Also, a higher than expected incidence of incomplete fissures was described in our studied population.

Incomplete fissures in severe emphysematous patients evaluated with MDCT: Incidence and interobserver agreement among radiologists and pneumologists

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koenigkam-Santos, Marcel; Puderbach, Michael; Gompelmann, Daniela; Eberhardt, Ralf; Herth, Felix; Kauczor, Hans-Ulrich; Heussel, Claus Peter

2012-01-01

Objective: Pulmonary fissures completeness predicts efficacy in endobronchial valves (EBV) implantation, a new lobar volume reduction therapy for severe emphysematous patients. We assessed the incidence of incomplete fissures and the interobserver agreement in its evaluation with MDCT, in severe emphysematous patients prior to EBV implantation. Materials and Methods: Volumetric thin-section CT scans of 35 patients (CODP GOLD 3/4, heterogeneous emphysema) were retrospectively reviewed by 2 pneumologists, 1 general and 2 experienced chest radiologists, independently and blinded for treatment outcome, and the pulmonary fissures were classified as either complete or incomplete. Interobserver agreement was assessed with Kappa index (KI). Results: Agreement between all readers for the left oblique, right oblique and horizontal fissure was, respectively, moderate (KI = 0.53), fair (KI = 0.37) and moderate (KI = 0.42). Highest agreement (99/105 fissures) was observed among experienced radiologists, being for left oblique, right oblique and horizontal, respectively, almost perfect (KI = 0.79), perfect (KI = 1.0) and moderate (KI = 0.52). These 2 reviewers found that all of 35 patients had at least one incomplete fissure, with a proportion of incomplete fissures assigned as 74/65%, 85/85% and 91/88%, respectively for the left oblique, right oblique and horizontal fissures. Conclusions: Pneumologists and radiologists agreed fairly to moderately in fissures analysis, while the experienced chest radiologists reached the highest clinically adequate agreement of 94%. We believe that clinical routine visual analysis of the fissures integrity can be done with a good degree of confidence in MDCT images, and experienced readers might be required. Also, a higher than expected incidence of incomplete fissures was described in our studied population.

77 FR 16838 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-22

... the U.S. Pacific Coast and the Middle East and Asia. Agreement No.: 012161. Title: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS/Hyundai Glovis Co., Ltd. Space Charter Agreement. Parties: Siem Car Carrier Pacific AS; Hyundai...

Intra- and Inter-rater Agreement of Superior Vena Cava Flow and Right Ventricular Outflow Measurements in Late Preterm and Term Neonates.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahoney, Liam; Fernandez-Alvarez, Jose R; Rojas-Anaya, Hector; Aiton, Neil; Wertheim, David; Seddon, Paul; Rabe, Heike

2018-02-24

To explore the intra- and inter-rater agreement of superior vena cava (SVC) flow and right ventricular (RV) outflow in healthy and unwell late preterm neonates (33-37 weeks' gestational age), term neonates (≥37 weeks' gestational age), and neonates receiving total-body cooling. The intra- and inter-rater agreement (n = 25 and 41 neonates, respectively) rates for SVC flow and RV outflow were determined by echocardiography in healthy and unwell late preterm and term neonates with the use of Bland-Altman plots, the repeatability coefficient, the repeatability index, and intraclass correlation coefficients. The intra-rater repeatability index values were 41% for SVC flow and 31% for RV outflow, with intraclass correlation coefficients indicating good agreement for both measures. The inter-rater repeatability index values for SVC flow and RV outflow were 63% and 51%, respectively, with intraclass correlation coefficients indicating moderate agreement for both measures. If SVC flow or RV outflow is used in the hemodynamic treatment of neonates, sequential measurements should ideally be performed by the same clinician to reduce potential variability. © 2018 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Good agreement between questionnaire and administrative databases for health care use and costs in patients with osteoarthritis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robertson M Clare

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Estimating costs is essential to the economic analysis of health care programs. Health care costs are often captured from administrative databases or by patient report. Administrative records only provide a partial representation of health care costs and have additional limitations. Patient-completed questionnaires may allow a broader representation of health care costs; however the validity and feasibility of such methods have not been firmly established. This study was conducted to assess the validity and feasibility of using a patient-completed questionnaire to capture health care use and costs for patients with osteoarthritis, and to compare the research costs of the data-capture methods. Methods We designed a patient questionnaire and applied it in a clinical trial. We captured equivalent data from four administrative databases. We evaluated aspects of the questionnaire's validity using sensitivity and specificity, Lin's concordance correlation coefficient (ρc, and Bland-Altman comparisons. Results The questionnaire's response rate was 89%. Acceptable sensitivity and specificity levels were found for all types of health care use. The numbers of visits and the majority of medications reported by patients were in agreement with the database-derived estimates (ρc > 0.40. Total cost estimates from the questionnaire agreed with those from the databases. Patient-reported co-payments agreed with administrative records with respect to GP office transactions, but not pharmaceutical co-payments. Research costs for the questionnaire-based method were less than one-third of the costs for the databases method. Conclusion A patient-completed questionnaire is feasible for capturing health care use and costs for patients with osteoarthritis, and data collected using it mostly agree with administrative databases. Caution should be exercised when applying unit costs and collecting co-payment data.

Paris Agreement on Climate Change: A Booster to Enable Sustainable Global Development and Beyond.

Science.gov (United States)

Bhore, Subhash Janardhan

2016-11-14

The global warming and its adverse effects on the atmosphere, the biosphere, the lithosphere, and the hydrosphere are obvious. Based on this fact, the international community is fully convinced that we need to fix the problem urgently for our survival, good health, and wellbeing. The aim of this article is to promote the awareness about the United Nations (UN) historic 'Paris Agreement on Climate Change (PACC)' which entered into-force on 4 November 2016. The expected impact of PACC on the global average temperature rise by 2100 as well as its role in enabling accomplishment of global sustainable development goals (SDGs) for the people and planet is also highlighted.

75 FR 69079 - Notice of Agreements Filed

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-10

... World Liner Data Agreement. Parties: A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S; CMA CGM S.A.; Compania Chilena de... from ports in Mexico to the U.S. Atlantic ports. Agreement No.: 012110. Title: Trailer Bridge/HLUSA...

The Text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement relating to a Bilateral Agreement between Argentina and the United States of America

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1969-01-01

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Argentina and the United States of America relating to the agreement of 25 June 1969 between the two Governments for co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. The Safeguards Transfer Agreement entered into force on 25 July 1969.

The Text of a Safeguards Transfer Agreement Relating to a Bilateral Agreement between Austria and the United States of America

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1971-05-18

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Austria and the United States of America relating to the agreement of 11 July 1969 between the two Governments for cooperation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. The Safeguards Transfer Agreement entered into force on 24 January 1970.

The Text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement Relating to the Bilateral Agreement between Iran and the United States of America

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1969-05-06

The text of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement between the Agency, Iran and the United States of America relating to the agreement between the two Governments for co-operation in the promotion and development of the peaceful uses of atomic energy is reproduced in this document for the information of all Members. Members will be informed of the entry into force of the Safeguards Transfer Agreement.

45 CFR 1640.4 - Violation of agreement.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... OF FEDERAL LAW TO LSC RECIPIENTS § 1640.4 Violation of agreement. (a) A violation of the agreement... negligence allowed the employee or board member to engage in the activities which led to the conviction or...

Gender agreement in interface contexts in the oral production of heritage speakers of Spanish in the Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Osch, B.; Hulk, A.; Sleeman, P.; Irizarri van Suchtelen, P.

2014-01-01

In this paper we present an analysis of Spanish heritage speakers’ oral production of gender agreement outside the DP as an innovative source of support for the Interface Hypothesis (Sorace & Filiaci 2006). We demonstrate that, besides commonly known factors such as the gender, animacy and

The Texts of the Agency's Headquarters Agreement with Austria and Related Agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-01-01

The texts of the Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Republic of Austria that were in force on 30 September 1975 are reproduced in this document for the information of all Members of the Agency [ru

The Texts of the Agency's Headquarters Agreement with Austria and Related Agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-01-01

The texts of the Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Republic of Austria that were in force on 30 September 1975 are reproduced in this document for the information of all Members of the Agency [fr

The Texts of the Agency's Headquarters Agreement with Austria and Related Agreements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-01-01

The texts of the Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Republic of Austria that were in force on 30 September 1975 are reproduced in this document for the information of all Members of the Agency [es

Coronary artery disease reporting and data system (CAD-RADSTM): Inter-observer agreement for assessment categories and modifiers.

Science.gov (United States)

Maroules, Christopher D; Hamilton-Craig, Christian; Branch, Kelley; Lee, James; Cury, Roberto C; Maurovich-Horvat, Pál; Rubinshtein, Ronen; Thomas, Dustin; Williams, Michelle; Guo, Yanshu; Cury, Ricardo C

The Coronary Artery Disease Reporting and Data System (CAD-RADS) provides a lexicon and standardized reporting system for coronary CT angiography. To evaluate inter-observer agreement of the CAD-RADS among an panel of early career and expert readers. Four early career and four expert cardiac imaging readers prospectively and independently evaluated 50 coronary CT angiography cases using the CAD-RADS lexicon. All readers assessed image quality using a five-point Likert scale, with mean Likert score ≥4 designating high image quality, and CAD-RADS assessment categories and modifiers were assessed using intra-class correlation (ICC) and Fleiss' Kappa (κ).The impact of reader experience and image quality on inter-observer agreement was also examined. Inter-observer agreement for CAD-RADS assessment categories was excellent (ICC 0.958, 95% CI 0.938-0.974, p CAD-RADS assessment categories and modifiers is excellent, except for high-risk plaque (modifier V) which demonstrates fair agreement. These results suggest CAD-RADS is feasible for clinical implementation. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

A Comparative Study on Safeguards Implementation under Bilateral Nuclear Cooperation Agreements and the IAEA Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeon, Jihye; Kim, Ki-Hyun; Lee, Young Wook [Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

A Nuclear Cooperation Agreement (NCA) requires several conditions, so-called obligations, on the items under the agreement such as: 1) peaceful use, 2) retransfer consent, 3) consent prior to reprocessing or enrichment and 4) safeguards and security. These obligations of the NCAs are imposed by the supplier country. The Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement (CSA) between the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its member states require similar activities. However, there is a significant gap in nuclear material accountancy between safeguards implementation under the NCA and CSA. The difference of those two frameworks is compared herein, focusing on the unique features of the NCA safeguards and its implications are presented. In this study, the NCAs between the ROK and Canada, Australia and US were analyzed since each of them is one of the ROK’s major nuclear trading partners. The safeguards implementation under the NCA is usually specified in an Administrative Arrangement (AA) under the Agreement. The ROK has two AAs in force with Canada and Australia among 29 countries with NCA. Recently, the AA with Canada was revised in December 2015, with those concepts mentioned above. The AA with the US is currently under discussion. Cooperation in nuclear energy between two countries could be further enhanced through reliable implementation of the NCA undertakings. Taking into account the unique features of the NCA, we need to establish effective strategy for fulfilling the obligation under the Agreement.

Passengers' perception of the safety demonstration on board an aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Ruenruoy, Ratchada

The cabin safety demonstration on board an aircraft is one of the methods to provide safety information for passengers before aircraft takeoff. However, passengers' enthusiasm toward safety demonstrations is normally low. Therefore, the study of passengers' perception toward safety briefings on board an aircraft is important in increasing the safety awareness for the travelling public on commercial aircraft. A survey was distributed to measure the perceptions of Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) faculty and staff, Aerospace students, and international students who have traveled in the last year. It was generally found that watching the cabin safety demonstration before aircraft takeoff was believed to be important for passengers. However, the attention to the safety demonstration remained low because the safety briefings were not good enough in terms of clear communication, particularly in the recorded audio demonstration and the live safety demonstration methods of briefing.

12 CFR 23.12 - Transition rule.