No-Oven, No-Autoclave, Composite Processing, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Cornerstone Research Group Inc. (CRG) proposes to continue the efforts from the 2010 NASA SBIR Phase I topic X5.03, "No-Oven, No-Autoclave (NONA) Composite...

Reversible Copolymer Materials for FDM 3-D Printing of Non-Standard Plastics, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Cornerstone Research Group Inc. (CRG) proposes to continue efforts from the 2015 NASA SBIR Phase I topic H14.03 ?Reversible Copolymer Materials for FDM 3D Printing...

Preparation and Characterization of K-Carrageenan/Nanosilica Biocomposite Film

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lokesh R. Rane

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to improve the performance properties of K-carrageenan (K-CRG by utilizing nanosilica (NSI as the reinforcing agent. The composite films were prepared by solution casting method. NSI was added up to 1.5% in the K-CRG matrix. The prepared films were characterized for mechanical (tensile strength, tensile modulus, and elongation at break, thermal (differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, barrier (water vapour transmission rate, morphological (scanning electron microscopy, contact angle, and crystallinity properties. Tensile strength, tensile modulus, and crystallinity were found to have increased by 13.8, 15, and 48% whereas water vapour transmission rate was found to have decreased by 48% for 0.5% NSI loaded K-CRG composite films. NSI was found to have formed aggregates for concentrations above 0.5% as confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. Melting temperature, enthalpy of melting, and degradation temperature of K-CRG increased with increase in concentration of NSI in K-CRG. Contact angle also increased with increase in concentration of NSI in K-CRG, indicating the decrease in hydrophilicity of the films improving its water resistance properties. This knowledge of the composite film could make beneficial contributions to the food and pharmaceutical packaging applications.

TAPAS: tools to assist the targeted protein quantification of human alternative splice variants.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jae-Seong; Sabidó, Eduard; Serrano, Luis; Kiel, Christina

2014-10-15

In proteomes of higher eukaryotes, many alternative splice variants can only be detected by their shared peptides. This makes it highly challenging to use peptide-centric mass spectrometry to distinguish and to quantify protein isoforms resulting from alternative splicing events. We have developed two complementary algorithms based on linear mathematical models to efficiently compute a minimal set of shared and unique peptides needed to quantify a set of isoforms and splice variants. Further, we developed a statistical method to estimate the splice variant abundances based on stable isotope labeled peptide quantities. The algorithms and databases are integrated in a web-based tool, and we have experimentally tested the limits of our quantification method using spiked proteins and cell extracts. The TAPAS server is available at URL http://davinci.crg.es/tapas/. luis.serrano@crg.eu or christina.kiel@crg.eu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

REPRESENTING ROAD RELATED LASERSCANNED DATA IN CURVED REGULAR GRID: A SUPPORT TO AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Potó

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The terrestrial and mobile laser scanning has become nowadays a mature technology applied in several technical and non-technical applications. The transportation infrastructure can be surveyed by these technologies in an excellent way, then 3D maps, fly-through videos and road furniture inventories can be derived among many other applications. The very detailed measurement and the realistic feature enable even to be used in games or simulators. This advantage was to be analyzed in vehicular simulation environment; the primary goal of the paper was to demonstrate a potential workflow and use case for such laser scanning data. The selected simulation package was the OpenCRG, which is being a component of OpenDRIVE-OpenCRG-OpenSCENARIO system, where it has been developed for microscopic simulations, e.g. vibrations, tire models or vehicle suspension systems. Because of the realistic visualization of CRG models it is very popular in the design and development of autonomous vehicles. The paper presents two different paved pilot sites surveyed by these technologies, then the raw data preparation is described and the details of the CRG model building is shown. The results of the experiments bring an overview, how the captured field data can be represented and interpreted in road surface context. The diagrams illustrate the potential of the very high resolution (1 cm model, which allows to identify each separate cobble stone or to study surface roughness.

Syndromic surveillance: hospital emergency department participation during the Kentucky Derby Festival.

Science.gov (United States)

Carrico, Ruth; Goss, Linda

2005-01-01

Electronic syndromic surveillance may have value in detecting emerging pathogens or a biological weapons release. Hospitals that have an agile process to evaluate chief complaints of patients seeking emergency care may be able to more quickly identify subtle changes in the community's health. An easily adaptable prototype system was developed to monitor emergency department patient visits during the Kentucky Derby Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, from April 16-May 14, 2002. Use of the system was continued during the same festival periods in 2003 and 2004. Twelve area hospitals in Louisville, Kentucky, participated in a prospective analysis of the chief symptoms of patients who sought care in the emergency department during the Kentucky Derby Festival during 2002. Six hospitals were classified as computer record groups (CRG) and used their existing computerized record capabilities. The other 6 hospitals used a personal digital assistant (PDA) with customized software (PDA group). Data were evaluated by the health department epidemiologist using SaTScan, a modified version of a cancer cluster detection program, to look for clusters of cases above baseline over time and by Zip code. All 12 hospitals were able to collect and provide data elements during the study period. The 6 CRG hospitals were able to perform daily data transmission; however, 3 CRG hospitals were unable to interpret their data because it was transmitted in pure text format. In contrast, data from all 6 PDA group hospitals were interpretable. Real-time data analysis was compared with post-event data, and it was found that the real-time evaluation correctly identified no unusual disease activity during the study period. The 12 hospitals participating in this study demonstrated that community-wide surveillance using computerized data was possible and that the 6 study hospitals using a PDA could quickly interpret emergency department patients' chief complaints. The emergency department chief complaints

Synthesis of high-complexity rhythmic signals for closed-loop electrical neuromodulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zalay, Osbert C; Bardakjian, Berj L

2013-06-01

We propose an approach to synthesizing high-complexity rhythmic signals for closed-loop electrical neuromodulation using cognitive rhythm generator (CRG) networks, wherein the CRG is a hybrid oscillator comprised of (1) a bank of neuronal modes, (2) a ring device (clock), and (3) a static output nonlinearity (mapper). Networks of coupled CRGs have been previously implemented to simulate the electrical activity of biological neural networks, including in silico models of epilepsy, producing outputs of similar waveform and complexity to the biological system. This has enabled CRG network models to be used as platforms for testing seizure control strategies. Presently, we take the application one step further, envisioning therapeutic CRG networks as rhythmic signal generators creating neuromimetic signals for stimulation purposes, motivated by recent research indicating that stimulus complexity and waveform characteristics influence neuromodulation efficacy. To demonstrate this concept, an epileptiform CRG network generating spontaneous seizure-like events (SLEs) was coupled to a therapeutic CRG network, forming a closed-loop neuromodulation system. SLEs are associated with low-complexity dynamics and high phase coherence in the network. The tuned therapeutic network generated a high-complexity, multi-banded rhythmic stimulation signal with prominent theta and gamma-frequency power that suppressed SLEs and increased dynamic complexity in the epileptiform network, as measured by a relative increase in the maximum Lyapunov exponent and decrease in phase coherence. CRG-based neuromodulation outperformed both low and high-frequency periodic pulse stimulation, suggesting that neuromodulation using complex, biomimetic signals may provide an improvement over conventional electrical stimulation techniques for treating neurological disorders such as epilepsy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reclaimable Thermally Reversible Polymers for AM Feedstock, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — CRG proposes to continue efforts from the 2016 NASA SBIR Phase I topic H5.04 Reclaimable Thermally Reversible Polymers for AM Feedstock. In Phase II, CRG will refine...

Operation of the cryotron relaxation generator in solid argon and hydrogen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rakhubvsky, V.A.

2008-01-01

The research results of the cryotron relaxation generator (CRG) operation in solid argon, normal hydrogen and parahydrogen have been given. The frequency transition times for CRG at different values of cooling the solid gas have been measured

Increasing the Practical Impact of Formal Methods for Computer-Aided Software Development: Software Slicing, Merging and Integration

Science.gov (United States)

1993-10-15

Analysis/Synthesis Requirements capture: social issues; use of video traceability and consistency: hypermedia truth maintenance model validation...taruw of the FDG, ruther than the combinled CF-/PD. becauste the ssabstitutzoos on the CR;G porno . are staghtforwaad dke of mas tuctsu rlaioshipetolthe

A novel small molecule methyltransferase is important for virulence in Candida albicans.

Science.gov (United States)

Lissina, Elena; Weiss, David; Young, Brian; Rella, Antonella; Cheung-Ong, Kahlin; Del Poeta, Maurizio; Clarke, Steven G; Giaever, Guri; Nislow, Corey

2013-12-20

Candida albicans is an opportunistic pathogen capable of causing life-threatening infections in immunocompromised individuals. Despite its significant health impact, our understanding of C. albicans pathogenicity is limited, particularly at the molecular level. One of the largely understudied enzyme families in C. albicans are small molecule AdoMet-dependent methyltransferases (smMTases), which are important for maintenance of cellular homeostasis by clearing toxic chemicals, generating novel cellular intermediates, and regulating intra- and interspecies interactions. In this study, we demonstrated that C. albicans Crg1 (CaCrg1) is a bona fide smMTase that interacts with the toxin in vitro and in vivo. We report that CaCrg1 is important for virulence-related processes such as adhesion, hyphal elongation, and membrane trafficking. Biochemical and genetic analyses showed that CaCrg1 plays a role in the complex sphingolipid pathway: it binds to exogenous short-chain ceramides in vitro and interacts genetically with genes of glucosylceramide pathway, and the deletion of CaCRG1 leads to significant changes in the abundance of phytoceramides. Finally we found that this novel lipid-related smMTase is required for virulence in the waxmoth Galleria mellonella, a model of infection.

Energy Innovation. IVO Group`s Research and Development Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salminen, P.; Laiho, Y.; Kaikkonen, H.; Leisio, C.; Hinkkanen, S. [eds.

1996-11-01

This annual booklet of the IVO Group`s research and development activities presents a number of articles, written by experts from IVO. The products described are examples of the environmentally-oriented selection made available by the IVO Group. In fact, the entire energy technology developed in Finland is environmentally oriented, if seen from the international perspective. The new business potential of environmental technology is great, and it is believed that in the year 2000, exportation of Finnish know-how in the field of energy-saving and efficiency will exceed the value of out energy imports

Energy Innovation. IVO group`s research and development report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salminen, P.; Laiho, Y.; Kaikkonen, H.; Leisio, C.; Hinkkanen, S.; Fletcher, R. [eds.

1997-11-01

This annual booklet of the IVO Group`s research and development activities presents a number of articles, written by experts from IVO. The products described are examples of the environmentally-oriented selection made available by the IVO Group. In fact, the entire energy technology developed in Finland is environmentally oriented, if seen from the international perspective. The new business potential of environmental technology is great, and it is believed that in the year 2000, exportation of Finnish know-how in the field of energy-saving and efficiency will exceed the value of out energy imports

Tunable Interior Rotorcraft Noise Control, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — CRG has recently developed a new class of shape memory polymers (SMP) that are electrically activated, as opposed to the more mature thermally activated SMPs....

Group Journaling: A Tool for Reflection, Fun and Group Development

Science.gov (United States)

Asfeldt, Morten

2012-01-01

Personal journaling is common practice in outdoor programs and is an important means of reflection and meaning-making. For over 20 years the author has used group journals to promote reflection and understanding, raise important questions, explore difficult issues, develop writing and speaking skills, and enhance group development. In this…

Influence of Exergaming on the Perception of Cancer-Related Fatigue.

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva Alves, Ricardo; Iunes, Denise Hollanda; Pereira, Isabela Carvalho; Borges, Juliana Bassalobre Carvalho; Nogueira, Denismar Alves; Silva, Andreia Maria; Lobato, Daniel Ferreira Moreira; Carvalho, Leonardo Cesar

2017-04-01

Exercise is recommended for cancer patients to reduce fatigue and improve quality of life. This study's aim is to evaluate the influence of an exergaming protocol on cancer-related fatigue, muscle fatigue, and muscle strength in cancer patients. We conducted a quasi-experimental control study using exergaming in all groups through an Xbox360 Kinect™ console, two to three times per week, for 20 sessions. Three groups were created: cancer patients in chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy group (CRG; n:15), cancer patients after chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy (CAG; n:15), and a control group (CG; n:15). They were assessed for cancer-related fatigue using the fatigue subscale of the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-F) questionnaire. To assess dorsiflexor and plantar flexor muscle functioning, we used median frequency (MDF) of the surface electromyography and muscle strength using a dynamometer. The assessments were performed preintervention (EV0), after 10 sessions (EV1), and after 20 sessions (EV2). With an exergaming protocol, CRG and CAG showed a reduction in related fatigue compared with CG (P fatigue, including muscle fatigue, and increasing muscle strength in patients' legs.

Theta phase precession and phase selectivity: a cognitive device description of neural coding

Science.gov (United States)

Zalay, Osbert C.; Bardakjian, Berj L.

2009-06-01

Information in neural systems is carried by way of phase and rate codes. Neuronal signals are processed through transformative biophysical mechanisms at the cellular and network levels. Neural coding transformations can be represented mathematically in a device called the cognitive rhythm generator (CRG). Incoming signals to the CRG are parsed through a bank of neuronal modes that orchestrate proportional, integrative and derivative transformations associated with neural coding. Mode outputs are then mixed through static nonlinearities to encode (spatio) temporal phase relationships. The static nonlinear outputs feed and modulate a ring device (limit cycle) encoding output dynamics. Small coupled CRG networks were created to investigate coding functionality associated with neuronal phase preference and theta precession in the hippocampus. Phase selectivity was found to be dependent on mode shape and polarity, while phase precession was a product of modal mixing (i.e. changes in the relative contribution or amplitude of mode outputs resulted in shifting phase preference). Nonlinear system identification was implemented to help validate the model and explain response characteristics associated with modal mixing; in particular, principal dynamic modes experimentally derived from a hippocampal neuron were inserted into a CRG and the neuron's dynamic response was successfully cloned. From our results, small CRG networks possessing disynaptic feedforward inhibition in combination with feedforward excitation exhibited frequency-dependent inhibitory-to-excitatory and excitatory-to-inhibitory transitions that were similar to transitions seen in a single CRG with quadratic modal mixing. This suggests nonlinear modal mixing to be a coding manifestation of the effect of network connectivity in shaping system dynamic behavior. We hypothesize that circuits containing disynaptic feedforward inhibition in the nervous system may be candidates for interpreting upstream rate codes to

Energy Innovation 1998. IVO group`s research and development report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Salminen, P; Laiho, Y; Kaikkonen, H; Leisio, C; McConchie, R; Fletcher, R [eds.

1998-07-01

The IVO Group is a Finnish company mastering all aspects of the entire energy chain, and also operating extensively on the international market. The Group`s operations concentrate on five business areas: energy, engineering, operation and maintenance, grid services, and energy measurement. The personnel numbers well over 8 800, and the turnover is about FIM 14 billion. The services to customers include the supply of electricity and heat, the planning, construction, operation and maintenance of power plants and transmission systems, the transmission of power, and other services requiring expertise in all the key fields of energy engineering. Mastery of the entire energy chain gives us a substantial competitive edge on international markets, where the IVO Group has been a player for decades. The operations have expanded to the other Nordic countries, which now constitute the home market. Focal areas also include Great Britain, Central and Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. The IVO Group annually invests some FIM 250 million in research and development. A large proportion of this money is used for the development of environmentally benign solutions

The EDF group and the sustainable development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-01-01

This document deals with the management policy of the EDF Group, concerning the sustainable development. The program is presented showing the Group will to contribute to an environmental quality: a control of the activities impact on the environment, the development of the renewable energies, the solidarity and the electric power access development in developing countries. (A.L.B.)

New Developments in the Critical Group Concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

John Till; David Cancio; Mary Clark; Donald Cool; John Cooper; Toshiso Kosako; Andrew McEwan; Kaare Ulbak; Ciska Zuur

2006-01-01

A task group of Committee 4 has developed a report on defining the individual for the purposes of radiation protection of the public. The report expands and develops the critical group concept giving guidance for both probabilistic and deterministic assessments. The name 'representative individual' is now proposed to replace the term ' critical group'. (N.C.)

New Developments in the Critical Group Concept

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

John Till; David Cancio; Mary Clark; Donald Cool; John Cooper; Toshiso Kosako; Andrew McEwan; Kaare Ulbak; Ciska Zuur [ICRP Secretariat, Stockholm (Sweden)

2006-07-01

A task group of Committee 4 has developed a report on defining the individual for the purposes of radiation protection of the public. The report expands and develops the critical group concept giving guidance for both probabilistic and deterministic assessments. The name 'representative individual' is now proposed to replace the term ' critical group'. (N.C.)

The new powder diffractometer D1B of the Institut Laue Langevin

Science.gov (United States)

Puente Orench, I.; Clergeau, J. F.; Martínez, S.; Olmos, M.; Fabelo, O.; Campo, J.

2014-11-01

D1B is a medium resolution high flux powder diffractometer located at the Institut Laue Langevin, ILL. D1B a suitable instrument for studying a large variety of polycrystalline materials. D1B runs since 1998 as a CRG (collaborating research group) instrument, being exploited by the CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France) and CSIC (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Spain). In 2008 the Spanish CRG started an updating program which included a new detector and a radial oscillating collimator (ROC). The detector, which has a sensitive height of 100mm, covers an angular range of 128°. Its 1280 gold wires provide a neutron detection point every 0.1°. The ROC is made of 198 gadolinium- based absorbing collimation blades, regular placed every 0.67°. Here the present characteristics of D1B are reviewed and the different experimental performances will be presented.

The Cogema Group and the sustainable development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

This document presents the COGEMA Group commitment to sustainable development. Through this commitment, COGEMA is pursuing a policy of ''global performance'' allying economic progress, social progress and protection of the environment, in all its activities. This report points out the many contributions that COGEMA activities make to sustainable development: monitoring of the environment and of releases from its facilities; progress in Research and Development (treatment of liquid and gas effluents, optimized recycling of spent nuclear materials and reduction of their volume, etc.); certification; support for local economic development in the areas around the Group sites, not only in France, but also abroad, as at the mines in Canada and Niger; a strong policy of openness and transparency in its nuclear activities and ongoing dialogue with NGO. The document lays the bases for a number of indicators that can be used as of next year to measure the Group contribution to meeting the challenges of sustainable development. More-detailed statistical data are also presented in the annual environmental reports from the industrial sites in the COGEMA Group. (A.L.B.)

The EDF group and the sustainable development; Le groupe EDF et le developpement durable

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-07-01

This document deals with the management policy of the EDF Group, concerning the sustainable development. The program is presented showing the Group will to contribute to an environmental quality: a control of the activities impact on the environment, the development of the renewable energies, the solidarity and the electric power access development in developing countries. (A.L.B.)

WORK GROUP DEVELOPMENT MODELS – THE EVOLUTION FROM SIMPLE GROUP TO EFFECTIVE TEAM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raluca ZOLTAN

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Currently, work teams are increasingly studied by virtue of the advantages they have compared to the work groups. But a true team does not appear overnight but must complete several steps to overcome the initial stage of its existence as a group. The question that arises is at what point a simple group is turning into an effective team. Even though the development process of group into a team is not a linear process, the models found in the literature provides a rich framework for analyzing and identifying the features which group acquires over time till it become a team in the true sense of word. Thus, in this article we propose an analysis of the main models of group development in order to point out, even in a relative manner, the stage when the simple work group becomes an effective work team.

The sustainable development thematic in the research groups

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Cristina Comunian Ferraz

2007-11-01

Full Text Available The technological innovation brought for the debate the question of the sustainable technological development. The article presents an entirety of theoretical reflections on the science, technology and sustainable development themes and to aim the contributions of the Information Science, while interdisciplinary science, with respect to the understanding of the sustainable development. With basis in this reference it was carried through the investigation of descriptive exploratory nature with quanti-qualitative boarding, having as main objective to identify the presence of the sustainable development thematic in research groups of the UFSCar registered in cadastre in the National Directory of Research Groups of the CNPq. The results had shown that the sustainable development thematic is present in eleven researchgroups of the UFSCar distributed in different knowledge areas. Comparing the data gotten with the research groups of the country that had participated of 2004 Census of the National Directory of Research Groups of the CNPq it was verified that it has similarity between both the data. In accordance with scientific literature, confirms that the sustainable development thematic is interdisciplinar and that the knowledge production of the research groups is result to know articulated in some of the knowledge areas.

The Cogema Group and the sustainable development; Le groupe Cogema et le developpement durable

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-07-01

This document presents the COGEMA Group commitment to sustainable development. Through this commitment, COGEMA is pursuing a policy of ''global performance'' allying economic progress, social progress and protection of the environment, in all its activities. This report points out the many contributions that COGEMA activities make to sustainable development: monitoring of the environment and of releases from its facilities; progress in Research and Development (treatment of liquid and gas effluents, optimized recycling of spent nuclear materials and reduction of their volume, etc.); certification; support for local economic development in the areas around the Group sites, not only in France, but also abroad, as at the mines in Canada and Niger; a strong policy of openness and transparency in its nuclear activities and ongoing dialogue with NGO. The document lays the bases for a number of indicators that can be used as of next year to measure the Group contribution to meeting the challenges of sustainable development. More-detailed statistical data are also presented in the annual environmental reports from the industrial sites in the COGEMA Group. (A.L.B.)

Narrative-collaborative group coaching develops social capital

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stelter, Reinhard; Nielsen, Glen; Wikman, Johan Michael

2011-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of narrative-collaborative group coaching on career development, self-reflection and the general functioning of young sports talents with the goal of achieving integration of their sports careers, educational demands and private lives...... study included six participants. The group-coaching intervention had a significant effect on the scores for social recovery and general well-being. The qualitative study showed that groupcoaching participants valued the shared process of meaning-making as especially valuable. Narrative......-collaborative group coaching can be understood as a community psychological intervention that helps to support the development of durable social networks and the increase of social capital....

Development of the four group partitioning process at JAERI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kubota, Masumitsu; Morita, Yasuji; Yamaguchi, Isoo; Yamagishi, Isao; Fujiwara, T.; Watanabe, Masayuki; Mizoguchi, Kenichi; Tatsugae, Ryozo

1999-01-01

At JAERI, development of a partitioning method started about 24 years ago. From 1973 to 1984, a partitioning process was developed for separating elements in HLLW into 3 groups; TRU, Sr-Cs and others. The partitioning process consisted of three steps; solvent extraction of U and Pu with TBP, solvent extraction of Am and Cm with DIDPA, and adsorption of Sr and Cs with inorganic ion exchangers. The process was demonstrated with real HLLW. Since 1985, a four group partitioning process has been developed, in which a step for separating the Tc-PGM group was developed in addition to the three group separation. Effective methods for separating TRU, especially Np, and Tc have been developed. In this paper, the flow sheet of the four group partitioning and the results of tests with simulated and real HLLW in NUCEF hot-cell are shown. (J.P.N.)

Identifying clinically relevant drug resistance genes in drug-induced resistant cancer cell lines and post-chemotherapy tissues.

Science.gov (United States)

Tong, Mengsha; Zheng, Weicheng; Lu, Xingrong; Ao, Lu; Li, Xiangyu; Guan, Qingzhou; Cai, Hao; Li, Mengyao; Yan, Haidan; Guo, You; Chi, Pan; Guo, Zheng

2015-12-01

Until recently, few molecular signatures of drug resistance identified in drug-induced resistant cancer cell models can be translated into clinical practice. Here, we defined differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between pre-chemotherapy colorectal cancer (CRC) tissue samples of non-responders and responders for 5-fluorouracil and oxaliplatin-based therapy as clinically relevant drug resistance genes (CRG5-FU/L-OHP). Taking CRG5-FU/L-OHP as reference, we evaluated the clinical relevance of several types of genes derived from HCT116 CRC cells with resistance to 5-fluorouracil and oxaliplatin, respectively. The results revealed that DEGs between parental and resistant cells, when both were treated with the corresponding drug for a certain time, were significantly consistent with the CRG5-FU/L-OHP as well as the DEGs between the post-chemotherapy CRC specimens of responders and non-responders. This study suggests a novel strategy to extract clinically relevant drug resistance genes from both drug-induced resistant cell models and post-chemotherapy cancer tissue specimens.

Group typicality, group loyalty and cognitive development.

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, Meagan M

2014-09-01

Over the course of childhood, children's thinking about social groups changes in a variety of ways. Developmental Subjective Group Dynamics (DSGD) theory emphasizes children's understanding of the importance of conforming to group norms. Abrams et al.'s study, which uses DSGD theory as a framework, demonstrates the social cognitive skills underlying young elementary school children's thinking about group norms. Future research on children's thinking about groups and group norms should explore additional elements of this topic, including aspects of typicality beyond loyalty. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Development of the CANDU 66-group SN transport library

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsang, K.T.

2001-01-01

The design of the shield configuration around a nuclear reactor is strongly dependent on the neutron and photon spatial and energy distributions. The nuclear heat deposition and material damage in and surrounding the reactor core are also a function of the neutron and photon distributions. Therefore, to ensure a suitable configuration of materials for shielding or heat transfer, an accurate calculation of the particle fluxes in the reactor systems is essential. The CANDU 66-group library was developed to update the cross sections that are needed to assess the performance of CANDU bulk shields. Since about 1980, shielding analysts at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) and Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPGI) have been using a 38-group CANDU-specific library to perform S N transport calculations. In 1994, a new CANDU 67-group cross-section library was developed. The 67-group cross-section library was developed to provide radiation-physics analysts with up-to-date nuclear data to correct deficiencies with documentation of the old library. Although there were improvements over the 38-group library, initial use showed there were some deficiencies in the 67-group library. To correct these deficiencies, the CANDU 66-group S N transport cross-section library was developed. The 66-group library is based on the 241-group cross-section library VITAMIN-B6. Collapsing and weighting of the 241-group cross sections into 66 groups were performed using the modular code system SCALE 4.4. This paper describes how the modules in the SCALE system were applied to generate the 66-group library. The CANDU 66-group library includes both core-weighted and lattice-weighted cross sections of 235 U, 238 U, and 239 Pu with, and without, delayed fission-product photons. In addition, the 66-group library contains more response functions than did the 67-group library. Finally, the CANDU 66-group library has been validated against one-dimensional benchmark problems. The results generated with

La medida de la morbilidad atendida en una organización sanitaria integrada Measurement of morbidity attended in an integrated health care organization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José M. Inoriza

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Introducción: La comprensión de la calidad, los costes y los resultados de los servicios de salud obliga a conocer con precisión la morbilidad de la población. La medida de la morbilidad atendida en una población y su relación con los servicios recibidos es una tarea pendiente. El objetivo de este artículo es presentar la experiencia de utilización de los grupos de riesgo clínico (clinical risk groups [CRG] como sistema de medida de la morbilidad atendida en una organización sanitaria integrada (OSI. Métodos: Se estudia la población de una comarca (unas 120.000 personas atendida por una OSI durante los años 2002-2005. Se utilizan los CRG como sistema de medida de la morbilidad poblacional. Se efectúa un análisis descriptivo de las diferentes posibilidades de utilización que ofrece este sistema. Resultados: El 15,5% de la población presenta una o más enfermedades crónicas dominantes, un 9% presenta enfermedades agudas significativas, un 7% presenta enfermedades crónicas menores y un 0,5% enfermedades muy graves. Entre 2002 y 2005, en un 8% de la población se identifica la aparición de alguna enfermedad crónica. La carga de enfermedad se incrementa con la edad, pero en cualquier grupo de edad al menos un 40% de las personas permanecen sanas. La comorbilidad en enfermedades crónicas es un factor determinante en la explicación del consumo de recursos sanitarios. Conclusiones: Los CRG son una herramienta que facilita el análisis a diferentes niveles para la gestión clínica y, por su configuración, permiten una mejor comprensión de la utilización, los costes y la calidad del conjunto de servicios recibidos por una población.Introduction: Understanding the quality, costs and outcomes of healthcare services requires precise determination of the morbidity in a population. Measurement of morbidity in a population and its association with the services provided remains to be performed. The aim of this article was to present

Reverse time migration of multiples for OBS data

KAUST Repository

Zhang, Dongliang

2014-01-01

Reverse time migration of multiples (RTMM) is applied to OBS data with sparse receiver spacing. RTMM for OBS data unlike a marine streamer acquisition is implemented in the common receiver gathers (CRG) and provides a wider and denser illumination for each CRG than the conventional RTM of primaries. Hence, while the the conventional RTM image contains strong aliasing artifacts due to a sparser receiver interval, the RTMM image suffers from this artifacts less. This benefit of RTMM is demonstrated with numerical test on the Marmousi model for sparsely sampled OBS data.

Publisher Correction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bonàs-Guarch, Sílvia; Guindo-Martínez, Marta; Miguel-Escalada, Irene

2018-01-01

In the originally published version of this Article, the affiliation details for Santi González, Jian'an Luan and Claudia Langenberg were inadvertently omitted. Santi González should have been affiliated with 'Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), Joint BSC-CRG-IRB Research Program in Computatio......In the originally published version of this Article, the affiliation details for Santi González, Jian'an Luan and Claudia Langenberg were inadvertently omitted. Santi González should have been affiliated with 'Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), Joint BSC-CRG-IRB Research Program...

Reverse time migration of multiples for OBS data

KAUST Repository

Zhang, Dongliang

2014-08-05

Reverse time migration of multiples (RTMM) is applied to OBS data with sparse receiver spacing. RTMM for OBS data unlike a marine streamer acquisition is implemented in the common receiver gathers (CRG) and provides a wider and denser illumination for each CRG than the conventional RTM of primaries. Hence, while the the conventional RTM image contains strong aliasing artifacts due to a sparser receiver interval, the RTMM image suffers from this artifacts less. This benefit of RTMM is demonstrated with numerical test on the Marmousi model for sparsely sampled OBS data.

The CORMAN project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bregnballe, Thomas

2013-01-01

The CORMAN project (‘Sustainable Management of Cormorant Populations’) is now in its final year. The main goals have been (1) to collaborate with the CRG in order to assess the number and distribution of Cormorants in Europe during breeding and wintertime, and (2) to create the EU Cormorant...... Platform in order to disseminate information. The project has also engaged with key European stakeholder groups and formed a Stakeholders Liaison Group to support information exchange and discuss relevant issues. The project is carried out on behalf of DG Environment under the European Commission....

Comprehensive evaluation on low-carbon development of coal enterprise groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Bang-Jun; Wu, Yan-Fang; Zhao, Jia-Lu

2017-12-19

Scientifically evaluating the level of low-carbon development in terms of theoretical and practical significance is extremely important to coal enterprise groups for implementing national energy-related systems. This assessment can assist in building institutional mechanisms that are conducive for the economic development of coal business cycle and energy conservation as well as promoting the healthy development of coal enterprises to realize coal scientific development and resource utilization. First, by adopting systematic analysis method, this study builds low-carbon development evaluation index system for coal enterprise groups. Second, to determine the weight serving as guideline and criteria of the index, analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is applied using integrated linear weighted sum method to evaluate the level of low-carbon development of coal enterprise groups. Evaluation is also performed by coal enterprise groups, and the process comprises field analysis and evaluation. Finally, industrial policies are proposed regarding the development of low-carbon coal conglomerate strategies and measures. This study aims mainly to guide the low-carbon development of coal enterprise groups, solve the problem of coal mining and the destruction of ecological environment, support the conservation of raw materials and various resources, and achieve the sustainable development of the coal industry.

Group Process and Adolescent Leadership Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Hohmann, Mary; And Others

1982-01-01

Describes an approach to leadership development which is particularly supportive of the needs of adolescents and reflective of a democratic style of leadership. It is an outgrowth of the High/Scope Summer Workshop for Teenagers, which helped young people acquire leadership skills through group membership and cooperation. (Author)

The Rossendorf Beamline at ESRF (ROBL-CRG). Bi-annual report 2003/04

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scheinost, A.C.; Schell, N. (eds.)

2005-01-01

In this report the work performed at the Rossendorf beam-line at the ESRF is described. It concerns neptunium (IV) uptake by iron metalloproteins, in-situ speciation of actinides using a newly developed spectro-electrochemical cell, quantitative antimony speciation in Swiss shooting-range soils, in-situ studies of ITO film properties and structure during annealing in vacuum, high-temperature investigations of Si/SiGe based quantum cascade structures using X-ray diffraction and reflectivity, and in-situ characterization of stress states in copper dual inlaid interconnects at high temperatures by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. (HSI)

Group Problem Solving as a Zone of Proximal Development activity

Science.gov (United States)

Brewe, Eric

2006-12-01

Vygotsky described learning as a process, intertwined with development, which is strongly influenced by social interactions with others that are at differing developmental stages.i These interactions create a Zone of Proximal Development for each member of the interaction. Vygotsky’s notion of social constructivism is not only a theory of learning, but also of development. While teaching introductory physics in an interactive format, I have found manifestations of Vygotsky’s theory in my classroom. The source of evidence is a paired problem solution. A standard mechanics problem was solved by students in two classes as a homework assignment. Students handed in the homework and then solved the same problem in small groups. The solutions to both the group and individual problem were assessed by multiple reviewers. In many cases the group score was the same as the highest individual score in the group, but in some cases, the group score was higher than any individual score. For this poster, I will analyze the individual and group scores and focus on three groups solutions and video that provide evidence of learning through membership in a Zone of Proximal Development. Endnotes i L. Vygotsky -Mind and society: The development of higher mental processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. (1978).

Atmospheric deposition inputs and effects on lichen chemistry and indicator species in the Columbia River Gorge, USA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fenn, M.E.; Geiser, L.; Bachman, R.; Blubaugh, T.J.; Bytnerowicz, A.

2007-01-01

Topographic and meteorological conditions make the Columbia River Gorge (CRG) an 'exhaust pipe' for air pollutants generated by the Portland-Vancouver metropolis and Columbia Basin. We sampled fog, bulk precipitation, throughfall, airborne particulates, lichen thalli, and nitrophytic lichen distribution. Throughfall N and S deposition were high, 11.5-25.4 and 3.4-6.7 kg ha -1 over 4.5 months at all 9 and 4/9 sites, respectively. Deposition and lichen thallus N were highest at eastern- and western-most sites, implicating both agricultural and urban sources. Fog and precipitation pH were frequently as low as 3.7-5.0. Peak NO x , NH 3 , and SO 2 concentrations in the eastern CRG were low, suggesting enhanced N and S inputs were largely from particulate deposition. Lichens indicating nitrogen-enriched environments were abundant and lichen N and S concentrations were 2x higher in the CRG than surrounding national forests. The atmospheric deposition levels detected likely threaten Gorge ecosystems and cultural resources. - Nitrogen, sulfur and acidic deposition threaten natural and cultural resources in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area

Group Development for Students with Emotional/Behavioral Disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Rockwell, Sylvia; Guetzloe, Eleanor

1996-01-01

This article addresses effective techniques for teaching students with emotional disturbances and/or behavior disorders in group settings. Three stages of group development are described with specific teaching strategies for each stage identified and related to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, including needs for safety and trust, belonging and…

Critical Friends Group for EFL Teacher Professional Development

Science.gov (United States)

Vo, Long Thanh; Nguyen, Hoa Thi Mai

2010-01-01

For the best student outcomes, teachers need to engage in continuous professional development. As a result, models of teacher professional development have been developed, among which is the Critical Friends Group (CFG) technique. However, whether it works well with EFL teachers in an Asian context like Vietnam, where EFL teachers in particular do…

Holistic Development: Muslim Women's Civil Society Groups in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Holistic Development: Muslim Women's Civil Society Groups in Nigeria, Ghana and Tanzania. ... we conceptualize economic and political participation and measure inequality. ... Tanzania to help develop mechanisms for sustainable economic growth and ... Keywords: African women, muslim women, civil society, economic ...

Road load simulation using the MF-Swift tire and OpenCRG road model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schmeitz, A.J.C.; Versteden, W.D.; Eguchi, T.

2011-01-01

On one hand automotive manufacturers are trying to reduce product development times, while on the other hand they are aiming to bring more products to the market. Since safely and reliability must always be guaranteed, they use CAE to achieve this. For calculating road loads accurately, the tire and

SBRC-Nottingham: sustainable routes to platform chemicals from C1 waste gases.

Science.gov (United States)

Burbidge, Alan; Minton, Nigel P

2016-06-15

Synthetic Biology Research Centre (SBRC)-Nottingham (www.sbrc-nottingham.ac.uk) was one of the first three U.K. university-based SBRCs to be funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) as part of the recommendations made in the U.K.'s Synthetic Biology Roadmap. It was established in 2014 and builds on the pioneering work of the Clostridia Research Group (CRG) who have previously developed a range of gene tools for the modification of clostridial genomes. The SBRC is primarily focussed on the conversion of single carbon waste gases into platform chemicals with a particular emphasis on the use of the aerobic chassis Cupriavidus necator. © 2016 The Author(s).

Group EDF annual report 2005 sustainable development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-05-01

The EDF Group's Sustainable Development Report for 2005 is designed to report on Group commitments particularly within its Agenda 21, its ethical charter, and the Global Compact. It has also been prepared with reference to external reference frameworks: the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines and the French New Economic Regulations (NRE) contained in the May 15, 2001 French law. It contents the Chairman's statement, the evaluation of renewing and sharing commitments with all stakeholders, the managing local issues, EDF responses to the challenges of the future. Indicators are also provided. (A.L.B.)

Expert Group Meeting on Population, Environment and Development.

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

As part of the preparation for the up-coming International Conference on Population and Development, an expert group met at UN headquarters on January 20-24, 1992. The group noted that the momentum of population growth was expected to add 3 billion people to the global population between 1985 and 2025, with more than 90% of the growth occurring in the developing countries which are least able to respond to the attendant resource and environmental demands. The expert group discussed the interaction of population and resources, specifically the impact of population growth on the environment and carrying capacity. The meeting then focused on environmental discontinuities and uncertainties and on environmental degradation, specifically the loss of agricultural land, the destruction of tropical forests, fresh-water resource, the loss of biological diversify, and climate change. Following their deliberations, the expert group drafted 18 recommendations addressed to governments, social institutions, and international organizations. The group urged that governments establish or strengthen the integration of environmental and population concerns into development policy-making and planning and support technologies to achieve sustained economic growth and development while striving to replace the use of fossil fuels with renewable resources. Areas of the environment subject to acute population pressure should be identified and policies devised to reduce that pressure. Ecologically helpful labor-intensive projects should be implemented for their dual benefits. Women should be included in these activities, and their status in society, therefore, should be improved through improved education and participatory opportunities. The uses of water should be optimized to acknowledge its scarcity. The delivery of service to alleviate poverty should proceed in a manner that invites community participation, which, along with education, will be vital to institute these changes. Adequate

The Impact of Instructor's Group Management Strategies on Students' Attitudes to Group Work and Generic Skill Development

Science.gov (United States)

Natoli, Riccardo; Jackling, Beverley; Seelanatha, Lalith

2014-01-01

This paper examines the influence of two distinct group work management strategies on finance students' attitudes towards group work and their perceptions of generic skill development. Using quantitative and qualitative data, comparisons are made between students who experienced a supportive group work environment and students who experienced an…

Development Strategy of Microtakaful Institutions: Case Study Working Group Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aam Slamet Rusydiana

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Indonesia is becoming one of potential countries in microtakaful institutions development. One of the expert in microtakaful is Takmin Working Group. TWG is a group of initiators who have commitment to develop micro takaful in Indonesia. Its members consist ofexperts in Islamic insurance, micro finance and accounting. The research objectives of this study are to identify and analyze the problems faced by TWG in developing of microtakaful institutions and identify the solutions to solve those kinds of problems, by using AnalticHierarchy Process (AHP method. The finding of this study shows the most priority solutions that can be undertake by Takmin Working Group to solve these both internal and external problem is information system development, and then followed by innovative product development. Communication & visitation to Islamic micro finance institutions and socialization about micro takaful product to society are being less priority on this matter.DOI: 10.15408/etk.v16i2.5267

Energy Innovation 1996. IVO Group's Research and Development Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salminen, P.; Laiho, Y.; Kaikkonen, H.; Leisio, C.; Hinkkanen, S.

1996-01-01

This annual booklet of the IVO Group's research and development activities presents a number of articles, written by experts from IVO. The products described are examples of the environmentally-oriented selection made available by the IVO Group. In fact, the entire energy technology developed in Finland is environmentally oriented, if seen from the international perspective. The new business potential of environmental technology is great, and it is believed that in the year 2000, exportation of Finnish know-how in the field of energy-saving and efficiency will exceed the value of out energy imports

Social Group Stories in the Media and Child Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Dill-Shackleford, Karen E; Ramasubramanian, Srividya; Behm-Morawitz, Elizabeth; Scharrer, Erica; Burgess, Melinda C R; Lemish, Dafna

2017-11-01

How do children and youth come to understand what it means to be a member of a particular race, gender, and other social groups? How do they come to hold beliefs about the groups that they do and do not belong to? Both news stories and fictional narratives that we are tuned into as a culture tell stories about what it means to be a member of a particular social group. In this review article, we relate the latest scientific knowledge on news and entertainment media representations of race, gender and other social categories and what they tell us about how these messages are taken in and processed by developing minds. We include research on identity development, social learning about members of other groups, and both positive and negative behavioral outcomes to cultural messages about race, gender, and other social categories. We offer recommendations for stakeholders to understand the role of the media in educating youth about race, gender and other social categories. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Misclassification due to age grouping in measures of child development.

Science.gov (United States)

Veldhuizen, Scott; Rodriguez, Christine; Wade, Terrance J; Cairney, John

2015-03-01

Screens for developmental delay generally provide a set of norms for different age groups. Development varies continuously with age, however, and applying a single criterion for an age range will inevitably produce misclassifications. In this report, we estimate the resulting error rate for one example: the cognitive subscale of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID-III). Data come from a general population sample of 594 children (305 male) aged 1 month to 42.5 months who received the BSID-III as part of a validation study. We used regression models to estimate the mean and variance of the cognitive subscale as a function of age. We then used these results to generate a dataset of one million simulated participants and compared their status before and after division into age groups. Finally, we applied broader age bands used in two other instruments and explored likely validity limitations when different instruments are compared. When BSID-III age groups are used, 15% of cases are missed and 15% of apparent cases are false positives. Wider age groups produced error rates from 27% to 46%. Comparison of different age groups suggests that sensitivity in validation studies would be limited, under certain assumptions, to 70% or less. The use of age groups produces a large number of misclassifications. Although affected children will usually be close to the threshold, this may lead to misreferrals. Results may help to explain the poor measured agreement of development screens. Scoring methods that treat child age as continuous would improve instrument accuracy. 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.

Informing conservation management about structural versus functional connectivity: a case-study of Cross River gorillas.

Science.gov (United States)

Imong, Inaoyom; Robbins, Martha M; Mundry, Roger; Bergl, Richard; Kühl, Hjalmar S

2014-10-01

Connectivity among subpopulations is vital for the persistence of small and fragmented populations. For management interventions to be effective conservation planners have to make the critical distinction between structural connectivity (based on landscape structure) and functional connectivity (which considers both landscape structure and organism-specific behavioral attributes) which can differ considerably within a given context. We assessed spatial and temporal changes in structural and functional connectivity of the Cross River gorilla Gorilla gorilla diehli (CRG) population in a 12,000 km(2) landscape in the Nigeria-Cameroon border region over a 23-year period, comparing two periods: 1987-2000 and 2000-2010. Despite substantial forest connections between occupied areas, genetic evidence shows that only limited dispersal occurs among CRG subpopulations. We used remotely sensed land-cover data and simulated human pressure (using a spatially explicit agent-based model) to assess human impact on connectivity of the CRG population. We calculated cost-weighted distances between areas occupied by gorillas as measures of connectivity (structural based on land-cover only, functional based on both land-cover and simulated human pressure). Whereas structural connectivity decreased by 5% over the 23-year period, functional connectivity decreased by 11%, with both decreasing more during the latter compared to the earlier period. Our results highlight the increasing threat of isolation of CRG subpopulations due to human disturbance, and provide insight into how increasing human influence may lead to functional isolation of wildlife populations despite habitat continuity, a pressing and common issue in tropical Africa often not accounted for when deciding management interventions. In addition to quantifying threats to connectivity, our study provides crucial evidence for management authorities to identify actions that are more likely to be effective for conservation of

Impact of a group intervention with mothers and babies on child development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beatriz Oré

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This study evaluates the impact on child development of a group intervention with mothers and their eight-month-old babies from a marginal urban district of Lima. The groups, control and treatment, were randomized and child development was assessed before and after with the BSID-II. The intervention had a general positive impact in the children’s development, but no significant differences were found between both groups in the Mental Development Index or the Psychomotor Development Index. There was a significant effect (p < .05 in two of the BSID-II Behavioral Scale factors.

Group EDF annual report 2005 sustainable development; Groupe EDF rapport annuel 2005 developpement durable

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2006-05-15

The EDF Group's Sustainable Development Report for 2005 is designed to report on Group commitments particularly within its Agenda 21, its ethical charter, and the Global Compact. It has also been prepared with reference to external reference frameworks: the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines and the French New Economic Regulations (NRE) contained in the May 15, 2001 French law. It contents the Chairman's statement, the evaluation of renewing and sharing commitments with all stakeholders, the managing local issues, EDF responses to the challenges of the future. Indicators are also provided. (A.L.B.)

General developments in the Los Alamos Nuclear Physics group (T-16)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, P.G.; Chadwick, M.B.

2000-01-01

Nuclear physics activities in support of nuclear data development by the newly formed ''Nuclear Physics'' group (T-16) at Los Alamos are summarized. Activities such as the development of a new Hauser-Feshbach/preequilibrium reaction theory code, improvements to and reissue of the existing GNASH reaction theory code, nuclear cross section evaluation in the context of ENDF/B-VI, development of a new medium-energy optical model potential, new fission neutron spectrum calculations with the Los Alamos model, and development of new 6-group delayed neutron constants for ENDF/B-VI are described. (author)

[Development of nursing pratice in family medecine groups].

Science.gov (United States)

D'Amour, Danielle; Goudreau, Johanne; Hudon, Eveline; Beaulieu, Marie-Dominique; Lamothe, Lise; Jobin, Guy; Gilbert, Frédéric

2008-01-01

The purpose of the study was to analyze the development of nursing practice in family medicine groups (FMGs). The two-year case study consisted of 73 semi-directed interviews ofnurses, physicians and managers in five FMGs. The findings led to three main observations: nursing practice varies considerably from one FMG to another, the development of nurses' practice seems to be associated with the development of a collaborative relationship, and the satisfaction of the professionals in the FMG, nurses in particular, depends on the type of practice. It is important to implement measures to encourage the optimal use ofnurses' skills in a FMG.

A new regulatory mechanism controlling carotenogenesis in the fungus Mucor circinelloides as a target to generate β-carotene over-producing strains by genetic engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yingtong; Navarro, Eusebio; Cánovas-Márquez, José T; Almagro, Lorena; Chen, Haiqin; Chen, Yong Q; Zhang, Hao; Torres-Martínez, Santiago; Chen, Wei; Garre, Victoriano

2016-06-07

Carotenoids are natural pigments with antioxidant properties that have important functions in human physiology and must be supplied through the diet. They also have important industrial applications as food colourants, animal feed additives and nutraceuticals. Some of them, such as β-carotene, are produced on an industrial scale with the use of microorganisms, including fungi. The mucoral Blakeslea trispora is used by the industry to produce β-carotene, although optimisation of production by molecular genetic engineering is unfeasible. However, the phylogenetically closely related Mucor circinelloides, which is also able to accumulate β-carotene, possesses a vast collection of genetic tools with which to manipulate its genome. This work combines classical forward and modern reverse genetic techniques to deepen the regulation of carotenoid synthesis and generate candidate strains for biotechnological production of β-carotene. Mutagenesis followed by screening for mutants with altered colour in the dark and/or in light led to the isolation of 26 mutants that, together with eight previously isolated mutants, have been analysed in this work. Although most of the mutants harboured mutations in known structural and regulatory carotenogenic genes, eight of them lacked mutations in those genes. Whole-genome sequencing of six of these strains revealed the presence of many mutations throughout their genomes, which makes identification of the mutation that produced the phenotype difficult. However, deletion of the crgA gene, a well-known repressor of carotenoid biosynthesis in M. circinelloides, in two mutants (MU206 and MU218) with high levels of β-carotene resulted in a further increase in β-carotene content to differing extents with respect to the crgA single-null strain; in particular, one strain derived from MU218 was able to accumulate up to 4 mg/g of β-carotene. The additive effect of crgA deletion and the mutations present in MU218 suggests the existence of a

NONA Cure of Prepreg Structures, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — CRG's no-oven, no-autoclave (NONA) composite processing technology enables the fabrication of high-performance composite parts without the limitations imposed by...

Development of the Operational Events Groups Ranking Tool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simic, Zdenko; Banov, Reni

2014-01-01

Both because of complexity and ageing, facilities like nuclear power plants require feedback from the operating experience in order to further improve safety and operation performance. That is the reason why significant effort is dedicated to operating experience feedback. This paper contains description of the specification and development of the application for the operating events ranking software tool. Robust and consistent way of selecting most important events for detail investigation is important because it is not feasible or even useful to investigate all of them. Development of the tool is based on the comprehensive events characterisation and methodical prioritization. This includes rich set of events parameters which allow their top level preliminary analysis, different ways of groupings and even to evaluate uncertainty propagation to the ranking results. One distinct feature of the implemented method is that user (i.e., expert) could determine how important is particular ranking parameter based on their pairwise comparison. For tools demonstration and usability it is crucial that sample database is also created. For useful analysis the whole set of events for 5 years is selected and characterised. Based on the preliminary results this tool seems valuable for new preliminary prospective on data as whole, and especially for the identification of events groups which should have priority in the more detailed assessment. The results are consisting of different informative views on the events groups importance and related sensitivity and uncertainty results. This presents valuable tool for improving overall picture about specific operating experience and also for helping identify the most important events groups for further assessment. It is clear that completeness and consistency of the input data characterisation is very important to get full and valuable importance ranking. Method and tool development described in this paper is part of continuous effort of

Guideline group composition and group processes: article 3 in Integrating and coordinating efforts in COPD guideline development. An official ATS/ERS workshop report.

Science.gov (United States)

Kunz, Regina; Fretheim, Atle; Cluzeau, Françoise; Wilt, Timothy J; Qaseem, Amir; Lelgemann, Monika; Kelson, Marcia; Guyatt, Gordon; Schünemann, Holger J

2012-12-01

Professional societies, like many other organizations around the world, have recognized the need to use more rigorous processes to ensure that health care recommendations are informed by the best available research evidence. This is the third of a series of 14 articles that were prepared to advise guideline developers in respiratory and other diseases on considerations for group compositions and group processes in guideline development, and how this can be effectively integrated in the context of respiratory disease guidelines on a national and international level. We updated a review of the literature addressing group composition and group process, focusing on the following questions: 1. How to compose a functioning and representative guideline group; Who should be included in a guideline panel?; How to select organizations, groups, and individuals; What expertise is needed?; Consultation with non-included groups. 2. How to assure a functioning group process; How to make the process constructive; Balancing participation and finding agreement; Administrative support; What constitutes sufficient resources? Our conclusions are based on available evidence from published literature, experience from guideline developers, and workshop discussions. Formal studies addressing optimal processes in developing guidelines are limited, and experience from guideline organizations supplement the formal studies. When resources are available, guideline development groups should aim for multidisciplinary groups, including patients. Prerequisites for a multidisciplinary group include: a strong chair experienced in group facilitation with broad acceptance in the group, training the group in guideline methodology, and professional technical support. Formal consensus developing methods have proved effective in reaching agreement on the final recommendations.

Maldives. Package on population education for special interest groups developed.

Science.gov (United States)

1995-01-01

The Population Education Program of the Non-Formal Education Center has developed a package of Population Education for Special Interest Groups comprising a learning package and fieldworker's guide. The learning package is especially developed for teaching population education for out-of-school populations. Special interest groups in Maldives include newly married couples, adolescents, and working youth. Produced under the guidance of UNESCO, Bangkok, the package contains 36 different materials such as posters, charts, leaflets, booklets, stories, and illustrated booklets which may be taught in 36 to 45 periods. The materials deal with eight themes, namely, family size and family welfare, population and resources, delayed marriage and parenthood, responsible parenthood, population-related values and beliefs, women in development, AIDS/STD, and respect for old people. Accompanying the learning package is the fieldworker's guide used to teach the package. It contains individual guides for each of the 36 learning materials. The guide gives the titles of the materials, format, objectives of the materials, messages, target groups, and an overview of the content of each learning materials. The methodologies used for teaching the learning materials include role playing, group discussion, questioning, brainstorming, survey, creative writing, problem-solving and evaluation. The package will be used by fieldworkers to conduct island-based population education courses. full text

Developing a physics expert identity in a biophysics research group

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez, Idaykis; Goertzen, Renee Michelle; Brewe, Eric; Kramer, Laird H.

2015-06-01

We investigate the development of expert identities through the use of the sociocultural perspective of learning as participating in a community of practice. An ethnographic case study of biophysics graduate students focuses on the experiences the students have in their research group meetings. The analysis illustrates how the communities of practice-based identity constructs of competencies characterize student expert membership. A microanalysis of speech, sound, tones, and gestures in video data characterize students' social competencies in the physics community of practice. Results provide evidence that students at different stages of their individual projects have opportunities to develop social competencies such as mutual engagement, negotiability of the repertoire, and accountability to the enterprises as they interact with group members. The biophysics research group purposefully designed a learning trajectory including conducting research and writing it for publication in the larger community of practice as a pathway to expertise. The students of the research group learn to become socially competent as specific experts of their project topic and methodology, ensuring acceptance, agency, and membership in their community of practice. This work expands research on physics expertise beyond the cognitive realm and has implications for how to design graduate learning experiences to promote expert identity development.

Group Leader Development: Effects of Personal Growth and Psychoeducational Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Ohrt, Jonathan H.; Robinson, E. H., III; Hagedorn, W. Bryce

2013-01-01

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to compare the effects of personal growth groups and psychoeducational groups on counselor education students' (n = 74) empathy and group leader self-efficacy. Additionally, we compared the degree to which participants in each group valued: (a) cohesion, (b) catharsis, and (c) insight. There were no…

DEVELOPMENT OF COORDINATION ABILITIES OF SPECIAL MEDICAL GROUPS STUDENTS IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION PROCESS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. N. Dotsenko

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To analyze the problem of motor abilities development and health of students of special medical group in the process of physical education in technical universities. Determine the major factors, characteristics, and the relationship of physical development, physical fitness and coordination abilities of female students in special medical group. Establish regularities in precise movements mastering of different coordination structure and develop model characteristics of the relationship of coordination abilities and motor characteristics of students in special medical group. To substantiate and verify efficiency of coordination abilities development method of female students with regard to their functional status in the course of physical education in higher school. Methodology. Theoretical and methodological argument, characteristic of the experimental program in physical education teaching process of students in special medical group was shown. Findings. Research is to develop the training content in special medical groups with the use of coordinating elements and exercises to enhance the motor abilities of female students. Their influence on the level of physical development, functional training, as well as regularities in mastering and movement control of different coordinating structure at the female students of special medical group was studied. The comparative characteristic of female students athletic ability in the dynamics of the educational process, differentiated into groups according to nosology was presented. The criterion of spare capacities upgrade of the motor system in controlling the movements of different coordination structure was determined. Originality. The method of coordination abilities development of female students in special medical group, that aims on the formation and correction of motor control system of different coordination structure, a sense of body position and its individual parts in space, improving

Initial phase of the development of sunspot groups and their forecast

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berlyand, B.O.; Burov, V.A.; Stepanyan, N.N.

1979-01-01

Some characteristics of the initial phase of sunspot groups and their forecast have been considered. Experimental data on 340 sunspot groups were obtained in 1967-1969. It was found that oscillations of the magnetic flux in the groups indicate the possibility of the existence of typical periods (2 and 4 days) of the magnetic field development. Most of the groups appears in young plages. The probability of the protons injection from the young groups is very small. The typical time of the development of the proton centre is 10-30 days. The characteristics of the group on the first day of its existence are vaguely connected with the lifetime of the group. On the second and third days the magnetic characteristics (the summary magnetic flux and the number of the unipolar regions) have the highest correlation coefficient (approximately 70%) with the lifetime of the group. The problem of the group lifetime forecast was being solved with the pattern recognition technique. On the base of the second day observation of the existence of the group verification of the received forecast 14% exceeds the verification of the climatological forecast. The forecast of the Zurich class with the same technique is effective beginning with the fifth day of the group existence and the forecast of the flare activity of the group since the day of its appearance. The exceeding of the verification as compared with the climatological forecasts in these problems is 10% and 8% accordingly

[Predicting individual risk of high healthcare cost to identify complex chronic patients].

Science.gov (United States)

Coderch, Jordi; Sánchez-Pérez, Inma; Ibern, Pere; Carreras, Marc; Pérez-Berruezo, Xavier; Inoriza, José M

2014-01-01

To develop a predictive model for the risk of high consumption of healthcare resources, and assess the ability of the model to identify complex chronic patients. A cross-sectional study was performed within a healthcare management organization by using individual data from 2 consecutive years (88,795 people). The dependent variable consisted of healthcare costs above the 95th percentile (P95), including all services provided by the organization and pharmaceutical consumption outside of the institution. The predictive variables were age, sex, morbidity-based on clinical risk groups (CRG)-and selected data from previous utilization (use of hospitalization, use of high-cost drugs in ambulatory care, pharmaceutical expenditure). A univariate descriptive analysis was performed. We constructed a logistic regression model with a 95% confidence level and analyzed sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive values (PPV), and the area under the ROC curve (AUC). Individuals incurring costs >P95 accumulated 44% of total healthcare costs and were concentrated in ACRG3 (aggregated CRG level 3) categories related to multiple chronic diseases. All variables were statistically significant except for sex. The model had a sensitivity of 48.4% (CI: 46.9%-49.8%), specificity of 97.2% (CI: 97.0%-97.3%), PPV of 46.5% (CI: 45.0%-47.9%), and an AUC of 0.897 (CI: 0.892 to 0.902). High consumption of healthcare resources is associated with complex chronic morbidity. A model based on age, morbidity, and prior utilization is able to predict high-cost risk and identify a target population requiring proactive care. Copyright © 2013 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Review of Recent Methodological Developments in Group-Randomized Trials: Part 2-Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Turner, Elizabeth L; Prague, Melanie; Gallis, John A; Li, Fan; Murray, David M

2017-07-01

In 2004, Murray et al. reviewed methodological developments in the design and analysis of group-randomized trials (GRTs). We have updated that review with developments in analysis of the past 13 years, with a companion article to focus on developments in design. We discuss developments in the topics of the earlier review (e.g., methods for parallel-arm GRTs, individually randomized group-treatment trials, and missing data) and in new topics, including methods to account for multiple-level clustering and alternative estimation methods (e.g., augmented generalized estimating equations, targeted maximum likelihood, and quadratic inference functions). In addition, we describe developments in analysis of alternative group designs (including stepped-wedge GRTs, network-randomized trials, and pseudocluster randomized trials), which require clustering to be accounted for in their design and analysis.

The development of collective personality: the ontogenetic drivers of behavioral variation across groups

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Sarah E Bengston

2014-12-01

Full Text Available For the past decade, the study of personality has become a topic on the frontier of behavioral ecology. However, most studies have focused on exploring inter-individual behavioral variation in solitary animals, and few account for the role that social interactions may have on the development of an individual’s personality. Moreover, a social group may exhibit collective personality: an emergent behavioral phenotype displayed at the group-level, which is not necessarily the sum or average of individual personalities within that group. The social environment, in many cases, can determine group success, which then influences the relative success of all the individuals in that group. In addition, group-level personality may itself evolve, subject to the same selection pressures as individual-level behavioral variation, when the group is a unit under selection. Therefore, we reason that understanding how collective personalities emerge and change over time will be imperative to understanding individual- and group-level behavioral evolution.Personality is considered to be fixed over an individual’s lifetime. However, behavior may shift throughout development, particularly during adolescence. Therefore, juvenile behavior should not be compared with adult behavior when assessing personality. Similarly, as conditions within a group and/or the local environment can shift, group behavior may similarly fluctuate as it matures. We discuss potential within-group factors, such as group initiation, group maturation, genetic make-up of the group, and the internal social environment, and external factors, such as well as how local environment may play a role in generating group-level personalities. There are a variety of studies that explore group development or quantify group personality, but few that integrate both processes. Therefore, we conclude by discussing potential ways to evaluate development of collective personality, and propose several focal

SMP Bladder Tooling for Manufacturing Composites, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — CRG's shape memory polymer (SMP) Bladder Tooling is a cutting-edge manufacturing technology that can meet the manufacturing needs of the Ares launch vehicles. This...

NONA Cure of Prepreg Structures, Phase II

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National Aeronautics and Space Administration — CRG's no-oven, no-autoclave (NONA) cure of OoA or autoclave prepreg materials allows the manufacture of large composite structures without the expensive and...

The development of perceptual grouping in infants with Williams syndrome

OpenAIRE

Farran, E. K.; Brown, J. H.; Cole, V. L.; Houston-Price, C.; Karmiloff-Smith, A.

2007-01-01

Perceptual grouping by luminance similarity and by proximity was investigated in infants with Williams syndrome (WS) aged between 6 and 36 months (visit 1, N=29). WS infants who were still under 36 months old, 8 months later, repeated the testing procedure (visit 2, N=15). Performance was compared to typically developing (TD) infants aged from 2 to 20 months (N=63). Consistent with the literature, TD participants showed grouping by luminance at the youngest testing age, 2 months. Grouping by ...

A Project Team Analysis Using Tuckman's Model of Small-Group Development.

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Natvig, Deborah; Stark, Nancy L

2016-12-01

Concerns about equitable workloads for nursing faculty have been well documented, yet a standardized system for workload management does not exist. A project team was challenged to establish an academic workload management system when two dissimilar universities were consolidated. Tuckman's model of small-group development was used as the framework for the analysis of processes and effectiveness of a workload project team. Agendas, notes, and meeting minutes were used as the primary sources of information. Analysis revealed the challenges the team encountered. Utilization of a team charter was an effective tool in guiding the team to become a highly productive group. Lessons learned from the analysis are discussed. Guiding a diverse group into a highly productive team is complex. The use of Tuckman's model of small-group development provided a systematic mechanism to review and understand group processes and tasks. [J Nurs Educ. 2016;55(12):675-681.]. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

Lending Groups and Different Social Capitals in Developed and Developing Countries

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Diego A. B. Marconatto

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Lending groups (LGs and social capital are two central elements to the many microfinance solutions operating around the world. However, LG effectiveness in reducing transaction costs and lending risks for microfinance institutions (MFIs is mediated by institutional environments. Starting from this assumption, we discuss the existent interactions between the institutional environments of developed (Anglo-Saxon and communitarian and developing countries with different stocks of social capital (individual, network and institutional and the influences of this interaction on LG effectiveness. In order to do so, we applied the institutional perspective of O. Williamson to build a theoretical framework to examine the interaction of all these conditions, allowing for analysis of their main relations within the microfinance context. Based on this framework, we propose on the one hand that in developing and Anglo-Saxon developed nations, stocks of both individual and network social capital are the most important for an LG’s effectiveness. However, in Anglo-Saxon countries, these two stocks of social capital are complemented by formal contracting devices. In communitarian developed countries, on the other hand, the stocks of institutional social capital have a stronger positive impact on LG dynamics.

Description of group-theoretical model of developed turbulence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saveliev, V L; Gorokhovski, M A

2008-01-01

We propose to associate the phenomenon of stationary turbulence with the special self-similar solutions of the Euler equations. These solutions represent the linear superposition of eigenfields of spatial symmetry subgroup generators and imply their dependence on time through the parameter of the symmetry transformation only. From this model, it follows that for developed turbulent process, changing the scale of averaging (filtering) of the velocity field is equivalent to composition of scaling, translation and rotation transformations. We call this property a renormalization-group invariance of filtered turbulent fields. The renormalization group invariance provides an opportunity to transform the averaged Navier-Stokes equation over a small scale (inner threshold of the turbulence) to larger scales by simple scaling. From the methodological point of view, it is significant to note that the turbulent viscosity term appeared not as a result of averaging of the nonlinear term in the Navier-Stokes equation, but from the molecular viscosity term with the help of renormalization group transformation.

Magnetic Hybrid Nanosorbents for the Uptake of Paraquat from Water

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Tiago Fernandes

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Although paraquat has been banned in European countries, this herbicide is still used all over the world, thanks to its low-cost, high-efficiency, and fast action. Because paraquat is highly toxic to humans and animals, there is interest in mitigating the consequences of its use, namely by implementing removal procedures capable of curbing its environmental and health risks. This research describes new magnetic nanosorbents composed of magnetite cores functionalized with bio-hybrid siliceous shells, that can be used to uptake paraquat from water using magnetically-assisted procedures. The biopolymers κ-carrageenan and starch were introduced into the siliceous shells, resulting in two hybrid materials, Fe3O4@SiO2/SiCRG and Fe3O4@SiO2/SiStarch, respectively, that exhibit a distinct surface chemistry. The Fe3O4@SiO2/SiCRG biosorbents displayed a superior paraquat removal performance, with a good fitting to the Langmuir and Toth isotherm models. The maximum adsorption capacity of paraquat for Fe3O4@SiO2/SiCRG biosorbents was 257 mg·g−1, which places this sorbent among the best systems for the removal of this herbicide from water. The interesting performance of the κ-carrageenan hybrid, along with its magnetic properties and good regeneration capacity, presents a very efficient way for the remediation of water contaminated with paraquat.

Segmental heterogeneity of enzymatic response during compensatory renal growth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoang, T.; Bergeron, M.

1985-01-01

The activities of DNA polymerase α and key enzymes of gluconeogenesis and glycolysis were measured in different segments of the rat nephron at various times (up to 96 hrs) following a unilateral nephrectomy (UNx). Tubule fragments were obtained after collagenase treatment followed by centrifugation on a Percoll gradient. The DNA polymerase α activity in control rats showed moderate and similar values in different segmental extracts as well as in the whole kidney extract (1700-1800 μμmole[ 3 H] dAMP/mg DNA). In Unx rats, activity in proximal tubules (PT) measured at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hrs after nephrectomy represented an increase of 60%, 200%, 420% and 370% respectively over control values. Distal tubule fragments (DT) showed only minor increases. The results demonstrate that the proximal tubule accounts for most of the compensatory renal growth (CRG) in the remaining kidney. The gluconeogenic and glycolytic enzymes were confined to the PT and those of glycolysis to the DT fragments. Following UNx, the specific activities of these enzymes were not modified in the remaining kidney; however, the overall activity of gluconeogenesis was increased as a result of the cell hyperplasia occurring in the PT. The work also illustrates that biochemical studies of CRG on the whole organ may provide misleading information due to the presence of heterogeneous cell populations in the mammalian kidney and to their uneven response in CRG

Radiation therapy for malignant tumors in patients 80 years of age or older

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitsuhashi, Norio; Niibe, Hideo; Hayakawa, Kazushige; Takahashi, Mitsuhiro; Nozaki, Miwako; Yamakawa, Michitaka

1992-01-01

We report here, results of investigation of changes in the condition of elderly patients, 80 years of age or older (EP-80), treated with radiation, and analysis of the results of radiotherapy to assess the value of radiotherapy in treating the elderly. Between 1970 and 1989, 294 EP-80 with various malignant tumors received radiation therapy at the Department of Radiology, Gunma University Hospital. The number of EP-80 treated has increased recently to about thirty per year, and their incidence among newly registered patients has also increased to over 5%. The 5-year cause specific survival rates for male and female were 14% and 32%, respectively. There was a significant difference between the survival rates for male and female (x 2 =11.89, p=0.00056) because of inclusion of a significant proportion of female patients with gynecological malignancies. The 5-year survival rate for patients in the curative radiotherapy group (CRG) was 30%, whereas no patient of the palliative radiotherapy group (PRG) has survived for 5 years (x 2 =90.23, p=0.00000). In the CRG, the survival rate for females was significantly higher than that for males (x 2 =11.48, p=0.00070). Thirty-one patients survived for 5 year. Head and neck cancer and uterine lervix cancer were the most common tumors in 5 year survivors. Age was not a significant prognostic factor in the elderly patients treated with radiation. It is considered that radiation therapy is as valuable in elderly patients as in the younger patient population. (author)

A method for studying decision-making by guideline development groups.

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Gardner, Benjamin; Davidson, Rosemary; McAteer, John; Michie, Susan

2009-08-05

Multidisciplinary guideline development groups (GDGs) have considerable influence on UK healthcare policy and practice, but previous research suggests that research evidence is a variable influence on GDG recommendations. The Evidence into Recommendations (EiR) study has been set up to document social-psychological influences on GDG decision-making. In this paper we aim to evaluate the relevance of existing qualitative methodologies to the EiR study, and to develop a method best-suited to capturing influences on GDG decision-making. A research team comprised of three postdoctoral research fellows and a multidisciplinary steering group assessed the utility of extant qualitative methodologies for coding verbatim GDG meeting transcripts and semi-structured interviews with GDG members. A unique configuration of techniques was developed to permit data reduction and analysis. Our method incorporates techniques from thematic analysis, grounded theory analysis, content analysis, and framework analysis. Thematic analysis of individual interviews conducted with group members at the start and end of the GDG process defines discrete problem areas to guide data extraction from GDG meeting transcripts. Data excerpts are coded both inductively and deductively, using concepts taken from theories of decision-making, social influence and group processes. These codes inform a framework analysis to describe and explain incidents within GDG meetings. We illustrate the application of the method by discussing some preliminary findings of a study of a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) acute physical health GDG. This method is currently being applied to study the meetings of three of NICE GDGs. These cover topics in acute physical health, mental health and public health, and comprise a total of 45 full-day meetings. The method offers potential for application to other health care and decision-making groups.

A method for studying decision-making by guideline development groups

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Michie Susan

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Multidisciplinary guideline development groups (GDGs have considerable influence on UK healthcare policy and practice, but previous research suggests that research evidence is a variable influence on GDG recommendations. The Evidence into Recommendations (EiR study has been set up to document social-psychological influences on GDG decision-making. In this paper we aim to evaluate the relevance of existing qualitative methodologies to the EiR study, and to develop a method best-suited to capturing influences on GDG decision-making. Methods A research team comprised of three postdoctoral research fellows and a multidisciplinary steering group assessed the utility of extant qualitative methodologies for coding verbatim GDG meeting transcripts and semi-structured interviews with GDG members. A unique configuration of techniques was developed to permit data reduction and analysis. Results Our method incorporates techniques from thematic analysis, grounded theory analysis, content analysis, and framework analysis. Thematic analysis of individual interviews conducted with group members at the start and end of the GDG process defines discrete problem areas to guide data extraction from GDG meeting transcripts. Data excerpts are coded both inductively and deductively, using concepts taken from theories of decision-making, social influence and group processes. These codes inform a framework analysis to describe and explain incidents within GDG meetings. We illustrate the application of the method by discussing some preliminary findings of a study of a National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE acute physical health GDG. Conclusion This method is currently being applied to study the meetings of three of NICE GDGs. These cover topics in acute physical health, mental health and public health, and comprise a total of 45 full-day meetings. The method offers potential for application to other health care and decision

Development of active learning modules in pharmacology for small group teaching.

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Tripathi, Raakhi K; Sarkate, Pankaj V; Jalgaonkar, Sharmila V; Rege, Nirmala N

2015-01-01

Current teaching in pharmacology in undergraduate medical curriculum in India is primarily drug centered and stresses imparting factual knowledge rather than on pharmacotherapeutic skills. These skills would be better developed through active learning by the students. Hence modules that will encourage active learning were developed and compared with traditional methods within the Seth GS Medical College, Mumbai. After Institutional Review Board approval, 90 second year undergraduate medical students who consented were randomized into six sub-groups, each with 15 students. Pre-test was administered. The three sub-groups were taught a topic using active learning modules (active learning groups), which included problems on case scenarios, critical appraisal of prescriptions and drug identification. The remaining three sub-groups were taught the same topic in a conventional tutorial mode (tutorial learning groups). There was crossover for the second topic. Performance was assessed using post-test. Questionnaires with Likert-scaled items were used to assess feedback on teaching technique, student interaction and group dynamics. The active and tutorial learning groups differed significantly in their post-test scores (11.3 ± 1.9 and 15.9 ± 2.7, respectively, P active learning session as interactive (vs. 37/90 students in tutorial group) and enhanced their understanding vs. 56/90 in tutorial group), aroused intellectual curiosity (47/90 students of active learning group vs. 30/90 in tutorial group) and provoked self-learning (41/90 active learning group vs. 14/90 in tutorial group). Sixty-four students in the active learning group felt that questioning each other helped in understanding the topic, which was the experience of 25/90 students in tutorial group. Nevertheless, students (55/90) preferred tutorial mode of learning to help them score better in their examinations. In this study, students preferred an active learning environment, though to pass examinations, they

The Individual Regulation Component of Group Emotional Intelligence: Measure Development and Validation

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, Christina Hamme

2012-01-01

Counseling work is increasingly conducted in team format. The methods counseling teams use to manage the emotional component of their group life, or their group emotional intelligence, have been proposed as significantly contributing to group member trust, cooperation, and ultimate performance. Item development, exploratory factor analysis, and…

IMIA Working Group 15 : Technology assessment and quality development in health informatics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gennip, E.M.S.J. van

1999-01-01

The working group on technology assessment and quality development in health informatics was established as a follow-up to the recommendations made at the IMIA-ISTAHC working conference in 1990. The working group was approved by the IMIA General Assembly at Kyoto, September, 1993. The working group

Collaborative groups: a reflective look for the professional development of mathematics teachers

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Priscila Bernardo Martins

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The present work aims to present the conceptual characteristics about collaborative groups and to identify their importance in the professional development process of teachers who teach Mathematics. For this, we adopt a methodology of bibliographic research in which we bring authors who discuss this theme. Our theoretical framework is supported by authors who discuss the importance of collaborative groups in the teaching of Mathematics. The results show that the collaborative groups contribute to the professional development of teachers by promoting, through reflexivity, spaces of collective discussions about the practice of teachers in the classroom.

Development of end group for 1.3 GHZ nine cell SCRF cavity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yedle, Ajay; Bagre, Manish; Maurya, Tilak; Yadav, Anand; Puntambekar, Avinash; Mahawar, Ashish; Mohania, Praveen; Shrivastava, Purushottam; Joshi, Satish Chandra

2013-01-01

Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) is developing 1.3 GHz superconducting radio frequency (SCRF) cavities as part of SCRF technology development. The 1.3 GHz nine cell SCRF cavities comprise of multiple cells and end groups at each end. These end groups are important parts of a multi-cell cavity. They serve as interface for putting RF power to cavity, pick up the signal for various RF control and have higher order modes (HOM) coupler. The multiple parts with intricate shape, complex weld geometry and stringent RF requirements pose various challenges in their manufacturing. This paper presents the efforts on development of end groups comprising of manufacturing of various parts, their fabrication by electron beam welding process and pre-qualification including mechanical measurement, vacuum leak testing RF measurement. (author)

Business Groups Exist in Developed Markets Also: Britain Since 1850

OpenAIRE

Jones, Geoffrey G.

2016-01-01

Diversified business groups are well-known phenomenon in emerging markets, both today and historically. This is often explained by the prevalence of institutional voids or the nature of government-business relations. It is typically assumed that such groups were much less common in developed economies, and largely disappeared during the twentieth century. This working paper contests this assumption with evidence from Britain between 1850 and the present day. During the nineteenth century merc...

Reflective practice in ESL teacher development groups from practices to principles

CERN Document Server

Farrell, T

2013-01-01

Reflective Practise in ESL Teacher Development Groups  discusses the concept of reflective practice in ESL teachers using data from a 3-year collaborative partnership in which three ESL teachers in Canada explored their professional development through reflective practice.

Enhancing medical students' reflectivity in mentoring groups for professional development - a qualitative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lutz, Gabriele; Pankoke, Nina; Goldblatt, Hadass; Hofmann, Marzellus; Zupanic, Michaela

2017-07-14

Professional competence is important in delivering high quality patient care, and it can be enhanced by reflection and reflective discourse e.g. in mentoring groups. However, students are often reluctant though to engage in this discourse. A group mentoring program involving all preclinical students as well as faculty members and co-mentoring clinical students was initiated at Witten-Herdecke University. This study explores both the attitudes of those students towards such a program and factors that might hinder or enhance how students engage in reflective discourse. A qualitative design was applied using semi-structured focus group interviews with preclinical students and semi-structured individual interviews with mentors and co-mentors. The interview data were analyzed using thematic content analysis. Students' attitudes towards reflective discourse on professional challenges were diverse. Some students valued the new program and named positive outcomes regarding several features of professional development. Enriching experiences were described. Others expressed aversive attitudes. Three reasons for these were given: unclear goals and benefits, interpersonal problems within the groups hindering development and intrapersonal issues such as insecurity and traditional views of medical education. Participants mentioned several program setup factors that could enhance how students engage in such groups: explaining the program thoroughly, setting expectations and integrating the reflective discourse in a meaningful way into the curriculum, obliging participation without coercion, developing a sense of security, trust and interest in each other within the groups, randomizing group composition and facilitating group moderators as positive peer and faculty role models and as learning group members. A well-designed and empathetic setup of group mentoring programs can help raise openness towards engaging in meaningful reflective discourse. Reflection on and communication of

Positioning in Groups: A New Development in Systemic Consultation

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Matthews, Jeff W.; Singh, RajVinder

2015-01-01

This article describes a new approach, employing a combination of Positioning Theory and Semantic Polarities, that educational psychologists can use to develop and facilitate change in organisations and groups. Resistance to change can be seen as reflecting a lack of the language that the members of an organisation need to participate effectively…

Contribution of Food Groups to Energy and Nutrient Intakes in Five Developed Countries

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Nancy Auestad

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Economic growth in developing countries and globalization of the food sector is leading to increasingly similar food consumption patterns worldwide. The aim of this study was to describe similarities and differences in the contributions of main food groups to energy and nutrient intakes in five developed countries across three continents. We obtained summary reports of national food consumption survey data from Australia, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the United States. Survey years spanned 2003–2012; sample size ranged from 1444 to 17,386. To mitigate heterogeneity of food groups across countries, we recategorized each survey’s reported food groups and subgroups into eight main food groups and, for three countries, a ninth “mixed dishes” group. We determined the percent contribution of each food group to mean daily intakes of energy, saturated fat, sodium, fiber, and ten vitamins and minerals that are commonly under-consumed. Differences in findings from surveys utilizing a foods-as-consumed versus a disaggregated or ingredients approach to food group composition and contributions from the milk and milk products group, a source of several under-consumed nutrients, were explored. Patterns of food group contributions to energy and nutrient intakes were generally similar across countries. Some differences were attributable to the analytical approach used by the surveys. For the meat/protein, milk and milk products, vegetables, and fruit groups, percent contributions to key nutrient intakes exceeded percent contributions to energy intake. The mixed dishes group provided 10%–20% of total daily energy and a similar 10%–25% of the daily intake of several nutrients. This descriptive study contributes to an understanding of food group consumption patterns in developed countries.

Contribution of Food Groups to Energy and Nutrient Intakes in Five Developed Countries

Science.gov (United States)

Auestad, Nancy; Hurley, Judith S.; Fulgoni, Victor L.; Schweitzer, Cindy M.

2015-01-01

Economic growth in developing countries and globalization of the food sector is leading to increasingly similar food consumption patterns worldwide. The aim of this study was to describe similarities and differences in the contributions of main food groups to energy and nutrient intakes in five developed countries across three continents. We obtained summary reports of national food consumption survey data from Australia, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the United States. Survey years spanned 2003–2012; sample size ranged from 1444 to 17,386. To mitigate heterogeneity of food groups across countries, we recategorized each survey’s reported food groups and subgroups into eight main food groups and, for three countries, a ninth “mixed dishes” group. We determined the percent contribution of each food group to mean daily intakes of energy, saturated fat, sodium, fiber, and ten vitamins and minerals that are commonly under-consumed. Differences in findings from surveys utilizing a foods-as-consumed versus a disaggregated or ingredients approach to food group composition and contributions from the milk and milk products group, a source of several under-consumed nutrients, were explored. Patterns of food group contributions to energy and nutrient intakes were generally similar across countries. Some differences were attributable to the analytical approach used by the surveys. For the meat/protein, milk and milk products, vegetables, and fruit groups, percent contributions to key nutrient intakes exceeded percent contributions to energy intake. The mixed dishes group provided 10%–20% of total daily energy and a similar 10%–25% of the daily intake of several nutrients. This descriptive study contributes to an understanding of food group consumption patterns in developed countries. PMID:26061017

The development of perceptual grouping biases in infancy: a Japanese-English cross-linguistic study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoshida, Katherine A; Iversen, John R; Patel, Aniruddh D; Mazuka, Reiko; Nito, Hiromi; Gervain, Judit; Werker, Janet F

2010-05-01

Perceptual grouping has traditionally been thought to be governed by innate, universal principles. However, recent work has found differences in Japanese and English speakers' non-linguistic perceptual grouping, implicating language in non-linguistic perceptual processes (Iversen, Patel, & Ohgushi, 2008). Two experiments test Japanese- and English-learning infants of 5-6 and 7-8 months of age to explore the development of grouping preferences. At 5-6 months, neither the Japanese nor the English infants revealed any systematic perceptual biases. However, by 7-8 months, the same age as when linguistic phrasal grouping develops, infants developed non-linguistic grouping preferences consistent with their language's structure (and the grouping biases found in adulthood). These results reveal an early difference in non-linguistic perception between infants growing up in different language environments. The possibility that infants' linguistic phrasal grouping is bootstrapped by abstract perceptual principles is discussed. Copyright 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Consent Codes: Upholding Standard Data Use Conditions.

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Stephanie O M Dyke

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A systematic way of recording data use conditions that are based on consent permissions as found in the datasets of the main public genome archives (NCBI dbGaP and EMBL-EBI/CRG EGA.

Development (design and systematization) of HMS Group pump ranges

Science.gov (United States)

Tverdokhleb, I.; Yamburenko, V.

2017-08-01

The article reveals the need for pump range charts development for different applications and describes main principles used by HMS Group. Some modern approaches to pump selection are reviewed and highlighted the need for pump compliance with international standards and modern customer requirements. Even though pump design types are similar for different applications they need adjustment to specific requirements, which gets manufacturers develop their particular design for each pump range. Having wide pump ranges for different applications enables to create pump selection software, facilitating manufacturers to prepare high quality quotations in shortest time.

Sensitive detection of rutin based on {beta}-cyclodextrin-chemically reduced graphene/Nafion composite film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu Kunping; Wei Jinping [School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000 (China); Wang Chunming, E-mail: wangcm@lzu.edu.cn [School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000 (China)

2011-05-30

Highlights: > {beta}-CD-graphene composite obtained via a simple sonication-induced assembly. > Accelerating electron transfer on electrode to amplify the electrochemical signal. > A highly sensitive electrochemical sensor for rutin detection. > Good selectivity and reproducibility for the detection of rutin in real samples. - Abstract: An electrochemical sensor based on chemically reduced graphene (CRG) was developed for the sensitive detection of rutin. To construct the base of the sensor, a novel composite was initially fabricated and used as the substrate material by combining CRG and {beta}-cyclodextrin ({beta}-CD) via a simple sonication-induced assembly. Due to the high rutin-loading capacity on the electrode surface and the upstanding electric conductivity of graphene, the electrochemical response of the fabricated sensor was greatly enhanced and displayed excellent analytical performance for rutin detection from 6.0 x 10{sup -9} to 1.0 x 10{sup -5} mol L{sup -1} with a low detection limit of 2.0 x 10{sup -9} mol L{sup -1} at 3{sigma}. Moreover, the proposed electrochemical sensor also exhibited good selectivity and acceptable reproducibility and could be used for the detection of rutin in real samples. Therefore, the present work offers a new way to broaden the analytical applications of graphene in pharmaceutical analysis.

Group concept mapping for evaluation and development in nursing education.

Science.gov (United States)

Hagell, Peter; Edfors, Ellinor; Hedin, Gita; Westergren, Albert; Hammarlund, Catharina Sjödahl

2016-09-01

The value of course evaluations has been debated since they frequently fail to capture the complexity of education and learning. Group Concept Mapping (GCM), a participant-centred mixed-method was explored as a tool for evaluation and development in nursing education and to better understand students' learning experiences, using data from a GCM-based evaluation of a research training assignment integrating clinical practice and research data collection within a Swedish university nursing program. Student nurses (n = 47) participated in a one-day GCM exercise. Focus group brainstorming regarding experiences from the assignment that the students considered important and instructive yielded 98 statements that were individually sorted based on their student-perceived relationships, and rated regarding their importance/instructiveness and need for development. Quantitative analysis of sort data produced a 2-dimensional map representing their conceptual relationships, and eight conceptual areas. Average cluster ratings were plotted relative to each other and provided a decision aid for development and planning by identifying areas (i.e., "Research methodology", "Patients' perspectives", and "Interviewer role") considered highly important/instructive and in high need for development. These experiences illustrate the use and potential of GCM as an interactive participant-centred approach to evaluation, planning and development in nursing and other higher health science educations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Development of In-Group Favoritism : Between Social Reality and Group Identity

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verkuyten, Maykel; Wolf, Angela de

2007-01-01

This study examined how social reality restricts children’s tendency for in-group favoritism in group evaluations. Children were faced with social reality considerations and with group identity concerns. Using short stories, in this experimental study, conducted among 3 age groups (6-, 8-, and

Development and Implementation of a Psychoeducational Group for Ghanaian Adolescents Experiencing Parental Divorce

Science.gov (United States)

Nkyi, Anthony K.

2015-01-01

This article presents development and informal assessment of a 10-week psychoeducational program designed for 8 adolescent group members experiencing parental divorce in a rural community in Ghana. Group design, cultural considerations, program implementation, and impacts are described. The literature review pertaining to group work as an…

Bioinspired design and macroscopic assembly of poly(vinyl alcohol)-coated graphene into kilometers-long fibers

Science.gov (United States)

Kou, Liang; Gao, Chao

2013-05-01

have a strict ``brick and mortar'' layered structure, with graphene sheet as rigid brick and PVA as soft mortar. The mortar thickness can be precisely tuned from 2.01 to 3.31 nm by the weight feed ratio of PVA to graphene, as demonstrated by both atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements. The mechanical strength of the nacre-mimicking fibers increases with increasing the content of PVA, and it rises gradually from 81 MPa for the fiber with 53.1 wt% PVA to 161 MPa for the fiber with 65.8 wt% PVA. The mechanical performance of our fibers was independent of the molecular weight (MW) of PVA in the wide range of 2-100 kDa, indicating that low MW polymers can also be used to make strong nanocomposites. The tensile stress of fibers immersed in PVA 5 wt% solution reached ca. 200 MPa, surpassing the values of nacre and most of other nacre-mimicking materials. The nacre-mimicking fibers are highly electrically conductive (~350 S m-1) after immersing in hydroiodic acid, enabling them to connect a circuit to illuminate an LED lamp. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: More AFM and SEM images and electrical conductivities of CRG@PVA with different feed ratios, FTIR spectra, Raman and XPS results of GO, CRG and CRG@PVA, SEM images of CRG@PVA fibers with different diameters, SEM images and conductivity of CRG@PVA fibers with different MW of PVA, the tensile curve of CRG@PVA paper, and videos of graphene knot and spring. See DOI: 10.1039/c3nr00455d

On the chromospheric network structure around deVeloped groups of sunspots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kartashova, L.G.

1980-01-01

The chromospheric network structure around several developed groups of sunspots were studied on the basis of the observations in the Hsub(α) line. The resolution on the filtergrams was of 2. The following was found: 1) in the neighbourhood of the groups of sunspots 70% (from 870) of network cells stretch along fibrils direction (with accuracy 30 deg), and 15% of cells stretch approximately across that (at angles 70-90 deg); 2) out of the boundary of the main radial fibrils structure the groups of sunspots is often rounded by the system of network cells stretched approximately perpendicular to radial direction

Balint group leadership: Conceptual foundations and a framework for leadership development?

Science.gov (United States)

Elder, Andrew

2017-01-01

This article is based on a talk given at the International Balint Federation leadership congress in Warsaw (September 2016). It explores the conceptual foundations of Balint group leadership and starts by emphasizing the mutuality between psychoanalysts and medical practitioners working together. The parallel process between consulting room and group, and subsequently from group back to the consulting room, is delineated as the central construct in understanding the role of the leader. Having proposed a conceptual model for thinking about leadership interventions, the article discusses developments in some contemporary approaches to leadership: coleadership, the use of role play, psychodrama, pushback, and morale. It concludes by introducing Keats' notion of negative capability as a way of thinking about creativity in Balint group leadership.

Effect of thiol group on the curing process of alkaline developable photo-resists

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hidetaka Oka; Masaki Ohwa; Hisatoshi Kura

1999-01-01

Photosensitivity of a conventional radical photo-initiator in an alkaline developable photoresist is boosted by substitution with a thiol group. Evidence is presented that the thiol group acts via chain transfer mechanism

Using Electronic Communication Tools in Online Group Activities to Develop Collaborative Learning Skills

Science.gov (United States)

Khalil, Hanan; Ebner, Martin

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of using synchronous and asynchronous communication tools in online group activities to develop collaborative learning skills. An experimental study was implemented on a sample of faculty of education students in Mansoura University. The sample was divided into two groups, a group studied…

Workshop on a project for a FZR-beam line at ESRF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matz, W.

1993-10-01

The Research Center Rossendorf (FZR) investigates the possibilities to install its own beam line as a Cooperate Research Group-project (CRG) at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble. The main interests for the FZR to use high brillant synchrotron radiation are in the Institute of Radiochemistry and the Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research. This workshop was organized by these two institutes together with the FZR Study group Synchrotron. The purpose of the workshop was to achieve a better understanding for the technical needs of the projected beam line for the planned research projects. Experts with experience in beam line design met with the Rossendorf groups to discuss the best layout for such a beam line. The summary of this workshop and the copies of transparencies of the lectures that were given are published in this booklet. (orig.)

Specifics of psychomotor development in group of congenital blind children

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Zbyněk Janečka

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Ontogenesis of the psychomotor development in group of congenital blind children has its own specifics. Visual defect is influenced by many things. In the period from birth to two years of age occur in children, significant changes in cognitive, psychomotor and social development. Compared with the normal sighted population go the development of congenital blind children in all these areas slower. Visual deprivation also influenced on development of body posture. More important is whether the development proceeds in stages that correspond to the development of normal vision child. If development proceeds in the right direction is the temporal aspect criterion rather orientation. For blind children is also important to strengthen the ability to correctly identify their own body through somatognosy. Stereognosy in turn determines the degree of contact with the outer world and focus it in relation to the physical schema.

Developing group investigation-based book on numerical analysis to increase critical thinking student’s ability

Science.gov (United States)

Maharani, S.; Suprapto, E.

2018-03-01

Critical thinking is very important in Mathematics; it can make student more understanding mathematics concept. Critical thinking is also needed in numerical analysis. The Numerical analysis's book is not yet including critical thinking in them. This research aims to develop group investigation-based book on numerical analysis to increase critical thinking student’s ability, to know the quality of the group investigation-based book on numerical analysis is valid, practical, and effective. The research method is Research and Development (R&D) with the subject are 30 student college department of Mathematics education at Universitas PGRI Madiun. The development model used is 4-D modified to 3-D until the stage development. The type of data used is descriptive qualitative data. Instruments used are sheets of validation, test, and questionnaire. Development results indicate that group investigation-based book on numerical analysis in the category of valid a value 84.25%. Students response to the books very positive, so group investigation-based book on numerical analysis category practical, i.e., 86.00%. The use of group investigation-based book on numerical analysis has been meeting the completeness criteria classical learning that is 84.32 %. Based on research result of this study concluded that group investigation-based book on numerical analysis is feasible because it meets the criteria valid, practical, and effective. So, the book can be used by every mathematics academician. The next research can be observed that book based group investigation in other subjects.

Development Trends in the Fields of Education and Care for Vulnerable Groups in Slovenia

Science.gov (United States)

Kobolt, Alenka; Pavel, Jana Rapus

2010-01-01

This paper presents the main developments in education and care for vulnerable groups of children and youth in Slovenia over the past twenty years. It describes the education system and provides an overview of the development of social pedagogy as a discipline and the practice of working with some groups of vulnerable young people. The trends can…

Development of the CPXSD Methodology for Generation of Fine-Group Libraries for Shielding Applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alpan, F. Arzu; Haghighat, Alireza

2005-01-01

Multigroup cross sections are one of the major factors that cause uncertainties in the results of deterministic transport calculations. Thus, it is important to prepare effective cross-section libraries that include an appropriate group structure and are based on an appropriate spectrum. There are several multigroup cross-section libraries available for particular applications. For example, the 47-neutron, 20-gamma group BUGLE library that is derived from the 199-neutron, 42-gamma group VITAMIN-B6 library is widely used for light water reactor (LWR) shielding and pressure vessel dosimetry applications. However, there is no publicly available methodology that can construct problem-dependent libraries. Thus, the authors have developed the Contributon and Point-wise Cross Section Driven (CPXSD) methodology for constructing effective fine- and broad-group structures. In this paper, new fine-group structures were constructed using the CPXSD, and new fine-group cross-section libraries were generated. The 450-group LIB450 and 589-group LIB589 libraries were developed for neutrons sensitive to the fast and thermal energy ranges, respectively, for LWR shielding problems. As compared to a VITAMIN-B6-like library, the new fine-group library developed for fast neutron dosimetry calculations resulted in closer agreement to the continuous-energy predictions. For example, for the fast neutron cavity dosimetry, ∼4% improvement was observed for the 237 Np(n,f) reaction rate. For the thermal neutron 1 H(n, γ) reaction, a maximum improvement of ∼14% was observed in the reaction rate at the middowncomer position

Development and application of group importance measures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haskin, F.E.; Huang, Min; Sasser, M.K.; Stack, D.W.

1992-01-01

As part of a complete Level I probabilistic safety analysis of the K Production Reactor, three traditional importance measures-risk reduction, partial derivative, and variance reduction-have been extended to permit analyses of the relative importance of groups of basic and initiating events. None of the group importance measures require Monte Carlo sampling for their quantification. The group importance measures are quantified for the overall fuel damage equation and for dominant accident sequences using the following event groups: initiating events, electrical failures, instrumentation failures, common-cause failures, human errors, and nonrecovery events. Additional analyses are presented using other event groups. Collectively, these applications indicate both the utility and the versatility of the group importance measures

Intellectual Development Features and Status in the Nursery Group in Preschool Age

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iliyn V.A.,

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The article presents the results of a study of intellectual development of high-status, middle-status and low-status members of the educational preschool groups. It is shown that the intellectual development of high status and middle status 4-5 years old children is higher than their low-status peers, especially in such aspects as perception, attention, and memory. This integral indicator of high status subjects corresponds to the average or high level of intelligence, and for most of the subjects of this category is characterized by a high level. An integral component of intellectual development of middle-status children is comparable to the one in high-status. In fact, there is only one, but not least, difference between the two categories: among high-status children there is no kids whose integral indicator of intellectual development is below average. Integral indicator of intellectual development of most low-status subjects corresponds to the low intelligence level. We analyzed a dialectical relationship of intellectual, social, and psychological development of preschool children according to the concept of «interpersonal situation of development». The article presents methodical maintenance of structure definition of interpersonal relations in the preschool educational groups. The study proposed a number of scientific and practical recommendations.

Efeitos da suplementação de creatina na força máxima e na amplitude do eletromiograma de mulheres fisicamente ativas Effect of creatine supplementation in maximal strength and electromyogram amplitude of physically active women

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rômulo José Dantas Medeiros

2010-10-01

Full Text Available A suplementação de creatina apresenta ação ergogênica na força muscular. Entretanto, não há consenso deste efeito na força isométrica máxima e na amplitude do eletromiograma (EMG. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo foi analisar os efeitos da suplementação de creatina na força isométrica máxima e na amplitude do EMG em mulheres fisicamente ativas. Vinte e sete mulheres (idade 23,04 ± 1,82 anos, massa corporal 58,37 ± 6,10kg, estatura 1,63 ± 0,05m e índice de massa corporal 21,93 ± 2,02kg/m² foram designadas aleatoriamente para os grupos creatina (GCr (n = 13 e placebo (GPL (n = 14, os quais ingeriram diariamente, durante seis dias, 20g de creatina mono-hidratada e 20g de maltodextrina, respectivamente. Antes e depois da suplementação, a força foi medida em um dinamômetro isométrico durante contração isométrica voluntária máxima (CIVM de extensão unilateral do joelho (três séries de 6s intervaladas por 180s, com captação simultânea dos valores root mean square (RMS do EMG obtido no músculo vasto lateral. A ANOVA de dois critérios de classificação (dois momentos x dois grupos e o teste de Wilcoxon foram utilizados na análise estatística dos dados paramétricos e não paramétricos (p Creatine supplementation has shown to enhance muscular strength. However, there is not a consensus on this effect on maximal isometric strength neither on electromyogram (EMG amplitude. Thus, the aim of this study was to analyze the creatine supplementation effects on maximal isometric strength and EMG amplitude in physically active women. 27 women (age 23.04 ± 1.82 years, body mass 58.37 ± 6.10kg, height 1.63±0.05m and body mass index 21.93 ± 2.02kg/m² were randomly assigned in creatine (CrG (n = 13 or placebo group (PLG (n = 14. The CrG and PLG ingested 20g/day of creatine and 20g/day of maltodextrin during six days, respectively. The strength was measured before and after supplementation using a isometric dynamometer

Development and implementation of a balanced scorecard in an academic hospitalist group.

Science.gov (United States)

Hwa, Michael; Sharpe, Bradley A; Wachter, Robert M

2013-03-01

Academic hospitalist groups (AHGs) are often expected to excel in multiple domains: quality improvement, patient safety, education, research, administration, and clinical care. To be successful, AHGs must develop strategies to balance their energies, resources, and performance. The balanced scorecard (BSC) is a strategic management system that enables organizations to translate their mission and vision into specific objectives and metrics across multiple domains. To date, no hospitalist group has reported on BSC implementation. We set out to develop a BSC as part of a strategic planning initiative. Based on a needs assessment of the University of California, San Francisco, Division of Hospital Medicine, mission and vision statements were developed. We engaged representative faculty to develop strategic objectives and determine performance metrics across 4 BSC perspectives. There were 41 metrics identified, and 16 were chosen for the initial BSC. It allowed us to achieve several goals: 1) present a broad view of performance, 2) create transparency and accountability, 3) communicate goals and engage faculty, and 4) ensure we use data to guide strategic decisions. Several lessons were learned, including the need to build faculty consensus, establish metrics with reliable measureable data, and the power of the BSC to drive goals across the division. We successfully developed and implemented a BSC in an AHG as part of a strategic planning initiative. The BSC has been instrumental in allowing us to achieve balanced success in multiple domains. Academic groups should consider employing the BSC as it allows for a data-driven strategic planning and assessment process. Copyright © 2013 Society of Hospital Medicine.

How does social essentialism affect the development of inter-group relations?

Science.gov (United States)

Rhodes, Marjorie; Leslie, Sarah-Jane; Saunders, Katya; Dunham, Yarrow; Cimpian, Andrei

2018-01-01

Psychological essentialism is a pervasive conceptual bias to view categories as reflecting something deep, stable, and informative about their members. Scholars from diverse disciplines have long theorized that psychological essentialism has negative ramifications for inter-group relations, yet little previous empirical work has experimentally tested the social implications of essentialist beliefs. Three studies (N = 127, ages 4.5-6) found that experimentally inducing essentialist beliefs about a novel social category led children to share fewer resources with category members, but did not lead to the out-group dislike that defines social prejudice. These findings indicate that essentialism negatively influences some key components of inter-group relations, but does not lead directly to the development of prejudice. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Public participation and marginalized groups: the community development model.

Science.gov (United States)

O'Keefe, Eileen; Hogg, Christine

1999-12-01

OBJECTIVES: To develop ways of reaching house-bound people and enabling them to give their views in planning and monitoring health and social care. STRATEGY: HealthLINK - a project based in a community health council - explored ways of involving older house-bound people in the London Borough of Camden, in planning and monitoring health and social care using community development techniques. RESULTS: HealthLINK set up an infrastructure to enable house-bound people to have access to information and to enable them to give their views. This resulted in access for health and local authorities to the views of house-bound older people and increased the self esteem and quality of life of those who became involved. CONCLUSIONS: Community development approaches that enable an infrastructure to be established may be an effective way of reaching marginalized communities. However, there are tensions in this approach between the different requirements for public involvement of statutory bodies and of users, and between representation of groups and listening to individual voices.

The immune response to corneal allograft requires a site-specific draininglymph node

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Plšková, Jarmila; Duncan, L.; Holáň, Vladimír; Filipec, M.; Kraal, G.; Forrester, J. V.

2002-01-01

Roč. 73, č. 2 (2002), s. 210-215 ISSN 0041-1337 R&D Projects: GA MZd NI6019 Grant - others:NATO CRG(GB) LG972853 Institutional research plan: CEZ:MSM 111100005 Keywords : corneal allograft * lymph nodes Subject RIV: EC - Immunology Impact factor: 3.265, year: 2002

The impact of child-resistant containers on the incidence of paraffin ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The commonest cause of accidental poisoning in the South African black paediatric population is paraffin ingestion. In this intervention study a specifically designed child-resistant container (CRG) was introduced to evaluate whether its use would decrease the incidence ofparaffin ingestion. CRCs were distributed to 20 000 ...

KAFAX-F22 : development and benchmark of multi-group library for fast reactor using JEF-2.2. Neutron 80 group and Photon 24 group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jung Do; Gil, Choong Sup.

1997-03-01

The KAFAX-F22 was developed from JEF-2.2, which is a MATXS format, multigroup library of fast reactor. The KAFAX-F22 has 80 and 24 energy group structures for neutron and photon, respectively. It includes 89 nuclide data processed by NJOY94.38. The TRANSX/TWODANT system was used for benchmark calculations of fast reactor and one- and two-dimensional calculations of ONEDANT and TWODANT were carried out with 80 group, P 3 S 16 and with 25 group, P 3 S 8 , respectively. The average values of multiplication factors are 0.99652 for MOX cores, 1.00538 for uranium cores and 1.00032 for total cores. Various central reaction rate ratios also give good agreements with the experimental values considering experimental uncertainties except for VERA-11A, VERA-1B, ZPR-6-7 and ZPR-6-6A cores of which experimental values seem to involve some problems. (author). 13 refs., 18 tabs., 2 figs

Development code for group constant processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Su'ud, Z.

1997-01-01

In this paper methods, formalism and algorithm related to group constant processing problem from basic library such as ENDF/B VI will be described. Basically the problems can be grouped as follows; the treatment of resolved resonance using NR approximation, the treatment of unresolved resonance using statistical method, the treatment of low lying resonance using intermediate resonance approximation, the treatment of thermal energy regions, and the treatment group transfer matrices cross sections. it is necessary to treat interference between resonance properly especially in the unresolved region. in this paper the resonance problems are treated based on Breit-wigner method, and doppler function is treated using Pade approximation for calculation efficiency. finally, some samples of calculational result for some nuclei, mainly for comparison between many methods are discussed in this paper

Religious women's groups help promote child survival and development.

Science.gov (United States)

Munir, L Z

1989-07-01

Indonesia faces the 2 major problems of high infant mortality and high child mortality at present. To improve the situation, the government urges the participation of all community members, especially those already organized in the nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Because religion has a strong influence on people's daily lives in Indonesia, a special project called the Child Survival Project was established in 1986 as a joint undertaking of the government and UNICEF. Initially 12 religious NGOs (8 Islamic, 1 Hindu, 1 Protestant, and 2 Catholic) were involved as implementing agencies. The majority of members of these NGOs are women. The strategy used has been to establish, in cooperation with the 12 NGOs, a communication network through which child survival messages would be disseminated to help generate increased use of Posyandu services, especially immunization, oral rehydration therapy, and growth monitoring. Messages are incorporated into the normal activities of these religious groups, such as Al-Quran reading classes, Sunday schools, and Bible classes. In addition, guidelines for a reporting and feedback system have been prepared for use at village, subdistrict, district, and provincial levels for project monitoring. Religious women's NGOs can serve with their specific characteristics can serve as motivators, facilitators, and catalysts of child survival and development programs for their community target groups. NGOs should be considered as partners of the government in mobilizing the community to achieve a common goal. All endeavors undertaken so far in relation to child survival and development are expected to be institutionalized.

Development of multi-group xs libraries for the gfr 2400 reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cerba, Š.; Vrban, B.; Lüley, J.; Necas, V.

2016-01-01

GFR 2400 is considered as a conceptual design of the large scale GEN IV Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor. In general, the GEN IV technologies are seen as reliable but also very challenging reactor concepts. Since GFR 2400 lacks any experimental data, the questions on its safety are even more complex and the assessment of its performance could be made only based on computational experience. The paper deals with the development process of multi-group XS libraries based on a hybrid deterministic-Stochastic methodology, using the NJOY99, TRANSX, DIF3D, PARTISN and MCNP5 codes. A new optimized 25 group SBJ E 71 2 5G cross section library was developed based on ENDF/B-VII.1 evaluated data, ZZ-KAFAX-E70 background cross sections and GFR 2400 neutron spectrum. The created library was validated through integral experiments evaluated on the HEX-Z deterministic models in DIF3D. The results were also compared with MCNP5 calculations. (authors)

Marginalization of the Tharu Ethnic Group in Tourism Development in Nepal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suman Pandit

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The main objective of this study is to analyze how the tourism development has marginalized the Tharu, an indigenous and ethnic group in the Terai region of Nepal. The research for this study was carried out in Chitwan National Park in Nepal, where the Tharu has been residing for a long time. The research work was based on the key informant interviews, participant observation and an analysis of secondary data taken from a variety of sources. The study reveals that the expansion of tourism has led to social differentiation developing between the Tharu and the hill migrants, as most of the business activities in the area are controlled by the hill migrants, while the Tharu have been marginalized. The study also shows that tourism has empowered the hill migrant women more than the Tharu women; as both the group women previously used to depend on their husband’s finances but now the hill migrant women are more financially independent.

Group assessment of key indicators of sustainable waste management in developing countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Tot, Bojana; Vujić, Goran; Srđević, Zorica; Ubavin, Dejan; Russo, Mário Augusto Tavares

2017-09-01

Decision makers in developing countries are struggling to solve the present problems of solid waste management. Prioritisation and ranking of the most important indicators that influence the waste management system is very useful for any decision maker for the future planning and implementation of a sustainable waste management system. The aim of this study is to evaluate key indicators and their related sub-indicators in a group decision-making environment. In order to gain insight into the subject it was necessary to obtain the qualified opinions of decision makers from different countries who understand the situation in the sector of waste management in developing countries. An assessment is performed by 43 decision makers from both developed and developing countries, and the applied methodology is based on a combined use of the analytic hierarchy process, from the multi-criteria decision-making set of tools, and the preferential voting method known as Borda Count, which belongs to social choice theory. Pairwise comparison of indicators is performed with the analytic hierarchy process, and the ranking of indicators once obtained is assessed with Borda Count. Detailed analysis of the final results showed that the Institutional-Administrative indicator was the most important one, with the maximum weight as derived by both groups of decision makers. The results also showed that the combined use of the analytic hierarchy process and Borda Count contributes to the credibility and objectivity of the decision-making process, allowing its use in more complex waste management group decision-making problems to be recommended.

Persistance of denitrifying enzyme activity in refrigerated and air - dried Cambisols

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Šimek, Miloslav; Webster, E. A.

2000-01-01

Roč. 16, - (2000), s. 232-233 ISSN 0266-0032 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA206/96/0169 Grant - others:NATO(BG) CRG97/1331 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z6066911; CEZ:MSM 123100004 Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 1.598, year: 2000

Group Selection Methods and Contribution to the West Point Leadership Development System (WPLDS)

Science.gov (United States)

2015-08-01

Government. 14. ABSTRACT Group work in an academic setting can consist of projects or problems students can work on collaboratively. Although pedagogical ...ABSTRACT Group work in an academic setting can consist of projects or problems students can work on collaboratively. Although pedagogical studies...helping students develop intangibles like communication, time management, organization, leadership, interpersonal, and relationship skills. Supporting

The role of blood groups in the development of diabetes mellitus after gestational diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Karagoz, Hatice; Erden, Abdulsamet; Ozer, Ozerhan; Esmeray, Kubra; Cetinkaya, Ali; Avci, Deniz; Karahan, Samet; Basak, Mustafa; Bulut, Kadir; Mutlu, Hasan; Simsek, Yasin

2015-01-01

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a common condition that is defined as glucose intolerance of varying degree with onset or first recognition during pregnancy and it affects approximately 5% of all pregnancies all over the world. GDM is not only associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes such as macrosomia, dystocia, birth trauma, and metabolic complications in newborns, but it is also a strong predictor of transitioning to overt DM postpartum. The association of ABO blood groups with DM has been observed before in several epidemiological and genetic studies and resulted with inconsistent findings, but still there are not enough studies in the literature about the association of ABO blood groups with GDM. In this study, we aimed at investigating any possible relationship between the ABO blood group system and GDM and also the transitioning of GDM to overt DM postpartum, in Turkey. A total of 233 patients with GDM from Kayseri Training and Research Hospital between 2002 and 2012 were included in the study. The cases that have serologically determined blood groups and Rh factor in the hospital records were included in the study, and the patients with unknown blood groups were excluded. Patients were classified according to blood groups (A, B, AB, and O) and Rh status (+/-). GDM was diagnosed based on the glucose cut-points of the International Association of the Diabetes and Pregnancy Society Groups. The distributions of blood groups of the patients with GDM were compared with the distribution of blood groups of 17,314 healthy donors who were admitted to the Turkish Red Crescent Blood Service in our city in 2012. There was a significant difference between the patients with GDM and control group in terms of distribution of ABO blood groups. Blood group AB was found to be higher in the patients with GDM compared to the control group (P=0.029). When the patients were compared according to the development of DM, the ratio of group O was higher than others, while the

Exploration of experiences in therapeutic groups for patients with severe mental illness: development of the Ferrara group experiences scale (FE- GES).

Science.gov (United States)

Caruso, Rosangela; Grassi, Luigi; Biancosino, Bruno; Marmai, Luciana; Bonatti, Luciano; Moscara, Maria; Rigatelli, Marco; Carr, Catherine; Priebe, Stefan

2013-10-01

Group therapies are routinely provided for patients with severe mental illness. The factors important to the group experience of patients are still poorly understood and are rarely measured. To support further research and practice, we aimed to develop a questionnaire that captures how patients experience groups within a community mental health context. An initial pool of 39 items was conceptually generated to assess different aspects of group experiences. Items were completed by 166 patients with severe mental illness attending group therapies in community mental health services in Italy. Patients with different psychiatric diagnoses who attended at least 5 group sessions were included. An exploratory factor analysis was used to identify different dimensions of group experiences and to reduce the number of items for each dimension. The resulting questionnaire has five subscales: 1) sharing of emotions and experiences, 2) cognitive improvement, 3) group learning, 4) difficulties in open expression and 5) relationships. Each subscale has 4 items. The scale and sub-scales have good internal consistency. The Ferrara Group Experiences Scale is conceptually derived and assesses dimensions of group experience that are theoretically and practically relevant. It is brief, easy to use and has good psychometric properties. After further validation, the scale may be used for research into patient experiences across different group therapy modalities and for evaluation in routine care.

Thermophysical properties of liquid UO{sub 2}, ZrO{sub 2} and corium by molecular dynamics and predictive models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Woong Kee; Shim, Ji Hoon [Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang (Korea, Republic of); Kaviany Massoud [University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (United States)

2016-10-15

The analysis of such accidents (fate of the melt), requires accurate corium thermophysical properties data up to 5000 K. In addition, the initial corium melt superheat melt, determined from such properties, are key in predicting the fuel-coolant interactions (FCIs) and convection and retention of corium in accident scenarios, e.g., core-melt down corium discharge from reactor pressure vessels and spreading in external core-catcher. Due to the high temperatures, data on molten corium and its constituents are limited, so there are much data scatters and mostly extrapolations (even from solid state) have been used. Here we predict the thermophysical properties of molten UO{sub 2} and ZrO{sub 2} using classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations (properties of corium are predicted using the mixture theories and UO{sub 2} and ZrO{sub 2} properties). The thermophysical properties (density, compressibility, heat capacity, viscosity and surface tension) of liquid UO{sub 2} and ZrO{sub 2} are predicted using classical molecular dynamics simulations, up to 5000 K. For atomic interactions, the CRG and the Teter potential models are found most appropriate. The liquid behavior is verified with the random motion of the constituent atoms and the pair-distribution functions, starting with the solid phase and raising the temperature to realize liquid phase. The viscosity and thermal conductivity are calculated with the Green-Kubo autocorrelation decay formulae and compared with the predictive models of Andrade and Bridgman. For liquid UO{sub 2}, the CRG model gives satisfactory MD predictions. For ZrO{sub 2}, the density is reliably predicted with the CRG potential model, while the compressibility and viscosity are more accurately predicted by the Teter model.

Thermophysical properties of liquid UO2, ZrO2 and corium by molecular dynamics and predictive models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Woong Kee; Shim, Ji Hoon; Kaviany Massoud

2016-01-01

The analysis of such accidents (fate of the melt), requires accurate corium thermophysical properties data up to 5000 K. In addition, the initial corium melt superheat melt, determined from such properties, are key in predicting the fuel-coolant interactions (FCIs) and convection and retention of corium in accident scenarios, e.g., core-melt down corium discharge from reactor pressure vessels and spreading in external core-catcher. Due to the high temperatures, data on molten corium and its constituents are limited, so there are much data scatters and mostly extrapolations (even from solid state) have been used. Here we predict the thermophysical properties of molten UO 2 and ZrO 2 using classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations (properties of corium are predicted using the mixture theories and UO 2 and ZrO 2 properties). The thermophysical properties (density, compressibility, heat capacity, viscosity and surface tension) of liquid UO 2 and ZrO 2 are predicted using classical molecular dynamics simulations, up to 5000 K. For atomic interactions, the CRG and the Teter potential models are found most appropriate. The liquid behavior is verified with the random motion of the constituent atoms and the pair-distribution functions, starting with the solid phase and raising the temperature to realize liquid phase. The viscosity and thermal conductivity are calculated with the Green-Kubo autocorrelation decay formulae and compared with the predictive models of Andrade and Bridgman. For liquid UO 2 , the CRG model gives satisfactory MD predictions. For ZrO 2 , the density is reliably predicted with the CRG potential model, while the compressibility and viscosity are more accurately predicted by the Teter model

Development and Preliminary Examination of the Psychometric Properties of the Psychoeducational Group Alliance Scale for Children (PGA-c) in Two Samples of Children Participating in Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Brouzos, Andreas; Vassilopoulos, Stephanos P.; Baourda, Vasiliki C.

2018-01-01

Studies examining processes in youth group psychotherapy are scarce. This article reports on the development and psychometric properties of the Psychoeducational Group Alliance Scale for Children (PGAS-c). This scale was designed to assess the therapeutic alliance that develops between the members and the facilitator in a psychoeducational group…

Do Cognitive Styles Affect the Performance of System Development Groups?

Science.gov (United States)

1986-03-21

that a person is classified as one of 16 possible types: ISTJ, iSFJ, INFJ, INTJ, ISTP, INFP, ISFP, INTP , ESTP, ESFP, ENFP, ENTP, ESTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ , or...development groups and the relationship between these differences and system success or failure. Chapter II will discuss some different theories of cognitive...reasoning termed analytic and hueristic. Analytic individuals reduce problems to a set of underlying relationships . These relationships , frequently

Gender Variant and Transgender Issues in a Professional Development Book Group

Science.gov (United States)

Parker, Bruce; Bach, Jacqueline

2009-01-01

The idea for a professional development book group emerged from the authors ongoing conversations with colleagues about how teachers can gain the understanding necessary not only to foster and support gender variant and transgender students, but also incorporate these experiences into their curriculum in a meaningful way. In this article, the…

Development of a bioassay system for investigating insulin resistance factors of pregnancy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hausman, D.B.; Singh, R.; Martin, R.J.

1986-01-01

To determine if late-term pregnant serum and/or placenta could induce insulin resistance in normal adipose cells, the authors have developed an insulin sensitive bioassay system. Cells isolated from epididymal fat pads of 250-275 g Sprague Dawley rats are preincubated for 3 hours at 37 0 in media 199 and serum or placental extract. The cells are washed free of serum and tested for metabolic activity in a 2 hour incubation which measures the conversion of U- 14 C-glucose to 14 CO 2 and to 14 C-triglyceride fatty acids under basal and insulin stimulated conditions. Maximal insulin responsiveness (350-450% basal for CO 2 and 1400-1700% basal for fatty acids) is achieved using Worthington Type II collagenase and a 45-60 minute digestion period for cell isolations and Krebs-Ringer bicarbonate buffer containing 0.5 mM glucose, 2% Armour bovine serum albumin (CRG-7), 1000 μU/ml insulin and 110,000 to 120,000 cells in the 2 hour incubations. Using this bioasssay system the authors have found that insulin responsiveness, in terms of glucose conversion to fatty acids, is unchanged when cells are preincubated with 5% control pig serum but reduced following preincubation with late pregnant (110 day) pig serum. In future experiments the authors hope to further characterize the factor(s) in pregnant serum responsible for inducing this metabolic effect

AMPA: an automated web server for prediction of protein antimicrobial regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Torrent, Marc; Di Tommaso, Paolo; Pulido, David; Nogués, M Victòria; Notredame, Cedric; Boix, Ester; Andreu, David

2012-01-01

AMPA is a web application for assessing the antimicrobial domains of proteins, with a focus on the design on new antimicrobial drugs. The application provides fast discovery of antimicrobial patterns in proteins that can be used to develop new peptide-based drugs against pathogens. Results are shown in a user-friendly graphical interface and can be downloaded as raw data for later examination. AMPA is freely available on the web at http://tcoffee.crg.cat/apps/ampa. The source code is also available in the web. marc.torrent@upf.edu; david.andreu@upf.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

A two-stage rule-constrained seedless region growing approach for mandibular body segmentation in MRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Dong Xu; Foong, Kelvin Weng Chiong; Ong, Sim Heng

2013-09-01

Extraction of the mandible from 3D volumetric images is frequently required for surgical planning and evaluation. Image segmentation from MRI is more complex than CT due to lower bony signal-to-noise. An automated method to extract the human mandible body shape from magnetic resonance (MR) images of the head was developed and tested. Anonymous MR images data sets of the head from 12 subjects were subjected to a two-stage rule-constrained region growing approach to derive the shape of the body of the human mandible. An initial thresholding technique was applied followed by a 3D seedless region growing algorithm to detect a large portion of the trabecular bone (TB) regions of the mandible. This stage is followed with a rule-constrained 2D segmentation of each MR axial slice to merge the remaining portions of the TB regions with lower intensity levels. The two-stage approach was replicated to detect the cortical bone (CB) regions of the mandibular body. The TB and CB regions detected from the preceding steps were merged and subjected to a series of morphological processes for completion of the mandibular body region definition. Comparisons of the accuracy of segmentation between the two-stage approach, conventional region growing method, 3D level set method, and manual segmentation were made with Jaccard index, Dice index, and mean surface distance (MSD). The mean accuracy of the proposed method is [Formula: see text] for Jaccard index, [Formula: see text] for Dice index, and [Formula: see text] mm for MSD. The mean accuracy of CRG is [Formula: see text] for Jaccard index, [Formula: see text] for Dice index, and [Formula: see text] mm for MSD. The mean accuracy of the 3D level set method is [Formula: see text] for Jaccard index, [Formula: see text] for Dice index, and [Formula: see text] mm for MSD. The proposed method shows improvement in accuracy over CRG and 3D level set. Accurate segmentation of the body of the human mandible from MR images is achieved with the

Creating psychological connections between intervention recipients: development and focus group evaluation of a group singing session for people with aphasia

Science.gov (United States)

Tarrant, Mark; Warmoth, Krystal; Code, Chris; Dean, Sarah; Goodwin, Victoria A; Stein, Ken; Sugavanam, Thavapriya

2016-01-01

Objectives The study sought to identify key design features that could be used to create a new framework for group-based health interventions. We designed and tested the first session of a group intervention for stroke survivors with aphasia which was aimed at nurturing new psychological connections between group members. Setting The intervention session, a participant focus group and interviews with intervention facilitators were held in a local community music centre in the South West of England. Participants A convenience sample of 10 community-dwelling people with poststroke aphasia participated in the session. Severity of aphasia was not considered for inclusion. Intervention Participants took part in a 90-min group singing session which involved singing songs from a specially prepared song book. Musical accompaniment was provided by the facilitators. Primary and secondary outcome measures Participants and group facilitators reported their experiences of participating in the session, with a focus on activities within the session related to the intervention aims. Researcher observations of the session were also made. Results Two themes emerged from the analysis, concerning experiences of the session (‘developing a sense of group belonging’) and perceptions of its design and delivery (‘creating the conditions for engagement’). Participants described an emerging sense of shared social identity as a member of the intervention group and identified fixed (eg, group size, session breaks) and flexible (eg, facilitator responsiveness) features of the session which contributed to this emergence. Facilitator interviews and researcher observations corroborated and expanded participant reports. Conclusions Engagement with health intervention content may be enhanced in group settings when intervention participants begin to establish positive and meaningful psychological connections with other group members. Understanding and actively nurturing these connections

Developing Blue Ocean Strategy of Sustainable Product Design and Development for Business Opportunities of BOP Groups in Taiwan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jui-Che Tu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This study expands the definition of the poor group and attempts to delve into and make known the phenomenon of poverty in Taiwan and aims to explore the goals and possibilities of the BOP consumer market. Through a questionnaire survey and expert interviews, this research adopts the concept of sustainability to discuss the lifestyle and consumption characteristics of the BOP group and establishes a design strategic norm of the sustainable products. The findings show that the BOP group in Taiwan is new poverty or working poor and high quality and common prices are the main requirements; these should be introduced into the development model of sustainable design.

Development of a group work assessment pedagogy using constructive alignment theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Croy, Suzanne R

2018-02-01

The purpose of this paper is to explore group work assessment underpinned by constructive alignment theory to develop a new assessment pedagogy. A review was undertaken of an existing module 'Mental Health Nursing 1', with student nurses participating in the BSc (Hons) Nursing Programme. Constructive alignment theory requires teachers to adopt a deep approach to learning where module learning outcomes are aligned with the teaching environment and modes of assessment. As the module progressed, reviewing the Mental Health Nursing 1 module became an excellent opportunity to begin to understand how constructive alignment theory can inform a group work assessment pedagogy. Working using a constructively aligned assessment process became a valuable learning experience for the module leader whilst at the same time revealed a gap in the research around the impact of constructively aligned teaching and group work assessment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Long-term program for research and development of group separation and disintegration techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-01-01

In Japan, the basic guidelines state that high-level radioactive wastes released from reprocessing of spent fuel should be processed into stable solid material, followed by storage for cooling for 30-50 years and disposal in the ground at a depth of several hundreds of meters. The Long-Term Program for Research and Development of Group Separation and Disintegration Techniques is aimed at efficient disposal of high-level wastes, reutilization of useful substances contained, and improved safety. Important processes include separation of nuclides (group separation, individual nuclide separation) and conversion (disintegration) of long-lived nuclides into short-lived or non-radioactive one. These processes can reduce the volume of high-level wastes to be left for final disposal. Research and development projects have been under way to provide techniques to separate high-level waste substances into four groups (transuranic elements, strontium/cesium, technetium/platinum group elements, and others). These projects also cover recovery of useful metals and efficient utilization of separated substances. For disintegration, conceptual studies have been carried out for the application of fast neutron beams to conversion of long half-life transuranium elements into short half-life or non-radioactive elements. (N.K.)

Are the blood groups of women with preeclampsia a risk factor for the development of hypertension postpartum?

Science.gov (United States)

Avci, Deniz; Karagoz, Hatice; Ozer, Ozerhan; Esmeray, Kubra; Bulut, Kadir; Aykas, Fatma; Cetinkaya, Ali; Uslu, Emine; Karahan, Samet; Basak, Mustafa; Erden, Abdulsamet

2016-01-01

Preeclampsia (PE) is a pregnancy-related disorder characterized by hypertension (HT) and proteinuria noticeable after 20 weeks of gestation. PE is now considered as a cardiovascular disease risk factor and a number of studies have shown that experiencing PE increases the prevalence of various cardiovascular risk factors, such as metabolic syndrome and HT. In this study, we aimed to investigate any possible relationship between the ABO/Rh blood group system and PE in Turkey. In the second part of the study, we examined the relationship between the ABO blood group system and development of HT after PE. A total of 250 patients with PE from Kayseri Training and Research Hospital between 2002 and 2012 were included in the study. Patients were classified according to blood groups (A, B, AB, and O) and Rh status (+/-). There was a significant difference between the patients with PE and the control group in terms of distribution of ABO blood groups and the percentage of group AB was found to be higher in patients with PE compared to the control group (P=0.029). The risk of developing PE was significantly higher in group AB than other blood groups (P=0.006). The risk of developing HT after PE was significantly higher in group O than other blood groups (P=0.004). In this study, we found that the patients with blood group AB have a higher risk for PE. The patients with PE of blood group O are at high risk of developing HT, and Rh factor was identified as another risk at this point and these patients should be closely followed postpartum.

The role of blood groups in the development of diabetes mellitus after gestational diabetes mellitus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karagoz H

2015-10-01

admitted to the Turkish Red Crescent Blood Service in our city in 2012.Results: There was a significant difference between the patients with GDM and control group in terms of distribution of ABO blood groups. Blood group AB was found to be higher in the patients with GDM compared to the control group (P=0.029. When the patients were compared according to the development of DM, the ratio of group O was higher than others, while the ratio of group B was lower in the group developing DM (P=0.001. There was a significant difference between the groups – GDM patients with or without DM – in terms of distribution of ABO blood groups with Rh factor and the ratio of developing DM is found to be higher in patients with +Rh factor among all the blood groups except for group B (P=0.008. Conclusion: In this study, we found a higher risk of GDM for the patients with blood group AB, which means that we have to be more careful on the follow-up of pregnant women with blood group AB. The patients with GDM of blood group O are under a higher risk of developing DM and also +Rh factor must be considered as another risk factor, so these patients should be closely followed postpartum by the oral glucose tolerance tests. To our knowledge, this is the first analysis that investigates the association between the ABO blood groups and transitioning to DM after GDM. Keywords: gestational diabetes mellitus, ABO blood groups, Rh factor 

Creating psychological connections between intervention recipients: development and focus group evaluation of a group singing session for people with aphasia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarrant, Mark; Warmoth, Krystal; Code, Chris; Dean, Sarah; Goodwin, Victoria A; Stein, Ken; Sugavanam, Thavapriya

2016-02-23

The study sought to identify key design features that could be used to create a new framework for group-based health interventions. We designed and tested the first session of a group intervention for stroke survivors with aphasia which was aimed at nurturing new psychological connections between group members. The intervention session, a participant focus group and interviews with intervention facilitators were held in a local community music centre in the South West of England. A convenience sample of 10 community-dwelling people with poststroke aphasia participated in the session. Severity of aphasia was not considered for inclusion. Participants took part in a 90-min group singing session which involved singing songs from a specially prepared song book. Musical accompaniment was provided by the facilitators. Participants and group facilitators reported their experiences of participating in the session, with a focus on activities within the session related to the intervention aims. Researcher observations of the session were also made. Two themes emerged from the analysis, concerning experiences of the session ('developing a sense of group belonging') and perceptions of its design and delivery ('creating the conditions for engagement'). Participants described an emerging sense of shared social identity as a member of the intervention group and identified fixed (eg, group size, session breaks) and flexible (eg, facilitator responsiveness) features of the session which contributed to this emergence. Facilitator interviews and researcher observations corroborated and expanded participant reports. Engagement with health intervention content may be enhanced in group settings when intervention participants begin to establish positive and meaningful psychological connections with other group members. Understanding and actively nurturing these connections should be a core feature of a general framework for the design and delivery of group interventions. Published by the

Savings and credit: women's informal groups as models for change in developing countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Wickrama, K A; Keith, P M

1994-04-01

The aim of this research was to examine the financial success of newly formed women's groups involved in Sri Lanka's Hambantota Integrated Rural Development Program (HIRDEP). The project was initiated in July 1986 with 20 trained social mobilizers, who were each assigned to a village community of about 100 families. Mobilizers were selected from village volunteers involved in development activities. The study population included 78 women's groups, with an average size of 7 persons, from 19 villages with populations under the poverty level and people receiving food stamps. Measures of group performance included the exchange of labor among group members, the collective purchase of raw materials and consumer goods, and collective marketing. Service use was differentiated by extension services, inputs, assets, and general benefits. Financial activity was measured as the rupee size of the fund and amounts of loans. 54 groups were engaged in nonfarm activity, and most groups had women social mobilizers. About 50% of women's groups had received all four service types. Funding ranged from Rs. 240 to Rs. 9500. The average of the credit loans per month was Rs. 408 per group. 85% of the loans were used for production, investment, or repayment of old loans. Younger age groups affected the slower growth of funds but were more efficient in loaning money, acquiring services, and marketing activities collectively. Young social mobilizers were associated with efficiency of credit disbursement. Diversity of collective activities was related to the size and growth rate of funds. Multivariate analysis revealed that the growth rate of funds was primarily related to the personal income of members and the level of training of social mobilizers. Members were able to obtain loans equal to about 50% of their monthly income at an average interest rate of about 5%, which was three to four times less than normally available. 47% of the variance in the size of the fund was explained by average

How Knowledge Worker Teams Deal Effectively with Task Uncertainty: The Impact of Transformational Leadership and Group Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Leuteritz, Jan-Paul; Navarro, José; Berger, Rita

2017-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to clarify how leadership is able to improve team effectiveness, by means of its influence on group processes (i.e., increasing group development) and on the group task (i.e., decreasing task uncertainty). Four hundred and eight members of 107 teams in a German research and development (R&D) organization completed a web-based survey; they provided measures of transformational leadership, group development, 2 aspects of task uncertainty, task interdependence, and team effectiveness. In 54 of these teams, the leaders answered a web-based survey on team effectiveness. We tested the model with the data from team members, using structural equations modeling. Group development and a task uncertainty measurement that refers to unstable demands from outside the team partially mediate the effect of transformational leadership on team effectiveness in R&D organizations ( p transformational leaders reduce unclarity of goals ( p transformational leadership and team processes on team effectiveness considering the task characteristics uncertainty and interdependence.

The development and feasibility of an online aphasia group intervention and networking program - TeleGAIN.

Science.gov (United States)

Pitt, Rachelle; Theodoros, Deborah; Hill, Anne J; Russell, Trevor

2017-09-04

Aphasia group therapy offers many benefits, however people with aphasia report difficulty accessing groups and speech-language pathologists are faced with many challenges in providing aphasia group therapy. Telerehabilitation may offer an alternative service delivery option. An online aphasia group therapy program - Telerehabilitation Group Aphasia Intervention and Networking (TeleGAIN) - has been developed according to the guidelines of the Medical Research Council (MRC) framework for complex interventions. The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of TeleGAIN and the results of a pilot trial to determine feasibility and acceptability. The development of TeleGAIN was informed through literature reviews in relevant topic areas, consideration of expert opinion and application of the social cognitive theory. TeleGAIN was then modelled through a feasibility pilot trial with four people with aphasia. TeleGAIN appeared to be feasible and acceptable to participants and able to be implemented as planned. Participant satisfaction with treatment was high and results suggested some potential for improvements in language functioning and communication-related quality of life. TeleGAIN appeared to be feasible and acceptable, however the study highlighted issues related to technology, clinical implementation and participant-specific factors that should be addressed prior to a larger trial.

A Women in Radiology Group Fosters Career Development for Faculty and Trainees.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaetke-Udager, Kara; Knoepp, Ursula S; Maturen, Katherine E; Leschied, Jessica R; Chong, Suzanne; Klein, Katherine A; Kazerooni, Ella

2018-07-01

The objective of our study was to evaluate the outcomes of a women in radiology (WIR) group during the first 6 years of its existence, including members' satisfaction, activities, and differences based on seniority. An anonymous questionnaire was distributed to group members. Survey questions were related to the usefulness of sessions, mentoring, professional opportunities, and camaraderie. Comparisons were made on the basis of training status and seniority. Continuous variables were compared using means, t tests, and correlations, and categoric variables were compared using counts, percentages, and chi-square tests or Mantel-Haenszel tests. Surveys were sent to 61 women, including trainees and faculty; the response rate was 49% (38% of trainees and 53% of faculty). Overall satisfaction score for WIR sessions was high (mean summary score, 1.42 ± 0.37 [SD], with 1 meaning very satisfied and 4 meaning very unsatisfied). Trainees and junior faculty were more likely than senior faculty to report expanded internal networking opportunities (94% vs 69%; p = 0.07), to have gained a mentor (67% vs 8%; p = 0.001), and to have increased research involvement (33% vs 0%; p = 0.02). Both groups were equally likely to have become mentors. Almost all respondents (93%) reported increased camaraderie among women in the department. A WIR group can provide career development tools for its members. In this study, trainees and junior faculty reported increased networking and research involvement and gaining a mentor but were equally likely as senior faculty to have become mentors. Most members reported increased camaraderie among women in the department. A WIR group may help to accelerate professional development among trainees and junior faculty, thereby contributing to a more diverse and enabled workforce.

Group Creativity Development by Solving Real-life Project in Engineering Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhou, Chunfang; Kolmos, Anette; Du, Xiangyun

2011-01-01

In recent years, problem and project based learning (PBL) has been employed by a growing number of educational institutions to foster creative engineers. Among the diverse pedagogical practices of PBL, there has been an emergence of real-life project for students. Based on literature of creativity...... along with the learning activities etc., which are necessary for group creativity development in engineering students....

Competing Forces of Socioeconomic Development and Environmental Degradation on Health and Happiness for Different Income Groups in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Lijuan; Rosenberg, Mark W; Zeng, Juxin

2017-10-01

China's rapid socioeconomic growth in recent years and the simultaneous increase in many forms of pollution are generating contradictory pictures of residents' well-being. This paper applies multilevel analysis to the 2013 China General Social Survey data on social development and health to understand this twofold phenomenon. Multilevel models are developed to investigate the impact of socioeconomic development and environmental degradation on self-reported health (SRH) and self-reported happiness (SRHP), differentiating among lower, middle, and higher income groups. The results of the logit multilevel analysis demonstrate that income, jobs, and education increased the likelihood of rating SRH and SRHP positively for the lower and middle groups but had little or no effect on the higher income group. Having basic health insurance had an insignificant effect on health but increased the likelihood of happiness among the lower income group. Provincial-level pollutants were associated with a higher likelihood of good health for all income groups, and community-level industrial pollutants increased the likelihood of good health for the lower and middle income groups. Measures of community-level pollution were robust predictors of the likelihood of unhappiness among the lower and middle income groups. Environmental hazards had a mediating effect on the relationship between socioeconomic development and health, and socioeconomic development strengthened the association between environmental hazards and happiness. These outcomes indicate that the complex interconnections among socioeconomic development and environmental degradation have differential effects on well-being among different income groups in China.

ROBL - a CRG beamline for radiochemistry and materials research at the ESRF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matz, W.; Schell, N.; Bernhard, G.; Claussner, J.; Oehme, W.; Prokert, F.; Reich, T.; Schlenk, R.; Proehl, D.; Funke, H.; Eichhorn, F.; Betzl, M.; Dienel, S.; Brendler, V.; Denecke, M.A.; Krug, H.; Neumann, W.; Huettig, G.; Reichel, P.; Strauch, U.

1999-04-01

The paper describes the Rossendorf Beamline (ROBL) built by the Forschungszentrum Rossendorf at th ESRF. ROBL comprises two different and independently operating experimental stations: a radiochemistry laboratory for X-ray absorption spectroscopy of non-sealed radioactive samples and a general purpose materials research station for X-ray diffraction and reflectometry mainly of thin films and interfaces modified by ion beam techniques. The radiochemistry set-up is worldwide a unique installation at a modern synchrotron radiation source. (orig.) [de

Exploring the Influence of Student Focus Groups in Their Professional and Personal Development

Science.gov (United States)

Hosseini, S.; Hut, R.

2014-12-01

A scientific career is often more than a 9-to-5 commitment, both in terms of time and passion. An important factor that fuels this passion is engaging with the community on many levels. In the history of education and professional development, there are numerous studies that emphasis the importance of surrounding groups and like-minded peers in one's professional and personal development in a less constrained environment. In our experience, in modern days where students are surrounded with too much information and yet too little clear signal, the idea of mentor and advisor can no longer limit to one or two people. We strongly feel it is imperative to have the opportunity to share expertise on scientific issues, career options, develop presenting and writing skills, participate in professional volunteer activities with alike and advanced colleagues, share future opportunities, and successfully navigating life both inside and outside of graduate school in a relaxed environment. Most of the professional scientific and engineering communities put a lot of effort to create and maintain professional groups in masters and Ph.D. levels but the dynamics within these groups prove it to be very different and it is challenging to maintain both momentum and productivity. Authors of this report would present their experience in creating, running and maintaining various student groups in the discipline of physics, astronomy, planetary science, hydrology, and optical engineering in US, Europe and Middle East. The common factors and differences based on the supportive community, location, and the educational level would be discussed. An outline of potential helpful factors within the academic institutes and professional communities would be presented based on the examination on various successful and unsuccessful experiences.

The structure of social exchange in self-help support groups: development of a measure.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Louis D; Tang, Xiaohui; Hollman, Ruth L

2014-03-01

Self-help support groups are indigenous community resources designed to help people manage a variety of personal challenges, from alcohol abuse to xeroderma pigmentosum. The social exchanges that occur during group meetings are central to understanding how people benefit from participation. This paper examines the different types of social exchange behaviors that occur during meetings, using two studies to develop empirically distinct scales that reliably measure theoretically important types of exchange. Resource theory informed the initial measurement development efforts. Exploratory factor analyses from the first study led to revisions in the factor structure of the social exchange scales. The revised measure captured the exchange of emotional support, experiential information, humor, unwanted behaviors, and exchanges outside meetings. Confirmatory factor analyses from a follow-up study with a different sample of self-help support groups provided good model fit, suggesting the revised structure accurately represented the data. Further, the scales demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validity with related constructs. Future research can use the scales to identify aspects of social exchange that are most important in improving health outcomes among self-help support group participants. Groups can use the scales in practice to celebrate strengths and address weaknesses in their social exchange dynamics.

Particle transport methods for LWR dosimetry developed by the Penn State transport theory group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haghighat, A.; Petrovic, B.

1997-01-01

This paper reviews advanced particle transport theory methods developed by the Penn State Transport Theory Group (PSTTG) over the past several years. These methods have been developed in response to increasing needs for accuracy of results and for three-dimensional modeling of nuclear systems

On the domain and range of the maximal operator

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Fiorenza, A.; Krbec, Miroslav

2000-01-01

Roč. 158, - (2000), s. 43-61 ISSN 0027-7630 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA201/96/0431 Grant - others:NATO(XC) CRG970071 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z1019905; CEZ:A05/98:Z1-019-9ii Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 0.355, year: 2000

Emissions of N2O and CO2, denitrification measurements and soil properties in red clover and ryegrass stands

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Šimek, Miloslav; Elhottová, Dana; Klimeš, F.; Hopkins, D. W.

2004-01-01

Roč. 36, - (2004), s. 9-21 ISSN 0038-0717 Grant - others:NATO(XX) CRG 97/1331; Evropská unie(XE) EVK2-CT-2000-00096 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z6066911; CEZ:MSM 122200003 Keywords : emission * denitrification * denitrifying enzyme activity Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 2.234, year: 2004

Group Communication and Critical Thinking Competence Development Using a Reality-Based Project

Science.gov (United States)

Paulson, Edward

2011-01-01

The presented merger and acquisition classroom exercise is based on a real yet incomplete transaction transpiring during the period of the class. The approach enables adult students to apply their previously acquired business experience to a strategic analysis project facilitating the development of group communication, critical thinking, and…

Modular Adder Designs Using Optimal Reversible and Fault Tolerant Gates in Field-Coupled QCA Nanocomputing

Science.gov (United States)

Bilal, Bisma; Ahmed, Suhaib; Kakkar, Vipan

2018-02-01

The challenges which the CMOS technology is facing toward the end of the technology roadmap calls for an investigation of various logical and technological solutions to CMOS at the nano scale. Two such paradigms which are considered in this paper are the reversible logic and the quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA) nanotechnology. Firstly, a new 3 × 3 reversible and universal gate, RG-QCA, is proposed and implemented in QCA technology using conventional 3-input majority voter based logic. Further the gate is optimized by using explicit interaction of cells and this optimized gate is then used to design an optimized modular full adder in QCA. Another configuration of RG-QCA gate, CRG-QCA, is then proposed which is a 4 × 4 gate and includes the fault tolerant characteristics and parity preserving nature. The proposed CRG-QCA gate is then tested to design a fault tolerant full adder circuit. Extensive comparisons of gate and adder circuits are drawn with the existing literature and it is envisaged that our proposed designs perform better and are cost efficient in QCA technology.

Development of a relational database for nuclear material (NM) accounting in RC and I Group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yadav, M.B.; Ramakumar, K.L.; Venugopal, V.

2011-01-01

A relational database for the nuclear material accounting in RC and I Group has been developed with MYSQL for Back-End and JAVA for Front-End development. Back-End has been developed to avoid any data redundancy, to provide random access of the data and to retrieve the required information from database easily. JAVA Applet and Java Swing components of JAVA programming have been used in the Front-End development. Front-End has been developed to provide data security, data integrity, to generate inventory status report at the end of accounting period, and also to have a quick look of some required information on computer screen. The database has been tested for the data of three quarters of the year 2009. It has been implemented from 1st January, 2010 for the accounting of nuclear material in RC and I Group. (author)

Development of a relational database for nuclear material (NM) accounting in RC and I Group

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yadav, M B; Ramakumar, K L; Venugopal, V [Radioanalytical Chemistry Division, Radiochemistry and Isotope Group, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai (India)

2011-07-01

A relational database for the nuclear material accounting in RC and I Group has been developed with MYSQL for Back-End and JAVA for Front-End development. Back-End has been developed to avoid any data redundancy, to provide random access of the data and to retrieve the required information from database easily. JAVA Applet and Java Swing components of JAVA programming have been used in the Front-End development. Front-End has been developed to provide data security, data integrity, to generate inventory status report at the end of accounting period, and also to have a quick look of some required information on computer screen. The database has been tested for the data of three quarters of the year 2009. It has been implemented from 1st January, 2010 for the accounting of nuclear material in RC and I Group. (author)

Stimulation of Changes, Collective Commitment and The Patterns of Group Formation in Community Development in South Sulawesi

Science.gov (United States)

Saleh, Syafiuddin

2018-05-01

This study aims to examine the pattern of group formation, related to the stimulation of change through the empowerment of farmers and poor fishermen The pattern of group formation is the basis for sustainable development. The research method used is qualitative descriptive method and relevant research type such as case study and triangulasi. The results of the study showed that (1) stimulation of changes made through development programs or community empowerment in the areas studied both among farm households and poor fishermen households for some programs received positive response from farmers and fishermen. However, the collective commitment to the breeding is relatively weak, since the group formed in each program is not done through good planning and concepts. (2) there are two patterns of group formation that are natural and formed formations initiated by outsiders. Groups that are naturally formed are more institutionalized and have characteristics such as intense and relatively routine interaction, strong mutual trust, and have a common form or mechanism shared for common purposes. The group can form the basis for sustainable development in improving the welfare of the poor.

Short term memory development : Differences in serial position curves between age groups and latent classes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Koppenol, G.V.; Bouwmeester, S.; Vermunt, J.K.

2014-01-01

In studies on the development of cognitive processes, children are often grouped based on their ages before analyzing the data. After the analysis, the differences between age groups are interpreted as developmental differences. We argue that this approach is problematic because the variance in

Local Action Groups and Rural Sustainable Development. A spatial multiple criteria approach for efficient territorial planning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Palmisano, Giovanni Ottomano; Govindan, M.E., PhD.,, Kannan; Boggia, Antonio

2016-01-01

Local Action Groups in order to promote the objectives of Rural Sustainable Development within rural municipalities. Each Local Action Group applies the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats analysis in order to identify for its own rural municipalities the strategic elements to which...... and a Weakness factors and decision alternatives, as well as impossibility of ranking the decision alternatives. Thus, this research aims to overcome the drawbacks of the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats analysis and to support Local Action Group partnerships in the sustainability evaluation...... of their rural municipalities, and therefore to aid the identification of a common Rural Sustainable Development strategy to allocate the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development budget. This decision problem was tackled by applying a Multiple Criteria Spatial Decision Support System that integrates...

The visible hand of the state : on the organizational development of interest groups

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fraussen, B.

2014-01-01

To understand dynamics within communities of organized interests, researchers have primarily studied organizational births and deaths. The organizational development of established interest organizations has received far less attention. This article claims that the evolution of interest groups'

Use of Group Counseling to Address Ethnic Identity Development: Application with Adolescents of Mexican Descent

Science.gov (United States)

Malott, Krista M.; Paone, Tina R.; Humphreys, Kourtney; Martinez, Triana

2010-01-01

This article provides qualitative outcomes from a group counseling intervention whose goal was to facilitate the ethnic identity development of Mexican-origin youth. Outcomes revealed that participants perceived group participation as meaningful. Themes that emerged from the data included the importance of the relationship to engender change,…

State-of-the-Art of (Bio)Chemical Sensor Developments in Analytical Spanish Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Plata, María Reyes; Contento, Ana María; Ríos, Angel

2010-01-01

(Bio)chemical sensors are one of the most exciting fields in analytical chemistry today. The development of these analytical devices simplifies and miniaturizes the whole analytical process. Although the initial expectation of the massive incorporation of sensors in routine analytical work has been truncated to some extent, in many other cases analytical methods based on sensor technology have solved important analytical problems. Many research groups are working in this field world-wide, reporting interesting results so far. Modestly, Spanish researchers have contributed to these recent developments. In this review, we summarize the more representative achievements carried out for these groups. They cover a wide variety of sensors, including optical, electrochemical, piezoelectric or electro-mechanical devices, used for laboratory or field analyses. The capabilities to be used in different applied areas are also critically discussed. PMID:22319260

Comparative analysis of countries in the peer-group based on economic potential and components of sustainable development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergii VOITKO

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The authors study levels of sustainable development potential and determine the positions of Ukraine and other countries in the peer-groups [4], based on individual macroeconomic indicators. The research includes a comparative analysis of absolute and relative terms of GDP, industrial production and the index of competitiveness for the countries included to the peer-groups. The authors analyse the position of countries based on the GDP per capita and components of sustainable development (Quality of Life Index and Security of Life Index. In the article, the authors suggest the methodical approach of performing the comparative analysis of peer-group countries based on their indicators values. This approach gives the possibility to investigate the country’s potential in the limits of the chosen peer-group and propose the recommendations for increase of economic potential in purpose of sustainable development achievement.

Development of the PedsQL™ Epilepsy Module: Focus group and cognitive interviews.

Science.gov (United States)

Follansbee-Junger, Katherine W; Mann, Krista A; Guilfoyle, Shanna M; Morita, Diego A; Varni, James W; Modi, Avani C

2016-09-01

Youth with epilepsy have impaired health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Existing epilepsy-specific HRQOL measures are limited by not having parallel self- and parent-proxy versions, having a restricted age range, not being inclusive of children with developmental disabilities, or being too lengthy for use in a clinical setting. Generic HRQOL measures do not adequately capture the idiosyncrasies of epilepsy. The purpose of the present study was to develop items and content validity for the PedsQL™ Epilepsy Module. An iterative qualitative process of conducting focus group interviews with families of children with epilepsy, obtaining expert input, and conducting cognitive interviews and debriefing was utilized to develop empirically derived content for the instrument. Eleven health providers with expertise in pediatric epilepsy from across the country provided feedback on the conceptual model and content, including epileptologists, nurse practitioners, social workers, and psychologists. Ten pediatric patients (age 4-16years) with a diagnosis of epilepsy and 11 parents participated in focus groups. Thirteen pediatric patients (age 5-17years) and 17 parents participated in cognitive interviews. Focus groups, expert input, and cognitive debriefing resulted in 6 final domains including restrictions, seizure management, cognitive/executive functioning, social, sleep/fatigue, and mood/behavior. Patient self-report versions ranged from 30 to 33 items and parent proxy-report versions ranged from 26 to 33 items, with the toddler and young child versions having fewer items. Standardized qualitative methodology was employed to develop the items and content for the novel PedsQL™ Epilepsy Module. The PedsQL™ Epilepsy Module has the potential to enhance clinical decision-making in pediatric epilepsy by capturing and monitoring important patient-identified contributors to HRQOL. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Facebook Band Director's Group: Member Usage Behaviors and Perceived Satisfaction for Meeting Professional Development Needs

Science.gov (United States)

Rickels, David A.; Brewer, Wesley D.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate participation in a Facebook social media community known as Band Director's Group (BDG) through examination of members' demographic profiles, self-reported usage behaviors, and perceptions about how group activity satisfies their professional development needs. Respondents to an online survey (n = 336)…

Development of 3D multi-group neutron diffusion code for hexagonal geometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Wei; Wang Kan; Ni Dongyang; Li Qing

2013-01-01

Based on the theory of new flux expansion nodal method to solve the neutron diffusion equations, the intra-nodal fluence rate distribution was expanded in a series of analytic basic functions for each group. In order to improve the accuracy of calculation result, continuities of neutron fluence rate and current were utilized across the nodal surfaces. According to the boundary conditions, the iteration method was adopted to solve the diffusion equation, where inner iteration speedup method is Gauss-Seidel method and outer is Lyusternik-Wagner. A new speedup method (one-outer-iteration and multi-inner-iteration method) was proposed according to the characteristic that the convergence speed of multiplication factor is faster than that of neutron fluence rate and the update of inner iteration matrix is slow. Based on the proposed model, the code HANDF-D was developed and tested by 3D two-group vver440 benchmark, experiment 2 of HFETR, 3D four-group thermal reactor benchmark, and 3D seven-group fast reactor benchmark. The numerical results show that HANDF-D can predict accurately the multiplication factor and nodal powers. (authors)

Advisory group meeting on new trends and developments in radiation technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-02-01

High energy, ionizing radiation (gamma and electron beams) has been used by industry for many years and for different applications. Well established applications include: industrial sterilization of health care products (medical products and medicinals), radiation modification of plastics (crosslinking of wire and cable insulation, heat shrinkable materials, etc.) and radiation curing of adhesives and coatings on different substrates. The main purpose of the Advisory Group Meeting was to provide a forum for an exchange of information about the new developments in radiation technology, to review the status of these developments and to discuss potential for commercial applications. A further objective was to discuss the role of the International Atomic Energy Agency in promoting new technologies, research and transfer of technology to developing countries. The meeting was expected to prepare recommendations to the Agency for future activities and programmes in this field. Refs, figs and tabs

Group Dynamic Assessment (G-DA: The Case for the Development of Control over the Past Tense

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ehsan Mehri

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The introduction of dynamic assessment within sociocultural theory opened a new door toward looking at the relationship between the teaching and assessment. The dialectic relationship between the two processes provides previously unfound information regarding the assessment and the development of the learners. However, the implementation of the interactionist dynamic assessment has carried some difficulties in class in general and the groups in particular. The current study tries to address the effect of group dynamic assessment on the development of the control over the past tense; therefore, it is two-folded in the aim. Not only does it work as a practical sample of group dynamic assessment in class, but also it seeks to analyze its effect on the development of control over the past tense. To this end, three learners at the levels of elementary, low-intermediate, and intermediate general proficiency were asked to read a novel and retell the story. The dynamic intervention provided by the teacher during the story retelling was later evaluated in the transcendence tasks of writing. The Friedman test indicated that the three learners had significant development in their control over the past tense in their writing. Moreover, the qualitative analysis of the interactions suggests that the learners changed their role from the mere receivers of the teacher's mediator into the active providers of mediation to other group members. Also, they developed their understanding of the concept of the past tense through implementing it in transcendence tasks of writing.

Group differences in the aesthetic evaluation of nature development plans : A multilevel approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Berg, A.E.; Vlek, CAJ; Coeterier, JF

The study presented here addresses theoretical, methodological and practical aspects of the issue of group differences in the aesthetic evaluation of natural landscapes. Beauty ratings of an agrarian landscape and five computer simulations of nature development plans in this landscape were collected

Group attributional training as an effective approach to human resource development under team work systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Z M

1994-07-01

An experimental programme of group attributional training under team work system was conducted as part of human resource development in Chinese industrial enterprises. One hundred and ten shopfloor employees participated in the study. Among them, 58 employees took part in the factorial-designed experiment to find out the effects of attributions on performance, and 52 employees of ten work groups participated in the group attributional training programme twice a week for two months. The results showed that the group attributional training was effective in modifying employees' attributional patterns and enhancing group performance and satisfaction. On the basis of the results, an attributional model of work motivation is proposed, and its theoretical and practical implications for human resource management discussed.

Professional Group Development Trainers’ Personality Characteristics and Affective Profiles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Max eRapp Ricciardi

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Background: The Development of Groups and Leaders (UGL, provided by the Swedish National Defence College and mentored by UGL-trainers, is one of the most popular management programs among civilians in Sweden. However, there is a lack of scientific evidence regarding the training. We used the affective profile model (i.e., the combination of positive, PA, and negative affect, NA to mapp important markers of empowerment, self-awareness, adaptive coping skills, and maturity among the UGL-trainers. The aims were: (1 to compare profiles between UGL-trainers and managers/supervisors and (2 to investigate differences in personal characteristics.Method: UGL-trainers (N = 153 and the comparison group (104 Swedish Chiefs of Police completed an online survey on optimism, self-esteem, locus of control, and affect. The four profiles are: self-fulfilling (high PA, low NA, high affective (high PA, high NA, low affective (high PA, low NA, and self-destructive (low PA, high NA,Results: The self-fulfilling profile was more common among UGL-trainers (25.70% than among Chiefs of Police (19.20%. UGL-trainers, compared to Chiefs of Police, were more likely to express a self-fulling than a low affective profile (OR=2.22, p < .05 and a high affective than a low affective profile (OR=1.43, p <.001. UGL-trainers with a self-fulfilling profile, compared to those with a self-destructive profile, scored higher in optimism, higher in self-esteem, and lower in external locus of control. Conclusions: The probability of self-fulfilment rather than low affectivity was higher among UGL-trainers. Self-fulfilment was associated to markers of self-awareness and adaptive coping skills. However, the most common profile was the low affective, which is associated to low performance during stress, low degree of personal development, low degree of purpose in life, and low resilience. Hence, it might be important for UGL-trainers to have a continuos training in awareness after

Development and Analysis of Group Contribution Plus Models for Property Prediction of Organic Chemical Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mustaffa, Azizul Azri

for the GIPs are then used in the UNIFAC model to calculate activity coefficients. This approach can increase the application range of any “host” UNIFAC model by providing a reliable predictive model towards fast and efficient product development. This PhD project is focused on the analysis and further......Prediction of properties is important in chemical process-product design. Reliable property models are needed for increasingly complex and wider range of chemicals. Group-contribution methods provide useful tool but there is a need to validate them and improve their accuracy when complex chemicals...... are present in the mixtures. In accordance with that, a combined group-contribution and atom connectivity approach that is able to extend the application range of property models has been developed for mixture properties. This so-called Group-ContributionPlus (GCPlus) approach is a hybrid model which combines...

The effects of team expert choice on group decision-making in collaborative new product development; a pilot study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hummel, J. Marjan; van Rossum, Wouter; Verkerke, Gijsbertus Jacob; Rakhorst, G.

2000-01-01

This study analyses the effects of Team Expert Choice on group decision-making in collaborative new product development. We applied Team Expert Choice to support a product evaluation conducted by a new product development group composed of professionally diverse members. The evaluation resulted in

Nearrings some developments linked to semigroups and groups

CERN Document Server

Ferrero, Celestina Cotti

2002-01-01

This work presents new and old constructions of nearrings. Links between properties of the multiplicative of nearrings (as regularity conditions and identities) and the structure of nearrings are studied. Primality and minimality properties of ideals are collected. Some types of `simpler' nearrings are examined. Some nearrings of maps on a group are reviewed and linked with group-theoretical and geometrical questions. Audience: Researchers working in nearring theory, group theory, semigroup theory, designs, and translation planes. Some of the material will be accessible to graduate students.

The Helpfulness of Spiritually Influenced Group Work in Developing Self-Awareness and Self-Esteem: A Preliminary Investigation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana Coholic

2005-01-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses an exploratory study that investigated the helpfulness of spiritually influenced group work with eight adult women who shared a history of substance abuse. The overall purpose of the group was to help participants develop their self-awareness and self-esteem. The group, which was contextualized in transpersonal theory, was organized around the following themes and experiential exercises: meditation, mindfulness practice, dream work, stream of consciousness writing, the shadow self, and other arts-based processes. Grounded-theory analysis of group sessions and individual interviews with the participants found that the participants perceived the group to be helpful in developing their self-awareness and self-esteem. While the participants identified different aspects of the group as spiritual, making-meaning was one practice that was consistently described as a spiritually sensitive process. The results of this study in this emergent field are promising and suggestions are provided for future research.

Development of a 1200 fine group nuclear data library for advanced nuclear systems

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Jun Zou; Lei-Ming Shang; Fang Wang; Li-Juan Hao

2017-01-01

Accurate and reliable nuclear data libraries are essential for calculation and design of advanced nuclear systems.A 1200 fine group nuclear data library Hybrid Evaluated Nuclear Data Library/Fine Group (HENDL/FG) with neutrons of up to 150 MeV has been developed to improve the accuracy of neutronics calculations and analysis.Corrections of Doppler,resonance self-shielding,and thermal upscatter effects were done for HENDL/FG.Shielding and critical safety benchmarks were performed to test the accuracy and reliability of the library.The discrepancy between calculated and measured nuclear parameters fell into a reasonable range.

Editorial: introduction to group research projects developed within an intensive programme in railway and logistics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marin MARINOV

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces a special issue of the Journal Transport Problems on group research projects developed within the RailNewcastle summer school organised and held in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. The participants (both educators and students worked together in multinational and multidisciplinary groups to produce research projects. The topics of the group research projects were based around railway and logistics-related problems. As a result a collection of the best articles is produced for the purposes of this special issue.

How to develop a patient and carer advisory group in a quality improvement study.

Science.gov (United States)

Loud, Fiona; Jain, Neerja; Thomas, Nicola

2013-09-01

This paper explores how a group of people with renal or other vascular conditions collaborated with renal practitioners in undertaking a quality improvement project, the aim of which was to reduce variation in care for people with Stages 3-4 chronic kidney disease. The patient advisory group supporting the project took a decisive and leading role in the creation of self-management materials and subsequent training for healthcare professionals and patients. The role of the patient advisory group was evaluated informally throughout the project. Confidence amongst the patient advisory group members grew as the project developed. Clinicians are often unclear on how to involve patients and carers in quality improvement projects, yet it is increasingly recognised as important. In practice, patients with experience of long-term conditions can co-lead quality improvement projects. It is recommended that further evaluation of the role of advisory groups is warranted. © 2013 European Dialysis and Transplant Nurses Association/European Renal Care Association.

Biosphere scenario development. An interim report of an SKI, SSI, SKB working group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-11-01

The Swedish Nuclear Power Inspectorate and the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Co have initiated a project for the development of scenarios for the behaviour of radionuclides in high level waste following deep geological disposal. The main objective is to develop a general consensus of scenarios and conceptual models. Within the project a biosphere scenarios working group was initiated to consider specific questions of the biosphere. This report describes the results of the group's deliberations up to the end of July 1989. A methodology is presented for the development of biosphere scenarios which may be considered alongside scenarios for radionuclide behaviour in the near field and geosphere. Two major biosphere elements affecting processes in the surface environment have been recognised, climate and development. Alternative states for climate and level of development are suggested and each combination can be considered with one or more of a range of biosphere receptors, such as a river or a lake. The features, events and processes relevant to each receptor are presented. Consideration is then given to biosphere assumptions for both gradual and direct releases from the geosphere, as well as biosphere effects on the repository near field or geosphere. The amount of screening which can be done at this stage to limit the number of biosphere scenarios is small. However, considerable potential exists once more details are available for geosphere release scenarios. It may be appropriate to further develop biosphere scenarios, specific to each geosphere release scenario. It may also be appropriate to consider scenarios specifically in relation to the individual radionuclides which dominate geosphere releases. Both these possibilities could result in considerably reduced requirements for calculations

War's enduring effects on the development of egalitarian motivations and in-group biases.

Science.gov (United States)

Bauer, Michal; Cassar, Alessandra; Chytilová, Julie; Henrich, Joseph

2014-01-01

In suggesting that new nations often coalesce in the decades following war, historians have posed an important psychological question: Does the experience of war generate an enduring elevation in people's egalitarian motivations toward their in-group? We administered social-choice tasks to more than 1,000 children and adults differentially affected by wars in the Republic of Georgia and Sierra Leone. We found that greater exposure to war created a lasting increase in people's egalitarian motivations toward their in-group, but not their out-groups, during a developmental window starting in middle childhood (around 7 years of age) and ending in early adulthood (around 20 years of age). Outside this window, war had no measurable impact on social motivations in young children and had only muted effects on the motivations of older adults. These "war effects" are broadly consistent with predictions from evolutionary approaches that emphasize the importance of group cooperation in defending against external threats, though they also highlight key areas in need of greater theoretical development.

Feminist Principles in Survivor's Groups: Out-of-Group Contact.

Science.gov (United States)

Rittenhouse, JoAn

1997-01-01

Illustrates the value of theoretical concepts from Feminist Therapy in the group treatment of women survivors. Theoretical underpinnings are supported using data taken from clinical experience and by examining group themes and out-of-group contact developed from the case sample. Principles regarding feminist groups are proposed. (RJM)

Development of risk-based nanomaterial groups for occupational exposure control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuempel, E. D.; Castranova, V.; Geraci, C. L.; Schulte, P. A.

2012-01-01

Given the almost limitless variety of nanomaterials, it will be virtually impossible to assess the possible occupational health hazard of each nanomaterial individually. The development of science-based hazard and risk categories for nanomaterials is needed for decision-making about exposure control practices in the workplace. A possible strategy would be to select representative (benchmark) materials from various mode of action (MOA) classes, evaluate the hazard and develop risk estimates, and then apply a systematic comparison of new nanomaterials with the benchmark materials in the same MOA class. Poorly soluble particles are used here as an example to illustrate quantitative risk assessment methods for possible benchmark particles and occupational exposure control groups, given mode of action and relative toxicity. Linking such benchmark particles to specific exposure control bands would facilitate the translation of health hazard and quantitative risk information to the development of effective exposure control practices in the workplace. A key challenge is obtaining sufficient dose–response data, based on standard testing, to systematically evaluate the nanomaterials’ physical–chemical factors influencing their biological activity. Categorization processes involve both science-based analyses and default assumptions in the absence of substance-specific information. Utilizing data and information from related materials may facilitate initial determinations of exposure control systems for nanomaterials.

Development of risk-based nanomaterial groups for occupational exposure control

Science.gov (United States)

Kuempel, E. D.; Castranova, V.; Geraci, C. L.; Schulte, P. A.

2012-09-01

Given the almost limitless variety of nanomaterials, it will be virtually impossible to assess the possible occupational health hazard of each nanomaterial individually. The development of science-based hazard and risk categories for nanomaterials is needed for decision-making about exposure control practices in the workplace. A possible strategy would be to select representative (benchmark) materials from various mode of action (MOA) classes, evaluate the hazard and develop risk estimates, and then apply a systematic comparison of new nanomaterials with the benchmark materials in the same MOA class. Poorly soluble particles are used here as an example to illustrate quantitative risk assessment methods for possible benchmark particles and occupational exposure control groups, given mode of action and relative toxicity. Linking such benchmark particles to specific exposure control bands would facilitate the translation of health hazard and quantitative risk information to the development of effective exposure control practices in the workplace. A key challenge is obtaining sufficient dose-response data, based on standard testing, to systematically evaluate the nanomaterials' physical-chemical factors influencing their biological activity. Categorization processes involve both science-based analyses and default assumptions in the absence of substance-specific information. Utilizing data and information from related materials may facilitate initial determinations of exposure control systems for nanomaterials.

Development and Pilot Study of Group-Based Dietary Self-Management Program for Community Dwellers with Hypertension

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Arfiza Ridwan

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Background: In most countries worldwide, hypertension is considered as an important problem. Moreover, an increasing trend in the prevalence and incidence has been reported in most countries. This increasing trend requires an innovative approach to improve the lifestyle modification of hypertensive sufferers including their dietary behaviors. Objective: This developmental research aims to develop a program for improving the dietary behaviors of community dwellers with hypertension. Method: The process of this program development includes a literature review related to the self-management programs for hypertension, and dietary behavior outcomes, expert validation, and pilot testing. Result: The setting, strategies, duration, and outcome measurement from the literature review were taken into consideration to develop the new program. The newly developed group-based self-management program consists of: 1 the sharing and reflecting of individual current dietary behavior, 2 group educational session, 3 individual comparison of behavior and reflection of obstacles, 4 individual goal setting, and 5 follow up. In the educational session, the DASH eating plan is used as the reference as it is commonly used in studies about diet for hypertension. Key words: hypertension, self-management, group based program, dietary behaviors.

77 FR 8284 - Western Digital Technologies, Inc., Hard Drive Development Engineering Group Irvine (Formerly at...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-14

... business model of the subject firm is to develop new products domestically and carry out the manufacturing... that the new designs are functional. SAR 8, 20, 26. The subject firm stated that prototype creation is... Technologies, Inc., Hard Drive Development Engineering Group Irvine (Formerly at Lake Forest), CA; Notice of...

Developing critical awareness : the consequences of action and reflection for perceptions of group injustices

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Turner-Zwinkels, Felicity M.; Postmes, Tom; van Zomeren, Martijn

Individuals often cannot address (objective) group injustices until they develop a (subjective) critical awareness of them. In three studies, we tested two potential psychological pathways toward critical awareness: Reflection (deductive, knowledge driven) and action (inductive, action driven)

Group-theoretical model of developed turbulence and renormalization of the Navier-Stokes equation.

Science.gov (United States)

Saveliev, V L; Gorokhovski, M A

2005-07-01

On the basis of the Euler equation and its symmetry properties, this paper proposes a model of stationary homogeneous developed turbulence. A regularized averaging formula for the product of two fields is obtained. An equation for the averaged turbulent velocity field is derived from the Navier-Stokes equation by renormalization-group transformation.

Effects of Continuing Professional Development on Group Work Practices in Scottish Primary Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Thurston, A.; Christie, D.; Howe, C. J.; Tolmie, A.; Topping, K. J.

2008-01-01

The present study investigated the effects of a continuing professional development (CPD) initiative that provided collaborative group work skills training for primary school teachers. The study collected data from 24 primary school classrooms in different schools in a variety of urban and rural settings. The sample was composed of 332 pupils,…

Healthy Parent Carers programme: development and feasibility of a novel group-based health-promotion intervention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleksandra J. Borek

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Parent carers of disabled children report poor physical health and mental wellbeing. They experience high levels of stress and barriers to engagement in health-related behaviours and with ‘standard’ preventive programmes (e.g. weight loss programmes. Interventions promoting strategies to improve health and wellbeing of parent carers are needed, tailored to their specific needs and circumstances. Methods We developed a group-based health promotion intervention for parent carers by following six steps of the established Intervention Mapping approach. Parent carers co-created the intervention programme and were involved in all stages of the development and testing. We conducted a study of the intervention with a group of parent carers to examine the feasibility and acceptability. Standardised questionnaires were used to assess health and wellbeing pre and post-intervention and at 2 month follow up. Participants provided feedback after each session and took part in a focus group after the end of the programme. Results The group-based Healthy Parent Carers programme was developed to improve health and wellbeing through engagement with eight achievable behaviours (CLANGERS – Connect, Learn, be Active, take Notice, Give, Eat well, Relax, Sleep, and by promoting empowerment and resilience. The manualised intervention was delivered by two peer facilitators to a group of seven parent carers. Feedback from participants and facilitators was strongly positive. The study was not powered or designed to test effectiveness but changes in measures of participants’ wellbeing and depression were in a positive direction both at the end of the intervention and 2 months later which suggest that there may be a potential to achieve benefit. Conclusions The Healthy Parent Carers programme appears feasible and acceptable. It was valued by, and was perceived to have benefited participants. The results will underpin future refinement of the

Computer-Mediated Collaborative Projects: Processes for Enhancing Group Development

Science.gov (United States)

Dupin-Bryant, Pamela A.

2008-01-01

Groups are a fundamental part of the business world. Yet, as companies continue to expand internationally, a major challenge lies in promoting effective communication among employees who work in varying time zones. Global expansion often requires group collaboration through computer systems. Computer-mediated groups lead to different communicative…

Using Focus Groups to Develop a Nutrition Education Video for High School Students.

Science.gov (United States)

James, Delores C. S.; Rienzo, Barbara A.; Frazee, Carol

1997-01-01

Study used focus group interviews with ninth graders to help develop a nutrition education video and teacher's guide for Florida high schools. Students believed a video would be successful, expressed interest in 10 nutrition topics, recommended using teen actors with varying body types, and suggested no more than three or four topics per video.…

24 CFR 982.610 - Group home: Who may reside in a group home.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Group home: Who may reside in a group home. 982.610 Section 982.610 Housing and Urban Development Regulations Relating to Housing and... Housing Types Group Home § 982.610 Group home: Who may reside in a group home. (a) An elderly person or a...

Suspending group debate and developing concepts

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stam, D.; de Vet, A.; Barkema, H.G.; de Dreu, C.K.W.

2013-01-01

The ability of new product development (NPD) teams to generate ideas and develop high-quality concepts for new products is a crucial determinant of NPD success. Although prior research in this area has developed various interventions to enhance the ability of teams to generate ideas, such

24 CFR 982.612 - Group home: State approval of group home.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Group home: State approval of group... Types Group Home § 982.612 Group home: State approval of group home. A group home must be licensed..., Retardation, or Social Services) as a group home for elderly persons or persons with disabilities. ...

No-Oven, No-Autoclave Composite Processing

Science.gov (United States)

Rauscher, Michael D.

2015-01-01

Very large composite structures, such as those used in NASA's Space Launch System, push the boundaries imposed by current autoclaves. New technology is needed to maintain composite performance and free manufacturing engineers from the restraints of curing equipment size limitations. Recent efforts on a Phase II project by Cornerstone Research Group, Inc. (CRG), have advanced the technology and manufacturing readiness levels of a unique two-part epoxy resin system. Designed for room-temperature infusion of a dry carbon preform, the system includes a no-heat-added cure that delivers 350 F composite performance in a matter of hours. This no-oven, no-autoclave (NONA) composite processing eliminates part-size constraints imposed by infrastructure and lowers costs by increasing throughput and reducing capital-specific, process-flow bottlenecks. As a result of the Phase II activity, NONA materials and processes were used to make high-temperature composite tooling suitable for further production of carbon-epoxy laminates and honeycomb/ sandwich-structure composites with an aluminum core. The technology platform involves tooling design, resin infusion processing, composite part design, and resin chemistry. The various technology elements are combined to achieve a fully cured part. The individual elements are not unusual, but they are combined in such a way that enables proper management of the heat generated by the epoxy resin during cure. The result is a self-cured carbon/ epoxy composite part that is mechanically and chemically stable at temperatures up to 350 F. As a result of the successful SBIR effort, CRG has launched NONA Composites as a spinoff subsidiary. The company sells resin to end users, fabricates finished goods for customers, and sells composite tooling made with NONA materials and processes to composite manufacturers.

Developing an organizing framework to guide nursing research in the Children’s Oncology Group (COG)

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, Katherine Patterson; Hooke, Mary C.; Ruccione, Kathleen; Landier, Wendy; Haase, Joan

2014-01-01

Objectives To describe the development and application of an organizing research framework to guide COG Nursing research. Data Sources Research articles, reports and meeting minutes Conclusion An organizing research framework helps to outline research focus and articulate the scientific knowledge being produced by nurses in the pediatric cooperative group. Implication for Nursing Practice The use of an organizing framework for COG nursing research can facilitate clinical nurses’ understanding of how children and families sustain or regain optimal health when faced with a pediatric cancer diagnosis through interventions designed to promote individual and family resilience. The Children’s Oncology Group (COG) is the sole National Cancer Institute (NCI)-supported cooperative pediatric oncology clinical trials group and the largest organization in the world devoted exclusively to pediatric cancer research. It was founded in 2000 following the merger of the four legacy NCI-supported pediatric clinical trials groups (Children’s Cancer Group [CCG], Pediatric Oncology Group [POG], National Wilms Tumor Study Group, and Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group). The COG currently has over 200 member institutions across North America, Australia, New Zealand and Europe and a multidisciplinary membership of over 8,000 pediatric, radiation, and surgical oncologists, nurses, clinical research associates, pharmacists, behavioral scientists, pathologists, laboratory scientists, patient/parent advocates and other pediatric cancer specialists. The COG Nursing Discipline was formed from the merger of the legacy CCG and POG Nursing Committees, and current membership exceeds 2000 registered nurses. The discipline has a well-developed infrastructure that promotes nursing involvement throughout all levels of the organization, including representation on disease, protocol, scientific, executive and other administrative committees (e.g., nominating committee, data safety monitoring

Development of LMR basic design technology - Development of 3-D multi-group nodal kinetics code for liquid metal reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Myung Hyun [Kyunghee University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1996-07-01

A development project of 3-dimensional kinetics code for ALMR has three level of works. In the first level, a multi-group, nodal kinetics code for the HEX-Z geometry has been developed. A code showed very good results for the static analysis as well as for the kinetics problems. At the second level, a core thermal-hydraulic analysis code was developed for the temperature feedback calculation in ALMR transients analysis. This code is coupled with kinetics code. A sodium property table was programmed and tested to the KAERI data and thermal feedback model was developed and coupled in code. Benchmarking of T/H calculation has been performed and showed fairly good results. At the third level of research work, reactivity feedback model for structure thermal expansion is developed and added to the code. At present, basic model was studied. However, code development in now on going. Benchmarking of this model developed can not be done because of lack of data. 31 refs., 17 tabs., 38 figs. (author)

Energy-environment-development interactions. Report on working group 6

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

Natural resources, including strategic resources as oil or fresh water, have been the cause of disputes and wars among nations. Natural resources have also been catalyzers of conflicts and objectives of military actions. In last decades, new potential sources of conflict have emerged, as high geographical concentration of fossil duels, acceleration of the depletion and pollution of otherwise renewable resources, and the increase of resource scarcity because of higher demands from population growth and larger consumption per capita. The potential change of climate threatens to become an important source of international tensions in the near future and to provoke the scarcity of vital resources in particular regions. If the world is to engage in a true process of sustainable development, radical changes in the present strategies and patterns of resources use are needed. This working group focused on the problems and potential solutions related to renewable energy sources. The topic of water and security were discussed as well as multilateral agreements and negotiations regarding global climate change

Using Student Learning and Development Outcomes to Evaluate a First-Year Undergraduate Group Video Project

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Murray; Mattheis, Allison; Johnson, Brady

2012-01-01

Students in an interdisciplinary undergraduate introductory course were required to complete a group video project focused on nutrition and healthy eating. A mixed-methods approach to data collection involved observing and rating video footage of group work sessions and individual and focus group interviews. These data were analyzed and used to evaluate the effectiveness of the assignment in light of two student learning outcomes and two student development outcomes at the University of Minnesota. Positive results support the continued inclusion of the project within the course, and recommend the assignment to other programs as a viable means of promoting both content learning and affective behavioral objectives. PMID:22383619

Group Work: How to Use Groups Effectively

Science.gov (United States)

Burke, Alison

2011-01-01

Many students cringe and groan when told that they will need to work in a group. However, group work has been found to be good for students and good for teachers. Employers want college graduates to have developed teamwork skills. Additionally, students who participate in collaborative learning get better grades, are more satisfied with their…

75 FR 69717 - In the Matter of: Edentify, Inc., Embryo Development Corp., Enclaves Group, Inc., Energytec, Inc...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-15

... SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION [File No. 500-1] In the Matter of: Edentify, Inc., Embryo Development Corp., Enclaves Group, Inc., Energytec, Inc., Enesco Group, Inc., Entertainment Is Us, Inc... Commission that there is a lack of current and accurate information concerning the securities of Embryo...

The development of English primary care group governance. A scenario analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Sheaff, R

1999-01-01

At present there is a policy vacuum about what English Primary Care Groups' (PCGs) governance will be when they develop into Primary Care Trusts (PCTs). Draft legislation leaves many options open, so PCT governance is likely to 'emerge' as PCTs are created. It also remains uncertain how general practitioners (GPs) will react to the formation of PCTs and how the UK government will then respond in turn. A scenario analysis suggests three possible lines of development. The base (likeliest) scenario predicts a mainly networked form of PCT governance. An alternative scenario is of PCT governance resembling the former National Health Service internal market. A third scenario predicts 'franchise model' PCTs employing some GPs and subcontracting others. To different degrees all three scenarios predict that PCTs will retain elements of networked governance. If it fails to make GPs as accountable to NHS management as the UK government wishes, networked governance may prove only a transitional stage before English PCTs adopt either quasi-market or hierarchical governance.

The Comparative Study of Collaborative Learning and SDLC Model to develop IT Group Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sorapak Pukdesree

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The main objectives of this research were to compare the attitudes of learners between applying SDLC model with collaborative learning and typical SDLC model and to develop electronic courseware as group projects. The research was a quasi-experimental research. The populations of the research were students who took Computer Organization and Architecture course in the academic year 2015. There were 38 students who participated to the research. The participants were divided voluntary into two groups including an experimental group with 28 students using SDLC model with collaborative learning and a control group with 10 students using typical SDLC model. The research instruments were attitude questionnaire, semi-structured interview and self-assessment questionnaire. The collected data was analysed by arithmetic mean, standard deviation, and independent sample t-test. The results of the questionnaire revealed that the attitudes of the learners using collaborative learning and SDLC model were statistically significant difference between the mean score for experimental group and control group at a significance level of 0.05. The independent statistical analyses were significantly different between the two groups at a significance level of 0.05. The results of the interviewing revealed that most of the learners had the corresponding opinions that collaborative learning was very useful with highest level of their attitudes comparing with the previous methodology. Learners had left some feedbacks that collaborative learning should be applied to other courses.

Social learning and the development of individual and group behaviour in mammal societies.

Science.gov (United States)

Thornton, Alex; Clutton-Brock, Tim

2011-04-12

As in human societies, social learning may play an important role in shaping individual and group characteristics in other mammals. Here, we review research on non-primate mammals, concentrating on work at our long-term meerkat study site, where longitudinal data and field experiments have generated important insights into the role of social learning under natural conditions. Meerkats live under high predation pressure and occupy a difficult foraging niche. Accordingly, pups make extensive use of social information in learning to avoid predation and obtain food. Where individual learning is costly or opportunities are lacking, as in the acquisition of prey-handling skills, adults play an active role in promoting learning through teaching. Social learning can also cause information to spread through groups, but our data suggest that this does not necessarily result in homogeneous, group-wide traditions. Moreover, traditions are commonly eroded by individual learning. We suggest that traditions will only persist where there are high costs of deviating from the group norm or where skill development requires extensive time and effort. Persistent traditions could, theoretically, modify selection pressures and influence genetic evolution. Further empirical studies of social learning in natural populations are now urgently needed to substantiate theoretical claims.

Part 2 of the summary for the electronics, DAQ, and computing working group: Technological developments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slaughter, A.J.

1993-01-01

The attraction of hadron machines as B factories is the copious production of B particles. However, the interesting physics lies in specific rare final states. The challenge is selecting and recording the interesting ones. Part 1 of the summary for this working group, open-quote Comparison of Trigger and Data Acquisition Parameters for Future B Physics Experiments close-quote summarizes and compares the different proposals. In parallel with this activity, the working group also looked at a number of the technological developments being proposed to meet the trigger and DAQ requirements. The presentations covered a wide variety of topics, which are grouped into three categories: (1) front-end electronics, (2) level 0 fast triggers, and (3) trigger and vertex processors. The group did not discuss on-line farms or offine data storage and computing due to lack of time

Parenting and Preschool Child Development: Examination of Three Low-Income U.S. Cultural Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Whiteside-Mansell, Leanne; Bradley, Robert H.; McKelvey, Lorraine

2009-01-01

We examined the impact of parenting behaviors on preschool children's social development in low-income families from three cultural groups: European American (n = 286), African American (n = 399), and Hispanic American (n = 164) using Spanish as the primary language in the home. Observed parenting behaviors of stimulation, responsivity, and…

Toxmatch-a new software tool to aid in the development and evaluation of chemically similar groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Patlewicz, G; Jeliazkova, N; Gallegos Saliner, A; Worth, A P

2008-01-01

Chemical similarity is a widely used concept in toxicology, and is based on the hypothesis that similar compounds should have similar biological activities. This forms the underlying basis for performing read-across, forming chemical groups and developing (Quantitative) Structure-Activity Relationships ((Q)SARs). Chemical similarity is often perceived as structural similarity but in fact there are a number of other approaches that can be used to assess similarity. A systematic similarity analysis usually comprises two main steps. Firstly the chemical structures to be compared need to be characterised in terms of relevant descriptors which encode their physicochemical, topological, geometrical and/or surface properties. A second step involves a quantitative comparison of those descriptors using similarity (or dissimilarity) indices. This work outlines the use of chemical similarity principles in the formation of endpoint specific chemical groupings. Examples are provided to illustrate the development and evaluation of chemical groupings using a new software application called Toxmatch that was recently commissioned by the European Chemicals Bureau (ECB), of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. Insights from using this software are highlighted with specific focus on the prospective application of chemical groupings under the new chemicals legislation, REACH.

Effectiveness of Group Supervision versus Combined Group and Individual Supervision.

Science.gov (United States)

Ray, Dee; Altekruse, Michael

2000-01-01

Investigates the effectiveness of different types of supervision (large group, small group, combined group, individual supervision) with counseling students (N=64). Analyses revealed that all supervision formats resulted in similar progress in counselor effectiveness and counselor development. Participants voiced a preference for individual…

One service, many voices: enhancing consumer participation in a primary health service for multicultural women.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Susan K; Thompson, Sandra C; Amorin-Woods, Deisy

2009-01-01

Consumer participation in primary health care is important in providing quality consumer-focused care, but challenging when working with disadvantaged groups of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Women's Health Services (WHS) works with women from over 60 different nationalities, including many newly arrived migrants and refugees. New arrivals access a wide range of WHS programmes including medical services, counselling, information, community talks and workshops, referral, and outreach, but few ethnic women attended the alcohol and other drug (AOD) services offered by the organisation. To establish an active consumer reference group to assist understanding and reducing the barriers to AOD services for a heterogeneous disadvantaged group that includes individuals from different cultural, language and educational backgrounds. Leaning heavily on experiences from the mental health field, WHS overcame many practical and philosophical considerations which included: agreeing upon the purpose of the group and how it would operate within the structure of the organisation; the level of English language required by participants for the group to function; issues of resourcing the group; and ensuring an appropriate, workable demographic mix in terms of age, language, and migration experiences. The process and the outcome of establishing a consumer reference group (CRG) in a primary healthcare setting has been valuable for consumers' and health service providers within the organisation.

Scenario Development Workshop Synopsis. Integration Group for the Safety Case - June 2015

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, Paul; Voinis, Sylvie; Griffault, Lise; De Meredieu, Jean; Kwong, Gloria; ); Van Luik, Abraham; Bailey, Lucy; Capouet, Manuel; Depaus, Christophe; Makino, Hitoshi; Leigh, Christi; Kirkes, Ross; Leino, Jaakko; Niemeyer, Matthias; Wolf, Jens; Watson, Sarah; Franke, Bettina; Ilett, Doug; Pastina, Barbara; Weetjens, Eef

2016-03-01

Scenario development and selection describes the collection and organisation of the scientific and technical information relevant to the potential paths of evolution of a radioactive waste disposal facility (repository) that is necessary to assess its long-term performance and safety. In 1999, the NEA held its first workshop on scenario development in Madrid, Spain, with the objective to review the methods for developing scenarios in safety assessments and their application. Since then, the process of scenario development and analysis for the disposal of radioactive waste has changed and, in 2015, the NEA Integration Group for the Safety Case (IGSC) held a second workshop on this topic at its offices in Paris to further evaluate the experience acquired in developing scenarios since 1999. To prepare for this workshop, the IGSC also launched a survey in 2014 to gather the latest scenario development and uncertainty management strategies used in IGSC member countries. The purposes of the workshop were to (i) provide a forum to review and discuss methods for scenario development and their contribution to the development of recent safety cases (since the 1999 workshop); (ii) examine the latest methods and compare their scope, consistency and function within the overall safety assessment process, based on practical experience of applications; and (iii) provide a basis for producing the present report summarising the current status of scenario methodologies, identifying where sufficient methods exist and any outstanding problem areas. This report provides an overview of the state of the art in scenario development related to the long-term safety of geological repositories for radioactive waste. In particular, it discusses how potential scenarios are developed in safety assessments of radioactive waste that contains long-lived radionuclides. Safety assessment is the process of quantitatively and qualitatively evaluating the safety of a repository, often in support of a

Coordinating Group report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

In December 1992, western governors and four federal agencies established a Federal Advisory Committee to Develop On-site Innovative Technologies for Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (the DOIT Committee). The purpose of the Committee is to advise the federal government on ways to improve waste cleanup technology development and the cleanup of federal sites in the West. The Committee directed in January 1993 that information be collected from a wide range of potential stakeholders and that innovative technology candidate projects be identified, organized, set in motion, and evaluated to test new partnerships, regulatory approaches, and technologies which will lead to improve site cleanup. Five working groups were organized, one to develop broad project selection and evaluation criteria and four to focus on specific contaminant problems. A Coordinating Group comprised of working group spokesmen and federal and state representatives, was set up to plan and organize the routine functioning of these working groups. The working groups were charged with defining particular contaminant problems; identifying shortcomings in technology development, stakeholder involvement, regulatory review, and commercialization which impede the resolution of these problems; and identifying candidate sites or technologies which could serve as regional innovative demonstration projects to test new approaches to overcome the shortcomings. This report from the Coordinating Group to the DOIT Committee highlights the key findings and opportunities uncovered by these fact-finding working groups. It provides a basis from which recommendations from the DOIT Committee to the federal government can be made. It also includes observations from two public roundtables, one on commercialization and another on regulatory and institutional barriers impeding technology development and cleanup

Permutation groups

CERN Document Server

Passman, Donald S

2012-01-01

This volume by a prominent authority on permutation groups consists of lecture notes that provide a self-contained account of distinct classification theorems. A ready source of frequently quoted but usually inaccessible theorems, it is ideally suited for professional group theorists as well as students with a solid background in modern algebra.The three-part treatment begins with an introductory chapter and advances to an economical development of the tools of basic group theory, including group extensions, transfer theorems, and group representations and characters. The final chapter feature

Renormalization Group Theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephens, C. R.

2006-01-01

In this article I give a brief account of the development of research in the Renormalization Group in Mexico, paying particular attention to novel conceptual and technical developments associated with the tool itself, rather than applications of standard Renormalization Group techniques. Some highlights include the development of new methods for understanding and analysing two extreme regimes of great interest in quantum field theory -- the ''high temperature'' regime and the Regge regime

Group purchasing: an overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Wetrich, J G

1987-07-01

The various types and operational methods of purchasing groups are described, and evaluation of groups is discussed. Since group purchasing is increasing in popularity as a method of controlling drug costs, community and hospital pharmacy managers may need to evaluate various groups to determine the appropriateness of their services. Groups are categorized as independent, system based, or alliance or association based. Instead of "purchasing," some groups develop contracts for hospitals, which then purchase directly from the vendor. Aside from this basic difference between groups that purchase and groups that contract, comparisons among groups are difficult because of the wide variation in sizes and services. Competition developing from diversification among groups has led to "super groups," formed from local and regional groups. In evaluating groups, advantages and disadvantages germane to accomplishing the member's objectives must be considered. To ensure a group's success, members must be committed and support the group's philosophies; hospital pharmacists must help to establish a strong formulary system. To select vendors, groups should develop formal qualification and selection criteria and should not base a decision solely on price. The method of solicitation (bidding or negotiating), as well as the role of the prime vendor, should be studied. Legal implications of group purchasing, especially in the areas of administrative fees and drug diversion, must also be considered. The most advantageous group for each organization will include members with common missions and will be able to implement strategies for future success.

Short-term memory development: differences in serial position curves between age groups and latent classes.

Science.gov (United States)

Koppenol-Gonzalez, Gabriela V; Bouwmeester, Samantha; Vermunt, Jeroen K

2014-10-01

In studies on the development of cognitive processes, children are often grouped based on their ages before analyzing the data. After the analysis, the differences between age groups are interpreted as developmental differences. We argue that this approach is problematic because the variance in cognitive performance within an age group is considered to be measurement error. However, if a part of this variance is systematic, it can provide very useful information about the cognitive processes used by some children of a certain age but not others. In the current study, we presented 210 children aged 5 to 12 years with serial order short-term memory tasks. First we analyze our data according to the approach using age groups, and then we apply latent class analysis to form latent classes of children based on their performance instead of their ages. We display the results of the age groups and the latent classes in terms of serial position curves, and we discuss the differences in results. Our findings show that there are considerable differences in performance between the age groups and the latent classes. We interpret our findings as indicating that the latent class analysis yielded a much more meaningful way of grouping children in terms of cognitive processes than the a priori grouping of children based on their ages. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of a one-group cross section data base of the ORIGEN2 computer code for research reactor applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jung Do; Gil, Choong Sub; Lee, Jong Tai [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of); Hwang, Won Guk [Kyung Hee University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1992-03-01

A one-group cross section data base of the ORIGEN2 computer code was developed for research reactor applications. For this, ENDF/B-IV and -V data were processed using the NJOY code system into 69-group data. The burnup dependent weighting spectra for KMRR were calculated with the WIMS-KAERI computer code, and then the 69-group data were collapsed to one-group using the spectra. The ORlGEN2-predicted burnup-dependent actinide compositions of KMRR spent fuel using the newly developed data base show a good agreement with the results of detailed multigroup transport calculation. In addition, the burnup characteristics of KMRR spent fuel was analyzed with the new data base. (Author).

Development of a one-group cross section data base of the ORIGEN2 computer code for research reactor applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jung Do; Gil, Choong Sub; Lee, Jong Tai; Hwang, Won Guk

1992-01-01

A one-group cross section data base of the ORIGEN2 computer code was developed for research reactor applications. For this, ENDF/B-IV and -V data were processed using the NJOY code system into 69-group data. The burnup dependent weighting spectra for KMRR were calculated with the WIMS-KAERI computer code, and then the 69-group data were collapsed to one-group using the spectra. The ORlGEN2-predicted burnup-dependent actinide compositions of KMRR spent fuel using the newly developed data base show a good agreement with the results of detailed multigroup transport calculation. In addition, the burnup characteristics of KMRR spent fuel was analyzed with the new data base. (Author)

The role of efficacy and moral outrage norms in creating the potential for international development activism through group-based interaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Emma F; McGarty, Craig A

2009-03-01

This paper adopts an intergroup perspective on helping as collective action to explore the ways to boost motivation amongst people in developed countries to join the effort to combat poverty and preventable disease in developing countries. Following van Zomeren, Spears, Leach, and Fischer's (2004) model of collective action, we investigated the role of norms about an emotional response (moral outrage) and beliefs about efficacy in motivating commitment to take action amongst members of advantaged groups. Norms about outrage and efficacy were harnessed to an opinion-based group identity (Bliuc, McGarty, Reynolds, & Muntele, 2007) and explored in the context of a novel group-based interaction method. Results showed that the group-based interaction boosted commitment to action especially when primed with an (injunctive) outrage norm. This norm stimulated a range of related effects including increased identification with the pro-international development opinion-based group, and higher efficacy beliefs. Results provide an intriguing instance of the power of group interaction (particularly where strengthened with emotion norms) to bolster commitment to positive social change.

RETHINKING THE ROLE OF SMALL-GROUP COLLABORATORS AND ADVERSARIES IN THE LONDON KLEINIAN DEVELOPMENT (1914-1968).

Science.gov (United States)

Aguayo, Joseph; Regeczkey, Agnes

2016-07-01

The authors historically situate the London Kleinian development in terms of the small-group collaborations and adversaries that arose during the course of Melanie Klein's career. Some collaborations later became personally adversarial (e.g., those Klein had with Glover and Schmideberg); other adversarial relationships forever remained that way (with A. Freud); while still other long-term collaborations became theoretically contentious (such as with Winnicott and Heimann). After the Controversial Discussions in 1944, Klein marginalized one group of supporters (Heimann, Winnicott, and Riviere) in favor of another group (Rosenfeld, Segal, and Bion). After Klein's death in 1960, Bion maintained loyalty to Klein's ideas while quietly distancing his work from the London Klein group, immigrating to the United States in 1968. © 2016 The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, Inc.

New location of the Learning and Development group

CERN Multimedia

The Learning and Development group

2016-01-01

The HR-LD group would like to inform you that, owing to renovations, the service currently located on the fourth floor of Building 5 will be moving to the first floor of Building 653 for around eight months from September 2016.   The HR-LD group will be moving to the first floor of Building 653 for around eight months from September 2016. Please note as well that, from mid-September 2016, the language courses run by CERN will take place in Building 693 (next to the Technical Training Centre, Building 593), instead of on the fourth floor of Building 5. From mid-September 2016, the language courses run by CERN will take place in Building 693. The move will take place in two phases: Language courses: Thursday, 1 and Friday, 2 September 2016 HR-LD group: Monday, 5 and Tuesday, 6 September 2016 Communication by phone and e-mail may be disrupted during this time. The temporary office numbers of those moving will be shown in the CERN Phonebook. Thank you for your understanding.

Oxidative stress in microorganisms - I (Microbial vs. higher cells - damage and defenses in relation to cell aging and death)

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Sigler, Karel; Chaloupka, Jiří; Brozmanová, J.; Stadler, N.; Höfer, M.

1999-01-01

Roč. 44, č. 6 (1999), s. 587-624 ISSN 0015-5632 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA204/99/0488; GA MŠk ME 315 Grant - others:Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung(DE) TSR113-97; NATO(NQ) SA-CRG.CRGP973150 Institutional research plan: CEZ:A53/98:Z5-020-9ii Subject RIV: EE - Microbiology, Virology Impact factor: 0.402, year: 1999

Consolidating AMC’s Contingency Response Capabilities: A Delphi Study

Science.gov (United States)

2015-06-19

Africa in support of Operation UNITED ASSISTANCE, the international response to contain the Ebola epidemic (US Transportation Command, 2014). Though JTF...DO, 2015). The deployment of the 817 CRG to Liberia also underutilized its full capacity as only 79 Airmen and 10 Soldiers of the 140-member JTF-PO...pdf 89 Gonzalez, G. S. (2014, November 13). JTF-PO Leaves Liberia . Retrieved from US Air Force Expeditionary Center: http

Riverine Carbon and the Sedimentary Record on the Continental Shelves

Science.gov (United States)

2005-09-30

focused on the Gulf of Lions: collecting sediment samples and carrying out elemental and stable carbon isotopic analysis . The field work was carried...organisms. For example, the predominance of nitrogen-free biomacromolecules (e.g. tannin , lignin, cellulose, cutin and suberin) over proteins (C:N ≈ 3-4...are cooperating with J. Fabres and A. Calafat (CRG Marine Geosciences) in carrying out elemental and isotopic analysis on suspended material

The French UMo group contribution to new LEU fuel development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamy, J.M.; Lemoine, P.; Huet, F.; Jarousse, C.; Emin, J.L.

2005-01-01

The French UMo Group was based on a close collaboration between CEA and AREVA's companies strongly involved in the MTR field. The aim of this program was to deliver industrially a high performance LEU UMo fuel able to be reprocessed, and suitable for a wide range of Research Reactor, covering the expected needs for MTR next generation. Since 1999, the program has been focused on industrial aspects with the intention to deal with the whole fuel cycle: manufacturing, irradiation behaviour, fuel characterisation, code development and reprocessing validation. It has been based on the fabrication of full-sized U-7%Mo fuel plates with a density up to 8 gU/cm 3 . The dedicated and advanced R and D means provided by the CEA have been used intensively with the contribution of HFR and BR2 facilities in Europe. This paper presents a synthesis of the program and the corresponding significant results obtained. These results have played a major role as regards the UMo dispersion fuel qualification route by issuing, for the first time, evidence of severe performance limitations. Consequently, the global international effort to develop and qualify a high density LEU UMo fuel has been definitively re-routed and forced to overcome these discrepancies by exploring new technical solutions. A French extended program sustained by a CEA and CERCA collaboration has been launched in 2004 in order to develop a suitable UMo fuel solution. UMo dispersion and monolithic fuel are both investigated through three new full-sized plate irradiations planned in OSIRIS. (author)

MSMEs craft as a means of development for rural groups in Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Victoria Hernández Ramírez

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Craftsmanship activity continues be relevant in many countries not only on develops butin the rich, that be able to some social groups an only income or a complementary one. In this paper we present a description of that sector of activity beginning with concerning concepts to the activity, the social and economic importance as micro or small enterprises, the craftsmanship products in Mexico and over the world. It is mentioned the problematicand the challenges for this activity sector and the contributions that can make the governmentand academics.

Life history in male mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx): physical development, dominance rank, and group association.

Science.gov (United States)

Setchell, Joanna M; Wickings, E Jean; Knapp, Leslie A

2006-12-01

We assess life history from birth to death in male mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) living in a semifree-ranging colony in Gabon, using data collected for 82 males that attained at least the age of puberty, including 33 that reached adulthood and 25 that died, yielding data for their entire lifespan. We describe patterns of mortality and injuries, dominance rank, group association, growth and stature, and secondary sexual character expression across the male lifespan. We examine relationships among these variables and investigate potential influences on male life history, including differences in the social environment (maternal rank and group demography) and early development, with the aim of identifying characteristics of successful males. Sons of higher-ranking females were more likely to survive to adulthood than sons of low-ranking females. Adolescent males varied consistently in the rate at which they developed, and this variation was related to a male's own dominance rank. Males with fewer peers and sons of higher-ranking and heavier mothers also matured faster. However, maternal variables were not significantly related to dominance rank during adolescence, the age at which males attained adult dominance rank, or whether a male became alpha male. Among adult males, behavior and morphological development were related to a male's own dominance rank, and sons of high-ranking females were larger than sons of low-ranking females. Alpha males were always the most social, and the most brightly colored males, but were not necessarily the largest males present. Finally, alpha male tenure was related to group demography, with larger numbers of rival adult males and maturing adolescent males reducing the time a male spent as alpha male. Tenure did not appear to be related to characteristics of the alpha male himself. 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Effect of Play Group and Biopsychosocial Factors on the Independence Development of Preschool Children in Surakarta

OpenAIRE

Iin Tri Marlinawati; Harsono Salimo; Bhisma Murti

2017-01-01

Background: The development of children's independence is important for their future competitiveness in the rapidly increasing social changes. Disturbance in the development of children's independence may have a negative future impact in adult life and children become dependent individuals. Efforts are needed to help children develop optimally. Some play groups have been introduced to meet this need in Surakarta, but no studies have been carried out to evaluate its effectiveness. This study a...

Self Help Groups (SHGs and Women’s Development: A Case Study of the Varanasi District, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tripti Kumari

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Development is a multi-dimensional process that affects society in multiple ways. It is well documented that women constitute about half of the world’s population but their share in the economy and other development spheres remain neglected. In addition, this large section of population (including Indian women have been suffering from various disadvantages - lack of accessibility to resources, non-recognition of their economic contribution within the family and society. In order to resolve these emerging challenges, Government of India (GOI has implemented various programmes and policies since Independence. Among these programmes, Self Help Groups (SHGs may be considered as a significant initiative of the government as well as the non-governmental organisations (NGOs. These are based on the principle of democratic process of development. The democratic institution provides a platform to the socially and economically deprived sections and encourages them for economic participation. Since the 1970s, SHGs have been working in many states of India and contributing to the development processes. The present paper is an attempt to analyse the contribution of SHGs in women’s development in the district of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. The impact of these groups on women’s development has been analysed by Gender Development Index (GDI, which focused on the male-female differences in terms of longevity of life, knowledge and economic betterment.

Development of a future teachers’ group in a Teaching Practice course of Physics and Biology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto Villani

2008-08-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the development of a future teachers’ group in a Teaching Practice course of Physics and Biology. During the course the students should propose a collective and interdisciplinary planning for a set of classes to be taught in basic teaching of a public school. We will try to show the evolution of the group and the teachers’ contributions, interpreting them from the point of view of Bion (1970, Kaës (1997 and Winnicott’s (1975. We will conclude with some considerations on teachers' initial formation.

Development and verification of a 281-group WIMS-D library based on ENDF/B-VII.1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dong, Zhengyun; Wu, Jun; Ma, Xubo; Yu, Hui; Chen, Yixue

2016-01-01

Highlights: • A new WIMS-D library based on SHEM 281 energy structures is developed. • The method for calculating the lambda factor is illustrated and parameters are discussed. • The results show the improvements of this library compared with other libraries. - Abstract: The WIMS-D library based on WIMS 69 or XMAS 172 energy group structures is widely used in thermal reactor research. Otherwise, the resonance overlap effect is not taken into account in the two energy group structure, which limits the accuracy of resonance treatment. The SHEM 281 group structure is designed by the French to avoid the resonance overlap effect. In this study, a new WIMS-D library with SHEM 281 mesh is developed by using the NJOY nuclear data processing system based on the latest Evaluated Nuclear Data Library ENDF/B-VII.1. The parameters such as the thermal cut-off energy and lambda factor that depend on group structure are discussed. The lambda factor is calculated by Neutron Resonance Spectrum Calculation System and the effect of this factor is analyzed. The new library is verified through the analysis of various criticality benchmarks by using DRAGON code. The values of multiplication factor are consistent with the experiment data and the results also are improved in comparison with other WIMS libraries.

What Is a Group? Young Children's Perceptions of Different Types of Groups and Group Entitativity.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Plötner

Full Text Available To date, developmental research on groups has focused mainly on in-group biases and intergroup relations. However, little is known about children's general understanding of social groups and their perceptions of different forms of group. In this study, 5- to 6-year-old children were asked to evaluate prototypes of four key types of groups: an intimacy group (friends, a task group (people who are collaborating, a social category (people who look alike, and a loose association (people who coincidently meet at a tram stop. In line with previous work with adults, the vast majority of children perceived the intimacy group, task group, and social category, but not the loose association, to possess entitativity, that is, to be a 'real group.' In addition, children evaluated group member properties, social relations, and social obligations differently in each type of group, demonstrating that young children are able to distinguish between different types of in-group relations. The origins of the general group typology used by adults thus appear early in development. These findings contribute to our knowledge about children's intuitive understanding of groups and group members' behavior.

Use of Adult Patient Focus Groups to Develop the Initial Item Bank for a Cochlear Implant Quality-of-Life Instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

McRackan, Theodore R; Velozo, Craig A; Holcomb, Meredith A; Camposeo, Elizabeth L; Hatch, Jonathan L; Meyer, Ted A; Lambert, Paul R; Melvin, Cathy L; Dubno, Judy R

2017-10-01

No instrument exists to assess quality of life (QOL) in adult cochlear implant (CI) users that has been developed and validated using accepted scientific standards. To develop a CI-specific QOL instrument for adults in accordance with the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) guidelines. As required in the PROMIS guidelines, patient focus groups participated in creation of the initial item bank. Twenty-three adult CI users were divided into 1 of 3 focus groups stratified by word recognition ability. Three moderator-led focus groups were conducted based on grounded theory on December 3, 2016. Two reviewers independently analyzed focus group recordings and transcripts, with a third reviewer available to resolve discrepancies. All data were reviewed and reported according to the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research. The setting was a tertiary referral center. Coded focus group data. The 23 focus group participants (10 [43%] female; mean [range] age, 68.1 [46.2-84.2] years) represented a wide range of income levels, education levels, listening modalities, CI device manufacturers, duration of CI use, and age at implantation. Data saturation was determined to be reached before the conclusion of each of the focus groups. After analysis of the transcripts, the central themes identified were communication, emotion, environmental sounds, independence and work function, listening effort, social isolation and ability to socialize, and sound clarity. Cognitive interviews were carried out on 20 adult CI patients who did not participate in the focus groups to ensure item clarity. Based on these results, the initial QOL item bank and prototype were developed. Patient focus groups drawn from the target population are the preferred method of identifying content areas and domains for developing the item bank for a CI-specific QOL instrument. Compared with previously used methods, the use of patient-centered item development for a CI

Development of the Teacher Feedback Observation Scheme: evaluating the quality of feedback in peer groups

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Thurlings, Marieke; Vermeulen, Marjan; Kreijns, Karel; Bastiaens, Theo; Stijnen, Sjef

2018-01-01

Research suggests that feedback is an essential element in learning. This study focuses on feedback that teachers provide in reciprocal peer groups to improve their performance in the classroom. The Teacher Feedback Observation Scheme (TFOS) was developed to identify feedback patterns, which

EDF group - annual report 2003; Groupe EDF - rapport annuel 2003

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2004-07-01

This document contains the magazine, the financial statements and the sustainable development report of Electricite de France (EdF) group for 2003: 1 - the magazine (chairman's statement, group profile, vision and strategy); 2 - the consolidated financial statements for the period ended 31 December 2003 (statutory auditors' report on the consolidated financial statements, EDF's summary annual financial statements); 3 - sustainable development report (transparency and dialogue, responsibility, commitment, partnerships for progress). (J.S.)

arXiv HEP Software Foundation Community White Paper Working Group - Software Development, Deployment and Validation

CERN Document Server

Couturier, Benjamin; Grasland, Hadrien; Hegner, Benedikt; Jouvin, Michel; Kane, Meghan; Katz, Daniel S.; Kuhr, Thomas; Lange, David; Mendez Lorenzo, Patricia; Ritter, Martin; Stewart, Graeme Andrew; Valassi, Andrea

The High Energy Phyiscs community has developed and needs to maintain many tens of millions of lines of code and to integrate effectively the work of thousands of developers across large collaborations. Software needs to be built, validated, and deployed across hundreds of sites. Software also has a lifetime of many years, frequently beyond that of the original developer, it must be developed with sustainability in mind. Adequate recognition of software development as a critical task in the HEP community needs to be fostered and an appropriate publication and citation strategy needs to be developed. As part of the HEP Softare Foundation's Community White Paper process a working group on Software Development, Deployment and Validation was formed to examine all of these issues, identify best practice and to formulare recommendations for the next decade. Its report is presented here.

33 CFR 155.1052 - Response plan development and evaluation criteria for vessels carrying group V petroleum oil as a...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... evaluation criteria for vessels carrying group V petroleum oil as a primary cargo. 155.1052 Section 155.1052....1052 Response plan development and evaluation criteria for vessels carrying group V petroleum oil as a primary cargo. (a) Owners and operators of vessels that carry group V petroleum oil as a primary cargo...

Developing a parent-professional team leadership model in group work: work with families with children experiencing behavioral and emotional problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruffolo, Mary C; Kuhn, Mary T; Evans, Mary E

2006-01-01

Building on the respective strengths of parent-led and professional-led groups, a parent-professional team leadership model for group interventions was developed and evaluated for families of youths with emotional and behavioral problems. The model was developed based on feedback from 26 parents in focus group sessions and recommendations from mental health professionals in staff meetings. Evaluations of an implementation of the model in a support, empowerment, and education group intervention (S.E.E. group) have demonstrated the usefulness of this approach in work with families of children with behavioral and emotional problems. This article discusses the challenges of instituting the model in an S.E.E. group. It explores how parents and professionals build the team leadership model and the strengths of this approach in working with parents of youths with serious emotional disturbances.

Inter-Group and Intra-Group Assertiveness: Adolescents' Social Skills Following Cultural Transition

Science.gov (United States)

Korem, Anat; Horenczyk, Gabriel; Tatar, Moshe

2012-01-01

The goals of this study were to examine intra-group and inter-group assertiveness among adolescents, and to compare these two domains of assertiveness between cultural groups in Israel. Measures of intra-group and inter-group assertiveness were developed, and questionnaires were administrated to 441 immigrants from the Former Soviet Union (FSU),…

The effect of modified benchmark on the accuracy of measuring the deformation at Muria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ari Nugroho

2013-01-01

The monitoring of deformation surrounding the Muria mountain is recommended by The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency). In addition, this study also to provide the data of deformation caused by the volcanic activity of Mount Muria, as a basic study in analyzing the volcanic hazard toward the NPP (Nuclear Power Plant). The main purpose of this study is to discover the accuracy between the two measurements by using the different BM (Benchmark). This study uses geodetic GPS (Global Positioning System) Trimble R7 GNSS. The measurement in the month of April to July 2011 used the standard BM and conducted in eight BM which are BKI (Bopkri), UJW (Ujung Watu), PDP (Perdopo), RTW (Rahtawu), RGG (Rengging), KTP (Ketek Putih), CRG (Cranggang), DM (Danyang Mulyo) and refer to one reference BM named Mijen. The measurement in the month of November 2011 used the modified BM and conducted in six BM which are BKI, PDP, RTW, RGG, KTP, CRG referred to the same reference BM named Mijen. These measurements resulted data in the range of 4-7 mm (horizontal), 16-28 mm (vertical), and in the range of 0.6 mm - 1.3 mm (horizontal), 0.3 mm – 0.6 mm, respectively. (author)

Between-group competition elicits within-group cooperation in children

Science.gov (United States)

Majolo, Bonaventura; Maréchal, Laëtitia

2017-02-01

Aggressive interactions between groups are frequent in human societies and can bear significant fitness costs and benefits (e.g. death or access to resources). During between-group competitive interactions, more cohesive groups (i.e. groups formed by individuals who cooperate in group defence) should out-perform less cohesive groups, other factors being equal (e.g. group size). The cost/benefit of between-group competition are thought to have driven correlated evolution of traits that favour between-group aggression and within-group cooperation (e.g. parochial altruism). Our aim was to analyse whether the proximate relationship between between-group competition and within-group cooperation is found in 3-10 years old children and the developmental trajectory of such a relationship. We used a large cohort of children (n = 120) and tested whether simulated between-group competition increased within-group cooperation (i.e. how much of a resource children were giving to their group companions) in two experiments. We found greater within-group cooperation when groups of four children were competing with other groups then in the control condition (no between-group competition). Within-group cooperation increased with age. Our study suggests that parochial altruism and in-group/out-group biases emerge early during the course of human development.

DEVELOPING FINNISH CONFECTIONERY IN CHINA THROUGH THE LUXURY STRATEGY : Case: Fazer Group (Chocolate)

OpenAIRE

Wang, Liang

2012-01-01

As globalization is proceeding rapidly today, China is growing into a powerful player due to its great consuming capability and huge potential for development. A good business environment has been created for foreign companies, and an increasing number of foreign brands are landing there every year. Fazer Group is a leading corporation in food industry in Northern Europe and the Baltic area; it has diverse businesses running in 27 countries while enjoying a good reputation. However, rare sale...

Group Development and Integration in a Cross-Disciplinary and Intercultural Research Team

Science.gov (United States)

Kirk-Lawlor, Naomi; Allred, Shorna

2017-04-01

Cross-disciplinary research is necessary to solve many complex problems that affect society today, including problems involving linked social and environmental systems. Examples include natural resource management or scarcity problems, problematic effects of climate change, and environmental pollution issues. Intercultural research teams are needed to address many complex environmental matters as they often cross geographic and political boundaries, and involve people of different countries and cultures. It follows that disciplinarily and culturally diverse research teams have been organized to investigate and address environmental issues. This case study investigates a team composed of both monolingual and bilingual Chilean and US university researchers who are geoscientists, engineers and economists. The objective of this research team was to study both the natural and human parts of a hydrologic system in a hyper-arid region in northern Chile. Interviews ( n = 8) addressed research questions focusing on the interaction of cross-disciplinary diversity and cultural diversity during group integration and development within the team. The case study revealed that the group struggled more with cross-disciplinary challenges than with intercultural ones. Particularly challenging ones were instances the of disciplinary crosstalk, or hidden misunderstandings, where team members thought they understood their cross-disciplinary colleagues, when in reality they did not. Results showed that translation served as a facilitator to cross-disciplinary integration of the research team. The use of translation in group meetings as a strategy for effective cross-disciplinary integration can be extended to monolingual cross-disciplinary teams as well.

Group Development and Integration in a Cross-Disciplinary and Intercultural Research Team.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirk-Lawlor, Naomi; Allred, Shorna

2017-04-01

Cross-disciplinary research is necessary to solve many complex problems that affect society today, including problems involving linked social and environmental systems. Examples include natural resource management or scarcity problems, problematic effects of climate change, and environmental pollution issues. Intercultural research teams are needed to address many complex environmental matters as they often cross geographic and political boundaries, and involve people of different countries and cultures. It follows that disciplinarily and culturally diverse research teams have been organized to investigate and address environmental issues. This case study investigates a team composed of both monolingual and bilingual Chilean and US university researchers who are geoscientists, engineers and economists. The objective of this research team was to study both the natural and human parts of a hydrologic system in a hyper-arid region in northern Chile. Interviews (n = 8) addressed research questions focusing on the interaction of cross-disciplinary diversity and cultural diversity during group integration and development within the team. The case study revealed that the group struggled more with cross-disciplinary challenges than with intercultural ones. Particularly challenging ones were instances the of disciplinary crosstalk, or hidden misunderstandings, where team members thought they understood their cross-disciplinary colleagues, when in reality they did not. Results showed that translation served as a facilitator to cross-disciplinary integration of the research team. The use of translation in group meetings as a strategy for effective cross-disciplinary integration can be extended to monolingual cross-disciplinary teams as well.

Cognitive synergy in groups and group-to-individual transfer of decision-making competencies

Science.gov (United States)

Curşeu, Petru L.; Meslec, Nicoleta; Pluut, Helen; Lucas, Gerardus J. M.

2015-01-01

In a field study (148 participants organized in 38 groups) we tested the effect of group synergy and one's position in relation to the collaborative zone of proximal development (CZPD) on the change of individual decision-making competencies. We used two parallel sets of decision tasks reported in previous research to test rationality and we evaluated individual decision-making competencies in the pre-group and post-group conditions as well as group rationality (as an emergent group level phenomenon). We used multilevel modeling to analyze the data and the results showed that members of synergetic groups had a higher cognitive gain as compared to members of non-synergetic groups, while highly rational members (members above the CZPD) had lower cognitive gains compared to less rational group members (members situated below the CZPD). These insights extend the literature on group-to-individual transfer of learning and have important practical implications as they show that group dynamics influence the development of individual decision-making competencies. PMID:26441750

Cognitive synergy in groups and group-to-individual transfer of decision-making competencies.

Science.gov (United States)

Curşeu, Petru L; Meslec, Nicoleta; Pluut, Helen; Lucas, Gerardus J M

2015-01-01

In a field study (148 participants organized in 38 groups) we tested the effect of group synergy and one's position in relation to the collaborative zone of proximal development (CZPD) on the change of individual decision-making competencies. We used two parallel sets of decision tasks reported in previous research to test rationality and we evaluated individual decision-making competencies in the pre-group and post-group conditions as well as group rationality (as an emergent group level phenomenon). We used multilevel modeling to analyze the data and the results showed that members of synergetic groups had a higher cognitive gain as compared to members of non-synergetic groups, while highly rational members (members above the CZPD) had lower cognitive gains compared to less rational group members (members situated below the CZPD). These insights extend the literature on group-to-individual transfer of learning and have important practical implications as they show that group dynamics influence the development of individual decision-making competencies.

What Is a Group? Young Children’s Perceptions of Different Types of Groups and Group Entitativity

Science.gov (United States)

Plötner, Maria; Over, Harriet; Carpenter, Malinda; Tomasello, Michael

2016-01-01

To date, developmental research on groups has focused mainly on in-group biases and intergroup relations. However, little is known about children’s general understanding of social groups and their perceptions of different forms of group. In this study, 5- to 6-year-old children were asked to evaluate prototypes of four key types of groups: an intimacy group (friends), a task group (people who are collaborating), a social category (people who look alike), and a loose association (people who coincidently meet at a tram stop). In line with previous work with adults, the vast majority of children perceived the intimacy group, task group, and social category, but not the loose association, to possess entitativity, that is, to be a ‘real group.’ In addition, children evaluated group member properties, social relations, and social obligations differently in each type of group, demonstrating that young children are able to distinguish between different types of in-group relations. The origins of the general group typology used by adults thus appear early in development. These findings contribute to our knowledge about children's intuitive understanding of groups and group members' behavior. PMID:27010484

EDF group - annual report 2003; Groupe EDF - rapport annuel 2003

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2004-07-01

This document contains the magazine, the financial statements and the sustainable development report of Electricite de France (EdF) group for 2003: 1 - the magazine (chairman's statement, group profile, vision and strategy); 2 - the consolidated financial statements for the period ended 31 December 2003 (statutory auditors' report on the consolidated financial statements, EDF's summary annual financial statements); 3 - sustainable development report (transparency and dialogue, responsibility, commitment, partnerships for progress). (J.S.)

Group identity and positive deviance in work groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Moon Joung; Choi, Jin Nam

2017-12-05

This study examines why and how identity cognitions, including group identification and individual differentiation, influence the positive deviance of employees. We identify the risk-taking intention of employees as a critical psychological mechanism to overcome stigma-induced identity threat of positive deviance. The analysis of data collected from 293 members comprising 66 work teams reveals that the relationship between individual differentiation and positive deviance is partially mediated by risk-taking intention. The indirect effect of group identification on positive deviance through risk-taking intention is also significant and positive in groups with low conformity pressure, whereas the same indirect effect is neutralized in groups with high conformity pressure. The current analysis offers new insights into the way the group context and the identity cognition of members explain the development of positive deviance and workplace creativity.

Development of a Real-time PCR test for porcine group A rotavirus diagnosis

OpenAIRE

Marconi, Elizabeth C.M.; Bernardes, Nara T.C.G.; Beserra, Laila A.R.; Silva, Fernanda D.F.; Gregori, Fabio

2015-01-01

Group A Rotavirus (RVA) is one of the most common causes of diarrhea in humans and several animal species. A SYBR-Green Real-Time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was developed to diagnose RVA from porcine fecal samples, targeting amplification of a 137-bp fragment of nonstructural protein 5 (NSP5) gene using mRNA of bovine NADH-desidrogenase-5 as exogenous internal control. Sixty-five samples were tested (25 tested positive for conventional PCR and genetic sequencing). The overall agreement (...

Clifford algebras, spinors, spin groups and covering groups

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Magneville, C.; Pansart, J.P.

1991-03-01

The Dirac equation uses matrices named Υ matrices which are representations of general algebraic structures associated with a metric space. These algebras are the Clifford algebras. In the first past, these algebras are studied. Then the notion of spinor is developed. It is shown that Majorana and Weyl spinors only exist for some particular metric space. In the second part, Clifford and spinor groups are studied. They may be interpreted as the extension of the notion of orthogonal group for Clifford algebras and their spaces for representation. The rotation of a spinor is computed. In the last part, the connexion between the spinor groups and the Universal Covering Groups is presented [fr

Criteria for Handling Qualities of Military Aircraft.

Science.gov (United States)

1982-06-01

en son ban fonctionnement, asise sur de multiples campagnes dessais star bane eau sol, 6taat suffisante pour que los respansables des essais an vol de...du traitement analytiqoe des probli6mes complexes do lloprateur humain, andlioration quo l’application do l CRG apporterait au cours do la prochaine...control cnetia Gouverne do direction information Proceuig nt Traitement dinformation Fig. 2 - Principles of Active Control Principes do la CAG CL C Z W

Minimal groups increase young children's motivation and learning on group-relevant tasks.

Science.gov (United States)

Master, Allison; Walton, Gregory M

2013-01-01

Three experiments (N = 130) used a minimal group manipulation to show that just perceived membership in a social group boosts young children's motivation for and learning from group-relevant tasks. In Experiment 1, 4-year-old children assigned to a minimal "puzzles group" persisted longer on a challenging puzzle than children identified as the "puzzles child" or children in a control condition. Experiment 2 showed that this boost in motivation occurred only when the group was associated with the task. In Experiment 3, children assigned to a minimal group associated with word learning learned more words than children assigned an analogous individual identity. The studies demonstrate that fostering shared motivations may be a powerful means by which to shape young children's academic outcomes. © 2012 The Authors. Child Development © 2012 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Algorithm development and verification of UASCM for multi-dimension and multi-group neutron kinetics model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Si, S.

2012-01-01

The Universal Algorithm of Stiffness Confinement Method (UASCM) for neutron kinetics model of multi-dimensional and multi-group transport equations or diffusion equations has been developed. The numerical experiments based on transport theory code MGSNM and diffusion theory code MGNEM have demonstrated that the algorithm has sufficient accuracy and stability. (authors)

Development of fusimotor innervation correlates with group Ia afferents but is independent of neurotrophin-3

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ringstedt, T; Copray, S; Walro, J; Kucera, J

1998-01-01

Fusimotor neurons, group Ia afferents and muscle spindles are absent in mutant mice lacking the gene for neurotrophin-3 (NT3). To partition the effect of Ia afferent or spindle absence from that of NT3 deprivation on fusimotor neuron development, we examined the fusimotor system in a mutant mouse

Teaching Groups as Midlevel Sociocultural Contexts for Developing Teaching and Learning: A Case Study and Comparison to Microcultures

Science.gov (United States)

Heinrich, Eva

2017-01-01

Using a case-study approach, the structures, interactions and cultures in four teaching groups at a New Zealand university are explored. The aim of the research is to better understand the potential of teaching groups for assisting academic development. To contextualize this work, the case-study outcomes are compared to research on microcultures.…

Group supervision for general practitioners

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Galina Nielsen, Helena; Sofie Davidsen, Annette; Dalsted, Rikke

2013-01-01

AIM: Group supervision is a sparsely researched method for professional development in general practice. The aim of this study was to explore general practitioners' (GPs') experiences of the benefits of group supervision for improving the treatment of mental disorders. METHODS: One long-establish......AIM: Group supervision is a sparsely researched method for professional development in general practice. The aim of this study was to explore general practitioners' (GPs') experiences of the benefits of group supervision for improving the treatment of mental disorders. METHODS: One long...... considered important prerequisites for disclosing and discussing professional problems. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that participation in a supervision group can be beneficial for maintaining and developing GPs' skills in dealing with patients with mental health problems. Group supervision...... influenced other areas of GPs' professional lives as well. However, more studies are needed to assess the impact of supervision groups....

Group Work. Research Brief

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Karen

2010-01-01

According to Johnson and Johnson, group work helps increase student retention and satisfaction, develops strong oral communication and social skills, as well as higher self-esteem (University of Minnesota, n.d.). Group work, when planned and implemented deliberately and thoughtfully helps students develop cognitive and leadership skills as well as…

DEVELOPING ONLINE CO-CREATION INSTRUMENTS BASED ON A FOCUS GROUP APPROACH: THE E-PICUS CASE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ALEXA Lidia

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The current business environment is in constant change, characterized by increased competition and in order to remain relevant and to create products and services that respond better to the customers’ needs and expectations, companies need to become more innovative and proactive. To address the competitive challenges, more and more companies are using innovation co-creation where all the relevant stakeholders are participating across the value chain, from idea generation, selection, development and eventually, even to marketing the new products or services.The paper presents the process of developing an online cocreation. The platform, within the framework of a research project, underlying the importance of using a focus group approach for requirements elicitation in IT instruments development.

Group Analytic Psychotherapy in Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Penna, Carla; Castanho, Pablo

2015-10-01

Group analytic practice in Brazil began quite early. Highly influenced by the Argentinean Pichon-Rivière, it enjoyed a major development from the 1950s to the early 1980s. Beginning in the 1970s, different factors undermined its development and eventually led to its steep decline. From the mid 1980s on, the number of people looking for either group analytic psychotherapy or group analytic training decreased considerably. Group analytic psychotherapy societies struggled to survive and most of them had to close their doors in the 1990s and the following decade. Psychiatric reform and the new public health system have stimulated a new demand for groups in Brazil. Developments in the public and not-for-profit sectors, combined with theoretical and practical research in universities, present promising new perspectives for group analytic psychotherapy in Brazil nowadays.

Development of a national sport event risk management training program for college command groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Stacey A

2013-01-01

The US Department of Homeland Security identified college sport venues as terrorist targets due to the potential for mass casualties and catastrophic social and economic impact. Therefore, it is critical for college sport safety and security personnel to implement effective risk management practices. However, deficiencies have been identified in the level of preparedness of college sport event security personnel related to risk management training and effective emergency response capabilities. To address the industry need, the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security designed, developed, and evaluated a national sport event risk management training program for National Collegiate Athletic Association command groups. The purpose of this article was to provide an overview of the design, development, and evaluation process.

Early social isolation impairs development, mate choice and grouping behaviour of predatory mites.

Science.gov (United States)

Schausberger, Peter; Gratzer, Marian; Strodl, Markus A

2017-05-01

The social environment early in life is a key determinant of developmental, physiological and behavioural trajectories across vertebrate and invertebrate animals. One crucial variable is the presence/absence of conspecifics. For animals usually reared in groups, social isolation after birth or hatching can be a highly stressful circumstance, with potentially long-lasting consequences. Here, we assessed the effects of social deprivation (isolation) early in life, that is, absence of conspecifics, versus social enrichment, that is, presence of conspecifics, on developmental time, body size at maturity, mating behaviour and group-living in the plant-inhabiting predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis . Socially deprived protonymphs developed more slowly and were less socially competent in grouping behaviour than socially enriched protonymphs. Compromised social competence in grouping behaviour was evident in decreased activity, fewer mutual encounters and larger interindividual distances, all of which may entail severe fitness costs. In female choice/male competition, socially deprived males mated earlier than socially enriched males; in male choice/female competition, socially deprived females were more likely to mate than socially enriched females. In neither mate choice situation did mating duration or body size at maturity differ between socially deprived and enriched mating opponents. Social isolation-induced shifts in mating behaviour may be interpreted as increased attractiveness or competitiveness or, more likely, as hastiness and reduced ability to assess mate quality. Overall, many of the social isolation-induced behavioural changes in P. persimilis are analogous to those observed in other animals such as cockroaches, fruit flies, fishes or rodents. We argue that, due to their profound and persistent effects, early social deprivation or enrichment may be important determinants in shaping animal personalities.

The Comparative Study of Collaborative Learning and SDLC Model to develop IT Group Projects

OpenAIRE

Sorapak Pukdesree

2017-01-01

The main objectives of this research were to compare the attitudes of learners between applying SDLC model with collaborative learning and typical SDLC model and to develop electronic courseware as group projects. The research was a quasi-experimental research. The populations of the research were students who took Computer Organization and Architecture course in the academic year 2015. There were 38 students who participated to the research. The participants were divided voluntary into two g...

The efficacy of the well of the well (WOW) culture system on development of bovine embryos in a small group and the effect of number of adjacent embryos on their development.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Sung-Sik; Ofuji, Sosuke; Imai, Kei; Huang, Weiping; Koyama, Keisuke; Yanagawa, Yojiro; Takahashi, Yoshiyuki; Nagano, Masashi

2015-06-01

The aim of the present study was to clarify the efficacy of the well of the well (WOW) culture system for a small number of embryos and the effect of number of adjacent embryos in a WOW dish on blastocyst development. In conventional droplet culture, embryos in the small-number group (5-6 embryos/droplet) showed low blastocyst development compared with a control group (25-26 embryos/droplet). However, small and large numbers of embryos (5-6 and 25 embryos, respectively) in a WOW dish showed no significant differences in cleavage, blastocyst rates, and mean cell number in blastocysts compared with the control group (25-30 embryos/droplet). In addition, the number of adjacent embryos in a WOW dish did not affect the development to blastocysts and cell number in blastocysts. In conclusion, a WOW dish can provide high and stable blastocyst development in small group culture wherever embryos are placed in microwells of the WOW dish.

Predictive risk modelling in the Spanish population: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Orueta, Juan F; Nuño-Solinis, Roberto; Mateos, Maider; Vergara, Itziar; Grandes, Gonzalo; Esnaola, Santiago

2013-07-09

An increase in chronic conditions is currently the greatest threat to human health and to the sustainability of health systems. Risk adjustment systems may enable population stratification programmes to be developed and become instrumental in implementing new models of care.The objectives of this study are to evaluate the capability of ACG-PM, DCG-HCC and CRG-based models to predict healthcare costs and identify patients that will be high consumers and to analyse changes to predictive capacity when socio-economic variables are added. This cross-sectional study used data of all Basque Country citizens over 14 years of age (n = 1,964,337) collected in a period of 2 years. Data from the first 12 months (age, sex, area deprivation index, diagnoses, procedures, prescriptions and previous cost) were used to construct the explanatory variables. The ability of models to predict healthcare costs in the following 12 months was assessed using the coefficient of determination and to identify the patients with highest costs by means of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. The coefficients of determination ranged from 0.18 to 0.21 for diagnosis-based models, 0.17-0.18 for prescription-based and 0.21-0.24 for the combination of both. The observed area under the ROC curve was 0.78-0.86 (identifying patients with a cost higher than P-95) and 0.83-0.90 (P-99). The values of the DCG-HCC models are slightly higher and those of the CRG models are lower, although prescription information could not be used in the latter. On adding previous cost data, differences between the three systems decrease appreciably. Inclusion of the deprivation index led to only marginal improvements in explanatory power. The case-mix systems developed in the USA can be useful in a publicly financed healthcare system with universal coverage to identify people at risk of high health resource consumption and whose situation is potentially preventable through proactive interventions.

Online group course for parents with mental illness: development and pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Zanden, Rianne A P; Speetjens, Paula A M; Arntz, Karlijn S E; Onrust, Simone A

2010-12-19

Children of parents with mental illness (COPMI) are at greater risk of developing mental disorders themselves. Since impaired parenting skills appear to be a crucial factor, we developed a facilitated 8-session preventative group course called KopOpOuders (Chin Up, Parents) delivered via the Internet to Dutch parents with psychiatric problems. The goal was to promote children's well-being by strengthening children's protective factors via their parents. To reach parents at an early stage of their parenting difficulties, the course is easily accessible online. The course is delivered in a secure chat room, and participation is anonymous. This paper reports on (1) the design and method of this online the group course and (2) the results of a pilot study that assessed parenting skills, parental sense of competence, child well-being, and course satisfaction. The pilot study had a pre/post design. Parenting skills were assessed using Laxness and Overreactivity subscales of the Parenting Scale (PS). Sense of parenting competence was measured with the Ouderlijke Opvattingen over Opvoeding (OOO) questionnaire, a Dutch scale assessing parental perceptions of parenting using the Feelings of Incompetence and Feelings of Competence subscales. Child well-being was assessed with the total problem score, Emotional Problems, and Hyperactivity subscales of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Paired samples t tests were performed, and Cohen's d was used to determine effect sizes. Intention-to-treat analyses and analyses of completers only were both performed. Course satisfaction was evaluated using custom-designed questionnaires. The sample comprised 48 parents with mental illness. The response rate was 100% (48/48) at pretest and 58% (28/48) at posttest. Significant improvements were found on PS Laxness and Overreactivity subscales (P children were not in the clinical range at both pretest and posttest. The mean course satisfaction score was 7.8 on a 10-point scale

Development of a customer experience-based brand strategy for the Lenovo Group to explore the UK market

OpenAIRE

Yin, Yuanyuan; Holland, Ray; Qin, Shengfeng; Wu, Weicheng

2006-01-01

This paper presented a development of a customer experience-based brand strategy for Lenovo Group which is one of the biggest and most powerful PC producers in the world. After acquiring the IBM’s Personal Computing division, Lenovo focus on exploring the UK market. Due to differences in culture, user behaviour, market environment and so on, Lenovo have to develop a new product development brand strategy to transfer their successful brand strategy from China to the UK. The key question in thi...

Phenotype, Immunological Reactivity and Cytokine Production Profile of Peyer`s Patch Cells from Mice Immunized Orally with Allogeneic Cells

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Frič, Jan; Krulová, Magdalena; Zajícová, Alena; Holáň, Vladimír

2000-01-01

Roč. 46, č. 3 (2000), s. 119-125 ISSN 0015-5500 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA310/99/0360; GA ČR GA310/97/1261; GA ČR GA310/99/D044; GA MZd IZ3964; GA MŠk VS97099; GA MŠk ME 300 Grant - others:NATO(BE) CRG.LG972853 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z5052915 Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology Impact factor: 0.351, year: 2000

Abelian groups

CERN Document Server

Fuchs, László

2015-01-01

Written by one of the subject’s foremost experts, this book focuses on the central developments and modern methods of the advanced theory of abelian groups, while remaining accessible, as an introduction and reference, to the non-specialist. It provides a coherent source for results scattered throughout the research literature with lots of new proofs. The presentation highlights major trends that have radically changed the modern character of the subject, in particular, the use of homological methods in the structure theory of various classes of abelian groups, and the use of advanced set-theoretical methods in the study of undecidability problems. The treatment of the latter trend includes Shelah’s seminal work on the undecidability in ZFC of Whitehead’s Problem; while the treatment of the former trend includes an extensive (but non-exhaustive) study of p-groups, torsion-free groups, mixed groups, and important classes of groups arising from ring theory. To prepare the reader to tackle these topics, th...

Experience in developing and using the VITAMIN-C 171-neutron, 36-gamma-ray group cross-section library

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roussin, R.W.; Weisbin, C.R.; White, J.E.; Wright, R.Q.; Greene, N.M.; Ford, W.E. III; Wright, J.B.; Diggs, B.R.

1978-01-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) Division of Magnetic Fusion Energy (DMFE) and Reactor Research and Technology (DRRT) jointly sponsored the development of a coupled, fine-group cross-section library. The 171-neutron, 36-gamma-ray group library is intended to be applicable to fusion reactor neutronics and LMFBR core and shield analysis. Versions of the library are available from the Radiation Shielding Information Center (RSIC) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in both AMPX and CCCC formats. Computer codes for energy group collapsing, interpolation on Bondarenko factors for resonance self-shielding and temperature corrections, and various other useful data manipulations are available. The experience gained in the utilization of this library is discussed. Indications are that this venture, which is designed to allow users to derive problem-dependent cross sections from a fine-group master library, has been a success

Developing clinical practice guidelines: target audiences, identifying topics for guidelines, guideline group composition and functioning and conflicts of interest.

Science.gov (United States)

Eccles, Martin P; Grimshaw, Jeremy M; Shekelle, Paul; Schünemann, Holger J; Woolf, Steven

2012-07-04

Clinical practice guidelines are one of the foundations of efforts to improve health care. In 1999, we authored a paper about methods to develop guidelines. Since it was published, the methods of guideline development have progressed both in terms of methods and necessary procedures and the context for guideline development has changed with the emergence of guideline clearing houses and large scale guideline production organisations (such as the UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence). It therefore seems timely to, in a series of three articles, update and extend our earlier paper. In this first paper we discuss: the target audience(s) for guidelines and their use of guidelines; identifying topics for guidelines; guideline group composition (including consumer involvement) and the processes by which guideline groups function and the important procedural issue of managing conflicts of interest in guideline development.

Truck shovel users group

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thomas, J. [Surface Mining Association for Research and Technology, AB (Canada)

2008-07-01

The Truck Shovel Users Group (TSUG) was developed as part of the Surface Mining Association for Research and Technology (SMART), an association of companies that meet to coordinate technology developments for the mining industry. The TSUG meet regularly to discuss equipment upgrades, maintenance planning systems, and repair techniques. The group strives to maximize the value of its assets through increased safety, equipment performance and productivity. This presentation provided administrative details about the TSUG including contact details and admission costs. It was concluded that members of the group must be employed by companies that use heavy mining equipment, and must also be willing to host meetings, make presentations, and support the common goals of the group. tabs., figs.

Group-Server Queues

OpenAIRE

Li, Quan-Lin; Ma, Jing-Yu; Xie, Mingzhou; Xia, Li

2017-01-01

By analyzing energy-efficient management of data centers, this paper proposes and develops a class of interesting {\\it Group-Server Queues}, and establishes two representative group-server queues through loss networks and impatient customers, respectively. Furthermore, such two group-server queues are given model descriptions and necessary interpretation. Also, simple mathematical discussion is provided, and simulations are made to study the expected queue lengths, the expected sojourn times ...

EDF Group - Annual Report 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2013-01-01

The EDF Group is one of the world's leading energy companies, active in all areas from generation to trading and network management. It has a sound business model, evenly balanced between regulated and deregulated activities. With its first-rate human resources, R and D capability, expertise in engineering and operating generation plants and networks, as well as its energy eco-efficiency offers, the Group delivers competitive solutions that help ensure sustainable economic development and climate protection. The EDF Group is the leader in the French and UK electricity markets and has solid positions in Italy and numerous other European countries, as well as industrial operations in Asia and the United States. Everywhere it operates, the Group is a model of quality public service for the energy sector. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2012. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document is made of several reports: the Activity and Sustainable Development Report, the Financial Report, the 'EDF at a glance' report, and the Sustainable Development Indicators

Interim report on research and development of super heat pump energy accumulation system by the evaluation working group; Super heat pump energy shuseki system hyoka work group chukan hyoka hokokusho

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1990-03-01

The evaluation working group of the Large-scale Energy-saving Technology Research and Development Promotion Council has made an interim evaluation of the results obtained so far by the R and D project for the super heat pump energy accumulation systems. The working group evaluates the bench plant operation test results comprehensively, covering technical, economic and social aspects, and R and D promotion methodology. The working group has concluded that a significant technological break-through is made for the super high performance compression heat pumps, and the technological groundwork is now established for the future pilot system. For the chemical heat storage technologies, it is concluded that system feasibility is demonstrated, and the technological groundwork for the future development is established. The super heat pump is evaluated to potentially realize significant economic superiority over the conventional devices both in the domestic and industrial areas, and to be highly rated potentially in the areas of energy-saving, power load leveling and environmental preservation. (NEDO)

Long term needs for nuclear data development. Summary report of the advisory group meeting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muir, D.W.; Herman, M.

2001-05-01

The Advisory Group Meeting on Long Term Needs for Nuclear Data Development, was held from 28 November - 1 December 2000 at IAEA Headquarters, Vienna, Austria. The goal of this meeting was to develop a vision of the work needed over the next decades (2000-2020) on the measurement, calculation and evaluation of improved nuclear data for emerging applications. Of particular interest were data improvement activities that could be coordinated by the IAEA. The following areas of nuclear data applications were selected for discussion during the Meeting: Medical Applications; Ion Beam Analysis and Related Techniques; Nuclear Astrophysics; Nuclear Safeguards and Related Applications; Critical Reactors, including Closed Fuel Cycles; Accelerator Driven Subcritical Reactors; ADS Target Design and High-Energy Radiation Shielding. (author)

Developing an Integrative Play Therapy Group Model for Middle School Male Students to Address Bullying Behaviors

Science.gov (United States)

Jordan, Jakarla

2016-01-01

This research examines the systematic process of developing an integrative play therapy group model for middle school male students, ages 11-15 who participate in bullying behaviors. Play therapy approaches and evidence-based practices are documented as effective measures for addressing bullying behaviors with children and adolescents. This group…

Development and validation of an automated, microscopy-based method for enumeration of groups of intestinal bacteria

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jansen, GJ; Wildeboer-Veloo, ACM; Tonk, RHJ; Franks, AH; Welling, G

An automated microscopy-based method using fluorescently labelled 16S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probes directed against the predominant groups of intestinal bacteria was developed and validated. The method makes use of the Leica 600HR. image analysis system, a Kodak MegaPlus camera model 1.4 and

Establishing support groups for HIV-infected women: using experiences to develop guiding principles for project implementation.

Science.gov (United States)

Visser, Maretha J; Mundell, Jonathan P

2008-07-01

HIV-infected women need support to deal with their diagnosis as well as with the stigma attached to HIV. As part of their practical training, Master's-level psychology students negotiated with the staff of four clinics in townships in Tshwane, South Africa, to establish support groups for HIV+ women and offered to assist them in facilitating the groups. This study aimed to understand why the implementation of groups was successful in one clinic and not other clinics. The student reports on their experiences and interaction with clinic staff and clients were used as sources of data. Using qualitative data analysis, different dynamics and factors that could affect project implementation were identified in each clinic. The socio-ecological and systems theories were used to understand implementation processes and obstacles in implementation. The metaphor of building a bridge over a gorge was used to describe the different phases in and obstacles to the implementation of the intervention. Valuable lessons were learnt, resulting in the development of guiding principles for the implementation of support groups in community settings.

Development of a prototype system for prediction of the group error at the maintenance work

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoshino, Kenji; Hirotsu, Yuuko

2001-01-01

This paper described on development and performance evaluation of a prototype system for prediction of the group error at the maintenance work. The results so far are as follows. (1) When a user inputs the existence and the grade of the feature factor of the maintenance work as a prediction object, an organization and an organization factor and a group PSF put into the system. The maintenance group error to target can be predicted through the prediction model which consists of a class of seven stages. (2) This system by utilizing the information on a prediction result database, it can be use not only for prediction of a maintenance group but for various safe Activity, such as KYT(Kiken Yochi Training) and TBM(Tool Box Meeting). (3) This system predicts a cooperation error at highest rate, and subsequently. Predicts the detection error at a high rate. and to the decision-making. Error, the transfer error and the state cognitive error, and state error, it has the characteristics predicted at almost same rate. (4) if it has full knowledge even if the feature, such as the enforcement conditions of maintenance work, and organization, even if the user has neither the knowledge about a human factor, users experience, anyone of this system is slight about the extent, generating of a maintenance group error made difficult from the former logically and systematically, it can predict with business time for about 15 minutes. (author)

EDF Group - Annual Report 2005

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-01-01

The EDF Group is a leading player in the European energy industry, present in all areas of the electricity value chain, from generation to trading, and increasingly active in the gas chain in Europe. Leader in the French electricity market, the Group also has solid positions in the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. In the electricity sector, it has the premier generation fleet and customer portfolio in Europe and operates in strategically targeted areas in the rest of the world. The Group is also the leading network operator in Europe, giving it a sound business model, equally balanced between regulated activities and those open to competition. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2005. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document is made of several reports: the Activity and Sustainable Development report, the Financial Report, the Sustainable Development Report, the Sustainable Development Indicators, the Management Report, the Report by the Chairman of EDF Board of Directors on corporate governance and internal control procedures

EDF Group - Annual Report 2006

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2007-01-01

The EDF Group is a leading player in the European energy industry, present in all areas of the electricity value chain, from generation to trading, and increasingly active in the gas chain in Europe. Leader in the French electricity market, the Group also has solid positions in the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. In the electricity sector, it has the premier generation fleet and customer portfolio in Europe and operates in strategically targeted areas in the rest of the world. The Group is also the leading network operator in Europe, giving it a sound business model, equally balanced between regulated activities and those open to competition. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2006. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document is made of several reports: the Activity and Sustainable Development Report, the Financial Report, the Sustainable Development Report, the Sustainable Development Indicators, and the Report by the Chairman of EDF Board of Directors on corporate governance and internal control procedures

Groups, combinatorics and geometry

CERN Document Server

Ivanov, A A; Saxl, J

2003-01-01

Over the past 20 years, the theory of groups in particular simplegroups, finite and algebraic has influenced a number of diverseareas of mathematics. Such areas include topics where groups have beentraditionally applied, such as algebraic combinatorics, finitegeometries, Galois theory and permutation groups, as well as severalmore recent developments.

Introduction of small and medium reactors in developing countries. Proceedings of two advisory group meetings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-02-01

This publication presents material submitted both by vendor and interested buyer organizations and conclusions drawn from the discussions of these contributions at two Advisory Group meetings on the SMR introduction in developing countries. A few papers were prepared as follow-up contributions to the proceedings. The summary presents a review of the main areas related to SMR introduction and of relevant situations and activities in both industrialized and developing countries. It includes an assessment of the expected potential market and of relevant experience that may help developing countries in their efforts to introduce SMRs. Owing to the inclusion of several new designs, this TECDOC provides an update of the SMR status report (IAEA-TECDOC-881) published in 1996. It also reviews real time compact nuclear power plant simulators. Refs, figs, tabs.

Introduction of small and medium reactors in developing countries. Proceedings of two advisory group meetings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-02-01

This publication presents material submitted both by vendor and interested buyer organizations and conclusions drawn from the discussions of these contributions at two Advisory Group meetings on the SMR introduction in developing countries. A few papers were prepared as follow-up contributions to the proceedings. The summary presents a review of the main areas related to SMR introduction and of relevant situations and activities in both industrialized and developing countries. It includes an assessment of the expected potential market and of relevant experience that may help developing countries in their efforts to introduce SMRs. Owing to the inclusion of several new designs, this TECDOC provides an update of the SMR status report (IAEA-TECDOC-881) published in 1996. It also reviews real time compact nuclear power plant simulators

Peer Group Learning in Roche Pharma Development

Science.gov (United States)

Boulden, George P.; De Laat, Richard

2005-01-01

Pharma Development has used action learning to help participants in their 360[degrees] feedback programme develop their leadership competencies. The article describes how the programme was designed, supported and run across four sites over a period of 2 years. The programme was systematically evaluated and found to be successful in meeting its…

EDF Group - Annual Report 2013

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

The EDF Group is emerging as a global leader in electricity and an industrial benchmark spanning the entire business from generation and networks to sales and marketing. The group is growing stronger and changing. A long-term vision and relentless determination to provide a modern public service underpin its robust business model. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2013. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document comprises the Activity Report and the Sustainable Development Indicators

Group: radiation dosimetry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caldas, L.V.E.

1990-01-01

The main activities of the radiation dosimetry group is described, including the calibration of instruments, sources and radioactive solutions and the determination of neutron flux; development, production and market dosimetric materials; development radiation sensor make the control of radiation dose received by IPEN workers; development new techniques for monitoring, etc. (C.G.C.)

EDF Group - Annual Report 2010

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2011-01-01

The EDF Group is one of the world's leading energy companies, active in all areas from generation to trading and network management. It has a sound business model, evenly balanced between regulated and deregulated activities. With its first-rate human resources, R and D capability, expertise in engineering and operating generation plants and networks, as well as its energy eco-efficiency offers, the Group delivers competitive solutions that help ensure sustainable economic development and climate protection. The EDF Group is the leader in the French and UK electricity markets and has solid positions in Italy and numerous other European countries, as well as industrial operations in Asia and the United States. Everywhere it operates, the Group is a model of quality public service for the energy sector. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2010. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document is made of several reports: the Activity and Sustainable Development Report, the Financial Report, the Management Report, the Report by the Chairman of EDF Board of Directors on corporate governance and internal control procedures, the Milestones report, the 'EDF at a glance' report, and the Sustainable Development Indicators

The Role of Group Regulation in Student Groups: A Pedagogical Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Garth; Bristow, Dennis

2016-01-01

When tasked with group projects, students often struggle with teamwork and tend to overlook the importance of group self-regulation and its role in effective collaborative work. The pedagogy was implemented in semester long university level new product development courses. The pedagogy illustrates how educators can use student generated weekly…

Road development and the geography of hunting by an Amazonian indigenous group: consequences for wildlife conservation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Santiago Espinosa

Full Text Available Protected areas are essential for conservation of wildlife populations. However, in the tropics there are two important factors that may interact to threaten this objective: 1 road development associated with large-scale resource extraction near or within protected areas; and 2 historical occupancy by traditional or indigenous groups that depend on wildlife for their survival. To manage wildlife populations in the tropics, it is critical to understand the effects of roads on the spatial extent of hunting and how wildlife is used. A geographical analysis can help us answer questions such as: How do roads affect spatial extent of hunting? How does market vicinity relate to local consumption and trade of bushmeat? How does vicinity to markets influence choice of game? A geographical analysis also can help evaluate the consequences of increased accessibility in landscapes that function as source-sink systems. We applied spatial analyses to evaluate the effects of increased landscape and market accessibility by road development on spatial extent of harvested areas and wildlife use by indigenous hunters. Our study was conducted in Yasuní Biosphere Reserve, Ecuador, which is impacted by road development for oil extraction, and inhabited by the Waorani indigenous group. Hunting activities were self-reported for 12-14 months and each kill was georeferenced. Presence of roads was associated with a two-fold increase of the extraction area. Rates of bushmeat extraction and trade were higher closer to markets than further away. Hunters located closer to markets concentrated their effort on large-bodied species. Our results clearly demonstrate that placing roads within protected areas can seriously reduce their capacity to sustain wildlife populations and potentially threaten livelihoods of indigenous groups who depend on these resources for their survival. Our results critically inform current policy debates regarding resource extraction and road building

Road development and the geography of hunting by an Amazonian indigenous group: consequences for wildlife conservation.

Science.gov (United States)

Espinosa, Santiago; Branch, Lyn C; Cueva, Rubén

2014-01-01

Protected areas are essential for conservation of wildlife populations. However, in the tropics there are two important factors that may interact to threaten this objective: 1) road development associated with large-scale resource extraction near or within protected areas; and 2) historical occupancy by traditional or indigenous groups that depend on wildlife for their survival. To manage wildlife populations in the tropics, it is critical to understand the effects of roads on the spatial extent of hunting and how wildlife is used. A geographical analysis can help us answer questions such as: How do roads affect spatial extent of hunting? How does market vicinity relate to local consumption and trade of bushmeat? How does vicinity to markets influence choice of game? A geographical analysis also can help evaluate the consequences of increased accessibility in landscapes that function as source-sink systems. We applied spatial analyses to evaluate the effects of increased landscape and market accessibility by road development on spatial extent of harvested areas and wildlife use by indigenous hunters. Our study was conducted in Yasuní Biosphere Reserve, Ecuador, which is impacted by road development for oil extraction, and inhabited by the Waorani indigenous group. Hunting activities were self-reported for 12-14 months and each kill was georeferenced. Presence of roads was associated with a two-fold increase of the extraction area. Rates of bushmeat extraction and trade were higher closer to markets than further away. Hunters located closer to markets concentrated their effort on large-bodied species. Our results clearly demonstrate that placing roads within protected areas can seriously reduce their capacity to sustain wildlife populations and potentially threaten livelihoods of indigenous groups who depend on these resources for their survival. Our results critically inform current policy debates regarding resource extraction and road building near or within

USD Catalysis Group for Alternative Energy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoefelmeyer, James D.; Koodali, Ranjit; Sereda, Grigoriy; Engebretson, Dan; Fong, Hao; Puszynski, Jan; Shende, Rajesh; Ahrenkiel, Phil

2012-03-13

The South Dakota Catalysis Group (SDCG) is a collaborative project with mission to develop advanced catalysts for energy conversion with two primary goals: (1) develop photocatalytic systems in which polyfunctionalized TiO2 are the basis for hydrogen/oxygen synthesis from water and sunlight (solar fuels group), (2) develop new materials for hydrogen utilization in fuel cells (fuel cell group). In tandem, these technologies complete a closed chemical cycle with zero emissions.

An introduction to Lie group integrators – basics, new developments and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Celledoni, Elena; Marthinsen, Håkon; Owren, Brynjulf

2014-01-01

We give a short and elementary introduction to Lie group methods. A selection of applications of Lie group integrators are discussed. Finally, a family of symplectic integrators on cotangent bundles of Lie groups is presented and the notion of discrete gradient methods is generalised to Lie groups

Diffusion kurtosis metrics as biomarkers of microstructural development: A comparative study of a group of children and a group of adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Grinberg, Farida; Maximov, Ivan I; Farrher, Ezequiel; Neuner, Irene; Amort, Laura; Thönneßen, Heike; Oberwelland, Eileen; Konrad, Kerstin; Shah, N Jon

2017-01-01

The most common modality of diffusion MRI used in the ageing and development studies is diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) providing two key measures, fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity. Here, we investigated diffusional changes occurring between childhood (average age 10.3 years) and mitddle adult age (average age 54.3 years) with the help of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI), a recent novel extension of DTI that provides additional metrics quantifying non-Gaussianity of water diffusion in brain tissue. We performed voxelwise statistical between-group comparison of diffusion tensor and kurtosis tensor metrics using two methods, namely, the tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) and the atlas-based regional data analysis. For the latter, fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, mean diffusion kurtosis, and other scalar diffusion tensor and kurtosis tensor parameters were evaluated for white matter fibres provided by the Johns-Hopkins-University Atlas in the FSL toolkit (http://fsl.fmrib.ox.ac.uk/fsl/fslwiki/Atlases). Within the same age group, all evaluated parameters varied depending on the anatomical region. TBSS analysis showed that changes in kurtosis tensor parameters beyond adolescence are more widespread along the skeleton in comparison to the changes of the diffusion tensor metrics. The regional data analysis demonstrated considerably larger between-group changes of the diffusion kurtosis metrics than of diffusion tensor metrics in all investigated regions. The effect size of the parametric changes between childhood and middle adulthood was quantified using Cohen's d. We used Cohen's d related to mean diffusion kurtosis to examine heterogeneous maturation of various fibres. The largest changes of this parameter (interpreted as reflecting the lowest level of maturation by the age of children group) were observed in the association fibres, cingulum (gyrus) and cingulum (hippocampus) followed by superior longitudinal fasciculus and inferior longitudinal

Inter-group and intra-group assertiveness: adolescents' social skills following cultural transition.

Science.gov (United States)

Korem, Anat; Horenczyk, Gabriel; Tatar, Moshe

2012-08-01

The goals of this study were to examine intra-group and inter-group assertiveness among adolescents, and to compare these two domains of assertiveness between cultural groups in Israel. Measures of intra-group and inter-group assertiveness were developed, and questionnaires were administrated to 441 immigrants from the Former Soviet Union (FSU), 242 immigrants from Ethiopia and 333 non-immigrants. Compared to non-immigrants, FSU and Ethiopian immigrants' inter-group assertiveness was lower. Girls reported higher levels of inter-group assertiveness than boys. Each of the immigrant groups rates itself as equally assertive as the non-immigrant group and more assertive than the other immigrant group. Also, a difference between inter-group and intra-group assertiveness was found among the FSU immigrants. It is argued that adolescents' assertiveness following cultural transition is associated with socio-cultural context, and the implications of this conclusion are discussed. Copyright © 2011 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of a fine and ultra-fine group cell calculation code SLAROM-UF for fast reactor analyses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hazama, Taira; Chiba, Go; Sugino, Kazuteru

2006-01-01

A cell calculation code SLAROM-UF has been developed for fast reactor analyses to produce effective cross sections with high accuracy in practical computing time, taking full advantage of fine and ultra-fine group calculation schemes. The fine group calculation covers the whole energy range in a maximum of 900-group structure. The structure is finer above 52.5 keV with a minimum lethargy width of 0.008. The ultra-fine group calculation solves the slowing down equation below 52.5 keV to treat resonance structures directly and precisely including resonance interference effects. Effective cross sections obtained in the two calculations are combined to produce effective cross sections over the entire energy range. Calculation accuracy and improvements from conventional 70-group cell calculation results were investigated through comparisons with reference values obtained with continuous energy Monte Carlo calculations. It was confirmed that SLAROM-UF reduces the difference in k-infinity from 0.15 to 0.01% for a JOYO MK-I fuel subassembly lattice cell calculation, and from - 0.21% to less than a statistical uncertainty of the reference calculation of 0.03% for a ZPPR-10A core criticality calculation. (author)

EDF Group - Annual Report 2009

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2010-01-01

The EDF Group is a leading player in the energy industry, active in all areas of the electricity value chain, from generation to trading and network management, with expanding operations in the natural gas chain. It has a sound business model, evenly balanced between regulated and deregulated activities. The EDF Group is the leader in the French and British electricity markets and has solid positions in Germany and Italy and numerous other European countries, as well as industrial operations in Asia and the United States. Everywhere it operates, the EDF Group is a model of quality public service for the energy sector. With fi rst-rate human resources, R and D capability and generation expertise in nuclear, fossil-fired and renewable energies, particularly hydro, together with energy eco-efficiency offers, the EDF Group delivers competitive solutions that help ensure sustainable economic development and climate protection. This document is EDF Group's annual report for the year 2009. It contains information about Group profile, governance, business, development strategy, sales and marketing, positions in Europe and international activities. The document is made of several reports: the Activity and Sustainable Development Report, the Financial Report, the Management Report, the Report by the Chairman of EDF Board of Directors on corporate governance and internal control procedures, the Milestones report, the 'EDF at a glance' report, and the Sustainable Development Indicators

Evaluating Emergency Response Solutions for Sustainable Community Development by Using Fuzzy Multi-Criteria Group Decision Making Approaches: IVDHF-TOPSIS and IVDHF-VIKOR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junling Zhang

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Emergency management is vital in implementing sustainable community development, for which community planning must include emergency response solutions to potential natural and manmade hazards. To help maintain such solution repository, we investigate effective fuzzy multi-criteria group decision making (FMCGDM approaches for the complex problems of evaluating alternative emergency response solutions, where weights for decision makers and criteria are unknown due to problem complexity. We employ interval-valued dual hesitant fuzzy (IVDHF set to address decision hesitancy more effectively. Based on IVDHF assessments, we develop a deviation maximizing model to compute criteria weights and another compatibility maximizing model to calculate weights for decision makers. Then, two ideal-solution-based FMCGDM approaches are proposed: (i by introducing a synthesized IVDHF group decision matrix into TOPSIS, we develop an IVDHF-TOPSIS approach for fuzzy group settings; (ii when emphasizing both maximum group utility and minimum individual regret, we extend VIKOR to develop an IVDHF-VIKOR approach, where the derived decision makers’ weights are utilized to obtain group decision matrix and the determined criteria weights are integrated to reflect the relative importance of distances from the compromised ideal solution. Compared with aggregation-operators-based approach, IVDHF-TOPSIS and IVDHF-VIKOR can alleviate information loss and computational complexity. Numerical examples have validated the effectiveness of the proposed approaches.

Drinking and smoking patterns during pregnancy: Development of group-based trajectories in the Safe Passage Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Dukes, Kimberly; Tripp, Tara; Willinger, Marian; Odendaal, Hein; Elliott, Amy J; Kinney, Hannah C; Robinson, Fay; Petersen, Julie M; Raffo, Cheryl; Hereld, Dale; Groenewald, Coen; Angal, Jyoti; Hankins, Gary; Burd, Larry; Fifer, William P; Myers, Michael M; Hoffman, Howard J; Sullivan, Lisa

2017-08-01

Precise identification of drinking and smoking patterns during pregnancy is crucial to better understand the risk to the fetus. The purpose of this manuscript is to describe the methodological approach used to define prenatal drinking and smoking trajectories from a large prospective pregnancy cohort, and to describe maternal characteristics associated with different exposure patterns. In the Safe Passage Study, detailed information regarding quantity, frequency, and timing of exposure was self-reported up to four times during pregnancy and at 1 month post-delivery. Exposure trajectories were developed using data from 11,692 pregnancies (9912 women) where pregnancy outcome was known. Women were from three diverse populations: white (23%) and American Indian (17%) in the Northern Plains, US, and mixed ancestry (59%) in South Africa (other/not specified [1%]). Group-based trajectory modeling was used to identify 5 unique drinking trajectories (1 none/minimal, 2 quitting groups, 2 continuous groups) and 7 smoking trajectories (1 none/minimal, 2 quitting groups, 4 continuous groups). Women with pregnancies assigned to the low- or high-continuous drinking groups were less likely to have completed high school and were more likely to have enrolled in the study in the third trimester, be of mixed ancestry, or be depressed than those assigned to the none/minimal or quit-drinking groups. Results were similar when comparing continuous smokers to none/minimal and quit-smoking groups. Further, women classified as high- or low-continuous drinkers were more likely to smoke at moderate-, high-, and very high-continuous levels, as compared to women classified as non-drinkers and quitters. This is the first study of this size to utilize group-based trajectory modeling to identify unique prenatal drinking and smoking trajectories. These trajectories will be used in future analyses to determine which specific exposure patterns subsequently manifest as poor peri- and postnatal outcomes

Working Group 2: Future Directions for Safeguards and Verification, Technology, Research and Development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zykov, S.; Blair, D.

2013-01-01

For traditional safeguards it was recognized that the hardware presently available is, in general, addressing adequately fundamental IAEA needs, and that further developments should therefore focus mainly on improving efficiencies (i.e. increasing cost economies, reliability, maintainability and user-friendliness, keeping abreast of continual advancements in technologies and of the evolution of verification approaches). Specific technology areas that could benefit from further development include: -) Non-destructive measurement systems (NDA), in particular, gamma-spectroscopy and neutron counting techniques; -) Containment and surveillance tools, such as tamper indicating seals, video-surveillance, surface identification methods, etc.; -) Geophysical methods for design information verification (DIV) and safeguarding of geological repositories; and -) New tools and methods for real-time monitoring. Furthermore, the Working Group acknowledged that a 'building block' (or modular) approach should be adopted towards technology development, enabling equipment to be upgraded efficiently as technologies advance. Concerning non-traditional safeguards, in the area of satellite-based sensors, increased spatial resolution and broadened spectral range were identified as priorities. In the area of wide area surveillance, the development of LIDAR-like tools for atmospheric sensing was discussed from the perspective of both potential benefits and certain limitations. Recognizing the limitations imposed by the human brain in terms of information assessment and analysis, technologies are needed that will enable the more effective utilization of all information, regardless of its format and origin. The paper is followed by the slides of the presentation. (A.C.)

2002 annual report EDF group; 2002 rapport annuel groupe EDF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-07-01

This document is the 2002 annual report of Electricite de France (EdF) group, the French electric utility. Content: Introductory section (EDF at a glance, Chairman's message, 2002 Highlights); Corporate governance and Group strategy (Corporate governance, sustainable growth strategy, EDF branches); Financial performance (Reaching critical mass, Margins holding up well, Balance sheet); Human resources (Launching Group-wide synergies, Optimising human resources); Customers (Major customers, SMEs and professional customers, Local authorities, Residential customers, Ensuring quality access to electricity); Generation (A balanced energy mix, Nuclear generation, Fossil-fuelled generation, Renewable energies); Corporate social responsibility (Global and local partnerships, Promoting community development)

2002 annual report EDF group; 2002 rapport annuel groupe EDF

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-07-01

This document is the 2002 annual report of Electricite de France (EdF) group, the French electric utility. Content: Introductory section (EDF at a glance, Chairman's message, 2002 Highlights); Corporate governance and Group strategy (Corporate governance, sustainable growth strategy, EDF branches); Financial performance (Reaching critical mass, Margins holding up well, Balance sheet); Human resources (Launching Group-wide synergies, Optimising human resources); Customers (Major customers, SMEs and professional customers, Local authorities, Residential customers, Ensuring quality access to electricity); Generation (A balanced energy mix, Nuclear generation, Fossil-fuelled generation, Renewable energies); Corporate social responsibility (Global and local partnerships, Promoting community development)

[Social crisis, spontaneous groups and group order].

Science.gov (United States)

Edelman, Lucila; Kordon, Diana

2002-12-01

Argentina has gone through very difficult times during the last years and, in particularly, new kinds of social practices have emerged in order to cope with the crisis. This situation demands and urges a new type of reflection upon the double role of groups, as tools to transform reality and as a way to elaborate those processes regarding subjectivity. In this paper we analyse some topics regarding the groupal field (considering spontaneous groups as well as groupal devices that allow to elaborate the crisis). We consider social bond to be the condition of possibility for the existence of the psyche and of time continuity, and that it also makes possible personal and social elaboration of trauma, crisis and social catastrophe. We develop some aspects of an specific device (the reflection group), which we have already depicted in another moment, showing it's usefulness to cope with social crisis and to promote the subjective elaboration of crisis.

Evaluating Students' Perception of Group Work for Mobile Application Development Learning, Productivity, Enjoyment and Confidence in Quality

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Loreen M.; Wimmer, Hayden

2016-01-01

Teaching programming and mobile application development concepts can be challenging for instructors; however, teaching an interdisciplinary class with varied skill levels amplifies this challenge. To encompass a broad range of students, many instructors have sought to improve their lessons and methods by experimenting with group/team programming.…

Challenges and Opportunities While Developing a Group A Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine Within a Product Development Partnership: A Manufacturer's Perspective From the Serum Institute of India

Science.gov (United States)

Kulkarni, Prasad S.; Socquet, Muriel; Jadhav, Suresh S.; Kapre, Subhash V.; LaForce, F. Marc; Poonawalla, Cyrus S.

2015-01-01

Background. In 2002, the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP) chose the Serum Institute of India, Ltd (SIIL), as its manufacturing partner to establish a product development partnership (PDP) with the Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP). MVP was a collaboration between PATH and the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop meningococcal conjugate vaccines for sub-Saharan Africa. Method. From the outset, SIIL recognized that a partnership with MVP carried some risk but also offered important opportunities for accessing new conjugate vaccine technology and know-how. Over 3 years, SIIL successfully accepted technology transfer for the group A meningococcal polysaccharide from SynCo Bio Partners and a conjugation method from the US Food and Drug Administration. Results. SIIL successfully scaled up production of a group A meningococcal conjugate vaccine that used SIIL tetanus toxoid as the carrier protein. Phase 1 studies began in India in 2005, followed by phase 2/3 studies in Africa and India. A regulatory dossier was submitted to the Indian authorities in April 2009 and WHO in September 2009. Export license was granted in December 2009, and WHO prequalification was obtained in June 2010. Vaccine was introduced at public scale in Burkina Faso that December. The group A meningococcal conjugate vaccine was named MenAfriVac, and is the first internationally qualified vaccine developed outside of big pharma. Conclusions. The project proved to be a sound investment for SIIL and is a concrete example of the potential for PDPs to provide needed products for resource-poor countries. PMID:26553678

Trait Perception Accuracy and Acquaintance Within Groups: Tracking Accuracy Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Jill A; Bernieri, Frank

2017-05-01

Previous work on trait perception has evaluated accuracy at discrete stages of relationships (e.g., strangers, best friends). A relatively limited body of literature has investigated changes in accuracy as acquaintance within a dyad or group increases. Small groups of initially unacquainted individuals spent more than 30 hr participating in a wide range of activities designed to represent common interpersonal contexts (e.g., eating, traveling). We calculated how accurately each participant judged others in their group on the big five traits across three distinct points within the acquaintance process: zero acquaintance, after a getting-to-know-you conversation, and after 10 weeks of interaction and activity. Judgments of all five traits exhibited accuracy above chance levels after 10 weeks. An examination of the trait rating stability revealed that much of the revision in judgments occurred not over the course of the 10-week relationship as suspected, but between zero acquaintance and the getting-to-know-you conversation.

A Renormalisation Group Method. V. A Single Renormalisation Group Step

Science.gov (United States)

Brydges, David C.; Slade, Gordon

2015-05-01

This paper is the fifth in a series devoted to the development of a rigorous renormalisation group method applicable to lattice field theories containing boson and/or fermion fields, and comprises the core of the method. In the renormalisation group method, increasingly large scales are studied in a progressive manner, with an interaction parametrised by a field polynomial which evolves with the scale under the renormalisation group map. In our context, the progressive analysis is performed via a finite-range covariance decomposition. Perturbative calculations are used to track the flow of the coupling constants of the evolving polynomial, but on their own perturbative calculations are insufficient to control error terms and to obtain mathematically rigorous results. In this paper, we define an additional non-perturbative coordinate, which together with the flow of coupling constants defines the complete evolution of the renormalisation group map. We specify conditions under which the non-perturbative coordinate is contractive under a single renormalisation group step. Our framework is essentially combinatorial, but its implementation relies on analytic results developed earlier in the series of papers. The results of this paper are applied elsewhere to analyse the critical behaviour of the 4-dimensional continuous-time weakly self-avoiding walk and of the 4-dimensional -component model. In particular, the existence of a logarithmic correction to mean-field scaling for the susceptibility can be proved for both models, together with other facts about critical exponents and critical behaviour.

LLNL Chemical Kinetics Modeling Group

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pitz, W J; Westbrook, C K; Mehl, M; Herbinet, O; Curran, H J; Silke, E J

2008-09-24

The LLNL chemical kinetics modeling group has been responsible for much progress in the development of chemical kinetic models for practical fuels. The group began its work in the early 1970s, developing chemical kinetic models for methane, ethane, ethanol and halogenated inhibitors. Most recently, it has been developing chemical kinetic models for large n-alkanes, cycloalkanes, hexenes, and large methyl esters. These component models are needed to represent gasoline, diesel, jet, and oil-sand-derived fuels.

Statistical symmetry restoration in fully developed turbulence: Renormalization group analysis of two models

Science.gov (United States)

Antonov, N. V.; Gulitskiy, N. M.; Kostenko, M. M.; Malyshev, A. V.

2018-03-01

In this paper we consider the model of incompressible fluid described by the stochastic Navier-Stokes equation with finite correlation time of a random force. Inertial-range asymptotic behavior of fully developed turbulence is studied by means of the field theoretic renormalization group within the one-loop approximation. It is corroborated that regardless of the values of model parameters and initial data the inertial-range behavior of the model is described by the limiting case of vanishing correlation time. This indicates that the Galilean symmetry of the model violated by the "colored" random force is restored in the inertial range. This regime corresponds to the only nontrivial fixed point of the renormalization group equation. The stability of this point depends on the relation between the exponents in the energy spectrum E ∝k1 -y and the dispersion law ω ∝k2 -η . The second analyzed problem is the passive advection of a scalar field by this velocity ensemble. Correlation functions of the scalar field exhibit anomalous scaling behavior in the inertial-convective range. We demonstrate that in accordance with Kolmogorov's hypothesis of the local symmetry restoration the main contribution to the operator product expansion is given by the isotropic operator, while anisotropic terms should be considered only as corrections.

Sensitization to group direction in the postgraduate training on Group-Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone Bruschetta

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The psychodynamic training group here introduced is a part of the General Training on Group Analysis of the Centre of Palermo of COIRAG Postgraduate School on Analytic Psychotherapy. The training project’s aim, built for the class of the third year, develops a sensitization device which provide a unique set of aquarium. The aim of that methodological artifice is not to engage students on specific group management techniques, but to allow the whole class group to bring into play the complexity of relations, of which is necessary to have awareness in order to lead a group within an institutional context: The main clinical referents that we chose to monitor in this experience are the relationship between conductors and participants and the relationship between group, task and setting. The brief description of this methodology is also including the reporting of two "cases" treated in the course of training. Keywords: Group leadership, Founding dimension, Cultural themes 

Analysing the Costs of Integrated Care: A Case on Model Selection for Chronic Care Purposes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marc Carreras

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Background: The objective of this study is to investigate whether the algorithm proposed by Manning and Mullahy, a consolidated health economics procedure, can also be used to estimate individual costs for different groups of healthcare services in the context of integrated care. Methods: A cross-sectional study focused on the population of the Baix Empordà (Catalonia-Spain for the year 2012 (N = 92,498 individuals. A set of individual cost models as a function of sex, age and morbidity burden were adjusted and individual healthcare costs were calculated using a retrospective full-costing system. The individual morbidity burden was inferred using the Clinical Risk Groups (CRG patient classification system. Results: Depending on the characteristics of the data, and according to the algorithm criteria, the choice of model was a linear model on the log of costs or a generalized linear model with a log link. We checked for goodness of fit, accuracy, linear structure and heteroscedasticity for the models obtained. Conclusion: The proposed algorithm identified a set of suitable cost models for the distinct groups of services integrated care entails. The individual morbidity burden was found to be indispensable when allocating appropriate resources to targeted individuals.

Synthesis of the expert group meetings convened as part of the substantive preparations for the International Conference on Population and Development.

Science.gov (United States)

1993-01-01

As part of the preparation for the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development to be sponsored by the UN in Cairo, 6 expert groups were convened to consider 1) population growth; 2) population policies and programs; 3) population, development, and the environment; 4) migration; 5) the status of women; and 6) family planning programs, health, and family well-being. Each group included 15 experts representing a full range of relevant scientific disciplines and geographic regions. Each meeting lasted 5 days and included a substantive background paper prepared by the Population Division as well as technical papers. Each meeting concluded with the drafting of between 18 and 37 recommendations (a total of 162). The meeting on population, the environment, and development focused on the implications of current trends in population and the environment for sustained economic growth and sustainable development. The meeting on population policies and programs observed that, since 1984, there has been a growing convergence of views about population growth among the nations of the world and that the stabilization of world population as soon as possible is now an internationally recognized goal. The group on population and women identified practical steps that agencies could take to empower women in order to achieve beneficial effects on health, population trends, and development. The meeting on FP, health, and family well-being reviewed policy-oriented issues emerging from the experience of FP programs. The meeting on population growth and development reviewed trends and prospects of population growth and age structure and their consequences for global sustainability. The population distribution and migration experts appraised current trends and their interrelationship with development. In nearly all of the group meetings, common issues emerged. Concern was universally voiced for sustainable development and sustained economic growth, relevance of past experience

The Development of a Program Engagement Theory for Group Offending Behavior Programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Holdsworth, Emma; Bowen, Erica; Brown, Sarah; Howat, Douglas

2017-10-01

Offender engagement in group offending behavior programs is poorly understood and under-theorized. In addition, there is no research on facilitators' engagement. This article presents the first ever theory to address this gap. A Program Engagement Theory (PET) was derived from a constructivist grounded theory analysis that accounts for both facilitators' and offenders' engagement in group offending behavior programs (GOBPs). Interviews and session observations were used to collect data from 23 program facilitators and 28 offenders (group members). The analysis revealed that group members' engagement involved shared identities and moving on as a group. In turn, this was dependent on facilitators personalising treatment frameworks and establishing a hook to help group members move on. The PET emphasizes the importance of considering change during treatment as a process rather than simply a program outcome. Solution-focused (SF) programs were more conducive to engagement and the change process than offence-focused programs.

Designing for informed group formation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nicolajsen, Hanne Westh; Juel Jacobsen, Alice; Riis, Marianne

2012-01-01

A new design ―project preparation‖ preparing for the group formation in problem based project work is proposed and investigated. The main problem is to overcome group formation based on existing relations. The hypothesis is that theme development and group formation are somewhat counterproductive...

Profinite graphs and groups

CERN Document Server

Ribes, Luis

2017-01-01

This book offers a detailed introduction to graph theoretic methods in profinite groups and applications to abstract groups. It is the first to provide a comprehensive treatment of the subject. The author begins by carefully developing relevant notions in topology, profinite groups and homology, including free products of profinite groups, cohomological methods in profinite groups, and fixed points of automorphisms of free pro-p groups. The final part of the book is dedicated to applications of the profinite theory to abstract groups, with sections on finitely generated subgroups of free groups, separability conditions in free and amalgamated products, and algorithms in free groups and finite monoids. Profinite Graphs and Groups will appeal to students and researchers interested in profinite groups, geometric group theory, graphs and connections with the theory of formal languages. A complete reference on the subject, the book includes historical and bibliographical notes as well as a discussion of open quest...

Group Process as Drama.

Science.gov (United States)

McLeod, John

1984-01-01

Suggests that drama, as well as training or therapy, may be employed as a useful research and practice paradigm in working with small groups. The implications of this view for group development as a whole, and for member and leader participation, are explored. (JAC)

Environmental groups in politics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowe, P.; Goyder, J.

1983-01-01

The subject is covered in chapters, entitled: introduction; (Part I) the environmental movement (environmental groups and the attentive public; the episodic development of the environmental movement; the underlying values of environmentalism; the roots of environmental concern; the social limits to growth; elite manipulation of values); the organisation of environmental groups; environmental groups in national politics; environmental groups in local politics; (Part II) the Henley Society; Friends of the Earth; the National Trust; the Royal Society for Nature Conservation; the European Environmental Bureau. (U.K.)

Group Centric Networking: Large Scale Over the Air Testing of Group Centric Networking

Science.gov (United States)

2016-11-01

Large Scale Over-the-Air Testing of Group Centric Networking Logan Mercer, Greg Kuperman, Andrew Hunter, Brian Proulx MIT Lincoln Laboratory...performance of Group Centric Networking (GCN), a networking protocol developed for robust and scalable communications in lossy networks where users are...devices, and the ad-hoc nature of the network . Group Centric Networking (GCN) is a proposed networking protocol that addresses challenges specific to

Support Groups for Children of Divorce.

Science.gov (United States)

Farmer, Sherry; Galaris, Diana

1993-01-01

Describes model for support groups for children of divorce developed at Marriage Council of Philadelphia. Gives details about group organization, illustrative case material, and typical concerns that group members work with throughout group sessions. Summarizes reported effects of support group involvement and considers ways of intervening in…

Group Motivational Interviewing in Schools: Development of a Health Promotion Intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Hawkins, Jemma L.; Bravo, Paulina; Gobat, Nina; Rollnick, Stephen; Jerzembek, Gabrielle; Whitehead, Sarah; Chanon, Sue; Kelson, Mark; Adams, Orla; Murphy, Simon

2016-01-01

Objective: In the light of the shortcomings of curriculum-based health promotion in secondary schools, group motivational interviewing provides a potential alternative approach. This two-phase study set out to establish the key components, feasibility and acceptability of a group motivational interviewing intervention, focused on alcohol…

Focus groups for developing a peer mentoring program to improve self-management in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Mackner, Laura M; Ruff, Jessica M; Vannatta, Kathryn

2014-10-01

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) presents challenges for self-management in many areas. A peer mentoring program may offer advantages over other forms of self-management interventions because youth may be more receptive to learning self-management skills from a peer than from a parent or professional. The purpose of the present study was to identify themes from focus groups to inform development of a peer mentoring program for improving self-management in pediatric IBD. Focus groups were conducted for youth ages 12 to 17, stratified by age (3 groups; n = 14), young adults ages 18 to 20 (1 group; n = 5), and parents of the youth (3 groups; n = 17). Broad questions covered program goals, general program characteristics, mentor/mentee characteristics, and family involvement, and transcriptions were analyzed via directed content analysis, with the a priori codes specified as the broad questions above. Participants identified the primary goals of a program as support, role model, information/education, and fun. They described a program that would include a year-long, 1-on-1 mentor relationship with a peer who has had IBD for at least a year, educational group activities, fun activities that are not focused on IBD, expectations for in-person contact 1 to 2 times per month, and mentor-to-mentor and parent support. Many of the suggestions from the focus groups correspond with research findings associated with successful mentoring programs. Using participants' suggestions and empirically based best practices for mentoring may result in an effective peer mentoring program for improving self-management in youth with IBD.

Reproducibility and relative validity of food group intake in a food frequency questionnaire developed for Nepalese diet.

Science.gov (United States)

Shrestha, Archana; Koju, Rajendra Prasad; Beresford, Shirley A A; Chan, Kwun Chuen Gary; Connell, Frederik A; Karmacharya, Biraj Man; Shrestha, Pramita; Fitzpatrick, Annette L

2017-08-01

We developed a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) designed to measure the dietary practices of adult Nepalese. The present study examined the validity and reproducibility of the FFQ. To evaluate the reproducibility of the FFQ, 116 subjects completed two 115-item FFQ across a four-month interval. Six 24-h dietary recalls were collected (1 each month) to assess the validity of the FFQ. Seven major food groups and 23 subgroups were clustered from the FFQ based on macronutrient composition. Spearman correlation coefficients evaluating reproducibility for all food groups were greater than 0.5, with the exceptions of oil. The correlations varied from 0.41 (oil) to 0.81 (vegetables). All crude spearman coefficients for validity were greater than 0.5 except for dairy products, pizzas/pastas and sausage/burgers. The FFQ was found to be reliable and valid for ranking the intake of food groups for Nepalese dietary intake.

S3T working group. Report 1: group aims

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pouey, M.

1983-04-01

The work group S3T which is aimed to designing and developing devices using unconventional holographic optics is presented. These devices find applications that are classified here in four items high resolution spectrometers, high definition imaging, high flux devices, metrology and interferometry. The problems to solve and the aims of the group in each of these cases are presented. Three synthesis of lectures are in this report. The main one concerns stigmatism conditions of concave holographic gratings used in normal incidence. This new process of focusing is very interesting for hot plasma diagnostics [fr

Group work is political work: a feminist perspective of interpersonal group psychotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bender, A; Ewashen, C

2000-01-01

When practicing as group leaders, mental health nurses often incorporate Irvin Yalom's (1995, 1998) concepts of social microcosm and here-and-now. This article examines these concepts from a feminist perspective and offers an approach to group psychotherapy that processes gender issues and fosters collective consciousness-raising. A feminist perspective in group therapy challenges us to view the social microcosm as a reenactment of sociopolitical contexts and the here-and-now as a medium for developing personal and social responsibility. Therapy is not only about individual and interpersonal change in group members, but is an opportunity for healthy social change. Therapy becomes political work, raising the social consciousness of each participant as well as the group as a whole.

Stage-related behavioural problems in the 1-4 year old child: parental expectations in a child development unit referral group compared with a control group.

Science.gov (United States)

Ticehurst, R L; Henry, R L

1989-02-01

Behavioural problems in preschool (1-4 years) children are a common cause of referral to health services. Parents of children presenting to the child development unit with behavioural problems (n = 18) were compared with a control group (n = 45). A questionnaire was utilized to examine the parents' expectations of the children's behaviours. As might be expected, the parents of children presenting to the Unit rated their children as having more difficult behaviours. These parents had unrealistic expectations, particularly for the 'negative' behaviours (disobedience, temper tantrums, defiance and whinging). However, they were able to anticipate normal age-related difficulties in some problem areas (dawdling during mealtimes, masturbating, not sharing toys and being jealous of one's siblings). Counselling should address the issue of matching the expectations of parents with the individual rates of development of their children.

Essays in the history of Lie groups and algebraic groups

CERN Document Server

Borel, Armand

2001-01-01

Lie groups and algebraic groups are important in many major areas of mathematics and mathematical physics. We find them in diverse roles, notably as groups of automorphisms of geometric structures, as symmetries of differential systems, or as basic tools in the theory of automorphic forms. The author looks at their development, highlighting the evolution from the almost purely local theory at the start to the global theory that we know today. Starting from Lie's theory of local analytic transformation groups and early work on Lie algebras, he follows the process of globalization in its two main frameworks: differential geometry and topology on one hand, algebraic geometry on the other. Chapters II to IV are devoted to the former, Chapters V to VIII, to the latter. The essays in the first part of the book survey various proofs of the full reducibility of linear representations of \\mathbf{SL}_2{(\\mathbb{C})}, the contributions of H. Weyl to representations and invariant theory for semisimple Lie groups, and con...

Laboratory services series: a safety program for service groups in a national research and development laboratory (1965--1974)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winget, R.H.

1975-11-01

The experiences of a ten-year period of developing a safety program for craft and labor groups supporting a major laboratory are summarized with tabulations of types of injuries or accidents, improvements noted over the decade, and educational and safety recognition efforts

Theory of super LIE groups

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prakash, M.

1985-01-01

The theory of supergravity has attracted increasing attention in the recent years as a unified theory of elementary particle interactions. The superspace formulation of the theory is highly suggestive of an underlying geometrical structure of superspace. It also incorporates the beautifully geometrical general theory of relativity. It leads us to believe that a better understanding of its geometry would result in a better understanding of the theory itself, and furthermore, that the geometry of superspace would also have physical consequences. As a first step towards that goal, we develop here a theory of super Lie groups. These are groups that have the same relation to a super Lie algebra as Lie groups have to a Lie algebra. More precisely, a super Lie group is a super-manifold and a group such that the group operations are super-analytic. The super Lie algebra of a super Lie group is related to the local properties of the group near the identity. This work develops the algebraic and super-analytical tools necessary for our theory, including proofs of a set of existence and uniqueness theorems for a class of super-differential equations

Group theory for magnetic structure determination: Recent developments and quadrupolar ordering analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sikora, W. [Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH-University of Science and Technology, al.Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Cracow (Poland)]. E-mail: sikora@novell.ftj.agh.edu.pl; Pytlik, L. [Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH-University of Science and Technology, al.Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Cracow (Poland); Bialas, F. [Nowy Sacz School of Busines-National Louis University, 33-300 Nowy Sacz (Poland); Malinowski, J. [Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science, AGH-University of Science and Technology, al.Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Cracow (Poland)

2007-09-13

In this paper, the recent developments in practical applications of symmetry analysis are described. The theoretical basis shortly described in Section 1 has been implemented in several computer applications, one of which is the program 'MODY-win', developed by the authors of the paper. The program calculates the so-called basis vectors of irreducible representations of a given symmetry group, which can be used for calculation of possible ordering modes. Its practical application is demonstrated on some examples, presenting the recent aspects of using the symmetry analysis to description of various types of ordering encountered in solids. The scalar-type ordering (occupation probability) is discussed shortly for occupation of interstitial sites by hydrogen atoms in inter-metallic compounds. The description of vector ordering is demonstrated on the magnetic ordering modes, with special attention focused on the freedom that is left in the structure after imposing all the symmetry constraints. In practice, the final ordering mode usually contains some free parameters that cannot be determined from the symmetry itself. The last application presented in the paper is the description of quadrupolar ordering, recently found in some compounds of 4f (5f) elements. For the latter case, an additional advantage is demonstrated by calculation of possible displacements of neighboring atoms after the establishment of non-zero quadrupolar order parameter on the central atom.

Development and application of knowledge-based subject group integration platforms:A case study of Shanghai Institute of Ceramics,CAS

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Yu; LIU; Jian; FU; Huijun; ZHENG; Hao; CHEN; Zhiping; YANG

2014-01-01

Purpose:According to the different requirements of research group users,we established the knowledge-based subject group integration platforms of Shanghai Institute of Ceramics,the Chinese Academy of Sciences(abbreviated as SIC CAS hereinafter),which were designed and constructed to better meet the needs of CAS research groups for their development,collaboration and communication.Design/methodology/approach:We first identified the requirements of users via preliminary investigation,and then chose CASI1 P,iLibrary and XKE technology,respectively as the building tools compatible with the major demands of users.These steps helped us complete the layout design of SIC CAS integration platforms,as well as its knowledge organization and integration.Findings:According to the need of users,we applied three types of platform construction technologies to five SIC integration platforms,and formulated standard norms for the further construction process,which could provide useful reference for a sustainable development for the extensive construction in CAS institutes.Research limitations:In order to make the SIC integration platforms more intelligent and have more functions,we need to enlarge the scale of the Platforms and upgrade the building tools for the platform construction.Practical implications:The nature of SIC sub-project integration platforms is to construct a content-sensitive environment which can embed knowledge services and knowledge applications seamlessly into scientific activities,so the Platform is expected to be a useful tool to help researchers better understand the recent development of the research field and form collaborations with their peers.Originality/value:SIC integration platforms are the only pilot construction that used 3different platform technologies in the first batch of knowledge-based subject group integration platforms of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.The construction is user-centered throughout the whole process,namely,from the technology

Tobacco Cessation for Adolescents: Developing a Group Therapy Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Moolchan, Eric T.; Ruckel, Susan J.

2002-01-01

Describes a cognitive-behavioral therapeutic approach to help teenagers better manage life stressors by using effective and adaptive coping skills, while identifying and addressing specific factors that lead either to smoking or maintaining abstinence from smoking behavior. Discusses specific group exercises that empower teens to take control of…

Group dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Scandiffio, A L

1990-12-01

Group dynamics play a significant role within any organization, culture, or unit. The important thing to remember with any of these structures is that they are made up of people--people with different ideas, motivations, background, and sometimes different agendas. Most groups, formal or informal, look for a leader in an effort to maintain cohesiveness of the unit. At times, that cultural bond must be developed; once developed, it must be nurtured. There are also times that one of the group no longer finds the culture comfortable and begins to act out behaviorally. It is these times that become trying for the leader as she or he attempts to remain objective when that which was once in the building phase of group cohesiveness starts to fall apart. At all times, the manager must continue to view the employee creating the disturbance as an integral part of the group. It is at this time that it is beneficial to perceive the employee exhibiting problem behaviors as a special employee, as one who needs the benefit of your experience and skills, as one who is still part of the group. It is also during this time that the manager should focus upon her or his own views in the area of power, communication, and the corporate culture of the unit that one has established before attempting to understand another's point of view. Once we understand our own motivation and accept ourselves, it is then that we may move on to offer assistance to another. Once we understand our insecurities recognizing staff dysfunction as a symptom of system dysfunction will not be so threatening to the concept of the manager that we perceive ourselves to be. It takes a secure person to admit that she or he favors staff before deciding to do something to change things. The important thing to know is that it can be done. The favored staff can find a new way of relating to others, the special employee can find new modes of behavior (and even find self-esteem in the process), the group can find new ways

Group therapy for adolescents

OpenAIRE

Nada Hribar

2001-01-01

The group included adolescents from secondary school and some students. The group had weekly sessions or twice on mounth. The adolescents had varied simptoms: depressive, anxiety, psychosomatic disorders, learning difficulties, cunduct problems. All of adolescents were common on many problems in social interactions. The goal of therapeutic work were: to increase assertiveness skills and to reduce the anxious in social situations. The adolescents in group raised a self-esteem and developed som...

Estimation of Environment-Related Properties of Chemicals for Design of Sustainable Processes: Development of Group-Contribution+ (GC+) Property Models and Uncertainty Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

The aim of this work is to develop group-contribution+ (GC+) method (combined group-contribution (GC) method and atom connectivity index (CI) method) based property models to provide reliable estimations of environment-related properties of organic chemicals together with uncert...

Promoting Child Development through Group-Based Parent Support within a Cash Transfer Program: Experimental Effects on Children's Outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Fernald, Lia C. H.; Kagawa, Rose M. C.; Knauer, Heather A.; Schnaas, Lourdes; Guerra, Armando Garcia; Neufeld, Lynnette M.

2017-01-01

We examined effects on child development of a group-based parenting support program ("Educación Inicial" - EI) when combined with Mexico's conditional cash transfer (CCT) program ("Prospera," originally 'Oportunidades" and "Progresa"). This cluster-randomized trial included 204 communities (n = 1,113 children in…

Comprehensive Evaluation of the Sustainable Development of Power Grid Enterprises Based on the Model of Fuzzy Group Ideal Point Method and Combination Weighting Method with Improved Group Order Relation Method and Entropy Weight Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuyu Dai

2017-10-01

Full Text Available As an important implementing body of the national energy strategy, grid enterprises bear the important responsibility of optimizing the allocation of energy resources and serving the economic and social development, and their levels of sustainable development have a direct impact on the national economy and social life. In this paper, the model of fuzzy group ideal point method and combination weighting method with improved group order relation method and entropy weight method is proposed to evaluate the sustainable development of power grid enterprises. Firstly, on the basis of consulting a large amount of literature, the important criteria of the comprehensive evaluation of the sustainable development of power grid enterprises are preliminarily selected. The opinions of the industry experts are consulted and fed back for many rounds through the Delphi method and the evaluation criteria system for sustainable development of power grid enterprises is determined, then doing the consistent and non dimensional processing of the evaluation criteria. After that, based on the basic order relation method, the weights of each expert judgment matrix are synthesized to construct the compound matter elements. By using matter element analysis, the subjective weights of the criteria are obtained. And entropy weight method is used to determine the objective weights of the preprocessed criteria. Then, combining the subjective and objective information with the combination weighting method based on the subjective and objective weighted attribute value consistency, a more comprehensive, reasonable and accurate combination weight is calculated. Finally, based on the traditional TOPSIS method, the triangular fuzzy numbers are introduced to better realize the scientific processing of the data information which is difficult to quantify, and the queuing indication value of each object and the ranking result are obtained. A numerical example is taken to prove that the

Imagine Something Different: How a Group Approach to Scholarly Faculty Development Can Turn Joy-Stealing Competition Into Scholarly Productivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinrich, Kathleen T

As academic institutions across the country raise the scholarly bar for retention, promotion, and tenure, academic leaders are being asked to scholar-ready nursing faculty. With the retirement of senior scholars and too few scholar-mentors to go around, leaders often find themselves squeezed between scholarly expectations on the rise and faculty groups less than ready to meet those expectations. Today's nursing faculty present a formidable scholarly development challenge. A diverse mix of master's-prepared clinicians and recent graduates from doctor of philosophy and doctor of nursing practice programs, they come with a broad range of scholarly learning needs. These inequities not only leave many faculty feeling like scholar-impostors but also they can breed competitions that erode collegial bonds and sow the seeds of incivilities that steal scholarly joy, slow scholarly progress, and stress academic workplaces. What if leaders began imagining something different for themselves and with faculty groups? This is what can happen when leaders expand their perspective on scholarly faculty development from individual challenge to collective responsibility. More essay than research paper, this article describes how scholarly joy-stealing patterns can infiltrate faculty groups, shares thought leaders' visions for supportive scholarly communities, and offers strategies leaders can use to invite faculty groups to co-create cultures of scholarly caring. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Group Cooperation in Outdoor Education

Science.gov (United States)

Matthews, Bruce E.

1978-01-01

Utilizing the Beatles' Yellow Submarine fantasy (e.g., the Blue Meanies), this outdoor education program is designed for sixth graders and special education students. Activities developed at the Cortland Resident Outdoor Education Camp include a series of group stress/challenge activities to be accomplished by everyone in the group, as a group.…

Cognitive synergy in groups and group-to-individual transfer of decision-making competencies

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Curseu, P.L.; Meslec, M.N.; Pluut, Helen; Lucas, G.J.M.

2015-01-01

In a field study (148 participants organized in 38 groups) we tested the effect of group synergy and one's position in relation to the collaborative zone of proximal development (CZPD) on the change of individual decision-making competencies. We used two parallel sets of decision tasks reported in

Group cross-section processing method and common nuclear group cross-section library based on JENDL-3 nuclear data file

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasegawa, Akira

1991-01-01

A common group cross-section library has been developed in JAERI. This system is called 'JSSTDL-295n-104γ (neutron:295 gamma:104) group constants library system', which is composed of a common 295n-104γ group cross-section library based on JENDL-3 nuclear data file and its utility codes. This system is applicable to fast and fusion reactors. In this paper, firstly outline of group cross-section processing adopted in Prof. GROUCH-G/B system is described in detail which is a common step for all group cross-section library generation. Next available group cross-section libraries developed in Japan based on JENDL-3 are briefly reviewed. Lastly newly developed JSSTDL library system is presented with some special attention to the JENDL-3 data. (author)

Start-up scenario of compact tori based on REB-injection developed in SPAC-group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikuta, K.

1981-01-01

Quasi-static start-up of compact tori without toroidal field coil is reviewed thoroughly in a proposal of the S-1 spheromak. During the formation phase we should note that the rapid heat loss from the plasma will give a bad effect for the generation of the confinement configuration. In the case of fast start-up of the configuration plasma can safely pass over the dangerous state of the instability toward the desirable stable state with a bonus of producing hot plasma. By this reason it is intended to discuss a fast start-up scenario of the compact tori based on REB injection developed in SPAC group

EDF group - annual report 2003

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

This document contains the magazine, the financial statements and the sustainable development report of Electricite de France (EdF) group for 2003: 1 - the magazine (chairman's statement, group profile, vision and strategy); 2 - the consolidated financial statements for the period ended 31 December 2003 (statutory auditors' report on the consolidated financial statements, EDF's summary annual financial statements); 3 - sustainable development report (transparency and dialogue, responsibility, commitment, partnerships for progress). (J.S.)

CLASSIFICATION OF CRIMINAL GROUPS

OpenAIRE

Natalia Romanova

2013-01-01

New types of criminal groups are emerging in modern society.  These types have their special criminal subculture. The research objective is to develop new parameters of classification of modern criminal groups, create a new typology of criminal groups and identify some features of their subculture. Research methodology is based on the system approach that includes using the method of analysis of documentary sources (materials of a criminal case), method of conversations with themembers of the...

Pragmatic, consensus-based minimum standards and structured interview to guide the selection and development of cancer support group leaders: a protocol paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Pomery, Amanda; Schofield, Penelope; Xhilaga, Miranda; Gough, Karla

2017-06-30

Across the globe, peer support groups have emerged as a community-led approach to accessing support and connecting with others with cancer experiences. Little is known about qualities required to lead a peer support group or how to determine suitability for the role. Organisations providing assistance to cancer support groups and their leaders are currently operating independently, without a standard national framework or published guidelines. This protocol describes the methods that will be used to generate pragmatic consensus-based minimum standards and an accessible structured interview with user manual to guide the selection and development of cancer support group leaders. We will: (A) identify and collate peer-reviewed literature that describes qualities of support group leaders through a systematic review; (B) content analyse eligible documents for information relevant to requisite knowledge, skills and attributes of group leaders generally and specifically to cancer support groups; (C) use an online reactive Delphi method with an interdisciplinary panel of experts to produce a clear, suitable, relevant and appropriate structured interview comprising a set of agreed questions with behaviourally anchored rating scales; (D) produce a user manual to facilitate standard delivery of the structured interview; (E) pilot the structured interview to improve clinical utility; and (F) field test the structured interview to develop a rational scoring model and provide a summary of existing group leader qualities. The study is approved by the Department Human Ethics Advisory Group of The University of Melbourne. The study is based on voluntary participation and informed written consent, with participants able to withdraw at any time. The results will be disseminated at research conferences and peer review journals. Presentations and free access to the developed structured interview and user manual will be available to cancer agencies. © Article author(s) (or their

Development and preliminary validation of the Scleroderma Support Group Leader Self-efficacy Scale

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pal, N.E.; Gumuchian, S.T.; Delisle, V.C.; Pé pin, M.; Malcarne, V.L.; Carrier, M.E.; Kwakkenbos, C.M.C.; Pelá ez, S.; El-Baalbaki, G.; Thombs, B.D.

2018-01-01

Support groups are an important resource for people living with systemic sclerosis (SSc; scleroderma). Peer support group leaders play an important role in the success and sustainability of SSc support groups, but face challenges that include a lack of formal training. An SSc support group leader

High-Ability Grouping: Benefits for Gifted Students' Achievement Development Without Costs in Academic Self-Concept.

Science.gov (United States)

Preckel, Franzis; Schmidt, Isabelle; Stumpf, Eva; Motschenbacher, Monika; Vogl, Katharina; Scherrer, Vsevolod; Schneider, Wolfgang

2017-11-23

Effects of full-time ability grouping on students' academic self-concept (ASC) and mathematics achievement were investigated in the first 3 years of secondary school (four waves of measurement; students' average age at first wave: 10.5 years). Students were primarily from middle and upper class families living in southern Germany. The study sample comprised 148 (60% male) students from 14 gifted classes and 148 (57% male) students from 25 regular classes (matched by propensity score matching). Data analyses involved multilevel and latent growth curve analyses. Findings revealed no evidence for contrast effects of class-average achievement or assimilation effects of class type on students' ASC. ASC remained stable over time. Students in gifted classes showed higher achievement gains than students in regular classes. © 2017 The Authors. Child Development © 2017 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Pre-Mission Communication And Awareness Stratgies For Positive Group Functioning And Development: Analysis Of A Crew At The Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) In Utah, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Allner, Matthew; Bishop, Sheryl; Gushin, Vadim; McKay, Chris; Rygalov, Vadim; Allner, Matthew

Introduction: Psychosocial group functioning has become an increased international focus of many space faring nations due to the recent shift in focus of colonizing the Moon and then preparing to travel to Mars and beyond. Purpose: This study investigates the effects of pre-mission communication and awareness strategies for positive group functioning in extreme environments as well as suggestive countermeasures to maintain positive group dynamic development in isolated and confined extreme (ICE) environments. The study is supported by both preand intra-mission management efforts, which included crewmember assessments at various mission phases (pre-, intra-, and end-mission). Methods: A six person heterogeneous American crew conducted a Mars simulation mission at the Mars Society's Mars Desert Research Station in Utah, USA in 2006 as part of a new NASA training program called Spaceward Bound. Participants were administered assessments of personality, personal and group identity/functioning, subjective stress, coping, and subjective motivation. All participants were also provided information (pre-mission) regarding past research and tendencies of group functioning, stressors, cognitive functioning, and mission mistakes from a mission phase analysis approach, to see if this would be a factor in positive group dynamic development. Results: Data collected and obtained by both assessment and journaling methods were both consistent and indicative of positive personalities desirable of expedition crews. Assessment data further indicated positive group cohesion and group interactions, along with supportive and strong leadership, all which led to positive personal and group experiences for crewmembers. Crewmembers all displayed low levels of competition while still reporting high motivation and satisfaction for the group dynamic development and the mission objectives that were completed. Journals kept by the crew psychologist indicated that crewmembers all felt that the pre

Leading Indian Business-Groups

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Alexandrovna Vorobyeva

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The goal of this paper is to investigate the evolution of the leading Indian business-groups under the conditions of economical liberalization. It is shown that the role of modern business-groups in the Indian economy is determined by their high rate in the gross domestic product (GDP, huge overall actives, substantial pert in the e[port of goods and services, as well as by their activities in modern branch structure formatting, and developing labor-intensive and high-tech branches. They strongly influence upon economical national strategies, they became a locomotive of internationalization and of transnationalization of India, the basis of the external economy factor system, the promoters of Indian "economical miracle" on the world scene, and the dynamical segment of economical and social development of modern India. The tendencies of the development of the leading Indian business groups are: gradual concentration of production in few clue sectors, "horizontal" structure, incorporation of the enterprises into joint-stock structure, attraction of hired top-managers and transnationaliziation. But against this background the leading Indian business-groups keep main traditional peculiarities: they mostly still belong to the families of their founders, even today they observe caste or communal relations which are the basis of their non-formal backbone tides, they still remain highly diversificated structures with weak interrelations. Specific national ambivalence and combination of traditions and innovations of the leading Indian business-groups provide their high vitality and stability in the controversial, multiform, overloaded with caste and confessional remains Indian reality. We conclude that in contrast to the dominant opinion transformation of these groups into multisectoral corporations of the western type is far from completion, and in the nearest perspective they will still possess all their peculiarities and incident social and economical

The microcredit group: Where psychology and economics meet

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luisa Brunori

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses from a psychologica and group-analyst point of view the Grameen model of microcredit (Yunus, aimed at promoting both economic development of the territory and the development of human capital using a methodology based on the social bondings represented by the group.Keywords: Microcredit group; Local development; Relational good

Coordinated Control of Vehicle Groups

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kumar, Vijay

2004-01-01

.... There are three main objectives: (1) to develop a theoretical paradigm for formalizing the concepts of a group, a team, and control of groups, with specified tasks such as exploring, mapping, searching, and transporting objects; (2...

Development of grouped icEEG for the study of cognitive processing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cihan Mehmet Kadipasaoglu

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Invasive intracranial EEG (icEEG offers a unique opportunity to study human cognitive networks at an unmatched spatiotemporal resolution. To date, the contributions of icEEG have been limited to the individual-level analyses or cohorts whose data are not integrated in any way. Here we discuss how grouped approaches to icEEG overcome challenges related to sparse-sampling, correct for individual variations in response and provide statistically valid models of brain activity in a population. By the generation of whole-brain activity maps, grouped icEEG enables the study of intra and interregional dynamics between distributed cortical substrates exhibiting task-dependent activity. In this fashion, grouped icEEG analyses can provide significant advances in understanding the mechanisms by which cortical networks give rise to cognitive functions.

The economic efficiency of investment in the development of reserves of small groups of geographically contiguous gold deposits

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evdokimov S.I.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The object of the research is a group of geographically contiguous low volume gold deposits. The subject of the study is an economic justification for a way to involve economic turnover to get a positive commercial result on a specially formed group of gold deposits, in which individual field development is unprofitable. A small production volume, combined with high capital and operating costs are objective reasons for the reduction in investment attractiveness of the deposits which have reserves of gold of 50%, equipped with a mobile processing complex with deep processing technology on highly liquid commodity products on site. An economic-mathematical model was devised to determine the rational placement of the processing capacity of the group.A simulation was conducted and an economic evaluation was performed on the effectiveness of investments in individual and group mining projects. The simulation results show that the joint exploitation of the reserves of the group of deposits, the internal rate of return on investments exceed the rate of return of funds to the bank deposit, the return on investment is above the level of inflation. The group project complies with the strategic line of small mining companies in terms of cost recovery terms, availability of financial sources to cover expenses, provision of stable means of income and obtaining competitive advantage.

Chromium in potatoes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoddard-Gilbert, K.; Blincoe, C.

1989-01-01

Chromium concentration in potatoes was determined, and tubes were labeled either intrinsically or extrinsically with radioactive chromate ( 51 Cr). A labeled chromium complex was isolated from preparations of raw, baked, or fried potatoes and chromatographed on gel permeation media. Potato pulp and peel contained 1.63 and 2.70 μg of Cr/g tissue, respectively. There was no correlation between the two, nor did they respond similarly to changes of variety or locations. No significant differences were apparent in relative migration of the isolated complexes except between raw and cooked extrinsically labeled preparations

Group Psychotherapy in Italy.

Science.gov (United States)

Giannone, Francesca; Giordano, Cecilia; Di Blasi, Maria

2015-10-01

This article describes the history and the prevailing orientations of group psychotherapy in Italy (psychoanalytically oriented, psychodrama, CBT groups) and particularly group analysis. Provided free of charge by the Italian health system, group psychotherapy is growing, but its expansion is patchy. The main pathways of Italian training in the different group psychotherapy orientations are also presented. Clinical-theoretical elaboration on self development, psychopathology related to group experiences, and the methodological attention paid to objectives and methods in different clinical groups are issues related to group therapy in Italy. Difficulties in the relationship between research and clinical practice are discussed, as well as the empirical research network that tries to bridge the gap between research and clinical work in group psychotherapy. The economic crisis in Italy has led to massive cuts in health care and to an increasing demand for some forms of psychological treatment. For these reasons, and because of its positive cost-benefit ratio, group psychotherapy is now considered an important tool in the national health care system to expand the clinical response to different forms of psychological distress.

Working group 2: regulatory and standards development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bunch, Chad; Lee, Shu; Peters, Mike; Parsonage, Kevin; Saad, Ziad

2011-07-01

This second workshop explored regulatory standards and developments in the pipeline industry. New methods of improved damage prevention for regulators and pipelines to implement were presented. First, incident trends were discussed, using incident analysis to identify the possible causes and solutions of incidents. The determination of realistic goals was attempted. Next, leak detection was discussed with the presentation of current work in annex E which will form part of the new CSA Z662 standard in a few years time. New testing methods such as external methods of leak detection were studied. A third presentation showed the recent development in overpressure protection with reference to the new annex M incorporated in the CSA Z662-11 standard. The last presentation introduced the topic of public safety issues associated with CO2 pipelines with regard to different failure scenarios and the appropriate emergency responses.

A Handbook for Helping Parents "Group."

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, Catherine; And Others

A home based project serving special needs children 0 to 5 years old in a rural area developed a mothers' group designed to increase parents' self esteem, decrease their isolation, and provide more information about their child's development. An introductory section outlines general assumptions of the group and describes a sequence of activities…

Group lending and the role of the group leader : Theory and evidence from Eritrea

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Eijkel, Remco van; Hermes, Niels; Lensink, Robert

2007-01-01

Abstract: This paper investigates the strategic monitoring behaviour within a group lending setting. We develop a theoretical model, showing that monitoring efforts of group members differ from each other in equilibrium, as a result of the asymmetry between these members in terms of the future

Writing for publication in medical education: the benefits of a faculty development workshop and peer writing group.

Science.gov (United States)

Steinert, Yvonne; McLeod, Peter J; Liben, Stephen; Snell, Linda

2008-01-01

Although educational innovations in medical education are increasing in number, many educators do not submit their ideas for publication. The goal of this initiative was to assist faculty members write about their educational innovations. Twenty-four faculty members participated in this intervention, which consisted of a half-day workshop, three peer writing groups, and independent study. We assessed the impact of this intervention through post-workshop evaluations, a one-year follow-up questionnaire, tracking of manuscript submissions, and an analysis of curriculum vitae. The workshop evaluations and one-year follow-up demonstrated that participants valued the workshop small groups, self-instructional workbook, and peer support and feedback provided by the peer writing groups. One year later, nine participants submitted a total of 14 manuscripts, 11 of which were accepted for publication. In addition, 10 participants presented a total of 38 abstracts at educational meetings. Five years later, we reviewed the curriculum vitae of all participants who had published or presented their educational innovation. Although the total number of publications remained the same, the number of educationally-related publications and presentations at scientific meetings increased considerably. A faculty development workshop and peer writing group can facilitate writing productivity and presentations of scholarly work in medical education.

Beneficial effect of two culture systems with small groups of embryos on the development and quality of in vitro-produced bovine embryos.

Science.gov (United States)

Cebrian-Serrano, A; Salvador, I; Silvestre, M A

2014-02-01

Currently, in vitro-produced embryos derived by ovum pick up (OPU) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) technologies represent approximately one-third of the embryos worldwide in cattle. Nevertheless, the culture of small groups of embryos from an individual egg donor is an issue that OPU-IVF laboratories have to face. In this work, we tested whether the development and quality of the preimplantation embryos in vitro cultured in low numbers (five embryos) could be improved by the addition of epidermal growth factor, insulin, transferrin and selenium (EGF-ITS) or by the WOW system. With this aim, immature oocytes recovered from slaughtered heifers were in vitro matured and in vitro fertilized. Presumptive zygotes were then randomly cultured in four culture conditions: one large group (LG) (50 embryos/500 μl medium) and three smaller groups [five embryos/50 μl medium without (control) or with EGF-ITS (EGF-ITS) and five embryos per microwell in the WOW system (WOW)]. Embryos cultured in LG showed a greater ability to develop to blastocyst stage than embryos cultured in smaller groups, while the blastocyst rate of WOW group was significantly higher than in control. The number of cells/blastocyst in LG was higher than control or WOW, whereas the apoptosis rate per blastocyst was lower. On the other hand, the addition of EGF-ITS significantly improved both parameters compared to the control and resulted in similar embryo quality to LG. In conclusion, the WOW system improved embryo development, while the addition of EGF-ITS improved the embryo quality when smaller groups of embryos were cultured. © 2013 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Sustaining exercise participation through group cohesion.

Science.gov (United States)

Estabrooks, P A

2000-04-01

The general hypothesis to be examined by this article is that increased group cohesion leads to an increase in adherence to an exercise program over time. Although preliminary research is promising, there is a need for further research aimed at examining the model of group development in exercise classes, the impact of group cohesion on both group and individual exercise behavior, and the measurement of group cohesion.

36 CFR 13.905 - Group size.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Group size. 13.905 Section 13... § 13.905 Group size. (a) The following are prohibited: (1) Group sizes exceeding 12 individuals on the east side of the park outside the Frontcountry Developed Area as defined by this subpart. (2) Group...

Quickly Getting the Best Data from Your Macromolecular Crystals with a New Generation of Beamline Instruments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cipriani, Florent; Felisaz, Franck; Lavault, Bernard; Brockhauser, Sandor; Ravelli, Raimond; Launer, Ludovic; Leonard, Gordon; Renier, Michel

2007-01-01

While routine Macromolecular x-ray (MX) crystallography has relied on well established techniques for some years all the synchrotrons around the world are improving the throughput of their MX beamlines. Third generation synchrotrons provide small intense beams that make data collection of 5-10 microns sized crystals possible. The EMBL/ESRF MX Group in Grenoble has developed a new generation of instruments to easily collect data on 10 μm size crystals in an automated environment. This work is part of the Grenoble automation program that enables FedEx like crystallography using fully automated data collection and web monitored experiments. Seven ESRF beamlines and the MRC BM14 ESRF/CRG beamline are currently equipped with these latest instruments. We describe here the main features of the MD2x diffractometer family and the SC3 sample changer robot. Although the SC3 was primarily designed to increase the throughput of MX beamlines, it has also been shown to be efficient in improving the quality of the data collected. Strategies in screening a large number of crystals, selecting the best, and collecting a full data set from several re-oriented micro-crystals can now be run with minimum time and effort. The MD2x and SC3 instruments are now commercialised by the company ACCEL GmbH

Identity Development as a Buffer of Adolescent Risk Behaviors in the Context of Peer Group Pressure and Control

Science.gov (United States)

Dumas, Tara M.; Ellis, Wendy E.; Wolfe, David A.

2012-01-01

We examined identity development as a moderator of the relation between peer group pressure and control and adolescents' engagement in risk behaviors. Participants (n = 1070; M[subscript age] = 15.45 years) completed a self-report measure of "identity exploration", the degree to which they have explored a variety of self-relevant values, beliefs…

Diseases and their management strategies take top research priority in watermelon research and development group member’s survey

Science.gov (United States)

Watermelon is an important crop grown for its delicious fruit in the U.S. and in many countries across the world. A survey of members of Watermelon Research and Development Group (WRDG) was conducted via email and during WRDG meetings in 2014 and 2015 in an effort to identify and rank important rese...

The position and residential patterns of ethnic groups in Paramaribo’s development in the twentieth century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ad de Bruijne

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Analyses ethnic residential patterns, in terms of spatial segregation, in Paramaribo, as these developed historically, and their correlation to the changing socioeconomic position of the various ethnic groups. Authors first point out how Paramaribo is at present one of the most multiethnic and multicultural cities of the Caribbean, and discuss the continuing importance of ethnic identity and boundaries. They further describe the history of Paramaribo's development since the period of slavery and after abolition, when many Creoles migrated to the city. Hindustani started migrating in higher numbers to Paramaribo since the early 20th c., mainly to the urban periphery, and since the 1960s also more Javanese. More recently (since the 1980s migrants to Paramaribo include Maroons, Amerindians, Chinese, and Brazilians. Authors examine in how far the residential patterns were determined by socioeconomic factors, and/or by ethnicity. They conclude that socioeconomic factors have overall become more influential in residential patterns than ethnicity. They point out that residential ethnic mixing has increased, as almost half of Paramaribo's neighbourhoods are mixed, with no dominant ethnic group, although some ethnic concentration continues, as a quarter of the neighbourhoods can be called Creole, one-fifth of them Hindustani, and Creoles (and Maroons reside for a higher percentage in the city centre, and Hindustani and Javanese more in the urban periphery.

Group percolation in interdependent networks

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zexun; Zhou, Dong; Hu, Yanqing

2018-03-01

In many real network systems, nodes usually cooperate with each other and form groups to enhance their robustness to risks. This motivates us to study an alternative type of percolation, group percolation, in interdependent networks under attack. In this model, nodes belonging to the same group survive or fail together. We develop a theoretical framework for this group percolation and find that the formation of groups can improve the resilience of interdependent networks significantly. However, the percolation transition is always of first order, regardless of the distribution of group sizes. As an application, we map the interdependent networks with intersimilarity structures, which have attracted much attention recently, onto the group percolation and confirm the nonexistence of continuous phase transitions.

Development of radioactive platinum group metal catalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, H.S.; Kim, Y.S.; Kim, Y.E.

1999-03-01

The fission product nuclides generated during the irradiation of reactor fuel include many useful elements, among them platinum group metals such as ruthenium, rhodium and palladium which are of great industrial importance, occur rarely in nature and are highly valuable. In this research, the authors reviewed various PGM recovery methods. Recovery of palladium from seven-component simulated waste solutions was conducted by selective precipitation method. The recovery yield was more than 99.5% and the purity of the product was more than 99%. Wet-proof catalyst was prepared with the recovered palladium. The specific surface area of the catalyst support was more than 400m 2 /g. The content of palladium impregnated on the support was 1 to 10 wt. %. Hydrogen isotope exchange efficiency of more than 93% to equilibrium with small amount of the catalyst was obtained. It was turned out possible to consider using such palladium or other very low active PGM materials in applications where its activity is unimportant as in nuclear industries. (author). 86 refs., 44 tabs., 88 figs

Development of radioactive platinum group metal catalysts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chung, H.S.; Kim, Y.S.; Kim, Y.E. [and others

1999-03-01

The fission product nuclides generated during the irradiation of reactor fuel include many useful elements, among them platinum group metals such as ruthenium, rhodium and palladium which are of great industrial importance, occur rarely in nature and are highly valuable. In this research, the authors reviewed various PGM recovery methods. Recovery of palladium from seven-component simulated waste solutions was conducted by selective precipitation method. The recovery yield was more than 99.5% and the purity of the product was more than 99%. Wet-proof catalyst was prepared with the recovered palladium. The specific surface area of the catalyst support was more than 400m{sup 2}/g.The content of palladium impregnated on the support was 1 to 10 wt. %. Hydrogen isotope exchange efficiency of more than 93% to equilibrium with small amount of the catalyst was obtained. It was turned out possible to consider using such palladium or other very low active PGM materials in applications where its activity is unimportant as in nuclear industries. (author). 86 refs., 44 tabs., 88 figs.

EPRI perspective of owner groups

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dau, G.J.

1988-01-01

A survey was conducted to evaluate the utilities' perspective of the success of efforts of the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and owner groups for the development and implementation of advanced technology. The source of the advanced technology was the result of a joint effort between EPRI and two utility owner groups. The former performs generic research and development (R and D) on behalf of its members drawn from the US electric utility industry. Owner groups are short-term associations of a group of utilities, all confronted with the same problem. Management implications for both EPRI and the utilities are drawn from the results and are summarized. They include recognition that EPRI's reputation for objectivity is an important asset that must be protected. Other implications include assessments of the merits and options for building better utility/NRC relations and strengthening the utility/EPRI relationship. Addressing the implications does not hinge on any major new development. Rather, it depends on EPRI and utility management making the commitment to support efforts to increase the intensity of communication on the baseline program. The resources needed are mainly provision of adequate staff time and attendant travel expenses

Group-decoupled multi-group pin power reconstruction utilizing nodal solution 1D flux profiles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu, Lulin; Lu, Dong; Zhang, Shaohong; Wang, Dezhong

2014-01-01

Highlights: • A direct fitting multi-group pin power reconstruction method is developed. • The 1D nodal solution flux profiles are used as the condition. • The least square fit problem is analytically solved. • A slowing down source improvement method is applied. • The method shows good accuracy for even challenging problems. - Abstract: A group-decoupled direct fitting method is developed for multi-group pin power reconstruction, which avoids both the complication of obtaining 2D analytic multi-group flux solution and any group-coupled iteration. A unique feature of the method is that in addition to nodal volume and surface average fluxes and corner fluxes, transversely-integrated 1D nodal solution flux profiles are also used as the condition to determine the 2D intra-nodal flux distribution. For each energy group, a two-dimensional expansion with a nine-term polynomial and eight hyperbolic functions is used to perform a constrained least square fit to the 1D intra-nodal flux solution profiles. The constraints are on the conservation of nodal volume and surface average fluxes and corner fluxes. Instead of solving the constrained least square fit problem numerically, we solve it analytically by fully utilizing the symmetry property of the expansion functions. Each of the 17 unknown expansion coefficients is expressed in terms of nodal volume and surface average fluxes, corner fluxes and transversely-integrated flux values. To determine the unknown corner fluxes, a set of linear algebraic equations involving corner fluxes is established via using the current conservation condition on all corners. Moreover, an optional slowing down source improvement method is also developed to further enhance the accuracy of the reconstructed flux distribution if needed. Two test examples are shown with very good results. One is a four-group BWR mini-core problem with all control blades inserted and the other is the seven-group OECD NEA MOX benchmark, C5G7

A temática do desenvolvimento sustentável em grupos de pesquisa The sustainable development thematic in the research groups

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Cristina Piumbato Innocentini Hayashi

2006-01-01

Full Text Available A inovação tecnológica trouxe para o debate a questão do desenvolvimento tecnológico sustentável. O artigo apresenta um conjunto de reflexões teóricas sobre os temas ciência,tecnologia e desenvolvimento sustentável e aponta as contribuições da Ciência da Informação, enquanto ciência interdisciplinar, para a compreensão do desenvolvimento sustentável. Com base neste referencial foi realizada uma investigação, de natureza exploratória descritiva comabordagem quanti-qualitativa, tendo como objetivo principal identificar a presença da temática do desenvolvimento sustentável em grupos de pesquisa da UFSCar cadastrados noDiretório de Grupos de Pesquisa no Brasil/CNPq. Os resultados apontaram que a temática do desenvolvimento sustentável está presente em onze grupos de pesquisa da UFSCar distribuídas em diferentes áreas de conhecimento. Comparando os dados obtidos com os grupos de pesquisa do país que participaram do Censo 2004 do Diretório de Grupos de Pesquisa no Brasil/CNPq verificou-se que há similaridade entre ambos os achados. De acordo com a literatura científica, confirma-se que a temática do desenvolvimento sustentável é interdisciplinar e que a produção de conhecimento dos grupos de pesquisa é fruto de saberesarticulados entre várias áreas do conhecimento.The technological innovation brought for the debate the question of the sustainable technological development. The article presents an entirety of theoretical reflections on the science, technology and sustainable development themes and to aim the contributions of the Information Science, while interdisciplinary science, with respect to the understanding of the sustainable development. With basis in this reference it was carried through the investigation of descriptive exploratory nature with quanti-qualitative boarding, having as main objective to identify the presence of the sustainable development thematic in research groups of the UFSCar

Families First: the development of a new mentalization-based group intervention for first-time parents to promote child development and family health.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalland, Mirjam; Fagerlund, Åse; von Koskull, Malin; Pajulo, Marjaterttu

2016-01-01

The aim of the present study was to describe the development of Families First, a new mentalization-based group intervention model for supporting early parenthood. The general aim of the intervention was to support well-functioning models of parenting and prevent transmission of negative parenting models over generations, and thus promote child development and overall family health. In the Finnish society, great concern has aroused during the last decade regarding the well-being and mental health of children and adolescents. Increased number of divorces, poverty, substance abuse, and mental health problems among parents enhance the risk for child neglect and abuse. New effective, preventive, and health-promoting intervention tools are greatly needed to support families with young children. At present, the Families First intervention is being implemented in primary social and healthcare units all over Finland. This article will provide a theoretical understanding of the importance of parental mentalization for the development of the parent-child relationship and the development of the child as well as proposed mechanisms of actions in order to enhance mentalizing capacity. The cultural context will be described. The article will also provide a description of the scientific evaluation protocol of the intervention model. Finally, possible limitations and challenges of the intervention model are discussed.

Introduction to quantum groups

CERN Document Server

Chaichian, Masud

1996-01-01

In the past decade there has been an extemely rapid growth in the interest and development of quantum group theory.This book provides students and researchers with a practical introduction to the principal ideas of quantum groups theory and its applications to quantum mechanical and modern field theory problems. It begins with a review of, and introduction to, the mathematical aspects of quantum deformation of classical groups, Lie algebras and related objects (algebras of functions on spaces, differential and integral calculi). In the subsequent chapters the richness of mathematical structure

Development and verification of a high performance multi-group SP3 transport capability in the ARTEMIS core simulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Geemert, Rene

2008-01-01

For satisfaction of future global customer needs, dedicated efforts are being coordinated internationally and pursued continuously at AREVA NP. The currently ongoing CONVERGENCE project is committed to the development of the ARCADIA R next generation core simulation software package. ARCADIA R will be put to global use by all AREVA NP business regions, for the entire spectrum of core design processes, licensing computations and safety studies. As part of the currently ongoing trend towards more sophisticated neutronics methodologies, an SP 3 nodal transport concept has been developed for ARTEMIS which is the steady-state and transient core simulation part of ARCADIA R . For enabling a high computational performance, the SP N calculations are accelerated by applying multi-level coarse mesh re-balancing. In the current implementation, SP 3 is about 1.4 times as expensive computationally as SP 1 (diffusion). The developed SP 3 solution concept is foreseen as the future computational workhorse for many-group 3D pin-by-pin full core computations by ARCADIA R . With the entire numerical workload being highly parallelizable through domain decomposition techniques, associated CPU-time requirements that adhere to the efficiency needs in the nuclear industry can be expected to become feasible in the near future. The accuracy enhancement obtainable by using SP 3 instead of SP 1 has been verified by a detailed comparison of ARTEMIS 16-group pin-by-pin SP N results with KAERI's DeCart reference results for the 2D pin-by-pin Purdue UO 2 /MOX benchmark. This article presents the accuracy enhancement verification and quantifies the achieved ARTEMIS-SP 3 computational performance for a number of 2D and 3D multi-group and multi-box (up to pin-by-pin) core computations. (authors)

Factors influencing the development of end-of-life communication skills: A focus group study of nursing and medical students.

Science.gov (United States)

Gillett, Karen; O'Neill, Bernadette; Bloomfield, Jacqueline G

2016-01-01

Poor communication between health care professionals and dying patients and their families results in complaints about end-of-life care. End-of-life communication skills should be a core part of nursing and medical education but research suggests that qualified doctors and nurses find this a challenging area of practice. The aim of this study was to explore factors influencing the development of end-of-life communication skills by nursing and medical students. A qualitative study comprising five focus groups. Second year undergraduate nursing (n=9 across 2 focus groups) and fourth year undergraduate medical students (n=10 across 3 focus groups) from a London University. Barriers and facilitators influenced nursing and medical students' experience of communication with dying patients and their families in clinical practice. Extrinsic barriers included gatekeeping by qualified staff and lack of opportunity to make sense of experiences through discussion. Intrinsic barriers included not knowing what to say, dealing with emotional responses, wasting patients' time, and concerns about their own ability to cope with distressing experiences. Facilitating factors included good role models, previous experience, and classroom input. In addition to clinical placements, formal opportunities for reflective discussion are necessary to facilitate the development of students' confidence and skills in end-of-life communication. For students and mentors to view end-of-life communication as a legitimate part of their learning it needs to be specified written practice-learning outcome. Mentors and supervisors may require training to enable them to facilitate students to develop end-of-life communication skills. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Glioblastoma and ABO blood groups: further evidence of an association between the distribution of blood group antigens and brain tumours.

Science.gov (United States)

Allouh, Mohammed Z; Al Barbarawi, Mohammed M; Hiasat, Mohammad Y; Al-Qaralleh, Mohammed A; Ababneh, Emad I

2017-10-01

Glioblastoma is a highly malignant brain tumour that usually leads to death. Several studies have reported a link between the distribution of ABO blood group antigens and a risk of developing specific types of cancer, although no consensus has been reached. This study aims to investigate the relationship between the distribution of ABO blood group antigens and the incidence of glioblastoma. The study cohort consisted of 115 glioblastoma patients who were diagnosed at King Abdullah University Hospital, Jordan, between 2004 and 2015. Three different patient populations made up three control groups and these were selected from among patients at the same institution between 2014 and 2015 as follows: 3,847 healthy blood donors, 654 accidental trauma patients admitted to the Departments of Neurosurgery and Orthopaedics, and 230 age- and sex-matched control subjects recruited blindly from the Departments of Paediatrics and Internal Medicine. There was a significant association between the distribution of ABO blood group antigens and the incidence of glioblastoma. Post hoc residual analysis revealed that individuals with group A had a higher than expected chance of developing glioblastoma, while individuals with group O had a lower than expected chance. Furthermore, individuals with group A were found to be at a 1.62- to 2.28-fold increased risk of developing glioblastoma compared to individuals with group O. In the present study, we demonstrate that, in Jordan, individuals with group A have an increased risk of developing glioblastoma, while individuals with group O have a reduced risk. These findings suggest that the distribution of ABO blood group antigens is associated with a risk of brain tumours and may play an important role in their development. However, further clinical and experimental investigations are required to confirm this association.

A dynamic new group within Human Resources Division

CERN Multimedia

2003-01-01

Since 1st May CERN's training and development and personnel management teams have been fused into a new group called Personnel Management and Development. The new Personnel Management and Development Group is responsible for career advancement and management, recruitment, remuneration and for language, communication, management, academic and technical training, keys to a sense of greater well-being and to career progression. The new group was born on 1st May out of the fusion of the "Personnel Management" and "Training and Development" Groups within CERN's Human Resources Division. Its aim is to offer a practical and easily accessible service to assist the members of the personnel and supervisors to manage careers more harmoniously, to make progress and to continue to learn on the job. With Sue Foffano as its Group Leader, the Group comprises four sections: Academic and Technical Training under the guiding hand of Mick Storr; Management, Communication and Language Training headed by Sudeshna Datta-Cockeril...

The impact of Cochrane Reviews: a mixed-methods evaluation of outputs from Cochrane Review Groups supported by the National Institute for Health Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Bunn, Frances; Trivedi, Daksha; Alderson, Phil; Hamilton, Laura; Martin, Alice; Pinkney, Emma; Iliffe, Steve

2015-04-01

The last few decades have seen a growing emphasis on evidence-informed decision-making in health care. Systematic reviews, such as those produced by Cochrane, have been a key component of this movement. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Systematic Review Programme currently supports 20 Cochrane Review Groups (CRGs) in the UK and it is important that this funding represents value for money. The overall aim was to identify the impacts and likely impacts on health care, patient outcomes and value for money of Cochrane Reviews published by 20 NIHR-funded CRGs during the years 2007-11. We sent questionnaires to CRGs and review authors, undertook interviews with guideline developers (GDs) and used bibliometrics and documentary review to get an overview of CRG impact and to evaluate the impact of a sample of 60 Cochrane Reviews. The evaluation was guided by a framework with four categories (knowledge production, research targeting, informing policy development and impact on practice/services). A total of 3187 new and updated reviews were published on the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews between 2007 and 2011, 1502 (47%) of which were produced by the 20 CRGs funded by the NIHR. We found 40 examples where reviews appeared to have influenced primary research and reviews had contributed to the creation of new knowledge and stimulated debate. Twenty-seven of the 60 reviews had 100 or more citations in Google Scholar™ (Google, CA, USA). Overall, 483 systematic reviews had been cited in 247 sets of guidance. This included 62 sets of international guidance, 175 sets of national guidance (87 from the UK) and 10 examples of local guidance. Evidence from the interviews suggested that Cochrane Reviews often play an instrumental role in informing guidance, although reviews being a poor fit with guideline scope or methods, reviews being out of date and a lack of communication between CRGs and GDs were barriers to their use. Cochrane Reviews appeared to have led

Use of formative research and social network theory to develop a group walking intervention: Sumter County on the Move!

Science.gov (United States)

Forthofer, Melinda; Burroughs-Girardi, Ericka; Stoisor-Olsson, Liliana; Wilcox, Sara; Sharpe, Patricia A; Pekuri, Linda M

2016-10-01

Although social support is a frequently cited enabler of physical activity, few studies have examined how to harness social support in interventions. This paper describes community-based formative research to design a walking program for mobilizing naturally occurring social networks to support increases in walking behavior. Focus group methods were used to engage community members in discussions about desired walking program features. The research was conducted with underserved communities in Sumter County, South Carolina. The majority of focus group participants were women (76%) and African American (92%). Several important themes emerged from the focus group results regarding attitudes toward walking, facilitators of and barriers to walking, ideal walking program characteristics, and strategies for encouraging community members to walk. Most noteably, the role of existing social networks as a supportive influence on physical activity was a recurring theme in our formative research and a gap in the existing evidence base. The resulting walking program focused on strategies for mobilizing, supporting and reinforcing existing social networks as mechanisms for increasing walking. Our approach to linking theory, empirical evidence and community-based formative research for the development of a walking intervention offers an example for practitioners developing intervention strategies for a wide range of behaviors. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Accountability in public health units: using a modified nominal group technique to develop a balanced scorecard for performance measurement.

Science.gov (United States)

Robinson, Victoria A; Hunter, Duncan; Shortt, Samuel E D

2003-01-01

Little attention has been paid to the need for accountability instruments applicable across all health units in the public health system. One tool, the balanced scorecard was created for industry and has been successfully adapted for use in Ontario hospitals. It consists of 4 quadrants: financial performance, outcomes, customer satisfaction and organizational development. The aim of the present study was to determine if a modified nominal group technique could be used to reach consensus among public health unit staff and public health specialists in Ontario about the components of a balanced scorecard for public health units. A modified nominal group technique consensus method was used with the public health unit staff in 6 Eastern Ontario health units (n=65) and public health specialists (n=18). 73.8% of the public health unit personnel from all six health units in the eastern Ontario region participated in the survey of potential indicators. A total of 74 indicators were identified in each of the 4 quadrants: program performance (n=44); financial performance (n=11); public perceptions (n=11); and organizational performance (n=8). The modified nominal group technique was a successful method of incorporating the views of public health personnel and specialists in the development of a balanced scorecard for public health.

Transactive memory in organizational groups: the effects of content, consensus, specialization, and accuracy on group performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Austin, John R

2003-10-01

Previous research on transactive memory has found a positive relationship between transactive memory system development and group performance in single project laboratory and ad hoc groups. Closely related research on shared mental models and expertise recognition supports these findings. In this study, the author examined the relationship between transactive memory systems and performance in mature, continuing groups. A group's transactive memory system, measured as a combination of knowledge stock, knowledge specialization, transactive memory consensus, and transactive memory accuracy, is positively related to group goal performance, external group evaluations, and internal group evaluations. The positive relationship with group performance was found to hold for both task and external relationship transactive memory systems.

Neural network integration during the perception of in-group and out-group members.

Science.gov (United States)

Greven, Inez M; Ramsey, Richard

2017-11-01

Group biases guide social interactions by promoting in-group favouritism, but the neural mechanisms underpinning group biases remain unclear. While neuroscience research has shown that distributed brain circuits are associated with seeing in-group and out-group members as "us" and "them", it is less clear how these networks exchange signals. This fMRI study uses functional connectivity analyses to investigate the contribution of functional integration to group bias modulation of person perception. Participants were assigned to an arbitrary group and during scanning they observed bodies of in-group or out-group members that cued the recall of positive or negative social knowledge. The results showed that functional coupling between perceptual and cognitive neural networks is tuned to particular combinations of group membership and social knowledge valence. Specifically, coupling between body perception and theory-of-mind networks is biased towards seeing a person that had previously been paired with information consistent with group bias (positive for in-group and negative for out-group). This demonstrates how brain regions associated with visual analysis of others and belief reasoning exchange and integrate signals when evaluating in-group and out-group members. The results update models of person perception by showing how and when interplay occurs between perceptual and extended systems when developing a representation of another person. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Focusing on What Counts: Using Exploratory Focus Groups to Enhance the Development of an Electronic Survey in a Mixed-Methods Research Design

Science.gov (United States)

Galliott, Natal'ya; Graham, Linda J.

2016-01-01

This paper illustrates the use of exploratory focus groups to inform the development of a survey instrument in a sequential phase mixed-methods study investigating differences in secondary students' career choice capability. Five focus groups were conducted with 23 Year 10 students in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Analysis of the focus…

Family support group in psychosocial rehabilitation

Science.gov (United States)

Ponnuchamy, L.; Mathew, Baijumon K.; Mathew, Sheeba; Udayakumar, G.S.; Kalyanasundaram, S.; Ramprasad, Dharitri

2005-01-01

Background: Support groups for families of persons with mental illness are emerging as significant components in psychosocial rehabilitation programmes. Aim: To ascertain the expectations of family members who attend family support group meetings and to find out the efficacy of such programmes. Methods: The data were collected from support group members using a semi-structured interview schedule. The study sample (n=20) was drawn from family members who attended the support group meetings regularly for a minimum period of 6 months. Data analysis was done using percentile. Results: Analysis of the data revealed that members attending the support group meetings expected to get more information about the illness, develop skills to cope with problems at home and learn skills to deal with the ill person. An important finding of the study was that the members developed a ‘feeling of togetherness’ as a result of being a member of a group with common aims. Conclusion: Participation in a support group meeting positively affects key variables in the participant's adaptation to mental illness in a relative. PMID:20814460

Developing a Capacity Assessment Framework for Marine Logistics Groups

Science.gov (United States)

2017-02-20

Corps, 2015; and 1st Marine Logistics Group, 2015. RAND RR1572-2.3 1st FSSG Headquarters Regiment Security Company CLR-1 CLR-15 7th ESB 1st Medical... Companies . Supply and maintenance battalions form the bulk of CLR-15. The Combat Logistics Companies are small, task-organized companies that support Marine...under- standing logistics capacity as it pertains to informing decisions to improve efficiencies and reduce costs . Most often these assessments of

Focused development of advanced practice nurse roles for specific patient groups in a Swiss university hospital

Science.gov (United States)

Spichiger, Elisabeth; Zumstein-Shaha, Maya; Schubert, Maria; Herrmann, Luzia

2018-02-01

Background: To cover future health care needs of the population, new care models are necessary. The development of advanced nursing practice (ANP) offers the opportunity to meet these challenges with novel services. At the Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, ANP services and corresponding advanced practice nurse (APN) roles have been developed since 2011. Purpose: The aim is to develop innovative and evidence based ANP services to supplement health care for specific patient groups and their family members with the goal to improve safety and achieve better outcomes. Methods: Project-based ANP services are developed in close collaboration of clinical departments and the Nursing Development Unit (NDU) of the Directorate of Nursing. Structure, process and outcome data are collected for evaluation. Findings: Currently, five ANP services are established and running, eight more are in the developmental phase. Most services address the long term care of patients with chronic illnesses and their family members. Ten APNs work between 10 % and 80 %, three are leading an ANP-team. APNs work over 50 % in direct clinical practice, primarily in counselling. An ANP network connects APNs and NDU, promoting synergy and exchange. Conclusions: The available resources often constitute a challenge for the development of ANP services. Vital for the long-term success are an adequate extent of the position, the support by department directorate, the conceptual framework that is implemented across the whole hospital, and the development within project structures.

DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTIGATION OF LAYOUT OF ACTIVE SCREENING SYSTEM OF THE MAGNETIC FIELD GENERATED BY GROUP OF OVERHEAD TRANSMISSION LINES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. I. Kuznetsov

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Purpose. Development and field experimental research of layout of the single-circuit active screening system of the magnetic field generated by group of high voltage transmission lines in residential area is given. Methodology. Mathematical model of magnetic field, generated by group of high voltage transmission lines in residential area, based of the experimental values of magnetic field flux density in given points on the basis of optimization problem solving is improved. The objective of the synthesis of the single circuit active screening system is to determine their number, configuration, spatial arrangement, wiring diagrams and compensation cables currents, setting algorithm of the control systems as well as the resulting value of the magnetic flux density at the points of the protected space. Synthesis of the full-scale model of active screening system is reduced to the problem of multiobjective nonlinear programming with constraints in which calculation of the objective functions and constraints are carried out on the basis of the Maxwell equations solutions in the quasi-stationary approximation. The problem is solved by a stochastic multiswarm multi-agent particles optimization. Results. The single-circuit active screening system synthesis results for reduction of a magnetic field generated by group of high voltage transmission lines in residential area is given. Field experimental researches of the single-circuit active screening system of the magnetic field generated by group of high voltage transmission lines in residential area with various control algorithms is given. Originality. For the first time out the development and field experimental studies of the single-circuit active screening system of the magnetic field generated by group of high voltage transmission lines in residential area are carried out. Practical value. Practical recommendations on reasonable choice of the spatial arrangement of compensating cables of single

Building the Emotional Intelligence of Groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Druskat, Vanessa Urch; Wolff, Steven B.

2001-01-01

Research has found that individual emotional intelligence has a group analog and it is critical to groups' effectiveness. Teams can develop greater emotional intelligence and boost their overall performance. (JOW)

Gender diversity and motivation in collaborative learning groups : the mediating role of group discussion quality

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Curseu, P.L.; Chappin, M.M.H.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/304835056; Jansen, Rob J. G.

Collaborative learning is often used in higher education to help students develop their teamwork skills and acquire curricular knowledge. In this paper we test a mediation model in which the quality of group discussions mediates the impact of gender diversity and group motivation on collaborative

Gender diversity and motivation in collaborative learning groups : The mediating role of group discussion quality

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Curseu, Petre; Chappin, M.M.H.; Jansen, R.J.G.

2018-01-01

Collaborative learning is often used in higher education to help students develop their teamwork skills and acquire curricular knowledge. In this paper we test a mediation model in which the quality of group discussions mediates the impact of gender diversity and group motivation on collaborative

Group EDF at a glance 2005; Groupe EDF l'essentiel 2005

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2006-05-15

The EDF Group is a leading player in the European energy industry, present in all areas of the electricity value chain, from generation to trading, and increasingly active in the gas chain in Europe. 2005 was a crucial year for EDF: growth in sales and a doubling of net income, the opening of the capital, the stepping up of our strategic development plan focused on Europe, a new public service agreement in France. This document presents the main points of the group activities in 2005: the group profile, the growing of the group, the solid position in France (sales and marketing, production and global warming, the radioactive wastes management and the business), consolidating positions in Europe and the international activities by pursuing a selective strategy. (A.L.B.)

Report on the activities of the ASME-NQA Committee Working Group on Quality Assurance Requirements for Research and Development, April 1990 to August 1991

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dronkers, J.J.

1991-09-01

This report transmits to the public eye the activities of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers-Nuclear Quality Assurance (ASME-NQA) Committee Working Group on Quality Assurance Requirements for Research and Development. The appendix lists the members of this group as of August 1991. The report covers a period of 17 months. The working group met eight times in this period, and much intellectual ground was traversed. There was seldom agreement on the nature of the task, but there was no doubt as to its urgency. The task was how to adapt the nuclear quality assurance standard, the NQA-1, to research and development work. 1 fig., 7 tabs.

Embedding Systems Thinking into EWB Project Planning and Development: Assessing the Utility of a Group Model Building Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kimberly Pugel

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Amongst growing sociotechnical efforts, engineering students and professionals both in the international development sector and industry are challenged to approach projects more holistically to achieve project goals.  Engineering service learning organizations must similarly adapt their technological projects to consider varying cultural and economic structures, ensuring more resilient social progress within development efforts.  In practice, systems thinking approaches can be utilized to model the social, economic, political, and technological implications that influence the sustainability of an engineering project. This research assesses the utility of integrating systems thinking into Engineers Without Borders (EWB project planning and development, thereby improving project impact and more effectively engaging members.  At a workshop held at an EWB-USA 2016 Regional Conference, the authors presented a planning and evaluation framework that applies group model building with system dynamics to foster systems thinking through factor diagramming and analysis. To assess the added value of the framework for EWB project planning and development, extensive participant feedback was gathered and evaluated during the workshop and through an optional post-workshop survey.  Supported by thoughtful observations and feedback provided by the EWB members, the model building workshop appeared to help participants reveal and consider project complexities by both visually and quantitatively identifying key non-technical and technical factors that influence project sustainability.  Therefore, system dynamics applied in a group model building workshop offers a powerful supplement to traditional EWB project planning and assessment activities, providing a systems-based tool for EWB teams and partner communities to build capacity and create lasting change.

Developing Agreed and Accepted Understandings of Spirituality and Spiritual Care Concepts among Members of an Innovative Spirituality Interest Group in the Republic of Ireland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fiona Timmins

2016-03-01

Full Text Available A Spirituality Interest Group (SIG was set up in in the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, Republic of Ireland (ROI, in March 2013. This paper reports on some of the journey and requirements involved in developing the group. It highlights the essential work of establishing agreed understandings in an objective way in order for the group to move forward with action. These agreed understandings have contributed to the group’s success. Outlining the group’s journey in arriving at agreements may be of use to others considering creating similar groups. One key action taken to determine the suitability of the group’s aims and terms of reference was the distribution of a Survey Monkey to group members (n = 28 in 2014. One early meeting of the group discussed future goals and direction using the responses of this anonymous survey. This paper reports on the results of the survey regarding the establishment of the SIG and the development of a shared understanding of spiritual care among the members. There is consensus in the group that the spiritual care required by clients receiving healthcare ought to be an integrated effort across the healthcare team. However, there is an acceptance that spirituality and spiritual care are not always clearly understood concepts in practice. By developing shared or at least accepted understandings of spirituality and spiritual care, SIG hopes to be able to underpin both research and practice with solid foundational conceptual understanding, and in the process also to meet essential prerequisites for achieving the group’s aims.

Diabetes mellitus and abnormal glucose tolerance development after gestational diabetes: A three-year, prospective, randomized, clinical-based, Mediterranean lifestyle interventional study with parallel groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez-Ferre, Natalia; Del Valle, Laura; Torrejón, Maria José; Barca, Idoya; Calvo, María Isabel; Matía, Pilar; Rubio, Miguel A; Calle-Pascual, Alfonso L

2015-08-01

Women with prior gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) in later life. The study aim was to evaluate the efficacy of a lifestyle intervention for the prevention of glucose disorders (impaired fasting glucose, impaired glucose tolerance or DM2) in women with prior GDM. A total of 260 women with prior GDM who presented with normal fasting plasma glucose at six to twelve weeks postpartum were randomized into two groups: a Mediterranean lifestyle intervention group (n = 130) who underwent an educational program on nutrition and a monitored physical activity program and a control group (n = 130) with a conventional follow-up. A total of 237 women completed the three-year follow-up (126 in the intervention group and 111 in the control group). Their glucose disorders rates, clinical and metabolic changes and rates of adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle were analyzed. Less women in the intervention group (42.8%) developed glucose disorders at the end of the three-year follow-up period compared with the control group (56.75%), p Lifestyle intervention was effective for the prevention of glucose disorders in women with prior GDM. Body weight gain and an unhealthy fat intake pattern were found to be the most predictive factors for the development of glucose disorders. Current Controlled trials: ISRCTN24165302. http://www.controlled-trials.com/isrctn/pf/24165302. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. All rights reserved.

Focus group report, Part I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-07-01

The Waste Policy Institute, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science and Technology (OST), conducted two focus groups with people who live or work near DOE sites. The purpose of the focus groups was to gain a better understanding of the general community's information needs about the development of innovative technologies that are used in the cleanup of the sites. The authors wanted to better understand of what role these people want to play in the development of new technologies, how OST communication products can help facilitate that role, and the usefulness of current OST communication products. WPI held the focus groups in communities near the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) and the Savannah River Site (SRS) because they are among the DOE sites that cannot be cleaned up before 2006. To include many facets of the communities, WPI randomly selected participants from membership lists of organized groups in each community including: elected officials, school boards, unions, chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, environmental organizations, health and human service organizations, and area clergy. While in the communities, WPI also interviewed stakeholders such as tribal representatives and a Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) member. Qualitative data gathered during the focus group sessions give some indication of general stakeholder opinions. However, the authors caution readers not to make broad assumptions about the general stakeholder audience based on the opinions of a limited number of general community stakeholders

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Pediatric Formulation Initiative: selected reports from working groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Giacoia, George P; Taylor-Zapata, Perdita; Mattison, Donald

2008-11-01

The Pediatric Formulation Initiative (PFI) is a project of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). The PFI was established to address the issue of the lack of appropriate formulations in children and to use this activity as a means to improve pediatric formulations, as mandated by the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act of 2002 and 2007. The PFI began in 2005 with the formation of 3 working groups-Scientific, Economics, and Taste and Flavor. These groups began the process of identifying issues, gathering needed information, and considering possible ways to overcome barriers to the development of pediatric drug formulations. The purpose of this supplement was to provide details of the working groups' activities through presentation of full-length articles. Also presented is an article that discusses the 2007 European Union (EU) regulation on medicinal products for pediatric use. Information for this article was gathered from the proceedings of a PFI workshop, sponsored by the NICHD, that was held in Bethesda, Maryland, on December 6 and 7, 2005, as well as postworkshop discussions of the different working groups. The increased awareness that the majority of medications used today have not been labeled for use in children, and have not been tested to define safety, efficacy, and appropriate dosing, has led to the passage of legislation in the United States and in the EU to create incentives to stimulate the testing of drugs in this special population. It is imperative that the problems associated with the compounding and use of extemporaneous formulations as described in this supplement be addressed. Regulatory barriers to the availability of commercially developed pediatric formulations in different countries will need to be minimized or removed. New drug delivery systems will need to be tested and made available to pediatric patients. Further research in the mediators of bitter taste and study of taste blockers

Two-year impact of community-based health screening and parenting groups on child development in Zambia: Follow-up to a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Rockers, Peter C; Zanolini, Arianna; Banda, Bowen; Chipili, Mwaba Moono; Hughes, Robert C; Hamer, Davidson H; Fink, Günther

2018-04-01

Early childhood interventions have potential to offset the negative impact of early adversity. We evaluated the impact of a community-based parenting group intervention on child development in Zambia. We conducted a non-masked cluster-randomized controlled trial in Southern Province, Zambia. Thirty clusters of villages were matched based on population density and distance from the nearest health center, and randomly assigned to intervention (15 clusters, 268 caregiver-child dyads) or control (15 clusters, 258 caregiver-child dyads). Caregivers were eligible if they had a child 6 to 12 months old at baseline. In intervention clusters, caregivers were visited twice per month during the first year of the study by child development agents (CDAs) and were invited to attend fortnightly parenting group meetings. Parenting groups selected "head mothers" from their communities who were trained by CDAs to facilitate meetings and deliver a diverse parenting curriculum. The parenting group intervention, originally designed to run for 1 year, was extended, and households were visited for a follow-up assessment at the end of year 2. The control group did not receive any intervention. Intention-to-treat analysis was performed for primary outcomes measured at the year 2 follow-up: stunting and 5 domains of neurocognitive development measured using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third Edition (BSID-III). In order to show Cohen's d estimates, BSID-III composite scores were converted to z-scores by standardizing within the study population. In all, 195/268 children (73%) in the intervention group and 182/258 children (71%) in the control group were assessed at endline after 2 years. The intervention significantly reduced stunting (56/195 versus 72/182; adjusted odds ratio 0.45, 95% CI 0.22 to 0.92; p = 0.028) and had a significant positive impact on language (β 0.14, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.27; p = 0.039). The intervention did not significantly impact cognition (β 0

Two-year impact of community-based health screening and parenting groups on child development in Zambia: Follow-up to a cluster-randomized controlled trial.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter C Rockers

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Early childhood interventions have potential to offset the negative impact of early adversity. We evaluated the impact of a community-based parenting group intervention on child development in Zambia.We conducted a non-masked cluster-randomized controlled trial in Southern Province, Zambia. Thirty clusters of villages were matched based on population density and distance from the nearest health center, and randomly assigned to intervention (15 clusters, 268 caregiver-child dyads or control (15 clusters, 258 caregiver-child dyads. Caregivers were eligible if they had a child 6 to 12 months old at baseline. In intervention clusters, caregivers were visited twice per month during the first year of the study by child development agents (CDAs and were invited to attend fortnightly parenting group meetings. Parenting groups selected "head mothers" from their communities who were trained by CDAs to facilitate meetings and deliver a diverse parenting curriculum. The parenting group intervention, originally designed to run for 1 year, was extended, and households were visited for a follow-up assessment at the end of year 2. The control group did not receive any intervention. Intention-to-treat analysis was performed for primary outcomes measured at the year 2 follow-up: stunting and 5 domains of neurocognitive development measured using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-Third Edition (BSID-III. In order to show Cohen's d estimates, BSID-III composite scores were converted to z-scores by standardizing within the study population. In all, 195/268 children (73% in the intervention group and 182/258 children (71% in the control group were assessed at endline after 2 years. The intervention significantly reduced stunting (56/195 versus 72/182; adjusted odds ratio 0.45, 95% CI 0.22 to 0.92; p = 0.028 and had a significant positive impact on language (β 0.14, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.27; p = 0.039. The intervention did not significantly impact

Ethnic Group Differences in Early Head Start Parents Parenting Beliefs and Practices and Links to Children's Early Cognitive Development

Science.gov (United States)

Keels, Micere

2009-01-01

Data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation study were used to examine the extent to which several factors mediate between- and within-ethnic-group differences in parenting beliefs and behaviors, and children's early cognitive development (analysis sample of 1198 families). The findings indicate that Hispanic-, European-, and…

Patient input into the development and enhancement of ED discharge instructions: a focus group study.

Science.gov (United States)

Buckley, Barbara A; McCarthy, Danielle M; Forth, Victoria E; Tanabe, Paula; Schmidt, Michael J; Adams, James G; Engel, Kirsten G

2013-11-01

Previous research indicates that patients have difficulty understanding ED discharge instructions; these findings have important implications for adherence and outcomes. The objective of this study was to obtain direct patient input to inform specific revisions to discharge documents created through a literacy-guided approach and to identify common themes within patient feedback that can serve as a framework for the creation of discharge documents in the future. Based on extensive literature review and input from ED providers, subspecialists, and health literacy and communication experts, discharge instructions were created for 5 common ED diagnoses. Participants were recruited from a federally qualified health center to participate in a series of 5 focus group sessions. Demographic information was obtained and a Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine (REALM) assessment was performed. During each of the 1-hour focus group sessions, participants reviewed discharge instructions for 1 of 5 diagnoses. Participants were asked to provide input into the content, organization, and presentation of the documents. Using qualitative techniques, latent and manifest content analysis was performed to code for emergent themes across all 5 diagnoses. Fifty-seven percent of participants were female and the average age was 32 years. The average REALM score was 57.3. Through qualitative analysis, 8 emergent themes were identified from the focus groups. Patient input provides meaningful guidance in the development of diagnosis-specific discharge instructions. Several themes and patterns were identified, with broad significance for the design of ED discharge instructions. Copyright © 2013 Emergency Nurses Association. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Parton Distributions Working Group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barbaro, L. de; Keller, S. A.; Kuhlmann, S.; Schellman, H.; Tung, W.-K.

2000-01-01

This report summarizes the activities of the Parton Distributions Working Group of the QCD and Weak Boson Physics workshop held in preparation for Run II at the Fermilab Tevatron. The main focus of this working group was to investigate the different issues associated with the development of quantitative tools to estimate parton distribution functions uncertainties. In the conclusion, the authors introduce a Manifesto that describes an optimal method for reporting data

Professional Development of Mathematics Teachers toward the Facilitation of Small-Group Collaboration

Science.gov (United States)

Tabach, Michal; Schwarz, Baruch B.

2018-01-01

Collaborative work in small groups is often a suitable context for yielding substantial individual learning outcomes. Indeed, small-group collaboration has recently become an educational goal rather than a means. Yet, this goal is difficult to attain, and students must be taught how to learn together. In this paper, we focus on how to prepare…

LS1 Report: Full-size security

CERN Multimedia

Anaïs Schaeffer

2014-01-01

Last week several CERN teams were involved in creating a life-size mock helium leak in Sector 4-5. The goals of the exercise were to measure how quickly the helium cloud spread, the change in temperature and the level of oxygen in various parts of the tunnel at different points in time, as well as to check the effects of the helium on the machine and the infrastructures and, above all, to re-evaluate the safety standards in force in the tunnel.   This photograph of the helium cloud was taken by the firemen during the third leak test. "The safety valves designed to release helium in the event of excess pressure are currently located within a 6-metre "no-stopping area" (3 metres on either side of the valves)," explains Johan Bremer of the TE-CRG group, who was in charge of the exercise. "People working in the tunnel can move through this area but are not authorised to stop. The idea is to avoid anyone being too close to the valves in the event of a l...

A new high temperature reactor for operando XAS: Application for the dry reforming of methane over Ni/ZrO2 catalyst

Science.gov (United States)

Aguilar-Tapia, Antonio; Ould-Chikh, Samy; Lahera, Eric; Prat, Alain; Delnet, William; Proux, Olivier; Kieffer, Isabelle; Basset, Jean-Marie; Takanabe, Kazuhiro; Hazemann, Jean-Louis

2018-03-01

The construction of a high-temperature reaction cell for operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy characterization is reported. A dedicated cell was designed to operate as a plug-flow reactor using powder samples requiring gas flow and thermal treatment at high temperatures. The cell was successfully used in the reaction of dry reforming of methane (DRM). We present X-ray absorption results in the fluorescence detection mode on a 0.4 wt. % Ni/ZrO2 catalyst under realistic conditions at 750 °C, reproducing the conditions used for a conventional dynamic microreactor for the DRM reaction. The setup includes a gas distribution system that can be fully remotely operated. The reaction cell offers the possibility of transmission and fluorescence detection modes. The complete setup dedicated to the study of catalysts is permanently installed on the Collaborating Research Groups French Absorption spectroscopy beamline in Material and Environmental sciences (CRG-FAME) and French Absorption spectroscopy beamline in Material and Environmental sciences at Ultra-High Dilution (FAME-UHD) beamlines (BM30B and BM16) at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France.

A new high temperature reactor for operando XAS: Application for the dry reforming of methane over Ni/ZrO2 catalyst

KAUST Repository

Aguilar Tapia, Antonio

2018-03-22

The construction of a high-temperature reaction cell for operando X-ray absorption spectroscopy characterization is reported. A dedicated cell was designed to operate as a plug-flow reactor using powder samples requiring gas flow and thermal treatment at high temperatures. The cell was successfully used in the reaction of dry reforming of methane (DRM). We present X-ray absorption results in the fluorescence detection mode on a 0.4 wt. % Ni/ZrO2 catalyst under realistic conditions at 750 °C, reproducing the conditions used for a conventional dynamic microreactor for the DRM reaction. The setup includes a gas distribution system that can be fully remotely operated. The reaction cell offers the possibility of transmission and fluorescence detection modes. The complete setup dedicated to the study of catalysts is permanently installed on the Collaborating Research Groups French Absorption spectroscopy beamline in Material and Environmental sciences (CRG-FAME) and French Absorption spectroscopy beamline in Material and Environmental sciences at Ultra-High Dilution (FAME-UHD) beamlines (BM30B and BM16) at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France.

LS1 Report: Blowing away the cobwebs

CERN Multimedia

Anaïs Schaeffer

2014-01-01

With the pressure tests now complete (see here), we are coming to the equally important phase of cleaning the machine. With all the work performed over the past year, quite a lot of dust and dirt has accumulated in certain areas of the accelerator.   Result of the flushing performed in 2007 in Sector 5-6... This year, in Sector 6-7, the filters were particularly clean. A simple and efficient solution, known as helium flushing, has been devised by the Cryogenics group (TE-CRG) to clean up these areas. “We circulate helium gas around the machine in both the cryogenic distribution lines and the magnets,” explains Gérard Ferlin, who is responsible for the flushing operations. “This blows all the debris into a filter at the outlet. ” The flow-rate needs to be high enough to ensure that everything is swept away, so the helium is injected at rates of between 15 and 40 metres per second, much higher than in normal operation. “There&rs...

Development needs of the electricity market. Final report by the working group on the five-year revision of the electricity market act

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-01-01

The opening of the Finnish electricity market was started by the Electricity Market Act that entered into force in 1995. The Act abolished the obstructions to competition in electricity production, foreign trade and sales. To guarantee the functioning of the electricity market in practice, the electricity network operators were obliged to gradually open up their networks for the use of other parties operating on the market. Finland has liberated her electricity market in the forefront and ahead of the prescribed time in relation to the obligations laid down in the EC Directive concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity. The working group has studied the development needs of the electricity market in the light of experience gained during the validity of the Electricity Market Act. As a general conclusion, the working group states that the Finnish electricity market is functioning in an appropriate manner and that there is no reason to essentially change the model chosen for the opening of the electricity market. The working group makes several proposals for actions and recommendations for improving the efficiency of the electricity market. According to the view of the working group, electricity users, production plants and distribution network operators should be authorised to construct a 110-440 kV connection line of their own to a 110 kV network or grid. Following the working group's proposal, the regulation concerning electricity retailers would be extended over to electricity vendors operating as retailers in a real-estate network. To guarantee the functioning of competition on the small-scale consumers' electricity market, the working group suggests that the customers would be entitled during one year to one change of vendor for which no separate fee would be collected. The working group proposes that construction authorisation conditions pertaining to border lines should be specified so that one condition for granting an authorisation would

Understanding Nomadic Collaborative Learning Groups

Science.gov (United States)

Ryberg, Thomas; Davidsen, Jacob; Hodgson, Vivien

2018-01-01

The paper builds on the work of Rossitto "et al." on collaborative nomadic work to develop three categories of practice of nomadic collaborative learning groups. Our study is based on interviews, workshops and observations of two undergraduate student's group practices engaged in self-organised, long-term collaborations within the frame…

The positive group affect spiral : a dynamic model of the emergence of positive affective similarity in work groups

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Walter, F.; Bruch, H.

This conceptual paper seeks to clarify the process of the emergence of positive collective affect. Specifically, it develops a dynamic model of the emergence of positive affective similarity in work groups. It is suggested that positive group affective similarity and within-group relationship

Group theory in physics

CERN Document Server

Cornwell, J F

1989-01-01

Recent devopments, particularly in high-energy physics, have projected group theory and symmetry consideration into a central position in theoretical physics. These developments have taken physicists increasingly deeper into the fascinating world of pure mathematics. This work presents important mathematical developments of the last fifteen years in a form that is easy to comprehend and appreciate.

Neutron scattering. Annual progress report 1997; Neutronenstreuung. Annual progress report 1997

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allenspach, P.; Boeni, B.; Fischer, P.; Furrer, A. [Eidgenoessische Technische Hochschule, Zurich (Switzerland). Lab. fuer Neutronenstreuung

1998-02-01

The present progress report describes the scientific and technical activities obtained by LNS staff members in 1997. It also includes the work performed by external groups at our CRG instruments D1A and IN3 at the ILL Grenoble. Due to the outstanding properties of neutrons and x-rays the research work covered many areas of science and materials research. The highlight of the year 1997 was certainly the production of neutrons at the new spallation neutron source SINQ. From July to November, SINQ was operating for typically two days/week and allowed the commissioning of four instruments at the neutron guide system: - the triple-axis spectrometer Druechal, - the powder diffractometer DMC, - the double-axis diffractometer TOPSI, the polarised triple-axis spectrometer TASP. These instruments are now fully operational and have already been used for condensed matter studies, partly in cooperation with external groups. Five further instruments are in an advanced state, and their commissioning is expected to occur between June and October 1998: - the high-resolution powder diffractometer HRPT, - the single-crystal diffractometer TriCS, - the time-of-flight spectrometer FOCUS, - the reflectometer AMOR, - the neutron optical bench NOB. Together with the small angle neutron scattering facility SANS operated by the spallation source department, all these instruments will be made available to external user groups in the future. (author) figs., tabs., refs.

Neutron scattering. Annual progress report 1997

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allenspach, P.; Boeni, B.; Fischer, P.; Furrer, A.

1998-02-01

The present progress report describes the scientific and technical activities obtained by LNS staff members in 1997. It also includes the work performed by external groups at our CRG instruments D1A and IN3 at the ILL Grenoble. Due to the outstanding properties of neutrons and x-rays the research work covered many areas of science and materials research. The highlight of the year 1997 was certainly the production of neutrons at the new spallation neutron source SINQ. From July to November, SINQ was operating for typically two days/week and allowed the commissioning of four instruments at the neutron guide system: - the triple-axis spectrometer Druechal, - the powder diffractometer DMC, - the double-axis diffractometer TOPSI, the polarised triple-axis spectrometer TASP. These instruments are now fully operational and have already been used for condensed matter studies, partly in cooperation with external groups. Five further instruments are in an advanced state, and their commissioning is expected to occur between June and October 1998: - the high-resolution powder diffractometer HRPT, - the single-crystal diffractometer TriCS, - the time-of-flight spectrometer FOCUS, - the reflectometer AMOR, - the neutron optical bench NOB. Together with the small angle neutron scattering facility SANS operated by the spallation source department, all these instruments will be made available to external user groups in the future. (author) figs., tabs., refs

[Morbidity observed in a health area: Impact on professionals and funding].

Science.gov (United States)

de Miguel, Pablo; Caballero, Isabel; Rivas, Francisco Javier; Manera, Jaime; de Vicente, María Auxiliadora; Gómez, Ángel

2015-05-01

To analyze morbidity, in the context of a health area, and broken down by health centre, of patients who made contact with healthcare services, in order to propose an adjustment to finance the payment per capita. A descriptive study of morbidity observed in citizens assigned a health area during year 2010. SITE: Health Area 9. Autonomous Community of Madrid. Formed by the municipalities of Fuenlabrada, Humanes, and Moraleja de Enmedio. All levels of health care included. All citizens with health card assigned to a health center in the area who has maintained contact with the public health service's own area. Coded contact of patients are grouped using the Population Grouping Clinical Risk 3M TM Software (CRG). Each patient is included in a homogeneous and exclusive group with a numerical morbidity and clinical sense. Through the health card is known primary care centre, physician, age and sex. The distribution of morbidity is obtained by primary care centre, primary care physician, age and sex analyzing differences and combinations. It was found that the average values of the population morbidity are different in each primary care centre. In order to maintain the principle of equity in health care, it is suggested that an adjustment is made to the per capita payment based on the morbidity rate of the population. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Biosphere modelling for the assessment of radioactive waste repositories: the development of a common basis by the BIOMOVS II working group on reference biospheres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VanDorp, F.

1996-01-01

Performance criteria for radioactive waste repositories are often expressed in terms of dose or risk. The characteristics of biosphere modelling for performance assessment are that: a) potential release occurs in the distant future, b) reliable predictions of human behaviour at the time of release are impracticable, and c) the biosphere is not considered to be a barrier. For these and other reasons, many unexplained differences have arisen in the approaches to biosphere modelling. The BIOMOVS II Working Group on Reference Biospheres has developed a) a recommended methodology for biosphere model development, b) a structured electronic list of features, events and processes (FEPs), and c) an illustrative example of the recommended methodology. The Working Group has successfully tested the Interaction Matrix (or Rock Engineering Systems, RES) approach for developing conceptual models. The BIOMOVS II Working Groups on Reference Biospheres and Complementary Studies have achieved considerable harmonisation in approaches to biosphere modelling. (author)

Development of a Real-time PCR test for porcine group A rotavirus diagnosis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth C.M. Marconi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Group A Rotavirus (RVA is one of the most common causes of diarrhea in humans and several animal species. A SYBR-Green Real-Time polymerase chain reaction (PCR was developed to diagnose RVA from porcine fecal samples, targeting amplification of a 137-bp fragment of nonstructural protein 5 (NSP5 gene using mRNA of bovine NADH-desidrogenase-5 as exogenous internal control. Sixty-five samples were tested (25 tested positive for conventional PCR and genetic sequencing. The overall agreement (kappa was 0.843, indicating 'very good' concordance between tests, presenting 100% of relative sensitivity (25+ Real Time PCR/25+ Conventional PCR and 87.5% of relative sensitivity (35- Real Time PCR/40- Conventional PCR. The results also demonstrated high intra- and inter-assay reproducibility (coefficient of variation ≤1.42%; thus, this method proved to be a fast and sensitive approach for the diagnosis of RVA in pigs.

Managing parental groups: personal impact of a group leadership course for child healthcare nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Lefèvre, Åsa; Lundqvist, Pia; Drevenhorn, Eva; Hallström, Inger

2017-02-01

To investigate the experience and personal impact of a group leadership course for child healthcare nurses. During their child's first year, all parents in Sweden are invited to participate in parental groups within the child health service; however, only 49% choose to participate. Despite extensive experience, child healthcare nurses find managing parental groups challenging and express a need for training in group dynamics and group leadership. The study was designed as a controlled study with a pretest/post-test design where the participants form their own control group. A group leadership course was given to 56 child healthcare nurses and evaluated in a pre- and postintervention questionnaire, a course evaluation and an interview with the course leaders. The child healthcare nurses felt their group leadership skills were strengthened and the majority (96%) felt that the course had changed their way of leading parental groups. They felt that the group leader role had been clarified and that they had obtained several new tools to use in their groups. Clarifying the role of group leader and adding knowledge about group leadership and dynamics seems to have increased the self-confidence for child healthcare nurses in group leadership. Improved confidence in group management might motivate the child healthcare nurses to further develop parental groups to attract the parents who currently choose not to participate. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Supervision and group dynamics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Søren; Jensen, Lars Peter

2004-01-01

 An important aspect of the problem based and project organized study at Aalborg University is the supervision of the project groups. At the basic education (first year) it is stated in the curriculum that part of the supervisors' job is to deal with group dynamics. This is due to the experience...... that many students are having difficulties with practical issues such as collaboration, communication, and project management. Most supervisors either ignore this demand, because they do not find it important or they find it frustrating, because they do not know, how to supervise group dynamics...... as well as at Aalborg University. The first visible result has been participating supervisors telling us that the course has inspired them to try supervising group dynamics in the future. This paper will explore some aspects of supervising group dynamics as well as, how to develop the Aalborg model...