Objective Versus Subjective Military Pilot Selection Methods in the United States of America

Science.gov (United States)

2015-12-14

a computerized test designed to assess pilot skills by measuring spatial orientation and psychomotor skills and multitasking . The second is the...AFRL-SA-WP-SR-2015-0028 Objective Versus Subjective Military Pilot Selection Methods in the United States of America Joe...September 2014 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Objective Versus Subjective Military Pilot Selection Methods in the United States of America 5a. CONTRACT

Microfluidic devices and methods including porous polymer monoliths

Science.gov (United States)

Hatch, Anson V; Sommer, Gregory J; Singh, Anup K; Wang, Ying-Chih; Abhyankar, Vinay V

2014-04-22

Microfluidic devices and methods including porous polymer monoliths are described. Polymerization techniques may be used to generate porous polymer monoliths having pores defined by a liquid component of a fluid mixture. The fluid mixture may contain iniferters and the resulting porous polymer monolith may include surfaces terminated with iniferter species. Capture molecules may then be grafted to the monolith pores.

Methodic of practical study teaching on subject 'Characteristic mechanical oscillations'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tenchurina, A.R.

2006-01-01

In this article the methodic of the undertaking the practical lesson for subject 'the own mechanical vibrations' is considered and offered the algorithm of the problem decision the finding of the vibration period for the different mechanical systems. (author)

Indication of Importance of Including Soil Microbial Characteristics into Biotope Valuation Method.

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Trögl, J.; Pavlorková, Jana; Packová, P.; Seják, J.; Kuráň, P.; Kuráň, J.; Popelka, J.; Pacina, J.

2016-01-01

Roč. 8, č. 3 (2016), č. článku 253. ISSN 2071-1050 Institutional support: RVO:67985858 Keywords : biotope assessment * biotope valuation method * soil microbial communities Subject RIV: DJ - Water Pollution ; Quality Impact factor: 1.789, year: 2016

Semi-quantitative methods yield greater inter- and intraobserver agreement than subjective methods for interpreting 99m technetium-hydroxymethylene-diphosphonate uptake in equine thoracic processi spinosi.

Science.gov (United States)

van Zadelhoff, Claudia; Ehrle, Anna; Merle, Roswitha; Jahn, Werner; Lischer, Christoph

2018-05-09

Scintigraphy is a standard diagnostic method for evaluating horses with back pain due to suspected thoracic processus spinosus pathology. Lesion detection is based on subjective or semi-quantitative assessments of increased uptake. This retrospective, analytical study is aimed to compare semi-quantitative and subjective methods in the evaluation of scintigraphic images of the processi spinosi in the equine thoracic spine. Scintigraphic images of 20 Warmblood horses, presented for assessment of orthopedic conditions between 2014 and 2016, were included in the study. Randomized, blinded image evaluation was performed by 11 veterinarians using subjective and semi-quantitative methods. Subjective grading was performed for the analysis of red-green-blue and grayscale scintigraphic images, which were presented in full-size or as masked images. For the semi-quantitative assessment, observers placed regions of interest over each processus spinosus. The uptake ratio of each processus spinosus in comparison to a reference region of interest was determined. Subsequently, a modified semi-quantitative calculation was developed whereby only the highest counts-per-pixel for a specified number of pixels was processed. Inter- and intraobserver agreement was calculated using intraclass correlation coefficients. Inter- and intraobserver intraclass correlation coefficients were 41.65% and 71.39%, respectively, for the subjective image assessment. Additionally, a correlation between intraobserver agreement, experience, and grayscale images was identified. The inter- and intraobserver agreement was significantly increased when using semi-quantitative analysis (97.35% and 98.36%, respectively) or the modified semi-quantitative calculation (98.61% and 98.82%, respectively). The proposed modified semi-quantitative technique showed a higher inter- and intraobserver agreement when compared to other methods, which makes it a useful tool for the analysis of scintigraphic images. The

Breath pacing system and method for pacing the respiratory activity of a subject

NARCIS (Netherlands)

2016-01-01

To provide a breath pacing system and a corresponding method for pacing the respiratory activity of a subject that provide the possibility to adapt the output signal to the respiration characteristics of the subject automatically and effectively a breath pacing system (10) for pacing the respiratory

Subject-independent emotion recognition based on physiological signals: a three-stage decision method.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Jing; Hu, Bin; Wang, Yue; Moore, Philip; Dai, Yongqiang; Feng, Lei; Ding, Zhijie

2017-12-20

Collaboration between humans and computers has become pervasive and ubiquitous, however current computer systems are limited in that they fail to address the emotional component. An accurate understanding of human emotions is necessary for these computers to trigger proper feedback. Among multiple emotional channels, physiological signals are synchronous with emotional responses; therefore, analyzing physiological changes is a recognized way to estimate human emotions. In this paper, a three-stage decision method is proposed to recognize four emotions based on physiological signals in the multi-subject context. Emotion detection is achieved by using a stage-divided strategy in which each stage deals with a fine-grained goal. The decision method consists of three stages. During the training process, the initial stage transforms mixed training subjects to separate groups, thus eliminating the effect of individual differences. The second stage categorizes four emotions into two emotion pools in order to reduce recognition complexity. The third stage trains a classifier based on emotions in each emotion pool. During the testing process, a test case or test trial will be initially classified to a group followed by classification into an emotion pool in the second stage. An emotion will be assigned to the test trial in the final stage. In this paper we consider two different ways of allocating four emotions into two emotion pools. A comparative analysis is also carried out between the proposal and other methods. An average recognition accuracy of 77.57% was achieved on the recognition of four emotions with the best accuracy of 86.67% to recognize the positive and excited emotion. Using differing ways of allocating four emotions into two emotion pools, we found there is a difference in the effectiveness of a classifier on learning each emotion. When compared to other methods, the proposed method demonstrates a significant improvement in recognizing four emotions in the

Fragility assessment method of Concrete Wall Subjected to Impact Loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hahm, Daegi; Shin, Sang Shup; Choi, In-Kil

2014-01-01

These studies have been aimed to verify and ensure the safety of the targeted walls and structures especially in the viewpoint of the deterministic approach. However, recently, the regulation and the assessment of the safety of the nuclear power plants (NPPs) against to an aircraft impact are strongly encouraged to adopt a probabilistic approach, i.e., the probabilistic risk assessment of an aircraft impact. In Korea, research to develop aircraft impact risk quantification technology was initiated in 2012 by Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). In this paper, for the one example of the probabilistic safety assessment approach, a method to estimate the failure probability and fragility of concrete wall subjected to impact loading caused by missiles or engine parts of aircrafts will be introduced. This method and the corresponding results will be used for the total technical roadmap and the procedure to assess the aircraft impact risk (Fig.1). A method and corresponding results of the estimation of the failure probability and fragility for a concrete wall subjected to impact loadings caused by missiles or engine parts of aircrafts was introduced. The detailed information of the target concrete wall in NPP, and the example aircraft engine model is considered safeguard information (SGI), and is not contained in this paper

Solution Methods for Structures with Random Properties Subject to Random Excitation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Köylüoglu, H. U.; Nielsen, Søren R. K.; Cakmak, A. S.

This paper deals with the lower order statistical moments of the response of structures with random stiffness and random damping properties subject to random excitation. The arising stochastic differential equations (SDE) with random coefficients are solved by two methods, a second order...... the SDE with random coefficients with deterministic initial conditions to an equivalent nonlinear SDE with deterministic coefficient and random initial conditions. In both methods, the statistical moment equations are used. Hierarchy of statistical moments in the markovian approach is closed...... by the cumulant neglect closure method applied at the fourth order level....

Evaluating fMRI methods for assessing hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Baciu, Monica; Juphard, Alexandra; Cousin, Emilie; Bas, Jean François Le

2005-08-01

We evaluated two methods for quantifying the hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects, by using a rhyme detection (deciding whether couple of words rhyme) and a word fluency (generating words starting with a given letter) task. One of methods called "flip method" (FM) was based on the direct statistical comparison between hemispheres' activity. The second one, the classical lateralization indices method (LIM), was based on calculating lateralization indices by taking into account the number of activated pixels within hemispheres. The main difference between methods is the statistical assessment of the inter-hemispheric difference: while FM shows if the difference between hemispheres' activity is statistically significant, LIM shows only that if there is a difference between hemispheres. The robustness of LIM and FM was assessed by calculating correlation coefficients between LIs obtained with each of these methods and manual lateralization indices MLI obtained with Edinburgh inventory. Our results showed significant correlation between LIs provided by each method and the MIL, suggesting that both methods are robust for quantifying hemispheric dominance for language in healthy subjects. In the present study we also evaluated the effect of spatial normalization, smoothing and "clustering" (NSC) on the intra-hemispheric location of activated regions and inter-hemispheric asymmetry of the activation. Our results have shown that NSC did not affect the hemispheric specialization but increased the value of the inter-hemispheric difference.

Evaluating fMRI methods for assessing hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baciu, Monica; Juphard, Alexandra; Cousin, Emilie; Bas, Jean Francois Le

2005-01-01

We evaluated two methods for quantifying the hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects, by using a rhyme detection (deciding whether couple of words rhyme) and a word fluency (generating words starting with a given letter) task. One of methods called 'flip method' (FM) was based on the direct statistical comparison between hemispheres' activity. The second one, the classical lateralization indices method (LIM), was based on calculating lateralization indices by taking into account the number of activated pixels within hemispheres. The main difference between methods is the statistical assessment of the inter-hemispheric difference: while FM shows if the difference between hemispheres' activity is statistically significant, LIM shows only that if there is a difference between hemispheres. The robustness of LIM and FM was assessed by calculating correlation coefficients between LIs obtained with each of these methods and manual lateralization indices MLI obtained with Edinburgh inventory. Our results showed significant correlation between LIs provided by each method and the MIL, suggesting that both methods are robust for quantifying hemispheric dominance for language in healthy subjects. In the present study we also evaluated the effect of spatial normalization, smoothing and 'clustering' (NSC) on the intra-hemispheric location of activated regions and inter-hemispheric asymmetry of the activation. Our results have shown that NSC did not affect the hemispheric specialization but increased the value of the inter-hemispheric difference

Membrane for distillation including nanostructures, methods of making membranes, and methods of desalination and separation

KAUST Repository

Lai, Zhiping; Huang, Kuo-Wei; Chen, Wei

2016-01-01

In accordance with the purpose(s) of the present disclosure, as embodied and broadly described herein, embodiments of the present disclosure provide membranes, methods of making the membrane, systems including the membrane, methods of separation, methods of desalination, and the like.

Membrane for distillation including nanostructures, methods of making membranes, and methods of desalination and separation

KAUST Repository

Lai, Zhiping

2016-01-21

In accordance with the purpose(s) of the present disclosure, as embodied and broadly described herein, embodiments of the present disclosure provide membranes, methods of making the membrane, systems including the membrane, methods of separation, methods of desalination, and the like.

Comparing subjective image quality measurement methods for the creation of public databases

Science.gov (United States)

Redi, Judith; Liu, Hantao; Alers, Hani; Zunino, Rodolfo; Heynderickx, Ingrid

2010-01-01

The Single Stimulus (SS) method is often chosen to collect subjective data testing no-reference objective metrics, as it is straightforward to implement and well standardized. At the same time, it exhibits some drawbacks; spread between different assessors is relatively large, and the measured ratings depend on the quality range spanned by the test samples, hence the results from different experiments cannot easily be merged . The Quality Ruler (QR) method has been proposed to overcome these inconveniences. This paper compares the performance of the SS and QR method for pictures impaired by Gaussian blur. The research goal is, on one hand, to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of both methods for quality assessment and, on the other, to make quality data of blur impaired images publicly available. The obtained results show that the confidence intervals of the QR scores are narrower than those of the SS scores. This indicates that the QR method enhances consistency across assessors. Moreover, QR scores exhibit a higher linear correlation with the distortion applied. In summary, for the purpose of building datasets of subjective quality, the QR approach seems promising from the viewpoint of both consistency and repeatability.

A method to evaluate performance reliability of individual subjects in laboratory research applied to work settings.

Science.gov (United States)

1978-10-01

This report presents a method that may be used to evaluate the reliability of performance of individual subjects, particularly in applied laboratory research. The method is based on analysis of variance of a tasks-by-subjects data matrix, with all sc...

Evaluating fMRI methods for assessing hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baciu, Monica [Laboratoire de Psychologie et NeuroCognition, UMR 5105 CNRS, Universite Pierre Mendes-France, F38040 Grenoble Cedex 09 (France)]. E-mail: mbaciu@upmf-grenoble.fr; Juphard, Alexandra [Laboratoire de Psychologie et NeuroCognition, UMR 5105 CNRS, Universite Pierre Mendes-France, F38040 Grenoble Cedex 09 (France); Cousin, Emilie [Laboratoire de Psychologie et NeuroCognition, UMR 5105 CNRS, Universite Pierre Mendes-France, F38040 Grenoble Cedex 09 (France); Bas, Jean Francois Le [Unite IRM, CHU Grenoble (France)

2005-08-01

We evaluated two methods for quantifying the hemispheric language dominance in healthy subjects, by using a rhyme detection (deciding whether couple of words rhyme) and a word fluency (generating words starting with a given letter) task. One of methods called 'flip method' (FM) was based on the direct statistical comparison between hemispheres' activity. The second one, the classical lateralization indices method (LIM), was based on calculating lateralization indices by taking into account the number of activated pixels within hemispheres. The main difference between methods is the statistical assessment of the inter-hemispheric difference: while FM shows if the difference between hemispheres' activity is statistically significant, LIM shows only that if there is a difference between hemispheres. The robustness of LIM and FM was assessed by calculating correlation coefficients between LIs obtained with each of these methods and manual lateralization indices MLI obtained with Edinburgh inventory. Our results showed significant correlation between LIs provided by each method and the MIL, suggesting that both methods are robust for quantifying hemispheric dominance for language in healthy subjects. In the present study we also evaluated the effect of spatial normalization, smoothing and 'clustering' (NSC) on the intra-hemispheric location of activated regions and inter-hemispheric asymmetry of the activation. Our results have shown that NSC did not affect the hemispheric specialization but increased the value of the inter-hemispheric difference.

Subjective video quality comparison of HDTV monitors

Science.gov (United States)

Seo, G.; Lim, C.; Lee, S.; Lee, C.

2009-01-01

HDTV broadcasting services have become widely available. Furthermore, in the upcoming IPTV services, HDTV services are important and quality monitoring becomes an issue, particularly in IPTV services. Consequently, there have been great efforts to develop video quality measurement methods for HDTV. On the other hand, most HDTV programs will be watched on digital TV monitors which include LCD and PDP TV monitors. In general, the LCD and PDP TV monitors have different color characteristics and response times. Furthermore, most commercial TV monitors include post-processing to improve video quality. In this paper, we compare subjective video quality of some commercial HD TV monitors to investigate the impact of monitor type on perceptual video quality. We used the ACR method as a subjective testing method. Experimental results show that the correlation coefficients among the HDTV monitors are reasonable high. However, for some video sequences and impairments, some differences in subjective scores were observed.

Bootstrap Signal-to-Noise Confidence Intervals: An Objective Method for Subject Exclusion and Quality Control in ERP Studies

Science.gov (United States)

Parks, Nathan A.; Gannon, Matthew A.; Long, Stephanie M.; Young, Madeleine E.

2016-01-01

Analysis of event-related potential (ERP) data includes several steps to ensure that ERPs meet an appropriate level of signal quality. One such step, subject exclusion, rejects subject data if ERP waveforms fail to meet an appropriate level of signal quality. Subject exclusion is an important quality control step in the ERP analysis pipeline as it ensures that statistical inference is based only upon those subjects exhibiting clear evoked brain responses. This critical quality control step is most often performed simply through visual inspection of subject-level ERPs by investigators. Such an approach is qualitative, subjective, and susceptible to investigator bias, as there are no standards as to what constitutes an ERP of sufficient signal quality. Here, we describe a standardized and objective method for quantifying waveform quality in individual subjects and establishing criteria for subject exclusion. The approach uses bootstrap resampling of ERP waveforms (from a pool of all available trials) to compute a signal-to-noise ratio confidence interval (SNR-CI) for individual subject waveforms. The lower bound of this SNR-CI (SNRLB) yields an effective and objective measure of signal quality as it ensures that ERP waveforms statistically exceed a desired signal-to-noise criterion. SNRLB provides a quantifiable metric of individual subject ERP quality and eliminates the need for subjective evaluation of waveform quality by the investigator. We detail the SNR-CI methodology, establish the efficacy of employing this approach with Monte Carlo simulations, and demonstrate its utility in practice when applied to ERP datasets. PMID:26903849

Neural interface methods and apparatus to provide artificial sensory capabilities to a subject

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Buerger, Stephen P.; Olsson, III, Roy H.; Wojciechowski, Kenneth E.; Novick, David K.; Kholwadwala, Deepesh K.

2017-01-24

Embodiments of neural interfaces according to the present invention comprise sensor modules for sensing environmental attributes beyond the natural sensory capability of a subject, and communicating the attributes wirelessly to an external (ex-vivo) portable module attached to the subject. The ex-vivo module encodes and communicates the attributes via a transcutaneous inductively coupled link to an internal (in-vivo) module implanted within the subject. The in-vivo module converts the attribute information into electrical neural stimuli that are delivered to a peripheral nerve bundle within the subject, via an implanted electrode. Methods and apparatus according to the invention incorporate implantable batteries to power the in-vivo module allowing for transcutaneous bidirectional communication of low voltage (e.g. on the order of 5 volts) encoded signals as stimuli commands and neural responses, in a robust, low-error rate, communication channel with minimal effects to the subjects' skin.

Multimodal imaging of ocular surface of dry eye subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Aizhong; Salahura, Gheorghe; Kottaiyan, Ranjini; Yoon, Geunyoung; Aquavella, James V.; Zavislan, James M.

2016-03-01

To study the relationship between the corneal lipid layer and the ocular surface temperature (OST), we conducted a clinical trial for 20 subjects. Subjects were clinically screened prior to the trial. Of the 20 subjects, 15 have Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), and 5 have aqueous-deficient dry eye (ADDE). A custom, circularly polarized illumination video tearscope measured the lipid layer thickness of the ocular tear film. A long-wave infrared video camera recorded the dynamic thermal properties of the ocular team film. The results of these two methods were analyzed and compared. Using principal component analysis (PCA) of the lipid layer distribution, we find that the 20 subjects could be categorized into five statistically significant groups, independent of their original clinical classification: thin (6 subjects), medium (5 subjects), medium and homogenous (3 subjects), thick (4 subjects), and very thick (2 subjects) lipids, respectively. We also conducted PCA of the OST data, and recategorized the subjects into two thermal groups by k-means clustering: one includes all ADDE subjects and some MGD subjects; the other includes the remaining MGD subjects. By comparing these two methods, we find that dry eye subjects with thin ( 40 nm), there is no strong correlation between the lipid layer thickness and heterogeneity and the OST patterns.

The method of adaptation under the parameters of the subject of the information interaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Инесса Анатольевна Воробьёва

2014-12-01

Full Text Available To ensure the effectiveness of settings (adaptation created software and hardware on the particular subject of the method was developed for adaptation under the parameters of the subject of information interaction in the form of a set of operations to build a network dialog procedures on the basis of accounting for entry-level qualification of the subject, assessment of the current level of skills and operational restructuring of the network in accordance with the assessment of his level.

Analytic study of the Tadoma method: language abilities of three deaf-blind subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Chomsky, C

1986-09-01

This study reports on the linguistic abilities of 3 adult deaf-blind subjects. The subjects perceive spoken language through touch, placing a hand on the face of the speaker and monitoring the speaker's articulatory motions, a method of speechreading known as Tadoma. Two of the subjects, deaf-blind since infancy, acquired language and learned to speak through this tactile system; the third subject has used Tadoma since becoming deaf-blind at age 7. Linguistic knowledge and productive language are analyzed, using standardized tests and several tests constructed for this study. The subjects' language abilities prove to be extensive, comparing favorably in many areas with hearing individuals. The results illustrate a relatively minor effect of limited language exposure on eventual language achievement. The results also demonstrate the adequacy of the tactile sense, in these highly trained Tadoma users, for transmitting information about spoken language sufficient to support the development of language and learning to produce speech.

Unsteady panel method for complex configurations including wake modeling

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Van Zyl, Lourens H

2008-01-01

Full Text Available implementations of the DLM are however not very versatile in terms of geometries that can be modeled. The ZONA6 code offers a versatile surface panel body model including a separated wake model, but uses a pressure panel method for lifting surfaces. This paper...

A subjective scheduler for subjective dedicated networks

Science.gov (United States)

Suherman; Fakhrizal, Said Reza; Al-Akaidi, Marwan

2017-09-01

Multiple access technique is one of important techniques within medium access layer in TCP/IP protocol stack. Each network technology implements the selected access method. Priority can be implemented in those methods to differentiate services. Some internet networks are dedicated for specific purpose. Education browsing or tutorial video accesses are preferred in a library hotspot, while entertainment and sport contents could be subjects of limitation. Current solution may use IP address filter or access list. This paper proposes subjective properties of users or applications are used for priority determination in multiple access techniques. The NS-2 simulator is employed to evaluate the method. A video surveillance network using WiMAX is chosen as the object. Subjective priority is implemented on WiMAX scheduler based on traffic properties. Three different traffic sources from monitoring video: palace, park, and market are evaluated. The proposed subjective scheduler prioritizes palace monitoring video that results better quality, xx dB than the later monitoring spots.

Treatment of large posttraumatic tibial bone defects using the Ilizarov method: a subjective outcome assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Krappinger, Dietmar; Irenberger, Alexander; Zegg, Michael; Huber, Burkhart

2013-06-01

The treatment of large posttraumatic tibial bone defects using the Ilizarov method was shown to be successful in several studies. These studies, however, typically focus on the radiological and functional outcome using objective parameters only. The aim of the present study was therefore to assess the objective and subjective outcome of a consecutive series of patients with large posttraumatic tibial bone defects using the Ilizarov method. Additionally, it was our goal to assess the physical and mental stress for the patients and their relatives during the long treatment period and the general health status at final follow-up. A consecutive series of 15 patients with posttraumatic tibial bone defects of >30 mm after sustaining open tibial fractures and failure of internal fixation was included. The objective outcome was assessed at final follow-up using Paley's criteria. For the assessment of the subjective outcome, all patients were asked to evaluate their satisfaction with the function of the lower leg, the cosmetic appearance and overall outcome as well. The physical and mental stress of the treatment for the patients and the nearest relative of patients were assessed at the time of frame removal using a custom-made questionnaire. The SF-36 was used to evaluate the general health status at final follow-up. Solid bone union with stable soft tissue coverage and eradication of infection was achieved in all patients despite a high complication rate. The functional outcome at final follow-up was excellent or good in all patients. The patients' satisfaction with the overall outcome and the function of the lower extremity was high as well. The fear of amputation and complications was the major subjective burden for both the patients and their relatives. The long external fixation time is another relevant issue. The Ilizarov method is a safe option for the treatment of large posttraumatic tibial bone defects after failure of internal fixation despite the high

Catalyst support structure, catalyst including the structure, reactor including a catalyst, and methods of forming same

Science.gov (United States)

Van Norman, Staci A.; Aston, Victoria J.; Weimer, Alan W.

2017-05-09

Structures, catalysts, and reactors suitable for use for a variety of applications, including gas-to-liquid and coal-to-liquid processes and methods of forming the structures, catalysts, and reactors are disclosed. The catalyst material can be deposited onto an inner wall of a microtubular reactor and/or onto porous tungsten support structures using atomic layer deposition techniques.

Evolving Evidence for the Value of Neuroimaging Methods and Biological Markers in Subjects Categorized with Subjective Cognitive Decline.

Science.gov (United States)

Lista, Simone; Molinuevo, Jose L; Cavedo, Enrica; Rami, Lorena; Amouyel, Philippe; Teipel, Stefan J; Garaci, Francesco; Toschi, Nicola; Habert, Marie-Odile; Blennow, Kaj; Zetterberg, Henrik; O'Bryant, Sid E; Johnson, Leigh; Galluzzi, Samantha; Bokde, Arun L W; Broich, Karl; Herholz, Karl; Bakardjian, Hovagim; Dubois, Bruno; Jessen, Frank; Carrillo, Maria C; Aisen, Paul S; Hampel, Harald

2015-09-24

There is evolving evidence that individuals categorized with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) are potentially at higher risk for developing objective and progressive cognitive impairment compared to cognitively healthy individuals without apparent subjective complaints. Interestingly, SCD, during advancing preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD), may denote very early, subtle cognitive decline that cannot be identified using established standardized tests of cognitive performance. The substantial heterogeneity of existing SCD-related research data has led the Subjective Cognitive Decline Initiative (SCD-I) to accomplish an international consensus on the definition of a conceptual research framework on SCD in preclinical AD. In the area of biological markers, the cerebrospinal fluid signature of AD has been reported to be more prevalent in subjects with SCD compared to healthy controls; moreover, there is a pronounced atrophy, as demonstrated by magnetic resonance imaging, and an increased hypometabolism, as revealed by positron emission tomography, in characteristic brain regions affected by AD. In addition, SCD individuals carrying an apolipoprotein ɛ4 allele are more likely to display AD-phenotypic alterations. The urgent requirement to detect and diagnose AD as early as possible has led to the critical examination of the diagnostic power of biological markers, neurophysiology, and neuroimaging methods for AD-related risk and clinical progression in individuals defined with SCD. Observational studies on the predictive value of SCD for developing AD may potentially be of practical value, and an evidence-based, validated, qualified, and fully operationalized concept may inform clinical diagnostic practice and guide earlier designs in future therapy trials.

Measurement of the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

OpenAIRE

Horoz, Mehmet; Bolukbas, Cengiz; Bolukbas, Fusun F; Sabuncu, Tevfik; Aslan, Mehmet; Sarifakiogullari, Serpil; Gunaydin, Necla; Erel, Ozcan

2005-01-01

Abstract Background Oxidative stress, an increase in oxidants and/or a decrease in antioxidant capacity, is one of the potential biochemical mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. We aimed to investigate the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis subjects. As a reciprocal measure, we also aimed to determine total peroxide level in the same plasma samples. Methods Twenty-two subjects with biopsy proven nonalco...

Risk of Being Subjected to Crime, Including Violent Crime, After Onset of Mental Illness

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dean, Kimberlie; Laursen, Thomas M; Pedersen, Carsten B

2018-01-01

Importance: People with mental illness are more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system, but research to date has focused on risk of offense perpetration, while less is known about risk of being subjected to crime and violence. Objectives: To establish the incidence of being...... subjected to all types of criminal offenses, and by violent crimes separately, after onset of mental illness across the full diagnostic spectrum compared with those in the population without mental illness. Design, Setting, and Participants: This investigation was a longitudinal national cohort study using...... of mental illness, recorded as first contact with outpatient or inpatient mental health services. Diagnoses across the full spectrum of psychiatric diagnoses were considered separately for men and women. Main Outcomes and Measures: Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were estimated for first subjection to crime...

Contributors to Frequent Telehealth Alerts Including False Alerts for Patients with Heart Failure: A Mixed Methods Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

Radhakrishna, K.; Bowles, K.; Zettek-Sumner, A.

2013-01-01

Summary Background Telehealth data overload through high alert generation is a significant barrier to sustained adoption of telehealth for managing HF patients. Objective To explore the factors contributing to frequent telehealth alerts including false alerts for Medicare heart failure (HF) patients admitted to a home health agency. Materials and Methods A mixed methods design that combined quantitative correlation analysis of patient characteristic data with number of telehealth alerts and qualitative analysis of telehealth and visiting nurses’ notes on follow-up actions to patients’ telehealth alerts was employed. All the quantitative and qualitative data was collected through retrospective review of electronic records of the home heath agency. Results Subjects in the study had a mean age of 83 (SD = 7.6); 56% were female. Patient co-morbidities (ppatient characteristics along with establishing patient-centered telehealth outcome goals may allow meaningful generation of telehealth alerts. Reducing avoidable telehealth alerts could vastly improve the efficiency and sustainability of telehealth programs for HF management. PMID:24454576

Measurement of the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarifakiogullari Serpil

2005-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Oxidative stress, an increase in oxidants and/or a decrease in antioxidant capacity, is one of the potential biochemical mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. We aimed to investigate the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis subjects. As a reciprocal measure, we also aimed to determine total peroxide level in the same plasma samples. Methods Twenty-two subjects with biopsy proven nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and 22 healthy controls were enrolled. Total antioxidant response and total peroxide level measurements were done in all participants. The ratio percentage of total peroxide level to total antioxidant response was regarded as oxidative stress index. Results Total antioxidant response of subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis was significantly lower than controls (p In subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, fibrosis score was significantly correlated with total peroxide level, total antioxidant response and oxidative stress index (p 0.05. Conclusion Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis is associated with increased oxidant capacity, especially in the presence of liver fibrosis. The novel automated assay is a reliable and easily applicable method for total plasma antioxidant response measurement in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

Method for measuring biaxial stress in a body subjected to stress inducing loads

Science.gov (United States)

Clotfelter, W. N. (Inventor)

1977-01-01

A method is described for measuring stress in test articles including the steps of obtaining for a calibrating specimen a series of transit time differentials between the second wave echo for a longitudinal wave and the first wave echo for each of a pair of shear waves propagated through the specimen as it is subjected to known stress load of a series of stress loads for thus establishing a series of indications of the magnitudes for stress loads induced in the specimen, and thereafter obtaining a transit time differential between the second wave echo for a longitudinal wave and the first wave echo for each of a pair of shear waves propagated in the planes of the stress axes of a test article and comparing the transit time differential thus obtained to the series of transit time differentials obtained for the specimen to determine the magnitude of biaxial stress in the test article.

Microvascular retinopathy in subjects without diabetes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munch, Inger Christine; Kessel, Line; Borch-Johnsen, Knut

2012-01-01

Purpose:  Retinal vascular lesions such as microaneurysms and haemorrhages, while typical of diabetic retinopathy, are also seen in subjects without diabetes where they are associated with elevated cardiovascular mortality. In theory, these lesions could be a consequence of past hyperglycaemia. We...... examined the prevalence and risk factors for retinopathy, including lens fluorescence, a biomarker of cumulative life-time glycaemia in adults without diabetes. Methods:  Cross-sectional population-based study of 711 subjects without diabetes (WHO 1999 criteria) aged 30-60 years, including oral glucose...... tolerance testing, clinical and laboratory examinations, non-invasive ocular lens fluorometry and seven-field fundus photography. Results:  Retinopathy was present in 8.3% (CI(95) 6.3-10.3%) of subjects. Higher systolic blood pressure (SBP) (p = 0.032), increasing body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.014) and wider...

Method for identification of fluid mixing zones subject to thermal fatigue damage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vole, O.; Beaud, F.

2009-01-01

High cycle thermal fatigue due to the mixing of hot and cold fluids may initiate cracking in pipes of safety related circuits. A method has been developed to identify such fluid mixing zones subjected to potential thermal fatigue damage. This method is based on a loading model and a mechanical model that depend on the main characteristics of the mixing zone and on the material properties. It is supported by a large experimental program. This method has been applied to all the mixing zones of safety related circuits of the EDF pressurised water reactors, allowing to identify sensitive zones and to apply an appropriate inspection program that ensures the control of the risk due to this damage mechanism. (authors)

Force measuring valve assemblies, systems including such valve assemblies and related methods

Science.gov (United States)

DeWall, Kevin George [Pocatello, ID; Garcia, Humberto Enrique [Idaho Falls, ID; McKellar, Michael George [Idaho Falls, ID

2012-04-17

Methods of evaluating a fluid condition may include stroking a valve member and measuring a force acting on the valve member during the stroke. Methods of evaluating a fluid condition may include measuring a force acting on a valve member in the presence of fluid flow over a period of time and evaluating at least one of the frequency of changes in the measured force over the period of time and the magnitude of the changes in the measured force over the period of time to identify the presence of an anomaly in a fluid flow and, optionally, its estimated location. Methods of evaluating a valve condition may include directing a fluid flow through a valve while stroking a valve member, measuring a force acting on the valve member during the stroke, and comparing the measured force to a reference force. Valve assemblies and related systems are also disclosed.

Cardiovascular risk factors in subjects with psoriasis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Peter; Thyssen, Jacob P; Zachariae, Claus

2013-01-01

Background Epidemiological data have established an association between cardiovascular disease and psoriasis. Only one general population study has so far compared prevalences of cardiovascular risk factors among subjects with psoriasis and control subjects. We aimed to determine the prevalence...... of cardiovascular risk factors in subjects with and without psoriasis in the general population. Methods During 2006-2008, a cross-sectional study was performed in the general population in Copenhagen, Denmark. A total of 3471 subjects participated in a general health examination that included assessment of current...... between subjects with and without psoriasis with regard to traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Conclusions Our results contrast with the hitherto-reported increased prevalence of metabolic syndrome in subjects with psoriasis in the general US population. However, our results agree with those of other...

GIS-Based Integration of Subjective and Objective Weighting Methods for Regional Landslides Susceptibility Mapping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suhua Zhou

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The development of landslide susceptibility maps is of great importance due to rapid urbanization. The purpose of this study is to present a method to integrate the subjective weight with objective weight for regional landslide susceptibility mapping on the geographical information system (GIS platform. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP, which is subjective, was employed to weight predictive factors’ contribution to landslide occurrence. The frequency ratio (FR method, which is objective, was used to derive subclasses’ frequency ratio with respect to landslides that indicate the relative importance of a subclass within each predictive factor. A case study was carried out at Tsushima Island, Japan, using a historical inventory of 534 landslides and seven predictive factors: elevation, slope, aspect, terrain roughness index (TRI, lithology, land cover and mean annual precipitation (MAP. The landslide susceptibility index (LSI was calculated using the weighted linear combination of factors’ weights and subclasses’ weights. The study area was classified into five susceptibility zones according to the LSI. In addition, the produced susceptibility map was compared with maps generated using the conventional FR and AHP method and validated using the relative landslide index (RLI. The validation result showed that the proposed method performed better than the conventional application of the FR method and AHP method. The obtained landslide susceptibility maps could serve as a scientific basis for urban planning and landslide hazard management.

An Alternative Method to Compute the Bit Error Probability of Modulation Schemes Subject to Nakagami- Fading

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Madeiro Francisco

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract This paper presents an alternative method for determining exact expressions for the bit error probability (BEP of modulation schemes subject to Nakagami- fading. In this method, the Nakagami- fading channel is seen as an additive noise channel whose noise is modeled as the ratio between Gaussian and Nakagami- random variables. The method consists of using the cumulative density function of the resulting noise to obtain closed-form expressions for the BEP of modulation schemes subject to Nakagami- fading. In particular, the proposed method is used to obtain closed-form expressions for the BEP of -ary quadrature amplitude modulation ( -QAM, -ary pulse amplitude modulation ( -PAM, and rectangular quadrature amplitude modulation ( -QAM under Nakagami- fading. The main contribution of this paper is to show that this alternative method can be used to reduce the computational complexity for detecting signals in the presence of fading.

Composite materials and bodies including silicon carbide and titanium diboride and methods of forming same

Science.gov (United States)

Lillo, Thomas M.; Chu, Henry S.; Harrison, William M.; Bailey, Derek

2013-01-22

Methods of forming composite materials include coating particles of titanium dioxide with a substance including boron (e.g., boron carbide) and a substance including carbon, and reacting the titanium dioxide with the substance including boron and the substance including carbon to form titanium diboride. The methods may be used to form ceramic composite bodies and materials, such as, for example, a ceramic composite body or material including silicon carbide and titanium diboride. Such bodies and materials may be used as armor bodies and armor materials. Such methods may include forming a green body and sintering the green body to a desirable final density. Green bodies formed in accordance with such methods may include particles comprising titanium dioxide and a coating at least partially covering exterior surfaces thereof, the coating comprising a substance including boron (e.g., boron carbide) and a substance including carbon.

Oxidative stress in hepatitis C infected end-stage renal disease subjects

OpenAIRE

Koylu Ahmet O; Aslan Mehmet; Bolukbas Filiz F; Bolukbas Cengiz; Horoz Mehmet; Selek Sahbettin; Erel Ozcan

2006-01-01

Abstract Background Both uremia and hepatitis C infection is associated with increased oxidative stress. In the present study, we aimed to find out whether hepatitis C infection has any impact on oxidative stress in hemodialysis subjects. Methods Sixteen hepatitis C (+) hemodialysis subjects, 24 hepatitis C negative hemodialysis subjects and 24 healthy subjects were included. Total antioxidant capacity, total peroxide level and oxidative stress index were determined in all subjects. Results T...

Initiation devices, initiation systems including initiation devices and related methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daniels, Michael A.; Condit, Reston A.; Rasmussen, Nikki; Wallace, Ronald S.

2018-04-10

Initiation devices may include at least one substrate, an initiation element positioned on a first side of the at least one substrate, and a spark gap electrically coupled to the initiation element and positioned on a second side of the at least one substrate. Initiation devices may include a plurality of substrates where at least one substrate of the plurality of substrates is electrically connected to at least one adjacent substrate of the plurality of substrates with at least one via extending through the at least one substrate. Initiation systems may include such initiation devices. Methods of igniting energetic materials include passing a current through a spark gap formed on at least one substrate of the initiation device, passing the current through at least one via formed through the at least one substrate, and passing the current through an explosive bridge wire of the initiation device.

A frequency domain linearized Navier-Stokes method including acoustic damping by eddy viscosity using RANS

Science.gov (United States)

Holmberg, Andreas; Kierkegaard, Axel; Weng, Chenyang

2015-06-01

In this paper, a method for including damping of acoustic energy in regions of strong turbulence is derived for a linearized Navier-Stokes method in the frequency domain. The proposed method is validated and analyzed in 2D only, although the formulation is fully presented in 3D. The result is applied in a study of the linear interaction between the acoustic and the hydrodynamic field in a 2D T-junction, subject to grazing flow at Mach 0.1. Part of the acoustic energy at the upstream edge of the junction is shed as harmonically oscillating disturbances, which are conveyed across the shear layer over the junction, where they interact with the acoustic field. As the acoustic waves travel in regions of strong shear, there is a need to include the interaction between the background turbulence and the acoustic field. For this purpose, the oscillation of the background turbulence Reynold's stress, due to the acoustic field, is modeled using an eddy Newtonian model assumption. The time averaged flow is first solved for using RANS along with a k-ε turbulence model. The spatially varying turbulent eddy viscosity is then added to the spatially invariant kinematic viscosity in the acoustic set of equations. The response of the 2D T-junction to an incident acoustic field is analyzed via a plane wave scattering matrix model, and the result is compared to experimental data for a T-junction of rectangular ducts. A strong improvement in the agreement between calculation and experimental data is found when the modification proposed in this paper is implemented. Discrepancies remaining are likely due to inaccuracies in the selected turbulence model, which is known to produce large errors e.g. for flows with significant rotation, which the grazing flow across the T-junction certainly is. A natural next step is therefore to test the proposed methodology together with more sophisticated turbulence models.

Differences in quantitative methods for measuring subjective cognitive decline - results from a prospective memory clinic study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vogel, Asmus; Salem, Lise Cronberg; Andersen, Birgitte Bo

2016-01-01

influence reports of cognitive decline. METHODS: The Subjective Memory Complaints Scale (SMC) and The Memory Complaint Questionnaire (MAC-Q) were applied in 121 mixed memory clinic patients with mild cognitive symptoms (mean MMSE = 26.8, SD 2.7). The scales were applied independently and raters were blinded...... decline. Depression scores were significantly correlated to both scales measuring subjective decline. Linear regression models showed that age did not have a significant contribution to the variance in subjective memory beyond that of depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Measures for subjective cognitive...... decline are not interchangeable when used in memory clinics and the application of different scales in previous studies is an important factor as to why studies show variability in the association between subjective cognitive decline and background data and/or clinical results. Careful consideration...

Differences in quantitative methods for measuring subjective cognitive decline - results from a prospective memory clinic study.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Asmus; Salem, Lise Cronberg; Andersen, Birgitte Bo; Waldemar, Gunhild

2016-09-01

Cognitive complaints occur frequently in elderly people and may be a risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline. Results from studies on subjective cognitive decline are difficult to compare due to variability in assessment methods, and little is known about how different methods influence reports of cognitive decline. The Subjective Memory Complaints Scale (SMC) and The Memory Complaint Questionnaire (MAC-Q) were applied in 121 mixed memory clinic patients with mild cognitive symptoms (mean MMSE = 26.8, SD 2.7). The scales were applied independently and raters were blinded to results from the other scale. Scales were not used for diagnostic classification. Cognitive performances and depressive symptoms were also rated. We studied the association between the two measures and investigated the scales' relation to depressive symptoms, age, and cognitive status. SMC and MAC-Q were significantly associated (r = 0.44, N = 121, p = 0.015) and both scales had a wide range of scores. In this mixed cohort of patients, younger age was associated with higher SMC scores. There were no significant correlations between cognitive test performances and scales measuring subjective decline. Depression scores were significantly correlated to both scales measuring subjective decline. Linear regression models showed that age did not have a significant contribution to the variance in subjective memory beyond that of depressive symptoms. Measures for subjective cognitive decline are not interchangeable when used in memory clinics and the application of different scales in previous studies is an important factor as to why studies show variability in the association between subjective cognitive decline and background data and/or clinical results. Careful consideration should be taken as to which questions are relevant and have validity when operationalizing subjective cognitive decline.

An adjoint method of sensitivity analysis for residual vibrations of structures subject to impacts

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Kun; Cheng, Gengdong

2018-03-01

For structures subject to impact loads, the residual vibration reduction is more and more important as the machines become faster and lighter. An efficient sensitivity analysis of residual vibration with respect to structural or operational parameters is indispensable for using a gradient based optimization algorithm, which reduces the residual vibration in either active or passive way. In this paper, an integrated quadratic performance index is used as the measure of the residual vibration, since it globally measures the residual vibration response and its calculation can be simplified greatly with Lyapunov equation. Several sensitivity analysis approaches for performance index were developed based on the assumption that the initial excitations of residual vibration were given and independent of structural design. Since the resulting excitations by the impact load often depend on structural design, this paper aims to propose a new efficient sensitivity analysis method for residual vibration of structures subject to impacts to consider the dependence. The new method is developed by combining two existing methods and using adjoint variable approach. Three numerical examples are carried out and demonstrate the accuracy of the proposed method. The numerical results show that the dependence of initial excitations on structural design variables may strongly affects the accuracy of sensitivities.

A novel technique for including surface tension in PLIC-VOF methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Meier, M.; Yadigaroglu, G. [Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Nuclear Engineering Lab. ETH-Zentrum, CLT, Zurich (Switzerland); Smith, B. [Paul Scherrer Inst. (PSI), Villigen (Switzerland). Lab. for Thermal-Hydraulics

2002-02-01

Various versions of Volume-of-Fluid (VOF) methods have been used successfully for the numerical simulation of gas-liquid flows with an explicit tracking of the phase interface. Of these, Piecewise-Linear Interface Construction (PLIC-VOF) appears as a fairly accurate, although somewhat more involved variant. Including effects due to surface tension remains a problem, however. The most prominent methods, Continuum Surface Force (CSF) of Brackbill et al. and the method of Zaleski and co-workers (both referenced later), both induce spurious or 'parasitic' currents, and only moderate accuracy in regards to determining the curvature. We present here a new method to determine curvature accurately using an estimator function, which is tuned with a least-squares-fit against reference data. Furthermore, we show how spurious currents may be drastically reduced using the reconstructed interfaces from the PLIC-VOF method. (authors)

Methods of forming semiconductor devices and devices formed using such methods

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, Robert V; Rodriguez, Rene G; Pak, Joshua

2013-05-21

Single source precursors are subjected to carbon dioxide to form particles of material. The carbon dioxide may be in a supercritical state. Single source precursors also may be subjected to supercritical fluids other than supercritical carbon dioxide to form particles of material. The methods may be used to form nanoparticles. In some embodiments, the methods are used to form chalcopyrite materials. Devices such as, for example, semiconductor devices may be fabricated that include such particles. Methods of forming semiconductor devices include subjecting single source precursors to carbon dioxide to form particles of semiconductor material, and establishing electrical contact between the particles and an electrode.

WHAT ARE AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS PH.D. STUDENTS LEARNING ABOUT AGRIBUSINESS RESEARCH METHODS AND SUBJECT AREAS?

OpenAIRE

House, Lisa; Sterns, James A.

2002-01-01

This document contains the PowerPoint presentation given by the authors at the 2002 WCC-72 meetings, regarding what agricultural economics Ph.D students are learning about agribusiness research methods and subject areas.

Characterization of the disposition of fostamatinib in Japanese subjects including pharmacokinetic assessment in dry blood spots: results from two phase I clinical studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Paul; Cheung, S Y Amy; Yen, Mark; Han, David; Gillen, Michael

2016-01-01

The aims of the present study were to characterize the pharmacokinetics of fostamatinib in two phase I studies in healthy Japanese subjects after single- and multiple-dose administration, and to evaluate the utility of dried blood spot (DBS) sampling. In study A, 40 Japanese and 16 white subjects were randomized in a double-blind parallel group study consisting of seven cohorts, which received either placebo or a fostamatinib dose between 50 and 200 mg after single and multiple dosing. Pharmacokinetics of R406 (active metabolite of fostamatinib) in plasma and urine was assessed, and safety was intensively monitored. Study B was an open-label study that assessed fostamatinib 100 and 200 mg in 24 Japanese subjects. In addition to plasma and urine sampling (as for study A), pharmacokinetics was also assessed in blood. Mean maximum plasma concentration (C max) and area under total plasma concentration–time curve (AUC) increased with increasing dose in Japanese subjects. Steady state was achieved in 5–7 days for all doses. C max and AUC were both higher in Japanese subjects administered a 150-mg single dose than in white subjects. This difference was maintained for steady state exposure by day 10. Overall, R406 blood concentrations were consistent and ∼2.5-fold higher than in plasma. Minimal (blood cells, and DBS sampling was a useful method for assessing R406 pharmacokinetics.

Assessment of Masonry Buildings Subjected to Landslide-Induced Settlements: From Load Path Method to Evolutionary Optimization Method

Science.gov (United States)

Palmisano, Fabrizio; Elia, Angelo

2017-10-01

One of the main difficulties, when dealing with landslide structural vulnerability, is the diagnosis of the causes of crack patterns. This is also due to the excessive complexity of models based on classical structural mechanics that makes them inappropriate especially when there is the necessity to perform a rapid vulnerability assessment at the territorial scale. This is why, a new approach, based on a ‘simple model’ (i.e. the Load Path Method, LPM), has been proposed by Palmisano and Elia for the interpretation of the behaviour of masonry buildings subjected to landslide-induced settlements. However, the LPM is very useful for rapidly finding the 'most plausible solution' instead of the exact solution. To find the solution, optimization algorithms are necessary. In this scenario, this article aims to show how the Bidirectional Evolutionary Structural Optimization method by Huang and Xie, can be very useful to optimize the strut-and-tie models obtained by using the Load Path Method.

Evaluation of perioperative nutritional status with subjective global assessment method in patients undergoing gastrointestinal cancer surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Erdim, Aylin; Aktan, Ahmet Özdemir

2017-01-01

This study was designed to evaluate the perioperative nutritional status of patients undergoing surgery for gastrointestinal cancer using Subjective Global Assessment and surgeon behavior on nutritional support. We recruited 100 patients undergoing surgery for gastrointestinal cancer in one university and two state teaching hospitals. Subjective Global Assessment was administered to evaluate preoperative and postoperative nutritional status. Fifty-two patients in the state hospitals (Group 1) and 48 in the university hospital were assessed. Anthropometric and biochemical measurements were performed. Changes in preoperative Subjective Global Assessment scores and scores at the time of discharge and types of nutritional support were compared. Subjective Global Assessment-B was regarded as moderate and Subjective Global Assessment-C as heavy malnutrition. Ten patients had Subjective Global Assessment-B and 29 had Subjective Global Assessment-C malnutrition in Group 1 and nine had Subjective Global Assessment-B and 31 had Subjective Global Assessment-C malnutrition in Group 2 during preoperative assessment. Respective numbers in postoperative assessment were 12 for Subjective Global Assessment-B and 30 for Subjective Global Assessment-C in Group 1 and 14 for Subjective Global Assessment-B and 26 for Subjective Global Assessment-C in Group 2. There was no difference between two groups. Nutritional methods according to Subjective Global Assessment evaluation in pre- and postoperative periods were not different between the groups. This study demonstrated that the malnutrition rate is high among patients scheduled for gastrointestinal cancer surgery and the number of surgeons were inadequate to provide perioperative nutritional support. Both university and state hospitals had similar shortcomings. Subjective Global Assessment is an easy and reliable test and if utilized will be helpful to detect patients requiring nutritional support.

Prediction method for thermal ratcheting of a cylinder subjected to axially moving temperature distribution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wada, Hiroshi; Igari, Toshihide; Kitade, Shoji.

1989-01-01

A prediction method was proposed for plastic ratcheting of a cylinder, which was subjected to axially moving temperature distribution without primary stress. First, a mechanism of this ratcheting was proposed, which considered the movement of temperature distribution as a driving force of this phenomenon. Predictive equations of the ratcheting strain for two representative temperature distributions were proposed based on this mechanism by assuming the elastic-perfectly-plastic material behavior. Secondly, an elastic-plastic analysis was made on a cylinder subjected to the representative two temperature distributions. Analytical results coincided well with the predicted results, and the applicability of the proposed equations was confirmed. (author)

Sensibility and Subjectivity: Levinas’ Traumatic Subject

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rashmika Pandya

2011-02-01

Full Text Available The importance of Levinas’ notions of sensibility and subjectivity are evident in the revision of phenomenological method by current phenomenologists such as Jean-Luc Marion and Michel Henry. The criticisms of key tenants of classical phenomenology, intentionality and reduction, are of a particular note. However, there are problems with Levinas’ characterization of subjectivity as essentially sensible. In “Totality and Infinity” and “Otherwise than Being”, Levinas criticizes and recasts a traditional notion of subjectivity, particularly the notion of the subject as the first and foremost rational subject. The subject in Levinas’ works is characterized more by its sensibility and affectedness than by its capacity to reason or affect its world. Levinas ties rationality to economy and suggests an alternative notion of reason that leads to his analysis of the ethical relation as the face-to-face encounter. The ‘origin’ of the social relation is located not in our capacity to know but rather in a sensibility that is diametrically opposed to the reason understood as economy. I argue that the opposition in Levinas’ thought between reason and sensibility is problematic and essentially leads to a self-conflicted subject. In fact, it would seem that violence characterizes the subject’s self-relation and, thus, is also inscribed at the base of the social relation. Rather than overcoming a problematic tendency to dualistic thought in philosophy Levinas merely reverses traditional hierarchies of reason/emotion, subject/object and self/other. 

Subjective and objective measurement of the intelligibility of synthesized speech impaired by the very low bit rate STANAG 4591 codec including packet loss

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Počta, P.; Beerends, J.G.

2017-01-01

This paper deals with the intelligibility of speech coded by the STANAG 4591 standard codec, including packet loss, using synthesized speech input. Both subjective and objective assessments are used. It is shown that this codec significantly degrades intelligibility when compared to a standard

A method for computing the stationary points of a function subject to linear equality constraints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uko, U.L.

1989-09-01

We give a new method for the numerical calculation of stationary points of a function when it is subject to equality constraints. An application to the solution of linear equations is given, together with a numerical example. (author). 5 refs

A method for the automatic quantification of the completeness of pulmonary fissures: evaluation in a database of subjects with severe emphysema

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rikxoort, Eva M. van; Goldin, Jonathan G.; Galperin-Aizenberg, Maya; Abtin, Fereidoun; Kim, Hyun J.; Lu, Peiyun; Shaw, Greg; Brown, Matthew S. [University of California-Los Angeles, Center for Computer Vision and Imaging Biomarkers and Thoracic Imaging Research Group, Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA (United States); Ginneken, Bram van [Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Diagnostic Image Analysis Group, Department of Radiology, Nijmegen (Netherlands); University Medical Center Utrecht, Image Sciences Institute, Department of Radiology, Utrecht (Netherlands)

2012-02-15

To propose and evaluate a technique for automatic quantification of fissural completeness from chest computed tomography (CT) in a database of subjects with severe emphysema. Ninety-six CT studies of patients with severe emphysema were included. The lungs, fissures and lobes were automatically segmented. The completeness of the fissures was calculated as the percentage of the lobar border defined by a fissure. The completeness score of the automatic method was compared with a visual consensus read by three radiologists using boxplots, rank sum tests and ROC analysis. The consensus read found 49% (47/96), 15% (14/96) and 67% (64/96) of the right major, right minor and left major fissures to be complete. For all fissures visually assessed as being complete the automatic method resulted in significantly higher completeness scores (mean 92.78%) than for those assessed as being partial or absent (mean 77.16%; all p values <0.001). The areas under the curves for the automatic fissural completeness were 0.88, 0.91 and 0.83 for the right major, right minor and left major fissures respectively. An automatic method is able to quantify fissural completeness in a cohort of subjects with severe emphysema consistent with a visual consensus read of three radiologists. (orig.)

Measurement of the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

Science.gov (United States)

Horoz, Mehmet; Bolukbas, Cengiz; Bolukbas, Fusun F; Sabuncu, Tevfik; Aslan, Mehmet; Sarifakiogullari, Serpil; Gunaydin, Necla; Erel, Ozcan

2005-11-11

Oxidative stress, an increase in oxidants and/or a decrease in antioxidant capacity, is one of the potential biochemical mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. We aimed to investigate the total antioxidant response using a novel automated method in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis subjects. As a reciprocal measure, we also aimed to determine total peroxide level in the same plasma samples. Twenty-two subjects with biopsy proven nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and 22 healthy controls were enrolled. Total antioxidant response and total peroxide level measurements were done in all participants. The ratio percentage of total peroxide level to total antioxidant response was regarded as oxidative stress index. Total antioxidant response of subjects with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis was significantly lower than controls (p total peroxide level and mean oxidative stress index were higher (all p total peroxide level, total antioxidant response and oxidative stress index (p 0.05). Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis is associated with increased oxidant capacity, especially in the presence of liver fibrosis. The novel automated assay is a reliable and easily applicable method for total plasma antioxidant response measurement in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.

Airflow in Tracheobronchial Tree of Subjects with Tracheal Bronchus Simulated Using CT Image Based Models and CFD Method.

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Shouliang; Zhang, Baihua; Yue, Yong; Shen, Jing; Teng, Yueyang; Qian, Wei; Wu, Jianlin

2018-03-01

Tracheal Bronchus (TB) is a rare congenital anomaly characterized by the presence of an abnormal bronchus originating from the trachea or main bronchi and directed toward the upper lobe. The airflow pattern in tracheobronchial trees of TB subjects is critical, but has not been systemically studied. This study proposes to simulate the airflow using CT image based models and the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method. Six TB subjects and three health controls (HC) are included. After the geometric model of tracheobronchial tree is extracted from CT images, the spatial distribution of velocity, wall pressure, wall shear stress (WSS) is obtained through CFD simulation, and the lobar distribution of air, flow pattern and global pressure drop are investigated. Compared with HC subjects, the main bronchus angle of TB subjects and the variation of volume are large, while the cross-sectional growth rate is small. High airflow velocity, wall pressure, and WSS are observed locally at the tracheal bronchus, but the global patterns of these measures are still similar to those of HC. The ratio of airflow into the tracheal bronchus accounts for 6.6-15.6% of the inhaled airflow, decreasing the ratio to the right upper lobe from 15.7-21.4% (HC) to 4.9-13.6%. The air into tracheal bronchus originates from the right dorsal near-wall region of the trachea. Tracheal bronchus does not change the global pressure drop which is dependent on multiple variables. Though the tracheobronchial trees of TB subjects present individualized features, several commonalities on the structural and airflow characteristics can be revealed. The observed local alternations might provide new insight into the reason of recurrent local infections, cough and acute respiratory distress related to TB.

The use of innovative teaching methods subject in training of bachelor «Standardization and metrology»

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yushchik E. V.

2016-04-01

Full Text Available the article considers the application of innovative teaching methods by the example of a method of collaborative learning in the laboratory practice in teaching subject «Network information technologies» to guide the preparation of 27.03.01 «Standardization and metroliya».

Vitamin D status assessed by a validated HPLC method: within and between variation in subjects supplemented with vitamin D3

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jakobsen, Jette; Bysted, Anette; Andersen, Rikke

2009-01-01

Objective. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for assessing vitamin D status as 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 (S-25OHD2) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (S-25OHD3) in serum. Material and methods. We assessed the within- and between-subject variat......Objective. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for assessing vitamin D status as 25-hydroxyvitamin D2 (S-25OHD2) and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (S-25OHD3) in serum. Material and methods. We assessed the within- and between......-subject variation of vitamin D status in serum samples from four different dietary intervention studies in which subjects (n=92) were supplemented with different doses of vitamin D3 (5-12 g/day) and for different durations (4-20 months). Results. The HPLC method was applicable for 4.0-200 nmol S-25OHD/L, while...... the within-day and between-days variations were 3.8 % and 5.7 %, respectively. There was a concentration-dependent difference between results obtained by a commercial radioimmunoassay and results from the HPLC method of -5 to 20 nmol 25OHD/L in the range 10-100 nmol 25OHD/L. The between-subject variation...

Subject-Oriented Approach in the Professional Formation of the Future Music Teacher

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Svetlana V. Karkina

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the possibilities of introducing a subject-oriented approach into the practice of professional education of the future music teacher. Particular attention is paid to the forms and methods used in this field, as well as to the conditions of the modern cultural environment, which allows for the free self-realization of the individual in accordance with his subject needs. Subject-oriented approach is the practice-oriented research. The study identified a number of the most significant components in the preparation of a music teacher, such as individual forms of studies and a number of special methods, which include the method of artistic associations, verbal "allegories", metaphors, the method of heuristic tasks for mastering creative activities. The openness of the musical and pedagogical system has great importance in its ability to respond to changes in the music and educational environment, which includes educational institutions and various cultural institutions: theaters, concert halls, orchestral and choir groups. All that conditions are necessary to ensure the possibility of creative self-realization and self-actualization of future music teachers.

Systems and Methods for Fabricating Structures Including Metallic Glass-Based Materials Using Low Pressure Casting

Science.gov (United States)

Hofmann, Douglas C. (Inventor); Kennett, Andrew (Inventor)

2018-01-01

Systems and methods to fabricate objects including metallic glass-based materials using low-pressure casting techniques are described. In one embodiment, a method of fabricating an object that includes a metallic glass-based material includes: introducing molten alloy into a mold cavity defined by a mold using a low enough pressure such that the molten alloy does not conform to features of the mold cavity that are smaller than 100 microns; and cooling the molten alloy such that it solidifies, the solid including a metallic glass-based material.

Cerebral atrophy in elderly with subjective memory complaints

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Palm, W.M.; Ferrarini, L.; van der Flier, W.M.; Westendorp, R.G.J.; Bollen, E.L.E.M.; Middelkoop, H.A.M.; Milles, J.R.; van der Grond, J.; van Buchem, M.A.

2013-01-01

Purpose To evaluate ventricular shape differences along the complete surface of the lateral and third ventricles of persons with subjective memory complaints (MC). Materials and Methods We included 28 controls and 21 persons with MC. FLAIR, T2, and PD-weighted brain MRI scans were acquired at 1.5

SUBJECTIVE RESOURCESTHE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND ACMEOLOGICAL PHENOMENON

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Ivanovna Ilyushina

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the moment the subject – resources of a person. Be caused, “loss” possible resources: lack of personal self-realization, the maladjustment of the individual in a social environment, obstructed line of identity, which in some cases is accompanied by incomplete personal self-actualization and self-sufficiency. The article emphasizes the importance of the subjective component in understanding, identifying, understanding, mobilization, conservation and accumulation of resources of the individual. Man is an active Converter to your reality, where he and reality are the result of the conversion and source conversion. The author proposed the concept of “subjective resource” as a necessary factor for quality of life of the individual, achievement of tops of her self-improvement and self-development, both professionally and personally. Subjective component emphasizes the role of the individual in the conservation, transformation, accumulation, the reallocation of resources. Purpose. The subject of analysis is the awareness, understanding person own resources – the subjective resourcest. The author aims to describe the subjective resourcest as psychological and acmeological phenomenon to reveal its essence and to suggest the methodology of the study of this phenomenon, showing the importance of verbalization resources through associative image without relying on the visibility and relying on her. Methodology. The basis of the study form a General theoretical methods (theoretical analysis, including psychological analysis, generalization, systematization, system description. Results. The results of the work lies in the fact that the author has defined the concept of “subjective resourcesthe” and proposed methodology of the study. The obtained results may be of interest to improve the efficiency of the work to define the resources of the individual. The results and method of determining a subjective resource

Solar cells, structures including organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline films, and methods of preparation thereof

KAUST Repository

Bakr, Osman; Peng, Wei; Wang, Lingfei

2017-01-01

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide for solar cells including an organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline film (see fig. 1.1B), other devices including the organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline film, methods of making

Electrode assemblies, plasma apparatuses and systems including electrode assemblies, and methods for generating plasma

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Peter C; Grandy, Jon D; Detering, Brent A; Zuck, Larry D

2013-09-17

Electrode assemblies for plasma reactors include a structure or device for constraining an arc endpoint to a selected area or region on an electrode. In some embodiments, the structure or device may comprise one or more insulating members covering a portion of an electrode. In additional embodiments, the structure or device may provide a magnetic field configured to control a location of an arc endpoint on the electrode. Plasma generating modules, apparatus, and systems include such electrode assemblies. Methods for generating a plasma include covering at least a portion of a surface of an electrode with an electrically insulating member to constrain a location of an arc endpoint on the electrode. Additional methods for generating a plasma include generating a magnetic field to constrain a location of an arc endpoint on an electrode.

SUBJECTIVE AND INDIRECT METHODS TO OBSERVE DRIVER’S DROWSINESS AND ALERTNESS: AN OVERVIEW

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NOR KAMALIANA K.

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The measurement of drivers' workload has great interest these days due to the following reasons: high numbers of accidents seemingly ineradicable, very costly, and largely attributable to the human factor. The objective of this review is to assess the current status of fatigue performance and detection technology research and to identify any pertinent issues. Twenty-six relevant studies were identified and chosen from electronic databases, dating as far back as 1997. Fatigue, drowsiness, alertness, sleepiness, subjective, direct method and driver were the keyword search terms for this paper. Past studies demonstrated various purposes and implementation of subjective and indirect assessment among the driver for evaluating fatigue. It provides a better understanding for future researchers and industry to deal with fatigue issues among drivers. This review will provide a critical discussion on the designs used, discuss the findings in the search of directions for future studies, as well as provide insights into the use of counter measures for preventing fatigue-related accidents.

Solar cells, structures including organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline films, and methods of preparation thereof

KAUST Repository

Bakr, Osman M.

2017-03-02

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide for solar cells including an organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline film (see fig. 1.1B), other devices including the organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline film, methods of making organometallic halide perovskite monocrystalline film, and the like.

Evaluating variation in human gut microbiota profiles due to DNA extraction method and inter-subject differences.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagner Mackenzie, Brett; Waite, David W; Taylor, Michael W

2015-01-01

The human gut contains dense and diverse microbial communities which have profound influences on human health. Gaining meaningful insights into these communities requires provision of high quality microbial nucleic acids from human fecal samples, as well as an understanding of the sources of variation and their impacts on the experimental model. We present here a systematic analysis of commonly used microbial DNA extraction methods, and identify significant sources of variation. Five extraction methods (Human Microbiome Project protocol, MoBio PowerSoil DNA Isolation Kit, QIAamp DNA Stool Mini Kit, ZR Fecal DNA MiniPrep, phenol:chloroform-based DNA isolation) were evaluated based on the following criteria: DNA yield, quality and integrity, and microbial community structure based on Illumina amplicon sequencing of the V4 region of bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA genes. Our results indicate that the largest portion of variation within the model was attributed to differences between subjects (biological variation), with a smaller proportion of variation associated with DNA extraction method (technical variation) and intra-subject variation. A comprehensive understanding of the potential impact of technical variation on the human gut microbiota will help limit preventable bias, enabling more accurate diversity estimates.

Evaluating variation in human gut microbiota profiles due to DNA extraction method and inter-subject differences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brett eWagner Mackenzie

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The human gut contains dense and diverse microbial communities which have profound influences on human health. Gaining meaningful insights into these communities requires provision of high quality microbial nucleic acids from human fecal samples, as well as an understanding of the sources of variation and their impacts on the experimental model. We present here a systematic analysis of commonly used microbial DNA extraction methods, and identify significant sources of variation. Five extraction methods (Human Microbiome Project protocol, MoBio PowerSoil DNA Isolation Kit, QIAamp DNA Stool Mini Kit, ZR Fecal DNA MiniPrep, phenol:chloroform-based DNA isolation were evaluated based on the following criteria: DNA yield, quality and integrity, and microbial community structure based on Illumina amplicon sequencing of the V4 region of bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA genes. Our results indicate that the largest portion of variation within the model was attributed to differences between subjects (biological variation, with a smaller proportion of variation associated with DNA extraction method (technical variation and intra-subject variation. A comprehensive understanding of the potential impact of technical variation on the human gut microbiota will help limit preventable bias, enabling more accurate diversity estimates.

Earthquake analysis of structures including structure-soil interaction by a substructure method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chopra, A.K.; Guttierrez, J.A.

1977-01-01

A general substructure method for analysis of response of nuclear power plant structures to earthquake ground motion, including the effects of structure-soil interaction, is summarized. The method is applicable to complex structures idealized as finite element systems and the soil region treated as either a continuum, for example as a viscoelastic halfspace, or idealized as a finite element system. The halfspace idealization permits reliable analysis for sites where essentially similar soils extend to large depths and there is no rigid boundary such as soil-rock interface. For sites where layers of soft soil are underlain by rock at shallow depth, finite element idealization of the soil region is appropriate; in this case, the direct and substructure methods would lead to equivalent results but the latter provides the better alternative. Treating the free field motion directly as the earthquake input in the substructure eliminates the deconvolution calculations and the related assumption-regarding type and direction of earthquake waves-required in the direct method. (Auth.)

Objective and Subjective Assessment of Digital Pathology Image Quality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prarthana Shrestha

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The quality of an image produced by the Whole Slide Imaging (WSI scanners is of critical importance for using the image in clinical diagnosis. Therefore, it is very important to monitor and ensure the quality of images. Since subjective image quality assessments by pathologists are very time-consuming, expensive and difficult to reproduce, we propose a method for objective assessment based on clinically relevant and perceptual image parameters: sharpness, contrast, brightness, uniform illumination and color separation; derived from a survey of pathologists. We developed techniques to quantify the parameters based on content-dependent absolute pixel performance and to manipulate the parameters in a predefined range resulting in images with content-independent relative quality measures. The method does not require a prior reference model. A subjective assessment of the image quality is performed involving 69 pathologists and 372 images (including 12 optimal quality images and their distorted versions per parameter at 6 different levels. To address the inter-reader variability, a representative rating is determined as a one-tailed 95% confidence interval of the mean rating. The results of the subjective assessment support the validity of the proposed objective image quality assessment method to model the readers’ perception of image quality. The subjective assessment also provides thresholds for determining the acceptable level of objective quality per parameter. The images for both the subjective and objective quality assessment are based on the HercepTestTM slides scanned by the Philips Ultra Fast Scanners, developed at Philips Digital Pathology Solutions. However, the method is applicable also to other types of slides and scanners.

Handbook of statistical methods single subject design

CERN Document Server

Satake, Eiki; Maxwell, David L

2008-01-01

This book is a practical guide of the most commonly used approaches in analyzing and interpreting single-subject data. It arranges the methodologies used in a logical sequence using an array of research studies from the existing published literature to illustrate specific applications. The book provides a brief discussion of each approach such as visual, inferential, and probabilistic model, the applications for which it is intended, and a step-by-step illustration of the test as used in an actual research study.

An Analysis of Prospective Chemistry Teachers' Cognitive Structures through Flow Map Method: The Subject of Oxidation and Reduction

Science.gov (United States)

Temel, Senar

2016-01-01

This study aims to analyse prospective chemistry teachers' cognitive structures related to the subject of oxidation and reduction through a flow map method. Purposeful sampling method was employed in this study, and 8 prospective chemistry teachers from a group of students who had taken general chemistry and analytical chemistry courses were…

Modelling and management of subjective information in a fuzzy setting

Science.gov (United States)

Bouchon-Meunier, Bernadette; Lesot, Marie-Jeanne; Marsala, Christophe

2013-01-01

Subjective information is very natural for human beings. It is an issue at the crossroad of cognition, semiotics, linguistics, and psycho-physiology. Its management requires dedicated methods, among which we point out the usefulness of fuzzy and possibilistic approaches and related methods, such as evidence theory. We distinguish three aspects of subjectivity: the first deals with perception and sensory information, including the elicitation of quality assessment and the establishment of a link between physical and perceived properties; the second is related to emotions, their fuzzy nature, and their identification; and the last aspect stems from natural language and takes into account information quality and reliability of information.

Functional brain segmentation using inter-subject correlation in fMRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Kauppi, Jukka-Pekka; Pajula, Juha; Niemi, Jari; Hari, Riitta; Tohka, Jussi

2017-05-01

The human brain continuously processes massive amounts of rich sensory information. To better understand such highly complex brain processes, modern neuroimaging studies are increasingly utilizing experimental setups that better mimic daily-life situations. A new exploratory data-analysis approach, functional segmentation inter-subject correlation analysis (FuSeISC), was proposed to facilitate the analysis of functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) data sets collected in these experiments. The method provides a new type of functional segmentation of brain areas, not only characterizing areas that display similar processing across subjects but also areas in which processing across subjects is highly variable. FuSeISC was tested using fMRI data sets collected during traditional block-design stimuli (37 subjects) as well as naturalistic auditory narratives (19 subjects). The method identified spatially local and/or bilaterally symmetric clusters in several cortical areas, many of which are known to be processing the types of stimuli used in the experiments. The method is not only useful for spatial exploration of large fMRI data sets obtained using naturalistic stimuli, but also has other potential applications, such as generation of a functional brain atlases including both lower- and higher-order processing areas. Finally, as a part of FuSeISC, a criterion-based sparsification of the shared nearest-neighbor graph was proposed for detecting clusters in noisy data. In the tests with synthetic data, this technique was superior to well-known clustering methods, such as Ward's method, affinity propagation, and K-means ++. Hum Brain Mapp 38:2643-2665, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Oxidative stress in hepatitis C infected end-stage renal disease subjects

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Koylu Ahmet O

2006-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Both uremia and hepatitis C infection is associated with increased oxidative stress. In the present study, we aimed to find out whether hepatitis C infection has any impact on oxidative stress in hemodialysis subjects. Methods Sixteen hepatitis C (+ hemodialysis subjects, 24 hepatitis C negative hemodialysis subjects and 24 healthy subjects were included. Total antioxidant capacity, total peroxide level and oxidative stress index were determined in all subjects. Results Total antioxidant capacity was significantly higher in controls than hemodialysis subjects with or without hepatitis C infection (all p 0.05/3. Conclusion Oxidative stress is increased in both hepatitis C (+ and hepatitis C (- hemodialysis subjects. However, hepatitis C infection seems to not cause any additional increase in oxidative stress in hemodialysis subjects and it may be partly due to protective effect of dialysis treatment on hepatitis C infection.

Theory of linear physical systems theory of physical systems from the viewpoint of classical dynamics, including Fourier methods

CERN Document Server

Guillemin, Ernst A

2013-01-01

An eminent electrical engineer and authority on linear system theory presents this advanced treatise, which approaches the subject from the viewpoint of classical dynamics and covers Fourier methods. This volume will assist upper-level undergraduates and graduate students in moving from introductory courses toward an understanding of advanced network synthesis. 1963 edition.

Evaluation of skeletal maturity in North Indian subjects using an objective method based on cervical vertebral bone age and assessment of its reliability as compared to hand wrist radiographic method

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Sandeep Kumar

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Aim: To evaluate the skeletal maturity objectively and assess the reliability and validity of this method in North Indian subjects. Materials and Methods: Sixty subjects (8-16 years were taken and divided into two groups of 30 males and 30 females. For each subject, cervical vertebral bone age (VA was evaluated by the objective method described by Mito et al., and bone age (BA was estimated by Grave and Brown method of hand wrist radiograph. Correlations and average differences between various ages were determined. An analysis of variance and Tukey′s post-hoc tests were used to compare various ages at 5% significance level. Results: The correlations between cervical VAs and BAs were higher than other ages and also more in females than males. The analysis of female data showed no statistically significant difference (P > 0.05 whereas analysis of male data showed statistically significant difference (P < 0.05 between various ages. Conclusion: The findings of the present study suggest that this method of objectively evaluating skeletal maturation is reliable and can be applied to North Indian females only. The development of a new method to objectively evaluate cervical VA in males is needed.

The Implementation of APIQ Creative Mathematics Game Method in the Subject Matter of Greatest Common Factor and Least Common Multiple in Elementary School

Science.gov (United States)

Rahman, Abdul; Saleh Ahmar, Ansari; Arifin, A. Nurani M.; Upu, Hamzah; Mulbar, Usman; Alimuddin; Arsyad, Nurdin; Ruslan; Rusli; Djadir; Sutamrin; Hamda; Minggi, Ilham; Awi; Zaki, Ahmad; Ahmad, Asdar; Ihsan, Hisyam

2018-01-01

One of causal factors for uninterested feeling of the students in learning mathematics is a monotonous learning method, like in traditional learning method. One of the ways for motivating students to learn mathematics is by implementing APIQ (Aritmetika Plus Intelegensi Quantum) creative mathematics game method. The purposes of this research are (1) to describe students’ responses toward the implementation of APIQ creative mathematics game method on the subject matter of Greatest Common Factor (GCF) and Least Common Multiple (LCM) and (2) to find out whether by implementing this method, the student’s learning completeness will improve or not. Based on the results of this research, it is shown that the responses of the students toward the implementation of APIQ creative mathematics game method in the subject matters of GCF and LCM were good. It is seen in the percentage of the responses were between 76-100%. (2) The implementation of APIQ creative mathematics game method on the subject matters of GCF and LCM improved the students’ learning.

Methods of Information Subjects and Objects Interaction Rules Formalization in the Electronic Trading Platform System

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Emma Emanuilova Yandybaeva

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The methods of information subjects and objects interaction rules formalization in the electronic trading platform system has been developed. They are based on mathematical model of mandatory role-based access control. As a result of the work we have defined set of user roles and constructed roles hierarchy. For the roles hierarchy restrictions have been imposed to ensure the safety of the information system.

The T Cell Response to Major Grass Allergens Is Regulated and Includes IL-10 Production in Atopic but Not in Non-Atopic Subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Domdey, A.; Liu, A.; Millner, A.

2010-01-01

in allergen-specific responses. The aim was to determine whether major grass allergens induce production of suppressive cytokines in allergic and healthy subjects and to examine the inhibitory effect of these cytokines on allergic responses. Methods: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated...... from healthy and grass-allergic donors and stimulated with the major grass allergens Phl p 1 or Phl p 5. The effects of endogenous IL-10 and/or TGF-beta on proliferation and cytokine production were determined by use of blocking antibodies. In addition, the number of CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells...... in PBMCs in the two groups, but fewer cells from atopic donors were CD4(+)CD25(+)CCR4(+) and more cells were CD4(+)CD25(+)CLA(+) compared to healthy donors. Conclusion: Allergen-specific responses of grass allergic patients but not in non-atopic subjects are influenced by regulatory cytokines produced...

Subjectivity and Reflexivity in the Social Sciences: Epistemic Windows and Methodical Consequences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Franz Breuer

2003-05-01

Full Text Available We sketch four basic epistemological assumptions that imply a constructionist orientation to knowledge including (a perspectivity, positionality; (b horizonality, dynamic observer position; (c the structuring of knowledge through instruments of knowledge production; and (d interactivity and interventionist nature of research. Although social scientists often adopt a constructionist epistemology to frame their research object, the methodological consequences of such an epistemology for the production of social scientific knowledge are not normally drawn. Instead of dealing with the four assumptions as a productive epistemic window, many researchers exhibit a defensive tendency and continue the quest for objectivity in their own writing. We propose a different methodological position conceptualized in the dialectic of the always embodied, individual, and social researcher-in-interaction. Beginning with the concept of a decentered (self- observation we develop the idea of the reflexive nature that relates the epistemic subject and object. We propose a way systematizing methodological considerations and procedures that follows the research process, beginning with the identification of a research topic to the final presentation of the results. The contributions to the two present FQS volumes on "Subjectivity and Reflexivity in Qualitative Research" provide answers and possible solutions to the questions and problems raised in this introduction. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0302258

Attenuation correction of myocardial SPECT by scatter-photopeak window method in normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okuda, Koichi; Nakajima, Kenichi; Matsuo, Shinro; Kinuya, Seigo; Motomura, Nobutoku; Kubota, Masahiro; Yamaki, Noriyasu; Maeda, Hisato

2009-01-01

Segmentation with scatter and photopeak window data using attenuation correction (SSPAC) method can provide a patient-specific non-uniform attenuation coefficient map only by using photopeak and scatter images without X-ray computed tomography (CT). The purpose of this study is to evaluate the performance of attenuation correction (AC) by the SSPAC method on normal myocardial perfusion database. A total of 32 sets of exercise-rest myocardial images with Tc-99m-sestamibi were acquired in both photopeak (140 keV±10%) and scatter (7% of lower side of the photopeak window) energy windows. Myocardial perfusion databases by the SSPAC method and non-AC (NC) were created from 15 female and 17 male subjects with low likelihood of cardiac disease using quantitative perfusion SPECT software. Segmental myocardial counts of a 17-segment model from these databases were compared on the basis of paired t test. AC average myocardial perfusion count was significantly higher than that in NC in the septal and inferior regions (P<0.02). On the contrary, AC average count was significantly lower in the anterolateral and apical regions (P<0.01). Coefficient variation of the AC count in the mid, apical and apex regions was lower than that of NC. The SSPAC method can improve average myocardial perfusion uptake in the septal and inferior regions and provide uniform distribution of myocardial perfusion. The SSPAC method could be a practical method of attenuation correction without X-ray CT. (author)

Skills methods to prevent smoking.

Science.gov (United States)

Schinke, S P; Gilchrist, L D; Schilling, R F; Snow, W H; Bobo, J K

1986-01-01

School health educators have devoted much attention to cigarette smoking. Recent years have seen the testing of interventions to prevent smoking. To date, controlled studies have not evaluated the added value of skills methods for preventing smoking. This article describes such an evaluation with sixth-grade students from two schools. Subjects were pretested and randomly assigned to receive conventional health education methods or to receive skills intervention. Both conditions included films, peer testimonials, discussions, and homework. Health education condition subjects additionally participated in oral quizzes, games, and debates. Skills condition subjects additionally learned problem-solving, self-instruction, and interpersonal communication methods. At postintervention, skills condition subjects, more than health education condition subjects, had better scores on measures of smoking-related knowledge, attitudes, and intentions. In addition, reported cigarette use, validated by biochemical data collection, was lower in the skills condition than in the health education condition at all postintervention measurements, including a 24-month follow-up. The article discusses the strengths, limits, and implications of the study for other smoking prevention efforts in schools.

DIDACTIC PRINCIPLES OF THE FORMATION OF STUDENTS’ SUBJECT POSITION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. M. Garanina

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Subject position of a personality is the phenomenon that determines self-activity, identity, sovereignty, and positive dynamics of selfdevelopment, self-education, self-training and self-realization, i.e. those qualities which are necessary for a modern expert. Therefore, the development of the concept of formation and development of a subject position of a future expert during his/her vocational training is an urgent scientific and practical task.The aim of the present research is to prove theoretically the following issues: regularities of a formation process of a subject position of a student of a higher education institution; principles reflecting features of functioning of subject space; and requirements shown to the organization of this pedagogical process.Methodology and research methods. The methods involve the analysis of philosophical and psychology and pedagogical sources on the research problem; transspective, phenomenological, psychological, comparative, system, and structure-functional types of the analysis; deductive and inductive methods; comparison, generalization, synthesis, and abstraction.Results and scientific novelty. The concept «student’s subject position» is redefined; the concept includes such features as polysystemacity, multidimensionality, and multi-functionality. The characteristics of a person with a subject position are summarized; special attention is paid to his/her personal characteristics. The regularities of formation and development of the subject position of the student caused by internal mechanisms of self-updating, self-organization, self-development and self-improvement are found out. It is testified that these regularities are shown in the system of various social relations; depend on external impact, integrity and unity of a teaching and educational process; those regularities are characterized by heterochronism, emergence, and evolving. The research enables to present an overall

Strategies to exclude subjects who conceal and fabricate information when enrolling in clinical trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Devine, Eric G; Peebles, Kristina R; Martini, Valeria

2017-03-01

Clinical trials within the US face an increasing challenge with the recruitment of quality candidates. One readily available group of subjects that have high rates of participation in clinical research are subjects who enroll in multiple trials for the purpose of generating income through study payments. Aside from issues of safety and generalizability, evidence suggests that these subjects employ methods of deception to qualify for the strict entrance criteria of some studies, including concealing information and fabricating information. Including these subjects in research poses a significant risk to the integrity of data quality and study designs. Strategies to limit enrollment of subjects whose motivation is generating income have not been systematically addressed in the literature. The present paper is intended to provide investigators with a range of strategies for developing and implementing a study protocol with protections to minimize the enrollment of subjects whose primary motivation for enrolling is to generate income. This multifaceted approach includes recommendations for advertising strategies, payment strategies, telephone screening strategies, and baseline screening strategies. The approach also includes recommendations for attending to inconsistent study data and subject motivation. Implementing these strategies may be more or less important depending upon the vulnerability of the study design to subject deception. Although these strategies may help researchers exclude subjects with a higher rate of deceptive practices, widespread adoption of subject registries would go a long way to decrease the chances of subjects enrolling in multiple studies or more than once in the same study.

Earthquake analysis of structures including structure-soil interaction by a substructure method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chopra, A.K.; Guttierrez, J.A.

1977-01-01

A general substructure method for analysis of response of nuclear power plant structures to earthquake ground motion, including the effects of structure-soil interaction, is summarized. The method is applicable to complex structures idealized as finite element systems and the soil region treated as either a continuum, for example as a viscoelastic halfspace, or idealized as a finite element system. The halfspace idealization permits reliable analysis for sites where essentially similar soils extend to large depths and there is no rigid boundary such as soil-rock interface. For sites where layers of soft soil are underlain by rock at shallow depth, finite element idealization of the soil region is appropriate; in this case, the direct and substructure methods would lead to equivalent results but the latter provides the better alternative. Treating the free field motion directly as the earthquake input in the substructure method eliminates the deconvolution calculations and the related assumption -regarding type and direction of earthquake waves- required in the direct method. The substructure method is computationally efficient because the two substructures-the structure and the soil region- are analyzed separately; and, more important, it permits taking advantage of the important feature that response to earthquake ground motion is essentially contained in the lower few natural modes of vibration of the structure on fixed base. For sites where essentially similar soils extend to large depths and there is no obvious rigid boundary such as a soil-rock interface, numerical results for earthquake response of a nuclear reactor structure are presented to demonstrate that the commonly used finite element method may lead to unacceptable errors; but the substructure method leads to reliable results

Subjective poverty line definitions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J. Flik; B.M.S. van Praag (Bernard)

1991-01-01

textabstractIn this paper we will deal with definitions of subjective poverty lines. To measure a poverty threshold value in terms of household income, which separates the poor from the non-poor, we take into account the opinions of all people in society. Three subjective methods will be discussed

Subject-based feature extraction by using fisher WPD-CSP in brain-computer interfaces.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Banghua; Li, Huarong; Wang, Qian; Zhang, Yunyuan

2016-06-01

Feature extraction of electroencephalogram (EEG) plays a vital role in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). In recent years, common spatial pattern (CSP) has been proven to be an effective feature extraction method. However, the traditional CSP has disadvantages of requiring a lot of input channels and the lack of frequency information. In order to remedy the defects of CSP, wavelet packet decomposition (WPD) and CSP are combined to extract effective features. But WPD-CSP method considers less about extracting specific features that are fitted for the specific subject. So a subject-based feature extraction method using fisher WPD-CSP is proposed in this paper. The idea of proposed method is to adapt fisher WPD-CSP to each subject separately. It mainly includes the following six steps: (1) original EEG signals from all channels are decomposed into a series of sub-bands using WPD; (2) average power values of obtained sub-bands are computed; (3) the specified sub-bands with larger values of fisher distance according to average power are selected for that particular subject; (4) each selected sub-band is reconstructed to be regarded as a new EEG channel; (5) all new EEG channels are used as input of the CSP and a six-dimensional feature vector is obtained by the CSP. The subject-based feature extraction model is so formed; (6) the probabilistic neural network (PNN) is used as the classifier and the classification accuracy is obtained. Data from six subjects are processed by the subject-based fisher WPD-CSP, the non-subject-based fisher WPD-CSP and WPD-CSP, respectively. Compared with non-subject-based fisher WPD-CSP and WPD-CSP, the results show that the proposed method yields better performance (sensitivity: 88.7±0.9%, and specificity: 91±1%) and the classification accuracy from subject-based fisher WPD-CSP is increased by 6-12% and 14%, respectively. The proposed subject-based fisher WPD-CSP method can not only remedy disadvantages of CSP by WPD but also discriminate

Quantification of beta-cell function during IVGTT in Type II and non-diabetic subjects: assessment of insulin secretion by mathematical methods

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjems, L L; Vølund, A; Madsbad, Sten

2001-01-01

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: We compared four methods to assess their accuracy in measuring insulin secretion during an intravenous glucose tolerance test in patients with Type II (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus and with varying beta-cell function and matched control subjects. METHODS: Eight control...... subjects and eight Type II diabetic patients underwent an intravenous glucose tolerance test with tolbutamide and an intravenous bolus injection of C-peptide to assess C-peptide kinetics. Insulin secretion rates were determined by the Eaton deconvolution (reference method), the Insulin SECretion method...... (ISEC) based on population kinetic parameters as well as one-compartment and two-compartment versions of the combined model of insulin and C-peptide kinetics. To allow a comparison of the accuracy of the four methods, fasting rates and amounts of insulin secreted during the first phase (0-10 min...

Comparison of different methods to include recycling in LCAs of aluminium cans and disposable polystyrene cups

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Harst-Wintraecken, van der Eugenie; Potting, José; Kroeze, Carolien

2016-01-01

Many methods have been reported and used to include recycling in life cycle assessments (LCAs). This paper evaluates six widely used methods: three substitution methods (i.e. substitution based on equal quality, a correction factor, and alternative material), allocation based on the number of

Dynamic analysis of an axially moving beam subject to inner pressure using finite element method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hua, Hongliang; Qiu, Ming; Liao, Zhenqiang [Nanjing University of Science and Technology, Nanjing (China)

2017-06-15

A dynamic model of an axially moving flexible beam subject to an inner pressure is present. The coupling principle between a flexible beam and inner pressure is analyzed first, and the potential energy of the inner pressure due to the beam bending is derived using the principle of virtual work. A 1D hollow beam element contain inner pressure is established. The finite element method and Lagrange’s equation are used to derive the motion equations of the axially moving system. The dynamic responses are analyzed by Newmark-β time integration method. Based on the computed dynamic responses, the effects of inner pressure on beam dynamics are discussed. Some interesting phenomenon is observed.

Subjective Vitality as Mediator and Moderator of the Relationship between Life Satisfaction and Subjective Happiness

Science.gov (United States)

Uysal, Recep; Satici, Seydi Ahmet; Satici, Begüm; Akin, Ahmet

2014-01-01

In this study, the mediator and moderator effects of subjective vitality on the relationship between life satisfaction and subjective happiness were investigated. The participants were 378 university students who completed a questionnaire package that included the Subjective Vitality Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Subjective…

Positive Psychology in the Class: The Effectiveness of a Teaching Method Based on Subjective Well-Being and Engagement Increasing Activities

Science.gov (United States)

Eryilmaz, Ali

2015-01-01

The aim of the present study is investigate that the effectiveness of a teaching method which is based on subjective well-being increasing activities and engagement increasing activities, has been developed for university students in the present study. The method of the present study is a mixed method. Thus, the most important feature of it has…

Strategies to exclude subjects who conceal and fabricate information when enrolling in clinical trials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric G. Devine

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Clinical trials within the US face an increasing challenge with the recruitment of quality candidates. One readily available group of subjects that have high rates of participation in clinical research are subjects who enroll in multiple trials for the purpose of generating income through study payments. Aside from issues of safety and generalizability, evidence suggests that these subjects employ methods of deception to qualify for the strict entrance criteria of some studies, including concealing information and fabricating information. Including these subjects in research poses a significant risk to the integrity of data quality and study designs. Strategies to limit enrollment of subjects whose motivation is generating income have not been systematically addressed in the literature. The present paper is intended to provide investigators with a range of strategies for developing and implementing a study protocol with protections to minimize the enrollment of subjects whose primary motivation for enrolling is to generate income. This multifaceted approach includes recommendations for advertising strategies, payment strategies, telephone screening strategies, and baseline screening strategies. The approach also includes recommendations for attending to inconsistent study data and subject motivation. Implementing these strategies may be more or less important depending upon the vulnerability of the study design to subject deception. Although these strategies may help researchers exclude subjects with a higher rate of deceptive practices, widespread adoption of subject registries would go a long way to decrease the chances of subjects enrolling in multiple studies or more than once in the same study.

Methods for forming particles from single source precursors

Science.gov (United States)

Fox, Robert V [Idaho Falls, ID; Rodriguez, Rene G [Pocatello, ID; Pak, Joshua [Pocatello, ID

2011-08-23

Single source precursors are subjected to carbon dioxide to form particles of material. The carbon dioxide may be in a supercritical state. Single source precursors also may be subjected to supercritical fluids other than supercritical carbon dioxide to form particles of material. The methods may be used to form nanoparticles. In some embodiments, the methods are used to form chalcopyrite materials. Devices such as, for example, semiconductor devices may be fabricated that include such particles. Methods of forming semiconductor devices include subjecting single source precursors to carbon dioxide to form particles of semiconductor material, and establishing electrical contact between the particles and an electrode.

A method for the computation of turbulent polymeric liquids including hydrodynamic interactions and chain entanglements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kivotides, Demosthenes, E-mail: demosthenes.kivotides@strath.ac.uk

2017-02-12

An asymptotically exact method for the direct computation of turbulent polymeric liquids that includes (a) fully resolved, creeping microflow fields due to hydrodynamic interactions between chains, (b) exact account of (subfilter) residual stresses, (c) polymer Brownian motion, and (d) direct calculation of chain entanglements, is formulated. Although developed in the context of polymeric fluids, the method is equally applicable to turbulent colloidal dispersions and aerosols. - Highlights: • An asymptotically exact method for the computation of polymer and colloidal fluids is developed. • The method is valid for all flow inertia and all polymer volume fractions. • The method models entanglements and hydrodynamic interactions between polymer chains.

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

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Makris Demosthenes

2010-03-01

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

Development of calculation method for one-dimensional kinetic analysis in fission reactors, including feedback effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paixao, S.B.; Marzo, M.A.S.; Alvim, A.C.M.

1986-01-01

The calculation method used in WIGLE code is studied. Because of the non availability of such a praiseworthy solution, expounding the method minutely has been tried. This developed method has been applied for the solution of the one-dimensional, two-group, diffusion equations in slab, axial analysis, including non-boiling heat transfer, accountig for feedback. A steady-state program (CITER-1D), written in FORTRAN 4, has been implemented, providing excellent results, ratifying the developed work quality. (Author) [pt

The Subjective Well-Being Method of Valuation: An Application to General Health Status.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Timothy T

2015-12-01

To introduce the subjective well-being (SWB) method of valuation and provide an example by valuing health status. The SWB method allows monetary valuations to be performed in the absence of market relationships. Data are from the 1975-2010 General Social Survey. The value of health status is determined via the estimation of an implicit derivative based on a happiness equation. Two-stage least-squares was used to estimate happiness as a function of poor-to-fair health status, annual household income adjusted for household size, age, sex, race, marital status, education, year, and season. Poor-to-fair health status and annual household income are instrumented using a proxy for intelligence, a temporal version of the classic distance instrument, and the average health status of individuals who are demographically similar but geographically separated. Instrument validity is evaluated. Moving from good/excellent health to poor/fair health (1 year of lower health status) is equivalent to the loss of $41,654 of equivalized household income (2010 constant dollars) per annum, which is larger than median equivalized household income. The SWB method may be useful in making monetary valuations where fundamental market relationships are not present. © Health Research and Educational Trust.

Effect of the Pilates method on physical conditioning of healthy subjects: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Campos, Renata R; Dias, Josilainne M; Pereira, Ligia M; Obara, Karen; Barreto, Maria S; Silva, Mariana F; Mazuquin, Bruno F; Christofaro, Diego G; Fernandes, Romulo A; Iversen, Maura D; Cardoso, Jefferson R

2016-01-01

Physical conditioning consists of a variety of health-related attributes and Pilates exercises are described as a form of this conditioning. The objective of this systematic review was to determine the effect of the Pilates method on health and ability outcome of the physical conditioning of healthy individuals. The search was performed in the following databases: Medline, Cinahl, Embase, Lilacs, Scielo, Web of Science, PEDro, Cochrane Controlled Trials Register Library, Scopus, Science Direct and Google Scholar. (1950-2014). Included studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that assessed the effects of the Pilates method on healthy subjects. Nine RCTs met the inclusion criteria. Pilates improved abdominal muscular endurance when compared with no exercises (mean difference [MD]=9.53%; 95% CI: 2.41, 16.43; P=0.009), however, there was no difference in flexibility (MD=4.97; 95% CI: -0.53, 10.47; P=0.08). Some positive effects (up to 6 months) of the Pilates practice were found in some RCTs' results as follows: Improvement of dynamic balance, quality of life and back muscle flexibility. The results indicate the Pilates exercises performed on the mat or apparatus 2 to 3 times a week, for 5 to 12 weeks, improves abdominal muscular endurance (on average, 10 more abdominals curls in 1-minute sit-up test) for both genders, when compared to no exercises.

Manual for subject analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

This document is one in a series of publications known as the ETDE/INIS Joint Reference Series and also constitutes a part of the ETDE Procedures Manual. It presents the rules, guidelines and procedures to be adopted by centers submitting input to the International Nuclear Information System (INIS) or the Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDE). It is a manual for the subject analysis part of input preparation, meaning the selection, subject classification, abstracting and subject indexing of relevant publications, and is to be used in conjunction with the Thesauruses, Subject Categories documents and the documents providing guidelines for the preparation of abstracts. The concept and structure of the new manual are intended to describe in a logical and efficient sequence all the steps comprising the subject analysis of documents to be reported to INIS or ETDE. The manual includes new chapters on preparatory analysis, subject classification, abstracting and subject indexing, as well as rules, guidelines, procedures, examples and a special chapter on guidelines and examples for subject analysis in particular subject fields. (g.t.; a.n.)

Love as a subjective corrlate of interpersonal relationships: attempts of defining of the concepts and methods of measurment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O. P. Zolotnyik

2015-04-01

Full Text Available This article is devoted to overview the scientific study of the phenomenon of love. Attempts of scientific knowledge presented by developed by sociologists and psychologists love theories, which defined, classified and measure this phenomenon. The paper proposed to review the most popular theory of love studying: the triangular theory of love for Robert J. Sternberg, classification styles love for John Alan Lee and transformational concept of A.Giddens. The importance of studying this subject is explained by the subjective definition by respondents of the role of love as correlates of interpersonal relationships. Love is considered as a factor that acts as a marriage motive and components, which ensures its durability. The complexity of the scientific understanding of love is the absence of clear empirical referents for fixation. The examined theory reaffirms their scientific hypotheses through the use of specific methods of measurement. It is offered for review: Scale of love and sympathy by Z.Rubin, Love Attitude Scale by Hendrick C. and Hendrick S. and scale of romantic relationships by Munro­Adams. These methodologies are widely used in modern scientific research, been undergo with modifications and adaptation depending on the cultural characteristics of the respondents. The phenomenon of love needs more scientific study with the aim of further categorization, require range of techniques selection and should be included  as a component in the sociological survey of interpersonal relationships.

The Research on Coordinated Decision-Making Method Tax System Based on Subject Data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhaoji Yu

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Academically, the research of subject database of tax system aims to set up an efficient, harmonious virtual data application environment. Subject data, in application and management, has been on demand polymerized and autonomously collaborated and has reached a balance between instantaneity and accuracy. This paper defines the connotation and characteristics enterprise informationization, designs a value system of enterprise informationization which is subject database oriented, and builds a model for the import of the subject database of enterprise informationization. Meantime, this paper describes the structure of the subject database based information import model and forges the model’s theoretical basis of subject data import in tax system. Using the model can make an analysis on the information of data warehouse, storage information, and tax information to provide decision support for the tax administrators.

A general symplectic method for the response analysis of infinitely periodic structures subjected to random excitations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

You-Wei Zhang

Full Text Available A general symplectic method for the random response analysis of infinitely periodic structures subjected to stationary/non-stationary random excitations is developed using symplectic mathematics in conjunction with variable separation and the pseudo-excitation method (PEM. Starting from the equation of motion for a single loaded substructure, symplectic analysis is firstly used to eliminate the dependent degrees of the freedom through condensation. A Fourier expansion of the condensed equation of motion is then applied to separate the variables of time and wave number, thus enabling the necessary recurrence scheme to be developed. The random response is finally determined by implementing PEM. The proposed method is justified by comparison with results available in the literature and is then applied to a more complicated time-dependent coupled system.

Night-vision goggles for night-blind subjects : subjective evaluation after 2 years of use

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hartong, D. T.; Kooijman, A. C.

Purpose: To evaluate the usefulness of night-vision goggles (NVG) for night-blind subjects after 1 and 2 years of use. Methods: Eleven night-blind subjects with retinitis pigmentosa used NVG for a 2-year period. At the end of each year, they were requested to fill-in two questionnaires regarding

Complete Tangent Stiffness for eXtended Finite Element Method by including crack growth parameters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mougaard, J.F.; Poulsen, P.N.; Nielsen, L.O.

2013-01-01

the crack geometry parameters, such as the crack length and the crack direction directly in the virtual work formulation. For efficiency, it is essential to obtain a complete tangent stiffness. A new method in this work is presented to include an incremental form the crack growth parameters on equal terms......The eXtended Finite Element Method (XFEM) is a useful tool for modeling the growth of discrete cracks in structures made of concrete and other quasi‐brittle and brittle materials. However, in a standard application of XFEM, the tangent stiffness is not complete. This is a result of not including...... with the degrees of freedom in the FEM‐equations. The complete tangential stiffness matrix is based on the virtual work together with the constitutive conditions at the crack tip. Introducing the crack growth parameters as direct unknowns, both equilibrium equations and the crack tip criterion can be handled...

Hygienic characteristic of working conditions and use of some evaluation methods of health of persons subjected to concomitant effect of industrial factors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karpov, V.B.

1987-01-01

To study peculiarities of hygienic-occupational effect of low-dose irradiation a comparative evaluation of working conditions and health of persons occupied in exhausting and testing of electron-beam tubes is carried out. Evaluation was based on results of 5-year prophylactic medical examinations and with due account of physiological, hematological and some other factors. To study general condition of people a modernized Dembo-Rubinstein test and specially developed questionnaire of health self-evaluation is used. Along with helth self-evaluation Dembo-Rubinstein test includes helth self- evaluation accounting public complaints. The given investigation methods demonstrated its sufficient informativity and applicabi lity for evaluation of health of persons subjected to concomitan t effect of industrial factors

Method for assessment of stormwater treatment facilities - Synthetic road runoff addition including micro-pollutants and tracer.

Science.gov (United States)

Cederkvist, Karin; Jensen, Marina B; Holm, Peter E

2017-08-01

Stormwater treatment facilities (STFs) are becoming increasingly widespread but knowledge on their performance is limited. This is due to difficulties in obtaining representative samples during storm events and documenting removal of the broad range of contaminants found in stormwater runoff. This paper presents a method to evaluate STFs by addition of synthetic runoff with representative concentrations of contaminant species, including the use of tracer for correction of removal rates for losses not caused by the STF. A list of organic and inorganic contaminant species, including trace elements representative of runoff from roads is suggested, as well as relevant concentration ranges. The method was used for adding contaminants to three different STFs including a curbstone extension with filter soil, a dual porosity filter, and six different permeable pavements. Evaluation of the method showed that it is possible to add a well-defined mixture of contaminants despite different field conditions by having a flexibly system, mixing different stock-solutions on site, and use bromide tracer for correction of outlet concentrations. Bromide recovery ranged from only 12% in one of the permeable pavements to 97% in the dual porosity filter, stressing the importance of including a conservative tracer for correction of contaminant retention values. The method is considered useful in future treatment performance testing of STFs. The observed performance of the STFs is presented in coming papers. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic analysis of isotropic nanoplates subjected to moving load using state-space method based on nonlocal second order plate theory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nami, Mohammad Rahim [Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Janghorban, Maziar [Islamic Azad University, Marvdash (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2015-06-15

In this work, dynamic analysis of rectangular nanoplates subjected to moving load is presented. In order to derive the governing equations of motion, second order plate theory is used. To capture the small scale effects, the nonlocal elasticity theory is adopted. It is assumed that the nanoplate is subjected to a moving concentrated load with the constant velocity V in the x direction. To solve the governing equations, state-space method is used to find the deflections of rectangular nanoplate under moving load. The results obtained here reveal that the nonlocality has significant effect on the deflection of rectangular nanoplate subjected to moving load.

Synthesis of 13C-labelled lactose for metabolic studies in subjects with gastrointestinal disorders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moyna, P.

1993-01-01

The long-range goals included development of a 13 C-labelled lactose method for measuring lactose malabsorption in patients with diarrhea. The short-term goals included assembling a nuclear magnetic resonance system and a computer system for spectra analysis. The latter results are the subject of the report. (author)

Method and apparatus for controlling a powertrain system including a multi-mode transmission

Science.gov (United States)

Hessell, Steven M.; Morris, Robert L.; McGrogan, Sean W.; Heap, Anthony H.; Mendoza, Gil J.

2015-09-08

A powertrain including an engine and torque machines is configured to transfer torque through a multi-mode transmission to an output member. A method for controlling the powertrain includes employing a closed-loop speed control system to control torque commands for the torque machines in response to a desired input speed. Upon approaching a power limit of a power storage device transferring power to the torque machines, power limited torque commands are determined for the torque machines in response to the power limit and the closed-loop speed control system is employed to determine an engine torque command in response to the desired input speed and the power limited torque commands for the torque machines.

Reliability and limitation of various diagnostic methods including nuclear medicine in myocardial disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tokuyasu, Yoshiki; Kusakabe, Kiyoko; Yamazaki, Toshio

1981-01-01

Electrocardiography (ECG), echocardiography, nuclear method, cardiac catheterization, left ventriculography and endomyocardial biopsy (biopsy) were performed in 40 cases of cardiomyopathy (CM), 9 of endocardial fibroelastosis and 19 of specific heart muscle disease, and the usefulness and limitation of each method was comparatively estimated. In CM, various methods including biopsy were performed. The 40 patients were classified into 3 groups, i.e., hypertrophic (17), dilated (20) and non-hypertrophic.non-dilated (3) on the basis of left ventricular ejection fraction and hypertrophy of the ventricular wall. The hypertrophic group was divided into 4 subgroups: 9 septal, 4 apical, 2 posterior and 2 anterior. The nuclear study is useful in assessing the site of the abnormal ventricular thickening, perfusion defect and ventricular function. Echocardiography is most useful in detecting asymmetric septal hypertrophy. The biopsy gives the sole diagnostic clue, especially in non-hypertrophic.non-dilated cardiomyopathy. ECG is useful in all cases but correlation with the site of disproportional hypertrophy was not obtained. (J.P.N.)

Subject/Author Index 1968-1992.

Science.gov (United States)

Kupidura, Eva, Ed.; Kupidura, Peter, Ed.

1993-01-01

This 25-year index contains annotations of feature articles by subject and by author. Representative subjects include basic education, development education, empowerment, human rights, lifelong education, peace education, popular education, rural development, social/political action, technological advancement, and transformative research. Articles…

Experimental study including subjective evaluations of mixing and displacement ventilation combined with radiant floor heating/cooling system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Krajcik, Michal; Tomasi, Roberta; Simone, Angela

2013-01-01

Sixteen subjects evaluated the indoor environment in four experiments with different combinations of ventilation systems and radiant heating/cooling systems. In the first two tests, the simulated residential room was equipped either by a mixing ventilation system supplying warm air for space heat...

Estimation methods with ordered exposure subject to measurement error and missingness in semi-ecological design

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kim Hyang-Mi

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In epidemiological studies, it is often not possible to measure accurately exposures of participants even if their response variable can be measured without error. When there are several groups of subjects, occupational epidemiologists employ group-based strategy (GBS for exposure assessment to reduce bias due to measurement errors: individuals of a group/job within study sample are assigned commonly to the sample mean of exposure measurements from their group in evaluating the effect of exposure on the response. Therefore, exposure is estimated on an ecological level while health outcomes are ascertained for each subject. Such study design leads to negligible bias in risk estimates when group means are estimated from ‘large’ samples. However, in many cases, only a small number of observations are available to estimate the group means, and this causes bias in the observed exposure-disease association. Also, the analysis in a semi-ecological design may involve exposure data with the majority missing and the rest observed with measurement errors and complete response data collected with ascertainment. Methods In workplaces groups/jobs are naturally ordered and this could be incorporated in estimation procedure by constrained estimation methods together with the expectation and maximization (EM algorithms for regression models having measurement error and missing values. Four methods were compared by a simulation study: naive complete-case analysis, GBS, the constrained GBS (CGBS, and the constrained expectation and maximization (CEM. We illustrated the methods in the analysis of decline in lung function due to exposures to carbon black. Results Naive and GBS approaches were shown to be inadequate when the number of exposure measurements is too small to accurately estimate group means. The CEM method appears to be best among them when within each exposure group at least a ’moderate’ number of individuals have their

Subjective versus objective assessment of breast reconstruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Henseler, Helga; Smith, Joanna; Bowman, Adrian; Khambay, Balvinder S; Ju, Xiangyang; Ayoub, Ashraf; Ray, Arup K

2013-05-01

To date breast assessment has been conducted mainly subjectively. However lately validated objective three-dimensional (3D) imaging was developed. The study aimed to assess breast reconstruction subjectively and objectively and conduct a comparison. In forty-four patients after immediate unilateral breast reconstruction with solely the extended latissimus dorsi flap the breast was captured by validated 3D imaging method and standardized 2D photography. Breast symmetry was subjectively evaluated by six experts who applied the Harris score giving a mark of 1-4 for a poor to excellent result. An error study was conducted by examination of the intra and inter-observer agreement and agreement on controls. By Procrustes analysis an objective asymmetry score was obtained and compared to the subjective assessment. The subjective assessment showed that the inter-observer agreement was good or substantial (p-value: value: fair (p-values: 0.159, 0.134, 0.099) to substantial (p-value: 0.005) intra-observer agreement. The objective assessment revealed that the reconstructed breast showed a significantly smaller volume compared to the opposite side and that the average asymmetry score was 0.052, ranging from 0.019 to 0.136. When comparing the subjective and objective method the relationship between the two scores was highly significant. Subjective breast assessment lacked accuracy and reproducibility. This was the first error study of subjective breast assessment versus an objective validated 3D imaging method based on true 3D parameters. The substantial agreement between established subjective breast assessment and new validated objective method supported the value of the later and we expect its future role to expand. Copyright © 2013 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Influence of Teaching Methods and Learning Environment to the Student's Learning Achievement of Craft and Entrepreneurship Subjects at Vocational High School

Science.gov (United States)

Munawaroh

2017-01-01

This research aims to explain the influence of teacher's teaching methods and learning environment to the learning achievement in class XI with the competency of accounting expertise to the subjects of craft and entrepreneurship, according to the students, the subject was very heavy and dull. The population in this research are students in class…

Modifying the Sleep Treatment Education Program for Students to include technology use (STEPS-TECH): Intervention effects on objective and subjective sleep outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Barber, Larissa K; Cucalon, Maria S

2017-12-01

University students often have sleep issues that arise from poor sleep hygiene practices and technology use patterns. Yet, technology-related behaviors are often neglected in sleep hygiene education. This study examined whether the Sleep Treatment Education Program for Students-modified to include information regarding managing technology use (STEPS-TECH)-helps improve both subjective and objective sleep outcomes among university students. Results of an experimental study among 78 university students showed improvements in objective indicators of sleep quantity (total sleep time) and sleep quality (less awakenings) during the subsequent week for students in the STEPS-TECH intervention group compared to a control group. Exploratory analyses indicated that effects were driven by improvements in weekend days immediately following the intervention. There were also no intervention effects on subjective sleep quality or quantity outcomes. In terms of self-reported behavioral responses to educational content in the intervention, there were no group differences in sleep hygiene practices or technology use before bedtime. However, the intervention group reported less technology use during sleep periods than the control group. These preliminary findings suggest that STEPS-TECH may be a useful educational tool to help improve objective sleep and reduce technology use during sleep periods among university students. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Integrated analyzing method for the progress event based on subjects and predicates in events

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Minowa, Hirotsugu; Munesawa, Yoshiomi

2014-01-01

It is expected to make use of the knowledge that was extracted by analyzing the mistakes of the past to prevent recurrence of accidents. Currently main analytic style is an analytic style that experts decipher deeply the accident cases, but cross-analysis has come to an end with extracting the common factors in the accident cases. We propose an integrated analyzing method for progress events to analyze among accidents in this study. Our method realized the integration of many accident cases by the integration connecting the common keyword called as 'Subject' or 'Predicate' that are extracted from each progress event in accident cases or near-miss cases. Our method can analyze and visualize the partial risk identification and the frequency to cause accidents and the risk assessment from the data integrated accident cases. The result of applying our method to PEC-SAFER accident cases identified 8 hazardous factors which can be caused from tank again, and visualized the high frequent factors that the first factor was damage of tank 26% and the second factor was the corrosion 21%, and visualized the high risks that the first risk was the damage 3.3 x 10 -2 [risk rank / year] and the second risk was the destroy 2.5 x 10 -2 [risk rank / year]. (author)

Counterproliferation, Border Security and Counterterrorism Subject-Related Laws and Regulations, Including Export Control Regimes in South-Eastern European Countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bokan, S.

2007-01-01

gaps exist, much less fill them. All this suggests that, to fulfil obligations under UNSC Resolutions 1540 and 1373, States must enact harmonized criminal prohibitions and authorization for law enforcement cooperation in order to establish a seamless web of security among all nations. Failure to do so implicitly poses a threat to international peace and security. One of the main issues which deserve to be further addressed and which prompts the continuation of the Southeast Europe Counterproliferation, Borger Security and Counterterrorism (CBSC) Working Group is to harmonize national laws and regulations that deal with deterring, detecting and interdicting WMD. Inventory of relevant CBSC subject-related laws of the Southeast Europe countries, including Export Control Laws was created and prepared for further consideration and harmonization by judiciary experts, with the aim to develop m odel laws . Let me very briefly present you the main features of the SEDM CBSC subject-related laws and regulations. This paper will present that inventory which includes the membership in the international Conventions, Treaties and Arrangements and also the membership in Multilateral Export Control Regimes of Southeast Europe countries. Also, it will be presented the membership in the international legal instruments that play an integral part in the global fight against terrorism. (author)

Phisyological quality of Pinus elliotti Engelm. seeds subjected to differents storage methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adriano Geraldo Fonseca

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Due to the growing demand for forest products, it is necessary to increase knowledge about the tree species of economic importance, especially in relation to seed storage. One method to study forest species is the storage of seeds. Cryopreservation is the cheapest and the most efficient method of seed preservation. The objective of this study was to test the behavior of Pinus elliottii Engelm. seeds storaged on liquid nitrogen; laboratory environment and refrigerator. The experiment was conducted in the seed Laboratory of the Federal University of the Jequitinhonha and Mucuri Valley. The seeds were donated by Rigesa Ltda on June 2007. Three types of storage were tested: 1 liquid nitrogen temperature of -196 º C, 2 laboratory environment, 3 refrigerator. All treatments were evaluated at 0, 40, 80 and 120 days of storage. The vigor, germination and germination rate tests were mounted on gerbox with blotters and moistened with distilled water and kept in BOD incubator chamber at 25 º C. Seeds length, green mass and dry mass were also evaluated. The data were subjected to analysis of variance and means compared by Tukey test at 5% significance level. It was found that there was loss of quality of the Pinus elliottii seeds in all treatments. Cryopreservation of P. elliotii seeds can be used as an alternative of storage in genebanks.

Methods of forming aluminum oxynitride-comprising bodies, including methods of forming a sheet of transparent armor

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Henry Shiu-Hung [Idaho Falls, ID; Lillo, Thomas Martin [Idaho Falls, ID

2008-12-02

The invention includes methods of forming an aluminum oxynitride-comprising body. For example, a mixture is formed which comprises A:B:C in a respective molar ratio in the range of 9:3.6-6.2:0.1-1.1, where "A" is Al.sub.2O.sub.3, "B" is AlN, and "C" is a total of one or more of B.sub.2O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2, Si--Al--O--N, and TiO.sub.2. The mixture is sintered at a temperature of at least 1,600.degree. C. at a pressure of no greater than 500 psia effective to form an aluminum oxynitride-comprising body which is at least internally transparent and has at least 99% maximum theoretical density.

Engine including hydraulically actuated valvetrain and method of valve overlap control

Science.gov (United States)

Cowgill, Joel [White Lake, MI

2012-05-08

An exhaust valve control method may include displacing an exhaust valve in communication with the combustion chamber of an engine to an open position using a hydraulic exhaust valve actuation system and returning the exhaust valve to a closed position using the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly. During closing, the exhaust valve may be displaced for a first duration from the open position to an intermediate closing position at a first velocity by operating the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly in a first mode. The exhaust valve may be displaced for a second duration greater than the first duration from the intermediate closing position to a fully closed position at a second velocity at least eighty percent less than the first velocity by operating the hydraulic exhaust valve actuation assembly in a second mode.

Crisis in Cataloging Revisited: The Year's Work in Subject Analysis, 1990.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, James Bradford

1991-01-01

Reviews the 1990 literature that concerns subject analysis. Issues addressed include subject cataloging, including Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH); classification, including Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), Library of Congress Classification, and classification in online systems; subject access, including the online use of…

Design of subjects training on reactor simulator and feasibility study - toward the empirical evaluation of interface design concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, Y.; Furukawa, H.; Tanabe, F.

1998-01-01

On-going JAERI's project for empirical evaluation of the ecological interface design concept was first described. The empirical evaluation is planned to be proceeded through three consecutive steps; designing and actual implementation of the interface on reactor simulator, verification of the interface created, and the validation by the simulator experiment. For conducting the project, three different experimental resources are prerequisite, that are, data analysis method for identifying the operator's strategies, experimental facility including reactor simulator, and experimental subjects or subjects training method. Among the three experimental resources, subjects training method was recently designed and a simulator experiment was earned out in order to examine the feasibility of the designed training method. From the experiment and analysis of the experimental records, we could conclude that it is feasible that the experimental subjects having an appropriate technical basis can gain the sufficient competence for evaluation work of the interface design concept by using the training method designed. (author)

Subjective executive difficulties – a study using the Dysexecutive Questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ewa Małgorzata Szepietowska

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Subjective executive difficulties, understood as a sense of disruption of planning, control and correction of one’s own activity, is often reported by healthy as well as clinical individuals. Self-report measures such as the Dysexecutive Questionnaire (DEX-S are used to assess the severity of this feeling. The diagnostic value of this method is debated due to the numerous factors affecting the beliefs on executive deficits. Aim of the study: With reference to inconclusive data concerning the underlying factors of subjective executive deficits and the value of self-report measures the following aims of the present study were established: a determination of the demographic, clinical and cognitive characteristics of individuals with various levels of subjective executive difficulties, b finding which of these variables contribute to the risk of subjective executive difficulties increase. Material and methods: The study included 213 adult individuals. DEX-S as well as measures of cognitive assessment (Montreal Cognitive Assessment, MoCA; subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised, WAIS-R and depressive mood assessment [Geriatric Depression Scale (Short Form, GDS-15] were used. Demographic variables (age, gender and educational level as well as clinical variables (lack of/presence of central nervous system disease history, including lateralised brain pathology were also taken into consideration. Based on DEX-S results a cluster analysis was performed and two groups of subjects with a different level of subjective executive difficulties were identified: low-severity group (individuals reporting no complaints regarding executive deficits and high-severity group (individuals with complaints. Group comparisons demonstrated that individuals complaining about executive deficits have a higher depressive mood index and lower scores on some subtests used to assess cognitive functions. The results of logistic regression analysis

Application of a mixed Galerkin/least-squares method to axisymetric shell problems subjected to arbitrary loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loula, A.F.D.; Toledo, E.M.; Franca, L.P.; Garcia, E.L.M.

1989-08-01

A variationaly consistent finite element formulation for constrained problems free from shear or membrane locking is applied to axisymetric shells subjected to arbitrary loading. The governing equations are writen according to Love's classical theory for a problem of bending of axisymetric thin and moderately thick shells accounting for shear deformation. The mixed variational formulation, in terms of stresses and displacements here presented consists of classical Galerkin method plus mesh-dependent least-square type terms employed with equal-order finite element polynomials. The additional terms enhance stability and accuracy of the original Galerkin method, as already proven theoretically and confirmed trough numerical experiments. Numerical results of some examples are presented to demonstrate the good stability and accuracy of the formulation. (author) [pt

Classical mechanics including an introduction to the theory of elasticity

CERN Document Server

Hentschke, Reinhard

2017-01-01

This textbook teaches classical mechanics as one of the foundations of physics. It describes the mechanical stability and motion in physical systems ranging from the molecular to the galactic scale. Aside from the standard topics of mechanics in the physics curriculum, this book includes an introduction to the theory of elasticity and its use in selected modern engineering applications, e.g. dynamic mechanical analysis of viscoelastic materials. The text also covers many aspects of numerical mechanics, ranging from the solution of ordinary differential equations, including molecular dynamics simulation of many particle systems, to the finite element method. Attendant Mathematica programs or parts thereof are provided in conjunction with selected examples. Numerous links allow the reader to connect to related subjects and research topics. Among others this includes statistical mechanics (separate chapter), quantum mechanics, space flight, galactic dynamics, friction, and vibration spectroscopy. An introductory...

System reliability analysis with natural language and expert's subjectivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onisawa, T.

1996-01-01

This paper introduces natural language expressions and expert's subjectivity to system reliability analysis. To this end, this paper defines a subjective measure of reliability and presents the method of the system reliability analysis using the measure. The subjective measure of reliability corresponds to natural language expressions of reliability estimation, which is represented by a fuzzy set defined on [0,1]. The presented method deals with the dependence among subsystems and employs parametrized operations of subjective measures of reliability which can reflect expert 's subjectivity towards the analyzed system. The analysis results are also expressed by linguistic terms. Finally this paper gives an example of the system reliability analysis by the presented method

Fracture Failure of Reinforced Concrete Slabs Subjected to Blast Loading Using the Combined Finite-Discrete Element Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Z. M. Jaini

Full Text Available Abstract Numerical modeling of fracture failure is challenging due to various issues in the constitutive law and the transition of continuum to discrete bodies. Therefore, this study presents the application of the combined finite-discrete element method to investigate the fracture failure of reinforced concrete slabs subjected to blast loading. In numerical modeling, the interaction of non-uniform blast loading on the concrete slab was modeled using the incorporation of the finite element method with a crack rotating approach and the discrete element method to model crack, fracture onset and its post-failures. A time varying pressure-time history based on the mapping method was adopted to define blast loading. The Mohr-Coulomb with Rankine cut-off and von-Mises criteria were applied for concrete and steel reinforcement respectively. The results of scabbing, spalling and fracture show a reliable prediction of damage and fracture.

USING DIDACTIC EQUIPMENT IN VOCATIONAL SUBJECTS TEACHING

OpenAIRE

JIROUT, Jiří

2011-01-01

Baccalaureate Work ?Using Didactic Equipment In Vocational Subjects Teaching? describes various methods of teaching and using didactic engineering in education. Theoretic part describes general aspects of using didactic engineering, teaching methods a and ways how to use didactic engineering in teaching vocational subjects. Practical part finds how students appreciate using modern didactic aids and engineering in education.

Teaching Methods in Biology Education and Sustainability Education Including Outdoor Education for Promoting Sustainability—A Literature Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eila Jeronen

2016-12-01

Full Text Available There are very few studies concerning the importance of teaching methods in biology education and environmental education including outdoor education for promoting sustainability at the levels of primary and secondary schools and pre-service teacher education. The material was selected using special keywords from biology and sustainable education in several scientific databases. The article provides an overview of 24 selected articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals from 2006–2016. The data was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Altogether, 16 journals were selected and 24 articles were analyzed in detail. The foci of the analyses were teaching methods, learning environments, knowledge and thinking skills, psychomotor skills, emotions and attitudes, and evaluation methods. Additionally, features of good methods were investigated and their implications for teaching were emphasized. In total, 22 different teaching methods were found to improve sustainability education in different ways. The most emphasized teaching methods were those in which students worked in groups and participated actively in learning processes. Research points toward the value of teaching methods that provide a good introduction and supportive guidelines and include active participation and interactivity.

Subjective-personal readiness of correctional teachers to education of ASD children

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Kateryna Ostrovska

2017-07-01

Full Text Available ASD teachers require skills that go beyond the realm of most educators including professional competences and high moral qualities. In the work theoretical approaches and experimental research on the problem of subjective personality readiness of correctional teachers in the education of ASD children are carried out. The psychological investigation has been conducted including measurement of psychological indices of 40 teachers of ASD children from the boarding school "Trust" and 40 teachers from mainstream schools of Lviv city aged from 28 to 59 years. The following methods are used: "Questionnaire for the measurement of tolerance" (Magun, Zhamkochyan, Magura, 2000; "Shein’s Career Anchors" method aimed at studying the career orientations of the teachers (Shein, 2010; “Diagnostics of empathy level” (Viktor Boiko, 2001; method of study “Motivation professional activities” by Catelin Zamfir in a modification of Artur Rean (Bordovskaya, & Rean, 2001. Based on the provided studies a program for development of subject-personality readiness of the correctional teacher to work with ASD children is proposed. The program consists of the following components: motivational component (professional competence, self-development, self-determination, self-control; cognitive component (intellectual personality autonomy, self-identification, stability, challenge, integration of lifestyles; emotionally-volitional component (empathy, positive attitude toward a child, intellectual analysis of emotions, self-regulation.

Subjective Quality Measurement of Speech Its Evaluation, Estimation and Applications

CERN Document Server

Kondo, Kazuhiro

2012-01-01

It is becoming crucial to accurately estimate and monitor speech quality in various ambient environments to guarantee high quality speech communication. This practical hands-on book shows speech intelligibility measurement methods so that the readers can start measuring or estimating speech intelligibility of their own system. The book also introduces subjective and objective speech quality measures, and describes in detail speech intelligibility measurement methods. It introduces a diagnostic rhyme test which uses rhyming word-pairs, and includes: An investigation into the effect of word familiarity on speech intelligibility. Speech intelligibility measurement of localized speech in virtual 3-D acoustic space using the rhyme test. Estimation of speech intelligibility using objective measures, including the ITU standard PESQ measures, and automatic speech recognizers.

Subjective Evaluation of Audiovisual Signals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Fikejz

2010-01-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with subjective evaluation of audiovisual signals, with emphasis on the interaction between acoustic and visual quality. The subjective test is realized by a simple rating method. The audiovisual signal used in this test is a combination of images compressed by JPEG compression codec and sound samples compressed by MPEG-1 Layer III. Images and sounds have various contents. It simulates a real situation when the subject listens to compressed music and watches compressed pictures without the access to original, i.e. uncompressed signals.

An Evaluation of Kernel Equating: Parallel Equating with Classical Methods in the SAT Subject Tests[TM] Program. Research Report. ETS RR-09-06

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, Mary C.; Zhang, Lilly; Damiano, Michele

2009-01-01

This study investigated kernel equating methods by comparing these methods to operational equatings for two tests in the SAT Subject Tests[TM] program. GENASYS (ETS, 2007) was used for all equating methods and scaled score kernel equating results were compared to Tucker, Levine observed score, chained linear, and chained equipercentile equating…

Miscellaneous subjects, ch. 18

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brussaard, P.J.; Glaudemans, P.W.M.

1977-01-01

Attention is paid to a variery of subjects which are related to shell model applications, e.g. the Lanczos method for matrix diagonalization, truncation methods (seniority truncation, single-particle energy truncation and diagonal energy truncation which can be used for reducing the configuration space.) Coulomb energies and spurious states are briefly discussed. Finally attention is paid to the particle-vibrator model

Methods of using structures including catalytic materials disposed within porous zeolite materials to synthesize hydrocarbons

Science.gov (United States)

Rollins, Harry W [Idaho Falls, ID; Petkovic, Lucia M [Idaho Falls, ID; Ginosar, Daniel M [Idaho Falls, ID

2011-02-01

Catalytic structures include a catalytic material disposed within a zeolite material. The catalytic material may be capable of catalyzing a formation of methanol from carbon monoxide and/or carbon dioxide, and the zeolite material may be capable of catalyzing a formation of hydrocarbon molecules from methanol. The catalytic material may include copper and zinc oxide. The zeolite material may include a first plurality of pores substantially defined by a crystal structure of the zeolite material and a second plurality of pores dispersed throughout the zeolite material. Systems for synthesizing hydrocarbon molecules also include catalytic structures. Methods for synthesizing hydrocarbon molecules include contacting hydrogen and at least one of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide with such catalytic structures. Catalytic structures are fabricated by forming a zeolite material at least partially around a template structure, removing the template structure, and introducing a catalytic material into the zeolite material.

Photogrammetry and remote sensing education subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Lazaridou, Maria A.; Karagianni, Aikaterini Ch.

2017-09-01

The rapid technologic advances in the scientific areas of photogrammetry and remote sensing require continuous readjustments at the educational programs and their implementation. The teaching teamwork should deal with the challenge to offer the volume of the knowledge without preventing the understanding of principles and methods and also to introduce "new" knowledge (advances, trends) followed by evaluation and presentation of relevant applications. This is of particular importance for a Civil Engineering Faculty as this in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, as the framework of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing is closely connected with applications in the four educational Divisions of the Faculty. This paper refers to the above and includes subjects of organizing the courses in photogrammetry and remote sensing in the Civil Engineering Faculty of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. A scheme of the general curriculum as well the teaching aims and methods are also presented.

Spine surgeon's kinematics during discectomy, part II: operating table height and visualization methods, including microscope.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jeong Yoon; Kim, Kyung Hyun; Kuh, Sung Uk; Chin, Dong Kyu; Kim, Keun Su; Cho, Yong Eun

2014-05-01

Surgeon spine angle during surgery was studied ergonomically and the kinematics of the surgeon's spine was related with musculoskeletal fatigue and pain. Spine angles varied depending on operation table height and visualization method, and in a previous paper we showed that the use of a loupe and a table height at the midpoint between the umbilicus and the sternum are optimal for reducing musculoskeletal loading. However, no studies have previously included a microscope as a possible visualization method. The objective of this study is to assess differences in surgeon spine angles depending on operating table height and visualization method, including microscope. We enrolled 18 experienced spine surgeons for this study, who each performed a discectomy using a spine surgery simulator. Three different methods were used to visualize the surgical field (naked eye, loupe, microscope) and three different operating table heights (anterior superior iliac spine, umbilicus, the midpoint between the umbilicus and the sternum) were studied. Whole spine angles were compared for three different views during the discectomy simulation: midline, ipsilateral, and contralateral. A 16-camera optoelectronic motion analysis system was used, and 16 markers were placed from the head to the pelvis. Lumbar lordosis, thoracic kyphosis, cervical lordosis, and occipital angle were compared between the different operating table heights and visualization methods as well as a natural standing position. Whole spine angles differed significantly depending on visualization method. All parameters were closer to natural standing values when discectomy was performed with a microscope, and there were no differences between the naked eye and the loupe. Whole spine angles were also found to differ from the natural standing position depending on operating table height, and became closer to natural standing position values as the operating table height increased, independent of the visualization method

Quantitative Analysis of Swallowing Function Between Dysphagia Patients and Healthy Subjects Using High-Resolution Manometry

OpenAIRE

Park, Chul-Hyun; Kim, Don-Kyu; Lee, Yong-Taek; Yi, Youbin; Lee, Jung-Sang; Kim, Kunwoo; Park, Jung Ho; Yoon, Kyung Jae

2017-01-01

Objective To compare swallowing function between healthy subjects and patients with pharyngeal dysphagia using high resolution manometry (HRM) and to evaluate the usefulness of HRM for detecting pharyngeal dysphagia. Methods Seventy-five patients with dysphagia and 28 healthy subjects were included in this study. Diagnosis of dysphagia was confirmed by a videofluoroscopy. HRM was performed to measure pressure and timing information at the velopharynx (VP), tongue base (TB), and upper esophage...

Do subjective assessments of running patterns reflect objective parameters?

Science.gov (United States)

Lussiana, Thibault; Gindre, Cyrille; Mourot, Laurent; Hébert-Losier, Kim

2017-08-01

Running patterns are often categorized into subgroups according to common features before data analysis and interpretation. The Volodalen ® method is a simple field-based tool used to classify runners into aerial or terrestrial using a 5-item subjective rating scale. We aimed to validate the Volodalen ® method by quantifying the relationship between its subjective scores and 3D biomechanical measures. Fifty-four runners ran 30 s on a treadmill at 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 km h -1 while their kinematics were assessed subjectively using the Volodalen ® method and objectively using 3D motion capture. For each runner and speed, two researchers scored the five Volodalen ® items on a 1-to-5 scale, which addressed vertical oscillation, upper-body motion, pelvis and foot position at ground contact, and footstrike pattern. Seven 3D biomechanical parameters reflecting the subjective items were also collected and correlated to the subjective scores. Twenty-eight runners were classified as aerial and 26 as terrestrial. Runner classification did not change with speed, but the relative contribution of the biomechanical parameters to the subjective classification was speed dependent. The magnitude of correlations between subjective and objective measures ranged from trivial to very large. Five of the seven objective parameters significantly differed between aerial and terrestrial runners, and these parameters demonstrated the strongest correlations to the subjective scores. Our results support the validity of the Volodalen ® method, whereby the visual appreciation of running gait reflected quantifiable objective parameters. Two minor modifications to the method are proposed to simplify its use and improve agreement between subjective and objective measures.

Subjective safety and self-confidence in prehospital trauma care and learning progress after trauma-courses: part of the prospective longitudinal mixed-methods EPPTC-trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Häske, David; Beckers, Stefan K; Hofmann, Marzellus; Lefering, Rolf; Grützner, Paul A; Stöckle, Ulrich; Papathanassiou, Vassilios; Münzberg, Matthias

2017-08-14

Prehospital trauma care is stressful and requires multi-professional teamwork. A decrease in the number of accident victims ultimately affects the routine and skills and underlines the importance of effective training. Standardized courses, like PHTLS, are established for health care professionals to improve the prehospital care of trauma patients. The aim of the study was to investigate the subjective safety in prehospital trauma care and learning progress by paramedics in a longitudinal analysis. This was a prospective intervention trial and part of the mixed-method longitudinal EPPTC-trial, evaluating subjective and objective changes among participants and real patient care as a result of PHTLS courses. Participants were evaluated with pre/post questionnaires as well as one year after the course. We included 236 datasets. In the pre/post comparison, an increased performance could be observed in nearly all cases. The result shows that the expectations of the participants of the course were fully met even after one year (p = 0.002). The subjective safety in trauma care is significantly better even one year after the course (p < 0.001). Regression analysis showed that (ABCDE)-structure is decisive (p = 0.036) as well as safety in rare and common skills (both p < 0.001). Most skills are also rated better after one year. Knowledge and specific safety are assessed as worse after one year. The courses meet the expectations of the participants and increase the subjective safety in the prehospital care of trauma patients. ABCDE-structure and safety in skills are crucial. In the short term, both safety in skills and knowledge can be increased, but the courses do not have the power to maintain knowledge and specific subjective safety issues over a year. German Clinical Trials Register, ID DRKS00004713 , registered 14. February 2014.

Comparison of subjective and objective methods to determine the retinal arterio-venous ratio using fundus photography

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Rebekka Heitmar

2015-10-01

Conclusion: Grader education and experience leads to inter-grader differences but more importantly, subjective grading is not capable to pick up subtle differences across healthy individuals and does not represent true AVR when compared with an objective assessment method. Technology advancements mean we no longer rely on opthalmoscopic evaluation but can capture and store fundus images with retinal cameras, enabling us to measure vessel calibre more accurately compared to visual estimation; hence it should be integrated in optometric practise for improved accuracy and reliability of clinical assessments of retinal vessel calibres.

Electrorheological fluids and methods

Science.gov (United States)

Green, Peter F.; McIntyre, Ernest C.

2015-06-02

Electrorheological fluids and methods include changes in liquid-like materials that can flow like milk and subsequently form solid-like structures under applied electric fields; e.g., about 1 kV/mm. Such fluids can be used in various ways as smart suspensions, including uses in automotive, defense, and civil engineering applications. Electrorheological fluids and methods include one or more polar molecule substituted polyhedral silsesquioxanes (e.g., sulfonated polyhedral silsesquioxanes) and one or more oils (e.g., silicone oil), where the fluid can be subjected to an electric field.

Study of Subjective Life Quality in Young People with Disabilities

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Kurtanova Yu.E.,

2014-08-01

Full Text Available We present a study of subjective life quality in young people with disabilities compared with their healthy peers. The study sample comprised 62 women aged 14 to 18 years. The experimental study group consisted of 30 students of grades VIII-XI of Secondary School of home-based learning № 1673 "Support". The control group included 32 student of grades VIII-XI of School № 1222 with in-depth study of the German language. The methods used were: Medical Outcomes Study 36 Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36, M. Kuhn test "Who am I" (M. Kuhn, T. McPartland; modification by T.V. Rumjantseva, Method and diagnosis of health, activity and mood, projective technique "Picture of the actual self" and "Picture of the desired self" with questions. We formulated conclusions about the features of the subjective assessment of the quality of life in young people with disabilities compared with their healthy peers.

Negotiating constructions of success and failure: women in mid-life and formations of subject, subjectivity and identity

OpenAIRE

McAvoy, Jean

2009-01-01

This thesis explores constructions of success and failure for women in mid-life in Britain in the early 21st century. It takes a discursive approach to social psychology, understanding language as social action constituting subjects and subjectivity. Data from 20 interviews, including 4 conducted with women in pairs, supported by loosely structured questionnaires and a collection of photographs of women including celebrities and unknown women, were used to generate talk of selves and others. ...

Predictors of the discrepancy between objective and subjective cognition in bipolar disorder

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Miskowiak, K. W.; Petersen, Jeff Zarp; Ott, C. V.

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVE: The poor relationship between subjective and objective cognitive impairment in bipolar disorder (BD) is well-established. However, beyond simple correlation, this has not been explored further using a methodology that quantifies the degree and direction of the discrepancy. This study...... aimed to develop such a methodology to explore clinical characteristics predictive of subjective-objective discrepancy in a large BD patient cohort. METHODS: Data from 109 remitted BD patients and 110 healthy controls were pooled from previous studies, including neuropsychological test scores, self......-reported cognitive difficulties, and ratings of mood, stress, socio-occupational capacity, and quality of life. Cognitive symptom 'sensitivity' scores were calculated using a novel methodology, with positive scores reflecting disproportionately more subjective complaints than objective impairment and negative values...

Fractal time series analysis of postural stability in elderly and control subjects

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Doussot Michel

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The study of balance using stabilogram analysis is of particular interest in the study of falls. Although simple statistical parameters derived from the stabilogram have been shown to predict risk of falls, such measures offer little insight into the underlying control mechanisms responsible for degradation in balance. In contrast, fractal and non-linear time-series analysis of stabilograms, such as estimations of the Hurst exponent (H, may provide information related to the underlying motor control strategies governing postural stability. In order to be adapted for a home-based follow-up of balance, such methods need to be robust, regardless of the experimental protocol, while producing time-series that are as short as possible. The present study compares two methods of calculating H: Detrended Fluctuation Analysis (DFA and Stabilogram Diffusion Analysis (SDA for elderly and control subjects, as well as evaluating the effect of recording duration. Methods Centre of pressure signals were obtained from 90 young adult subjects and 10 elderly subjects. Data were sampled at 100 Hz for 30 s, including stepping onto and off the force plate. Estimations of H were made using sliding windows of 10, 5, and 2.5 s durations, with windows slid forward in 1-s increments. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to test for the effect of time, age and estimation method on the Hurst exponent, while the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC was used as a measure of reliability. Results Both SDA and DFA methods were able to identify differences in postural stability between control and elderly subjects for time series as short as 5 s, with ICC values as high as 0.75 for DFA. Conclusion Both methods would be well-suited to non-invasive longitudinal assessment of balance. In addition, reliable estimations of H were obtained from time series as short as 5 s.

The participative method of subject definition as used in the quantitative modelling of hospital laundry services.

Science.gov (United States)

Hammer, K A; Janes, F R

1995-01-01

The objectives for developing the participative method of subject definition were to gain all the relevant information to a high level of fidelity in the earliest stages of the work and so be able to build a realistic model at reduced labour cost. In order to better integrate the two activities--information acquisition and mathematical modelling--a procedure was devised using the methods of interactive management to facilitate teamwork. This procedure provided the techniques to create suitable working relationships between the two groups, the informants and the modellers, so as to maximize their free and accurate intercommunication, both during the initial definition of the linen service and during the monitoring of the accuracy and reality of the draft models. The objectives of this project were met in that the final model was quickly validated and approved, at a low labour cost.

SU-F-207-02: Use of Postmortem Subjects for Subjective Image Quality Assessment in Abdominal CT Protocols with Iterative Reconstruction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mench, A [Salem Hospital, Salem, OR (United States); Lipnharski, I; Carranza, C; Lamoureux, R; Smajdor, L; Cormack, B; Mohammed, T; Rill, L; Arreola, M [University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States); Sinclair, L [Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: New radiation dose reduction technologies are emerging constantly in the medical imaging field. The latest of these technologies, iterative reconstruction (IR) in CT, presents the ability to reduce dose significantly and hence provides great opportunity for CT protocol optimization. However, without effective analysis of image quality, the reduction in radiation exposure becomes irrelevant. This work explores the use of postmortem subjects as an image quality assessment medium for protocol optimizations in abdominal CT. Methods: Three female postmortem subjects were scanned using the Abdomen-Pelvis (AP) protocol at reduced minimum tube current and target noise index (SD) settings of 12.5, 17.5, 20.0, and 25.0. Images were reconstructed using two strengths of iterative reconstruction. Radiologists and radiology residents from several subspecialties were asked to evaluate 8 AP image sets including the current facility default scan protocol and 7 scans with the parameters varied as listed above. Images were viewed in the soft tissue window and scored on a 3-point scale as acceptable, borderline acceptable, and unacceptable for diagnosis. The facility default AP scan was identified to the reviewer while the 7 remaining AP scans were randomized and de-identified of acquisition and reconstruction details. The observers were also asked to comment on the subjective image quality criteria they used for scoring images. This included visibility of specific anatomical structures and tissue textures. Results: Radiologists scored images as acceptable or borderline acceptable for target noise index settings of up to 20. Due to the postmortem subjects’ close representation of living human anatomy, readers were able to evaluate images as they would those of actual patients. Conclusion: Postmortem subjects have already been proven useful for direct CT organ dose measurements. This work illustrates the validity of their use for the crucial evaluation of image quality

SU-F-207-02: Use of Postmortem Subjects for Subjective Image Quality Assessment in Abdominal CT Protocols with Iterative Reconstruction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mench, A; Lipnharski, I; Carranza, C; Lamoureux, R; Smajdor, L; Cormack, B; Mohammed, T; Rill, L; Arreola, M; Sinclair, L

2015-01-01

Purpose: New radiation dose reduction technologies are emerging constantly in the medical imaging field. The latest of these technologies, iterative reconstruction (IR) in CT, presents the ability to reduce dose significantly and hence provides great opportunity for CT protocol optimization. However, without effective analysis of image quality, the reduction in radiation exposure becomes irrelevant. This work explores the use of postmortem subjects as an image quality assessment medium for protocol optimizations in abdominal CT. Methods: Three female postmortem subjects were scanned using the Abdomen-Pelvis (AP) protocol at reduced minimum tube current and target noise index (SD) settings of 12.5, 17.5, 20.0, and 25.0. Images were reconstructed using two strengths of iterative reconstruction. Radiologists and radiology residents from several subspecialties were asked to evaluate 8 AP image sets including the current facility default scan protocol and 7 scans with the parameters varied as listed above. Images were viewed in the soft tissue window and scored on a 3-point scale as acceptable, borderline acceptable, and unacceptable for diagnosis. The facility default AP scan was identified to the reviewer while the 7 remaining AP scans were randomized and de-identified of acquisition and reconstruction details. The observers were also asked to comment on the subjective image quality criteria they used for scoring images. This included visibility of specific anatomical structures and tissue textures. Results: Radiologists scored images as acceptable or borderline acceptable for target noise index settings of up to 20. Due to the postmortem subjects’ close representation of living human anatomy, readers were able to evaluate images as they would those of actual patients. Conclusion: Postmortem subjects have already been proven useful for direct CT organ dose measurements. This work illustrates the validity of their use for the crucial evaluation of image quality

Is Subjective Status Influenced by Psychosocial Factors?

OpenAIRE

Lundberg, Johanna; Kristenson, Margareta

2008-01-01

Objective Associations between subjective status and health are still relatively unexplored. This study aimed at testing whether subjective status is uniquely confounded by psychosocial factors compared to objective status, and what factors that may predict subjective status. Design A cross-sectional analysis of a population-based, random sample of 795 middle-aged men and women from the southeast of Sweden. Questionnaires included subjective status, objective measures of socioeconomic status,...

The effect of subject measurement error on joint kinematics in the conventional gait model: Insights from the open-source pyCGM tool using high performance computing methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwartz, Mathew; Dixon, Philippe C

2018-01-01

The conventional gait model (CGM) is a widely used biomechanical model which has been validated over many years. The CGM relies on retro-reflective markers placed along anatomical landmarks, a static calibration pose, and subject measurements as inputs for joint angle calculations. While past literature has shown the possible errors caused by improper marker placement, studies on the effects of inaccurate subject measurements are lacking. Moreover, as many laboratories rely on the commercial version of the CGM, released as the Plug-in Gait (Vicon Motion Systems Ltd, Oxford, UK), integrating improvements into the CGM code is not easily accomplished. This paper introduces a Python implementation for the CGM, referred to as pyCGM, which is an open-source, easily modifiable, cross platform, and high performance computational implementation. The aims of pyCGM are to (1) reproduce joint kinematic outputs from the Vicon CGM and (2) be implemented in a parallel approach to allow integration on a high performance computer. The aims of this paper are to (1) demonstrate that pyCGM can systematically and efficiently examine the effect of subject measurements on joint angles and (2) be updated to include new calculation methods suggested in the literature. The results show that the calculated joint angles from pyCGM agree with Vicon CGM outputs, with a maximum lower body joint angle difference of less than 10-5 degrees. Through the hierarchical system, the ankle joint is the most vulnerable to subject measurement error. Leg length has the greatest effect on all joints as a percentage of measurement error. When compared to the errors previously found through inter-laboratory measurements, the impact of subject measurements is minimal, and researchers should rather focus on marker placement. Finally, we showed that code modifications can be performed to include improved hip, knee, and ankle joint centre estimations suggested in the existing literature. The pyCGM code is provided

Subjective memory impairment in general practice : Short overview and design of a mixed methods study.

Science.gov (United States)

Pentzek, Michael; Leve, Verena; Leucht, Verena

2017-05-01

Public awareness for dementia is rising and patients with concerns about forgetfulness are not uncommon in general practice. For the general practitioner (GP) subjectively perceived memory impairment (SMI) also offers a chance to broach the issue of cognitive function with the patient. This may support GPs' patient-centered care in terms of a broader frailty concept. What is SMI (definition, operationalization, prevalence and burden)? Which conceptions and approaches do GPs have regarding SMI? Narrative overview of recent SMI criteria and results, selective utilization of results from a systematic literature search on GP dementia care, non-systematic search regarding SMI in general practice, deduction of a study design from the overview and development according to international standards. Studies revealed that approximately 60% of GP patients aged >74 reported a declining memory, every sixth person had concerns about this aspect and only relatively few seek medical advice. Concerns about SMI are considered a risk factor for future dementia. Specific general practice conceptions about SMI could not be identified in the literature. Using guidelines for mixed methods research, the design of an exploratory sequential mixed methods study is presented, which should reveal different attitudes of GPs towards SMI. Subjective memory impairment (SMI) is a common feature and troubles a considerable proportion of patients. Neuropsychiatric research is progressing, but for the transfer of the SMI concept into routine practice, involvement of GP research is necessary. A new study aims to make a contribution to this.

ADRB3 Gene Trp64Arg Polymorphism and Essential Hypertension: A Meta-Analysis Including 9,555 Subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yan-Yan; Lu, Xin-Zheng; Wang, Hui; Zhou, Yan-Hong; Yang, Xin-Xing; Geng, Hong-Yu; Gong, Ge; Kim, Hyun Jun

2018-01-01

Background: Presence of the β 3-Adrenergic receptor (ADRB3) gene Trp64Arg (T64A) polymorphism may be associated with an increased susceptibility for essential hypertension (EH). A clear consensus, however, has yet to be reached. Objective and methods: To further elucidate the relationship between the ADRB3 gene Trp64Arg polymorphism and EH, a meta-analysis of 9,555 subjects aggregated from 16 individual studies was performed. The combined odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were evaluated using either a random or fixed effect model. Results: We found a marginally significant association between ADRB3 gene Trp64Arg polymorphism and EH in the whole population under the additive genetic model (OR: 1.200, 95% CI: 1.00-1.43, P = 0.049). Association within the Chinese subgroup, however, was significant under allelic (OR: 1.150, 95% CI: 1.002-1.320, P = 0.046), dominant (OR: 1.213, 95% CI: 1.005-1.464, P = 0.044), heterozygous (OR: 1.430, 95% CI:1.040-1.970, P = 0.03), and additive genetic models (OR: 1.280, 95% CI: 1.030-1.580, P = 0.02). A significant association was also found in the Caucasian subgroup under allelic (OR: 1.850, 95% CI: 1. 260-2.720, P = 0.002), dominant (OR: 2.004, 95% CI: 1.316-3.052, P = 0.001), heterozygous (OR: 2.220, 95% CI: 1.450-3.400, P = 0.0002), and additive genetic models (OR: 2.000, 95% CI: 1. 330-3.010, P = 0.0009). Conclusions: The presence of the ADRB3 gene Trp64Arg polymorphism is positively associated with EH, especially in the Chinese and Caucasian population. The Arg allele carriers of ADRB3 gene Trp64Arg polymorphism may be at an increased risk for developing EH.

Interaction, transference, and subjectivity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundgaard Andersen, Linda

2012-01-01

Fieldwork is one of the important methods in educational, social, and organisational research. In fieldwork, the researcher takes residence for a shorter or longer period amongst the subjects and settings to be studied. The aim of this is to study the culture of people: how people seem to make...... sense of their lives and which moral, professional, and ethical values seem to guide their behaviour and attitudes. In fieldwork, the researcher has to balance participation and observation in her attempts at representation. Consequently, the researcher’s academic and life-historical subjectivity...... is also subjected to psychodynamic processes. In this article, I draw upon a number of research inquiries to illustrate how psychodynamic processes influence research processes: data production, research questions and methodology, relations to informants, as well as interpretation and analysis. I further...

The effectiveness of hypnotherapy in the treatment of subjective tinnitus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shirin Moghtaderi

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Tinnitus is an annoying disease cause major problems including insomnia, impaired concentration, and reduced quality of life. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of hypnotherapy in the treatment of subjective tinnitus.Methods: This was a pilot experimental study with pre- and post-test method. 20 people suffered from subjective tinnitus were divided equally in two groups of experimental and control. The two groups were matched according to age and severity of tinnitus. They completed tinnitus clinical questionnaires before and after the test and the severity of their tinnitus was recorded by a number from one to ten. Experimental group went under hypnotherapy for 10 sessions. The control group did not perform any psychological treatment. The gathered data were statistically analyzed using Student's t-test (independent and dependent.Results: There were significant differences between the pre-test and post-test scores of each group and also, between the post-test scores of experimental and control groups (p = 0.001 for all.Conclusion: The results showed that hypnotherapy could effectively reduce the seventy of tinnitus in patients in the experimental group; in other words, the results confirm the effectiveness of medical hypnosis in the treatment of subjective tinnitus.

Subject Orientation of Teaching and Academic Subjects in the Context of Different Didactic Approaches

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. M. Osmolovskaya

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper is devoted to the research findings concerning the didactic characteristics and means of subject-oriented teaching. The research question includes the content of the general secondary education regarded as the design object. The process of selecting and structuring materials is reviewed from the theoretical standpoint, and the attempt is made to identify the ways of selecting materials for students’ learning from the social experience reflected in culture. The author introduces the concept of subject-orientation as a tool providing pedagogic adaptation of social experience in the process of teaching content development. Subject-oriented teaching is defined in the context of traditional knowledge, as well as the competence and student-oriented didac- tic approaches; the forms and means of its realization being indicated providing the new ways for introducing and understanding the educational subject. The research results can be used by the specialists in didactic, curricula developers, authors of textbooks in various subjects. 

Blood bactericidal activity in Hiroshima subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hollingsworth, J W; Hamilton, H B

1961-03-07

A simple screening method for blood bactericidal activity was developed for study of irradiated atomic bomb survivors and nonirradiated subjects in Hiroshima. Blood bactericidal activity was found to be a relatively constant biological phenomenon in all subjects studied. No differences in activity were detected in relationship to radiation exposure in 1945. 17 references, 6 tables.

Methods of nonlinear analysis

CERN Document Server

Bellman, Richard Ernest

1970-01-01

In this book, we study theoretical and practical aspects of computing methods for mathematical modelling of nonlinear systems. A number of computing techniques are considered, such as methods of operator approximation with any given accuracy; operator interpolation techniques including a non-Lagrange interpolation; methods of system representation subject to constraints associated with concepts of causality, memory and stationarity; methods of system representation with an accuracy that is the best within a given class of models; methods of covariance matrix estimation;methods for low-rank mat

Subclinical Disease Burden as Assessed by Whole-Body MRI in Subjects With Prediabetes, Subjects With Diabetes, and Normal Control Subjects From the General Population: The KORA-MRI Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Bamberg, Fabian; Hetterich, Holger; Rospleszcz, Susanne; Lorbeer, Roberto; Auweter, Sigrid D; Schlett, Christopher L; Schafnitzel, Anina; Bayerl, Christian; Schindler, Andreas; Saam, Tobias; Müller-Peltzer, Katharina; Sommer, Wieland; Zitzelsberger, Tanja; Machann, Jürgen; Ingrisch, Michael; Selder, Sonja; Rathmann, Wolfgang; Heier, Margit; Linkohr, Birgit; Meisinger, Christa; Weber, Christian; Ertl-Wagner, Birgit; Massberg, Steffen; Reiser, Maximilian F; Peters, Annette

2017-01-01

Detailed pathophysiological manifestations of early disease in the context of prediabetes are poorly understood. This study aimed to evaluate the extent of early signs of metabolic and cardio-cerebrovascular complications affecting multiple organs in individuals with prediabetes. Subjects without a history of stroke, coronary artery disease, or peripheral artery disease were enrolled in a case-control study nested within the Cooperative Health Research in the Region of Augsburg (KORA) FF4 cohort and underwent comprehensive MRI assessment to characterize cerebral parameters (white matter lesions, microbleeds), cardiovascular parameters (carotid plaque, left ventricular function, and myocardial late gadolinium enhancement [LGE]), and metabolic parameters (hepatic proton-density fat fraction [PDFF] and subcutaneous and visceral abdominal fat). Among 400 subjects who underwent MRI, 103 subjects had prediabetes and 54 had established diabetes. Subjects with prediabetes had an increased risk for carotid plaque and adverse functional cardiac parameters, including reduced early diastolic filling rates as well as a higher prevalence of LGE compared with healthy control subjects. In addition, people with prediabetes had significantly elevated levels of PDFF and total and visceral fat. Thus, subjects with prediabetes show early signs of subclinical disease that include vascular, cardiac, and metabolic changes, as measured by whole-body MRI after adjusting for cardiometabolic risk factors. © 2017 by the American Diabetes Association.

Method of fabricating electrodes including high-capacity, binder-free anodes for lithium-ion batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Ban, Chunmei; Wu, Zhuangchun; Dillon, Anne C.

2017-01-10

An electrode (110) is provided that may be used in an electrochemical device (100) such as an energy storage/discharge device, e.g., a lithium-ion battery, or an electrochromic device, e.g., a smart window. Hydrothermal techniques and vacuum filtration methods were applied to fabricate the electrode (110). The electrode (110) includes an active portion (140) that is made up of electrochemically active nanoparticles, with one embodiment utilizing 3d-transition metal oxides to provide the electrochemical capacity of the electrode (110). The active material (140) may include other electrochemical materials, such as silicon, tin, lithium manganese oxide, and lithium iron phosphate. The electrode (110) also includes a matrix or net (170) of electrically conductive nanomaterial that acts to connect and/or bind the active nanoparticles (140) such that no binder material is required in the electrode (110), which allows more active materials (140) to be included to improve energy density and other desirable characteristics of the electrode. The matrix material (170) may take the form of carbon nanotubes, such as single-wall, double-wall, and/or multi-wall nanotubes, and be provided as about 2 to 30 percent weight of the electrode (110) with the rest being the active material (140).

Thin-section spiral CT evaluation of morphologic effects of aging lung in asymptomatic adult subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Kuncheng; Liu Jian; Yang Yanhui; Yao Xinyu; Yin Jianguo; Wang Shiwen; He Zuoxiang

2006-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the imaging signs of aging lung in asymptomatic adult subjects by using thin-section spiral CT, and analyze the correlation between the signs and the age of examined cases, as well as probe their clinical application value. Methods: One hundred and six healthy adult subjects were divided into 3 groups: 30 to 44 years (n=31), 45 to 59 years (n=30), and over 60 years (n=45), and all the subjects underwent thin-section spiral CT scans in the upper lung field, the middle lung field and the lower lung field. The evaluation indices included the lung interstitium changes, emphysematous changes, mosaic perfusion, dependent density difference, and pleural thickenning. According to the relative score standard, the above-mentioned indices were totally calculated and converted into the score value. The data were statistically processed with SPSS for Windows. Results: Among the three groups, there were remarkable differences in the indices including the lung interstitium changes, emphysematous changes, and mosaic perfusion, respectively (χ 2 =8.10, 9.73, 15.54, P 2 =3.66, 3.24, P> 0.05). The score values had a significant positive correlation with the age (r=0.709, P<0.01). Conclusion: The signs including the lung interstitium changes, emphysematous changes, mosaic perfusion, the dependent density difference, and pleural thickenning can be found in asymptomatic subjects, and they become prominent as the age increases. HRCT is one of the most important methods for evaluating the early signs of the senile lung. (authors)

Contemporary methods of body composition measurement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fosbøl, Marie Ø; Zerahn, Bo

2015-01-01

elements by in vivo neutron activation analysis, which are regarded as gold standard methods, are also summarized. The choice of a specific method or combination of methods for a particular study depends on various considerations including accuracy, precision, subject acceptability, convenience, cost...... and radiation exposure. The relative advantages and disadvantages of each method are discussed with these considerations in mind....

Subject categories and scope descriptions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

This document is one in a series of publications known as the ETDE/INIS Joint Reference Series. It defines the subject categories and provides the scope descriptions to be used for categorization of the nuclear literature for the preparation of INIS and ETDE input by national and regional centres. Together with the other volumes of the INIS Reference Series it defines the rules, standards and practices and provides the authorities to be used in the International Nuclear Information System and ETDE. A complete list of the volumes published in the INIS Reference Series may be found on the inside front cover of this publication. This INIS/ETDE Reference Series document is intended to serve two purposes: to define the subject scope of the International Nuclear Information System (INIS) and the Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDE) and to define the subject classification scheme of INIS and ETDE. It is thus the guide to the inputting centres in determining which items of literature should be reported, and in determining where the full bibliographic entry and abstract of each item should be included in INIS or ETDE database. Each category is identified by a category code consisting of three alphanumeric characters. A scope description is given for each subject category. The scope of INIS is the sum of the scopes of all the categories. With most categories cross references are provided to other categories where appropriate. Cross references should be of assistance in finding the appropriate category; in fact, by indicating topics that are excluded from the category in question, the cross references help to clarify and define the scope of the category to which they are appended. A Subject Index is included as an aid to subject classifiers, but it is only an aid and not a means for subject classification. It facilitates the use of this document, but is no substitute for the description of the scope of the subject categories

Objective and subjective methods for quantifying training load in wheelchair basketball small-sided games.

Science.gov (United States)

Iturricastillo, Aitor; Granados, Cristina; Los Arcos, Asier; Yanci, Javier

2017-04-01

The aim of the present study was to analyse the training load in wheelchair basketball small-sided games and determine the relationship between heart rate (HR)-based training load and perceived exertion (RPE)-based training load methods among small-sided games bouts. HR-based measurements of training load included Edwards' training load and Stagno's training impulses (TRIMP MOD ) while RPE-based training load measurements included cardiopulmonary (session RPEres) and muscular (session RPEmus) values. Data were collected from 12 wheelchair basketball players during five consecutive weeks. The total load for the small-sided games sessions was 67.5 ± 6.7 and 55.3 ± 12.5 AU in HR-based training load (Edwards' training load and TRIMP MOD ), while the RPE-based training loads were 99.3 ± 26.9 (session RPEres) and 100.8 ± 31.2 AU (session RPEmus). Bout-to-bout analysis identified greater session RPEmus in the third [P training loads. It is suggested that HR-based and RPE-based training loads provide different information, but these two methods could be complementary because one method could help us to understand the limitations of the other.

Subjective quality of life in first-episode psychosis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gardsjord, Erlend Strand; Romm, Kristin Lie; Friis, Svein

2016-01-01

UNLABELLED: Subjective quality of life (S-QoL) is an important outcome measure in first episode psychosis (FEP). The aims of this study were to describe S-QoL-development the first 10-years in FEP patients and to identify predictors of this development. METHODS: A representative sample of 272...... patients with a first episode psychotic disorder was included from 1997 through 2000. At 10year follow-up 186 patients participated. QoL was measured by the Lehman's Quality of Life Interview. Linear mixed model analyses were performed to investigate longitudinal effects of baseline psychiatric symptoms...

Ecosecent:: Essence, Subject and Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kozachenko Hanna V.

2014-02-01

Full Text Available The article shows that due to multi-laterality the knowledge about security is distributed by various branches, one of which is ecosestate, within which conditions of secure functioning of socio-economic systems and methods of their provision are studied. It shows the essence of ecosecent as a component of the “state – region (branch – subject of economic activity” ecosestate vertical – a set of knowledge about economic security of subjects of economic activity. It considers reasons that cause establishment of ecosecent: practical needs and a necessity to reconsider basic concepts of the essence, limits and factors of economy. It formulates the subject of ecosecent. It considers the status of the “economic security of the subject of economic activity” notion as its state, described with a set of parameters or characteristic features as characteristics of the subject of economic activity as a condition of its activity and as a set of actions that allow ensuring or preservation of the state of security, in other words, protection of the subject of economic activity. It presents general approaches to structuring of ecosecent by activity, functional and branch features.

Comorbid subjective health complaints in patients with sciatica: a prospective study including comparison with the general population.

Science.gov (United States)

Grøvle, Lars; Haugen, Anne J; Ihlebaek, Camilla M; Keller, Anne; Natvig, Bård; Brox, Jens I; Grotle, Margreth

2011-06-01

Chronic nonspecific low back pain is accompanied by high rates of comorbid mental and physical conditions. The aims of this study were to investigate if patients with specific back pain, that is, sciatica caused by lumbar herniation, report higher rates of subjective health complaints (SHCs) than the general population and if there is an association between change in sciatica symptoms and change in SHCs over a 12-month period. A multicenter cohort study of 466 sciatica patients was conducted with follow-up at 3 months and 1 year. Comorbid SHCs were measured by 27 items of the SHC inventory. Odds ratios (ORs) for each SHC were calculated with comparison to a general population sample (n=928) by logistic regression. The SHC number was calculated by summing all complaints present. At baseline, the ORs for reporting SHCs for the sciatica patients were significantly elevated in 15 of the 27 items with a mean (S.D.) SHC number of 7.5 (4.4), compared to 5.2 (4.4) in the general population (Psciatica, the SHC number was reduced to normal levels. Among those with persisting or worsening sciatica, the number increased to a level almost double that of the general population. Compared to the general population, the prevalence of subjective health complaints in sciatica is increased. During follow-up, the number of health complaints increased in patients with persisting or worsening sciatica. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Method Development in Forensic Toxicology.

Science.gov (United States)

Peters, Frank T; Wissenbach, Dirk K; Busardo, Francesco Paolo; Marchei, Emilia; Pichini, Simona

2017-01-01

In the field of forensic toxicology, the quality of analytical methods is of great importance to ensure the reliability of results and to avoid unjustified legal consequences. A key to high quality analytical methods is a thorough method development. The presented article will provide an overview on the process of developing methods for forensic applications. This includes the definition of the method's purpose (e.g. qualitative vs quantitative) and the analytes to be included, choosing an appropriate sample matrix, setting up separation and detection systems as well as establishing a versatile sample preparation. Method development is concluded by an optimization process after which the new method is subject to method validation. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

An Overview of Longitudinal Data Analysis Methods for Neurological Research

OpenAIRE

Locascio, Joseph J.; Atri, Alireza

2011-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide a concise, broad and readily accessible overview of longitudinal data analysis methods, aimed to be a practical guide for clinical investigators in neurology. In general, we advise that older, traditional methods, including (1) simple regression of the dependent variable on a time measure, (2) analyzing a single summary subject level number that indexes changes for each subject and (3) a general linear model approach with a fixed-subject effect, shoul...

Barron's SAT subject test

CERN Document Server

Jansen, MA, Robert

2016-01-01

Includes one diagnostic test and three complete tests, all questions answered and explained, self-assessment guides, and subject reviews. Also features test strategies, QR codes to short instructional videos, and a detailed appendix with equations, physical constants, and a basic math review.

Assessing and improving health in the workplace: an integration of subjective and objective measures with the STress Assessment and Research Toolkit (St.A.R.T. method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Panari Chiara

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The aim of this work was to introduce a new combined method of subjective and objective measures to assess psychosocial risk factors at work and improve workers’ health and well-being. In the literature most of the research on work-related stress focuses on self-report measures and this work represents the first methodology capable of integrating different sources of data. Method An integrated method entitled St.A.R.T. (STress Assessment and Research Toolkit was used in order to assess psychosocial risk factors and two health outcomes. In particular, a self-report questionnaire combined with an observational structured checklist was administered to 113 workers from an Italian retail company. Results The data showed a correlation between subjective data and the rating data of the observational checklist for the psychosocial risk factors related to work contexts such as customer relationship management and customer queue. Conversely, the factors related to work content (workload and boredom measured with different methods (subjective vs. objective showed a discrepancy. Furthermore, subjective measures of psychosocial risk factors were more predictive of workers’ psychological health and exhaustion than rating data. The different objective measures played different roles, however, in terms of their influence on the two health outcomes considered. Conclusions It is important to integrate self-related assessment of stressors with objective measures for a better understanding of workers’ conditions in the workplace. The method presented could be considered a useful methodology for combining the two measures and differentiating the impact of different psychological risk factors related to work content and context on workers’ health.

A robust two-node, 13 moment quadrature method of moments for dilute particle flows including wall bouncing

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Dan; Garmory, Andrew; Page, Gary J.

2017-02-01

For flows where the particle number density is low and the Stokes number is relatively high, as found when sand or ice is ingested into aircraft gas turbine engines, streams of particles can cross each other's path or bounce from a solid surface without being influenced by inter-particle collisions. The aim of this work is to develop an Eulerian method to simulate these types of flow. To this end, a two-node quadrature-based moment method using 13 moments is proposed. In the proposed algorithm thirteen moments of particle velocity, including cross-moments of second order, are used to determine the weights and abscissas of the two nodes and to set up the association between the velocity components in each node. Previous Quadrature Method of Moments (QMOM) algorithms either use more than two nodes, leading to increased computational expense, or are shown here to give incorrect results under some circumstances. This method gives the computational efficiency advantages of only needing two particle phase velocity fields whilst ensuring that a correct combination of weights and abscissas is returned for any arbitrary combination of particle trajectories without the need for any further assumptions. Particle crossing and wall bouncing with arbitrary combinations of angles are demonstrated using the method in a two-dimensional scheme. The ability of the scheme to include the presence of drag from a carrier phase is also demonstrated, as is bouncing off surfaces with inelastic collisions. The method is also applied to the Taylor-Green vortex flow test case and is found to give results superior to the existing two-node QMOM method and is in good agreement with results from Lagrangian modelling of this case.

Risk prediction of ventricular arrhythmias and myocardial function in Lamin A/C mutation positive subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hasselberg, Nina E; Edvardsen, Thor; Petri, Helle

2014-01-01

Mutations in the Lamin A/C gene may cause atrioventricular block, supraventricular arrhythmias, ventricular arrhythmias (VA), and dilated cardiomyopathy. We aimed to explore the predictors and the mechanisms of VA in Lamin A/C mutation-positive subjects.METHODS AND RESULTS: We included 41 Lamin A/C...

Flexible barrier film, method of forming same, and organic electronic device including same

Science.gov (United States)

Blizzard, John; Tonge, James Steven; Weidner, William Kenneth

2013-03-26

A flexible barrier film has a thickness of from greater than zero to less than 5,000 nanometers and a water vapor transmission rate of no more than 1.times.10.sup.-2 g/m.sup.2/day at 22.degree. C. and 47% relative humidity. The flexible barrier film is formed from a composition, which comprises a multi-functional acrylate. The composition further comprises the reaction product of an alkoxy-functional organometallic compound and an alkoxy-functional organosilicon compound. A method of forming the flexible barrier film includes the steps of disposing the composition on a substrate and curing the composition to form the flexible barrier film. The flexible barrier film may be utilized in organic electronic devices.

Risk of Being Subjected to Crime, Including Violent Crime, After Onset of Mental Illness: A Danish National Registry Study Using Police Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Dean, Kimberlie; Laursen, Thomas M; Pedersen, Carsten B; Webb, Roger T; Mortensen, Preben B; Agerbo, Esben

2018-05-23

People with mental illness are more likely to have contact with the criminal justice system, but research to date has focused on risk of offense perpetration, while less is known about risk of being subjected to crime and violence. To establish the incidence of being subjected to all types of criminal offenses, and by violent crimes separately, after onset of mental illness across the full diagnostic spectrum compared with those in the population without mental illness. This investigation was a longitudinal national cohort study using register data in Denmark. Participants were a cohort of more than 2 million persons born between 1965 and 1998 and followed up from 2001 or from their 15th birthday until December 31, 2013. Analysis was undertaken from November 2016 until February 2018. Cohort members were followed up for onset of mental illness, recorded as first contact with outpatient or inpatient mental health services. Diagnoses across the full spectrum of psychiatric diagnoses were considered separately for men and women. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) were estimated for first subjection to crime event (any crime and violent crime) reported to police after onset of mental illness. The IRRs were adjusted for cohort member's own criminal offending, in addition to several sociodemographic factors. In a total cohort of 2 058 063 (48.7% male; 51.3% female), the adjusted IRRs for being subjected to crime associated with any mental disorder were 1.49 (95% CI, 1.46-1.51) for men and 1.64 (95% CI, 1.61-1.66) for women. The IRRs were higher for being subjected to violent crime at 1.76 (95% CI, 1.72-1.80) for men and 2.72 (95% CI, 2.65-2.79) for women. The strongest associations were for persons diagnosed as having substance use disorders and personality disorders, but significant risk elevations were found across almost all diagnostic groups examined. Onset of mental illness is associated with increased risk of exposure to crime, and violent crime in particular

Floor Response Evaluation for Auxiliary Building Subjected to Aircraft Impact Loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shin, Sang Shup; Hahm, Daegi; Choi, Inkil

2014-01-01

These studies have been aimed to verify and ensure the safety of the targeted walls and structures especially in the viewpoint of the deterministic approach. However, a probabilistic safety assessment as well as deterministic approach for the damage of the internal component in the nuclear power plants (NPPs) subjected to aircraft crash is also needed. A probabilistic safety assessment for aircraft crash includes many uncertainties such as impact velocity, mass, impact location, shape, size, material etc. of aircraft. In this paper, an impact location was selected among the various parameters. This paper found the acceleration floor response spectra at specified locations (safety related components) on the target structure that assumed to be impact velocity 150m/s and maximum fuel for the specified aircraft model. In order to obtain the floor response in case of the crash with a various locations, the analyses for the auxiliary building subjected to aircraft impact were performed using Riera force history method and missile-target interaction method. The difference between responses in case of the building floor subjected to impact was occurred. Thus, in order to obtain the more accurate results, missile-target interaction method was used. This paper found the response at the selected point (node point No. 51). In order to probabilistic assessment for the safety related components, the assessment for a various parameters (velocity, mass, materials etc.) as well as impact locations should be needed

Atlas-Based Automatic Generation of Subject-Specific Finite Element Tongue Meshes.

Science.gov (United States)

Bijar, Ahmad; Rohan, Pierre-Yves; Perrier, Pascal; Payan, Yohan

2016-01-01

Generation of subject-specific 3D finite element (FE) models requires the processing of numerous medical images in order to precisely extract geometrical information about subject-specific anatomy. This processing remains extremely challenging. To overcome this difficulty, we present an automatic atlas-based method that generates subject-specific FE meshes via a 3D registration guided by Magnetic Resonance images. The method extracts a 3D transformation by registering the atlas' volume image to the subject's one, and establishes a one-to-one correspondence between the two volumes. The 3D transformation field deforms the atlas' mesh to generate the subject-specific FE mesh. To preserve the quality of the subject-specific mesh, a diffeomorphic non-rigid registration based on B-spline free-form deformations is used, which guarantees a non-folding and one-to-one transformation. Two evaluations of the method are provided. First, a publicly available CT-database is used to assess the capability to accurately capture the complexity of each subject-specific Lung's geometry. Second, FE tongue meshes are generated for two healthy volunteers and two patients suffering from tongue cancer using MR images. It is shown that the method generates an appropriate representation of the subject-specific geometry while preserving the quality of the FE meshes for subsequent FE analysis. To demonstrate the importance of our method in a clinical context, a subject-specific mesh is used to simulate tongue's biomechanical response to the activation of an important tongue muscle, before and after cancer surgery.

The influence of previous subject experience on interactions during peer instruction in an introductory physics course: A mixed methods analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Vondruska, Judy A.

Over the past decade, peer instruction and the introduction of student response systems has provided a means of improving student engagement and achievement in large-lecture settings. While the nature of the student discourse occurring during peer instruction is less understood, existing studies have shown student ideas about the subject, extraneous cues, and confidence level appear to matter in the student-student discourse. Using a mixed methods research design, this study examined the influence of previous subject experience on peer instruction in an introductory, one-semester Survey of Physics course. Quantitative results indicated students in discussion pairs where both had previous subject experience were more likely to answer clicker question correctly both before and after peer discussion compared to student groups where neither partner had previous subject experience. Students in mixed discussion pairs were not statistically different in correct response rates from the other pairings. There was no statistically significant difference between the experience pairs on unit exam scores or the Peer Instruction Partner Survey. Although there was a statistically significant difference between the pre-MPEX and post-MPEX scores, there was no difference between the members of the various subject experience peer discussion pairs. The qualitative study, conducted after the quantitative study, helped to inform the quantitative results by exploring the nature of the peer interactions through survey questions and a series of focus groups discussions. While the majority of participants described a benefit to the use of clickers in the lecture, their experience with their discussion partners varied. Students with previous subject experience tended to describe peer instruction more positively than students who did not have previous subject experience, regardless of the experience level of their partner. They were also more likely to report favorable levels of comfort with

Subjective Evaluation of Vocal Quality in Nasal Polyposis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ziya Saltürk

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Aim: Nose is a resonator organ in production of voice. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of nasal obstruction caused by nasal polyposis on voice quality subjectively. Methods: Thirty-six patients diagnosed with nasal polyposis were included in the study. The 30-item voice handicap index 30 was used in order to evaluate subjective status of voice. Nasal endoscopy and computed tomography imaging of the paranasal sinuses were performed for each patient. Lund-Kennedy endoscopy scores and Lund-MacKay computed tomography scores were evaluated. Control group composed of 20 healthy subjects. Results: The mean voice handicap score in the patient group was 43.16 (SD 15.53 and it was 2.15 (SD 1.92 in control group. There was a statistically significant difference between the groups (p=0.001. The mean Lund-Kennedy and Lund-Mackay scores were 8.58 (SD 2.5 and 17 (SD 5.52, respectively. It was found that increased severity of nasal polyposis was the cause for decreased satisfaction with voice quality. Conclusion: Nasal obstruction caused by nasal polyposis affects voice quality adversely and as the severity of nasal polyposis increases, satisfaction with voice quality decreases.

Is there an association between subjective and objective measures of cognitive function in patients with affective disorders?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svendsen, Anne M; Kessing, Lars V; Munkholm, Klaus

2012-01-01

.01) but there were no differences between patient groups (P > 0.1). We found no correlation between subjectively experienced and objectively measured cognitive dysfunction in BD (P = 0.7), and a non-significant trend towards a correlation in UD (P = 0.06), which disappeared when controlling for gender (P = 0......Background: Patients with affective disorders experience cognitive dysfunction in addition to their affective symptoms. The relationship between subjectively experienced and objectively measured cognitive function is controversial with several studies reporting no correlation between subjective...... and objective deficits. Aims: To investigate whether there is a correlation between subjectively reported and objectively measured cognitive function in patients with affective disorders, and whether subjective complaints predict objectively measured dysfunction. Methods: The study included 45 participants; 15...

48 CFR 536.213-371 - Bids that include options.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Bids that include options... Contracting for Construction 536.213-371 Bids that include options. (a) Subject to the limitations in paragraph (c) of this section, you may include options in contracts if it is in the Government's interest...

Influence diagram in evaluating the subjective judgment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Y.

1997-01-01

The author developed the idea of the subjective influence diagrams to evaluate subjective judgment. The subjective judgment of a stake holder is a primary decision making proposition. It involves a basic decision process an the individual attitude of the stake holder for his decision purpose. The subjective judgment dominates the some final decisions. A complex decision process may include the subjective judgment. An influence diagram framework is a simplest tool for analyzing subjective judgment process. In the framework, the characters of influence diagrams generate the describing the analyzing, and the evaluating of the subjective judgment. The relationship between the information and the decision, such as independent character between them, is the main issue. Then utility function is the calculating tool to evaluation, the stake holder can make optimal decision. Through the analysis about the decision process and relationship, the building process of the influence diagram identically describes the subjective judgment. Some examples are given to explain the property of subjective judgment and the analysis process

Psychiatric Morbidity among Subjects with Leprosy and Albinism in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Skin, which is the largest organ in the body, carries immense psychological significance. Disfiguring skin disorders may impact negatively on the mental health of individuals. Aim: This study compared the psychiatric morbidity of subjects with leprosy and albinism. Subjects and Methods: One hundred subjects ...

Distinguishing medication-free subjects with unipolar disorder from subjects with bipolar disorder: state matters.

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Rive, Maria M; Redlich, Ronny; Schmaal, Lianne; Marquand, André F; Dannlowski, Udo; Grotegerd, Dominik; Veltman, Dick J; Schene, Aart H; Ruhé, Henricus G

2016-11-01

Recent studies have indicated that pattern recognition techniques of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data for individual classification may be valuable for distinguishing between major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD). Importantly, medication may have affected previous classification results as subjects with MDD and BD use different classes of medication. Furthermore, almost all studies have investigated only depressed subjects. Therefore, we focused on medication-free subjects. We additionally investigated whether classification would be mood state independent by including depressed and remitted subjects alike. We applied Gaussian process classifiers to investigate the discriminatory power of structural MRI (gray matter volumes of emotion regulation areas) and resting-state fMRI (resting-state networks implicated in mood disorders: default mode network [DMN], salience network [SN], and lateralized frontoparietal networks [FPNs]) in depressed (n=42) and remitted (n=49) medication-free subjects with MDD and BD. Depressed subjects with MDD and BD could be classified based on the gray matter volumes of emotion regulation areas as well as DMN functional connectivity with 69.1% prediction accuracy. Prediction accuracy using the FPNs and SN did not exceed chance level. It was not possible to discriminate between remitted subjects with MDD and BD. For the first time, we showed that medication-free subjects with MDD and BD can be differentiated based on structural MRI as well as resting-state functional connectivity. Importantly, the results indicated that research concerning diagnostic neuroimaging tools distinguishing between MDD and BD should consider mood state as only depressed subjects with MDD and BD could be correctly classified. Future studies, in larger samples are needed to investigate whether the results can be generalized to medication-naïve or first-episode subjects. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley

To the Issue of the Subject Definition of Pedagogic Acmeology

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N. K. Tchapayev

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper investigates the subject of pedagogic acmeology as an evolving phenomenon integrating a complex set of pedagogic, psychological, anthropological and socially significant characteristics. The methodology framework is based on dialectics – «the only method that can grasp a living reality on the whole» (A. F. Losev. As the result, the author comes up with his own definition of pedagogic acmeology as a science dealing with the conformities and ways of developing the human potential and aimed at the positive personal achievements in educational process; wherein the man is regarded as the human subject, individual and individuality - i.e. a holistic multidimensional personality. The significant conclusion of the study involves the idea that pedagogic acmeology should not be confined to teacher’s professional activities, as it was previously stated, but should include the activities of a learner as a growing and developing human being. In other words, pedagogic acmeology should overcome the age restrictions confining its subject matters to the adult’s activities. 

Methods for evaluating imaging methods of limited reproducibility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krummenauer, F.

2005-01-01

Just like new drugs, new or modified imaging methods must be subjected to objective clinical tests, including tests on humans. In this, it must be ensured that the principle of Good Clinical Practice (GCP) are followed with regard to medical, administrative and methodical quality. Innovative methods fo clinical epidemiology and medical biometry should be applied from the planning stage to the final statistical evaluation. The author presents established and new methods for planning, evaluation and reporting of clinical tests of diagnostic methods, and especially imaging methods, in clinical medicine and illustrates these by means of current research projects in the various medical disciplines. The strategies presented are summarized in a recommendation based on the concept of phases I - IV of clinical drug testing in order to enable standardisation of the clinical evaluation of imaging methods. (orig.)

The Latina Birth Weight Paradox: the Role of Subjective Social Status.

Science.gov (United States)

Fleuriet, Jill; Sunil, Thankam

2017-09-15

The purpose of this project was to quantitatively test differences in subjective social status scores between non-pregnant and pregnant women to determine the role of subjective social status in birth weight variation between Mexico-born and US-born Mexican-American women. Six hundred low-income pregnant and non-pregnant Mexican immigrant and Mexican-American women in south Texas were surveyed for subjective social status, depression, perceived social stress, parity, and pregnancy intendedness. Psychosocial health variables, parity, and pregnancy intendedness were included due to their significant associations with low birth weight. Pregnant women had higher subjective social status scores than non-pregnant women. The difference in scores between non-pregnant and pregnant women was smaller in Mexican immigrant women than Mexican-American women. Pregnancy intendedness did not influence subjective social status in pregnant women of either sample, but having children (parity) in both samples was associated with higher subjective social status scores. Among Mexican-American women, community subjective social status was correlated with levels of depressive symptoms and perceived social stress. Subjective social status, depression, and perceived social stress were not correlated among Mexican immigrant women. Our results suggest that incorporation into the USA influences maternal mental health vis-à-vis changes in how women of reproductive age think about themselves and their gender roles in relation to others. Theoretically, our work supports mixed-method approaches to document how culture change as a result of immigration may impact maternal and infant health. Future research should test whether the effect of subjective social status on birth weight occurs when subjective social status does not correlate with depression or stress.

Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra provides reduced effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method in healthy subjects.

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Goto, Masami; Abe, Osamu; Aoki, Shigeki; Hayashi, Naoto; Miyati, Tosiaki; Takao, Hidemasa; Iwatsubo, Takeshi; Yamashita, Fumio; Matsuda, Hiroshi; Mori, Harushi; Kunimatsu, Akira; Ino, Kenji; Yano, Keiichi; Ohtomo, Kuni

2013-07-01

This study aimed to investigate whether the effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method is reduced using Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra (DARTEL) normalization compared with standard normalization. Three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (3D-T1WIs) of 21 healthy subjects were obtained and evaluated for effect of scanner in cortex volumetry. 3D-T1WIs of the 21 subjects were obtained with five MRI systems. Imaging of each subject was performed on each of five different MRI scanners. We used the Voxel-Based Morphometry 8 tool implemented in Statistical Parametric Mapping 8 and WFU PickAtlas software (Talairach brain atlas theory). The following software default settings were used as bilateral region-of-interest labels: "Frontal Lobe," "Hippocampus," "Occipital Lobe," "Orbital Gyrus," "Parietal Lobe," "Putamen," and "Temporal Lobe." Effect of scanner for cortex volumetry using the atlas-based method was reduced with DARTEL normalization compared with standard normalization in Frontal Lobe, Occipital Lobe, Orbital Gyrus, Putamen, and Temporal Lobe; was the same in Hippocampus and Parietal Lobe; and showed no increase with DARTEL normalization for any region of interest (ROI). DARTEL normalization reduces the effect of scanner, which is a major problem in multicenter studies.

Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra provides reduced effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method in healthy subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goto, Masami; Ino, Kenji; Yano, Keiichi; Abe, Osamu; Aoki, Shigeki; Hayashi, Naoto; Miyati, Tosiaki; Takao, Hidemasa; Mori, Harushi; Kunimatsu, Akira; Ohtomo, Kuni; Iwatsubo, Takeshi; Yamashita, Fumio; Matsuda, Hiroshi

2013-01-01

This study aimed to investigate whether the effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method is reduced using Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra (DARTEL) normalization compared with standard normalization. Three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (3D-T1WIs) of 21 healthy subjects were obtained and evaluated for effect of scanner in cortex volumetry. 3D-T1WIs of the 21 subjects were obtained with five MRI systems. Imaging of each subject was performed on each of five different MRI scanners. We used the Voxel-Based Morphometry 8 tool implemented in Statistical Parametric Mapping 8 and WFU PickAtlas software (Talairach brain atlas theory). The following software default settings were used as bilateral region-of-interest labels: ''Frontal Lobe,'' ''Hippocampus,'' ''Occipital Lobe,'' ''Orbital Gyrus,'' ''Parietal Lobe,'' ''Putamen,'' and ''Temporal Lobe.'' Effect of scanner for cortex volumetry using the atlas-based method was reduced with DARTEL normalization compared with standard normalization in Frontal Lobe, Occipital Lobe, Orbital Gyrus, Putamen, and Temporal Lobe; was the same in Hippocampus and Parietal Lobe; and showed no increase with DARTEL normalization for any region of interest (ROI). DARTEL normalization reduces the effect of scanner, which is a major problem in multicenter studies. (orig.)

Information Seeking Behavior & Information Resources Management:Mental Process Selecting Subjects & Identifying Information Needs Case study: Graduate Students in Women seminaries of Shiraz of Academic year 1393- 1394(

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Zohre Eftekhar

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The aim of this research is Information Resources Management: Mental Process Selecting Subjects &  Identifying Information Needs. The research method used in this study is a Quantitative method. Sampling is purposeful. This means that it includes graduate Students in Women seminaries of Shiraz who have information-seeking experience and are able to express their views and information needs. The sample was selected according to the random sampling method with Cochran formula from 710 students. According to this sampling method there is 241 Graduate Students included in 1392-1393 seminaries year of  Women seminaries of Shiraz. This is a survey research Which has been carried out by employing a questionnaire and SPSS for windows to analyze data. The results showed that students for selecting subjects,  identifying information needs used methods and media such as Prying Mind, reviewing of information resources, Consulting with subject specialists.

Subjectivity

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Jesús Vega Encabo

2015-11-01

Full Text Available In this paper, I claim that subjectivity is a way of being that is constituted through a set of practices in which the self is subject to the dangers of fictionalizing and plotting her life and self-image. I examine some ways of becoming subject through narratives and through theatrical performance before others. Through these practices, a real and active subjectivity is revealed, capable of self-knowledge and self-transformation. 

Persistence of long term isokinetic strength deficits in subjects with lateral ankle sprain as measured with a protocol including maximal preloading.

Science.gov (United States)

Perron, Marc; Moffet, Hélène; Nadeau, Sylvie; Hébert, Luc J; Belzile, Sylvain

2014-12-01

The assessment of muscle function is a cornerstone in the management of subjects who have sustained a lateral ankle sprain. The ankle range of motion being relatively small, the use of preloading allows to measure maximal strength throughout the whole amplitude and therefore to better characterize ankle muscles weaknesses. This study aimed to assess muscle strength of the injured and uninjured ankles in subjects with a lateral ankle sprain, to document the timeline of strength recovery, and to determine the influence of sprain grade on strength loss. Maximal torque of the periarticular muscles of the ankle in a concentric mode using a protocol with maximal preloading was tested in 32 male soldiers at 8 weeks and 6 months post-injury. The evertor muscles of the injured ankles were weaker than the uninjured ones at 8 weeks and 6 months post-injury (Pankles at 8 weeks (P=0.0014, effect size=0.52-0.58) while at 6 months, only the subjects with a grade II sprain displayed such weaknesses (Pankle sprain in very active individuals. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Assessment methods for the evaluation of vitiligo.

Science.gov (United States)

Alghamdi, K M; Kumar, A; Taïeb, A; Ezzedine, K

2012-12-01

There is no standardized method for assessing vitiligo. In this article, we review the literature from 1981 to 2011 on different vitiligo assessment methods. We aim to classify the techniques available for vitiligo assessment as subjective, semi-objective or objective; microscopic or macroscopic; and as based on morphometry or colorimetry. Macroscopic morphological measurements include visual assessment, photography in natural or ultraviolet light, photography with computerized image analysis and tristimulus colorimetry or spectrophotometry. Non-invasive micromorphological methods include confocal laser microscopy (CLM). Subjective methods include clinical evaluation by a dermatologist and a vitiligo disease activity score. Semi-objective methods include the Vitiligo Area Scoring Index (VASI) and point-counting methods. Objective methods include software-based image analysis, tristimulus colorimetry, spectrophotometry and CLM. Morphometry is the measurement of the vitiliginous surface area, whereas colorimetry quantitatively analyses skin colour changes caused by erythema or pigment. Most methods involve morphometry, except for the chromameter method, which assesses colorimetry. Some image analysis software programs can assess both morphometry and colorimetry. The details of these programs (Corel Draw, Image Pro Plus, AutoCad and Photoshop) are discussed in the review. Reflectance confocal microscopy provides real-time images and has great potential for the non-invasive assessment of pigmentary lesions. In conclusion, there is no single best method for assessing vitiligo. This review revealed that VASI, the rule of nine and Wood's lamp are likely to be the best techniques available for assessing the degree of pigmentary lesions and measuring the extent and progression of vitiligo in the clinic and in clinical trials. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology © 2012 European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

Physics Education: Effect of Micro-Teaching Method Supported by Educational Technologies on Pre-Service Science Teachers' Misconceptions on Basic Astronomy Subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Gurbuz, Fatih

2016-01-01

The purpose of this research study is to explore pre-service science teachers' misconceptions on basic astronomy subjects and to examine the effect of micro teaching method supported by educational technologies on correcting misconceptions. This study is an action research. Semi- structured interviews were used in the study as a data collection…

Small molecule n-(alpha-peroxy) indole compounds and methods of use

KAUST Repository

Wang, Xinbo; Lai, Zhiping; Pan, Yupeng; Huang, Kuo-Wei; Wang, Zhigang

2017-01-01

The invention relates to novel N-(α-peroxy)indole compounds of Formula I and methods for use. (I) The N-(α-peroxy)indole compounds described herein are useful for treating or preventing parasitic infections, bacterial infections, and cancer in subjects. The methods include administering an N-(α-peroxy)indole compound as described herein to a subject. Also described herein are methods for synthesizing N-(α-peroxy )indole compounds.

Small molecule n-(alpha-peroxy) carbazole compounds and methods of use

KAUST Repository

Wang, Xinbo; Lai, Zhiping; Pan, Yupeng; Huang, Kuo-Wei

2017-01-01

The invention relates to novel N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds of Formula I and methods for use. (I) The N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds described herein are useful for treating or preventing parasitic infections, bacterial infections, and cancer in subjects. The methods include administering an N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compound as described herein to a subject. Also described herein are methods for synthesizing N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds.

Small molecule n-(alpha-peroxy) indole compounds and methods of use

KAUST Repository

Wang, Xinbo

2017-11-16

The invention relates to novel N-(α-peroxy)indole compounds of Formula I and methods for use. (I) The N-(α-peroxy)indole compounds described herein are useful for treating or preventing parasitic infections, bacterial infections, and cancer in subjects. The methods include administering an N-(α-peroxy)indole compound as described herein to a subject. Also described herein are methods for synthesizing N-(α-peroxy )indole compounds.

Small molecule n-(alpha-peroxy) carbazole compounds and methods of use

KAUST Repository

Wang, Xinbo

2017-11-16

The invention relates to novel N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds of Formula I and methods for use. (I) The N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds described herein are useful for treating or preventing parasitic infections, bacterial infections, and cancer in subjects. The methods include administering an N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compound as described herein to a subject. Also described herein are methods for synthesizing N-(α-peroxy)carbazole compounds.

Differentiation chronic post traumatic stress disorder patients from healthy subjects using objective and subjective sleep-related parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Tahmasian, Masoud; Jamalabadi, Hamidreza; Abedini, Mina; Ghadami, Mohammad R; Sepehry, Amir A; Knight, David C; Khazaie, Habibolah

2017-05-22

Sleep disturbance is common in chronic post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, prior work has demonstrated that there are inconsistencies between subjective and objective assessments of sleep disturbance in PTSD. Therefore, we investigated whether subjective or objective sleep assessment has greater clinical utility to differentiate PTSD patients from healthy subjects. Further, we evaluated whether the combination of subjective and objective methods improves the accuracy of classification into patient versus healthy groups, which has important diagnostic implications. We recruited 32 chronic war-induced PTSD patients and 32 age- and gender-matched healthy subjects to participate in this study. Subjective (i.e. from three self-reported sleep questionnaires) and objective sleep-related data (i.e. from actigraphy scores) were collected from each participant. Subjective, objective, and combined (subjective and objective) sleep data were then analyzed using support vector machine classification. The classification accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for subjective variables were 89.2%, 89.3%, and 89%, respectively. The classification accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for objective variables were 65%, 62.3%, and 67.8%, respectively. The classification accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity for the aggregate variables (combination of subjective and objective variables) were 91.6%, 93.0%, and 90.3%, respectively. Our findings indicate that classification accuracy using subjective measurements is superior to objective measurements and the combination of both assessments appears to improve the classification accuracy for differentiating PTSD patients from healthy individuals. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A method for including external feed in depletion calculations with CRAM and implementation into ORIGEN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Isotalo, A.E.; Wieselquist, W.A.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • A method for handling external feed in depletion calculations with CRAM. • Source term can have polynomial or exponentially decaying time-dependence. • CRAM with source term and adjoint capability implemented to ORIGEN in SCALE. • The new solver is faster and more accurate than the original solver of ORIGEN. - Abstract: A method for including external feed with polynomial time dependence in depletion calculations with the Chebyshev Rational Approximation Method (CRAM) is presented and the implementation of CRAM to the ORIGEN module of the SCALE suite is described. In addition to being able to handle time-dependent feed rates, the new solver also adds the capability to perform adjoint calculations. Results obtained with the new CRAM solver and the original depletion solver of ORIGEN are compared to high precision reference calculations, which shows the new solver to be orders of magnitude more accurate. Furthermore, in most cases, the new solver is up to several times faster due to not requiring similar substepping as the original one

Composite material including nanocrystals and methods of making

Science.gov (United States)

Bawendi, Moungi G.; Sundar, Vikram C.

2010-04-06

Temperature-sensing compositions can include an inorganic material, such as a semiconductor nanocrystal. The nanocrystal can be a dependable and accurate indicator of temperature. The intensity of emission of the nanocrystal varies with temperature and can be highly sensitive to surface temperature. The nanocrystals can be processed with a binder to form a matrix, which can be varied by altering the chemical nature of the surface of the nanocrystal. A nanocrystal with a compatibilizing outer layer can be incorporated into a coating formulation and retain its temperature sensitive emissive properties.

Including mixed methods research in systematic reviews: Examples from qualitative syntheses in TB and malaria control

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Background Health policy makers now have access to a greater number and variety of systematic reviews to inform different stages in the policy making process, including reviews of qualitative research. The inclusion of mixed methods studies in systematic reviews is increasing, but these studies pose particular challenges to methods of review. This article examines the quality of the reporting of mixed methods and qualitative-only studies. Methods We used two completed systematic reviews to generate a sample of qualitative studies and mixed method studies in order to make an assessment of how the quality of reporting and rigor of qualitative-only studies compares with that of mixed-methods studies. Results Overall, the reporting of qualitative studies in our sample was consistently better when compared with the reporting of mixed methods studies. We found that mixed methods studies are less likely to provide a description of the research conduct or qualitative data analysis procedures and less likely to be judged credible or provide rich data and thick description compared with standalone qualitative studies. Our time-related analysis shows that for both types of study, papers published since 2003 are more likely to report on the study context, describe analysis procedures, and be judged credible and provide rich data. However, the reporting of other aspects of research conduct (i.e. descriptions of the research question, the sampling strategy, and data collection methods) in mixed methods studies does not appear to have improved over time. Conclusions Mixed methods research makes an important contribution to health research in general, and could make a more substantial contribution to systematic reviews. Through our careful analysis of the quality of reporting of mixed methods and qualitative-only research, we have identified areas that deserve more attention in the conduct and reporting of mixed methods research. PMID:22545681

Efficacy of Positive Thinking Training on the Family Process and Subjective Wellbeing of Female Heads of Household

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محمد خدایاری فرد

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The present study was designed to investigate the efficacy of positive thinking training on family process and subjective wellbeing of female heads of household. The method was a semi-experimental with pretest-posttest and control group; and the study population included all female heads of household residing in Chaharbagh, Alborz province, who have at least one primary school-kid.  Using available sampling method, 50 women were selected among school-students’ mothers, and were randomly assigned into two equal groups of experimental and control groups. Both groups filled Self-Report Family Process Scale (SFPS and Subjective Wellbeing Questionnaire (SWQ. The experimental group received positive thinking training for eight 2-hours-sessions. Then, all participants were assessed again as the posttest. The data were analyzed by covariance analysis method. Findings showed that after the intervention family process scores of experimental group had been significantly improved, while subjective wellbeing scores had not significantly enhanced. Therefore, it can be told that the present program was effective in increasing the family process, though it went ineffective in improving subjective wellbeing in these irritable individuals. Thus, altering and enriching the program and conducting further investigations seems necessary.

Subjective assessment of kinesitherapy as an element of comprehensive rehabilitation process of subjects with lower spine pain

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Wioletta Łubkowska

2016-02-01

  Abstract Background. Spinal pain has triggered interest in many fields of medicine, such as orthopedics, neurology, rheumatology, and rehabilitation. Despite ongoing development of surgery techniques, a major role is played by fitness improvement treatments, which need to be promoted. The aim of the research was a subjective assessment of kinesitherapy as an element of comprehensive rehabilitation process of subjects with lower spine pain. Material/Methods. This paper has an empirical character. The research was conducted amongst a randomly selected group of 60 patients of Independent Public Health Care Unit in Choszczno, Poland (rehabilitation at an outpatients’ clinic, aged 20-51. All of them were subjected to a series of 10 kinesitherapy treatments. The research used diagnostic polling method and the following techniques: survey and implicit interview. Results. The research proved that after completion of 10 treatments, the subjects noticed a significant improvement of their health. Kinesitherapy helped return to an active professional life for those who were forced to resign or suspend their work. Subjects reported that 10 kinesitherapy treatments were enough to notice their effectiveness in lumbar spine pain reduction. Kinesitherapy treatments resulted in a reduced usage of painkillers. Conclusions. There is evidence of positive impact of physical exercise on treatment results and beneficial effects in patients with spinal pain. Proper education aimed at changing bad habits and advising how to care for spine may be a powerful way to fight for health.   Keywords: spine, pain syndromes, lumbar spine, kinesitherapy, curative exercises, improving fitness.

A living wage for research subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Trisha B

2011-01-01

Offering cash payments to research subjects is a common recruiting method, but this practice continues to be controversial because of its potential to compromise the protection of human subjects. Federal regulations and guidelines currently allow researchers to pay subjects for participation, but they say very little about how much researchers can pay their subjects. This paper argues that the federal regulations and guidelines should implement a standard payment formula. It argues for a wage payment model, and critically examines three candidates for a base wage: the nonfarm production wage, the FLSA minimum wage, and a living wage. After showing that the nonfarm production wage is too high to satisfy ethical criteria, and the minimum wage is too low, this paper concludes that the wage payment model with a base wage equivalent to a living wage is the best candidate for a standard payment formula in human subjects research. © 2011 American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Inc.

SU-F-J-86: Method to Include Tissue Dose Response Effect in Deformable Image Registration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhu, J; Liang, J; Chen, S; Qin, A; Yan, D [Beaumont Health Systeml, Royal Oak, MI (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Organ changes shape and size during radiation treatment due to both mechanical stress and radiation dose response. However, the dose response induced deformation has not been considered in conventional deformable image registration (DIR). A novel DIR approach is proposed to include both tissue elasticity and radiation dose induced organ deformation. Methods: Assuming that organ sub-volume shrinkage was proportional to the radiation dose induced cell killing/absorption, the dose induced organ volume change was simulated applying virtual temperature on each sub-volume. Hence, both stress and heterogeneity temperature induced organ deformation. Thermal stress finite element method with organ surface boundary condition was used to solve deformation. Initial boundary correspondence on organ surface was created from conventional DIR. Boundary condition was updated by an iterative optimization scheme to minimize elastic deformation energy. The registration was validated on a numerical phantom. Treatment dose was constructed applying both the conventional DIR and the proposed method using daily CBCT image obtained from HN treatment. Results: Phantom study showed 2.7% maximal discrepancy with respect to the actual displacement. Compared with conventional DIR, subvolume displacement difference in a right parotid had the mean±SD (Min, Max) to be 1.1±0.9(−0.4∼4.8), −0.1±0.9(−2.9∼2.4) and −0.1±0.9(−3.4∼1.9)mm in RL/PA/SI directions respectively. Mean parotid dose and V30 constructed including the dose response induced shrinkage were 6.3% and 12.0% higher than those from the conventional DIR. Conclusion: Heterogeneous dose distribution in normal organ causes non-uniform sub-volume shrinkage. Sub-volume in high dose region has a larger shrinkage than the one in low dose region, therefore causing more sub-volumes to move into the high dose area during the treatment course. This leads to an unfavorable dose-volume relationship for the normal organ

Speech perception performance of subjects with type I diabetes mellitus in noise

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Bárbara Cristiane Sordi Silva

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction: Diabetes mellitus (DM is a chronic metabolic disorder of various origins that occurs when the pancreas fails to produce insulin in sufficient quantities or when the organism fails to respond to this hormone in an efficient manner. Objective: To evaluate the speech recognition in subjects with type I diabetes mellitus (DMI in quiet and in competitive noise. Methods: It was a descriptive, observational and cross-section study. We included 40 participants of both genders aged 18-30 years, divided into a control group (CG of 20 healthy subjects with no complaints or auditory changes, paired for age and gender with the study group, consisting of 20 subjects with a diagnosis of DMI. First, we applied basic audiological evaluations (pure tone audiometry, speech audiometry and immittance audiometry for all subjects; after these evaluations, we applied Sentence Recognition Threshold in Quiet (SRTQ and Sentence Recognition Threshold in Noise (SRTN in free field, using the List of Sentences in Portuguese test. Results: All subjects showed normal bilateral pure tone threshold, compatible speech audiometry and "A" tympanometry curve. Group comparison revealed a statistically significant difference for SRTQ (p = 0.0001, SRTN (p < 0.0001 and the signal-to-noise ratio (p < 0.0001. Conclusion: The performance of DMI subjects in SRTQ and SRTN was worse compared to the subjects without diabetes.

A Bayesian truth serum for subjective data.

Science.gov (United States)

Prelec, Drazen

2004-10-15

Subjective judgments, an essential information source for science and policy, are problematic because there are no public criteria for assessing judgmental truthfulness. I present a scoring method for eliciting truthful subjective data in situations where objective truth is unknowable. The method assigns high scores not to the most common answers but to the answers that are more common than collectively predicted, with predictions drawn from the same population. This simple adjustment in the scoring criterion removes all bias in favor of consensus: Truthful answers maximize expected score even for respondents who believe that their answer represents a minority view.

Subject: Construct or Acting Being? The Status of the Subject and the Problem of Solipsism in Wittgenstein’s Tractatus

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Włodzimierz HEFLIK

2011-06-01

Full Text Available In his Tractatus and Notebooks 1914-1916, Wittgenstein develops some themes concerning the nature of the subject, transcendentalism, solipsism and mysticism. Though Wittgenstein rejects a naive, psychological understanding of the subject, he preserves the idea of the metaphysical subject, so-called “philosophical I”. The present investigations exhibit two ways of grasping the subject: (1 subject as a boundary (of the world; (2 subject (I as the world. The author of the paper aims to analyze different methods of conceiving the subject, both logical and transcendental. Then he discusses the naturalistic or reductionist consequences of solipsism which were derived by Wittgenstein. Moreover, he refers to the concept of ‘subject of will’ introduced in the Tractatus. Finally, the author puts a question whether the metaphysical subject is a boundary of the world identified with the subject of will. While trying to answer this question one can point to the essential difficulties of Wittgenstein’s standpoint. These difficulties become especially evident if we examine Wittgenstein’s statements concerning mysticism. The category of subject seems to gain a new dimension when reconsidered in this context. In the conclusion, the author offers an interpretation inspired by Schopenhauer’s conception of the double aspect of the subject that is to overstep these difficulties.

The methodological features of teaching subject «Fundamentals of production technologies»

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Olesya Kornus

2017-11-01

Full Text Available In the article are reviews the methodical features teaching of the subject "Fundamentals of production technologies" as an example of training of students in the direction of 6.040104 Geography* and specialty 014 Secondary Education (Geography in the Sumy State A.S. Makarenko Pedagogical University. The subject «Fundamentals of production technologies» was introduced into curriculum bachelor of geography for quality training of geography teachers in pedagogical universities. This subject gives students the knowledge about the technical and economic features of the main industries, main technological schemes of production processes and the impact of industrial enterprises on the environment. The subject «Fundamentals of production technologies» is taught for second year students of natural-geographical faculty of the Sumy State A.S. Makarenko Pedagogical University. The educational process provides lectures, practical classes and self-dependent work. One of the forms of organization of training activities is the excursions to industrial enterprises of Sumy city. The organization of excursions includes preparation, conduct and report about the results of the excursion. For better learn the material excursion, preferably before the start of it to divide a group of students into small teams of 3-6 people. The report documentation includes a plan for characteristic of industrial enterprises, as well as multimedia presentation. The defense of report is passes like competition by voted. The team that wins the most votes gets the highest score. This form of subject study contributes to obtaining of positive educational outcomes and lasting knowledge, reliable formation of professional competencies of students-geographers.

Assessing and improving health in the workplace: an integration of subjective and objective measures with the STress Assessment and Research Toolkit (St.A.R.T.) method.

Science.gov (United States)

Panari, Chiara; Guglielmi, Dina; Ricci, Aurora; Tabanelli, Maria Carla; Violante, Francesco Saverio

2012-09-20

The aim of this work was to introduce a new combined method of subjective and objective measures to assess psychosocial risk factors at work and improve workers' health and well-being. In the literature most of the research on work-related stress focuses on self-report measures and this work represents the first methodology capable of integrating different sources of data. An integrated method entitled St.A.R.T. (STress Assessment and Research Toolkit) was used in order to assess psychosocial risk factors and two health outcomes. In particular, a self-report questionnaire combined with an observational structured checklist was administered to 113 workers from an Italian retail company. The data showed a correlation between subjective data and the rating data of the observational checklist for the psychosocial risk factors related to work contexts such as customer relationship management and customer queue. Conversely, the factors related to work content (workload and boredom) measured with different methods (subjective vs. objective) showed a discrepancy. Furthermore, subjective measures of psychosocial risk factors were more predictive of workers' psychological health and exhaustion than rating data. The different objective measures played different roles, however, in terms of their influence on the two health outcomes considered. It is important to integrate self-related assessment of stressors with objective measures for a better understanding of workers' conditions in the workplace. The method presented could be considered a useful methodology for combining the two measures and differentiating the impact of different psychological risk factors related to work content and context on workers' health.

Including mixed methods research in systematic reviews: examples from qualitative syntheses in TB and malaria control.

Science.gov (United States)

Atkins, Salla; Launiala, Annika; Kagaha, Alexander; Smith, Helen

2012-04-30

Health policy makers now have access to a greater number and variety of systematic reviews to inform different stages in the policy making process, including reviews of qualitative research. The inclusion of mixed methods studies in systematic reviews is increasing, but these studies pose particular challenges to methods of review. This article examines the quality of the reporting of mixed methods and qualitative-only studies. We used two completed systematic reviews to generate a sample of qualitative studies and mixed method studies in order to make an assessment of how the quality of reporting and rigor of qualitative-only studies compares with that of mixed-methods studies. Overall, the reporting of qualitative studies in our sample was consistently better when compared with the reporting of mixed methods studies. We found that mixed methods studies are less likely to provide a description of the research conduct or qualitative data analysis procedures and less likely to be judged credible or provide rich data and thick description compared with standalone qualitative studies. Our time-related analysis shows that for both types of study, papers published since 2003 are more likely to report on the study context, describe analysis procedures, and be judged credible and provide rich data. However, the reporting of other aspects of research conduct (i.e. descriptions of the research question, the sampling strategy, and data collection methods) in mixed methods studies does not appear to have improved over time. Mixed methods research makes an important contribution to health research in general, and could make a more substantial contribution to systematic reviews. Through our careful analysis of the quality of reporting of mixed methods and qualitative-only research, we have identified areas that deserve more attention in the conduct and reporting of mixed methods research.

Occupational therapy intervention in a subject with Parkinson disease

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gustavo Artur Monzeli

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Parkinson disease-PD has affected an increasing number of individuals, compromising their functional skills progressively and irreversibly, requiring preventive and rehabilitative actions. Objective: To present and discuss the effect of occupational therapy intervention with a 70-year old patient diagnosed with PD. Method: This is an experience report with a single subject. An intervention plan including an exercise program for extra-care activities and home visits for observation of possible difficulties and risk of falls in the environment has been prepared. The measurement of independence was performed using the Functional Independence Measure-FIM. The intervention occurred during six months. Results: It was identified improvement in eating and writing activities. There was one score of improvement documented in FIM. Conclusion: The importance of the intervention of occupational therapy is enforced, which in this context improved the occupational performance of this subject in the daily life activities, contributing for maintaining functional performance.

Implementation of Subjective Cognitive Decline criteria in research studies

Science.gov (United States)

Molinuevo, José L; Rabin, Laura A.; Amariglio, Rebecca; Buckley, Rachel; Dubois, Bruno; Ellis, Kathryn A.; Ewers, Michael; Hampel, Harald; Klöppel, Stefan; Rami, Lorena; Reisberg, Barry; Saykin, Andrew J.; Sikkes, Sietske; Smart, Colette M.; Snitz, Beth E.; Sperling, Reisa; van der Flier, Wiesje M.; Wagner, Michael; Jessen, Frank

2017-01-01

INTRODUCTION Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) manifesting prior to clinical impairment could serve as a target population for early intervention trials in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). A working group, the Subjective Cognitive Decline Initiative (SCD-I), published SCD research criteria in the context of preclinical AD. To successfully apply them, a number of issues regarding assessment and implementation of SCD needed to be addressed. METHODS Members of the SCD-I met to identify and agree upon topics relevant to SCD criteria operationalization in research settings. Initial ideas and recommendations were discussed with other SCD-I working group members and modified accordingly. RESULTS Topics included SCD inclusion and exclusion criteria, together with the informant’s role in defining SCD presence and the impact of demographic factors. DISCUSSION Recommendations for the operationalization of SCD in differing research settings, with the aim of harmonization of SCD measurement across studies are proposed, to enhance comparability and generalizability across studies. PMID:27825022

Economics and subjectivities of wellbeing in rural Zambia

OpenAIRE

White, Sarah; Ramirez, Viviana

2015-01-01

Mixed method research in Chiawa rural Zambia explores the importance of the economic within subjective dimensions of wellbeing. Statistical analysis shows a close relationship between subjective economic confidence and overall happiness, and that objective economic status predicts some subjective dimensions of wellbeing. Qualitative analysis explores the role of economic capacity in forging (male) gender identities; the emphasis on reciprocity and a moral economy; and the use of economics as ...

Correlation between Cholinesterase and Paraoxonase 1 Activities: Case Series of Pesticide Poisoning Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S Austin Richard

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Acute exposure to pesticide due to suicidal poisoning is the most extensive cause of pesticide exposure, compared with all other causes including agricultural or industrial exposure. Organophosphate (OP and carbamate group of pesticides can inhibit acetylcholinesterase; on the other hand, paraoxonase1 can detoxify organophosphate poisoning by hydrolyzing organophosphate metabolites. Methods: We have compared the serum paraoxonase1 status and cholinesterase activity of subjects who attempted to commit suicide by consuming OP pesticide. Cholinesterase and paraoxonase1 activity were measured spectrophotometrically using butyrylthiocholine and phenyl acetate as substrates, respectively. Results: A positive correlation was found between serum paraoxonase1 activity and cholinesterase activity among pesticide consumed subjects. Conclusion: Our results suggest that subjects with higher paraoxonase1 activity may have a better chance of detoxifying the lethal effect of acute organophosphate poisoning.

Objective and subjective sleep quality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baandrup, Lone; Glenthøj, Birte Yding; Jennum, Poul Jørgen

2016-01-01

and subjective sleep quality during benzodiazepine discontinuation and whether sleep variables were associated with benzodiazepine withdrawal. Eligible patients included adults with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar disorder and long-term use of benzodiazepines in combination...

[Comparisons of manual and automatic refractometry with subjective results].

Science.gov (United States)

Wübbolt, I S; von Alven, S; Hülssner, O; Erb, C

2006-11-01

Refractometry is very important in everyday clinical practice. The aim of this study is to compare the precision of three objective methods of refractometry with subjective dioptometry (Phoropter). The objective methods with the smallest deviation to subjective refractometry results are evaluated. The objective methods/instruments used were retinoscopy, Prism Refractometer PR 60 (Rodenstock) and Auto Refractometer RM-A 7000 (Topcon). The results of monocular dioptometry (sphere, cylinder and axis) of each objective method were compared to the results of the subjective method. The examination was carried out on 178 eyes, which were divided into 3 age-related groups: 6 - 12 years (103 eyes), 13 - 18 years (38 eyes) and older than 18 years (37 eyes). All measurements were made in cycloplegia. The smallest standard deviation of the measurement error was found for the Auto Refractometer RM-A 7000. Both the PR 60 and retinoscopy had a clearly higher standard deviation. Furthermore, the RM-A 7000 showed in three and retinoscopy in four of the nine comparisons a significant bias in the measurement error. The Auto Refractometer provides measurements with the smallest deviation compared to the subjective method. Here it has to be taken into account that the measurements for the sphere have an average deviation of + 0.2 dpt. In comparison to retinoscopy the examination of children with the RM-A 7000 is difficult. An advantage of the Auto Refractometer is the fast and easy handling, so that measurements can be performed by medical staff.

Pyrochemical and Dry Processing Methods Program. A selected bibliography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McDuffie, H.F.; Smith, D.H.; Owen, P.T.

1979-03-01

This selected bibliography with abstracts was compiled to provide information support to the Pyrochemical and Dry Processing Methods (PDPM) Program sponsored by DOE and administered by the Argonne National Laboratory. Objectives of the PDPM Program are to evaluate nonaqueous methods of reprocessing spent fuel as a route to the development of proliferation-resistant and diversion-resistant methods for widespread use in the nuclear industry. Emphasis was placed on the literature indexed in the ERDA--DOE Energy Data Base (EDB). The bibliography includes indexes to authors, subject descriptors, EDB subject categories, and titles.

Pyrochemical and Dry Processing Methods Program. A selected bibliography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McDuffie, H.F.; Smith, D.H.; Owen, P.T.

1979-03-01

This selected bibliography with abstracts was compiled to provide information support to the Pyrochemical and Dry Processing Methods (PDPM) Program sponsored by DOE and administered by the Argonne National Laboratory. Objectives of the PDPM Program are to evaluate nonaqueous methods of reprocessing spent fuel as a route to the development of proliferation-resistant and diversion-resistant methods for widespread use in the nuclear industry. Emphasis was placed on the literature indexed in the ERDA--DOE Energy Data Base (EDB). The bibliography includes indexes to authors, subject descriptors, EDB subject categories, and titles

Approximate solution methods in engineering mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boresi, A.P.; Cong, K.P.

1991-01-01

This is a short book of 147 pages including references and sometimes bibliographies at the end of each chapter, and subject and author indices at the end of the book. The test includes an introduction of 3 pages, 29 pages explaining approximate analysis, 41 pages on finite differences, 36 pages on finite elements, and 17 pages on specialized methods

Bayesian Methods and Universal Darwinism

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, John

2009-12-01

Bayesian methods since the time of Laplace have been understood by their practitioners as closely aligned to the scientific method. Indeed a recent Champion of Bayesian methods, E. T. Jaynes, titled his textbook on the subject Probability Theory: the Logic of Science. Many philosophers of science including Karl Popper and Donald Campbell have interpreted the evolution of Science as a Darwinian process consisting of a `copy with selective retention' algorithm abstracted from Darwin's theory of Natural Selection. Arguments are presented for an isomorphism between Bayesian Methods and Darwinian processes. Universal Darwinism, as the term has been developed by Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett and Susan Blackmore, is the collection of scientific theories which explain the creation and evolution of their subject matter as due to the Operation of Darwinian processes. These subject matters span the fields of atomic physics, chemistry, biology and the social sciences. The principle of Maximum Entropy states that Systems will evolve to states of highest entropy subject to the constraints of scientific law. This principle may be inverted to provide illumination as to the nature of scientific law. Our best cosmological theories suggest the universe contained much less complexity during the period shortly after the Big Bang than it does at present. The scientific subject matter of atomic physics, chemistry, biology and the social sciences has been created since that time. An explanation is proposed for the existence of this subject matter as due to the evolution of constraints in the form of adaptations imposed on Maximum Entropy. It is argued these adaptations were discovered and instantiated through the Operations of a succession of Darwinian processes.

On the subjectivity of personality theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Atwood, G E; Tomkins, S S

1976-04-01

Every theorist of personality views the human condition from the unique perspective of his own individuality. As a consequence, personality theories are strongly influenced by personal and subjective factors. These influences are partially responsible for the present day lack of consensus in psychology as to basic conceptual frameworks for the study of man. The science of human personality can achieve a greater degree of consensus and generality only if it begins to turn back on itself and question its own psychological foundations. The role of subjective and personal factors in this field can be studied and made more explicit by means of a psychobiographical method which interprets the major ideas of personality theories in the light of the formative experiences in the respective theorists' lives. This method is briefly illustrated by an examination of the influence of personal experiences on theoretical concepts in the work of Carl Jung, Carl Rogers, Wilhelm Reich, and Gordon Allport. The subjective factors disclosed by psychobiographical analysis can bee seen to interact with influences stemming from the intellectual and historical context within which the theorist work. The psychobiographical study of personality theory is only one part of a larger discipline, the psychology of knowledge, which would study the role of subjective and personal factors in the structure of man's knowledge in general.

Improved Riccati Transfer Matrix Method for Free Vibration of Non-Cylindrical Helical Springs Including Warping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.M. Yu

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Free vibration equations for non-cylindrical (conical, barrel, and hyperboloidal types helical springs with noncircular cross-sections, which consist of 14 first-order ordinary differential equations with variable coefficients, are theoretically derived using spatially curved beam theory. In the formulation, the warping effect upon natural frequencies and vibrating mode shapes is first studied in addition to including the rotary inertia, the shear and axial deformation influences. The natural frequencies of the springs are determined by the use of improved Riccati transfer matrix method. The element transfer matrix used in the solution is calculated using the Scaling and Squaring method and Pad'e approximations. Three examples are presented for three types of springs with different cross-sectional shapes under clamped-clamped boundary condition. The accuracy of the proposed method has been compared with the FEM results using three-dimensional solid elements (Solid 45 in ANSYS code. Numerical results reveal that the warping effect is more pronounced in the case of non-cylindrical helical springs than that of cylindrical helical springs, which should be taken into consideration in the free vibration analysis of such springs.

Subjective evaluation of HEVC in mobile devices

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Ray; Kalva, Hari

2013-03-01

Mobile compute environments provide a unique set of user needs and expectations that designers must consider. With increased multimedia use in mobile environments, video encoding methods within the smart phone market segment are key factors that contribute to positive user experience. Currently available display resolutions and expected cellular bandwidth are major factors the designer must consider when determining which encoding methods should be supported. The desired goal is to maximize the consumer experience, reduce cost, and reduce time to market. This paper presents a comparative evaluation of the quality of user experience when HEVC and AVC/H.264 video coding standards were used. The goal of the study was to evaluate any improvements in user experience when using HEVC. Subjective comparisons were made between H.264/AVC and HEVC encoding standards in accordance with Doublestimulus impairment scale (DSIS) as defined by ITU-R BT.500-13. Test environments are based on smart phone LCD resolutions and expected cellular bit rates, such as 200kbps and 400kbps. Subjective feedback shows both encoding methods are adequate at 400kbps constant bit rate. However, a noticeable consumer experience gap was observed for 200 kbps. Significantly less H.264 subjective quality is noticed with video sequences that have multiple objects moving and no single point of visual attraction. Video sequences with single points of visual attraction or few moving objects tended to have higher H.264 subjective quality.

Measure Guideline: Summary of Interior Ducts in New Construction, Including an Efficient, Affordable Method to Install Fur-Down Interior Ducts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beal, D. [BA-PIRC, Cocoa, FL (United States); McIlvaine, J. [BA-PIRC, Cocoa, FL (United States); Fonorow, K. [BA-PIRC, Cocoa, FL (United States); Martin, E. [BA-PIRC, Cocoa, FL (United States)

2011-11-01

This document illustrates guidelines for the efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing, including the fur-up chase method, the fur-down chase method, and interior ducts positioned in sealed attics or sealed crawl spaces.

Methods of intermediate problems for eigenvalues

CERN Document Server

Weinstein, Alexander

1972-01-01

In this book, we study theoretical and practical aspects of computing methods for mathematical modelling of nonlinear systems. A number of computing techniques are considered, such as methods of operator approximation with any given accuracy; operator interpolation techniques including a non-Lagrange interpolation; methods of system representation subject to constraints associated with concepts of causality, memory and stationarity; methods of system representation with an accuracy that is the best within a given class of models; methods of covariance matrix estimation;methods for low-rank mat

Crowdsourcing based subjective quality assessment of adaptive video streaming

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shahid, M.; Søgaard, Jacob; Pokhrel, J.

2014-01-01

In order to cater for user’s quality of experience (QoE) re- quirements, HTTP adaptive streaming (HAS) based solutions of video services have become popular recently. User QoE feedback can be instrumental in improving the capabilities of such services. Perceptual quality experiments that involve...... humans are considered to be the most valid method of the as- sessment of QoE. Besides lab-based subjective experiments, crowdsourcing based subjective assessment of video quality is gaining popularity as an alternative method. This paper presents insights into a study that investigates perceptual pref......- erences of various adaptive video streaming scenarios through crowdsourcing based subjective quality assessment....

Teaching Methods in Biology Education and Sustainability Education Including Outdoor Education for Promoting Sustainability--A Literature Review

Science.gov (United States)

Jeronen, Eila; Palmberg, Irmeli; Yli-Panula, Eija

2017-01-01

There are very few studies concerning the importance of teaching methods in biology education and environmental education including outdoor education for promoting sustainability at the levels of primary and secondary schools and pre-service teacher education. The material was selected using special keywords from biology and sustainable education…

Transferring and generalizing deep-learning-based neural encoding models across subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Wen, Haiguang; Shi, Junxing; Chen, Wei; Liu, Zhongming

2018-08-01

Recent studies have shown the value of using deep learning models for mapping and characterizing how the brain represents and organizes information for natural vision. However, modeling the relationship between deep learning models and the brain (or encoding models), requires measuring cortical responses to large and diverse sets of natural visual stimuli from single subjects. This requirement limits prior studies to few subjects, making it difficult to generalize findings across subjects or for a population. In this study, we developed new methods to transfer and generalize encoding models across subjects. To train encoding models specific to a target subject, the models trained for other subjects were used as the prior models and were refined efficiently using Bayesian inference with a limited amount of data from the target subject. To train encoding models for a population, the models were progressively trained and updated with incremental data from different subjects. For the proof of principle, we applied these methods to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data from three subjects watching tens of hours of naturalistic videos, while a deep residual neural network driven by image recognition was used to model visual cortical processing. Results demonstrate that the methods developed herein provide an efficient and effective strategy to establish both subject-specific and population-wide predictive models of cortical representations of high-dimensional and hierarchical visual features. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning a common dictionary for subject-transfer decoding with resting calibration.

Science.gov (United States)

Morioka, Hiroshi; Kanemura, Atsunori; Hirayama, Jun-ichiro; Shikauchi, Manabu; Ogawa, Takeshi; Ikeda, Shigeyuki; Kawanabe, Motoaki; Ishii, Shin

2015-05-01

Brain signals measured over a series of experiments have inherent variability because of different physical and mental conditions among multiple subjects and sessions. Such variability complicates the analysis of data from multiple subjects and sessions in a consistent way, and degrades the performance of subject-transfer decoding in a brain-machine interface (BMI). To accommodate the variability in brain signals, we propose 1) a method for extracting spatial bases (or a dictionary) shared by multiple subjects, by employing a signal-processing technique of dictionary learning modified to compensate for variations between subjects and sessions, and 2) an approach to subject-transfer decoding that uses the resting-state activity of a previously unseen target subject as calibration data for compensating for variations, eliminating the need for a standard calibration based on task sessions. Applying our methodology to a dataset of electroencephalography (EEG) recordings during a selective visual-spatial attention task from multiple subjects and sessions, where the variability compensation was essential for reducing the redundancy of the dictionary, we found that the extracted common brain activities were reasonable in the light of neuroscience knowledge. The applicability to subject-transfer decoding was confirmed by improved performance over existing decoding methods. These results suggest that analyzing multisubject brain activities on common bases by the proposed method enables information sharing across subjects with low-burden resting calibration, and is effective for practical use of BMI in variable environments. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Thyroid status influence on adiponectin, acylation stimulating protein (ASP and complement C3 in hyperthyroid and hypothyroid subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhang Jianhua

2006-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Thyroid abnormalities (hyperthyroid and hypothyroid are accompanied by changes in intermediary metabolism including alterations in body weight, insulin resistance and lipid profile. The aims of this study were to examine plasma ASP, its precursor C3 and adiponectin in hyperthyroid and hypothyroid subjects as compared to controls. Methods A total of 99 subjects were recruited from endocrinology/out-patient clinics: 46 hyperthyroid subjects, 23 hypothyroid subjects and 30 control subjects. Subjects were evaluated for FT4, FT3, TSH, glucose, insulin, complete lipid profile and the adipokines: adiponectin, acylation stimulating protein (ASP and complement C3. Results Hyperthyroidism was associated with a 95% increase in adiponectin (p = 0.0002, a 47% decrease in C3 (p Conclusion These changes suggest that thyroid disease may be accompanied by changes in adipokines, which may contribute to the phenotype expressed.

An advanced revised universal slope method for low cycle fatigue evaluation of elbow piping subjected to in-plane cyclic bending displacement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Urabe, Yoshio

2015-01-01

In order to rationalize the low cycle fatigue evaluation of elbow piping subjected to in-plane cyclic bending displacement, an advanced revised universal slope method is proposed. In the proposed method, the coefficient of the first term of the fatigue life equation which resembles Manson's equation is expressed by parameters of the multi-axial degree, the tensile strength and the fracture strength. Also, the coefficient of the second term is expressed by the multi-axial degree, the fracture ductility and the minimum fracture ductility under the maximum multi-axial degree. Here equivalent strain range is used for the fatigue life estimation. The previously carried out pipe elbow test data were reanalyzed using the proposed method. As the result, the experimentally obtained fatigue lives had considerably good coincidences with the predicted fatigue lives by the proposed method. Application of the proposed method is also discussed. (author)

Factors affecting perception thresholds of vertical whole-body vibration in recumbent subjects: Gender and age of subjects, and vibration duration

Science.gov (United States)

Matsumoto, Y.; Maeda, S.; Iwane, Y.; Iwata, Y.

2011-04-01

Some factors that may affect human perception thresholds of the vertical whole-body vibrations were investigated in two laboratory experiments with recumbent subjects. In the first experiment, the effects of gender and age of subjects on perception were investigated with three groups of 12 subjects, i.e., young males, young females and old males. For continuous sinusoidal vibrations at 2, 4, 8, 16, 31.5 and 63 Hz, there were no significant differences in the perception thresholds between male and female subjects, while the thresholds of young subjects tended to be significantly lower than the thresholds of old subjects. In the second experiment, the effect of vibration duration was investigated by using sinusoidal vibrations, at the same frequencies as above, modulated by the Hanning windows with different lengths (i.e., 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 and 4.0 s) for 12 subjects. It was found that the peak acceleration at the threshold tended to decrease with increasing duration of vibration. The perception thresholds were also evaluated by the running root-mean-square (rms) acceleration and the fourth power acceleration method defined in the current standards. The differences in the threshold of the transient vibrations for different durations were less with the fourth power acceleration method. Additionally, the effect of the integration time on the threshold was investigated for the running rms acceleration and the fourth power acceleration. It was found that the integration time that yielded less differences in the threshold of vibrations for different durations depended on the frequency of vibration.

The Applied Behavior Analysis Research Paradigm and Single-Subject Designs in Adapted Physical Activity Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Haegele, Justin A; Hodge, Samuel Russell

2015-10-01

There are basic philosophical and paradigmatic assumptions that guide scholarly research endeavors, including the methods used and the types of questions asked. Through this article, kinesiology faculty and students with interests in adapted physical activity are encouraged to understand the basic assumptions of applied behavior analysis (ABA) methodology for conducting, analyzing, and presenting research of high quality in this paradigm. The purposes of this viewpoint paper are to present information fundamental to understanding the assumptions undergirding research methodology in ABA, describe key aspects of single-subject research designs, and discuss common research designs and data-analysis strategies used in single-subject studies.

Modelling of subject specific based segmental dynamics of knee joint

Science.gov (United States)

Nasir, N. H. M.; Ibrahim, B. S. K. K.; Huq, M. S.; Ahmad, M. K. I.

2017-09-01

This study determines segmental dynamics parameters based on subject specific method. Five hemiplegic patients participated in the study, two men and three women. Their ages ranged from 50 to 60 years, weights from 60 to 70 kg and heights from 145 to 170 cm. Sample group included patients with different side of stroke. The parameters of the segmental dynamics resembling the knee joint functions measured via measurement of Winter and its model generated via the employment Kane's equation of motion. Inertial parameters in the form of the anthropometry can be identified and measured by employing Standard Human Dimension on the subjects who are in hemiplegia condition. The inertial parameters are the location of centre of mass (COM) at the length of the limb segment, inertia moment around the COM and masses of shank and foot to generate accurate motion equations. This investigation has also managed to dig out a few advantages of employing the table of anthropometry in movement biomechanics of Winter's and Kane's equation of motion. A general procedure is presented to yield accurate measurement of estimation for the inertial parameters for the joint of the knee of certain subjects with stroke history.

The Implementation Of Character Education Values In Integrated Physical Education Subject In Elementary School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Suherman Ayi

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The issue of this research emphasizes on the implementation of character building values through physical education learning in elementary school. The effort in developing this character building practice is essential to be done in order to tackle moral and character crises, which already occur in both individual and collective levels reflected in educational institution from elementary school to higher education. Hence, to form culture and national character, educational program and process are inseparable from environmental factor including the values of society, culture, and humanity. Physical education subject that is based on 2013 Curriculum has significant difference compared to the previous physical education subject. This is due to the fact that integrated physical education has its own uniqueness in terms of planning, systematic implementation, and instructional medium. This research aims at producing guidance in implementing character values integrated in physical education in elementary school. The method used in this research is research and development (R&D method, which includes preliminary research, model designing, limited trial, and extensive trial, as well as validation and dissemination. The findings of the research show that character values can be implemented in physical education in elementary schools in Sumedang Regency.

Comparison of different methods to include recycling in LCAs of aluminium cans and disposable polystyrene cups.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Harst, Eugenie; Potting, José; Kroeze, Carolien

2016-02-01

Many methods have been reported and used to include recycling in life cycle assessments (LCAs). This paper evaluates six widely used methods: three substitution methods (i.e. substitution based on equal quality, a correction factor, and alternative material), allocation based on the number of recycling loops, the recycled-content method, and the equal-share method. These six methods were first compared, with an assumed hypothetical 100% recycling rate, for an aluminium can and a disposable polystyrene (PS) cup. The substitution and recycled-content method were next applied with actual rates for recycling, incineration and landfilling for both product systems in selected countries. The six methods differ in their approaches to credit recycling. The three substitution methods stimulate the recyclability of the product and assign credits for the obtained recycled material. The choice to either apply a correction factor, or to account for alternative substituted material has a considerable influence on the LCA results, and is debatable. Nevertheless, we prefer incorporating quality reduction of the recycled material by either a correction factor or an alternative substituted material over simply ignoring quality loss. The allocation-on-number-of-recycling-loops method focusses on the life expectancy of material itself, rather than on a specific separate product. The recycled-content method stimulates the use of recycled material, i.e. credits the use of recycled material in products and ignores the recyclability of the products. The equal-share method is a compromise between the substitution methods and the recycled-content method. The results for the aluminium can follow the underlying philosophies of the methods. The results for the PS cup are additionally influenced by the correction factor or credits for the alternative material accounting for the drop in PS quality, the waste treatment management (recycling rate, incineration rate, landfilling rate), and the

WordPress as a Content Management System for a Library Web Site: How to Create a Dynamically Generated Subject Guide

OpenAIRE

Joshua Dodson

2008-01-01

This article explains a method of generating dynamic subject guides through the WordPress content management system. This method includes the use of the Exec-PHP WordPress plugin and additional PHP code to create a new category-based loop within the preexisting WordPress loop. Example code and screenshots are provided.

Nurbayev D.M. Public and dispositive segments of abuse of the subjective right: interdisciplinary look.

OpenAIRE

Vladimir Azarov; Daulet Nurbayev

2017-01-01

УДК 343.12The subject. The article is devoted to the analysis of a phenomenon "abuse of the right" from a position of the public and dispositive beginnings of his manifestation.The purpose of this article is to consider public and dispositive principles of abuse of the right in the scope of legal theory to qualify this phenomenon in criminal proceedings properly.Methodology. The author use methods of theoretical analysis and interdisciplinary approach as well as legal methods, including forma...

Masticatory efficiency of shortened dental arch subjects with ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the masticatory efficiency in subjects with shortened dental arch (SDA) before and after restoration with removable partial denture (RPD). Materials and Methods: This was a prospective study carried out on 36 consecutive patients. The subjects were asked to chew 5 g of ...

Energy data base: subject thesaurus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Redford, J.S.

1981-10-01

The technical staff of the DOE Technical Information Center, during its subject indexing activities, develops and structures a vocabulary that allows consistent machine storage and retrieval of information necessary to the accomplishment of the DOE mission. This thesaurus incorporates that structured vocabulary. The terminology of this thesaurus is used for the subject control of information announced in DOE Energy Research Abstracts, Energy Abstracts for Policy Analysis, and various update journals and bulletins in specialized areas. This terminology also facilitates subject searching of the DOE Energy Data Base on the DOE/RECON on-line retrieval system and on other commercial retrieval systems. The rapid expansion of the DOE's activities will result in a commitant thesaurus expansion as information relating to new activities is indexed. Only the terms used in the indexing of documents at the Technical Information Center to date are included

Reliability assessment based on subjective inferences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ma Zhibo; Zhu Jianshi; Xu Naixin

2003-01-01

The reliability information which comes from subjective analysis is often incomplete prior. This information can be generally assumed to exist in the form of either a stated prior mean of R (reliability) or a stated prior credibility interval on R. An efficient approach is developed to determine a complete beta prior distribution from the subjective information according to the principle of maximum entropy, and the the reliability of survival/failure product is assessed via Bayes theorem. Numerical examples are presented to illustrate the methods

Design and Optimization of Capacitated Supply Chain Networks Including Quality Measures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Krystel K. Castillo-Villar

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents (1 a novel capacitated model for supply chain network design which considers manufacturing, distribution, and quality costs (named SCND-COQ model and (2 five combinatorial optimization methods, based on nonlinear optimization, heuristic, and metaheuristic approaches, which are used to solve realistic instances of practical size. The SCND-COQ model is a mixed-integer nonlinear problem which can be used at a strategic planning level to design a supply chain network that maximizes the total profit subject to meeting an overall quality level of the final product at minimum costs. The SCND-COQ model computes the quality-related costs for the whole supply chain network considering the interdependencies among business entities. The effectiveness of the proposed solution approaches is shown using numerical experiments. These methods allow solving more realistic (capacitated supply chain network design problems including quality-related costs (inspections, rework, opportunity costs, and others within a reasonable computational time.

Development of methods to predict both the dynamic and the pseudo-static response of secondary structures subjected to seismic excitations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Subudhi, M.; Bezler, P.

1984-01-01

Multiple independent support excitation time history formulations have been used to investigate simplified methods to predict the inertial (or dynamic) component of response as well as the pseudo-static (or static) component of response of secondary structures subjected to seismic excitations. For the dynamic component the independent response spectrum method is used with current industry practice for the modal and direction of excitation combinations being adopted and various procedures for the group combination and sequence being investigated. SRSS combination between support groups is found to yield satisfactory results. For the static component, support grouping by elevation for preliminary design followed by support grouping by attachment point for final design assure overall safety in the design

Social support and subjective health complaints among patients participating in an occupational rehabilitation program

OpenAIRE

Øyeflaten, Irene; Gabriele, Jeanne M.; Fisher, Edwin B.; Eriksen, Hege R.

2010-01-01

Objectives: To examine differences in rehabilitation patients' social support received from rehabilitation staff and from support providers outside rehabilitation, and to examine the relationships between social support and the patients' reports of subjective health complaints (SHC). Methods: 131 patients (68 % females, mean age 45 years) participating in a 4-week, inpatient, occupational rehabilitation program were included. All patients completed questionnaires on demographic variables, SHC...

Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra provides reduced effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method in healthy subjects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goto, Masami; Ino, Kenji; Yano, Keiichi [University of Tokyo Hospital, Department of Radiological Technology, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Abe, Osamu [Nihon University School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Aoki, Shigeki [Juntendo University, Department of Radiology, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Hayashi, Naoto [University of Tokyo Hospital, Department of Computational Diagnostic Radiology and Preventive Medicine, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Miyati, Tosiaki [Kanazawa University, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa (Japan); Takao, Hidemasa; Mori, Harushi; Kunimatsu, Akira; Ohtomo, Kuni [University of Tokyo Hospital, Department of Radiology and Department of Computational Diagnostic Radiology and Preventive Medicine, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Iwatsubo, Takeshi [University of Tokyo, Department of Neuropathology, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo (Japan); Yamashita, Fumio [Iwate Medical University, Department of Radiology, Yahaba, Iwate (Japan); Matsuda, Hiroshi [Integrative Brain Imaging Center National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Kodaira, Tokyo (Japan); Collaboration: Japanese Alzheimer' s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative

2013-07-15

This study aimed to investigate whether the effect of scanner for cortex volumetry with atlas-based method is reduced using Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra (DARTEL) normalization compared with standard normalization. Three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (3D-T1WIs) of 21 healthy subjects were obtained and evaluated for effect of scanner in cortex volumetry. 3D-T1WIs of the 21 subjects were obtained with five MRI systems. Imaging of each subject was performed on each of five different MRI scanners. We used the Voxel-Based Morphometry 8 tool implemented in Statistical Parametric Mapping 8 and WFU PickAtlas software (Talairach brain atlas theory). The following software default settings were used as bilateral region-of-interest labels: ''Frontal Lobe,'' ''Hippocampus,'' ''Occipital Lobe,'' ''Orbital Gyrus,'' ''Parietal Lobe,'' ''Putamen,'' and ''Temporal Lobe.'' Effect of scanner for cortex volumetry using the atlas-based method was reduced with DARTEL normalization compared with standard normalization in Frontal Lobe, Occipital Lobe, Orbital Gyrus, Putamen, and Temporal Lobe; was the same in Hippocampus and Parietal Lobe; and showed no increase with DARTEL normalization for any region of interest (ROI). DARTEL normalization reduces the effect of scanner, which is a major problem in multicenter studies. (orig.)

Increased motor cortex excitability during motor imagery in brain-computer interface trained subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Mokienko, Olesya A.; Chervyakov, Alexander V.; Kulikova, Sofia N.; Bobrov, Pavel D.; Chernikova, Liudmila A.; Frolov, Alexander A.; Piradov, Mikhail A.

2013-01-01

Background: Motor imagery (MI) is the mental performance of movement without muscle activity. It is generally accepted that MI and motor performance have similar physiological mechanisms. Purpose: To investigate the activity and excitability of cortical motor areas during MI in subjects who were previously trained with an MI-based brain-computer interface (BCI). Subjects and Methods: Eleven healthy volunteers without neurological impairments (mean age, 36 years; range: 24–68 years) were either trained with an MI-based BCI (BCI-trained, n = 5) or received no BCI training (n = 6, controls). Subjects imagined grasping in a blocked paradigm task with alternating rest and task periods. For evaluating the activity and excitability of cortical motor areas we used functional MRI and navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation (nTMS). Results: fMRI revealed activation in Brodmann areas 3 and 6, the cerebellum, and the thalamus during MI in all subjects. The primary motor cortex was activated only in BCI-trained subjects. The associative zones of activation were larger in non-trained subjects. During MI, motor evoked potentials recorded from two of the three targeted muscles were significantly higher only in BCI-trained subjects. The motor threshold decreased (median = 17%) during MI, which was also observed only in BCI-trained subjects. Conclusion: Previous BCI training increased motor cortex excitability during MI. These data may help to improve BCI applications, including rehabilitation of patients with cerebral palsy. PMID:24319425

Increased motor cortex excitability during motor imagery in brain-computer interface trained subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olesya eMokienko

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Background: Motor imagery (MI is the mental performance of movement without muscle activity. It is generally accepted that MI and motor performance have similar physiological mechanisms.Purpose: To investigate the activity and excitability of cortical motor areas during MI in subjects who were previously trained with an MI-based brain-computer interface (BCI.Subjects and methods: Eleven healthy volunteers without neurological impairments (mean age, 36 years; range: 24–68 years were either trained with an MI-based BCI (BCI-trained, n = 5 or received no BCI training (n = 6, controls. Subjects imagined grasping in a blocked paradigm task with alternating rest and task periods. For evaluating the activity and excitability of cortical motor areas we used functional MRI and navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation (nTMS.Results: fMRI revealed activation in Brodmann areas 3 and 6, the cerebellum, and the thalamus during MI in all subjects. The primary motor cortex was activated only in BCI-trained subjects. The associative zones of activation were larger in non-trained subjects. During MI, motor evoked potentials recorded from two of the three targeted muscles were significantly higher only in BCI-trained subjects. The motor threshold decreased (median = 17% during MI, which was also observed only in BCI-trained subjects.Conclusion: Previous BCI training increased motor cortex excitability during MI. These data may help to improve BCI applications, including rehabilitation of patients with cerebral palsy.

Psychiatric Morbidity among Subjects with Leprosy and Albinism in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Subjects and Methods: One hundred subjects with leprosy and 100 with albinism were interviewed. .... change negative mind-sets and sociocultural stereotypes about albinism in ... respondent's age, gender, marital status, occupation, the highest ... Variables such as age, sex, marital status, occupation, level of education,.

Zirconium-based alloys, nuclear fuel rods and nuclear reactors including such alloys, and related methods

Science.gov (United States)

Mariani, Robert Dominick

2014-09-09

Zirconium-based metal alloy compositions comprise zirconium, a first additive in which the permeability of hydrogen decreases with increasing temperatures at least over a temperature range extending from 350.degree. C. to 750.degree. C., and a second additive having a solubility in zirconium over the temperature range extending from 350.degree. C. to 750.degree. C. At least one of a solubility of the first additive in the second additive over the temperature range extending from 350.degree. C. to 750.degree. C. and a solubility of the second additive in the first additive over the temperature range extending from 350.degree. C. to 750.degree. C. is higher than the solubility of the second additive in zirconium over the temperature range extending from 350.degree. C. to 750.degree. C. Nuclear fuel rods include a cladding material comprising such metal alloy compositions, and nuclear reactors include such fuel rods. Methods are used to fabricate such zirconium-based metal alloy compositions.

Bioavailability and Pharmacodynamics of Promethazine in Human Subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, J. L.; Boster, B.; Wang, Z.; Shah, V.; Berens, K. L.; Sipes, W. E.; Anderson, K. E.; Putcha, L.

2004-01-01

The acute effects of exposure to microgravity include the development of space motion sickness, which usually requires therapeutic intervention. The current drug of choice, promethazine (PMZ), is available to astronauts in three different dosage forms during space flight; its side effects include nausea, dizziness, sedation and impaired psychomotor performance. This ground-based study is designed to validate flight-suitable methods for pharmacodynamic evaluation of PMZ and to estimate bioavailability and pharmacodynamics of PMZ. Experimental design consists of intramuscular administration of three doses of PMZ (12.5,25 and 50 mg) and placebo in a randomized double blind fashion to human subjects and collecting blood, urine and saliva samples for 72 h. Subjects also complete cognitive performance test batteries, WinSCAT (Windows based Space Cognitive Assessment Test) and ARES (ANAM Readiness Evaluation System). Preliminary results indicate a significant relationship (p=9.88e-05) between circulating PMZ levels and cognitive performance parameters. Time to accurately complete memory tasks increases significantly with concentrations; higher concentrations also increase response time and decrease accuracy of substitution and matching tasks. AUC and half-life estimates for PMZ ranged between 0.12 and 1.7 mg.h/L and 15 and 50 h, respectively. These preliminary results indicate that PMZ may exhibit dose-dependent pharmacokinetics in humans; also, WinSCAT and ARES are sensitive for pharmacodynamic assessment of PMZ, and may be applicable for assessing the pharmacodynamics of other neurocognitive drugs.

Status and subjects of thermal-hydraulic analysis for next-generation LWRs with passive safety systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

The present status and subjects on thermal-hydraulic analysis for next-generation light water reactors (LWRs) with passive safety systems were summarized based on survey results and discussion by subcommittee on improvement of reactor thermal-hydraulic analysis codes under nuclear code committee in Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. This survey was performed to promote the research of improvement of reactor thermal-hydraulic analysis codes in future. In the first part of this report, the status and subjects on system analysis and those on evaluation of passive safety system performance are summarized for various types of reactor proposed before. In the second part, the status and subjects on multidimensional two-phase flow analysis are reviewed, since the multidimensional analysis was recognized as one of most important subjects through the investigation in the first part. Besides, databases for bubbly flow and annular dispersed flow were explored, those are needed to assess and verify each multidimensional analytical method. The contents in this report are the forefront of thermal-hydraulic analysis for LWRs and those include current findings for the development of multidimensional two-phase flow analytical method. Thus, we expect that the contents can offer various useful information against the improvement of reactor thermal-hydraulic analysis codes in future. (author)

[Factors related to subjective fatigue symptoms of adolescent girls].

Science.gov (United States)

Ikeda, Junko; Fukuda, Sayuri; Murakami, Toshio; Kawamoto, Naoki

2011-09-01

To assess changes in subjective fatigue symptoms of adolescent girls over a 15-year period and investigate factors related to these symptoms. A total of 86 items on physical health (including subjective fatigue symptoms), dietary life, and daily living were investigated and five items on physical activity were measured for approximately 100 female first-year dietetic students at a junior college each October over the 15-year period from 1994 to 2008. A total of 1,547 students (mean age, 19.2 +/- 0.3 years) were studied. Subjects were first divided into two groups using the median subjective fatigue score as the cutoff point, and annual changes in the proportion of students in the high subjective fatigue group were investigated by simple regression analysis. In addition, relationships between the two subjective fatigue groups and each item were investigated. 1) The proportion of students with many subjective fatigue symptoms showed a significantly increasing trend over the 15-year period. 2) Investigation of relationships between subjective fatigue symptoms and each factor revealed significance for many items, including dietary habits, life satisfaction, amount of sleep, and desire for a positive body image. 3) In order to determine which of the items were most strongly related to subjective fatigue symptoms, multiple logistic regression analysis was performed for the 15-year period as well as three 5-year periods into which it was divided. The results showed that the dietary habits score (an indicator of dietary habits) and life satisfaction were related to subjective fatigue symptoms during all four periods. As for other items, relationships were observed for amount of sleep in three, diet and salt intake score in two, and liking for coffee/tea, juice drinks, and oily food, bedtime snack, desire for body image, self-assessment of body type, and health consciousness in one. These findings indicate that perspectives in education for promoting the health of

Single-Subject Research Methodology: An Underutilized Tool in the Field of Deafness.

Science.gov (United States)

Bullis, Michael; Anderson, Glenn

1986-01-01

Single-subject research methods are simple, powerful, and very applicable to selected study of deafness. This article considers group versus single-subject designs; an example of withdrawal single-subject design; and an example of the multiple baseline single-subject design. (CB)

[Association of job burnout with subjective well-being and health status among employees from 29 provinces in China].

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, C J; Xiao, Y; Pan, N; Ye, J; Lin, Q X; Jin, Y

2017-10-20

Objective: To investigate the influence of job burnout on subjective well-being and health status among employees in China. Methods: The data from the 2014 China Labor-force Dynamic Survey were used to analyze the association of job burnout with subjective well-being and health status among 7289 employees aged 18-64 years from 29 provinces in China.Some items from the Maslach Burnout Inventory-General Survey were used to investigate job burnout; subjective well-being assessment included life happiness and degree of satisfaction with living condition; the questions for self-evaluation of health status were used to analyze health status. Results: Of all employees,30.5% had low subjective well-being and 4.7% had poor health status based on self-evaluation. The logistic regression analysis showed that emotional exhaustion(two items), reduced sense of personal accomplishment,and cynicism were risk factors for low subjective well-being( OR =1.07,1.11,1.10,and 1.06, P factor for poor health status ( OR =1.10 and 1.07, P influence on health status( P >0.05). Conclusion: Emotional exhaustion is a major influencing factor for health status,and reducing job burnout may be an effective method for improving subjective well-being and health status.

Skin acceptability of a cosmetic moisturizer formulation in female subjects with sensitive skin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nisbet SJ

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Stephanie J Nisbet Skin Health Medical Affairs, GSK Consumer Healthcare, Weybridge, Surrey, UK Purpose: This 3-week, open-label, noncomparative clinical study evaluated the skin acceptability of a cosmetic moisturizer in subjects with sensitive skin, by monitoring adverse events (AEs and cutaneous discomfort related to normal usage.Materials and methods: Female subjects aged between 18–60 years, with Fitzpatrick phototype classification I–IV and sensitive skin, verified by a positive reaction on the stinging test at screening, were included. Subjects applied the moisturizer to their face and body twice daily for 21±2 days at home and recorded study product usage and feelings of cutaneous discomfort (eg, dryness, prickling, stinging, and itching in a diary; any AEs were reported to the clinic. At study end, skin acceptability of the moisturizer was investigator-assessed based on the nature of AEs and subjects’ self-reported feelings of discomfort, and by clinical evaluation of skin reactions in the area of moisturizer application (appearance of erythema, formation of edema, and skin desquamation; scored according to an adapted Draize and Kligman scale. Only subjects with a treatment compliance of ≥80% were included in the final analysis.Results: In total, 35 subjects initiated and completed the study; all were compliant to the minimum study product usage. Per investigator clinical dermatological assessment at study end, none of the 35 subjects had skin reactions in the area of moisturizer application and there were no reported AEs. One subject reported sensations of mild prickling and itching immediately after applying the moisturizer (not classified as AEs, which spontaneously remitted after complete absorption of the product and were noted only in exposed areas. These events were considered by the investigator as being possibly/probably related to the use of study product; however, no clinical signs of skin reaction were observed in

Robust Subjective Visual Property Prediction from Crowdsourced Pairwise Labels.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Yanwei; Hospedales, Timothy M; Xiang, Tao; Xiong, Jiechao; Gong, Shaogang; Wang, Yizhou; Yao, Yuan

2016-03-01

The problem of estimating subjective visual properties from image and video has attracted increasing interest. A subjective visual property is useful either on its own (e.g. image and video interestingness) or as an intermediate representation for visual recognition (e.g. a relative attribute). Due to its ambiguous nature, annotating the value of a subjective visual property for learning a prediction model is challenging. To make the annotation more reliable, recent studies employ crowdsourcing tools to collect pairwise comparison labels. However, using crowdsourced data also introduces outliers. Existing methods rely on majority voting to prune the annotation outliers/errors. They thus require a large amount of pairwise labels to be collected. More importantly as a local outlier detection method, majority voting is ineffective in identifying outliers that can cause global ranking inconsistencies. In this paper, we propose a more principled way to identify annotation outliers by formulating the subjective visual property prediction task as a unified robust learning to rank problem, tackling both the outlier detection and learning to rank jointly. This differs from existing methods in that (1) the proposed method integrates local pairwise comparison labels together to minimise a cost that corresponds to global inconsistency of ranking order, and (2) the outlier detection and learning to rank problems are solved jointly. This not only leads to better detection of annotation outliers but also enables learning with extremely sparse annotations.

Where are human subjects in Big Data research? The emerging ethics divide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob Metcalf

2016-06-01

Full Text Available There are growing discontinuities between the research practices of data science and established tools of research ethics regulation. Some of the core commitments of existing research ethics regulations, such as the distinction between research and practice, cannot be cleanly exported from biomedical research to data science research. Such discontinuities have led some data science practitioners and researchers to move toward rejecting ethics regulations outright. These shifts occur at the same time as a proposal for major revisions to the Common Rule—the primary regulation governing human-subjects research in the USA—is under consideration for the first time in decades. We contextualize these revisions in long-running complaints about regulation of social science research and argue data science should be understood as continuous with social sciences in this regard. The proposed regulations are more flexible and scalable to the methods of non-biomedical research, yet problematically largely exclude data science methods from human-subjects regulation, particularly uses of public datasets. The ethical frameworks for Big Data research are highly contested and in flux, and the potential harms of data science research are unpredictable. We examine several contentious cases of research harms in data science, including the 2014 Facebook emotional contagion study and the 2016 use of geographical data techniques to identify the pseudonymous artist Banksy. To address disputes about application of human-subjects research ethics in data science, critical data studies should offer a historically nuanced theory of “data subjectivity” responsive to the epistemic methods, harms and benefits of data science and commerce.

Morphision: A method for subjective evaluation of metamorphopsia in patients with unilateral macular pathology (i.e., full thickness macular hole and epiretinal membrane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta Ugarte

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Lack of clinical tests to quantify spatial components of distortion in patients with full thickness macular holes (FTMH and epiretinal membranes (ERM. Aim: To develop a test for subjective evaluation of visual distortion in the central visual field around fixation in patients with unilateral FTMH or ERM. Settings and Design: Prospective case-control study carried out at tertiary referral center. Materials and Methods: Twenty-five patients with unilateral macular disease (13 macular epiretinal membranes, 12 full-thickness macular holes, and nine controls (without ocular pathology underwent ophthalmological examination with logMAR ETDRS visual acuity, near vision and contrast sensitivity assessed. Macular optical coherence tomography and metamorphopsia assessment using Morphision test was also carried out. This test consists of a set of modified Amsler charts for detection, identification, and subjective quantification of visual distortion in the central visual field around fixation. Morphision test content and construct validity, and reliability (test-retest method were evaluated. Sixteen patients completed an unstructured survey on test performance and preference. Results: Every patient with unilateral FTMH or ERM identified a particular chart using Morphision test (content validity. None of the normal subjects without symptoms of metamorphopsia identified any distortion (construct validity. Test-retest showed a 100% consistency for frequency and 67% for amplitude. The mean amplitude difference between measurements was 0.02 degrees (SD = 0.038. The coefficient of repeatability was 0.075. There was a correlation between Morphision amplitude score and visual acuity and contrast sensitivity, individually. Conclusions: Morphision test allowed detection and subjective quantification of metamorphopsia in the clinical setting in our patients with unilateral macular epiretinal membranes and full thickness macular holes.

Postural stability in subjects with anterior cruciate ligament injury

OpenAIRE

Kolář, Miroslav

2011-01-01

6 Abstract Title: Postural stability in subjects with anterior cruciate ligament injury. Objectives: The aim of this thesis was to find out if the postural stability is differed in subjects with anterior cruciate ligament injury and in the control group after the "4 steps - one leg stance" test had been performed. Methods: This study compared a group with anterior cruciate ligament injury and a control group on the basis of the "4 steps - one leg stance" test. Methods of comparison and analys...

Pen needle design influences ease of insertion, pain, and skin trauma in subjects with type 2 diabetes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Præstmark, Kezia A; Jensen, Morten L; Berg Madsen, Nils

2016-01-01

subject and in random order. Penetration force (PF) through the skin, pain perception on 100 mm visual analog scale, and change in skin blood perfusion (SBP) were quantified after the insertions. RESULTS: Needle diameter was positively related to PF and SBP (ptrend relation...... of insertion, pain and skin trauma. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: 30 subjects with injection-treated type 2 diabetes and body mass index 25-35 kg/m(2) were included in the single-blinded study. Each subject received abdominal insertions with 18 different types of needles. All needles were tested twice per....... Lack of needle lubrication and small 'needle hooks' increased PF and SBP (pskin and in polyurethane rubber were linearly related, and pain outcome...

Coping with subjectivity in vulnerability assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Renis, T.A.; Cardwell, R.G.

1988-01-01

Vulnerability assessment models are widely used to systematically evaluate the performance of complex safeguards systems against a variety of threats. These models require varying levels of detail and input data about the physical design of a facility and its safeguards operations and procedures. However, to evaluate safeguards effectiveness and give a performance rating, these models require additional performance data reflecting probabilities of detection, assessment, interruption, and neutralization, as well as the associated times for various adversary scenarios. These data may be attained from equipment design specifications, laboratory testing, expert judgment, or component testing. Regardless of how these data are obtained, they are inherently subjective. This paper addresses the uses of various vulnerability assessment models and the nature of subjectivity in those models. The paper also describes methods for coping with subjective data

E-education in pathology including certification of e-institutions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kayser, Klaus; Ogilvie, Robert; Borkenfeld, Stephan; Kayser, Gian

2011-03-30

E-education or electronically transferred continuous education in pathology is one major application of virtual microscopy. The basic conditions and properties of acoustic and visual information transfer, of teaching and learning processes, as well as of knowledge and competence, influence its implementation to a high degree. Educational programs and structures can be judged by access to the basic conditions, by description of the teaching resources, methods, and its program, as well as by identification of competences, and development of an appropriate evaluation system. Classic teaching and learning methods present a constant, usually non-reversible information flow. They are subject to personal circumstances of both teacher and student. The methods of information presentation need to be distinguished between static and dynamic, between acoustic and visual ones. Electronic tools in education include local manually assisted tools (language assistants, computer-assisted design, etc.), local passive tools (slides, movies, sounds, music), open access tools (internet), and specific tools such as Webinars. From the medical point of view information content can be divided into constant (gross and microscopic anatomy) and variable (disease related) items. Most open access available medical courses teach constant information such as anatomy or physiology. Mandatory teaching resources are image archives with user-controlled navigation and labelling, student-oriented user manuals, discussion forums, and expert consultation. A classic undergraduate electronic educational system is WebMic which presents with histology lectures. An example designed for postgraduate teaching is the digital lung pathology system. It includes a description of diagnostic and therapeutic features of 60 rare and common lung diseases, partly in multimedia presentation. Combining multimedia features with the organization structures of a virtual pathology institution will result in a virtual pathology

The importance of subjective claims management.

Science.gov (United States)

Beger, C S

1997-01-01

This article discusses the causes and effects of "subjective disability" on today's workforce and employers. As employees feel out of control with both their careers and demands placed upon them, the number of claims characterized by self-reported symptoms are increasing. Subjective disabilities include chronic syndrome, fibromyalgia, psychiatric claims and chronic pain. The author discusses creative strategies in case studies that have helped employers contain the costs of disability claims, while empowering the employee to take control of their own situation and return to work sooner.

Stability by Liapunov's direct methods with applications

CERN Document Server

Salle, Joseph La

1961-01-01

In this book, we study theoretical and practical aspects of computing methods for mathematical modelling of nonlinear systems. A number of computing techniques are considered, such as methods of operator approximation with any given accuracy; operator interpolation techniques including a non-Lagrange interpolation; methods of system representation subject to constraints associated with concepts of causality, memory and stationarity; methods of system representation with an accuracy that is the best within a given class of models; methods of covariance matrix estimation;methods for low-rank mat

Initial value methods for boundary value problems

CERN Document Server

Meyer, Gunter H

1973-01-01

In this book, we study theoretical and practical aspects of computing methods for mathematical modelling of nonlinear systems. A number of computing techniques are considered, such as methods of operator approximation with any given accuracy; operator interpolation techniques including a non-Lagrange interpolation; methods of system representation subject to constraints associated with concepts of causality, memory and stationarity; methods of system representation with an accuracy that is the best within a given class of models; methods of covariance matrix estimation;methods for low-rank mat

Localized surface plasmon resonance mercury detection system and methods

Science.gov (United States)

James, Jay; Lucas, Donald; Crosby, Jeffrey Scott; Koshland, Catherine P.

2016-03-22

A mercury detection system that includes a flow cell having a mercury sensor, a light source and a light detector is provided. The mercury sensor includes a transparent substrate and a submonolayer of mercury absorbing nanoparticles, e.g., gold nanoparticles, on a surface of the substrate. Methods of determining whether mercury is present in a sample using the mercury sensors are also provided. The subject mercury detection systems and methods find use in a variety of different applications, including mercury detecting applications.

Electronic cigarettes: abuse liability, topography and subjective effects.

Science.gov (United States)

Evans, Sarah E; Hoffman, Allison C

2014-05-01

To review the available evidence evaluating the abuse liability, topography, subjective effects, craving and withdrawal suppression associated with e-cigarette use in order to identify information gaps and provide recommendations for future research. Literature searches were conducted between October 2012 and January 2014 using five electronic databases. Studies were included in this review if they were peer-reviewed scientific journal articles evaluating clinical laboratory studies, national surveys or content analyses. A total of 15 peer-reviewed articles regarding behavioural use and effects of e-cigarettes published between 2010 and 2014 were included in this review. Abuse liability studies are limited in their generalisability. Topography (consumption behaviour) studies found that, compared with traditional cigarettes, e-cigarette average puff duration was significantly longer, and e-cigarette use required stronger suction. Data on e-cigarette subjective effects (such as anxiety, restlessness, concentration, alertness and satisfaction) and withdrawal suppression are limited and inconsistent. In general, study data should be interpreted with caution, given limitations associated with comparisons of novel and usual products, as well as the possible effects associated with subjects' previous experience/inexperience with e-cigarettes. Currently, very limited information is available on abuse liability, topography and subjective effects of e-cigarettes. Opportunities to examine extended e-cigarette use in a variety of settings with experienced e-cigarette users would help to more fully assess topography as well as behavioural and subjective outcomes. In addition, assessment of 'real-world' use, including amount and timing of use and responses to use, would clarify behavioural profiles and potential adverse health effects.

Objective and Subjective Factors of Perception of Russia’s Image in the EU

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Мария Игоревна Ведерникова

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The article examines the role of international environment influencing the image of Russia. The author reveals the psychological mechanisms of perception of the image of Russia in the EU. Considerable attention is paid to the analysis of objective and subjective factors constructive and negative perception of Russia and its political leader. Status conflicts are analyzed in the article as well, including methods and techniques of purposeful distortion of the image of Russia in Europe.

An improved method for sacro-iliac joint imaging: a study of normal subjects, patients with sacro-iliitis and patients with low back pain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ayres, J.; Hilson, A.J.W.; Maisey, M.N.; Laurent, R.; Panayi, G.S.; Saunders, A.J.

1981-01-01

A new method is described for quantitative measurement of the uptake of sup(99m)Tc-methylene diphosphonate (MDP) by the sacro-iliac joints. The method uses 'regions of interest' providing advantages over the previously described 'slice' method; the two methods are compared in normal subjects, patients with known sacro-iliitis and patients with low back pain. Sacro-iliac activity, as calculated by the sacro-iliac index (SII) in normal patients, was shown to decrease with age in females but not in males. The SII was compared with radiographs of the sacro-iliac joints in the patients with known sacro-iliac joint disease and in those with low back pain. The method is useful for the exclusion of sacro-iliitis as a specific cause of back pain. (author)

THE STRESS RESISTANCE OF STUDENTS. THE PARADIGM OF SUBJECT PERSONALITY SELF- ORGANIZATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergey I. Dyakov

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of the investigation is to consider a problem of stress resistance of students in the context of subject self-organization of the personality. Methods. The following methods of research are used: questioning; psychological and diagnostic tests «Tolerance of Uncertainty» (NTN and «Personal Factors of Decisions» (PFD by T. V. Kornilova; original experimental experiences – «Coding», a technique of a self-assessment (scaling and «A locus control». While data processing the methods of mathematical statistics (SPSS 12 package – the correlation analysis of Pearson and the factorial analysis with rotation use a component by «verimax» method are applied. Results and scientific novelty. Types of subjectivity and strategy of stress resistance are allocated. The nature and a role of the emotional and stressful mechanism having information and semantic properties in its basis are disclosed. Communication of irresponsible mechanisms of mentality with the sphere of consciousness in the context of subjectivity of the personality is shown. Mechanisms of emotional and rational self-control of system of mental self-organization of the person are presented. The statistical and qualitative data opening communications between properties of subjectivity and stress resistance of the personality are empirically obtained. Variation of the relations and also types of subjectivity and stress resistance emphasized based on the results of the presented research. Original (author’s methods of studying of subjectivity and factors of stress resistance are presented. Practical significance. The revealed factors of subject self-organization reveal the stress-producing directions of the environment and the relation of the personality to situations of changes and uncertainty: and also indicate subject properties of resistance to stress which need to be developed to increase the level of health of students, to reduce risk of deviance and delinquency of

Tackling the sheer scale of subjective QoE

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Menkovski, V.; Exarchakos, G.; Liotta, A.; Atzoni, L.; Delgado, J.; Giusto, D.D.

2012-01-01

Maximum Likelihood Difference Scaling (MLDS) used as a method for subjective assessment of video quality alleviates the inconveniencies associated with high variation and biases common in rating methods. However, the number of tests in a MLDS study rises fairly quickly with the number of samples

Energy Data Base: subject categories and scope

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bost, D.E.

1985-03-01

The subject scope of the Energy Data Base (EDB) encompasses all DOE-sponsored research. Broadly defined, EDB subject scope includes all technological aspects of energy production, conversion, and efficient utilization, and the economic, social, and political aspects as well. Scope notes are provided to define the extent of interest in certain subject areas, particularly areas of basic research. Cross references between categories are provided to aid both the categorization of information and its retrieval. Citations entered into DOE's computerized bibliographic information system are assigned six-digit subject category numbers to broadly group information for storage, retrieval, and manipulation. These numbers are used in the preparation of printed documents, such as bibliographies and abstract journals, to arrange the citations and to aid searching on the DOE/RECON on-line system

Assessment of clinical residents' needs for ten educational subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mansour Razavi

2002-04-01

Full Text Available Background Fulfilling the learners' "real needs" will improve medical education. There are subjects that are necessary for any clinical residents not considering their field of specialty. Among the subjects ten seems to be the most important: research methodology and data analysis, computer-based programs, medical recording, cardiopulmonary and cerebral resuscitation, clinical teaching programs, communication skills, clinical ethics, laboratory examinations, reporting special diseases and death certification, and prescription. Purpose This cross-sectional study assessed educational needs of clinical residents for ten educational subjects. Methods A questionnaire prepared by board faculty members consisted of 10 close-ended questions, and one open­ ended question was distributed among 1307 residents from 22 clinical disciplines, who registered for preboard or promotion exam in June 2000. Results Among the subjects three were the most needed: computer-based programs 149 (60%, data collecting system 606 (49%, and clinical ethics 643 (46%. The prescription standard was the least required 177(13%. Conclusion Complementary training courses on these subjects can be an answer to the clinical residents needs. Keywords : research methodology, computer in medicine, cpr, clinical teaching methods, communication in medicine, medical ethics, laboratory ordering, disease coding system, death certificate, prescription writing

Pulmonary function in subjects with psoriasis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, P. R.; Isaksen, Jonas Lynggaard; Jemec, G. B.

2018-01-01

Psoriasis is a prevalent chronic inflammatory disease associated with comorbidities, e.g. cardiometabolic diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, and depression that may share an inflammatory origin. Smoking increases the risk of psoriasis and the disease has also been linked to chronic obstructive...... pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, with evidence of shared inflammatory cytokine-mediated mechanisms. Moreover, subjects with psoriasis display increased risk of infections, especially respiratory infections including pneumonia. However, only a small single-center study of pulmonary function in subjects...... with psoriasis is available. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved....

Setting of methods for analysis of mucosal antibodies in seminal and vaginal fluids of HIV seropositive subjects from Cambodian and Italian cohorts.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carla Donadoni

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Genital mucosae play a key role in protection from STD and HIV infection, due to their involvement in both horizontal and vertical disease transmission. High variability of published observations concerning IgA isolation and quantification underlies the strong requirement of specific methods able to maximize investigation on HIV-specific IgA.Genital fluids from 109 subjects, including male and female cohorts from Italy and Cambodia, were collected, aliquoted and processed with different techniques, to assess optimal conditions maximizing mucosal antibody recovery. Three sampling techniques, up to sixteen preservation conditions, six ELISA methods and four purifications protocols were compared.The optimal method here described took advantage of Weck-Cel sampling of female mucosal fluids. Immediate processing of genital fluids, with the addition of antibiotics and EDTA, improved recovery of vaginal IgA, while the triple addition of EDTA, antibiotics and protease inhibitors provided the highest amount of seminal IgA. Due to low amount of IgA in mucosal fluids, a high sensitive sandwich ELISA assay was set; sensitivity was enhanced by milk-based overcoating buffer and by a two-step biotin-streptavidin signal amplification. Indeed, commercial antisera to detect human immunoglobulins showed weak cross-reactivity to different antibody types. Three-step affinity purification provided reproducible immunoglobulin recovery from genital specimens, while conventional immuno-affinity IgA purification was found poorly manageable. Affinity columns were suitable to isolate mucosal IgA, which are ten-fold less concentrated than IgG in genital specimens, and provided effective separation of IgA monomers, dimers, and J-chains. Jacalin-bound resin successfully separated IgA1 from IgA2 subfraction.Specific, effective and reliable methods to study local immunity are key items in understanding host mucosal response. The sequence of methods here described is effective

Subjective Population of Personality: Socio-Psychological Aspects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vadym Zavatskyi

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The paper is aimed at identifying the influence of socio-psychological factors on the formation of subjective wellbeing of a married person. The following methods were used: questionnaire, psycho diagnostic techniques for investigating satisfaction with marriage, personal self-fulfillment in the family (on the operational level and the level of values and role sets, socio-psychological adaptation, conformity of family values and role expectations in marriage. The data about the content, structural components (cognitive and evaluation, value and motivational, emotional and behavioral and functions (regulatory, prognostic, developmental of subjective well-being of a married person have been presented. Socio-psychological factors of subjective well-being of a married person have been specified.

Comparison between Subjective Sensations during First and Second Phacoemulsification Eye Surgeries in Patients with Bilateral Cataract

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ji-guo Yu

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. To evaluate and compare the subjective sensations reported by patients during first and second cataract extractions. Methods. Consecutive patients undergoing bilateral sequential cataract extraction using phacoemulsification were recruited. Following cataract surgery, patients completed questionnaires designed to evaluate subjective sensations, including anxiety, eye bulges, pain, and light sensitivity. Changes in painful sensations experienced by patients between the two surgeries were also recorded. Comparisons were also performed for each subjective sensation between different age groups (79 years. Results. A total of 127 patients were included in the final evaluation. Statistical comparison of the results showed that there were significant differences in perception of anxiety, eye bulges, and pain scores between the first and second cataract surgeries (P0.05 for all. Conclusions. Our research confirms the common observation that patients with bilateral cataracts often report more ocular discomfort during the second surgery. There are, therefore, additional factors that should be considered upon treating patients with bilateral cataracts, and the provision of preoperative counseling could play an important role in providing adequate patient care.

Document clustering methods, document cluster label disambiguation methods, document clustering apparatuses, and articles of manufacture

Science.gov (United States)

Sanfilippo, Antonio [Richland, WA; Calapristi, Augustin J [West Richland, WA; Crow, Vernon L [Richland, WA; Hetzler, Elizabeth G [Kennewick, WA; Turner, Alan E [Kennewick, WA

2009-12-22

Document clustering methods, document cluster label disambiguation methods, document clustering apparatuses, and articles of manufacture are described. In one aspect, a document clustering method includes providing a document set comprising a plurality of documents, providing a cluster comprising a subset of the documents of the document set, using a plurality of terms of the documents, providing a cluster label indicative of subject matter content of the documents of the cluster, wherein the cluster label comprises a plurality of word senses, and selecting one of the word senses of the cluster label.

Absolute magnitude estimation and relative judgement approaches to subjective workload assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Vidulich, Michael A.; Tsang, Pamela S.

1987-01-01

Two rating scale techniques employing an absolute magnitude estimation method, were compared to a relative judgment method for assessing subjective workload. One of the absolute estimation techniques used was an unidimensional overall workload scale and the other was the multidimensional NASA-Task Load Index technique. Thomas Saaty's Analytic Hierarchy Process was the unidimensional relative judgment method used. These techniques were used to assess the subjective workload of various single- and dual-tracking conditions. The validity of the techniques was defined as their ability to detect the same phenomena observed in the tracking performance. Reliability was assessed by calculating test-retest correlations. Within the context of the experiment, the Saaty Analytic Hierarchy Process was found to be superior in validity and reliability. These findings suggest that the relative judgment method would be an effective addition to the currently available subjective workload assessment techniques.

Functional aspects of treatment with implant-supported single crowns: a quality control study in subjects with tooth agenesis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Goshima, Kenichi; Lexner, Michala O; Thomsen, Carsten Eckhart

2010-01-01

-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) in subjects with tooth agenesis. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In nine females and nine males (32 + or - 10 years) with agenesis treated with one to four ISSC (68% in the premolar region), the treatment effect and masticatory function were assessed. The evaluation was performed first...... after implant placement shortly before crown cementation, and again 1 month after cementation. It consisted of questionnaires [including Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-49)] and functional examination with plastic strips, the Dental Prescale Film and the Occluzer system, Xylitol color-changeable gum...... with ISSCs in subjects with tooth agenesis significantly increased masticatory function subjectively and clinically as well as OHRQoL. However, as the functional parameters before replacement of the teeth corresponded to values in subjects with complete dentitions, the functional importance of the increase...

Methods for subjective determination of transmission quality

CERN Document Server

International Telecommunication Union. Geneva

2000-01-01

The main purpose of this List is to indicate all the ITU-T (and CCITT) Recommendations currently in effect at the date of its publication In addition, it includes the CCITT/ITU-T Supplements which contain operational or other practical/implementation a particular Series of Recommendations. At present, more than 2600 recommendations (standards) on some 60,000 pages are in force. Recommendations are non-binding standards agreed by consensus in technical study groups. ITU-T Recommendations are non-binding, however they are generally complied with due to their high quality and because they guarantee the interconnectivity of networks and enable telecommunication services to be provided on a worldwide scale.

The subjective experience of using Ignatian meditation by male and female South African university students: an exploratory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Efthimiadis-Keith, Helen; Lindegger, Graham

2014-10-01

This study is set out to examine the subjective experience of using the Ignatian method of meditation to reflect on and pray through Ruth 2. A group of male and female Theology students from the University of KwaZulu-Natal were invited to reflect upon/pray through Ruth 2 using Ignatian meditation. Following this exercise, participants were invited to participate in a focus group in which they shared their experience of this exercise, focusing particularly on some of the gendered aspects of the experience. The transcribed focus group material was subjected to a critical thematic analysis, in order to identify which core aspects of the experience of using this method of meditation and reflection were responsible for the reported subjective experiences. The analysis also included a comparison of the experience for men and women participating in this exercise, and the differential effect of various aspects of the exercise on men and women.

Predictors of subjective health status 10 years post-PCI

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Berge, Jan C.; Dulfer, Karolijn; Utens, Elisabeth M. W. J.; Hartman, Eline M. J.; Daemen, Joost; van Geuns, Robert J.; van Domburg, Ron T.

2016-01-01

Subjective health status is an increasingly important parameter to assess the effect of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in clinical practice. Aim of this study was to determine medical and psychosocial predictors of poor subjective health status over a 10 years' post-PCI period. We included

Effects of strain history on structural reliability analysis of pipes subjected to reeling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ernst, Hugo A.; Bravo, Richard E. [TENARIS Group, Campana (Argentina). Center for Industrial Research; Daguerre, Federico [TENARIS Group (Mexico). TAMSA

2005-07-01

In this work a method to perform a Structural Reliability Analysis (SRA) for a tube subject to reeling is considered in detail. A fracture mechanics based methodology is reviewed and the points that need to be resolved before extending the methods to include reeling are clearly identified. The effect of the strain history on the applied and material fracture mechanics parameters were studied. A theoretical model was developed to describe the crack driving force evolution through strain cycles. A criterion was proposed and corroborated to represent material fracture resistance behavior. An experimental program was carried out. The material analyzed was a X65 grade. Monotonic and cyclic fracture mechanic tests were performed on single edge notch in tension specimens. The material fracture resistance curve was determined based on the monotonic tests. The cyclic tests were used to determine experimentally the applied fracture mechanic parameters evolution. A very good agreement between predicted and measured CTOD values was obtained for the cases analyzed. A methodology to perform a SRA for tube subjected to reeling is proposed. (author)

An Expert System Approach to Online Catalog Subject Searching.

Science.gov (United States)

Khoo, Christopher S. G.; Poo, Danny C. C.

1994-01-01

Reviews methods to improve online catalogs for subject searching and describes the design of an expert system front-end to improve subject access in online public access catalogs that focuses on search strategies. Implementation of a prototype system at the National University of Singapore is described, and reformulation strategies are discussed.…

A sensitive multi-residue method for the determination of 35 micropollutants including pharmaceuticals, iodinated contrast media and pesticides in water.

Science.gov (United States)

Valls-Cantenys, Carme; Scheurer, Marco; Iglesias, Mònica; Sacher, Frank; Brauch, Heinz-Jürgen; Salvadó, Victoria

2016-09-01

A sensitive, multi-residue method using solid-phase extraction followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was developed to determine a representative group of 35 analytes, including corrosion inhibitors, pesticides and pharmaceuticals such as analgesic and anti-inflammatory drugs, five iodinated contrast media, β-blockers and some of their metabolites and transformation products in water samples. Few other methods are capable of determining such a broad range of contrast media together with other analytes. We studied the parameters affecting the extraction of the target analytes, including sorbent selection and extraction conditions, their chromatographic separation (mobile phase composition and column) and detection conditions using two ionisation sources: electrospray ionisation (ESI) and atmospheric pressure chemical ionisation (APCI). In order to correct matrix effects, a total of 20 surrogate/internal standards were used. ESI was found to have better sensitivity than APCI. Recoveries ranging from 79 to 134 % for tap water and 66 to 144 % for surface water were obtained. Intra-day precision, calculated as relative standard deviation, was below 34 % for tap water and below 21 % for surface water, groundwater and effluent wastewater. Method quantification limits (MQL) were in the low ng L(-1) range, except for the contrast agents iomeprol, amidotrizoic acid and iohexol (22, 25.5 and 17.9 ng L(-1), respectively). Finally, the method was applied to the analysis of 56 real water samples as part of the validation procedure. All of the compounds were detected in at least some of the water samples analysed. Graphical Abstract Multi-residue method for the determination of micropollutants including pharmaceuticals, iodinated contrast media and pesticides in waters by LC-MS/MS.

Exploring Monte Carlo methods

CERN Document Server

Dunn, William L

2012-01-01

Exploring Monte Carlo Methods is a basic text that describes the numerical methods that have come to be known as "Monte Carlo." The book treats the subject generically through the first eight chapters and, thus, should be of use to anyone who wants to learn to use Monte Carlo. The next two chapters focus on applications in nuclear engineering, which are illustrative of uses in other fields. Five appendices are included, which provide useful information on probability distributions, general-purpose Monte Carlo codes for radiation transport, and other matters. The famous "Buffon's needle proble

A FILTRATION METHOD AND APPARATUS INCLUDING A ROLLER WITH PORES

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2008-01-01

The present invention offers a method for separating dry matter from a medium. A separation chamber is at least partly defined by a plurality of rollers (2,7) and is capable of being pressure regulated. At least one of the rollers is a pore roller (7) having a surface with pores allowing permeabi...

Prevalence of the apolipoprotein E ε4 allele in amyloid β positive subjects across the spectrum of Alzheimer's disease

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mattsson, Niklas; Groot, Colin; Jansen, Willemijn J

2018-01-01

INTRODUCTION: Apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 is the major genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), but its prevalence is unclear because earlier studies did not require biomarker evidence of amyloid β (Aβ) pathology. METHODS: We included 3451 Aβ+ subjects (853 AD-type dementia, 1810 mild cog...

Leptin receptor in peripheral adipose tissues of obese subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Du Tongxin; Sun Junjiang; Wang Zizheng; Wang Shukui; Fu Lei; Han Liu

2002-01-01

Objective: To investigate the relationship between leptin receptor and obesity by studying the leptin receptor density B max and dissociation constant K d in peripheral adipose tissue in subjects with different body weight mass (BMI). Methods: Leptin receptor density B max and K d were assayed via radioligand method in 71 cases, including 32 classified as obese, 19 over-weight and 20 normal control. Results: With the escalating of BMI, the leptin receptor density significantly decreased in obese and over-weight group compared with that in normal control (both P d values were of no differences among all three groups suggesting no correlation between the binding ability of leptin to its receptor and BMI. A negative correlation between BMI and B max (r=-0.76, P<0.01) displayed after all. Conclusion: Leptin receptor density correlates with the BMI in obese cases and it suggests that the down-regulation of leptin receptor may contribute to the occurrence of leptin resistance and obesity after-wards

Determining fertility in a bovine subject comprises detecting in a sample from the bovine subject the presence or absence of genetic marker alleles associated with a trait indicative of fertility of the bovine subject and/or off-spring

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2009-01-01

NOVELTY - Determining fertility in a bovine subject comprises detecting in a sample from the bovine subject the presence or absence of two or more genetic marker alleles that are associated with a trait indicative of fertility of the bovine subject and/or off-spring. USE - The methods are useful...... for determining fertility in a bovine subject; and selecting bovine subjects for breeding purposes (all claimed). DETAILED DESCRIPTION - Determining fertility in a bovine subject comprises detecting in a sample from the bovine subject the presence or absence of two or more genetic marker alleles...... that are associated with a trait indicative of fertility of the bovine subject and/or off-spring, where the two or more genetic marker alleles are single nucleotide polymorphisms selected from Hapmap60827-rs29019866, ARS-BFGL-NGS-40979, Hapmap47854-BTA-119090, ARS-BFGL-NGS-114679, Hapmap43841-BTA-34601, Hapmap43407...

Effect of postural changes on ICP in healthy and ill subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Lonnie G; Juhler, Marianne

2015-01-01

to distinguish normal human physiology from disease entities such as idiopathic intracranial hypertension and normal pressure hydrocephalus, we investigated ICP in different body postures in both normal and ill subjects. METHODS: Thirty-one patients were included: four normal patients following complete removal......: upright standing, sitting in a chair, supine and right lateral lumbar puncture position. RESULTS: Linear regression of median ICP based on patient posture, group, and purpose of monitoring presented a significant model (p ... of differences in median ICP between body postures and supine ICP as the baseline, presented a highly significant model (p posture (p postures enabled...

Stability analysis of shallow tunnels subjected to eccentric loads by a boundary element method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehdi Panji

2016-08-01

Full Text Available In this paper, stress behavior of shallow tunnels under simultaneous non-uniform surface traction and symmetric gravity loading was studied using a direct boundary element method (BEM. The existing full-plane elastostatic fundamental solutions to displacement and stress fields were used and implemented in a developed algorithm. The cross-section of the tunnel was considered in circular, square, and horseshoe shapes and the lateral coefficient of the domain was assumed as unit quantity. Double-node procedure of the BEM was applied at the corners to improve the model including sudden traction changes. The results showed that the method used was a powerful tool for modeling underground openings under various external as well as internal loads. Eccentric loads significantly influenced the stress pattern of the surrounding tunnel. The achievements can be practically used in completing and modifying regulations for stability investigation of shallow tunnels.

Prediction of functional overreaching from subjective fatigue and readiness to train after only 3 days of cycling

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ten Haaf, Twan; van Staveren, Selma; Oudenhoven, Erik; Piacentini, Maria F.; Meeusen, Romain; Roelands, Bart; Koenderman, Leo; Daanen, Hein A.M.; Foster Jr., Carl; De Koning, Jos J.

2017-01-01

Purpose: To investigate whether monitoring of easily measurable stressors and symptoms can be used to distinguish early between acute fatigue (AF) and functional overreaching (FOR). Methods: The study included 30 subjects (11 female, 19 male; age 40.8 ± 10.8 y, VO2max 51.8 ± 6.3 mL kg-1 min-1) who

Letting Students Take the Lead: A User-Centred Approach to Evaluating Subject Guides

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kimberley Hintz

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Objective – What do students need and want from library subject guides? Options such as Web 2.0 enhancement are now available to librarians creating subject-specific web pages. Librarians may be eager to implement these new tools, but are such add-ons a priority forstudents? This paper aims to start a dialogue on this issue by presenting the findings of the University of British Columbia (UBC Library’s Subject Guides Working Group (SGWG, which was tasked with assessing current library subject guides in order to make recommendations for the update and future development of UBC Library subject guides.Methods – The working group solicited feedback through a questionnaire that was distributed to undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of disciplines at UBC. The questionnaire included an evaluation of UBC subject guides, as well as guides from other academic libraries that used various platforms such as LibGuides and SubjectsPlus.Results – Respondents to the student questionnaire indicated that a simple and clean layout was of primary importance. Students also desired succinct annotations to resources and limited page scrolling. Meanwhile, few students identified Web 2.0 features such as rating systems and discussion forums as being important for their needs. The working group used the questionnaire data to create a “Top Ten” list of student recommendations.Conclusions – The “Top Ten” list of student recommendations was combined with stakeholder feedback from faculty, liaison librarians and Library Systems and Information Technology representatives to create the SGWG’s final recommendation for subject guide revision and enhancement. For the SGWG these findings called into question the necessity of Web 2.0 technologies within subject guide pages and highlighted the need for further research on the topic of subject guide usability and effectiveness.

Eighteen-point abobotulinum toxin a upper face rejuvenation: an eye plastic perspective on 845 subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Kashkouli, Mohsen Bahmani; Amani, Afsaneh; Jamshidian-Tehrani, Mansooreh; Yousefi, Sahar; Jazayeri, Anis Alsadat

2014-01-01

To report the method and results of 18-point Abobotulinum toxin A (ABO-BTA, Dysport) upper face rejuvenation on 845 subjects. In a retrospective chart review, all subjects (the first cycle of injection) with ABO-BTA upper face rejuvenation from 2003 to 2009 were included. Excluded were subjects with facial spastic disorders, injection after upper face lifting, and aberrant regeneration of facial nerves. Upper face rejuvenation included 18 points of injection at forehead creases (4), frown lines (5), bunny line (1), crow's feet (4 on both sides), and lower eyelid crease (4 on both sides). They were revisited in 10 to 14 days for assessment of the effects and possible touch-up injection. Demographics, year of injection, topical anesthetic usage, touch-up injection, and adverse effects (AE) were recorded. There were 845 subjects (85.8% women) whose age was below 40 in 49.3%. All but 68 (8%) were happy with the touch-up visit, 10 to 14 days after injection. Touch-up injection was performed in 8% of subjects mainly for the eyebrow asymmetry. AE (22/845, 2.6%) were bruise (15/845, 1.8%), blepharoptosis (3/845, 0.3%), remained eyebrow asymmetry after touch-up injection (2/845, 0.2%), and headache (2/845, 0.2%). They were significantly more in subjects with touch-up injection, younger than 40 years, and in the first and second year of experience (especially for the bruise). Eighteen-point ABO-BTA upper face rejuvenation had a low rate of AE in this series in which majority was bruise at the lateral canthal area. They were significantly more in the first years of experience, subjects younger than 40, and who had touch-up injections.

Technical meeting on lessons learned with respect to SAT implementation, including development of trainers and use of cost effective training methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

The past years have brought some significant changes in the world energy market, where the nuclear power plants and utilities are operating. Part of NPPs is privatised now; the electricity markets are liberalized and become more and more international. Due to the increase of competition, the power production costs are now monitored more closely than before. The opening of electricity markets has led the nuclear power plants to be under the serious economic pressure with a demand for continuous cost reduction. All these require from NPPs to make their personnel training more cost-effective. In addition, based on modern technology, a great amount of new training tools, aids and technologies have been introduced during the last 2-3 years, these new opportunities can be quite useful for training cost optimization. On the basis of experience gained worldwide in the application of the systematic approach to training (SAT), SAT based training is now a broad integrated approach emphasizing not only technical knowledge and skills but also human factor related knowledge, skills and attitudes. In this way, all competency requirements for attaining and maintaining personnel competence and qualification can be met, thus promoting and strengthening quality culture and safety culture, which should be fostered throughout the initial and continuing training programmes. The subject of the present technical meeting was suggested by the members of the Technical Working Group on Training and Qualification of NPP Personnel (TWG-T and Q) and supported by a number of the IAEA meetings on NPP personnel training. The technical Meeting on 'Lessons Learned with Respect to SAT Implementation, Including Development of Trainers and Use of Cost Effective Training Methods' was organized by the IAEA in co-operation with the Tecnatom A.S. and was held from 21 to 24 October 2002 in San Sebastian de los Reyes/ Madrid, Spain. The main objective of the meeting was to provide an international forum for

Method for including detailed evaluation of daylight levels in Be06

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Steffen

2008-01-01

Good daylight conditions in office buildings have become an important issue due to new European regulatory demands which include energy consumption for electrical lighting in the building energy frame. Good daylight conditions in offices are thus in increased focus as an energy conserving measure....... In order to evaluate whether a certain design is good daylight design or not building designers must perform detailed evaluation of daylight levels, including the daylight performance of dynamic solar shadings, and include these in the energy performance evaluation. However, the mandatory national...... calculation tool in Denmark (Be06) for evaluating the energy performance of buildings is currently using a simple representation of available daylight in a room and simple assumptions regarding the control of shading devices. In a case example, this is leading to an overestimation of the energy consumption...

Theory of difference equations numerical methods and applications

CERN Document Server

Lakshmikantham, Vangipuram

1988-01-01

In this book, we study theoretical and practical aspects of computing methods for mathematical modelling of nonlinear systems. A number of computing techniques are considered, such as methods of operator approximation with any given accuracy; operator interpolation techniques including a non-Lagrange interpolation; methods of system representation subject to constraints associated with concepts of causality, memory and stationarity; methods of system representation with an accuracy that is the best within a given class of models; methods of covariance matrix estimation;methods for low-rank mat

Second-principles method for materials simulations including electron and lattice degrees of freedom

Science.gov (United States)

García-Fernández, Pablo; Wojdeł, Jacek C.; Íñiguez, Jorge; Junquera, Javier

2016-05-01

We present a first-principles-based (second-principles) scheme that permits large-scale materials simulations including both atomic and electronic degrees of freedom on the same footing. The method is based on a predictive quantum-mechanical theory—e.g., density functional theory—and its accuracy can be systematically improved at a very modest computational cost. Our approach is based on dividing the electron density of the system into a reference part—typically corresponding to the system's neutral, geometry-dependent ground state—and a deformation part—defined as the difference between the actual and reference densities. We then take advantage of the fact that the bulk part of the system's energy depends on the reference density alone; this part can be efficiently and accurately described by a force field, thus avoiding explicit consideration of the electrons. Then, the effects associated to the difference density can be treated perturbatively with good precision by working in a suitably chosen Wannier function basis. Further, the electronic model can be restricted to the bands of interest. All these features combined yield a very flexible and computationally very efficient scheme. Here we present the basic formulation of this approach, as well as a practical strategy to compute model parameters for realistic materials. We illustrate the accuracy and scope of the proposed method with two case studies, namely, the relative stability of various spin arrangements in NiO (featuring complex magnetic interactions in a strongly-correlated oxide) and the formation of a two-dimensional electron gas at the interface between band insulators LaAlO3 and SrTiO3 (featuring subtle electron-lattice couplings and screening effects). We conclude by discussing ways to overcome the limitations of the present approach (most notably, the assumption of a fixed bonding topology), as well as its many envisioned possibilities and future extensions.

Biases and power for groups comparison on subjective health measurements.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamel, Jean-François; Hardouin, Jean-Benoit; Le Neel, Tanguy; Kubis, Gildas; Roquelaure, Yves; Sébille, Véronique

2012-01-01

Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT), relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT) relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald's test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative.

Biases and power for groups comparison on subjective health measurements.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean-François Hamel

Full Text Available Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT, relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald's test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative.

Biases and Power for Groups Comparison on Subjective Health Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Hamel, Jean-François; Hardouin, Jean-Benoit; Le Neel, Tanguy; Kubis, Gildas; Roquelaure, Yves; Sébille, Véronique

2012-01-01

Subjective health measurements are increasingly used in clinical research, particularly for patient groups comparisons. Two main types of analytical strategies can be used for such data: so-called classical test theory (CTT), relying on observed scores and models coming from Item Response Theory (IRT) relying on a response model relating the items responses to a latent parameter, often called latent trait. Whether IRT or CTT would be the most appropriate method to compare two independent groups of patients on a patient reported outcomes measurement remains unknown and was investigated using simulations. For CTT-based analyses, groups comparison was performed using t-test on the scores. For IRT-based analyses, several methods were compared, according to whether the Rasch model was considered with random effects or with fixed effects, and the group effect was included as a covariate or not. Individual latent traits values were estimated using either a deterministic method or by stochastic approaches. Latent traits were then compared with a t-test. Finally, a two-steps method was performed to compare the latent trait distributions, and a Wald test was performed to test the group effect in the Rasch model including group covariates. The only unbiased IRT-based method was the group covariate Wald’s test, performed on the random effects Rasch model. This model displayed the highest observed power, which was similar to the power using the score t-test. These results need to be extended to the case frequently encountered in practice where data are missing and possibly informative. PMID:23115620

A comparison of ultrasound measurements to assess carotid atherosclerosis development in subjects with and without type 2 diabetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zinman Bernard

2005-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Subjects with type 2 diabetes are at an increased risk of vascular complications. The use of carotid ultrasound remains an attractive, non-invasive method to monitor atherosclerotic disease progression and/or response to treatment in patients with type 2 diabetes, with intima-media thickness routinely used as the gold standard to detect pathology. However, alternative measurements, such as plaque area or volume, may represent a potentially more powerful approach. Thus, the objective of this study was to compare the traditional intima-media thickness measurement against the novel total plaque volume measurement in analyzing carotid atherosclerosis development in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Methods The case-control study included 49 Oji-Cree adults with diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance, aged 21–69, and 49 sex- and age-matched normoglycemic subjects. At baseline, metabolic variables were measured, including body mass index, waist circumference, total cholesterol:high density lipoprotein ratio, plasma triglycerides, plasma glucose, and serum insulin. Carotid ultrasound measurements, 7 years later, assessed carotid arterial intima-media thickness and total plaque volume. Results At baseline, the two groups were well matched for smoking habits, hypertension, body mass index, and waist circumference. Differences were noted in baseline measurements of total cholesterol:high density lipoprotein (P = 0.0006, plasma triglycerides (P P P = 0.037, but not intima-media thickness measurements, were higher in subjects with diabetes/impaired glucose tolerance compared to the normoglycemic controls. Correlation between intima-media thickness and total plaque volume was moderate. Based on our study findings, to achieve power levels >0.70 when comparing intima-media thickness measurements for diabetics versus non-diabetics, thousands of study subjects are required. For comparing total plaque volume measurements, only hundreds of

A Study of the Subject Categorization of the MIS-related Journals in the ISI Databases Using Topical Features in the Text Content and Machine Learning Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sung-Chien Lin

2015-07-01

Full Text Available In this study we analyzed and discussed that the MIS-related journals under the ISI subject category of IS&LS are simultaneously given with subject category Management, using methods of topic modeling, journal clustering and subject category prediction. In the experiment of journal clustering, all journals under subject category Management and other journals also having similar topical features can be gathered into a cluster, and “management” is their common and the most distinct topic. Because the journals belonged to this cluster are almost same to those in the MIS clusters generated by the previous studies, we considered it as the MIS cluster in this study. In the second experiment, we used the classification and regression tree (CART technique to predict assignment of subject category with that the journals in the original subject category Management and in the MIS cluster produced in this study as positive examples, respectively. The trees generated by the two tests both used the occurring probabilities of the topic “management” as the main classification rule. However, in the latter test, we did not only obtain a simpler classification tree but also had a result with less predicting errors. This means that if all journals in the MIS cluster could be given with subject category Management, the retrieval results can be more effective and complete.

[Design of standard voice sample text for subjective auditory perceptual evaluation of voice disorders].

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jin-rang; Sun, Yan-yan; Xu, Wen

2010-09-01

To design a speech voice sample text with all phonemes in Mandarin for subjective auditory perceptual evaluation of voice disorders. The principles for design of a speech voice sample text are: The short text should include the 21 initials and 39 finals, this may cover all the phonemes in Mandarin. Also, the short text should have some meanings. A short text was made out. It had 155 Chinese words, and included 21 initials and 38 finals (the final, ê, was not included because it was rarely used in Mandarin). Also, the text covered 17 light tones and one "Erhua". The constituent ratios of the initials and finals presented in this short text were statistically similar as those in Mandarin according to the method of similarity of the sample and population (r = 0.742, P text were statistically not similar as those in Mandarin (r = 0.731, P > 0.05). A speech voice sample text with all phonemes in Mandarin was made out. The constituent ratios of the initials and finals presented in this short text are similar as those in Mandarin. Its value for subjective auditory perceptual evaluation of voice disorders need further study.

Solar Energy Education. Reader, Part II. Sun story. [Includes glossary

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1981-05-01

Magazine articles which focus on the subject of solar energy are presented. The booklet prepared is the second of a four part series of the Solar Energy Reader. Excerpts from the magazines include the history of solar energy, mythology and tales, and selected poetry on the sun. A glossary of energy related terms is included. (BCS)

Effects of a visuotemporal cue on walking ability of independent ambulatory subjects with spinal cord injury as compared with healthy subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Pramodhyakul, N; Amatachaya, P; Sooknuan, T; Arayawichanon, P; Amatachaya, S

2014-03-01

An experimental, cross-sectional study. To investigate effects of using a visuotemporal cue on the walking ability of independent ambulatory subjects with spinal cord injury (SCI) as compared with healthy subjects. A tertiary rehabilitation center, Thailand. Forty independent ambulatory subjects with SCI and healthy subjects participated in the study (20 subjects per group). All of them were assessed for their walking speed, stride length, cadence and percents of step symmetry under two conditions, including walking at their fastest speed with and without a visuotemporal cue along a 10 m walkway. When walking with a visuotemporal cue, walking speed, stride length and cadence of the subjects were significantly increased from the uncued condition (Pwalking speed and cadence, whereas, subjects with SCI demonstrated significantly higher improvement in stride length as compared with the other group (Pbenefits of using a visuotemporal cue to improve variables relating to walking ability in subjects with intact integrative capability of the brain but with different levels of sensorimotor deterioration. The findings suggest the use of a visuotemporal cue to improve the effectiveness of programs in sport and exercise sciences, and rehabilitation treatments.

The Effects of Magnesium Supplementation on Subjective Anxiety and Stress—A Systematic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Boyle, Neil Bernard; Lawton, Clare; Dye, Louise

2017-01-01

Background: Anxiety related conditions are the most common affective disorders present in the general population with a lifetime prevalence of over 15%. Magnesium (Mg) status is associated with subjective anxiety, leading to the proposition that Mg supplementation may attenuate anxiety symptoms. This systematic review examines the available evidence for the efficacy of Mg supplementation in the alleviation of subjective measures of anxiety and stress. Methods: A systematic search of interventions with Mg alone or in combination (up to 5 additional ingredients) was performed in May 2016. Ovid Medline, PsychInfo, Embase, CINAHL and Cochrane databases were searched using equivalent search terms. A grey literature review of relevant sources was also undertaken. Results: 18 studies were included in the review. All reviewed studies recruited samples based upon an existing vulnerability to anxiety: mildly anxious, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), postpartum status, and hypertension. Four/eight studies in anxious samples, four/seven studies in PMS samples, and one/two studies in hypertensive samples reported positive effects of Mg on subjective anxiety outcomes. Mg had no effect on postpartum anxiety. No study administered a validated measure of subjective stress as an outcome. Conclusions: Existing evidence is suggestive of a beneficial effect of Mg on subjective anxiety in anxiety vulnerable samples. However, the quality of the existing evidence is poor. Well-designed randomised controlled trials are required to further confirm the efficacy of Mg supplementation. PMID:28445426

Early Labour Market Returns to College Subject

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buonanno, Paolo; Pozzoli, Dario

2009-01-01

We estimate early labour market outcomes of Italian university  graduates across college subjects. We devote great attention to endogenous selection issues using alternative methods to control for potential self-selection associated with the choice of the degree subject in order to unravel...... the causal link between college major and subsequent outcomes in the labour market. Our results suggest that 'quantitative' fields (i.e. Sciences, Engineering, and Economics) increase not only the speed of transition into the first job and employment probability but also early earnings, conditional...

Early labour market returns to college subjects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buonanno, Paolo; Pozzoli, Dario

This paper aims at estimating early labour market outcomes  of Italian university graduates across college subjects. We devote great attention to endogenous selection issues using alternative methods to control for potential self-selection associated with the choice of the degree subject in order...... to unravel the causal link between college major and subsequent outcomes in the labour market.  Our results suggest that "quantitative" fields (i.e. Sciences, Engineering and Economics) increase not only the speed of transition into the first job and employment probability but also early earnings...

Extracting Characteristics of the Study Subjects from Full-Text Articles.

Science.gov (United States)

Demner-Fushman, Dina; Mork, James G

Characteristics of the subjects of biomedical research are important in determining if a publication describing the research is relevant to a search. To facilitate finding relevant publications, MEDLINE citations provide Medical Subject Headings that describe the subjects' characteristics, such as their species, gender, and age. We seek to improve the recommendation of these headings by the Medical Text Indexer (MTI) that supports manual indexing of MEDLINE. To that end, we explore the potential of the full text of the publications. Using simple recall-oriented rule-based methods we determined that adding sentences extracted from the methods sections and captions to the abstracts prior to MTI processing significantly improved recall and F1 score with only a slight drop in precision. Improvements were also achieved in directly assigning several headings extracted from the full text. These results indicate the need for further development of automated methods capable of leveraging the full text for indexing.

Seismic analysis of piping systems subjected to multiple support excitations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sundararajan, C.; Vaish, A.K.; Slagis, G.C.

1981-01-01

The paper presents the results of a comparative study between the multiple response spectrum method and the time-history method for the seismic analysis of nuclear piping systems subjected to different excitation at different supports or support groups. First, the necessary equations for the above analysis procedures are derived. Then, three actual nuclear piping systems subjected to single and multiple excitations are analyzed by the different methods, and extensive comparisons of the results (stresses) are made. Based on the results, it is concluded that the multiple response spectrum analysis gives acceptable results as compared to the ''exact'', but much more costly, time-history analysis. 6 refs

Expanding subjectivities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lundgaard Andersen, Linda; Soldz, Stephen

2012-01-01

A major theme in recent psychoanalytic thinking concerns the use of therapist subjectivity, especially “countertransference,” in understanding patients. This thinking converges with and expands developments in qualitative research regarding the use of researcher subjectivity as a tool......-Saxon and continental traditions, this special issue provides examples of the use of researcher subjectivity, informed by psychoanalytic thinking, in expanding research understanding....

Implementation aspects of the Boundary Element Method including viscous and thermal losses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cutanda Henriquez, Vicente; Juhl, Peter Møller

2014-01-01

The implementation of viscous and thermal losses using the Boundary Element Method (BEM) is based on the Kirchhoff’s dispersion relation and has been tested in previous work using analytical test cases and comparison with measurements. Numerical methods that can simulate sound fields in fluids...

Subjective sleep quality in sarcoidosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Bosse-Henck, Andrea; Wirtz, Hubert; Hinz, Andreas

2015-05-01

Poor sleep is common among patients with medical disorders. Sleep disturbances can be a cause of fatigue and poor quality of life for patients suffering from sarcoidosis. Studies on subjective sleep quality or prevalence of insomnia have not been reported so far. The aim of this study was to investigate the subjectively reported sleep quality and its relation to psychological and physical factors in sarcoidosis patients. 1197 patients from Germany diagnosed with sarcoidosis were examined using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Medical Research Council (MRC) dyspnea scale, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI). 802 patients (67%) had PSQI global scores >5, indicating subjectively poor quality of sleep. The mean PSQI score was 7.79 ± 4.00. Women reported a significantly inferior individual quality of sleep than men. The subjective quality of sleep was lowered significantly with increasing dyspnea for men and women. 294 patients (25%) had PSQI global scores >10 usually found in patients with clinically relevant insomnia. In this group 86% had high values for fatigue, 69% for anxiety, and 59% for depression. The prevalence of known sleep apnea was 8.7% and 15.7% for restless legs. Poor subjective sleep quality in sarcoidosis patients is about twice as common as in the general population and is associated with fatigue, anxiety, depression and dyspnea. Questions about sleep complaints should therefore be included in the management of sarcoidosis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Subject Reference Lists Produced by Computer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ching-chih Chen

1968-08-01

Full Text Available A system developed to produce fourteen subject reference lists by IBM 360/75 is described in detail. The computerized system has many advantages over conventional manual procedures. The feedback from students and other users is discussed, and some analysis of cost is included.

Subject-Specific Sparse Dictionary Learning for Atlas-Based Brain MRI Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Snehashis; He, Qing; Sweeney, Elizabeth; Carass, Aaron; Reich, Daniel S; Prince, Jerry L; Pham, Dzung L

2015-09-01

Quantitative measurements from segmentations of human brain magnetic resonance (MR) images provide important biomarkers for normal aging and disease progression. In this paper, we propose a patch-based tissue classification method from MR images that uses a sparse dictionary learning approach and atlas priors. Training data for the method consists of an atlas MR image, prior information maps depicting where different tissues are expected to be located, and a hard segmentation. Unlike most atlas-based classification methods that require deformable registration of the atlas priors to the subject, only affine registration is required between the subject and training atlas. A subject-specific patch dictionary is created by learning relevant patches from the atlas. Then the subject patches are modeled as sparse combinations of learned atlas patches leading to tissue memberships at each voxel. The combination of prior information in an example-based framework enables us to distinguish tissues having similar intensities but different spatial locations. We demonstrate the efficacy of the approach on the application of whole-brain tissue segmentation in subjects with healthy anatomy and normal pressure hydrocephalus, as well as lesion segmentation in multiple sclerosis patients. For each application, quantitative comparisons are made against publicly available state-of-the art approaches.

Increasing the amount of payment to research subjects

Science.gov (United States)

Resnick, DB

2014-01-01

This article discusses some ethical issues that can arise when researchers decide to increase the amount of payment offered to research subjects to boost enrollment. Would increasing the amount of payment be unfair to subjects who have already consented to participate in the study? This article considers how five different models of payment—the free market model, the wage payment model, the reimbursement model, the appreciation model, and the fair benefits model—would approach this issue. The article also considers several practical problems related to changing the amount of payment, including determining whether there is enough money in the budget to offer additional payments to subjects who have already enrolled, ascertaining how difficult it will be to re-contact subjects, and developing a plan of action for responding to subjects who find out they are receiving less money and demand an explanation. PMID:18757614

The influence of electromyographic recording methods and the innervation zone on the mean power frequency-torque relationships.

Science.gov (United States)

Herda, Trent J; Zuniga, Jorge M; Ryan, Eric D; Camic, Clayton L; Bergstrom, Haley C; Smith, Doug B; Weir, Joseph P; Cramer, Joel T; Housh, Terry J

2015-06-01

This study examined the effects of electromyographic (EMG) recording methods and innervation zone (IZ) on the mean power frequency (MPF)-torque relationships. Nine subjects performed isometric ramp muscle actions of the leg extensors from 5% to 100% of maximal voluntary contraction with an eight channel linear electrode array over the IZ of the vastus lateralis. The slopes were calculated from the log-transformed monopolar and bipolar EMG MPF-torque relationships for each channel and subject and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were constructed around the slopes for each relationship and the composite of the slopes. Twenty-two to 55% of the subjects exhibited 95% CIs that did not include a slope of zero for the monopolar EMG MPF-torque relationships while 25-75% of the subjects exhibited 95% CIs that did not include a slope of zero for the bipolar EMG MPF-torque relationships. The composite of the slopes from the EMG MPF-torque relationships were not significantly different from zero for any method or channel, however, the method and IZ location slightly influenced the number of significant slopes on a subject-by-subject basis. The log-transform model indicated that EMG MPF-torque patterns were nonlinear regardless of recording method or distance from the IZ. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Theoretical Significance in Q Methodology: A Qualitative Approach to a Mixed Method

Science.gov (United States)

Ramlo, Susan

2015-01-01

Q methodology (Q) has offered researchers a unique scientific measure of subjectivity since William Stephenson's first article in 1935. Q's focus on subjectivity includes self-referential meaning and interpretation. Q is most often identified with its technique (Q-sort) and its method (factor analysis to group people); yet, it consists of a…

Generalized linear mixed model for binary outcomes when covariates are subject to measurement errors and detection limits.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Xianhong; Xue, Xiaonan; Strickler, Howard D

2018-01-15

Longitudinal measurement of biomarkers is important in determining risk factors for binary endpoints such as infection or disease. However, biomarkers are subject to measurement error, and some are also subject to left-censoring due to a lower limit of detection. Statistical methods to address these issues are few. We herein propose a generalized linear mixed model and estimate the model parameters using the Monte Carlo Newton-Raphson (MCNR) method. Inferences regarding the parameters are made by applying Louis's method and the delta method. Simulation studies were conducted to compare the proposed MCNR method with existing methods including the maximum likelihood (ML) method and the ad hoc approach of replacing the left-censored values with half of the detection limit (HDL). The results showed that the performance of the MCNR method is superior to ML and HDL with respect to the empirical standard error, as well as the coverage probability for the 95% confidence interval. The HDL method uses an incorrect imputation method, and the computation is constrained by the number of quadrature points; while the ML method also suffers from the constrain for the number of quadrature points, the MCNR method does not have this limitation and approximates the likelihood function better than the other methods. The improvement of the MCNR method is further illustrated with real-world data from a longitudinal study of local cervicovaginal HIV viral load and its effects on oncogenic HPV detection in HIV-positive women. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Nuclear medicine and imaging research (instrumentation and quantitative methods of evaluation)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beck, R.N.; Cooper, M.; Chen, C.T.

1992-07-01

This document is the annual progress report for project entitled ''Instrumentation and Quantitative Methods of Evaluation.'' Progress is reported in separate sections individually abstracted and indexed for the database. Subject areas reported include theoretical studies of imaging systems and methods, hardware developments, quantitative methods of evaluation, and knowledge transfer: education in quantitative nuclear medicine imaging

Method for identifying type I diabetes mellitus in humans

Science.gov (United States)

Metz, Thomas O [Kennewick, WA; Qian, Weijun [Richland, WA; Jacobs, Jon M [Pasco, WA; Smith, Richard D [Richland, WA

2011-04-12

A method and system for classifying subject populations utilizing predictive and diagnostic biomarkers for type I diabetes mellitus. The method including determining the levels of a variety of markers within the serum or plasma of a target organism and correlating this level to general populations as a screen for predisposition or progressive monitoring of disease presence or predisposition.

Positive design : An introduction to design for subjective well-being

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Desmet, P.M.A.; Pohlmeyer, A.E.

2013-01-01

This paper addresses the question of how design can contribute to the happiness of individuals–to their subjective well-being. A framework for positive design is introduced that includes three main components of subjective well-being: pleasure, personal significance and virtue. Each component

Novel simulation method of space charge effects in electron optical systems including emission of electrons

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Zelinka, Jiří; Oral, Martin; Radlička, Tomáš

2018-01-01

Roč. 184, JAN (2018), s. 66-76 ISSN 0304-3991 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LO1212; GA MŠk ED0017/01/01 Institutional support: RVO:68081731 Keywords : space charge * self-consistent simulation * aberration polynomial * electron emission Subject RIV: JA - Electronics ; Optoelectronics, Electrical Engineering Impact factor: 2.843, year: 2016

Adult Playfulness, Humor Styles, and Subjective Happiness.

Science.gov (United States)

Yue, Xiao D; Leung, Chun-Lok; Hiranandani, Neelam A

2016-12-01

Playfulness has been referred to as a disposition that involves reframing a situation to amuse others and to make the situation more stimulating and enjoyable. It may serve to shift one's perspective when dealing with environmental threats. Despite all the benefits of playfulness towards psychological well-being, it remains a largely understudied subject in psychology, particularly in Chinese societies. Hence, this study examined the association between adult playfulness, humor styles, and subjective happiness among a sample of 166 university students in Hong Kong and 159 students in Guangzhou, who completed a self-administered questionnaire, including the Short Measure for Adult Playfulness, the Chinese Humor Styles Questionnaire, and the Subjective Happiness Scale. Results showed that adult playfulness was positively correlated with affiliative humor, self-enhancing humor, and subjective happiness in both Hong Kong and Guangzhou samples. By its implication, highly playful Chinese students preferred using affiliative and self-enhancing humor to amuse themselves and others. © The Author(s) 2016.

The Potential of Subjective Semantic Methods in Exploring the Perception of Architecture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vyrva A.U.,

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This research focuses on empirical explorations of psychological features and mechanisms of the percep¬tion of urban architecture and on the specifics of the perception of buildings of various architectural styles. The techniques employed included those of personality and architectural semantic differential and the Value Spectrum technique. Four factors were found to have a significant impact on an individual’s percep¬tion and understanding of architectural space: ‘passive-active’, ‘whole-split’, ‘open-closed’, and ‘expressive’. People tend to attribute more semantic features and values to listed buildings or buildings that bear witness of a certain historical period than to those buildings that look alike and represent a typical example of mass housing. No significant sex differences were found in the individuals’ evaluations of buildings. Consistent quantitative differences were revealed between the images of listed buildings and of mass housing. The paper describes the relevance of various research methods in explorations of architectural images.

Perception of faces in schizophrenia: Subjective (self-report) vs. objective (psychophysics) assessments

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yue; Ekstrom, Tor

2016-01-01

Objectives Face perception impairment in schizophrenia has been demonstrated, mostly through experimental studies. How this laboratory-defined behavioral impairment is associated with patients’ perceptual experience of various faces in everyday life is however unclear. This question is important because a first-person account of face perception has direct consequences on social functioning of patients. In this study, we adapted and administered a self-reported questionnaire on narrative perceptual experience of faces along with psychophysical assessments of face perception in schizophrenia. Methods The self-reported questionnaire includes six rating items of face-related functioning in everyday life, providing a subjective measure of face perception. The psychophysical assessment determines perceptual threshold for discriminating different facial identities, providing an objective measure of face perception. Results Compared to controls (n=25), patients (n=35) showed significantly lower scores (worse performance) in the subjective assessment and significantly higher thresholds (worse performance) in the objective assessment. The subjective and objective face perception assessments were moderately correlated in controls but not in patients. The subjective face perception assessments were significantly correlated with measurements of a social cognitive ability (Theory of Mind), again in controls but not in patients. Conclusion These results suggest that in schizophrenia the quality of face-related functioning in everyday life is degraded and the role that basic face discrimination capacity plays in face-related everyday functioning is disrupted. PMID:26938027

Impaired Fat-induced Thermogenesis in Obese Subjects: The NUGENOB Study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Blaak, E.E.; Hul, G.; Verdich, C.; Stich, V.; Martinez, J.A.; Petersen, M.; Feskens, E.J.M.; Patel, K.; Oppert, J.M.; Barbe, P.; Tourbro, S.; Polak, J.; Anderson, I.; Astrup, A.; Macdonald, I.; Langin, D.; Sorensen, T.; Saris, W.H.M.

2007-01-01

Objectives: To study energy expenditure before and 3 hours after a high-fat load in a large cohort of obese subjects (n=701) and a lean reference group (n = 113). Research Methods and Procedures: Subjects from seven European countries underwent a 1-day clinical study with a liquid test meal

Measure Guideline: Summary of Interior Ducts in New Construction, Including an Efficient, Affordable Method to Install Fur-Down Interior Ducts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beal, D.; McIlvaine , J.; Fonorow, K.; Martin, E.

2011-11-01

This document illustrates guidelines for the efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing, including the fur-up chase method, the fur-down chase method, and interior ducts positioned in sealed attics or sealed crawl spaces. This document illustrates guidelines for the efficient installation of interior duct systems in new housing. Interior ducts result from bringing the duct work inside a home's thermal and air barrier. Architects, designers, builders, and new home buyers should thoroughly investigate any opportunity for energy savings that is as easy to implement during construction, such as the opportunity to construct interior duct work. In addition to enhanced energy efficiency, interior ductwork results in other important advantages, such as improved indoor air quality, increased system durability and increased homeowner comfort. While the advantages of well-designed and constructed interior duct systems are recognized, the implementation of this approach has not gained a significant market acceptance. This guideline describes a variety of methods to create interior ducts including the fur-up chase method, the fur-down chase method, and interior ducts positioned in sealed attics or sealed crawl spaces. As communication of the intent of an interior duct system, and collaboration on its construction are paramount to success, this guideline details the critical design, planning, construction, inspection, and verification steps that must be taken. Involved in this process are individuals from the design team; sales/marketing team; and mechanical, insulation, plumbing, electrical, framing, drywall and solar contractors.

Automated longitudinal intra-subject analysis (ALISA) for diffusion MRI tractography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aarnink, Saskia H; Vos, Sjoerd B; Leemans, Alexander

2014-01-01

the inter-subject and intra-subject automation in this situation are intended for subjects without gross pathology. In this work, we propose such an automated longitudinal intra-subject analysis (dubbed ALISA) approach, and assessed whether ALISA could preserve the same level of reliability as obtained....... The major disadvantage of manual FT segmentations, unfortunately, is that placing regions-of-interest for tract selection can be very labor-intensive and time-consuming. Although there are several methods that can identify specific WM fiber bundles in an automated way, manual FT segmentations across...... multiple subjects performed by a trained rater with neuroanatomical expertise are generally assumed to be more accurate. However, for longitudinal DTI analyses it may still be beneficial to automate the FT segmentation across multiple time points, but then for each individual subject separately. Both...

A subject-independent pattern-based Brain-Computer Interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Markus Ray

2015-10-01

Full Text Available While earlier Brain-Computer Interface (BCI studies have mostly focused on modulating specific brain regions or signals, new developments in pattern classification of brain states are enabling real-time decoding and modulation of an entire functional network. The present study proposes a new method for real-time pattern classification and neurofeedback of brain states from electroencephalographic (EEG signals. It involves the creation of a fused classification model based on the method of Common Spatial Patterns (CSPs from data of several healthy individuals. The subject-independent model is then used to classify EEG data in real-time and provide feedback to new individuals. In a series of offline experiments involving training and testing of the classifier with individual data from 27 healthy subjects, a mean classification accuracy of 75.30% was achieved, demonstrating that the classification system at hand can reliably decode two types of imagery used in our experiments, i.e. happy emotional imagery and motor imagery. In a subsequent experiment it is shown that the classifier can be used to provide neurofeedback to new subjects, and that these subjects learn to match their brain pattern to that of the fused classification model in a few days of neurofeedback training. This finding can have important implications for future studies on neurofeedback and its clinical applications on neuropsychiatric disorders.

An Automated Processing Method for Agglomeration Areas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chengming Li

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Agglomeration operations are a core component of the automated generalization of aggregated area groups. However, because geographical elements that possess agglomeration features are relatively scarce, the current literature has not given sufficient attention to agglomeration operations. Furthermore, most reports on the subject are limited to the general conceptual level. Consequently, current agglomeration methods are highly reliant on subjective determinations and cannot support intelligent computer processing. This paper proposes an automated processing method for agglomeration areas. Firstly, the proposed method automatically identifies agglomeration areas based on the width of the striped bridging area, distribution pattern index (DPI, shape similarity index (SSI, and overlap index (OI. Next, the progressive agglomeration operation is carried out, including the computation of the external boundary outlines and the extraction of agglomeration lines. The effectiveness and rationality of the proposed method has been validated by using actual census data of Chinese geographical conditions in the Jiangsu Province.

Improving of the teaching methods of chemical subjects by using of teaching tests in high educational institutions

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Gulzahira Turebekova

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Using the information technologies may cause great pedagogical effect: using of computer opens the opportunity for organization of problem teaching developing the creative thinking, forming research, practical skills of students, creation of the steady positive motivation of the students. Technical facilities of the computer technology allow solving the teaching and research tasks in the chemistry come as original catalyst of creation of different types of information technology systems and projection on their basis the novel ways and methods of their application. Use of computer technology in education helps to support necessary educational level of students and pay attention to their independent work. The article represents that the computer testing can be widely used for control of knowledge and for teaching. Teaching testing arouses interest in subject and develops ability of self-preparation and self – education, provides in-door and out- door work.

Validation of an UHPLC-MS/MS Method for Screening of Antimicrobial Residues in Eggs and Their Application to Analyses of Eggs from Laying Hens Subjected to Pharmacological Treatment

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Letícia Gomes Magnago Caldeira

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A multiresidue method by UHPLC/MS-MS was optimized and validated for the screening and semiquantitative detection of antimicrobials residues from tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, quinolones, lincosamides, β-lactams, sulfonamides, and macrolides families in eggs. A qualitative approach was used to ensure adequate sensitivity to detect residues at the level of interest, defined as maximum residue limit (MRL, or less. The applicability of the methods was assessed by analyzing egg samples from hens that had been subjected to pharmacological treatment with neomycin, enrofloxacin, lincomycin, oxytetracycline, and doxycycline during five days and after discontinuation of medication (10 days. The method was adequate for screening all studied analytes in eggs, since the performance parameters ensured a false-compliant rate below or equal to 5%, except for flumequine. In the analyses of eggs from laying hens subjected to pharmacological treatment, all antimicrobial residues were detected throughout the experimental period, even after discontinuation of medication, except for neomycin, demonstrating the applicability of the method for analyses of antimicrobial residues in eggs.

Predictive inference for best linear combination of biomarkers subject to limits of detection.

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Coolen-Maturi, Tahani

2017-08-15

Measuring the accuracy of diagnostic tests is crucial in many application areas including medicine, machine learning and credit scoring. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve is a useful tool to assess the ability of a diagnostic test to discriminate between two classes or groups. In practice, multiple diagnostic tests or biomarkers are combined to improve diagnostic accuracy. Often, biomarker measurements are undetectable either below or above the so-called limits of detection (LoD). In this paper, nonparametric predictive inference (NPI) for best linear combination of two or more biomarkers subject to limits of detection is presented. NPI is a frequentist statistical method that is explicitly aimed at using few modelling assumptions, enabled through the use of lower and upper probabilities to quantify uncertainty. The NPI lower and upper bounds for the ROC curve subject to limits of detection are derived, where the objective function to maximize is the area under the ROC curve. In addition, the paper discusses the effect of restriction on the linear combination's coefficients on the analysis. Examples are provided to illustrate the proposed method. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Applications of the conjugate gradient FFT method in scattering and radiation including simulations with impedance boundary conditions

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Barkeshli, Kasra; Volakis, John L.

1991-01-01

The theoretical and computational aspects related to the application of the Conjugate Gradient FFT (CGFFT) method in computational electromagnetics are examined. The advantages of applying the CGFFT method to a class of large scale scattering and radiation problems are outlined. The main advantages of the method stem from its iterative nature which eliminates a need to form the system matrix (thus reducing the computer memory allocation requirements) and guarantees convergence to the true solution in a finite number of steps. Results are presented for various radiators and scatterers including thin cylindrical dipole antennas, thin conductive and resistive strips and plates, as well as dielectric cylinders. Solutions of integral equations derived on the basis of generalized impedance boundary conditions (GIBC) are also examined. The boundary conditions can be used to replace the profile of a material coating by an impedance sheet or insert, thus, eliminating the need to introduce unknown polarization currents within the volume of the layer. A general full wave analysis of 2-D and 3-D rectangular grooves and cavities is presented which will also serve as a reference for future work.

Serum aspirin esterase is strongly associated with glucose and lipids in healthy subjects: different association patterns in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus

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Kotani Kazuhiko

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Aspirin esterase (AE activity can account for part of aspirin pharmacokinetics in the circulation, possibly being associated with the impairment of aspirin effectiveness as an inhibitor of platelet aggregation. Aims The study was aimed at investigating the correlations of serum AE activity with cholinesterase (ChE and metabolic variables in healthy subjects in comparison to subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM. Methods In cardiovascular disease-free T2DM subjects and healthy controls, the AE activity levels and/or the correlation patterns between AE and the other variables were analyzed. Results Neither AE nor ChE activities were higher in the subjects with T2DM. Serum AE activity strongly correlated with ChE as well as glucose/lipids variables such as total cholesterol and triglyceride in healthy subjects, while the correlations between AE and glucose/lipids variables were not present in T2DM subjects. Conclusions These data may reflect the pathophysiological changes between healthy and T2DM subjects. Our data may thus provide the basis for future studies to unravel the mechanisms.

Subjective burden on spouses of schizophrenia patients

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Surekha Kumari

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Background : There is limited information from India on subjective burden on spouses of schizophrenia patients. The aim of the present study was to assess and compare patterns of subjective burden on spouses of schizophrenia patients. Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted at the OPD level, and follow-up was done at the Ranchi Institute of Neuropsychiatry and Sciences (RINPAS during the period May 2008 to November 2008. Tools utilized were sociodemographic data sheet, Family Burden Interview Schedule developed by Pai and R. L. Kapur (1981. The sample comprised of 50 samples of spouses (25 male and 25 female spouses of schizophrenia patients. Results: The findings suggest that both the groups, viz., male and female spouses of schizophrenia patients, showed moderate level of subjective burden, i.e., 13 (52% and 15 (60% male and female spouses, respectively, which was statistically found to be insignificant. Conclusion : No significant difference was found between male and female spouses of schizophrenia patients with regard to the level of subjective burden.

Structure and Properties of Ti-19.7Nb-5.8Ta Shape Memory Alloy Subjected to Thermomechanical Processing Including Aging

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Dubinskiy, S.; Brailovski, Vladimir; Prokoshkin, S.; Pushin, V.; Inaekyan, K.; Sheremetyev, V.; Petrzhik, M.; Filonov, M.

2013-09-01

In this work, the ternary Ti-19.7Nb-5.8Ta (at.%) alloy for biomedical applications was studied. The ingot was manufactured by vacuum arc melting with a consumable electrode and then subjected to hot forging. Specimens were cut from the ingot and processed by cold rolling with e = 0.37 of logarithmic thickness reduction and post-deformation annealing (PDA) between 400 and 750 °C (1 h). Selected samples were subjected to aging at 300 °C (10 min to 3 h). The influence of the thermomechanical processing on the alloy's structure, phase composition, and mechanical and functional properties was studied. It was shown that thermomechanical processing leads to the formation of a nanosubgrained structure (polygonized with subgrains below 100 nm) in the 500-600 °C PDA range, which transforms to a recrystallized structure of β-phase when PDA temperature increases. Simultaneously, the phase composition and the β → α″ transformation kinetics vary. It was found that after conventional cold rolling and PDA, Ti-Nb-Ta alloy manifests superelastic and shape memory behaviors. During aging at 300 °C (1 h), an important quantity of randomly scattered equiaxed ω-precipitates forms, which results in improved superelastic cyclic properties. On the other hand, aging at 300 °C (3 h) changes the ω-precipitates' particle morphology from equiaxed to elongated and leads to their coarsening, which negatively affects the superelastic and shape memory functional properties of Ti-Nb-Ta alloy.

Gray matter changes in subjects at high risk for developing psychosis and first-episode schizophrenia: a voxel-based structural MRI study

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Kazue eNakamura

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The aim of the present study was to use a voxel-based MRI method to investigate the neuroanatomical characteristics in subjects at high risk of developing psychosis compared with those of healthy controls and first-episode schizophrenia patients. Methods: This study included 14 subjects with at-risk mental state (ARMS, 34 patients with first-episode schizophrenia, and 51 healthy controls. We used voxel-based morphometry (VBM with the Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra (DARTEL tools to investigate the whole-brain difference in gray matter volume among the three groups. Results: Compared with the healthy controls, the schizophrenia patients showed significant gray matter reduction in the left anterior cingulate gyrus. There was no significant difference in the gray matter volume between the ARMS and other groups. Conclusion: The present study suggests that alteration of the anterior cingulate gyrus may be associated with development of frank psychosis. Further studies with a larger ARMS subjects would be required to examine the potential role of neuroimaging methods in the prediction of future transition into psychosis.

Seismic response analysis of structural system subjected to multiple support excitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, R.W.; Hussain, F.A.; Liu, L.K.

1978-01-01

In the seismic analysis of a multiply supported structural system subjected to nonuniform excitations at each support point, the single response spectrum, the time history, and the multiple response spectrum are the three commonly employed methods. In the present paper the three methods are developed, evaluated, and the limitations and advantages of each method assessed. A numerical example has been carried out for a typical piping system. Considerably smaller responses have been predicted by the time history method than that by the single response spectrum method. This is mainly due to the fact that the phase and amplitude relations between the support excitations are faithfully retained in the time history method. The multiple response spectrum prediction has been observed to compare favourably with the time history method prediction. Based on the present evaluation, the multiple response spectrum method is the most efficient method for seismic response analysis of structural systems subjected to multiple support excitation. (Auth.)

Systems and methods for imaging using radiation from laser produced plasmas

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Renard-Le Galloudec, Nathalie; Cowan, Thomas E.; Sentoku, Yasuhiko; Rassuchine, Jennifer

2009-06-30

In particular embodiments, the present disclosure provides systems and methods for imaging a subject using radiation emitted from a laser produced plasma generating by irradiating a target with a laser. In particular examples, the target includes at least one radiation enhancing component, such as a fluor, cap, or wire. In further examples, the target has a metal layer and an internal surface defining an internal apex, the internal apex of less than about 15 .mu.m, such as less than about 1 .mu.m. The targets may take a variety of shapes, including cones, pyramids, and hemispheres. Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide improved imaging of a subject, such as improved medical images of a radiation dose than typical conventional methods and systems.

Associations of airway inflammation and responsiveness markers in non asthmatic subjects at start of apprenticeship

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

Background Bronchial Hyperresponsiveness (BHR) is considered a hallmark of asthma. Other methods are helpful in epidemiological respiratory health studies including Fractional Exhaled Nitric Oxide (FENO) and Eosinophils Percentage (EP) in nasal lavage fluid measuring markers for airway inflammation along with the Forced Oscillatory Technique measuring Airway resistance (AR). Can their outcomes discriminate profiles of respiratory health in healthy subjects starting apprenticeship in occupations with a risk of asthma? Methods Rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma-like symptoms, FEV1 and AR post-Methacholine Bronchial Challenge (MBC) test results, FENO measurements and EP were all investigated in apprentice bakers, pastry-makers and hairdressers not suffering from asthma. Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA) was simultaneously conducted in relation to these groups and this generated a synthetic partition (EI). Associations between groups of subjects based on BHR and EI respectively, as well as risk factors, symptoms and investigations were also assessed. Results Among the 441 apprentice subjects, 45 (10%) declared rhinoconjunctivitis-like symptoms, 18 (4%) declared asthma-like symptoms and 26 (6%) suffered from BHR. The mean increase in AR post-MBC test was 21% (sd = 20.8%). The median of FENO values was 12.6 ppb (2.6-132 range). Twenty-six subjects (6.7%) had EP exceeding 14%. BHR was associated with atopy (p < 0.01) and highest FENO values (p = 0.09). EI identified 39 subjects with eosinophilic inflammation (highest values of FENO and eosinophils), which was associated with BHR and atopy. Conclusions Are any of the identified markers predictive of increased inflammatory responsiveness or of development of symptoms caused by occupational exposures? Analysis of population follow-up will attempt to answer this question. PMID:20604945

Subjective perception of cocaine reward in mice assessed by a single exposure place preference (sePP) paradigm

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Runegaard, Annika H.; Jensen, Kathrine Louise; Dencker, Ditte

2017-01-01

-related behavior. Comparison with existing methods In rodents, the rewarding effects of drugs have often been assessed in self-administration or place preference paradigms; both involving repeated drug exposure and weeks of training and testing. New method Our investigation describes a valid approach to assess....... The sePP protocol allows further dissection of the mechanism and influence of initial cocaine exposure on subsequent drug-related behaviors by including extinction and reinstatement. The lack of sePP in female mice may reflect a biologically relevant sex difference in the initial subjective perception...

Short-Term Effects of Electroconvulsive Therapy on Subjective and Actigraphy-Assessed Sleep Parameters in Severely Depressed Inpatients

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Alexander Hoogerhoud

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Sleep disturbances are a key feature of major depression. Electroconvulsive treatment (ECT may improve polysomnography-assessed sleep characteristics, but its short-term effects on actigraphy-assessed and subjective sleep characteristics are unknown. We therefore aimed to assess the effects of ECT on subjective and objective sleep parameters in a proof-of-principle study. Methods. We assessed subjective and objective sleep parameters in 12 severely depressed patients up to 5 consecutive days during their ECT course, corresponding to a total of 43 nights (including 19 ECT sessions. The 12 patients were 83% female and on average 62 (standard deviation (SD 14 years old and had an average MADRS score of 40 at baseline (SD 21. Results. Subjective and objective sleep parameters were not directly affected by ECT. The subjective sleep efficiency parameter was similar on the day after ECT and other days. ECT did not affect the number of errors in the Sustained Attention to Response Task. Patients subjectively underestimated their total sleep time by 1.4 hours (P<0.001 compared to actigraphy-assessed sleep duration. Conclusion. ECT did not affect subjective and actigraphy-assessed sleep in the short term. Depressed patients profoundly underestimated their sleep duration.

Meat Quality of Chicken Breast Subjected to Different Thawing Methods

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MR Oliveira

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Freezing is one of the methods to preserve and guarantee the quality of meat until it reaches the consumer. Even though freezing is classified as a mild form of preservation, it causes meat changes resulting from the formation of ice crystals that subsequently affect the tenderness and functionality of meat. The aim of this study was to evaluate the physicochemical and structural characteristics of chicken half breast submitted to fast freezing (-36 °C for 2 hours and thawed by five different methods (under refrigeration, in a microwave, in a oven with air circulation, placed in cold water, or at room temperature. After thawing, the following parameters were evaluated: moisture content, drip loss (syneresis, water activity (aw, and shear force. Samples were also histologically evaluated by light microscopy. The results indicated that, despite being submitted to fast freezing, thawing affected (p <0.05 most of the physicochemical and structural properties of the meat, except for aw. Thawing in cold water (packed in low-density polyethylene bags and placed in cold water at approximately 10 °C for 2 hours and 15 minutes presented the best results due to lesser damage to the cell structure, as shown by the lower drip loss, higher moisture content, and greater tenderness of the samples compared to those thawed using the other methods. Histological examination showed that muscle fiber structural features and organization were maintained. Thawing at low temperatures seems to cause less damage to the meat structure and allows maintaining of its properties. It was concluded that the meat quality is not related only with the freezing method, but also with the method and conditions used in thawing.

Parental Perspectives on a Pediatric Human Non-Subjects Biobank.

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Brothers, Kyle B; Clayton, Ellen Wright

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: Genomic biorepositories will be important tools to help unravel the effect of common genetic variants on risk for common pediatric diseases. Our objective was to explore how parents would respond to the inclusion of children in an opt-out model biobank. METHODS: We conducted semi-structured interviews with parents in hospital-based pediatric clinics. Participants responded to a description of a biorepository already collecting samples from adults. Two coders independently analyzed and coded interviews using framework analysis. Opt-out forms were later piloted in a clinic area. Parental opt-out choices were recorded electronically, with opt-out rates reported here. RESULTS: Parents strongly supported medical research in general and expressed a high level of trust that Vanderbilt University would keep their child's medical information private. Parents were more likely to allow their child's sample to be included in the biorepository than to allow their child to participate in a hypothetical study that would not help or harm their child, but might help other children. Only a minority were able to volunteer a concern raised by the description of the biobank. The opt-out rate was initially high compared with the opt-out rate in the adult biorepository, but after the first week decreased to near the baseline in adult clinics. CONCLUSION: Parents in our study generally support an opt-out model biobank in children. Most would allow their own child's sample to be included. Institutions seeking to build pediatric biobanks may consider the human non-subjects model as a viable alternative to traditional human-subjects biobanks.

Is dietary pattern of schizophrenia patients different from healthy subjects?

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Amani Reza

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background There are limited findings about dietary patterns and food preferences among patients suffering from schizophrenia. The main objective of this study was therefore to compare the nutritional pattern of schizophrenia patients with that of matched healthy subjects. Methods The dietary pattern of 30 hospitalized 16–67 years old schizophrenic patients (11 female was compared with that of 30 healthy age and sex matched individuals as control group. Subjects' anthropometric measurements including weight, height and body mass index (BMI, semi-quantitative food frequency (FFQ, medical and food history questionnaires were also collected and FFQs were then scored using Food Guide Pyramid to obtain the dietary scores. Percent body fat (%BF was measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA method. Results Female patients had more %BF and lower dietary pattern scores than that of their controls (32 ± 3.6 vs 27.7 ± 4.6 percent and 43.2 ± 11.9 vs 54.5 ± 10.7 points; respectively, p Conclusion Schizophrenia patients have poor nutritional patterns. In particular, female patients have more percent body fat and lower dietary pattern scores compared with their healthy controls. All patients used to consume more fats and sweet drinks frequently. The findings of this study suggest that schizophrenia patients need specific medical nutrition therapies through limiting dietary fats and sugars intakes and weight control. Whether obesity is the consequence of disease, dietary preference or medications used remains to be cleared.

Medical students as human subjects in educational research

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Adina L. Kalet

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Special concerns often arise when medical students are themselves the subjects of education research. A recently completed large, multi-center randomized controlled trial of computer-assisted learning modules for surgical clerks provided the opportunity to explore the perceived level of risk of studies where medical students serve as human subjects by reporting on: 1 the response of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs at seven institutions to the same study protocol; and 2 the thoughts and feelings of students across study sites about being research subjects. Methods: From July 2009 to August 2010, all third-year medical students at seven collaborating institutions were eligible to participate. Patterns of IRB review of the same protocol were compared. Participation burden was calculated in terms of the time spent interacting with the modules. Focus groups were conducted with medical students at each site. Transcripts were coded by three independent reviewers and analyzed using Atlas.ti. Results: The IRBs at the seven participating institutions granted full (n=1, expedited (n=4, or exempt (n=2 review of the WISE Trial protocol. 995 (73% of those eligible consented to participate, and 207 (20% of these students completed all outcome measures. The average time to complete the computer modules and associated measures was 175 min. Common themes in focus groups with participant students included the desire to contribute to medical education research, the absence of coercion to consent, and the low-risk nature of the research. Discussion: Our findings demonstrate that risk assessment and the extent of review utilized for medical education research vary among IRBs. Despite variability in the perception of risk implied by differing IRB requirements, students themselves felt education research was low risk and did not consider themselves to be vulnerable. The vast majority of eligible medical students were willing to participate as research

OPACs: The User and Subject Access.

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Carson, Elizabeth

1985-01-01

This survey of the literature reveals user and professional opinions of changes in subject access features available for online public access catalogs. Highlights include expanded access to fields already incorporated into traditional MARC record, access to context of the record, and design of the user interface. Twenty-four references are cited.…

Farmers’ Cohort for Agricultural Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders (FARM) Study: Study Design, Methods, and Baseline Characteristics of Enrolled Subjects

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Jo, Hannae; Baek, Sora; Park, Hee-won; Lee, Sang-Ah; Moon, Jiyoung; Yang, Jae E.; Kim, Ki Sung; Kim, Jee Yong; Kang, Eun Kyoung

2016-01-01

Background The ongoing Farmers’ Cohort for Agricultural Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (FARM) study was developed to evaluate health status and related factors in farmers. Methods Farmers in Kangwon Province, South Korea, were recruited. Baseline characteristics were determined using questionnaires about sociodemographic and health characteristics and agricultural work-related factors. In addition, laboratory examinations (lumbar spinal radiography and serologic testing) were conducted. Results The FARM study covers eight rural areas and recruited 1013 subjects (534 women; mean [standard deviation {SD}] age, 57.2 [7.5] years). Musculoskeletal pain in multiple areas was reported by 925 subjects (91.3%), and low back pain (63.8%) was the most frequent site of pain. Farmer’s Stress Inventory (mean [SD], 77.7 [10.2]; range, 28–112] and subjective stress index (mean [SD], 5.3 [2.4]; range, 0–10) were above median scale values, reflecting a stressful condition, while the EuroQol-5D-3L index and the EuroQol-Visual Analog Scale scores were high (mean [SD], 0.9 [0.1]; range −0.171–1 and mean [SD], 67.7 [18.7]; range 0–100, respectively), reflecting good life quality. In total, 53% of participants had worked in farming for more than 30 years, and workers involved in dry-field farming comprised the largest subgroup (41.5%). Most participants (94.3%) had no more than a high school education, and families with annual income below 20 million won constituted the largest subgroup (36.3%). Conclusions The FARM study may provide data on the current health status and related sociodemographic and agricultural work-related risk factors in Korean farmers, with the goal of providing a scientific basis for developing coping interventions and preventive strategies. PMID:26235456

Subjective Fatigue in Children with Hearing Loss: Some Preliminary Findings

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Hornsby, Benjamin W. Y.; Werfel, Krystal; Camarata, Stephen; Bess, Fred H.

2014-01-01

Purpose: In this study, the authors examined the effect of hearing loss on subjective reports of fatigue in school-age children using a standardized measure. Methods: As part of a larger ongoing study, the authors obtained subjective ratings of fatigue using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) Multidimensional Fatigue Scale (Varni,…

Ocular Blood Flow Measurements in Healthy White Subjects Using Laser Speckle Flowgraphy.

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Nikolaus Luft

Full Text Available To assess the feasibility and reliability of Laser Speckle Flowgraphy (LSFG to measure ocular perfusion in a sample of healthy white subjects and to elucidate the age-dependence of the parameters obtained.This cross-sectional study included 80 eyes of 80 healthy, non-smoking white subjects of Western European descent between 19 and 79 years of age. A commercial LSFG instrument was applied to measure ocular blood flow at the optic nerve head (ONH three successive times before and after pharmacological pupil dilation. The mean blur rate (MBR, a measure of relative blood flow velocity, was obtained for different regions of the ONH. Eight parameters of ocular perfusion derived from the pulse-waveform analysis of MBR including blowout time (BOT and falling rate (FR were also recorded.Artifact-free LSFG images meeting the quality criteria for automated image analysis were obtainable in 93.8% without pupil dilation and in 98.8% with pharmacological pupil dilation. Measurements of MBR showed excellent repeatability with intraclass correlation coefficients ≥ 0.937 and were barely affected by pupil dilation. The majority of pulse-waveform derived variables exhibited equally high repeatability. MBR-related blood flow indices exhibited significant age dependence (p<0.001. FR (r = 0.747, p<0.001 and BOT (r = -0.714, p<0.001 most strongly correlated with age.LSFG represents a reliable method for the quantitative assessment of ocular blood flow in white subjects. Our data affirms that the LSFG-derived variables FR and BOT may be useful biomarkers for age-related changes in ocular perfusion.

A coupling method for a cardiovascular simulation model which includes the Kalman filter.

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Hasegawa, Yuki; Shimayoshi, Takao; Amano, Akira; Matsuda, Tetsuya

2012-01-01

Multi-scale models of the cardiovascular system provide new insight that was unavailable with in vivo and in vitro experiments. For the cardiovascular system, multi-scale simulations provide a valuable perspective in analyzing the interaction of three phenomenons occurring at different spatial scales: circulatory hemodynamics, ventricular structural dynamics, and myocardial excitation-contraction. In order to simulate these interactions, multiscale cardiovascular simulation systems couple models that simulate different phenomena. However, coupling methods require a significant amount of calculation, since a system of non-linear equations must be solved for each timestep. Therefore, we proposed a coupling method which decreases the amount of calculation by using the Kalman filter. In our method, the Kalman filter calculates approximations for the solution to the system of non-linear equations at each timestep. The approximations are then used as initial values for solving the system of non-linear equations. The proposed method decreases the number of iterations required by 94.0% compared to the conventional strong coupling method. When compared with a smoothing spline predictor, the proposed method required 49.4% fewer iterations.

Method for enhancing amidohydrolase activity of fatty acid amide hydrolase

Science.gov (United States)

John, George; Nagarajan, Subbiah; Chapman, Kent; Faure, Lionel; Koulen, Peter

2016-10-25

A method for enhancing amidohydrolase activity of Fatty Acid Amide Hydrolase (FAAH) is disclosed. The method comprising administering a phenoxyacylethanolamide that causes the enhanced activity. The enhanced activity can have numerous effects on biological organisms including, for example, enhancing the growth of certain seedlings. The subject matter disclosed herein relates to enhancers of amidohydrolase activity.

Subjective State, Blood Pressure, and Behavioral Control Changes Produced by an "Energy Shot"

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Marczinski, Cecile A; Stamates, Amy L; Ossege, Julianne; Maloney, Sarah F; Bardgett, Mark E; Brown, Clifford J

2014-06-01

Background: Energy drinks and energy shots are popular consumer beverages that are advertised to increase feelings of alertness. Typically, these products include high levels of caffeine, a mild psychostimulant drug. The scientific evidence demonstrating the specific benefits of energy products to users in terms of subjective state and objective performance is surprisingly lacking. Moreover, there are rising health concerns associated with the use of these products. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the acute effects of a popular energy shot (5-Hour Energy ® ) on subjective and objective measures that were assessed hourly for 6 hours following consumption. Methods: Participants ( n =14) completed a three-session study where they received the energy shot, a placebo control, and no drink. Following dose administration, participants completed subjective Profile of Mood States ratings hourly for 6 hours. Participants also repeatedly completed a behavioral control task (the cued go/no-go task) and provided blood pressure and pulse rate readings at each hour. Results: Consumption of the energy shot did improve subjective state, as measured by increased ratings of vigor and decreased ratings of fatigue. However, the energy shot did not alter objective performance, which worsened over time. Importantly, the energy shot elevated both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Conclusions: Consumption of one energy shot may only result in modest benefits to subjective state. Individuals with preexisting hypertension or other medical conditions should be cautious about using these new consumer products.

The Effects of Magnesium Supplementation on Subjective Anxiety and Stress—A Systematic Review

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Neil Bernard Boyle

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Anxiety related conditions are the most common affective disorders present in the general population with a lifetime prevalence of over 15%. Magnesium (Mg status is associated with subjective anxiety, leading to the proposition that Mg supplementation may attenuate anxiety symptoms. This systematic review examines the available evidence for the efficacy of Mg supplementation in the alleviation of subjective measures of anxiety and stress. Methods: A systematic search of interventions with Mg alone or in combination (up to 5 additional ingredients was performed in May 2016. Ovid Medline, PsychInfo, Embase, CINAHL and Cochrane databases were searched using equivalent search terms. A grey literature review of relevant sources was also undertaken. Results: 18 studies were included in the review. All reviewed studies recruited samples based upon an existing vulnerability to anxiety: mildly anxious, premenstrual syndrome (PMS, postpartum status, and hypertension. Four/eight studies in anxious samples, four/seven studies in PMS samples, and one/two studies in hypertensive samples reported positive effects of Mg on subjective anxiety outcomes. Mg had no effect on postpartum anxiety. No study administered a validated measure of subjective stress as an outcome. Conclusions: Existing evidence is suggestive of a beneficial effect of Mg on subjective anxiety in anxiety vulnerable samples. However, the quality of the existing evidence is poor. Well-designed randomised controlled trials are required to further confirm the efficacy of Mg supplementation.

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

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

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

2010-01-01

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

Enhancement of subject description of fiction with annotations

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Alenka Šauperl

2007-01-01

Full Text Available In Slovenia, subject description of fiction was traditionally limited to the Universal Decimal Classification number, which was mainly assigned for shelving. Readers found their books by browsing the library shelves, while librarians had to rely on their personal familiarity with the library collection if they wanted to advise readers on the selection of books. Subject description, such as is often associated with non-literary works, would require a lot of time. Therefore, we wanted to know whether reading book reviews in newspapers could replace reading the entire literary work. We analysed a small sample of book reviews written by literary critics and published in Slovenian newspapers and compared them to the reviews, written by librarians for the same literary works (in the »Priporočamo!« project. We realized that the content is different. However, they could be used for identification of additional subject headings. The same findings resulted from a similar analysis of literary works written for children. Concepts, that seemed potentially appropriate subject headings, often actually do not appear in the Slovenian subject headings or subject headings from the Pionirska knjižnica of Ljubljana. Both subject heading lists should include a larger number of abstract concepts, which more often appear in literary than in non-literary works. Both subject heading lists should also be coordinated.

The presence of subjective feelings of xerostomia in the institutionalized elderly

OpenAIRE

Petrovski, Mihajlo; Minovska, Ana; Ivanovski, Kiro

2014-01-01

Introduction: The presence of subjective feelings of dry mouth is the most common oral problem in the institutionalized elderly. Purpose: to assess the subjective presence of xerostomia in the institutionalized elderly. Materials and method: Seventy individuals, older than 65 years and institutionalized in a particular nursing home, were evaluated. The subjective presence of xerstomia was determined. To determine the level of expressiveness of xerostomia, a questionnaire recommended b...

A randomised double-blind placebo-controlled pilot trial of a combined extract of sage, rosemary and melissa, traditional herbal medicines, on the enhancement of memory in normal healthy subjects, including influence of age.

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, N S L; Menzies, R; Hodgson, F; Wedgewood, P; Howes, M-J R; Brooker, H J; Wesnes, K A; Perry, E K

2018-01-15

To evaluate for the first time the effects of a combination of sage, rosemary and melissa (Salvia officinalis L., Rosmarinus officinalis L. and Melissa officinalis L.; SRM), traditional European medicines, on verbal recall in normal healthy subjects. To devise a suitable study design for assessing the clinical efficacy of traditional herbal medicines for memory and brain function. Forty-four normal healthy subjects (mean age 61 ± 9.26y SD; m/f 6/38) participated in this study. A double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled pilot study was performed with subjects randomised into an active and placebo group. The study consisted of a single 2-week term ethanol extract of SRM that was chemically-characterised using high resolution LC-UV-MS/MS analysis. Immediate and delayed word recall were used to assess memory after taking SRM or placebo (ethanol extract of Myrrhis odorata (L.) Scop.). In addition analysis was performed with subjects divided into younger and older subgroups (≤ 62 years mean age n = 26: SRM n = 10, Placebo n = 16; ≥ 63 years n = 19: SRM n = 13, Placebo n = 6). Overall there were no significant differences between treatment and placebo change from baseline for immediate or delayed word recall. However subgroup analysis showed significant improvements to delayed word recall in the under 63 year age group (p memory in healthy subjects under 63 years of age. Short- and long- term supplementation with SRM extract merits more robust investigation as an adjunctive treatment for patients with Alzheimer's disease and in the general ageing population. The study design proved a simple cost effective trial protocol to test the efficacy of herbal medicines on verbal episodic memory, with future studies including broader cognitive assessment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Sleep Habits and Susceptibility to Upper Respiratory Illness: the Moderating Role of Subjective Socioeconomic Status

Science.gov (United States)

Prather, Aric A.; Janicki-Deverts, Denise; Adler, Nancy E.; Hall, Martica; Cohen, Sheldon

2016-01-01

Background Sleep is a predictor of infectious illness that may depend on one’s socioeconomic status (SES). Purpose This study aimed to investigate the moderating effects of objective and subjective SES on sleep-clinical cold risk link and test whether nasal inflammation serves as a plausible biological pathway. Methods This study combined data (n = 732) from three viral challenge studies. Measures of self-reported sleep and objective and subjective measures of SES were obtained. Participants were quarantined and administrated rhinovirus (RV) or influenza virus and monitored over 5 (RV) or 6 (influenza) days for the development of a cold. Symptom severity, including mucus production and nasal clearance time, and levels of nasal cytokines (interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-1β) were measured prior to administration and each day during the quarantined period. Results Subjective SES, but not objective SES, moderated associations between shorter sleep duration and increased likelihood of a clinical cold. Compared to ≥8-hour sleepers, ≤6-hour sleepers with low subjective SES were at increased risk for developing a cold (OR = 2.57, 95% CI 1.10–6.02). There was no association between sleep duration and colds in high subjective SES participants. Among infected individuals who reported low subjective SES, shorter sleep duration was associated with greater mucus production. There was no evidence that markers of nasal inflammation mediated the link between sleep duration and cold susceptibility among those reporting low subjective SES. Conclusion Subjective SES may reflect an important social factor for understanding vulnerability to and protection against infectious illness among short sleepers. PMID:27679462

Subjective quality of life and emotional pain among subjects with ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref (WHOQoL-Bref), Psychache Scale (PAS) instruments were administered on subjects that consented to the study. Results: One hundred and forty four (144) subjects of equal sex distribution were studied. The mean age was 31.7±10.2 years. The highest number of subjects, ...

Subject search study. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Todeschini, C.

1995-01-01

The study gathered information on how users search the database of the International Nuclear Information System (INIS), using indicators such as Subject categories, Controlled terms, Subject headings, Free-text words, combinations of the above. Users participated from the Australian, French, Russian and Spanish INIS Centres, that have different national languages. Participants, both intermediaries and end users, replied to a questionnaire and executed search queries. The INIS Secretariat at the IAEA also participated. A protocol of all search strategies used in actual searches in the database was kept. The thought process for Russian and Spanish users is predominantly non-English and also the actual initial search formulation is predominantly non-English among Russian and Spanish users while it tends to be more in English among French users. A total of 1002 searches were executed by the five INIS centres including the IAEA. The search protocols indicate the following search behaviour: 1) free text words represent about 40% of search points on an average query; 2) descriptors used as search keys have the widest range as percentage of search points, from a low of 25% to a high of 48%; 3) search keys consisting of free text that coincides with a descriptor account for about 15% of search points; 4) Subject Categories are not used in many searches; 5) free text words are present as search points in about 80% of all searches; 6) controlled terms (descriptors) are used very extensively and appear in about 90% of all searches; 7) Subject Headings were used in only a few percent of searches. From the results of the study one can conclude that there is a greater reluctance on the part of non-native English speakers in initiating their searches by using free text word searches. Also: Subject Categories are little used in searching the database; both free text terms and controlled terms are the predominant types of search keys used, whereby the controlled terms are used more

Outcome and preferences in male–to–female subjects with gender dysphoria: Experience from Eastern India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anirban Majumder

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Context: Gender dysphoria (GD is an increasingly recognized medical condition in India, and little scientific data on treatment outcomes are available. Aims: Our objective is to study the therapeutic options including psychotherapy, hormone, and surgical treatments used for alleviating GD in male–to–female (MTF transgender subjects in Eastern India. Subjects and Methods: This is a retrospective study of treatment preferences and outcome in 55 MTF transgender subjects who were presented to the endocrine clinic. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistical analysis is carried out in the present study, and Microsoft Word and Excel are used to generate graphs and tables. Results: The mean follow-up was 1.9 years and 14 subjects (25.5% were lost to follow-up after a single or 2–3 contact sessions. Rest 41 subjects (74.5% desiring treatment had regular counseling and medical monitoring. All 41 subjects were dressing to present herself as female and all of them were receiving cross-sex hormone therapy either estrogen only (68%, or drospirenone in combination with estrogen (12% or gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist (GnRH in combination with estrogens (19.5%. Most of the subjects preferred estrogen therapy as it was most affordable and only a small number of subjects preferred drospirenone or GnRH agonist because of cost and availability. 23.6% subjects underwent esthetic breast augmentation surgery and 25.5% underwent orchiectomy and/or vaginoplasty. Three subjects presented with prior breast augmentation surgery and nine subjects presented with prior orchiectomy without vaginoplasty, depicting a high prevalence of poorly supervised surgeries. Conclusions: Standards of care documents provide clinical guidance for health professionals about the optimal management of transsexual people. The lack of information among health professionals about proper and protocolwise management leads to suboptimal physical, social, and sexual results.

Graphing within-subjects confidence intervals using SPSS and S-Plus.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Daniel B

2007-02-01

Within-subjects confidence intervals are often appropriate to report and to display. Loftus and Masson (1994) have reported methods to calculate these, and their use is becoming common. In the present article, procedures for calculating within-subjects confidence intervals in SPSS and S-Plus are presented (an R version is on the accompanying Web site). The procedure in S-Plus allows the user to report the bias corrected and adjusted bootstrap confidence intervals as well as the standard confidence intervals based on traditional methods. The presented code can be easily altered to fit the individual user's needs.

Removing the subjectivity from tonal noise assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruffle, R.; Bass, J.; Bullmore, A.

1995-01-01

The aim of this work is to identify an objective measure of tones in wind farm noise that corresponds to perception both within and outside of the wind energy industry. The Joint Nordic Method (currently the most widely used assessment in Europe) has been analysed with regard to variability and correlation to subjective results. It has been found that there is considerable scope in the Joint Nordic Method for obtaining different results, for the same wind farm. This is because the method is not clearly specified in all areas. Therefore, a new more tightly defined method, based on the Joint Nordic Method were possible, is outlined here. Initial analysis indicates that the new measure is appropriate and further validation is ongoing. (Author)

Comprehensive comparison of preselected regions for a high level radioactive waste repository: a subjective quantitative evaluation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Ju; Zong Zihua; Jin Yuanxin; Zhu Pengfei; Su Rui; Chen Weiming

2012-01-01

Based on the comprehensive features of the 6 preselected regions (Northwest China, Southwest China East China, South China, Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang regions) for China's high level radioactive waste repository, this paper uses the subjective quantitative method to evaluate the weight of each site selection criterion and provides the scores of each region. The results shows that the future natural changes and the hydrogeological conditions are considered as the most important natural siting criteria, while the social impact and human activities are the most important social siting criteria. According to the scores, the priority order of the regions are Northwest China, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, South China, East China, Southwest China. On the whole, the scores of' the regions in western China (Northwest China, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia) are higher than those in eastern China (South China, East China Southwest China), which obviously shows that the participated experts considers that the disposal of high level waste in west China is more favorable than in east China. (authors)

A Hybrid System for Subjectivity Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Samir Rustamov

2018-01-01

Full Text Available We suggested different structured hybrid systems for the sentence-level subjectivity analysis based on three supervised machine learning algorithms, namely, Hidden Markov Model, Fuzzy Control System, and Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System. The suggested feature extraction algorithm in our experiment computes a feature vector using statistical textual terms frequencies in a training dataset not having the use of any lexical knowledge except tokenization. Taking into consideration this fact, the above-mentioned methods may be employed in other languages as these methods do not utilize the morphological, syntactical, and lexical analysis in the classification problems.

A deductive approach to select or rank journals in multifaceted subject, Oceanography

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sahu, S.R.; Panda, K.C.

journal) whereas Bradford’s differential approach (articles in the bibliographies of specific subject field) to account/rank the core journals. Both these methods make sense in the journal selection/ranking process to a specific subject field...

Effect of kinesiotaping, non-elastic taping and bracing on segmental foot kinematics during drop landing in healthy subjects and subjects with chronic ankle instability.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuni, B; Mussler, J; Kalkum, E; Schmitt, H; Wolf, S I

2016-09-01

To evaluate the effects of kinesiotape, non-elastic tape, and soft brace on segmental foot kinematics during drop landing in subjects with chronic ankle instability and healthy subjects. Controlled study with repeated measurements. Three-dimensional motion analysis laboratory. Twenty participants with chronic ankle instability and 20 healthy subjects. The subjects performed drop landings with 17 retroreflective markers on the foot and lower leg in four conditions: barefoot, with kinesiotape, with non-elastic tape and with a soft brace. Ranges of motion of foot segments using a foot measurement method. In participants with chronic ankle instability, midfoot movement in the frontal plane (inclination of the medial arch) was reduced significantly by non-elastic taping, but kinesiotaping and bracing had no effect. In healthy subjects, both non-elastic taping and bracing reduced that movement. In both groups, non-elastic taping and bracing reduced rearfoot excursion in inversion/eversion significantly, which indicates a stabilisation effect. No such effect was found with kinesiotaping. All three methods reduced maximum plantar flexion significantly. Non-elastic taping stabilised the midfoot best in patients with chronic ankle instability, while kinesiotaping did not influence foot kinematics other than to stabilise the rearfoot in the sagittal plane. ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01810471. Copyright © 2015 Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Subjective cognitive complaints after stroke : A systematic review

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Rijsbergen, M.W.A.; Mark, R.E.; de Kort, P.L.; Sitskoorn, M.M.

2014-01-01

Background Most studies to date have assessed poststroke cognitive impairment objectively, whereas less attention is paid to subjective cognitive complaints (SCC). We, therefore, systematically searched the literature to summarize and evaluate the current knowledge about poststroke SCC. Methods

EFFECT OF MODIFIED CONSTRAINT INDUCED THERAPY ON UPPERLIMB FUNCTIONAL RECOVERY IN YOUNG STROKE SUBJECTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kiran Prakash Pappala

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Background: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of modified constraint induced therapy on upper limb functional recovery in young stroke subjects. Most of the stroke rehabilitation units following conventional rehabilitation methods for treatment of the stroke patients where these methods have been proved to be less useful especially in the young stroke subjects. Hence the purpose of this study is to see the effect of modified constraint induced therapy which is a task specific training method for upperlimb in young stroke subjects. Methods: Total of 40 young stroke subjects who is having minimal motor criterion and met other inclusion criteria were recruited from department of physiotherapy, g.s.l.general hospital. Pre and post intervention measures were taken using Wolf motor function test and Jebsen Taylor hand function test. Results: In this study had shown significant improvements in the modified constraint induced therapy group when compared to the conventional rehabilitation alone. P value between groups was < 0.05. Conclusion: In this study concludes that addition of 15 minutes modified constraint induced movement therapy to conventional physiotherapy is a useful adjunct in functional recovery of upper limb among young stroke subjects

Observational Study of IncobotulinumtoxinA for Cervical Dystonia or Blepharospasm (XCiDaBLE: Interim Results for the First 170 Subjects with Blepharospasm

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Hubert H. Fernandez

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Background: XCiDaBLE is a large, prospective, observational “naturalistic” study evaluating Xeomin® for Cervical Dystonia or BLEpharospasm in the United States. We report the interim results from the blepharospasm cohort of XCiDaBLE.Methods: Subjects (≥18 years old with blepharospasm were followed for two treatment cycles of incobotulinumtoxinA and monitored for 4 weeks after injection via interactive voice/web response system (IVRS/IWRS. The investigator‐reported scale includes the Clinical Global Impression Scale‐Severity subscale (CGI‐S. Patient‐reported outcome measures include the Patient Global Impression Scale‐Severity (PGI‐S and ‐Improvement (PGI‐I subscales, Jankovic Rating Scale (JRS, SF‐12v2® health survey, and Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire. Subjects are seen by the investigator at baseline (including the first injection, during the second injection, and at a final study visit (12 weeks after the second injection.Results: One hundred seventy subjects were included in this interim analysis. The majority of subjects were female (77.1% and white (91.8%, and had previously been treated with botulinum toxins (96.5%. The mean total dose (both eyes was 71.5 U of incobotulinumtoxinA for the first injection. PGI‐S, PGI‐I, and JRS scores were significantly improved 4 weeks after treatment (all p<0.0001. No differences were noted in either quality of life (QoL or work productivity in this short assessment period. No unexpected adverse events occurred.Discussion: This is an interim study and assessment method based on an IVRS/IWRS. In this predominantly toxin‐experienced cohort, significant benefits in specific and global measures of disease severity were seen in the immediate post‐incobotulinumtoxinA injection period. It will be interesting to see if there are improvements in QoL with consistent individualized injections over a longer period.

Decoding subjective mental states from fMRI activity patterns

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamaki, Masako; Kamitani, Yukiyasu

2011-01-01

In recent years, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) decoding has emerged as a powerful tool to read out detailed stimulus features from multi-voxel brain activity patterns. Moreover, the method has been extended to perform a primitive form of 'mind-reading,' by applying a decoder 'objectively' trained using stimulus features to more 'subjective' conditions. In this paper, we first introduce basic procedures for fMRI decoding based on machine learning techniques. Second, we discuss the source of information used for decoding, in particular, the possibility of extracting information from subvoxel neural structures. We next introduce two experimental designs for decoding subjective mental states: the 'objective-to-subjective design' and the 'subjective-to-subjective design.' Then, we illustrate recent studies on the decoding of a variety of mental states, such as, attention, awareness, decision making, memory, and mental imagery. Finally, we discuss the challenges and new directions of fMRI decoding. (author)

Mother chair reparation to decrease subjective disorders in exclusive breast-feeding period

Science.gov (United States)

Santiana, M. A.; Yusuf, M.; Lokantara, W. D.

2018-01-01

Exclusive breastfeeding is the responsibility of the mother after childbirth. A specific constraint arise for the mother when during the breastfeeding process, the place is not in accordance with the physiological condition of the mother's body. A not physiologically corrected lactation place will cause subjective disorders for breastfeeding mothers. Complaints that arise include quick tiredness, with certain muscles sore and pain, which will ultimately decrease the motivation of the mothers to perform exclusive breastfeeding especially in the first six months of the baby's birth. An improved ergonomic designed chair, this research used experimental method with group within treatment (treatment by subject) to solve the problem. The study took place in Maternity Clinic “CB” Badung regency, Bali. Subjective disorders are measured based on general fatigue and musculoskeletal disorders mothers breastfeeding. Fatigue is predicted using 30 items of questionnaires while musculoskeletal compaints are predicted from the Nordic Body Map questionnaire. Data were analyzed descriptively and inferentially in an experiment condition using using t-pair test. The results showed that there were significant differences in fatigue in general and skeletal musculoskeletal disorders between treatment 1 (using old chair) with treatment 2 (using repaired seats) in breastfeeding mothers. Fatigue in general decreased by 35.6% and skeletal musculoskeletal disorders decreased by 26.8%. It was concluded that improved breastfeeding mothers' seats may decrease subjective disorders during exclusive breastfeeding. It is therefore advisable for breastfeeding mothers to use seats that match their anthropometry.

Swedish Technology Teachers' Attitudes to Their Subject and Its Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Nordlöf, Charlotta; Höst, Gunnar E.; Hallström, Jonas

2017-01-01

Background: From previous research among science teachers it is known that teachers' attitudes to their subjects affect important aspects of their teaching, including their confidence and the amount of time they spend teaching the subject. In contrast, less is known about technology teachers' attitudes. Purpose: Therefore, the aim of this study is…

Human subject research for engineers a practical guide

CERN Document Server

de Winter, Joost C F

2017-01-01

This Brief introduces engineers to the main principles in ethics, research design, statistics, and publishing of human subject research. In recent years, engineering has become strongly connected to disciplines such as biology, medicine, and psychology. Often, engineers (and engineering students) are expected to perform human subject research. Typical human subject research topics conducted by engineers include human-computer interaction (e.g., evaluating the usability of software), exoskeletons, virtual reality, teleoperation, modelling of human behaviour and decision making (often within the framework of ‘big data’ research), product evaluation, biometrics, behavioural tracking (e.g., of work and travel patterns, or mobile phone use), transport and planning (e.g., an analysis of flows or safety issues), etc. Thus, it can be said that knowledge on how to do human subject research is indispensable for a substantial portion of engineers. Engineers are generally well trained in calculus and mechanics, but m...

Energizing Subject Guide Service with Web 2.0

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sheau-Hwang Chang

2014-06-01

Full Text Available This article will use LibGuides as an example to illustrate how a Web 2.0 platform can energize the subject guide service and give librarians an edge in expanding their roles. Topics to be discussed will include a brief introduction to LibGuides and its capabilities to energize subject guide creation, how it has been used by academic libraries, how it is used in Maxwell Library in expanding librarian's role, and finally its implications on librarianship.

Angiotensinogen Polymorphisms and Post-Transplantation Diabetes Mellitus in Korean Renal Transplant Subjects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sul ra Lee

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Post-transplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM is a common and serious metabolic complication. Genetic polymorphisms of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE and angiotensinogen (AGT genes have been reported to be related to diabetes mellitus and insulin sensitivity; however, the role of these genes in the development of PTDM is not known. For this purpose, we investigated the association of ACE and AGT genetic polymorphisms with PTDM. Methods: A total of 302 subjects without previously diagnosed diabetes who had received kidney transplants were included. One ACE single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP (rs4291 and two AGT SNPs (rs 699 and rs 4762 were genotyped from genomic DNA with direct sequencing. Results: PTDM developed in 49 (16.2% of 302 subjects. Subjects in the PTDM were older than those in the non-PTDM. There was a significant difference between the two groups in tacrolimus use (p=0.03. Of the three SNPs, the rs4762 of the AGT gene was significantly associated with the development of PTDM in the dominant models (p = 0.03 after adjusting for age and tacrolimus usage. Conclusions: AGT gene rs4762 polymorphisms may serve as genetic markers for the development of PTDM. The exact molecular mechanisms still need to be clarified.

Cultural Capital, Family Background and Education: Choosing University Subjects in China

Science.gov (United States)

Sheng, Xiaoming

2017-01-01

This article employs Bourdieu's conceptual tools to unpack family influences on students' subject and university choices in China. This empirical study employed mixed research approaches, using both quantitative and qualitative methods, to examine students' choices of subjects and universities in a sample of secondary school students from the age…

Subjective and Objective Work-Based Identity Consequences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Botha, F.C.; Roodt, G.; van de Bunt-Kokhuis, S.G.M.; Jansen, P.G.W.; Roodt, G.

2015-01-01

The aim of this chapter is to provide a systematic literature review on the selected consequences of work-based identity (WI). The first section of the chapter includes the following subjective consequences: self-report measures on personal alienation, helping behaviour (H-OCB), burnout (consisting

Estimation of physical activity levels using cell phone questionnaires: a comparison with accelerometry for evaluation of between-subject and within-subject variations.

Science.gov (United States)

Bexelius, Christin; Sandin, Sven; Trolle Lagerros, Ylva; Litton, Jan-Eric; Löf, Marie

2011-09-25

Physical activity promotes health and longevity. Further elaboration of the role of physical activity for human health in epidemiological studies on large samples requires accurate methods that are easy to use, cheap, and possible to repeat. The use of telecommunication technologies such as cell phones is highly interesting in this respect. In an earlier report, we showed that physical activity level (PAL) assessed using a cell phone procedure agreed well with corresponding estimates obtained using the doubly labeled water method. However, our earlier study indicated high within-subject variation in relation to between-subject variations in PAL using cell phones, but we could not assess if this was a true variation of PAL or an artifact of the cell phone technique. Our objective was to compare within- and between-subject variations in PAL by means of cell phones with corresponding estimates using an accelerometer. In addition, we compared the agreement of daily PAL values obtained using the cell phone questionnaire with corresponding data obtained using an accelerometer. PAL was measured both with the cell phone questionnaire and with a triaxial accelerometer daily during a 2-week study period in 21 healthy Swedish women (20 to 45 years of age and BMI from 17.7 kg/m² to 33.6 kg/m²). The results were evaluated by fitting linear mixed effect models and descriptive statistics and graphs. With the accelerometer, 57% (95% confidence interval [CI] 40%-66%) of the variation was within subjects, while with the cell phone, within-subject variation was 76% (95% CI 59%-83%). The day-to-day variations in PAL observed using the cell phone questions agreed well with the corresponding accelerometer results. Both the cell phone questionnaire and the accelerometer showed high within-subject variations. Furthermore, day-to-day variations in PAL within subjects assessed using the cell phone agreed well with corresponding accelerometer values. Consequently, our cell phone

Using virtual reality to distinguish subjects with multiple- but not single-domain amnestic mild cognitive impairment from normal elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohammadi, Alireza; Kargar, Mahmoud; Hesami, Ehsan

2018-03-01

Spatial disorientation is a hallmark of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer's disease. Our aim was to use virtual reality to determine the allocentric and egocentric memory deficits of subjects with single-domain aMCI (aMCIsd) and multiple-domain aMCI (aMCImd). For this purpose, we introduced an advanced virtual reality navigation task (VRNT) to distinguish these deficits in mild Alzheimer's disease (miAD), aMCIsd, and aMCImd. The VRNT performance of 110 subjects, including 20 with miAD, 30 with pure aMCIsd, 30 with pure aMCImd, and 30 cognitively normal controls was compared. Our newly developed VRNT consists of a virtual neighbourhood (allocentric memory) and virtual maze (egocentric memory). Verbal and visuospatial memory impairments were also examined with Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test and Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, respectively. We found that miAD and aMCImd subjects were impaired in both allocentric and egocentric memory, but aMCIsd subjects performed similarly to the normal controls on both tasks. The miAD, aMCImd, and aMCIsd subjects performed worse on finding the target or required more time in the virtual environment than the aMCImd, aMCIsd, and normal controls, respectively. Our findings indicated the aMCImd and miAD subjects, as well as the aMCIsd subjects, were more impaired in egocentric orientation than allocentric orientation. We concluded that VRNT can distinguish aMCImd subjects, but not aMCIsd subjects, from normal elderly subjects. The VRNT, along with the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test and Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, can be used as a valid diagnostic tool for properly distinguishing different forms of aMCI. © 2018 Japanese Psychogeriatric Society.

Difference in target definition using three different methods to include respiratory motion in radiotherapy of lung cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Sloth Møller, Ditte; Knap, Marianne Marquard; Nyeng, Tine Bisballe; Khalil, Azza Ahmed; Holt, Marianne Ingerslev; Kandi, Maria; Hoffmann, Lone

2017-11-01

Minimizing the planning target volume (PTV) while ensuring sufficient target coverage during the entire respiratory cycle is essential for free-breathing radiotherapy of lung cancer. Different methods are used to incorporate the respiratory motion into the PTV. Fifteen patients were analyzed. Respiration can be included in the target delineation process creating a respiratory GTV, denoted iGTV. Alternatively, the respiratory amplitude (A) can be measured based on the 4D-CT and A can be incorporated in the margin expansion. The GTV expanded by A yielded GTV + resp, which was compared to iGTV in terms of overlap. Three methods for PTV generation were compared. PTV del (delineated iGTV expanded to CTV plus PTV margin), PTV σ (GTV expanded to CTV and A was included as a random uncertainty in the CTV to PTV margin) and PTV ∑ (GTV expanded to CTV, succeeded by CTV linear expansion by A to CTV + resp, which was finally expanded to PTV ∑ ). Deformation of tumor and lymph nodes during respiration resulted in volume changes between the respiratory phases. The overlap between iGTV and GTV + resp showed that on average 7% of iGTV was outside the GTV + resp implying that GTV + resp did not capture the tumor during the full deformable respiration cycle. A comparison of the PTV volumes showed that PTV σ was smallest and PTV Σ largest for all patients. PTV σ was in mean 14% (31 cm 3 ) smaller than PTV del , while PTV del was 7% (20 cm 3 ) smaller than PTV Σ . PTV σ yields the smallest volumes but does not ensure coverage of tumor during the full respiratory motion due to tumor deformation. Incorporating the respiratory motion in the delineation (PTV del ) takes into account the entire respiratory cycle including deformation, but at the cost, however, of larger treatment volumes. PTV Σ should not be used, since it incorporates the disadvantages of both PTV del and PTV σ .

Estimating Subjective Probabilities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Steffen; Fountain, John; Harrison, Glenn W.

2014-01-01

either construct elicitation mechanisms that control for risk aversion, or construct elicitation mechanisms which undertake 'calibrating adjustments' to elicited reports. We illustrate how the joint estimation of risk attitudes and subjective probabilities can provide the calibration adjustments...... that theory calls for. We illustrate this approach using data from a controlled experiment with real monetary consequences to the subjects. This allows the observer to make inferences about the latent subjective probability, under virtually any well-specified model of choice under subjective risk, while still...

Political Subjects: Decision and Subjectivity from a Post-Fundational Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martín Retamozo

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The problem of decision and of political subjects was addressed in the field of 20th century political philosophy by authors such as Carl Schmitt, Hannah Arendt, and Jacques Derrida, who related it closely to the concepts of sovereignty, freedom, and contingency. The works of Ernesto Laclau and Slavoj Žižek have currently turnedto the issue of decision in order to address the constitutive spects of the political. In a context dominated by deconstruction, post-Marxism, and post-structuralism,the article inquires into the elation between decision and political subjects in a contemporary setting, examining in depth the difference between subjectivity,subjectivization, and subject.

Are Autonomous and Controlled Motivations School-Subjects-Specific?

Science.gov (United States)

Chanal, Julien; Guay, Frédéric

2015-01-01

This research sought to test whether autonomous and controlled motivations are specific to school subjects or more general to the school context. In two cross-sectional studies, 252 elementary school children (43.7% male; mean age = 10.7 years, SD = 1.3 years) and 334 junior high school children (49.7% male, mean age = 14.07 years, SD = 1.01 years) were administered a questionnaire assessing their motivation for various school subjects. Results based on structural equation modeling using the correlated trait-correlated method minus one model (CTCM-1) showed that autonomous and controlled motivations assessed at the school subject level are not equally school-subject-specific. We found larger specificity effects for autonomous (intrinsic and identified) than for controlled (introjected and external) motivation. In both studies, results of factor loadings and the correlations with self-concept and achievement demonstrated that more evidence of specificity was obtained for autonomous regulations than for controlled ones. These findings suggest a new understanding of the hierarchical and multidimensional academic structure of autonomous and controlled motivations and of the mechanisms involved in the development of types of regulations for school subjects. PMID:26247788

Normative and Subjective Need for Orthodontic Treatment within ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To evaluate and compare the normative and subjective need for orthodontic treatment within different age groups in Turkey. Methods: One thousand and sixteen patients from seven different demographic regions of Turkey (Marmara, Black Sea, East Anatolia, Southeastern Anatolia, Mediterranean, Aegean,

Subjective annoyance caused by indoor low-level and low frequency noise and control method

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

DI Guo-qing; ZHANG Bang-jun; SHANG Qi

2005-01-01

The influence of low-level noise has not been widely noticed. This paper discovered that low-level and low frequency noise(Aweighted equivalent level Leq ＜ 45 dB) causes higher probability of subjective annoyance. The fuzzy mathematic principle was applied to deal with the threshold level of subjective annoyance from noise in this study; there is preferable relationship between the indoor noise and noise annoyance at low frequency noise level. Study indicated at the same centered noise level, the change of annoyance probability is mainly caused by the change of the frequency spectrum characteristic of the indoor noise. Under low noise level environment, without change of the medium-low frequency noise, the slight increase of medium-high frequency noise level with the help of noise sheltering effect can significantly reduce the noise annoyance. This discovery brings a new resolution on how to improve the environmental quality of working or living places. A noise control model is given in this study according to the acoustic analysis.

Energy information data base: subject thesaurus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-10-01

The technical staff of the DOE Technical Information Center, during its subject indexing activities, develops and structures a vocabulary that allows consistent machine storage and retrieval of information necessary to the accomplishment of the DOE mission. This thesaurus incorporates that structured vocabulary. The terminology of this thesaurus is used for the subject control of information announced in DOE Energy Research Abstracts, Energy Abstracts for Policy Analysis, Solar Energy Update, Geothermal Energy Update, Fossil Energy Update, Fusion Energy Update, and Energy Conservation Update. This terminology also facilitates subject searching of the DOE energy information data base, a research in progress data base, a general and practical energy information data base, power reactor docket information data base, nuclear science abstracts data base, and the federal energy information data base on the DOE on-line retrieval system, RECON. The rapid expansion of the DOE's activities will result in a concomitant thesaurus expansion as information relating to new activities is indexed. Only the terms used in the indexing of documents at the Technical Information Center to date are included

Coupled orbit-attitude motion of high area-to-mass ratio (HAMR) objects including efficient self-shadowing

Science.gov (United States)

Früh, Carolin; Jah, Moriba K.

2014-02-01

This paper shows the effect of self-shadowing on the coupled attitude-orbit dynamics of objects with high area-to-mass ratios (HAMR) in simulating standard multi layer insulation materials (MLI) as tilted single rigid sheets. Efficient and computationally fast self-shadowing methods have been developed. This includes an approximate self-shadowing method and a rapid exact self-shadowing method. Accuracy considerations are made and the effect of a chosen tessellation is shown. The coupled orbit-attitude perturbations of solar radiation pressure and Earth gravity field are taken into account. The results are compared to the attitude-orbit dynamics, when neglecting self-shadowing effects. An averaged physical shadow-map model is developed and compared to the full self-shadowing simulation. The combined effect of solar radiation pressure and self-shadowing leads to a rapid spin-up of the objects, even though they have uniform reflection properties. As a result, the observed brightness of these objects is subject to rapid changes.

Reliability of structural systems subject to fatigue

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rackwitz, R.

1984-01-01

Concepts and computational procedures for the reliability calculation of structural systems subject to fatigue are outlined. Systems are dealt with by approximately computing componential times to first failure. So-called first-order reliability methods are then used to formulate dependencies between componential failures and to evaluate the system failure probability. (Author) [pt

Theorizing the complexities of discursive and material subjectivity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Højgaard, Lis; Søndergaard, Dorte Marie

2011-01-01

This article seeks to address the theoretical foundations of subjectivity as co-constituted by discursive and material/technological forces. Our ambition is to develop a conceptual framework that draws from Science and Technology Studies and related “new materialist” frameworks and poststructural......This article seeks to address the theoretical foundations of subjectivity as co-constituted by discursive and material/technological forces. Our ambition is to develop a conceptual framework that draws from Science and Technology Studies and related “new materialist” frameworks...... to a redefinition of the concept of subjectivity that emphasizes the multiplicity of enacting forces including human as well as non-human, material/technological actors; and that underlines the importance of a conceptualization of all actors as simultaneously enacting and enacted forces....

The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease in diabetic subjects in south-west Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bolaji O. Oyelade

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD is rarely sought for and generally underdiagnosed even in diabetics in developing countries like Nigeria. PAD is easily detected and diagnosed by the ankle-brachial index, a simple and reliable test. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of PAD in diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years and the value of ankle-brachial index measurement in the detection of PAD. Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study of 219 diabetic subjects aged 50–89 years was carried out. The participants were administered a pre-tested questionnaire and measurement of ankle-brachial index (ABI was done. The ankle-brachial index < 0.90 was considered equivalent to peripheral arterial disease. Results: The overall prevalence of PAD was 52.5%. The prevalence of symptomatic PAD was 28.7% whilst that of asymptomatic PAD was 71.3%. There were a number of associations with PAD which included, age (p < 0.05, sex (p < 0.05, and marital status (p < 0.05. The use of the ankle-brachial index in the detection of PAD was clearly more reliable than the clinical methods like history of intermittent claudication and absence or presence of pedal pulses. Conclusion: The prevalence of PAD is relatively high in diabetic subjects in the southwestern region of Nigeria. Notable is the fact that a higher proportion was asymptomatic. Also the use of ABI is of great value in the detection of PAD as evidenced by a clearly more objective assessment of PAD compared to both intermittent claudication and absent pedal pulses.

Subjective Memory Immediately Following Electroconvulsive Therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Brus, Ole; Nordanskog, Pia; Båve, Ullvi; Cao, Yang; Hammar, Åsa; Landén, Mikael; Lundberg, Johan; Nordenskjöld, Axel

2017-06-01

The aims of the present study were to describe the short-term rate of subjective memory worsening (SMW) and identify factors of importance for SMW in a large clinical sample treated for depression with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). This register-based study included 1212 patients from the Swedish National Quality Register for ECT. Subjective memory worsening was defined as a 2-point worsening on the memory item of the Comprehensive Psychopathological Rating Scale from before to within 1 week after treatment. Associations between patient characteristics and treatment factors were examined using logistic regression. Subjective memory worsening was experienced in 26%. It was more common in women than in men (31% vs 18%; P < 0.001) and more common in patients aged 18 to 39 years than in patients 65 years or older (32% vs 22%; P = 0.008). Patients with less subjective memory disturbances before ECT had a greater risk of SMW. Patients in remission after ECT had a lower risk of SMW. A brief pulse width stimulus gave higher risk of SMW compared with ultrabrief pulse (odds ratio, 1.61; 95% confidence interval, 1.05-2.47). Subjective memory worsening is reported by a minority of patients. However, young women are at risk of experiencing SMW. Ultrabrief pulse width stimulus could be considered for patients treated with unilateral electrode placement who experience SMW. Each patient should be monitored with regard to symptoms and adverse effects, and treatment should be adjusted on an individual basis to maximize the clinical effect and with efforts to minimize the cognitive adverse effects.

Oxidative stress in patients with endemic pemphigus foliaceus and healthy subjects with anti-desmoglein 1 antibodies*

Science.gov (United States)

Gutierrez, Ericson Leonardo; Ramos, Willy; Seminario-Vidal, Lucia; Tello, Mercedes; Ronceros, Gerardo; Ortega-Loayza, Alex G.

2018-01-01

Background Previous studies have shown oxidative stress in pemphigus vulgaris and pemphigus foliaceus, nevertheless, it remains unknown whether a similar response is characteristic of endemic pemphigus foliaceus in Peru. Objectives To determine the oxidative stress response in endemic pemphigus foliaceus patients and subjects with positive for anti-desmoglein1 antibodies (anti-dsg1) from endemic areas of Peru. Subjects and Methods This is a cross-sectional study. The study population included 21 patients with Endemic Pemphigus foliaceus and 12 healthy subjects with anti-dsg1 antibodies from the Peruvian Amazon (Ucayali), as well as 30 healthy control subjects. Malondialdehyde, an indicator of lipid peroxidation by free radicals, was measured in serum. Results We collected 21 cases of endemic pemphigus foliaceus, 15 of them with active chronic disease and 6 in clinical remission. Serum malondialdehyde values in patients with chronic active evolution and healthy subjects with anti-dsg1 antibodies were statistically higher than those of healthy controls (p<0.001). There was no significant difference between serum values of localized and generalized clinical forms. Study limitations The main limitation of this present study is the small number of patients with endemic pemphigus and healthy subjects positive for desmoglein 1 antibodies. Conclusions The increased serum levels of malondialdehyde in patients with chronic active endemic pemphigus foliaceus and healthy subjects from endemic areas with anti-dsg1 antibodies may suggest a contribution of systemic lipid peroxidation in the pathogenesis of endemic pemphigus foliaceus. PMID:29723379

Chromosomal aberrations in subjects exposed to ionizing radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jovicic, D.; Milacic, S.; Kovacevic, R.; Tanaskovic, I.

2006-01-01

Occupational exposure is particularly delicate because of chronic exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation and its cumulative effect, where it is important to consider the biological response of body to given conditions of exposure. The objective of this study was the observation of the recovery of the DNA damages in subjects working in the radiation area in two different intervals.Group I, consisting of 30 subjects, was exposed to ionizing radiation and unstable chromosomal aberrations were identified. Group II included the same, re-examined subjects (30) 9 months later. It was verified that 5 (16.67%) subjects still had unstable chromosomal aberrations, although they had been excluded from radiation area Controls groups (C) consisted of 64 subjects that were not exposed to mutagenic agents.The comparison of the control group with the two studied groups revealed the reduction of the unstable aberrations (p<0.05). The total effective doses, which increased with the years spent in radiation area, reflected the yield of chromosomal aberrations. The presence of chromosomal aberrations in some subjects, after the exclusion from the ionising radiation exposure, suggests that the time needed for the recovery of the DNA damages is different, which indicates the individual differences in radiosensitivity as well as different of the reparatory cellular response. (author)

Usng subjective percentiles and test data for estimating fragility functions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

George, L.L.; Mensing, R.W.

1981-01-01

Fragility functions are cumulative distribution functions (cdfs) of strengths at failure. They are needed for reliability analyses of systems such as power generation and transmission systems. Subjective opinions supplement sparse test data for estimating fragility functions. Often the opinions are opinions on the percentiles of the fragility function. Subjective percentiles are likely to be less biased than opinions on parameters of cdfs. Solutions to several problems in the estimation of fragility functions are found for subjective percentiles and test data. How subjective percentiles should be used to estimate subjective fragility functions, how subjective percentiles should be combined with test data, how fragility functions for several failure modes should be combined into a composite fragility function, and how inherent randomness and uncertainty due to lack of knowledge should be represented are considered. Subjective percentiles are treated as independent estimates of percentiles. The following are derived: least-squares parameter estimators for normal and lognormal cdfs, based on subjective percentiles (the method is applicable to any invertible cdf); a composite fragility function for combining several failure modes; estimators of variation within and between groups of experts for nonidentically distributed subjective percentiles; weighted least-squares estimators when subjective percentiles have higher variation at higher percents; and weighted least-squares and Bayes parameter estimators based on combining subjective percentiles and test data. 4 figures, 2 tables

What factors predict individual subjects' re-learning of words during anomia treatment?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William Hayward

2014-04-01

Full Text Available A growing number of studies are addressing methodological approaches to treating anomia in persons with aphasia. What is missing from these studies are validated procedures for determining which words have the greatest potential for recovery. The current study evaluates the usefulness of several word-specific variables and one subject-specific measure in predicting success in re-learning problematic words. Methods: Two participants, YPR and ODH, presented with fluent aphasia and marked anomia. YPR’s Aphasia Quotient on the Western Aphasia Battery was 58.8; ODH’s AQ was 79.5. Stimuli were 96 pictures chosen individually for each participant from among those that they named incorrectly on multiple baselines. Subsequently, participants were presented with each picture and asked to indicate whether they could name it covertly, or “in their head.” Each subject completed a biweekly anomia treatment for these pictures. We performed separate statistical analyses for each subject. Dependent variables included whether each word was learned during treatment (Acquisition and the number of sessions required to learn each word (#Sessions. We used logistic regression models to evaluate the association of (self-reported covert naming success with Acquisition, and linear regression models to assess the relationship between (self-reported covert naming success and #Sessions. Starting with the predictors of covert naming accuracy, number of syllables (#syllables, number of phonemes (#phonemes, and frequency, we used backwards elimination methods to select the final regression models. Results: By the end of 25 treatment sessions, YPR had learned 90.2% (37/41 of the covertly correct words but only 70.4% (38/54 of the covertly incorrect words. In the unadjusted analysis, covert naming was significantly associated with Acquisition, OR=3.89, 95% CI: (1.19, 12.74, p=0.025. The result remained significant after adjustment for #phonemes (the only other predictor

Prevalence of diabetes, obesity, and metabolic syndrome in subjects with and without schizophrenia (CURES-104

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R Subashini

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Background : There are some reports that diabetes and metabolic syndrome (MS are more prevalent among schizophrenia patients. However, there are very few studies in India which have estimated the prevalence of diabetes and MS in schizophrenia patients. Aims : The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of diabetes, obesity, and MS in subjects with and without schizophrenia. Settings and Design : This case control study comprised of "cases" i.e. subjects with schizophrenia recruited from a schizophrenia centre at Chennai and "controls" i.e. healthy age- and gender-matched subjects without psychiatric illness selected from an ongoing epidemiological study in Chennai in a 1:4 ratio of cases: Controls. Materials and Methods : Fasting plasma glucose and serum lipids were estimated for all subjects. Anthropometric measures including height, weight, and waist circumference were assessed. Diabetes and impaired fasting glucose (IFG were defined using American Diabetes Association criteria. Statistical analysis : One-way ANOVA or student′s "t" test was used to compare continuous variables and Chi-square test to compare proportion between two groups. Results : The study group comprised of 655 subjects, 131 with schizophrenia and a control group of 524 subjects without schizophrenia. The prevalence of the diabetes, IFG, abdominal obesity and MS were significantly higher among subjects with schizophrenia compared to those without schizophrenia-diabetes (15.3% vs. 7.3%, P=0.003, IFG (31.3% vs. 8.6%, P<0.001, abdominal obesity (59.2% vs. 44.7%, P<0.001, and MS (34.4% vs. 24%, P=0.014. Conclusion : In subjects with schizophrenia, the prevalence of diabetes, IFG, abdominal obesity, and MS is significantly higher than in those without schizophrenia.

Reliability of scored patient generated subjective global assessment ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: Establish the reliability of the scored Patient Generated-Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) in determining nutritional status among Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) naive HIV-infected adults. Methods: A descriptive, cross sectional study among outpatient medical clinics, in The AIDS Support Organization ...

Normal stress databases in myocardial perfusion scintigraphy – how many subjects do you need?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trägårdh, Elin; Sjöstrand, Karl; Edenbrandt, Lars

2012-01-01

) for male, NC for female, attenuation‐corrected images (AC) for male and AC for female subjects. 126 male and 205 female subjects were included. The normal database was created by alternatingly computing the mean of all normal subjects and normalizing the subjects with respect to this mean, until...... convergence. Coefficients of variation (CV) were created for increasing number of included patients in the four different normal stress databases. Normal stress databases with ...Commercial normal stress databases in myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS) commonly consist of 30–40 individuals. The aim of the study was to determine how many subjects are needed. Four normal stress databases were developed using patients who underwent 99mTc MPS: non‐corrected images (NC...

Studying Irony Detection Beyond Ironic Criticism: Let's Include Ironic Praise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard Bruntsch

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Studies of irony detection have commonly used ironic criticisms (i.e., mock positive evaluation of negative circumstances as stimulus materials. Another basic type of verbal irony, ironic praise (i.e., mock negative evaluation of positive circumstances is largely absent from studies on individuals' aptitude to detect verbal irony. However, it can be argued that ironic praise needs to be considered in order to investigate the detection of irony in the variety of its facets. To explore whether the detection ironic praise has a benefit beyond ironic criticism, three studies were conducted. In Study 1, an instrument (Test of Verbal Irony Detection Aptitude; TOVIDA was constructed and its factorial structure was tested using N = 311 subjects. The TOVIDA contains 26 scenario-based items and contains two scales for the detection of ironic criticism vs. ironic praise. To validate the measurement method, the two scales of the TOVIDA were experimentally evaluated with N = 154 subjects in Study 2. In Study 3, N = 183 subjects were tested to explore personality and ability correlates of the two TOVIDA scales. Results indicate that the co-variance between the ironic TOVIDA items was organized by two inter-correlated but distinct factors: one representing ironic praise detection aptitude and one representing ironic criticism detection aptitude. Experimental validation showed that the TOVIDA items truly contain irony and that item scores reflect irony detection. Trait bad mood and benevolent humor (as a facet of the sense of humor were found as joint correlates for both ironic criticism and ironic praise detection scores. In contrast, intelligence, trait cheerfulness, and corrective humor were found as unique correlates of ironic praise detection scores, even when statistically controlling for the aptitude to detect ironic criticism. Our results indicate that the aptitude to detect ironic praise can be seen as distinct from the aptitude to detect ironic

A study on subjective preference to daylit residential indoor environment using conjoint analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cheung, H.D.; Chung, T.M. [Department of Building Services Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong (China)

2008-12-15

This paper reports a study of the subjective preference to daylit indoor environment of a residential room using conjoint analysis, which is a highly reputable method used to analyze the mutual relationships among different attributes. Seven influential attributes were selected in the view of daylight performance assessment. They include 'general brightness', 'desktop brightness', 'perceived glare', 'sunlight penetration', 'quality of view', 'user friendliness of shading control' and 'impact on energy'. Each of them has two levels. A total of eight combinations (profiles) of attributes with various levels were established by adopting fractional factorial design. Subjects were asked to rank-order the eight profiles according to their preference in terms of daylit environment of a residential room. The study aims at finding out the relative impact of the seven selected attributes to the overall daylight performance and seeking an organized assessment method for a residential daylit environment. Conjoint analysis found that the seven attributes have importance level in the order of 'quality of view', 'general brightness', 'impact on energy', 'user friendliness of shading control', 'perceived glare', 'desktop brightness' and 'sunlight penetration'. (author)

Optimal Control as a method for Diesel engine efficiency assessment including pressure and NO_x constraints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guardiola, Carlos; Climent, Héctor; Pla, Benjamín; Reig, Alberto

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Optimal Control is applied for heat release shaping in internal combustion engines. • Optimal Control allows to assess the engine performance with a realistic reference. • The proposed method gives a target heat release law to define control strategies. - Abstract: The present paper studies the optimal heat release law in a Diesel engine to maximise the indicated efficiency subject to different constraints, namely: maximum cylinder pressure, maximum cylinder pressure derivative, and NO_x emission restrictions. With this objective, a simple but also representative model of the combustion process has been implemented. The model consists of a 0D energy balance model aimed to provide the pressure and temperature evolutions in the high pressure loop of the engine thermodynamic cycle from the gas conditions at the intake valve closing and the heat release law. The gas pressure and temperature evolutions allow to compute the engine efficiency and NO_x emissions. The comparison between model and experimental results shows that despite the model simplicity, it is able to reproduce the engine efficiency and NO_x emissions. After the model identification and validation, the optimal control problem is posed and solved by means of Dynamic Programming (DP). Also, if only pressure constraints are considered, the paper proposes a solution that reduces the computation cost of the DP strategy in two orders of magnitude for the case being analysed. The solution provides a target heat release law to define injection strategies but also a more realistic maximum efficiency boundary than the ideal thermodynamic cycles usually employed to estimate the maximum engine efficiency.

Thyroid profile and autoantibodies in Type 1 diabetes subjects: A perspective from Eastern India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Debmalya Sanyal

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Context: There has been a rise in the incidence of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM in India. The prevalence of thyroid autoantibodies and thyroid dysfunction is common in T1DM. Aims: The aim of this study is to determine the incidence of thyroid dysfunction and thyroid autoantibodies in T1DM subjects, without any history of thyroid disease, and the prevalence of glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD antibody, Islet antigen-2 antibody (IA2, thyroid peroxidase (TPO, and thyroglobulin autoantibodies (Tg-AB in T1DM subjects. Settings and Design: This was a cross-sectional clinical-based study. Subjects and Methods: Fifty subjects (29 males, 31 females with T1DM and without any history of thyroid dysfunction were included in the study. All subjects were tested for GAD antibody, IA2 antibody, TPO antibody, thyroglobulin antibody, free thyroxine, and thyroid-stimulating hormone. Statistical Analysis Used: A Chi-square/pooled Chi-square test was used to assess the trends in the prevalence of hypothyroidism. A two-tailed P< 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 23.50 years. 9.8% of subjects were below the age of 12 years, 27.45% of subjects were of age 12–18 years, 37.25% of subjects were of age 19–30 years, and 25.49% of subjects were above 30 years. 78% were positive autoantibody for GAD, 30% for IA-2, 24% for TPO, and 16% were positive for Tg-AB. A total of 6.0% of T1DM subjects had evidence of clinical hypothyroidism, but the prevalence of subclinical hyperthyroidism (SCH varied from 32% to 68.0% for we considered different definitions of SCH as advocated by different guidelines. All subjects with overt hypothyroidism had positive GAD and thyroid autoantibodies. One (2% subject had clinical hyperthyroidism with strongly positive GAD, TPO, and Tg-AB. Conclusions: We found a high prevalence of GAD, IA2, TPO, and Tg-AB in our T1DM subjects. A substantial proportion of our subjects had undiagnosed thyroid