Multi-country comparisons of energy performance: The index decomposition analysis approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ang, B.W.; Xu, X.Y.; Su, Bin

2015-01-01

Index decomposition analysis (IDA) is a popular tool for studying changes in energy consumption over time in a country or region. This specific application of IDA, which may be called temporal decomposition analysis, has been extended by researchers and analysts to study variations in energy consumption or energy efficiency between countries or regions, i.e. spatial decomposition analysis. In spatial decomposition analysis, the main objective is often to understand the relative contributions of overall activity level, activity structure, and energy intensity in explaining differences in total energy consumption between two countries or regions. We review the literature of spatial decomposition analysis, investigate the methodological issues, and propose a spatial decomposition analysis framework for multi-region comparisons. A key feature of the proposed framework is that it passes the circularity test and provides consistent results for multi-region comparisons. A case study in which 30 regions in China are compared and ranked based on their performance in energy consumption is presented. - Highlights: • We conducted cross-regional comparisons of energy consumption using IDA. • We proposed two criteria for IDA method selection in spatial decomposition analysis. • We proposed a new model for regional comparison that passes the circularity test. • Features of the new model are illustrated using the data of 30 regions in China

Implementing large-scale programmes to optimise the health workforce in low- and middle-income settings: a multicountry case study synthesis.

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Gopinathan, Unni; Lewin, Simon; Glenton, Claire

2014-12-01

To identify factors affecting the implementation of large-scale programmes to optimise the health workforce in low- and middle-income countries. We conducted a multicountry case study synthesis. Eligible programmes were identified through consultation with experts and using Internet searches. Programmes were selected purposively to match the inclusion criteria. Programme documents were gathered via Google Scholar and PubMed and from key informants. The SURE Framework - a comprehensive list of factors that may influence the implementation of health system interventions - was used to organise the data. Thematic analysis was used to identify the key issues that emerged from the case studies. Programmes from Brazil, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Malawi, Venezuela and Zimbabwe were selected. Key system-level factors affecting the implementation of the programmes were related to health worker training and continuing education, management and programme support structures, the organisation and delivery of services, community participation, and the sociopolitical environment. Existing weaknesses in health systems may undermine the implementation of large-scale programmes to optimise the health workforce. Changes in the roles and responsibilities of cadres may also, in turn, impact the health system throughout. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A global reference for caesarean section rates (C-Model): a multicountry cross-sectional study.

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Souza, J P; Betran, A P; Dumont, A; de Mucio, B; Gibbs Pickens, C M; Deneux-Tharaux, C; Ortiz-Panozo, E; Sullivan, E; Ota, E; Togoobaatar, G; Carroli, G; Knight, H; Zhang, J; Cecatti, J G; Vogel, J P; Jayaratne, K; Leal, M C; Gissler, M; Morisaki, N; Lack, N; Oladapo, O T; Tunçalp, Ö; Lumbiganon, P; Mori, R; Quintana, S; Costa Passos, A D; Marcolin, A C; Zongo, A; Blondel, B; Hernández, B; Hogue, C J; Prunet, C; Landman, C; Ochir, C; Cuesta, C; Pileggi-Castro, C; Walker, D; Alves, D; Abalos, E; Moises, Ecd; Vieira, E M; Duarte, G; Perdona, G; Gurol-Urganci, I; Takahiko, K; Moscovici, L; Campodonico, L; Oliveira-Ciabati, L; Laopaiboon, M; Danansuriya, M; Nakamura-Pereira, M; Costa, M L; Torloni, M R; Kramer, M R; Borges, P; Olkhanud, P B; Pérez-Cuevas, R; Agampodi, S B; Mittal, S; Serruya, S; Bataglia, V; Li, Z; Temmerman, M; Gülmezoglu, A M

2016-02-01

To generate a global reference for caesarean section (CS) rates at health facilities. Cross-sectional study. Health facilities from 43 countries. Thirty eight thousand three hundred and twenty-four women giving birth from 22 countries for model building and 10,045,875 women giving birth from 43 countries for model testing. We hypothesised that mathematical models could determine the relationship between clinical-obstetric characteristics and CS. These models generated probabilities of CS that could be compared with the observed CS rates. We devised a three-step approach to generate the global benchmark of CS rates at health facilities: creation of a multi-country reference population, building mathematical models, and testing these models. Area under the ROC curves, diagnostic odds ratio, expected CS rate, observed CS rate. According to the different versions of the model, areas under the ROC curves suggested a good discriminatory capacity of C-Model, with summary estimates ranging from 0.832 to 0.844. The C-Model was able to generate expected CS rates adjusted for the case-mix of the obstetric population. We have also prepared an e-calculator to facilitate use of C-Model (www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/maternal_perinatal_health/c-model/en/). This article describes the development of a global reference for CS rates. Based on maternal characteristics, this tool was able to generate an individualised expected CS rate for health facilities or groups of health facilities. With C-Model, obstetric teams, health system managers, health facilities, health insurance companies, and governments can produce a customised reference CS rate for assessing use (and overuse) of CS. The C-Model provides a customized benchmark for caesarean section rates in health facilities and systems. © 2015 World Health Organization; licensed by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Maternal complications and perinatal mortality: findings of the World Health Organization Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, J P; Souza, J P; Mori, R; Morisaki, N; Lumbiganon, P; Laopaiboon, M; Ortiz-Panozo, E; Hernandez, B; Pérez-Cuevas, R; Roy, M; Mittal, S; Cecatti, J G; Tunçalp, Ö; Gülmezoglu, A M

2014-03-01

We aimed to determine the prevalence and risks of late fetal deaths (LFDs) and early neonatal deaths (ENDs) in women with medical and obstetric complications. Secondary analysis of the WHO Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health (WHOMCS). A total of 359 participating facilities in 29 countries. A total of 308 392 singleton deliveries. We reported on perinatal indicators and determined risks of perinatal death in the presence of severe maternal complications (haemorrhagic, infectious, and hypertensive disorders, and other medical conditions). Fresh and macerated LFDs (defined as stillbirths ≥ 1000 g and/or ≥28 weeks of gestation) and ENDs. The LFD rate was 17.7 per 1000 births; 64.8% were fresh stillbirths. The END rate was 8.4 per 1000 liveborns; 67.1% occurred by day 3 of life. Maternal complications were present in 22.9, 27.7, and 21.2% [corrected] of macerated LFDs, fresh LFDs, and ENDs, respectively. The risks of all three perinatal mortality outcomes were significantly increased with placental abruption, ruptured uterus, systemic infections/sepsis, pre-eclampsia, eclampsia, and severe anaemia. Preventing intrapartum-related perinatal deaths requires a comprehensive approach to quality intrapartum care, beyond the provision of caesarean section. Early identification and management of women with complications could improve maternal and perinatal outcomes. © 2014 RCOG The World Health Organization retains copyright and all other rights in the manuscript of this article as submitted for publication.

Taxonomy of the burden of treatment: a multi-country web-based qualitative study of patients with chronic conditions.

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Tran, Viet-Thi; Barnes, Caroline; Montori, Victor M; Falissard, Bruno; Ravaud, Philippe

2015-05-14

Management strategies for patients with chronic conditions are becoming increasingly complex, which may result in a burden of treatment for patients. To develop a Minimally Disruptive Medicine designed to reduce the burden of treatment, clinicians need to understand which healthcare tasks and aggravating factors may be responsible for this burden. The objective of the present study was to describe and classify the components of the burden of treatment for patients with chronic conditions from the patient's perspective. We performed a multi-country qualitative study using an online survey and a purposive sampling strategy to select English-, French-, and Spanish-speaking participants with different chronic conditions. Participants were recruited by physicians, patients' associations, advertisement on social media, and 'snowballing'. The answers were analyzed by i) manual content analysis with a grounded theory approach, coded by two researchers, and ii) automatic textual analysis by Reinert's method. Between 2013 and 2014, 1,053 participants from 34 different countries completed the online survey using 408,625 words. Results from both analyses were synthesized in a taxonomy of the burden of treatment, which described i) the tasks imposed on patients by their diseases and by their healthcare system (e.g., medication management, lifestyle changes, follow-up, etc.); ii) the structural (e.g., access to healthcare resources, coordination between care providers), personal, situational, and financial factors that aggravated the burden of treatment; and iii) patient-reported consequences of the burden (e.g., poor adherence to treatments, financial burden, impact on professional, family, and social life, etc.). Our findings may not be applicable to patients with chronic conditions who differ from those who responded to our survey. Our taxonomy of the burden of treatment, provided by patients with chronic conditions from different countries and settings, supports the

Costs and financing of routine immunization: Approach and selected findings of a multi-country study (EPIC).

Science.gov (United States)

Brenzel, Logan; Young, Darwin; Walker, Damian G

2015-05-07

Few detailed facility-based costing studies of routine immunization (RI) programs have been conducted in recent years, with planners, managers and donors relying on older information or data from planning tools. To fill gaps and improve quality of information, a multi-country study on costing and financing of routine immunization and new vaccines (EPIC) was conducted in Benin, Ghana, Honduras, Moldova, Uganda and Zambia. This paper provides the rationale for the launch of the EPIC study, as well as outlines methods used in a Common Approach on facility sampling, data collection, cost and financial flow estimation for both the routine program and new vaccine introduction. Costing relied on an ingredients-based approach from a government perspective. Estimating incremental economic costs of new vaccine introduction in contexts with excess capacity are highlighted. The use of more disaggregated System of Health Accounts (SHA) coding to evaluate financial flows is presented. The EPIC studies resulted in a sample of 319 primary health care facilities, with 65% of facilities in rural areas. The EPIC studies found wide variation in total and unit costs within each country, as well as between countries. Costs increased with level of scale and socio-economic status of the country. Governments are financing an increasing share of total RI financing. This study provides a wealth of high quality information on total and unit costs and financing for RI, and demonstrates the value of in-depth facility approaches. The paper discusses the lessons learned from using a standardized approach, as well as proposes further areas of methodology development. The paper discusses how results can be used for resource mobilization and allocation, improved efficiency of services at the country level, and to inform policies at the global level. Efforts at routinizing cost analysis to support sustainability efforts would be beneficial. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Decomposing the gap in missed opportunities for vaccination between poor and non-poor in sub-Saharan Africa: A multicountry analyses.

Science.gov (United States)

Ndwandwe, Duduzile; Uthman, Olalekan A; Adamu, Abdu; Sambala, Evanson Z; Wiyeh, Alison B; Olukade, Tawa; Bishwajit, Ghose; Yaya, Sanni; Okwo-Bele, Jean-Marie; Wiysonge, Charles S

2018-04-24

Understanding the gaps in missed opportunities for vaccination (MOV) between poor and non-poor in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) would enable an understanding of factors associated with interventions for improving immunisation coverage to achieving universal childhood immunisation. We aimed to conduct a multicountry analyses to decompose the gap in MOV between poor and non-poor in SSA. We used cross-sectional data from 35 Demographic and Health Surveys in SSA conducted between 2007 and 2016. Descriptive statistics used to understand the gap in MOV between the urban poor and non-poor, and across the selected covariates. Out of the 35 countries included in this analysis, 19 countries showed pro-poor inequality, 5 showed pro-non-poor inequality and remaining 11 countries showed no statistically significant inequality. Among the countries with statistically significant pro-illiterate inequality, the risk difference ranged from 4.2% in DR Congo to 20.1% in Kenya. Important factors responsible for the inequality varied across countries. In Madagascar, the largest contributors to inequality in MOV were media access, number of under-five children, and maternal education. However, in Liberia media access narrowed inequality in MOV between poor and non-poor households. The findings indicate that in most SSA countries, children belonging to poor households are most likely to have MOV and that socio-economic inequality in is determined not only by health system functions, but also by factors beyond the scope of health authorities and care delivery system. The findings suggest the need for addressing social determinants of health.

Parasites and vectors carry no passport: how to fund cross-border and regional efforts to achieve malaria elimination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gueye Cara

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Tremendous progress has been made in the last ten years in reducing morbidity and mortality caused by malaria, in part because of increases in global funding for malaria control and elimination. Today, many countries are striving for malaria elimination. However, a major challenge is the neglect of cross-border and regional initiatives in malaria control and elimination. This paper seeks to better understand Global Fund support for multi-country initiatives. Methods Documents and proposals were extracted and reviewed from two main sources, the Global Fund website and Aidspan.org. Documents and reports from the Global Fund Technical Review Panel, Board, and Secretariat documents such as guidelines and proposal templates were reviewed to establish the type of policies enacted and guidance provided from the Global Fund on multi-country initiatives and applications. From reviewing this information, the researchers created 29 variables according to eight dimensions to use in a review of Round 10 applications. All Round 10 multi-country applications (for HIV, malaria and tuberculosis and all malaria multi-country applications (6 from Rounds 1 – 10 were extracted from the Global Fund website. A blind review was conducted of Round 10 applications using the 29 variables as a framework, followed by a review of four of the six successful malaria multi-country grant applications from Rounds 1 – 10. Findings During Rounds 3 – 10 of the Global Fund, only 5.8% of grants submitted were for multi-country initiatives. Out of 83 multi-country proposals submitted, 25.3% were approved by the Technical Review Panel (TRP for funding, compared to 44.9% of single-country applications. The majority of approved multi-country applications were for HIV (76.2%, followed by malaria (19.0%, then tuberculosis (4.8%. TRP recommendations resulted in improvements to application forms, although guidance was generally vague. The in-depth review of Round 10

Comparative risk analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niehaus, F.

1988-01-01

In this paper, the risks of various energy systems are discussed considering severe accidents analysis, particularly the probabilistic safety analysis, and probabilistic safety criteria, and the applications of these criteria and analysis. The comparative risk analysis has demonstrated that the largest source of risk in every society is from daily small accidents. Nevertheless, we have to be more concerned about severe accidents. The comparative risk analysis of five different energy systems (coal, oil, gas, LWR and STEC (Solar)) for the public has shown that the main sources of risks are coal and oil. The latest comparative risk study of various energy has been conducted in the USA and has revealed that the number of victims from coal is 42 as many than victims from nuclear. A study for severe accidents from hydro-dams in United States has estimated the probability of dam failures at 1 in 10,000 years and the number of victims between 11,000 and 260,000. The average occupational risk from coal is one fatal accident in 1,000 workers/year. The probabilistic safety analysis is a method that can be used to assess nuclear energy risks, and to analyze the severe accidents, and to model all possible accident sequences and consequences. The 'Fault tree' analysis is used to know the probability of failure of the different systems at each point of accident sequences and to calculate the probability of risks. After calculating the probability of failure, the criteria for judging the numerical results have to be developed, that is the quantitative and qualitative goals. To achieve these goals, several systems have been devised by various countries members of AIEA. The probabilistic safety ana-lysis method has been developed by establishing a computer program permit-ting to know different categories of safety related information. 19 tabs. (author)

Mapping healthcare systems: a policy relevant analytic tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekhri Feachem, Neelam; Afshar, Ariana; Pruett, Cristina; Avanceña, Anton L V

2017-07-01

In the past decade, an international consensus on the value of well-functioning systems has driven considerable health systems research. This research falls into two broad categories. The first provides conceptual frameworks that take complex healthcare systems and create simplified constructs of interactions and functions. The second focuses on granular inputs and outputs. This paper presents a novel translational mapping tool - the University of California, San Francisco mapping tool (the Tool) - which bridges the gap between these two areas of research, creating a platform for multi-country comparative analysis. Using the Murray-Frenk framework, we create a macro-level representation of a country's structure, focusing on how it finances and delivers healthcare. The map visually depicts the fundamental policy questions in healthcare system design: funding sources and amount spent through each source, purchasers, populations covered, provider categories; and the relationship between these entities. We use the Tool to provide a macro-level comparative analysis of the structure of India's and Thailand's healthcare systems. As part of the systems strengthening arsenal, the Tool can stimulate debate about the merits and consequences of different healthcare systems structural designs, using a common framework that fosters multi-country comparative analyses. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Elder Abuse in the Iberian Peninsula and Bolivia: A Multicountry Comparative Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Carmona-Torres, Juan Manuel; Carvalhal, Rosa; Gálvez-Rioja, Ruth Mary; Ruiz-Gandara, África; Goergen, Thomas; Rodríguez-Borrego, Mª Aurora

2017-06-01

The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of abuse of vulnerable older persons in the family and community environment in the following regions-Spain (Andalusia-Córdoba), Portugal (Azores), and Bolivia (Santa Cruz de la Sierra)-and to identify risk factors and delineate a profile of abused older persons. For this, a descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. The sample consisted of people in the age group 65 years plus living in the catchment areas of health centers. The following were used as instruments to collect data: the medical record of the patients of relevant health centers, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), daily activities autonomy test, adaptability, partnership, growth, affection, and resolve (APGAR) familiar test, The Elder Abuse Suspicion Index (EASI) and the Social Work Evaluation Form. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify factors associated with abuse. Suspected abuse was identified in 6.9% of the elderly who participated in the study in Spain, 39% in Bolivia, and 24.5% in Azores. In all areas, studied psychological abuse was the most common type of abuse. In conclusion, although the prevalence of abuse to older people in the family and community environment differs in the areas studied, it is present in all countries and the data are comparable with other developing and European countries. The profile of the abused older persons appears to be similar in all countries.

Living network meta-analysis compared with pairwise meta-analysis in comparative effectiveness research: empirical study

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Nikolakopoulou, Adriani; Mavridis, Dimitris; Furukawa, Toshi A; Cipriani, Andrea; Tricco, Andrea C; Straus, Sharon E; Siontis, George C M; Egger, Matthias

2018-01-01

Abstract Objective To examine whether the continuous updating of networks of prospectively planned randomised controlled trials (RCTs) (“living” network meta-analysis) provides strong evidence against the null hypothesis in comparative effectiveness of medical interventions earlier than the updating of conventional, pairwise meta-analysis. Design Empirical study of the accumulating evidence about the comparative effectiveness of clinical interventions. Data sources Database of network meta-analyses of RCTs identified through searches of Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews until 14 April 2015. Eligibility criteria for study selection Network meta-analyses published after January 2012 that compared at least five treatments and included at least 20 RCTs. Clinical experts were asked to identify in each network the treatment comparison of greatest clinical interest. Comparisons were excluded for which direct and indirect evidence disagreed, based on side, or node, splitting test (Pmeta-analysis. The frequency and time to strong evidence was compared against the null hypothesis between pairwise and network meta-analyses. Results 49 comparisons of interest from 44 networks were included; most (n=39, 80%) were between active drugs, mainly from the specialties of cardiology, endocrinology, psychiatry, and rheumatology. 29 comparisons were informed by both direct and indirect evidence (59%), 13 by indirect evidence (27%), and 7 by direct evidence (14%). Both network and pairwise meta-analysis provided strong evidence against the null hypothesis for seven comparisons, but for an additional 10 comparisons only network meta-analysis provided strong evidence against the null hypothesis (P=0.002). The median time to strong evidence against the null hypothesis was 19 years with living network meta-analysis and 23 years with living pairwise meta-analysis (hazard ratio 2.78, 95% confidence interval 1.00 to 7.72, P=0.05). Studies directly comparing

The world health organization multicountry survey on maternal and newborn health: study protocol

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Souza João

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Effective interventions to reduce mortality and morbidity in maternal and newborn health already exist. Information about quality and performance of care and the use of critical interventions are useful for shaping improvements in health care and strengthening the contribution of health systems towards the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5. The near-miss concept and the criterion-based clinical audit are proposed as useful approaches for obtaining such information in maternal and newborn health care. This paper presents the methods of the World Health Organization Multicountry Study in Maternal and Newborn Health. The main objectives of this study are to determine the prevalence of maternal near-miss cases in a worldwide network of health facilities, evaluate the quality of care using the maternal near-miss concept and the criterion-based clinical audit, and develop the near-miss concept in neonatal health. Methods/Design This is a large cross-sectional study being implemented in a worldwide network of health facilities. A total of 370 health facilities from 29 countries will take part in this study and produce nearly 275,000 observations. All women giving birth, all maternal near-miss cases regardless of the gestational age and delivery status and all maternal deaths during the study period comprise the study population. In each health facility, medical records of all eligible women will be reviewed during a data collection period that ranges from two to three months according to the annual number of deliveries. Discussion Implementing the systematic identification of near-miss cases, mapping the use of critical evidence-based interventions and analysing the corresponding indicators are just the initial steps for using the maternal near-miss concept as a tool to improve maternal and newborn health. The findings of projects using approaches similar to those described in this manuscript will be a good starter for a more

Use of antenatal corticosteroids and tocolytic drugs in preterm births in 29 countries: an analysis of the WHO Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Joshua P; Souza, João Paulo; Gülmezoglu, A Metin; Mori, Rintaro; Lumbiganon, Pisake; Qureshi, Zahida; Carroli, Guillermo; Laopaiboon, Malinee; Fawole, Bukola; Ganchimeg, Togoobaatar; Zhang, Jun; Torloni, Maria Regina; Bohren, Meghan; Temmerman, Marleen

2014-11-22

Despite the global burden of morbidity and mortality associated with preterm birth, little evidence is available for use of antenatal corticosteroids and tocolytic drugs in preterm births in low-income and middle-income countries. We analysed data from the WHO Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health (WHOMCS) to assess coverage for these interventions in preterm deliveries. WHOMCS is a facility-based, cross-sectional survey database of birth outcomes in 359 facilities in 29 countries, with data collected prospectively from May 1, 2010, to Dec 31, 2011. For this analysis, we included deliveries after 22 weeks' gestation and we excluded births that occurred outside a facility or quicker than 3 h after arrival. We calculated use of antenatal corticosteroids in women who gave birth between 26 and 34 weeks' gestation, when antenatal corticosteroids are known to be most beneficial. We also calculated use in women at 22-25 weeks' and 34-36 weeks' gestation. We assessed tocolytic drug use, with and without antenatal corticosteroids, in spontaneous, uncomplicated preterm deliveries at 26-34 weeks' gestation. Of 303,842 recorded deliveries after 22 weeks' gestation, 17,705 (6%) were preterm. 3900 (52%) of 7547 women who gave birth at 26-34 weeks' gestation, 94 (19%) of 497 women who gave birth at 22-25 weeks' gestation, and 2276 (24%) of 9661 women who gave birth at 35-36 weeks' gestation received antenatal corticosteroids. Rates of antenatal corticosteroid use varied between countries (median 54%, range 16-91%; IQR 30-68%). Of 4677 women who were potentially eligible for tocolysis drugs, 1276 (27%) were treated with bed rest or hydration and 2248 (48%) received no treatment. β-agonists alone (n=346, 7%) were the most frequently used tocolytic drug. Only 848 (18%) of potentially eligible women received both a tocolytic drug and antenatal corticosteroids. Use of interventions was generally poor, despite evidence for their benefit for newborn babies. A substantial

Multi-parameter analysis for the technical and economic assessment of photovoltaic systems in the main European Union countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bortolini, Marco; Gamberi, Mauro; Graziani, Alessandro; Mora, Cristina; Regattieri, Alberto

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Performance cost model assesses the feasibility and profitability of PV systems. • Multi-country and multi-parameter analysis of PV systems in the European Union area. • The impact of key technical, environmental, economic and financial data is assessed. • Germany, Italy and Spain present the most effective PV sector support strategies. • The rated power and energy self-consumption ratio affect PV plant profitability. - Abstract: In the last decades, the attention to solar energy as a renewable and nonpolluting energy source increased a lot through scientists, private and public institutions. Several efforts are made to increase the diffusion of such a source and to create the conditions making it competitive for the energy market. Particularly, for the photovoltaic (PV) sector, the module efficiency increase, manufacturing cost reduction and a strong public support, through favorable incentive schemes, generates a significant rise in the installed power, exceeding 40 GWp in 2010. Although the global trend of the PV sector is positive, differences among countries arise out of local peculiarities and evolutions in the national support policies. This paper investigates such issues focusing on the feasibility analysis of PV solar systems for eight relevant countries in the European Union area, i.e. France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, The Netherlands, Turkey and United Kingdom. A multi-country and multi-parameter comparative analysis, based on the net present value and payback capital budget indices, allows to highlight the conditions most affecting the economic feasibility of PV systems. The national support strategies, along with the most relevant technical, environmental, economic and financial parameters, are the key features included and compared in the analysis. The major results deal with the conditions which make PV systems potentially profitable for each country and installation feature. The national support strategies to the PV

Methodology for a mixed-methods multi-country study to assess recognition of and response to maternal and newborn illness.

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Moran, Allisyn C; Charlet, Danielle; Madhavan, Supriya; Aruldas, Kumudha; Donaldson, Marie; Manzi, Fatuma; Okuga, Monica; Rosales, Alfonso; Sharma, Vandana; Celone, Michael; Brandes, Neal; Sherry, James M

2017-12-21

Although maternal and newborn mortality have decreased 44 and 46% respectively between 1990 and 2015, achievement of ambitious Sustainable Development Goal targets requires accelerated progress. Mortality reduction requires a renewed focus on the continuum of maternal and newborn care from the household to the health facility. Although barriers to accessing skilled care are documented for specific contexts, there is a lack of systematic evidence on how women and families identify maternal and newborn illness and make decisions and subsequent care-seeking patterns. The focus of this multi-country study was to identify and describe illness recognition, decision-making, and care-seeking patterns across various contexts among women and newborns who survived and died to ultimately inform programmatic priorities moving forward. This study was conducted in seven countries-Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria, India, Indonesia, and Nepal. Mixed-methods were utilized including event narratives (group interviews), in-depth interviews (IDIs), focus group discussions (FDGs), rapid facility assessments, and secondary analyses of existing program data. A common protocol and tools were developed in collaboration with study teams and adapted for each site, as needed. Sample size was a minimum of five cases of each type (e.g., perceived postpartum hemorrhage, maternal death, newborn illness, and newborn death) for each study site, with a total of 84 perceived PPH, 45 maternal deaths, 83 newborn illness, 55 newborn deaths, 64 IDIs/FGDs, and 99 health facility assessments across all sites. Analysis included coding within and across cases, identifying broad themes on recognition of illness, decision-making, and patterns of care seeking, and corresponding contextual factors. Technical support was provided throughout the process for capacity building, quality assurance, and consistency across sites. This study provides rigorous evidence on how women and families recognize and respond to

Effect of CO{sub 2} and emissions-trading on the Swiss national economy - Analysis using a multi-country equilibrium model; Volkswirtschaftliche Auswirkungen von CO{sub 2}-Abgaben und Emissionshandel fuer das Jahr 2020 - Analyse der volkswirtschaftlichen Auswirkungen mit Hilfe eines allgemeinen Mehrlaender-Gleichgewichtsmodell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2008-09-15

This report elaborated for the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) deals with questions concerning Swiss climate policy after 2012. In 2012, existing climate legislation as defined in CO{sub 2} emissions legislation is to be revised and brought in line with European legislation on greenhouse gases. The report presents and discusses the proposals of the Swiss government that are to make Switzerland climate-neutral. These questions include how high a steering-tax must be in order to provide a 20% reduction in CO{sub 2} emissions, the amount of finance needed to do this, which effects on the economy in general (GDP) and on particular sectors are to be expected, how households will be affected and how large the positive secondary side-effects of an active climate policy are. The methods used in the study and their limitations are examined. A multi-country equilibrium model is introduced and various scenarios are discussed

Creating opportunities through mentorship, parental involvement, and safe spaces (COMPASS program: multi-country study protocol to protect girls from violence in humanitarian settings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kathryn L. Falb

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Violence against adolescent girls in humanitarian settings is of urgent concern given their additional vulnerabilities to violence and unique health and well-being needs that have largely been overlooked by the humanitarian community. In order to understand what works to prevent violence against adolescent girls, a multi-component curriculum-based safe spaces program (Creating Opportunities through Mentorship, Parental involvement and Safe Spaces – COMPASS will be implemented and evaluated. The objectives of this multi-country study are to understand the feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness of COMPASS programming to prevent violence against adolescent girls in diverse humanitarian settings. Methods/design Two wait-listed cluster-randomized controlled trials are being implemented in conflict-affected communities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (N = 886 girls aged 10–14 years and in refugee camps in western Ethiopia (N = 919 girls aged 13–19 years. The intervention consists of structured facilitated sessions delivered in safe spaces by young female mentors, caregiver discussion groups, capacity-building activities with service providers, and community engagement. In Ethiopia, the research centers on the overall impact of COMPASS compared to a wait-list group. In DRC, the research objective is to understand the incremental effectiveness of the caregiver component in addition to the other COMPASS activities as compared to a wait-list group. The primary outcome is change in sexual violence. Secondary outcomes include decreased physical and emotional abuse, reduced early marriage, improved gender norms, and positive interpersonal relationships, among others. Qualitative methodologies seek to understand girls’ perceptions of safety within their communities, key challenges they face, and to identify potential pathways of change. Discussion These trials will add much needed evidence for the humanitarian

Creating opportunities through mentorship, parental involvement, and safe spaces (COMPASS) program: multi-country study protocol to protect girls from violence in humanitarian settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Falb, Kathryn L; Tanner, Sophie; Ward, Leora; Erksine, Dorcas; Noble, Eva; Assazenew, Asham; Bakomere, Theresita; Graybill, Elizabeth; Lowry, Carmen; Mallinga, Pamela; Neiman, Amy; Poulton, Catherine; Robinette, Katie; Sommer, Marni; Stark, Lindsay

2016-03-05

Violence against adolescent girls in humanitarian settings is of urgent concern given their additional vulnerabilities to violence and unique health and well-being needs that have largely been overlooked by the humanitarian community. In order to understand what works to prevent violence against adolescent girls, a multi-component curriculum-based safe spaces program (Creating Opportunities through Mentorship, Parental involvement and Safe Spaces - COMPASS) will be implemented and evaluated. The objectives of this multi-country study are to understand the feasibility, acceptability and effectiveness of COMPASS programming to prevent violence against adolescent girls in diverse humanitarian settings. Two wait-listed cluster-randomized controlled trials are being implemented in conflict-affected communities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (N = 886 girls aged 10-14 years) and in refugee camps in western Ethiopia (N = 919 girls aged 13-19 years). The intervention consists of structured facilitated sessions delivered in safe spaces by young female mentors, caregiver discussion groups, capacity-building activities with service providers, and community engagement. In Ethiopia, the research centers on the overall impact of COMPASS compared to a wait-list group. In DRC, the research objective is to understand the incremental effectiveness of the caregiver component in addition to the other COMPASS activities as compared to a wait-list group. The primary outcome is change in sexual violence. Secondary outcomes include decreased physical and emotional abuse, reduced early marriage, improved gender norms, and positive interpersonal relationships, among others. Qualitative methodologies seek to understand girls' perceptions of safety within their communities, key challenges they face, and to identify potential pathways of change. These trials will add much needed evidence for the humanitarian community to meet the unique needs of adolescent girls and to promote

Living network meta-analysis compared with pairwise meta-analysis in comparative effectiveness research: empirical study.

Science.gov (United States)

Nikolakopoulou, Adriani; Mavridis, Dimitris; Furukawa, Toshi A; Cipriani, Andrea; Tricco, Andrea C; Straus, Sharon E; Siontis, George C M; Egger, Matthias; Salanti, Georgia

2018-02-28

To examine whether the continuous updating of networks of prospectively planned randomised controlled trials (RCTs) ("living" network meta-analysis) provides strong evidence against the null hypothesis in comparative effectiveness of medical interventions earlier than the updating of conventional, pairwise meta-analysis. Empirical study of the accumulating evidence about the comparative effectiveness of clinical interventions. Database of network meta-analyses of RCTs identified through searches of Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews until 14 April 2015. Network meta-analyses published after January 2012 that compared at least five treatments and included at least 20 RCTs. Clinical experts were asked to identify in each network the treatment comparison of greatest clinical interest. Comparisons were excluded for which direct and indirect evidence disagreed, based on side, or node, splitting test (Pmeta-analyses were performed for each selected comparison. Monitoring boundaries of statistical significance were constructed and the evidence against the null hypothesis was considered to be strong when the monitoring boundaries were crossed. A significance level was defined as α=5%, power of 90% (β=10%), and an anticipated treatment effect to detect equal to the final estimate from the network meta-analysis. The frequency and time to strong evidence was compared against the null hypothesis between pairwise and network meta-analyses. 49 comparisons of interest from 44 networks were included; most (n=39, 80%) were between active drugs, mainly from the specialties of cardiology, endocrinology, psychiatry, and rheumatology. 29 comparisons were informed by both direct and indirect evidence (59%), 13 by indirect evidence (27%), and 7 by direct evidence (14%). Both network and pairwise meta-analysis provided strong evidence against the null hypothesis for seven comparisons, but for an additional 10 comparisons only network meta-analysis provided

Event Rates, Hospital Utilization, and Costs Associated with Major Complications of Diabetes: A Multicountry Comparative Analysis

OpenAIRE

Clarke, Philip M.; Glasziou, Paul; Patel, Anushka; Chalmers, John; Harrap, Stephen B.; Woodward, Mark Phillip; Salomon, Joshua A.

2010-01-01

Editors' Summary Background Worldwide, nearly 250 million people have diabetes, and this number is increasing rapidly. Diabetes is characterized by dangerous amounts of sugar (glucose) in the blood. Blood sugar levels are normally controlled by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Blood sugar control fails in people with diabetes because they make no insulin (type 1 diabetes) or, more commonly, because the fat and muscle cells that usually respond to insulin by removing excess sugar f...

The Efficacy of Guanxinning Injection in Treating Angina Pectoris: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Yongliang; Leung, Siu-wai; Lee, Ming-Yuen; Cui, Guozhen; Huang, Xiaohui; Pan, Fongha

2013-01-01

Objective. The randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on Guanxinning injection (GXN) in treating angina pectoris were published only in Chinese and have not been systematically reviewed. This study aims to provide a PRISMA-compliant and internationally accessible systematic review to evaluate the efficacy of GXN in treating angina pectoris. Methods. The RCTs were included according to prespecified eligibility criteria. Meta-analysis was performed to evaluate the symptomatic (SYMPTOMS) and electrocardiographic (ECG) improvements after treatment. Odds ratios (ORs) were used to measure effect sizes. Subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and metaregression were conducted to evaluate the robustness of the results. Results. Sixty-five RCTs published between 2002 and 2012 with 6064 participants were included. Overall ORs comparing GXN with other drugs were 3.32 (95% CI: [2.72, 4.04]) in SYMPTOMS and 2.59 (95% CI: [2.14, 3.15]) in ECG. Subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis, and metaregression found no statistically significant dependence of overall ORs upon specific study characteristics. Conclusion. This meta-analysis of eligible RCTs provides evidence that GXN is effective in treating angina pectoris. This evidence warrants further RCTs of higher quality, longer follow-up periods, larger sample sizes, and multicentres/multicountries for more extensive subgroup, sensitivity, and metaregression analyses. PMID:23634167

MycoCAP - Mycobacterium Comparative Analysis Platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Choo, Siew Woh; Ang, Mia Yang; Dutta, Avirup; Tan, Shi Yang; Siow, Cheuk Chuen; Heydari, Hamed; Mutha, Naresh V R; Wee, Wei Yee; Wong, Guat Jah

2015-12-15

Mycobacterium spp. are renowned for being the causative agent of diseases like leprosy, Buruli ulcer and tuberculosis in human beings. With more and more mycobacterial genomes being sequenced, any knowledge generated from comparative genomic analysis would provide better insights into the biology, evolution, phylogeny and pathogenicity of this genus, thus helping in better management of diseases caused by Mycobacterium spp.With this motivation, we constructed MycoCAP, a new comparative analysis platform dedicated to the important genus Mycobacterium. This platform currently provides information of 2108 genome sequences of at least 55 Mycobacterium spp. A number of intuitive web-based tools have been integrated in MycoCAP particularly for comparative analysis including the PGC tool for comparison between two genomes, PathoProT for comparing the virulence genes among the Mycobacterium strains and the SuperClassification tool for the phylogenic classification of the Mycobacterium strains and a specialized classification system for strains of Mycobacterium abscessus. We hope the broad range of functions and easy-to-use tools provided in MycoCAP makes it an invaluable analysis platform to speed up the research discovery on mycobacteria for researchers. Database URL: http://mycobacterium.um.edu.my.

A Comparative Study on Error Analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wu, Xiaoli; Zhang, Chun

2015-01-01

Title: A Comparative Study on Error Analysis Subtitle: - Belgian (L1) and Danish (L1) learners’ use of Chinese (L2) comparative sentences in written production Xiaoli Wu, Chun Zhang Abstract: Making errors is an inevitable and necessary part of learning. The collection, classification and analysis...... the occurrence of errors either in linguistic or pedagogical terms. The purpose of the current study is to demonstrate the theoretical and practical relevance of error analysis approach in CFL by investigating two cases - (1) Belgian (L1) learners’ use of Chinese (L2) comparative sentences in written production...... of errors in the written and spoken production of L2 learners has a long tradition in L2 pedagogy. Yet, in teaching and learning Chinese as a foreign language (CFL), only handful studies have been made either to define the ‘error’ in a pedagogically insightful way or to empirically investigate...

Comparing Results from Constant Comparative and Computer Software Methods: A Reflection about Qualitative Data Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Putten, Jim Vander; Nolen, Amanda L.

2010-01-01

This study compared qualitative research results obtained by manual constant comparative analysis with results obtained by computer software analysis of the same data. An investigated about issues of trustworthiness and accuracy ensued. Results indicated that the inductive constant comparative data analysis generated 51 codes and two coding levels…

A new concept of irrigation response units for effective management of surface and groundwater resources: a case study from the multi-country Fergana Valley, Central Asia

KAUST Repository

Awan, Usman Khalid

2016-09-09

When estimating canal water supplies for large-scale irrigation schemes and especially in arid regions worldwide, the impact of all factors affecting the gross irrigation requirements (GIR) are not properly accounted for, which results in inefficient use of precious freshwater resources. This research shows that the concept of irrigation response units (IRU)—areas having unique combinations of factors effecting the GIR—allows for more precise estimates of GIR. An overlay analysis of soil texture and salinity, depth and salinity of groundwater, cropping patterns and irrigation methods was performed in a GIS environment, which yielded a total of 17 IRUs combinations of the Oktepa Zilol Chashmasi water consumers’ association in multi-country Fergana Valley, Central Asia. Groundwater contribution, leaching requirements, losses in the irrigation system through field application and conveyance and effective rainfall were included in GIR estimates. The GIR varied significantly among IRUs [average of 851 mm (±143 mm)] with a maximum (1051 mm) in IRU-12 and a minimum (629 mm) in IRUs-15, 16. Owing to varying groundwater levels in each IRU, the groundwater contribution played a key role in the estimation of the GIR. The maximum groundwater contribution occurred in IRUs dominated by cotton–fallow rotations as evidenced by an average value of 159 mm but a maximum of 254 mm and a minimum of 97 mm. Percolation losses depended on irrigation methods for different crops in their respective IRUs. The novel approach can guide water managers in this and similar regions to increase the accuracy of irrigation demands based on all the factor effecting the GIR. © 2016 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

Neutron activation analysis-comparative (NAAC)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zimmer, W.H.

1979-01-01

A software system for the reduction of comparative neutron activation analysis data is presented. Libraries are constructed to contain the elemental composition and isotopic nuclear data of an unlimited number of standards. Ratios to unknown sample data are performed by standard calibrations. Interfering peak corrections, second-order activation-product corrections, and deconvolution of multiplets are applied automatically. Passive gamma-energy analysis can be performed with the same software. 3 figures

p-adic analysis compared with real

CERN Document Server

Katok, Svetlana

2007-01-01

The book gives an introduction to p-adic numbers from the point of view of number theory, topology, and analysis. Compared to other books on the subject, its novelty is both a particularly balanced approach to these three points of view and an emphasis on topics accessible to undergraduates. In addition, several topics from real analysis and elementary topology which are not usually covered in undergraduate courses (totally disconnected spaces and Cantor sets, points of discontinuity of maps and the Baire Category Theorem, surjectivity of isometries of compact metric spaces) are also included in the book. They will enhance the reader's understanding of real analysis and intertwine the real and p-adic contexts of the book. The book is based on an advanced undergraduate course given by the author. The choice of the topic was motivated by the internal beauty of the subject of p-adic analysis, an unusual one in the undergraduate curriculum, and abundant opportunities to compare it with its much more familiar real...

Comparative analysis of traditional and alternative energy sources

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adriana Csikósová

2008-11-01

Full Text Available The presented thesis with designation of Comparing analysis of traditional and alternative energy resources includes, on basisof theoretical information source, research in firm, internal data, trends in company development and market, descriptionof the problem and its application. Theoretical information source is dedicated to the traditional and alternative energy resources,reserves of it, trends in using and development, the balance of it in the world, EU and in Slovakia as well. Analysis of the thesisis reflecting profile of the company and the thermal pump market evaluation using General Electric method. While the companyis implementing, except other products, the thermal pumps on geothermal energy base and surround energy base (air, the missionof the comparing analysis is to compare traditional energy resources with thermal pump from the ecological, utility and economic sideof it. The results of the comparing analysis are resumed in to the SWOT analysis. The part of the thesis includes he questionnaire offerfor effectiveness improvement and customer satisfaction analysis, and expected possibilities of alternative energy resources assistance(benefits from the government and EU funds.

Comparative analysis of Carnaval II Library

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Santos Bastos, W. dos

1981-01-01

The Carnaval II cross sections library from the french fast reactor calculation system is evaluated in two ways: 1 0 ) a comparative analysis of the calculations system for fast reactors at IEN (Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear) using a 'benchmark' model is done; 2 0 ) a comparative analysis in relation to the french system itself is also done, using calculations realized with two versions of the french library: the SETR-II and the CARNAVAL IV, the first one being anterior and the second one posterior to the Carnaval II version, the one used by IEN. (Author) [pt

Embedded Hyperchaotic Generators: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Sadoudi, Said; Tanougast, Camel; Azzaz, Mohamad Salah; Dandache, Abbas

In this paper, we present a comparative analysis of FPGA implementation performances, in terms of throughput and resources cost, of five well known autonomous continuous hyperchaotic systems. The goal of this analysis is to identify the embedded hyperchaotic generator which leads to designs with small logic area cost, satisfactory throughput rates, low power consumption and low latency required for embedded applications such as secure digital communications between embedded systems. To implement the four-dimensional (4D) chaotic systems, we use a new structural hardware architecture based on direct VHDL description of the forth order Runge-Kutta method (RK-4). The comparative analysis shows that the hyperchaotic Lorenz generator provides attractive performances compared to that of others. In fact, its hardware implementation requires only 2067 CLB-slices, 36 multipliers and no block RAMs, and achieves a throughput rate of 101.6 Mbps, at the output of the FPGA circuit, at a clock frequency of 25.315 MHz with a low latency time of 316 ns. Consequently, these good implementation performances offer to the embedded hyperchaotic Lorenz generator the advantage of being the best candidate for embedded communications applications.

Pathways between childhood trauma, intimate partner violence, and harsh parenting: findings from the UN Multi-country Study on Men and Violence in Asia and the Pacific.

Science.gov (United States)

Fulu, Emma; Miedema, Stephanie; Roselli, Tim; McCook, Sarah; Chan, Ko Ling; Haardörfer, Regine; Jewkes, Rachel

2017-05-01

Although childhood trauma and violence against women are global public health issues, few population-based data from low-income and middle-income countries exist about the links between them. We present data from the UN Multi-country Study on Men and Violence in Asia and the Pacific, exploring the pathways between different forms of childhood trauma and violence against women. In this multicountry study, we interviewed multistage representative samples of men and women, aged 18-49 years, in Asia and the Pacific, using standardised population-based household surveys. Men were interviewed in six countries, and women in four. Respondents were asked questions about their perpetration or experience of intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence, childhood trauma, and harsh parenting (smacking their children as a form of discipline). We used maximum likelihood multivariate logit models to explore associations between childhood trauma and violence against women, and fitted path models to explore associations between experience and perpetration of child maltreatment. Between Jan 1, 2011, and Dec 1, 2012, 10 178 men and 3106 women completed interviews in this study, with between 815 and 1812 men per site and 477 and 1103 women per site. The proportion of men who experienced any childhood trauma varied between 59% (n=478, 95% CI 54·0-63·3; Indonesia rural site) and 92% (n=791, 89·4-93·8; Bougainville, Papua New Guinea). For women, the results ranged from 44% (n=272, 37·7-50·8; Sri Lanka) to 84% (n=725, 80·7-86·8; Bougainville, Papua New Guinea). For men, all forms of childhood trauma were associated with all forms of intimate partner violence perpetration. For women, all forms of childhood trauma were associated with physical intimate partner violence, and both physical and sexual intimate partner violence. There were significant, often gendered, pathways between men's and women's perpetration and experiences of childhood trauma, physical intimate

Pathways between childhood trauma, intimate partner violence, and harsh parenting: findings from the UN Multi-country Study on Men and Violence in Asia and the Pacific

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emma Fulu, DrPhD

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Summary: Background: Although childhood trauma and violence against women are global public health issues, few population-based data from low-income and middle-income countries exist about the links between them. We present data from the UN Multi-country Study on Men and Violence in Asia and the Pacific, exploring the pathways between different forms of childhood trauma and violence against women. Methods: In this multicountry study, we interviewed multistage representative samples of men and women, aged 18–49 years, in Asia and the Pacific, using standardised population-based household surveys. Men were interviewed in six countries, and women in four. Respondents were asked questions about their perpetration or experience of intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence, childhood trauma, and harsh parenting (smacking their children as a form of discipline. We used maximum likelihood multivariate logit models to explore associations between childhood trauma and violence against women, and fitted path models to explore associations between experience and perpetration of child maltreatment. Findings: Between Jan 1, 2011, and Dec 1, 2012, 10 178 men and 3106 women completed interviews in this study, with between 815 and 1812 men per site and 477 and 1103 women per site. The proportion of men who experienced any childhood trauma varied between 59% (n=478, 95% CI 54·0–63·3; Indonesia rural site and 92% (n=791, 89·4–93·8; Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. For women, the results ranged from 44% (n=272, 37·7–50·8; Sri Lanka to 84% (n=725, 80·7–86·8; Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. For men, all forms of childhood trauma were associated with all forms of intimate partner violence perpetration. For women, all forms of childhood trauma were associated with physical intimate partner violence, and both physical and sexual intimate partner violence. There were significant, often gendered, pathways between men's and women

Comparing methods of classifying life courses: Sequence analysis and latent class analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Elzinga, C.H.; Liefbroer, Aart C.; Han, Sapphire

2017-01-01

We compare life course typology solutions generated by sequence analysis (SA) and latent class analysis (LCA). First, we construct an analytic protocol to arrive at typology solutions for both methodologies and present methods to compare the empirical quality of alternative typologies. We apply this

Comparing methods of classifying life courses: sequence analysis and latent class analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Han, Y.; Liefbroer, A.C.; Elzinga, C.

2017-01-01

We compare life course typology solutions generated by sequence analysis (SA) and latent class analysis (LCA). First, we construct an analytic protocol to arrive at typology solutions for both methodologies and present methods to compare the empirical quality of alternative typologies. We apply this

Nuclear power ecology: comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trofimenko, A.P.; Lips'ka, A.Yi.; Pisanko, Zh.Yi.

2005-01-01

Ecological effects of different energy sources are compared. Main actions for further nuclear power development - safety increase and waste management, are noted. Reasons of restrained public position to nuclear power and role of social and political factors in it are analyzed. An attempt is undertaken to separate real difficulties of nuclear power from imaginary ones that appear in some mass media. International actions of environment protection are noted. Risk factors at different energy source using are compared. The results of analysis indicate that ecological influence and risk for nuclear power are of minimum

Using Multicountry Ecological and Observational Studies to Determine Dietary Risk Factors for Alzheimer's Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, William B

2016-07-01

Rates of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are rising worldwide. The most important risk factors seem to be linked to diet. For example, when Japan made the nutrition transition from the traditional Japanese diet to the Western diet, AD rates rose from 1% in 1985 to 7% in 2008. Foods protective against AD include fruits, vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy products, legumes, and fish, whereas risk factors include meat, sweets, and high-fat dairy products. The evidence comes from ecological and observational studies as well as investigations of the mechanisms whereby dietary factors affect risk. The mechanisms linking dietary risk factors to AD are fairly well known and include increased oxidative stress from metal ions such as copper as well as from advanced glycation end products associated with high-temperature cooking, increased homocysteine concentrations, and cholesterol and its effects on amyloid beta, insulin resistance, and obesity. Lower 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations also are associated with increased risk of AD. In addition to reviewing the journal literature, a new ecological study was conducted using AD prevalence from 10 countries (Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Egypt, India, Mongolia, Nigeria, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka, and the United States) along with dietary supply data 5, 10, and 15 years before the prevalence data. Dietary supply of meat or animal products less milk 5 years before AD prevalence had the highest correlations with AD prevalence in this study. Thus, reducing meat consumption could significantly reduce the risk of AD as well as of several cancers, diabetes mellitus type 2, stroke, and, likely, chronic kidney disease. • Single-country ecological data can be used to find links between diet and AD because the national diet changes, such as during the nutrition transition to a Western diet. • Multicountry ecological studies can be used to find links between dietary factors and risk of AD. • Prospective observational studies are useful in

CloVR-Comparative: automated, cloud-enabled comparative microbial genome sequence analysis pipeline

OpenAIRE

Agrawal, Sonia; Arze, Cesar; Adkins, Ricky S.; Crabtree, Jonathan; Riley, David; Vangala, Mahesh; Galens, Kevin; Fraser, Claire M.; Tettelin, Herv?; White, Owen; Angiuoli, Samuel V.; Mahurkar, Anup; Fricke, W. Florian

2017-01-01

Background The benefit of increasing genomic sequence data to the scientific community depends on easy-to-use, scalable bioinformatics support. CloVR-Comparative combines commonly used bioinformatics tools into an intuitive, automated, and cloud-enabled analysis pipeline for comparative microbial genomics. Results CloVR-Comparative runs on annotated complete or draft genome sequences that are uploaded by the user or selected via a taxonomic tree-based user interface and downloaded from NCBI. ...

A multi-country, cross-sectional observational study of retinopathy of prematurity in Latin America and the Caribbean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lauren Arnesen

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective To consolidate available information from the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC region on 1 national incidence of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP and 2 national-level government inputs on ROP (existing national policies, guidelines, programs, and financing for ROP prevention, detection, and treatment, including ROP screening in 2014. Methods In March and April 2015, a multi-country online survey was distributed to 56 medical and public health experts working on ROP in LAC countries. Respondents were instructed to provide quantitative and qualitative information representative of the national situation in 2014 for ROP incidence and national-level government inputs (existing national policies, guidelines, programs, and financing for ROP prevention, detection, and treatment, including ROP screening in their country. Results The survey was completed in full by a total of 11 experts from 10 LAC countries (Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Panama. According to the survey results, six countries had a national policy that includes ROP prevention, detection, and treatment, with screening and treatment covered by national/federal funding. Eight countries had national guidelines for ROP. Four countries had legislation mandating eye examination of preterm infants. Most countries had Level 3 and 4 neonatal intensive care units with ROP programs in public sector health care facilities. Five countries had a data collection or monitoring system to track the number of newborn babies screened for ROP within hospital settings. On average, countries with three or four of the above-mentioned ROP elements screened 95% of eligible newborns in 2014, while those with only one or two of the ROP elements screened 35% of eligible newborns. Conclusions National government buy-in and involvement in ROP screening and treatment legislation is related to a higher proportion of eligible

A Multi-country Study of the Household Willingness-to-Pay for Dengue Vaccines: Household Surveys in Vietnam, Thailand, and Colombia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jung-Seok Lee

Full Text Available The rise in dengue fever cases and the absence of dengue vaccines will likely cause governments to consider various types of effective means for controlling the disease. Given strong public interests in potential dengue vaccines, it is essential to understand the private economic benefits of dengue vaccines for accelerated introduction of vaccines into the public sector program and private markets of high-risk countries.A contingent valuation study for a hypothetical dengue vaccine was administered to 400 households in a multi-country setting: Vietnam, Thailand, and Colombia. All respondents received a description of the hypothetical dengue vaccine scenarios of 70% or 95% effectiveness for 10 or 30 years with a three dose series. Five price points were determined after pilot tests in order to reflect different local situations such as household income levels and general perceptions towards dengue fever. We adopted either Poisson or negative binomial regression models to calculate average willingness-to-pay (WTP, as well as median WTP. We found that there is a significant demand for dengue vaccines. The parametric median WTP is $26.4 ($8.8 per dose in Vietnam, $70.3 ($23.4 per dose in Thailand, and $23 ($7.7 per dose in Colombia. Our study also suggests that respondents place more value on vaccinating young children than school age children and adults.Knowing that dengue vaccines are not yet available, our study provides critical information to both public and private sectors. The study results can be used to ensure broad coverage with an affordable price and incorporated into cost benefit analyses, which can inform prioritization of alternative health interventions at the national level.

MetaComp: comprehensive analysis software for comparative meta-omics including comparative metagenomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhai, Peng; Yang, Longshu; Guo, Xiao; Wang, Zhe; Guo, Jiangtao; Wang, Xiaoqi; Zhu, Huaiqiu

2017-10-02

During the past decade, the development of high throughput nucleic sequencing and mass spectrometry analysis techniques have enabled the characterization of microbial communities through metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, metaproteomics and metabolomics data. To reveal the diversity of microbial communities and interactions between living conditions and microbes, it is necessary to introduce comparative analysis based upon integration of all four types of data mentioned above. Comparative meta-omics, especially comparative metageomics, has been established as a routine process to highlight the significant differences in taxon composition and functional gene abundance among microbiota samples. Meanwhile, biologists are increasingly concerning about the correlations between meta-omics features and environmental factors, which may further decipher the adaptation strategy of a microbial community. We developed a graphical comprehensive analysis software named MetaComp comprising a series of statistical analysis approaches with visualized results for metagenomics and other meta-omics data comparison. This software is capable to read files generated by a variety of upstream programs. After data loading, analyses such as multivariate statistics, hypothesis testing of two-sample, multi-sample as well as two-group sample and a novel function-regression analysis of environmental factors are offered. Here, regression analysis regards meta-omic features as independent variable and environmental factors as dependent variables. Moreover, MetaComp is capable to automatically choose an appropriate two-group sample test based upon the traits of input abundance profiles. We further evaluate the performance of its choice, and exhibit applications for metagenomics, metaproteomics and metabolomics samples. MetaComp, an integrative software capable for applying to all meta-omics data, originally distills the influence of living environment on microbial community by regression analysis

Measuring populism: comparing two methods of content analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rooduijn, M.; Pauwels, T.

2011-01-01

The measurement of populism - particularly over time and space - has received only scarce attention. In this research note two different ways to measure populism are compared: a classical content analysis and a computer-based content analysis. An analysis of political parties in the United Kingdom,

Diagnosing MOV problems using comparative trace analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leon, R.L.

1992-01-01

The paper presents the concept of comparative trace analysis and shows it to be very effective in diagnosing motor operated valve (MOV) problems. Comparative trace analysis is simply the process of interpreting simultaneously gathered traces, each presenting a different perspective on the same series of events. The opening and closing of a motor operated valve is such a series of events. The simultaneous traces are obtained using Liberty Technologies' Valve Operation Test and Evaluation System (VOTES)reg-sign. The traces include stem thrust, motor current, motor power factor, motor power, switch actuations, vibration in three different frequency bands, spring pack displacement, and spring pack force. Spare and auxiliary channels enable additional key parameters to be measured, such as differential pressure and stem displacement. Though not specifically illustrated in this paper, the VOTES system also provides for FFT analysis on all traces except switches

Comparative analysis of prevalence of intimate partner violence against women in military and civilian communities in Abuja, Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Chimah, Carol Uzoamaka; Adogu, Prosper Obunikem Uche; Odeyemi, Kofoworola; Ilika, Amobi Linus

2015-01-01

Intimate partner violence (IPV) occurs across the world, in various cultures, and affects people across societies irrespective of economic status or gender. Most data on IPV before World Health Organization multicountry study (WHOMCS) usually came from sources other than the military. Result of this study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge and may serve as a baseline for future studies in military populations. This study compares the prevalence of the different types of IPV against women in military and civilian communities in Abuja, Nigeria. Using a multistage sampling technique, 260 women who had intimate male partners were selected from military and civilian communities of Abuja. Collected data on personal characteristics and different types of IPV experienced were analyzed to demonstrate comparison of the association between the different forms of IPV and the respondents' sociodemographic and partner characteristics in the two study populations using percentages and χ-square statistics, and P-value was assumed to be significant at ≤0.05. The prevalence of the four major types of IPV was higher among the military respondents than among civilians: controlling behavior, 37.1% versus 29.1%; emotional/psychological abuse, 42.4% versus 13.4%; physical abuse, 19.7% versus 5.9%, and sexual abuse, 9.2% versus 8.8%. Significantly more respondents from the military population (59 [45.4%]) compared to civilians (21 [19.4%]) were prevented by their partners from seeing their friends (P=0.000). The situation is reversed with regard to permission to seek health care for self, with civilians reporting a significantly higher prevalence (35 [32.4%]) than did military respondents (20 [15.4%]) (P=0.002). The military respondents were clearly at a higher risk of experiencing all the variants of emotional violence than the civilians (P=0.00). The commonest form of physical violence against women was "being slapped or having something thrown at them, that could hurt

Institutional Frameworks for Management of Epizoonotic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Introduction: The Eastern Africa region is a hot-spot for epidemics of emerging zoonotic diseases ('epizoonotics'). However, the region's capacity for response to epidemics of zoonotic origin has not been documented. This paper presents a multi-country situational analysis on the institutional frameworks for management of ...

BANK RATING. A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Batrancea Ioan

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Banks in Romania offers its customers a wide range of products but which involves both risk taking. Therefore researchers seek to build rating models to help managers of banks to risk of non-recovery of loans and interest. In the following we highlight rating Raiffeisen Bank, BCR-ERSTE Bank and Transilvania Bank, based on the models CAAMPL and Stickney making a comparative analysis of the two rating models.

National Launch System comparative economic analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, A.

1992-01-01

Results are presented from an analysis of economic benefits (or losses), in the form of the life cycle cost savings, resulting from the development of the National Launch System (NLS) family of launch vehicles. The analysis was carried out by comparing various NLS-based architectures with the current Shuttle/Titan IV fleet. The basic methodology behind this NLS analysis was to develop a set of annual payload requirements for the Space Station Freedom and LEO, to design launch vehicle architectures around these requirements, and to perform life-cycle cost analyses on all of the architectures. A SEI requirement was included. Launch failure costs were estimated and combined with the relative reliability assumptions to measure the effects of losses. Based on the analysis, a Shuttle/NLS architecture evolving into a pressurized-logistics-carrier/NLS architecture appears to offer the best long-term cost benefit.

Comparative Genome Analysis of Enterobacter cloacae

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Wing-Yee; Wong, Chi-Fat; Chung, Karl Ming-Kar; Jiang, Jing-Wei; Leung, Frederick Chi-Ching

2013-01-01

The Enterobacter cloacae species includes an extremely diverse group of bacteria that are associated with plants, soil and humans. Publication of the complete genome sequence of the plant growth-promoting endophytic E. cloacae subsp. cloacae ENHKU01 provided an opportunity to perform the first comparative genome analysis between strains of this dynamic species. Examination of the pan-genome of E. cloacae showed that the conserved core genome retains the general physiological and survival genes of the species, while genomic factors in plasmids and variable regions determine the virulence of the human pathogenic E. cloacae strain; additionally, the diversity of fimbriae contributes to variation in colonization and host determination of different E. cloacae strains. Comparative genome analysis further illustrated that E. cloacae strains possess multiple mechanisms for antagonistic action against other microorganisms, which involve the production of siderophores and various antimicrobial compounds, such as bacteriocins, chitinases and antibiotic resistance proteins. The presence of Type VI secretion systems is expected to provide further fitness advantages for E. cloacae in microbial competition, thus allowing it to survive in different environments. Competition assays were performed to support our observations in genomic analysis, where E. cloacae subsp. cloacae ENHKU01 demonstrated antagonistic activities against a wide range of plant pathogenic fungal and bacterial species. PMID:24069314

1991 comparative analysis of tritium in water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krause, W.J.; Mundschenk, H.

1992-06-01

For environmental monitoring of radioactive materials, the competent authorities of the States and Federal Government of Germany continuously perform measurements and make their results accessible to the public in an appropriate way. In order to guarantee the comparability of measured values and a high degree of reliability of the applied methods, the authorities in charge of carrying out such tasks are obliged to take part in the comparative analyses (ring tests) organized by the central offices of the Federal Government. Therefore, the aim of this comparative analysis performed by order of the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Protection and Reactor Safety consists mainly in providing the measuring offices in charge of monitoring waters, with samples with known tritium contents in order to get an overview of the accuracy of currently used processes; check the accuracy of the determinations performed, and, if necessary, detect and eliminate systematic errors; check, in particular by means of the samples T2 and T3, the calibration of the measuring devices and, if necessary, make corrections. To this effect, the comparative analysis fulfills the function of quality control of the processes used in environmental monitoring. (orig./BBR) [de

Dental students' perceived sources of stress: a multi-country study.

Science.gov (United States)

Polychronopoulou, Argy; Divaris, Kimon

2009-05-01

The aim of this study was to identify dental students' self-reported sources of stress and to explore the role of specific curricular and institutional differences in the variation of perceived stressors among dental students in Greece, Ireland, Slovenia, Sweden, Spain, and Croatia. A thirty-item modified version of the Dental Environment Stress (DES) questionnaire was administered to all undergraduate students enrolled at six European dental schools selected to reflect geographical, curricular, and professional environment diversity: Athens, Greece; Dublin, Ireland; Ljubljana, Slovenia; Malmö, Sweden; Santiago de Compostela, Spain; and Zagreb, Croatia. Participation varied from 93 percent in Athens to 65 percent in Dublin. A total of 1,492 questionnaires were available for analysis. Univariate analysis and multivariate modelling were used for data analysis. Performance pressure, workload, and self-efficacy beliefs constituted the students' main concerns. In the univariate analysis, student responses differed by country: Swedish students provided the lowestst scores in five out of six DES factors, Spanish students were the most concerned about "clinical training" and "performance pressure," whereas Greek students were the most concerned about "patient treatment." Multivariate modelling revealed that problem-based learning (PBL) was inversely associated with perceived stress for "self-efficacy beliefs" OR (95% CI): 0.66 (0.52, 0.84), "workload" OR (95% CI): 0.58 (0.41, 0.80); and "clinical training" OR (95% CI): 0.69 (0.50, 0.95) when compared to traditional curricula. Students' perceived stressors differed greatly among the six institutions and were associated with both individual (gender, study level) and educational/institutional (curriculum type, class size, educational costs) parameters.

Initial implementation of a comparative data analysis ontology.

Science.gov (United States)

Prosdocimi, Francisco; Chisham, Brandon; Pontelli, Enrico; Thompson, Julie D; Stoltzfus, Arlin

2009-07-03

Comparative analysis is used throughout biology. When entities under comparison (e.g. proteins, genomes, species) are related by descent, evolutionary theory provides a framework that, in principle, allows N-ary comparisons of entities, while controlling for non-independence due to relatedness. Powerful software tools exist for specialized applications of this approach, yet it remains under-utilized in the absence of a unifying informatics infrastructure. A key step in developing such an infrastructure is the definition of a formal ontology. The analysis of use cases and existing formalisms suggests that a significant component of evolutionary analysis involves a core problem of inferring a character history, relying on key concepts: "Operational Taxonomic Units" (OTUs), representing the entities to be compared; "character-state data" representing the observations compared among OTUs; "phylogenetic tree", representing the historical path of evolution among the entities; and "transitions", the inferred evolutionary changes in states of characters that account for observations. Using the Web Ontology Language (OWL), we have defined these and other fundamental concepts in a Comparative Data Analysis Ontology (CDAO). CDAO has been evaluated for its ability to represent token data sets and to support simple forms of reasoning. With further development, CDAO will provide a basis for tools (for semantic transformation, data retrieval, validation, integration, etc.) that make it easier for software developers and biomedical researchers to apply evolutionary methods of inference to diverse types of data, so as to integrate this powerful framework for reasoning into their research.

What factors are associated with recent intimate partner violence? findings from the WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ellsberg Mary

2011-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Intimate partner violence (IPV against women is a global public health and human rights concern. Despite a growing body of research into risk factors for IPV, methodological differences limit the extent to which comparisons can be made between studies. We used data from ten countries included in the WHO Multi-country Study on Women's Health and Domestic Violence to identify factors that are consistently associated with abuse across sites, in order to inform the design of IPV prevention programs. Methods Standardised population-based household surveys were done between 2000 and 2003. One woman aged 15-49 years was randomly selected from each sampled household. Those who had ever had a male partner were asked about their experiences of physically and sexually violent acts. We performed multivariate logistic regression to identify predictors of physical and/or sexual partner violence within the past 12 months. Results Despite wide variations in the prevalence of IPV, many factors affected IPV risk similarly across sites. Secondary education, high SES, and formal marriage offered protection, while alcohol abuse, cohabitation, young age, attitudes supportive of wife beating, having outside sexual partners, experiencing childhood abuse, growing up with domestic violence, and experiencing or perpetrating other forms of violence in adulthood, increased the risk of IPV. The strength of the association was greatest when both the woman and her partner had the risk factor. Conclusions IPV prevention programs should increase focus on transforming gender norms and attitudes, addressing childhood abuse, and reducing harmful drinking. Development initiatives to improve access to education for girls and boys may also have an important role in violence prevention.

Comparative Analysis of 37 Acinetobacter Bacteriophages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dann Turner

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Members of the genus Acinetobacter are ubiquitous in the environment and the multiple-drug resistant species A. baumannii is of significant clinical concern. This clinical relevance is currently driving research on bacterial viruses infecting A. baumannii, in an effort to implement phage therapy and phage-derived antimicrobials. Initially, a total of 42 Acinetobacter phage genome sequences were available in the international nucleotide sequence databases, corresponding to a total of 2.87 Mbp of sequence information and representing all three families of the order Caudovirales and a single member of the Leviviridae. A comparative bioinformatics analysis of 37 Acinetobacter phages revealed that they form six discrete clusters and two singletons based on genomic organisation and nucleotide sequence identity. The assignment of these phages to clusters was further supported by proteomic relationships established using OrthoMCL. The 4067 proteins encoded by the 37 phage genomes formed 737 groups and 974 orphans. Notably, over half of the proteins encoded by the Acinetobacter phages are of unknown function. The comparative analysis and clustering presented enables an updated taxonomic framing of these clades.

comparative analysis of the compressive strength of hollow

African Journals Online (AJOL)

user

2016-04-02

Apr 2, 2016 ... Previous analysis showed that cavity size and number on one hand and combinations thickness affect the compressive strength of hollow sandcrete blocks. Series arrangement of the cavities is common but parallel arrangement has been recommended. This research performed a comparative analysis of ...

Drivers of advanced stage at breast cancer diagnosis in the multicountry African breast cancer – disparities in outcomes (ABC‐DO) study

Science.gov (United States)

Zietsman, Annelle; Galukande, Moses; Anele, Angelica; Adisa, Charles; Parham, Groesbeck; Pinder, Leeya; Cubasch, Herbert; Joffe, Maureen; Kidaaga, Frederick; Lukande, Robert; Offiah, Awa U.; Egejuru, Ralph O.; Shibemba, Aaron; Schuz, Joachim; Anderson, Benjamin O.; dos Santos Silva, Isabel; McCormack, Valerie

2017-01-01

Breast cancer (BC) survival rates in sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) are low in part due to advanced stage at diagnosis. As one component of a study of the entire journey of SSA women with BC, we aimed to identify shared and setting‐specific drivers of advanced stage BC. Women newly diagnosed in the multicountry African Breast Cancer–Disparities in Outcomes (ABC‐DO) study completed a baseline interview and their stage information was extracted from medical records. Ordinal logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for advanced stage (I, II, III, IV) in relation to individual woman‐level, referral and biological factors. A total of 1795 women were included from Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia, and the multiracial populations of Namibia and South Africa, 1091 of whom (61%) were stage III/IV. Stage was lower in women with greater BC knowledge (OR 0.77 (95% CI: 0.70, 0.85) per point on a 6 point scale). More advanced stage was associated with being black (4.00 (2.79, 5.74)), having attended

Initial Implementation of a comparative Data Analysis Ontology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francisco Prosdocimi

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Comparative analysis is used throughout biology. When entities under comparison (e.g. proteins, genomes, species are related by descent, evolutionary theory provides a framework that, in principle, allows N-ary comparisons of entities, while controlling for non-independence due to relatedness. Powerful software tools exist for specialized applications of this approach, yet it remains under-utilized in the absence of a unifying informatics infrastructure. A key step in developing such an infrastructure is the definition of a formal ontology. The analysis of use cases and existing formalisms suggests that a significant component of evolutionary analysis involves a core problem of inferring a character history, relying on key concepts: “Operational Taxonomic Units” (OTUs, representing the entities to be compared; “character-state data” representing the observations compared among OTUs; “phylogenetic tree”, representing the historical path of evolution among the entities; and “transitions”, the inferred evolutionary changes in states of characters that account for observations. Using the Web Ontology Language (OWL, we have defined these and other fundamental concepts in a Comparative Data Analysis Ontology (CDAO. CDAO has been evaluated for its ability to represent token data sets and to support simple forms of reasoning. With further development, CDAO will provide a basis for tools (for semantic transformation, data retrieval, validation, integration, etc. that make it easier for software developers and biomedical researchers to apply evolutionary methods of inference to diverse types of data, so as to integrate this powerful framework for reasoning into their research.

Initial Implementation of a Comparative Data Analysis Ontology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Francisco Prosdocimi

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Comparative analysis is used throughout biology. When entities under comparison (e.g. proteins, genomes, species are related by descent, evolutionary theory provides a framework that, in principle, allows N-ary comparisons of entities, while controlling for non-independence due to relatedness. Powerful software tools exist for specialized applications of this approach, yet it remains under-utilized in the absence of a unifying informatics infrastructure. A key step in developing such an infrastructure is the definition of a formal ontology. The analysis of use cases and existing formalisms suggests that a significant component of evolutionary analysis involves a core problem of inferring a character history, relying on key concepts: “Operational Taxonomic Units” (OTUs, representing the entities to be compared; “character-state data” representing the observations compared among OTUs; “phylogenetic tree”, representing the historical path of evolution among the entities; and “transitions”, the inferred evolutionary changes in states of characters that account for observations. Using the Web Ontology Language (OWL, we have defined these and other fundamental concepts in a Comparative Data Analysis Ontology (CDAO. CDAO has been evaluated for its ability to represent token data sets and to support simple forms of reasoning. With further development, CDAO will provide a basis for tools (for semantic transformation, data retrieval, validation, integration, etc. that make it easier for software developers and biomedical researchers to apply evolutionary methods of inference to diverse types of data, so as to integrate this powerful framework for reasoning into their research.

Multicountry Prospective Clinical Evaluation of Two Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays and Two Rapid Diagnostic Tests for Diagnosing Dengue Fever

Science.gov (United States)

Dauner, Allison L.; Valks, Andrea; Forshey, Brett M.; Long, Kanya C.; Thaisomboonsuk, Butsaya; Sierra, Gloria; Picos, Victor; Talmage, Sara; Morrison, Amy C.; Halsey, Eric S.; Comach, Guillermo; Yasuda, Chadwick; Loeffelholz, Michael; Jarman, Richard G.; Fernandez, Stefan; An, Ung Sam; Kochel, Tadeusz J.; Jasper, Louis E.; Wu, Shuenn-Jue L.

2015-01-01

We evaluated four dengue diagnostic devices from Alere, including the SD Bioline Dengue Duo (nonstructural [NS] 1 Ag and IgG/IgM), the Panbio Dengue Duo Cassette (IgM/IgG) rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs), and the Panbio dengue IgM and IgG capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) in a prospective, controlled, multicenter study in Peru, Venezuela, Cambodia, and the United States, using samples from 1,021 febrile individuals. Archived, well-characterized samples from an additional 135 febrile individuals from Thailand were also used. Reference testing was performed on all samples using an algorithm involving virus isolation, in-house IgM and IgG capture ELISAs, and plaque reduction neutralization tests (PRNT) to determine the infection status of the individual. The primary endpoints were the clinical sensitivities and specificities of these devices. The SD Bioline Dengue Duo had an overall sensitivity of 87.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 84.1 to 90.2%) and specificity of 86.8% (95% CI, 83.9 to 89.3%) during the first 14 days post-symptom onset (p.s.o.). The Panbio Dengue Duo Cassette demonstrated a sensitivity of 92.1% (87.8 to 95.2%) and specificity of 62.2% (54.5 to 69.5%) during days 4 to 14 p.s.o. The Panbio IgM capture ELISA had a sensitivity of 87.6% (82.7 to 91.4%) and specificity of 88.1% (82.2 to 92.6%) during days 4 to 14 p.s.o. Finally, the Panbio IgG capture ELISA had a sensitivity of 69.6% (62.1 to 76.4%) and a specificity of 88.4% (82.6 to 92.8%) during days 4 to 14 p.s.o. for identification of secondary dengue infections. This multicountry prospective study resulted in reliable real-world performance data that will facilitate data-driven laboratory test choices for managing patient care during dengue outbreaks. PMID:25588659

CloVR-Comparative: automated, cloud-enabled comparative microbial genome sequence analysis pipeline.

Science.gov (United States)

Agrawal, Sonia; Arze, Cesar; Adkins, Ricky S; Crabtree, Jonathan; Riley, David; Vangala, Mahesh; Galens, Kevin; Fraser, Claire M; Tettelin, Hervé; White, Owen; Angiuoli, Samuel V; Mahurkar, Anup; Fricke, W Florian

2017-04-27

The benefit of increasing genomic sequence data to the scientific community depends on easy-to-use, scalable bioinformatics support. CloVR-Comparative combines commonly used bioinformatics tools into an intuitive, automated, and cloud-enabled analysis pipeline for comparative microbial genomics. CloVR-Comparative runs on annotated complete or draft genome sequences that are uploaded by the user or selected via a taxonomic tree-based user interface and downloaded from NCBI. CloVR-Comparative runs reference-free multiple whole-genome alignments to determine unique, shared and core coding sequences (CDSs) and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Output includes short summary reports and detailed text-based results files, graphical visualizations (phylogenetic trees, circular figures), and a database file linked to the Sybil comparative genome browser. Data up- and download, pipeline configuration and monitoring, and access to Sybil are managed through CloVR-Comparative web interface. CloVR-Comparative and Sybil are distributed as part of the CloVR virtual appliance, which runs on local computers or the Amazon EC2 cloud. Representative datasets (e.g. 40 draft and complete Escherichia coli genomes) are processed in genomics projects, while eliminating the need for on-site computational resources and expertise.

rCAD: A Novel Database Schema for the Comparative Analysis of RNA.

Science.gov (United States)

Ozer, Stuart; Doshi, Kishore J; Xu, Weijia; Gutell, Robin R

2011-12-31

Beyond its direct involvement in protein synthesis with mRNA, tRNA, and rRNA, RNA is now being appreciated for its significance in the overall metabolism and regulation of the cell. Comparative analysis has been very effective in the identification and characterization of RNA molecules, including the accurate prediction of their secondary structure. We are developing an integrative scalable data management and analysis system, the RNA Comparative Analysis Database (rCAD), implemented with SQL Server to support RNA comparative analysis. The platformagnostic database schema of rCAD captures the essential relationships between the different dimensions of information for RNA comparative analysis datasets. The rCAD implementation enables a variety of comparative analysis manipulations with multiple integrated data dimensions for advanced RNA comparative analysis workflows. In this paper, we describe details of the rCAD schema design and illustrate its usefulness with two usage scenarios.

Socioeconomic inequality in neonatal mortality in countries of low and middle income: a multicountry analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

McKinnon, Britt; Harper, Sam; Kaufman, Jay S; Bergevin, Yves

2014-03-01

Neonatal mortality rates (NMRs) in countries of low and middle income have been only slowly decreasing; coverage of essential maternal and newborn health services needs to increase, particularly for disadvantaged populations. Our aim was to produce comparable estimates of changes in socioeconomic inequalities in NMR in the past two decades across these countries. We used data from Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) for countries in which a survey was done in 2008 or later and one about 10 years previously. We measured absolute inequalities with the slope index of inequality and relative inequalities with the relative index of inequality. We used an asset-based wealth index and maternal education as measures of socioeconomic position and summarised inequality estimates for all included countries with random-effects meta-analysis. 24 low-income and middle-income countries were eligible for inclusion. In most countries, absolute and relative wealth-related and educational inequalities in NMR decreased between survey 1 and survey 2. In five countries (Cameroon, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, and Uganda), the difference in NMR between the top and bottom of the wealth distribution was reduced by more than two neonatal deaths per 1000 livebirths per year. By contrast, wealth-related inequality increased by more than 1·5 neonatal deaths per 1000 livebirths per year in Ethiopia and Cambodia. Patterns of change in absolute and relative educational inequalities in NMR were similar to those of wealth-related NMR inequalities, although the size of educational inequalities tended to be slightly larger. Socioeconomic inequality in NMR seems to have decreased in the past two decades in most countries of low and middle income. However, a substantial survival advantage remains for babies born into wealthier households with a high educational level, which should be considered in global efforts to further reduce NMR. Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Copyright © 2014 Mc

Business cycle impacts on substance use of adolescents: A multi-country analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Paling, Thomas; Vall Castello, Judit

2017-11-01

Populations respond to changes in the economic climate in a variety of ways. The recent 'Great Recession' has brought attention to the vulnerability of many economies around the world to changes in non-domestic macroeconomic fluctuations. However, empirical evidence on the responses of adolescents' substance consumption behaviour when the economy deteriorates is very scarce. Thus, the focus of this paper is to analyse the substance consumption patterns displayed by adolescents in response to changes in macroeconomic conditions in a large number of countries. Our results show that beer and wine consumption vary counter-cyclically (a 1pp increase in the unemployment rate increases the probability of drinking beer (wine) by 3% (5.5%)) while adolescent smoking prevalence varies pro-cyclically (a 1pp increase in the unemployment rate decreases the probability of being a current smoker by 3.8%). More importantly, we find that the probability of ever being drunk increases by 1.3% for a 1pp increase in the unemployment rate. Further to this, substantial heterogeneous effects from the aggregate-level results were found when analysing a variety of demographic and geographic dimensions. In light of the existing empirical evidence which outlines that early substance initiators demonstrate worse neurological deficits and suffer stronger labour market penalties (compared to later initiators or abstainers) these findings can aid policy makers in reducing these lasting adverse outcomes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Standardization: using comparative maintenance costs in an economic analysis

OpenAIRE

Clark, Roger Nelson

1987-01-01

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited This thesis investigates the use of comparative maintenance costs of functionally interchangeable equipments in similar U.S. Navy shipboard applications in an economic analysis of standardization. The economics of standardization, life-cycle costing, and the Navy 3-M System are discussed in general. An analysis of 3-M System maintenance costs for a selected equipment, diesel engines, is conducted. The potential use of comparative ma...

Effect of firm variables on patent price

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shyam Sreekumaran Nair

2012-03-01

Full Text Available In this study, using singleton patent auction price data from Ocean Tomo, LLC, we analyse the effect of firm variables on patent price. Patents owned by small firms attract higher price than patents owned by large firms, if they engage in multi-country filings. The patents owned by small firms get cited more than the patents owned by large firms. The patents owned by individual inventors attract a higher price than the patents owned by organisations when multi-country filings are not included. We believe that the lack of resources is preventing individual inventors from engaging in multi-country filings and maximising the revenue from their invention. A larger representative data should be used to replicate the results before generalising it.

Associations between mode of HIV testing and consent, confidentiality, and referral: a comparative analysis in four African countries.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carla Makhlouf Obermeyer

Full Text Available Recommendations about scaling up HIV testing and counseling highlight the need to provide key services and to protect clients' rights, but it is unclear to what extent different modes of testing differ in this respect. This paper examines whether practices regarding consent, confidentiality, and referral vary depending on whether testing is provided through voluntary counseling and testing (VCT or provider-initiated testing.The MATCH (Multi-Country African Testing and Counseling for HIV study was carried out in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda. Surveys were conducted at selected facilities. We defined eight outcome measures related to pre- and post-test counseling, consent, confidentiality, satisfactory interactions with providers, and (for HIV-positive respondents referral for care. These were compared across three types of facilities: integrated facilities, where testing is provided along with medical care; stand-alone VCT facilities; and prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT facilities, where testing is part of PMTCT services. Tests of bivariate associations and modified Poisson regression were used to assess significance and estimate the unadjusted and adjusted associations between modes of testing and outcome measures. In total, 2,116 respondents tested in 2007 or later reported on their testing experience. High percentages of clients across countries and modes of testing reported receiving recommended services and being satisfied. In the unadjusted analyses, integrated testers were less likely to meet with a counselor before testing (83% compared with 95% of VCT testers; p<0.001, but those who had a pre-test meeting were more likely to have completed consent procedures (89% compared with 83% among VCT testers; p<0.001 and pre-test counseling (78% compared with 73% among VCT testers; p = 0.015. Both integrated and PMTCT testers were more likely to receive complete post-test counseling than were VCT testers (59% among

Associations between mode of HIV testing and consent, confidentiality, and referral: a comparative analysis in four African countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Obermeyer, Carla Makhlouf; Neuman, Melissa; Desclaux, Alice; Wanyenze, Rhoda; Ky-Zerbo, Odette; Cherutich, Peter; Namakhoma, Ireen; Hardon, Anita

2012-01-01

Recommendations about scaling up HIV testing and counseling highlight the need to provide key services and to protect clients' rights, but it is unclear to what extent different modes of testing differ in this respect. This paper examines whether practices regarding consent, confidentiality, and referral vary depending on whether testing is provided through voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) or provider-initiated testing. The MATCH (Multi-Country African Testing and Counseling for HIV) study was carried out in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda. Surveys were conducted at selected facilities. We defined eight outcome measures related to pre- and post-test counseling, consent, confidentiality, satisfactory interactions with providers, and (for HIV-positive respondents) referral for care. These were compared across three types of facilities: integrated facilities, where testing is provided along with medical care; stand-alone VCT facilities; and prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) facilities, where testing is part of PMTCT services. Tests of bivariate associations and modified Poisson regression were used to assess significance and estimate the unadjusted and adjusted associations between modes of testing and outcome measures. In total, 2,116 respondents tested in 2007 or later reported on their testing experience. High percentages of clients across countries and modes of testing reported receiving recommended services and being satisfied. In the unadjusted analyses, integrated testers were less likely to meet with a counselor before testing (83% compared with 95% of VCT testers; p<0.001), but those who had a pre-test meeting were more likely to have completed consent procedures (89% compared with 83% among VCT testers; p<0.001) and pre-test counseling (78% compared with 73% among VCT testers; p = 0.015). Both integrated and PMTCT testers were more likely to receive complete post-test counseling than were VCT testers (59% among both PMTCT

The Effects of Biocompatible Compared with Standard Peritoneal Dialysis Solutions on Peritonitis Microbiology, Treatment, and Outcomes: the balANZ Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, David W.; Brown, Fiona G.; Clarke, Margaret; Boudville, Neil; Elias, Tony J.; Foo, Marjorie W.Y.; Jones, Bernard; Kulkarni, Hemant; Langham, Robyn; Ranganathan, Dwarakanathan; Schollum, John; Suranyi, Michael G.; Tan, Seng H.; Voss, David

2012-01-01

♦ Background: A multicenter, multi-country randomized controlled trial (the balANZ study) recently reported that peritonitis rates significantly improved with the use of neutral-pH peritoneal dialysis (PD) solutions low in glucose degradation products (“biocompatible”) compared with standard solutions. The present paper reports a secondary outcome analysis of the balANZ trial with respect to peritonitis microbiology, treatment, and outcomes. ♦ Methods: Adult incident PD patients with residual renal function were randomized to receive either biocompatible or conventional (control) PD solutions for 2 years. ♦ Results: The safety population analysis for peritonitis included 91 patients in each group. The unadjusted geometric mean peritonitis rates in those groups were 0.30 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.22 to 0.41] episodes per patient-year for the biocompatible group and 0.49 (95% CI: 0.39 to 0.62) episodes per patient-year for the control group [incidence rate ratio (IRR): 0.61; 95% CI: 0.41 to 0.90; p = 0.01]. When specific causative organisms were examined, the rates of culture-negative, gram-positive, gram-negative, and polymicrobial peritonitis episodes were not significantly different between the biocompatible and control groups, although the biocompatible group did experience a significantly lower rate of non-pseudomonal gram-negative peritonitis (IRR: 0.41; 95% CI: 0.18 to 0.92; p = 0.03). Initial empiric antibiotic regimens were comparable between the groups. Biocompatible fluid use did not significantly reduce the risk of peritonitis-associated hospitalization (adjusted odds ratio: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.48 to 1.34), but did result in a shorter median duration of peritonitis-associated hospitalization (6 days vs 11 days, p = 0.05). Peritonitis severity was more likely to be rated as mild in the biocompatible group (37% vs 10%, p = 0.001). Overall peritonitis-associated technique failures and peritonitis-related deaths were comparable in the two groups

Comparability of river suspended-sediment sampling and laboratory analysis methods

Science.gov (United States)

Groten, Joel T.; Johnson, Gregory D.

2018-03-06

Accurate measurements of suspended sediment, a leading water-quality impairment in many Minnesota rivers, are important for managing and protecting water resources; however, water-quality standards for suspended sediment in Minnesota are based on grab field sampling and total suspended solids (TSS) laboratory analysis methods that have underrepresented concentrations of suspended sediment in rivers compared to U.S. Geological Survey equal-width-increment or equal-discharge-increment (EWDI) field sampling and suspended sediment concentration (SSC) laboratory analysis methods. Because of this underrepresentation, the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, collected concurrent grab and EWDI samples at eight sites to compare results obtained using different combinations of field sampling and laboratory analysis methods.Study results determined that grab field sampling and TSS laboratory analysis results were biased substantially low compared to EWDI sampling and SSC laboratory analysis results, respectively. Differences in both field sampling and laboratory analysis methods caused grab and TSS methods to be biased substantially low. The difference in laboratory analysis methods was slightly greater than field sampling methods.Sand-sized particles had a strong effect on the comparability of the field sampling and laboratory analysis methods. These results indicated that grab field sampling and TSS laboratory analysis methods fail to capture most of the sand being transported by the stream. The results indicate there is less of a difference among samples collected with grab field sampling and analyzed for TSS and concentration of fines in SSC. Even though differences are present, the presence of strong correlations between SSC and TSS concentrations provides the opportunity to develop site specific relations to address transport processes not captured by grab field sampling and TSS laboratory analysis methods.

YersiniaBase: a genomic resource and analysis platform for comparative analysis of Yersinia.

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Shi Yang; Dutta, Avirup; Jakubovics, Nicholas S; Ang, Mia Yang; Siow, Cheuk Chuen; Mutha, Naresh Vr; Heydari, Hamed; Wee, Wei Yee; Wong, Guat Jah; Choo, Siew Woh

2015-01-16

Yersinia is a Gram-negative bacteria that includes serious pathogens such as the Yersinia pestis, which causes plague, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, Yersinia enterocolitica. The remaining species are generally considered non-pathogenic to humans, although there is evidence that at least some of these species can cause occasional infections using distinct mechanisms from the more pathogenic species. With the advances in sequencing technologies, many genomes of Yersinia have been sequenced. However, there is currently no specialized platform to hold the rapidly-growing Yersinia genomic data and to provide analysis tools particularly for comparative analyses, which are required to provide improved insights into their biology, evolution and pathogenicity. To facilitate the ongoing and future research of Yersinia, especially those generally considered non-pathogenic species, a well-defined repository and analysis platform is needed to hold the Yersinia genomic data and analysis tools for the Yersinia research community. Hence, we have developed the YersiniaBase, a robust and user-friendly Yersinia resource and analysis platform for the analysis of Yersinia genomic data. YersiniaBase has a total of twelve species and 232 genome sequences, of which the majority are Yersinia pestis. In order to smooth the process of searching genomic data in a large database, we implemented an Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX)-based real-time searching system in YersiniaBase. Besides incorporating existing tools, which include JavaScript-based genome browser (JBrowse) and Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (BLAST), YersiniaBase also has in-house developed tools: (1) Pairwise Genome Comparison tool (PGC) for comparing two user-selected genomes; (2) Pathogenomics Profiling Tool (PathoProT) for comparative pathogenomics analysis of Yersinia genomes; (3) YersiniaTree for constructing phylogenetic tree of Yersinia. We ran analyses based on the tools and genomic data in YersiniaBase and the

Comparative Analysis of Terrorists’ Communication Strategies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denis Alexandrovich Zhuravliev

2011-01-01

Full Text Available There is a wide-spread approach in a research literature to regard terrorism as a communicative process. From this point of view, the author offers a comparative analysis of the three most common communication strategies of terrorist groups, including transforming the role of the mass media, the Internet and a combined approach. The author also argues that a particular communication strategy determines a structure of a terrorist organization.

Comparative Analysis of the Effects of Organization Development ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative Analysis of the Effects of Organization Development Interventions on Organizational Leadership and Management Practice: A Case Of Green Earth Program (GEP) ... Journal of Language, Technology & Entrepreneurship in Africa.

Development Of The Computer Code For Comparative Neutron Activation Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Purwadi, Mohammad Dhandhang

2001-01-01

The qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis with Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) is an importance utilization of a nuclear research reactor, and this should be accelerated and promoted in application and its development to raise the utilization of the reactor. The application of Comparative NAA technique in GA Siwabessy Multi Purpose Reactor (RSG-GAS) needs special (not commercially available yet) soft wares for analyzing the spectrum of multiple elements in the analysis at once. The application carried out using a single spectrum software analyzer, and comparing each result manually. This method really degrades the quality of the analysis significantly. To solve the problem, a computer code was designed and developed for comparative NAA. Spectrum analysis in the code is carried out using a non-linear fitting method. Before the spectrum analyzed, it was passed to the numerical filter which improves the signal to noise ratio to do the deconvolution operation. The software was developed using the G language and named as PASAN-K The testing result of the developed software was benchmark with the IAEA spectrum and well operated with less than 10 % deviation

Comparative risk analysis for the Rocky Flats Plant integrated project planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, M.E.; Shain, D.I.

1994-01-01

The Rocky Flats Plant is developing, with active stakeholder participation, a comprehensive planning strategy that will support transition of the Rocky Flats Plant from a nuclear weapons production facility to site cleanup and final disposition. Consideration of the interrelated nature of sitewide problems, such as material movement and disposition, facility and land use endstates, costs, relative risks to workers and the public, and waste disposition are all needed. Comparative Risk Analysis employs both incremental risk and cumulative risk evaluations to compare risks from postulated options or endstates and is an analytical tool for the Rocky Flats Plant Integrated Project Planning which can assist a decision-maker in evaluating relative risks among proposed remediation activity. However, risks from all of the remediation activities, decontamination and decommissioning activities, and normal ongoing operations are imposed upon the Rocky Flats workers, the surrounding public, and the environment. Comparative Risk Analysis will provide risk information, both human health and ecological, to aid in reducing unnecessary resource and monetary expenditures by focusing these resources on the largest risks first. Comparative Risk Analysis has been developed to aggregate various incremental risk estimates to develop a site cumulative risk estimate. The Comparative Risk Analysis methodology Group, consisting of community stakeholders, was established. Early stakeholder involvement in the risk analysis methodology development provides an opportunity for stakeholders to influence the risk information delivered to a decision-maker. This paper discusses development of the Comparative Risk Analysis methodology, stakeholder participation and lessons learned from these challenges

Comparative Analysis of the Main Business Intelligence Solutions

OpenAIRE

Alexandra RUSANEANU

2013-01-01

Nowadays, Business Intelligence solutions are the main tools for analyzing and monitoring the company’s performance at any organizational level. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the most powerful Business Intelligence solutions using a set of technical features such as infrastructure of the platform, development facilities, complex analysis tools, interactive dashboards and scorecards, mobile integration and complex implementation of performance management methodologies.

Genome-wide comparative analysis of four Indian Drosophila species.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohanty, Sujata; Khanna, Radhika

2017-12-01

Comparative analysis of multiple genomes of closely or distantly related Drosophila species undoubtedly creates excitement among evolutionary biologists in exploring the genomic changes with an ecology and evolutionary perspective. We present herewith the de novo assembled whole genome sequences of four Drosophila species, D. bipectinata, D. takahashii, D. biarmipes and D. nasuta of Indian origin using Next Generation Sequencing technology on an Illumina platform along with their detailed assembly statistics. The comparative genomics analysis, e.g. gene predictions and annotations, functional and orthogroup analysis of coding sequences and genome wide SNP distribution were performed. The whole genome of Zaprionus indianus of Indian origin published earlier by us and the genome sequences of previously sequenced 12 Drosophila species available in the NCBI database were included in the analysis. The present work is a part of our ongoing genomics project of Indian Drosophila species.

Comparative Economic Analysis of Beekeeping Using Traditional ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study was carried out in Tabora and Katavi regions in the miombo woodlands of Tanzania. The overall objective of the study was to undertake a comparative economic analysis of beekeeping using improved or traditional beehives. Data were collected from 198 beekeepers that were randomly selected from a sampling ...

Evaluating the risks of clinical research: direct comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Rid, Annette; Abdoler, Emily; Roberson-Nay, Roxann; Pine, Daniel S; Wendler, David

2014-09-01

Many guidelines and regulations allow children and adolescents to be enrolled in research without the prospect of clinical benefit when it poses minimal risk. However, few systematic methods exist to determine when research risks are minimal. This situation has led to significant variation in minimal risk judgments, raising concern that some children are not being adequately protected. To address this concern, we describe a new method for implementing the widely endorsed "risks of daily life" standard for minimal risk. This standard defines research risks as minimal when they do not exceed the risks posed by daily life activities or routine examinations. This study employed a conceptual and normative analysis, and use of an illustrative example. Different risks are composed of the same basic elements: Type, likelihood, and magnitude of harm. Hence, one can compare the risks of research and the risks of daily life by comparing the respective basic elements with each other. We use this insight to develop a systematic method, direct comparative analysis, for implementing the "risks of daily life" standard for minimal risk. The method offers a way of evaluating research procedures that pose the same types of risk as daily life activities, such as the risk of experiencing anxiety, stress, or other psychological harm. We thus illustrate how direct comparative analysis can be applied in practice by using it to evaluate whether the anxiety induced by a respiratory CO2 challenge poses minimal or greater than minimal risks in children and adolescents. Direct comparative analysis is a systematic method for applying the "risks of daily life" standard for minimal risk to research procedures that pose the same types of risk as daily life activities. It thereby offers a method to protect children and adolescents in research, while ensuring that important studies are not blocked because of unwarranted concerns about research risks.

A comparative study of three different gene expression analysis methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Choe, Jae Young; Han, Hyung Soo; Lee, Seon Duk; Lee, Hanna; Lee, Dong Eun; Ahn, Jae Yun; Ryoo, Hyun Wook; Seo, Kang Suk; Kim, Jong Kun

2017-12-04

TNF-α regulates immune cells and acts as an endogenous pyrogen. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is one of the most commonly used methods for gene expression analysis. Among the alternatives to PCR, loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) shows good potential in terms of specificity and sensitivity. However, few studies have compared RT-PCR and LAMP for human gene expression analysis. Therefore, in the present study, we compared one-step RT-PCR, two-step RT-LAMP and one-step RT-LAMP for human gene expression analysis. We compared three gene expression analysis methods using the human TNF-α gene as a biomarker from peripheral blood cells. Total RNA from the three selected febrile patients were subjected to the three different methods of gene expression analysis. In the comparison of three gene expression analysis methods, the detection limit of both one-step RT-PCR and one-step RT-LAMP were the same, while that of two-step RT-LAMP was inferior. One-step RT-LAMP takes less time, and the experimental result is easy to determine. One-step RT-LAMP is a potentially useful and complementary tool that is fast and reasonably sensitive. In addition, one-step RT-LAMP could be useful in environments lacking specialized equipment or expertise.

Knowledge and use of emergency contraception: a multicountry analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Palermo, Tia; Bleck, Jennifer; Westley, Elizabeth

2014-06-01

Globally, evidence on knowledge and use of emergency contraception from population-based data is limited, though such information would be helpful in increasing access to the method. We examined knowledge and use of emergency contraception in 45 countries using population-based survey data. Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data on women aged 15-49 were analyzed by country in logistic regressions to identify associations between women's characteristics and their having heard of emergency contraception or having ever used it. Trends were examined, by region and globally, according to individual, household and community descriptors, including women's age, education, marital status, socioeconomic status, and urban or rural location. The proportion of women who had heard of emergency contraception ranged from 2% in Chad to 66% in Colombia, and the proportion of sexually experienced women who had used it ranged from less than 0.1% in Chad to 12% in Colombia. The odds of having heard of or used the method generally increased with wealth, and although the relationship between marital status and knowing of the method varied by region, never-married women were more likely than married women to have used emergency contraception in countries where significant differences existed. In some countries, urban residence was associated with having heard of the method, but in only three countries were women from urban areas more likely to have used it. Our findings support the need for broader dissemination of information on emergency contraception, particularly among low-income individuals. Variations in use and knowledge within regions suggest a need for programs to be tailored to country-level characteristics.

Bluetooth security attacks comparative analysis, attacks, and countermeasures

CERN Document Server

Haataja, Keijo; Pasanen, Sanna; Toivanen, Pekka

2013-01-01

This overview of Bluetooth security examines network vulnerabilities and offers a comparative analysis of recent security attacks. It also examines related countermeasures and proposes a novel attack that works against all existing Bluetooth versions.

Comparative analysis of the mitochondrial genomes in gastropods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arquez, Moises; Uribe, Juan Esteban; Castro, Lyda Raquel

2012-01-01

In this work we presented a comparative analysis of the mitochondrial genomes in gastropods. Nucleotide and amino acids composition was calculated and a comparative visual analysis of the start and termination codons was performed. The organization of the genome was compared calculating the number of intergenic sequences, the location of the genes and the number of reorganized genes (breakpoints) in comparison with the sequence that is presumed to be ancestral for the group. In order to calculate variations in the rates of molecular evolution within the group, the relative rate test was performed. In spite of the differences in the size of the genomes, the amino acids number is conserved. The nucleotide and amino acid composition is similar between Vetigastropoda, Ceanogastropoda and Neritimorpha in comparison to Heterobranchia and Patellogastropoda. The mitochondrial genomes of the group are very compact with few intergenic sequences, the only exception is the genome of Patellogastropoda with 26,828 bp. Start codons of the Heterobranchia and Patellogastropoda are very variable and there is also an increase in genome rearrangements for these two groups. Generally, the hypothesis of constant rates of molecular evolution between the groups is rejected, except when the genomes of Caenogastropoda and Vetigastropoda are compared.

Comparative analysis of technical efficiencies between compound ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study was designed to compare the level of technical efficiency in the compound and non compound farms in Imo state. A multi-stage random sampling technique was used to select 120 food crop farmers from two out of the three agricultural zones in Imo state. Using the Chow (1960) analysis of covariance technique ...

Comparative Analysis on Chemical Composition of Bentonite Clays ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-09-12

Sep 12, 2017 ... Comparative Analysis on Chemical Composition of Bentonite Clays. Obtained from Ashaka and ... versatile material for geotechnical engineering and as well as their demand for ..... A PhD thesis submitted to the Chemical ...

The Constant Comparative Analysis Method Outside of Grounded Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Fram, Sheila M.

2013-01-01

This commentary addresses the gap in the literature regarding discussion of the legitimate use of Constant Comparative Analysis Method (CCA) outside of Grounded Theory. The purpose is to show the strength of using CCA to maintain the emic perspective and how theoretical frameworks can maintain the etic perspective throughout the analysis. My…

Challenges in the Successful Research Management of a Collaborative EU Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Zikos, Dimitrios; Diomidous, Marianna; Mantas, John

2012-03-01

Successful research management requirements include; equal teamwork and efficient coordination, in order to increase the impact of the research outcomes and provide added value knowledge. Aim of this paper is to discuss the strategies that have been followed during the RN4CAST study, the largest nursing multi-country research project ever conducted in Europe. The paper focuses on the core research strategies rather than on the administrative activities, which are inevitably also required for the success of a large scale research. This paper is an extension of a conference presentation in the International Conference of the European Federation for Medical Informatics (MIE) 2011 in Oslo, and was subsequently published in the Studies in Health Technology and Informatics book series (IOS Press) under the title "Research management: the case of RN4CAST." Management of a multicountry nursing survey requires the use of common data collection tools, applicable to every context, research protocols supporting the scope of the research, data models for multi-country analyses and global dissemination strategies. Challenges that may be faced during the implementation of the study include the individualized confrontation of obstacles during data collection, the coherence of national procedures (for example permissions for data collection) in European level, and the challenge to gain information of added value for the EU, by aggregating the national survey results through a powerful data analysis model. Communication strategies are also discussed.

Comparative analysis of direct and indirect property investment ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative analysis of direct and indirect property investment returns in Abuja. ... in property shares is more risky than commercial property due to the risk ... of the stock market, it was discovered that there is a strong positive relationship ...

Religious Education in Russia: A Comparative and Critical Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Blinkova, Alexandra; Vermeer, Paul

2018-01-01

RE in Russia has been recently introduced as a compulsory regular school subject during the last year of elementary school. The present study offers a critical analysis of the current practice of Russian RE by comparing it with RE in Sweden, Denmark and Britain. This analysis shows that Russian RE is ambivalent. Although it is based on a…

Greenfields and acquisitions: a comparative analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicolae MARINESCU

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This paper compares greenfields and acquisitions as foreign direct investment (FDI alternatives used by transnational corporations (TNCs. First, the determinants leading to the choice of companies between the two modes of entry into a foreign market are laid out. Then, specific features of each alternative are highlighted, by contrasting the advantages and disadvantages of both types of FDI. Based on this analysis, some conclusions are drawn in the end concerning the most important factors that influence the decision of a company whether to choose a greenfield investment or an acquisition.

COGNAT: a web server for comparative analysis of genomic neighborhoods.

Science.gov (United States)

Klimchuk, Olesya I; Konovalov, Kirill A; Perekhvatov, Vadim V; Skulachev, Konstantin V; Dibrova, Daria V; Mulkidjanian, Armen Y

2017-11-22

In prokaryotic genomes, functionally coupled genes can be organized in conserved gene clusters enabling their coordinated regulation. Such clusters could contain one or several operons, which are groups of co-transcribed genes. Those genes that evolved from a common ancestral gene by speciation (i.e. orthologs) are expected to have similar genomic neighborhoods in different organisms, whereas those copies of the gene that are responsible for dissimilar functions (i.e. paralogs) could be found in dissimilar genomic contexts. Comparative analysis of genomic neighborhoods facilitates the prediction of co-regulated genes and helps to discern different functions in large protein families. We intended, building on the attribution of gene sequences to the clusters of orthologous groups of proteins (COGs), to provide a method for visualization and comparative analysis of genomic neighborhoods of evolutionary related genes, as well as a respective web server. Here we introduce the COmparative Gene Neighborhoods Analysis Tool (COGNAT), a web server for comparative analysis of genomic neighborhoods. The tool is based on the COG database, as well as the Pfam protein families database. As an example, we show the utility of COGNAT in identifying a new type of membrane protein complex that is formed by paralog(s) of one of the membrane subunits of the NADH:quinone oxidoreductase of type 1 (COG1009) and a cytoplasmic protein of unknown function (COG3002). This article was reviewed by Drs. Igor Zhulin, Uri Gophna and Igor Rogozin.

Violence against women is strongly associated with suicide attempts: evidence from the WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence against women.

Science.gov (United States)

Devries, Karen; Watts, Charlotte; Yoshihama, Mieko; Kiss, Ligia; Schraiber, Lilia Blima; Deyessa, Negussie; Heise, Lori; Durand, Julia; Mbwambo, Jessie; Jansen, Henrica; Berhane, Yemane; Ellsberg, Mary; Garcia-Moreno, Claudia

2011-07-01

Suicidal behaviours are one of the most important contributors to the global burden of disease among women, but little is known about prevalence and modifiable risk factors in low and middle income countries. We use data from the WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence against women to examine the prevalence of suicidal thoughts and attempts, and relationships between suicide attempts and mental health status, child sexual abuse, partner violence and other variables. Population representative cross-sectional household surveys were conducted from 2000-2003 in 13 provincial (more rural) and city (urban) sites in Brazil, Ethiopia, Japan, Namibia, Peru, Samoa, Serbia, Thailand and Tanzania. 20967 women aged 15-49 years participated. Prevalence of lifetime suicide attempts, lifetime suicidal thoughts, and suicidal thoughts in the past four weeks were calculated, and multivariate logistic regression models were fit to examine factors associated with suicide attempts in each site. Prevalence of lifetime suicide attempts ranged from 0.8% (Tanzania) to 12.0% (Peru city); lifetime thoughts of suicide from 7.2% (Tanzania province) to 29.0% (Peru province), and thoughts in the past four weeks from 1.9% (Serbia) to 13.6% (Peru province). 25-50% of women with suicidal thoughts in the past four weeks had also visited a health worker in that time. The most consistent risk factors for suicide attempts after adjusting for probable common mental health disorders were: intimate partner violence, non-partner physical violence, ever being divorced, separated or widowed, childhood sexual abuse and having a mother who had experienced intimate partner violence. Mental health policies and services must recognise the consistent relationship between violence and suicidality in women in low and middle income countries. Training health sector workers to recognize and respond to the consequences of violence may substantially reduce the health burden associated with

Are hypertensive disorders in pregnancy associated with congenital malformations in offspring? Evidence from the WHO Multicountry cross sectional survey on maternal and newborn health.

Science.gov (United States)

Bellizzi, S; Ali, M M; Abalos, E; Betran, A P; Kapila, J; Pileggi-Castro, C; Vogel, J P; Merialdi, M

2016-07-29

Annually, around 7.9 million children are born with birth defects and the contribution of congenital malformations to neonatal mortality is generally high. Congenital malformations in children born to mothers with hypertensive disorders during pregnancy has marginally been explored. Country incidence of congenital malformations was estimated using data on the 310 401 livebirths of the WHO Multicountry Survey which reported information from 359 facilities across 29 countries. A random-effect logistic regression model was utilized to explore the associations between six broad categories of congenital malformations and the four maternal hypertensive disorders "Chronic Hypertension", "Preeclampsia" and "Eclampsia" and "Chronic hypertension with superimposed preeclampsia". The occupied territories of Palestine presented the highest rates in all groups of malformation except for the "Lip/Cleft/Palate" category. Newborns of women with chronic maternal hypertension were associated with a 3.7 (95 % CI 1.3-10.7), 3.9 (95 % CI 1.7-9.0) and 4.2 (95 % CI 1.5-11.6) times increase in odds of renal, limb and lip/cleft/palate malformations respectively. Chronic hypertension with superimposed preeclampsia was associated with a 4.3 (95 % CI 1.3-14.4), 8.7 (95 % CI 2.5-30.2), 7.1 (95 % CI 2.1-23.5) and 8.2 (95 % CI 2.0-34.3) times increase in odds of neural tube/central nervous system, renal, limb and Lip/Cleft/Palate malformations. This study shows that chronic hypertension in the maternal period exposes newborns to a significant risk of developing renal, limb and lip/cleft/palate congenital malformations, and the risk is further exacerbate by superimposing eclampsia. Additional research is needed to identify shared pathways of maternal hypertensive disorders and congenital malformations.

The distribution of blood eosinophil levels in a Japanese COPD clinical trial database and in the rest of the world

Science.gov (United States)

Ishii, Takeo; Hizawa, Nobuyuki; Midwinter, Dawn; James, Mark; Hilton, Emma; Jones, Paul W

2018-01-01

Background Blood eosinophil measurements may help to guide physicians on the use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Emerging data suggest that COPD patients with higher blood eosinophil counts may be at higher risk of exacerbations and more likely to benefit from combined ICS/long-acting beta2-agonist (LABA) treatment than therapy with a LABA alone. This analysis describes the distribution of blood eosinophil count at baseline in Japanese COPD patients in comparison with non-Japanese COPD patients. Methods A post hoc analysis of eosinophil distribution by percentage and absolute cell count was performed across 12 Phase II–IV COPD clinical studies (seven Japanese studies [N=848 available absolute eosinophil counts] and five global studies [N=5,397 available eosinophil counts] that included 246 Japanese patients resident in Japan with available counts). Blood eosinophil distributions were assessed at baseline, before blinded treatment assignment. Findings Among Japanese patients, the median (interquartile range) absolute eosinophil count was 170 cells/mm3 (100–280 cells/mm3). Overall, 612/1,094 Japanese patients (56%) had an absolute eosinophil count ≥150 cells/mm3 and 902/1,304 Japanese patients (69%) had a percentage eosinophil ≥2%. Among non-Japanese patients, these values were 160 (100–250) cells/mm3, 2,842/5,151 patients (55%), and 2,937/5,155 patients (57%), respectively. The eosinophil distribution among Japanese patients was similar to that among non-Japanese patients. Within multi-country studies with similar inclusion criteria, the eosinophil count was numerically lower in Japanese compared with non-Japanese patients (median 120 vs 160 cells/mm3). Interpretation The eosinophil distribution in Japanese patients seems comparable to that of non-Japanese patients; although within multi-country studies, there was a slightly lower median eosinophil count for Japanese patients compared with

Comparative risk analysis for the Rocky Flats Plant integrated project planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, M.E.; Shain, D.I.

1994-01-01

The Rocky Flats Plant is developing, with active stakeholder a comprehensive planning strategy that will support transition of the Rocky Flats Plant from a nuclear weapons production facility to site cleanup and final disposition. Final disposition of the Rocky Flats Plant materials and contaminants requires consideration of the interrelated nature of sitewide problems, such as material movement and disposition, facility and land use endstates, costs relative risks to workers and the public, and waste disposition. Comparative Risk Analysis employs both incremental risk and cumulative risk evaluations to compare risks from postulated options or endstates. These postulated options or endstates can be various remedial alternatives, or future endstate uses of federal agency land. Currently, there does not exist any approved methodology that aggregates various incremental risk estimates. Comparative Risk Analysis has been developed to aggregate various incremental risk estimates to develop a site cumulative risk estimate. This paper discusses development of the Comparative Risk Analysis methodology, stakeholder participation and lessons learned from these challenges

A Comparative Analysis of Motivations for Occupational Choice or ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A Comparative Analysis of Motivations for Occupational Choice or Preference between ... The results showed that these factors (external influence, extrinsic ... are drawn, and recommendations made for career counselling of students.

Comparative Analysis of Kernel Methods for Statistical Shape Learning

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Rathi, Yogesh; Dambreville, Samuel; Tannenbaum, Allen

2006-01-01

.... In this work, we perform a comparative analysis of shape learning techniques such as linear PCA, kernel PCA, locally linear embedding and propose a new method, kernelized locally linear embedding...

Comparative floorplan-analysis as a means to develop design guidelines

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Hoogdalem, H.; van der Voordt, D.J.M.; van Wegen, H.B.R.

1985-01-01

This study explores the usefulness of comparative floorplan-analysis for the development of spatio-organizational concepts in architectural design processes. Each floorplan can be considered as a reflection of the goals and activities of the users as interpreted by the architect. By comparing a wide

Comparative study of standard space and real space analysis of quantitative MR brain data.

Science.gov (United States)

Aribisala, Benjamin S; He, Jiabao; Blamire, Andrew M

2011-06-01

To compare the robustness of region of interest (ROI) analysis of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain data in real space with analysis in standard space and to test the hypothesis that standard space image analysis introduces more partial volume effect errors compared to analysis of the same dataset in real space. Twenty healthy adults with no history or evidence of neurological diseases were recruited; high-resolution T(1)-weighted, quantitative T(1), and B(0) field-map measurements were collected. Algorithms were implemented to perform analysis in real and standard space and used to apply a simple standard ROI template to quantitative T(1) datasets. Regional relaxation values and histograms for both gray and white matter tissues classes were then extracted and compared. Regional mean T(1) values for both gray and white matter were significantly lower using real space compared to standard space analysis. Additionally, regional T(1) histograms were more compact in real space, with smaller right-sided tails indicating lower partial volume errors compared to standard space analysis. Standard space analysis of quantitative MRI brain data introduces more partial volume effect errors biasing the analysis of quantitative data compared to analysis of the same dataset in real space. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

A Comparative Analysis of Fuzzy Inference Engines in Context of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Fuzzy inference engine has found successful applications in a wide variety of fields, such as automatic control, data classification, decision analysis, expert engines, time series prediction, robotics, pattern recognition, etc. This paper presents a comparative analysis of three fuzzy inference engines, max-product, max-min ...

Comparative analysis of wholesale and retail frozen fish marketing ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative analysis of wholesale and retail frozen fish marketing in Port Harcourt Metropolis, Rivers State, Nigeria. ... from each market giving 30 retail marketers and 30 wholesale marketers. ... EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT

Comparative analysis of crayfish marketing in selected markets of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative analysis of crayfish marketing in selected markets of Akwa Ibom and Abia States, Nigeria. ... It specifically looked at market integration, costs and return, marketing margin, marketing ... EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT

Comparative analysis of prevalence of intimate partner violence against women in military and civilian communities in Abuja, Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chimah CU

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Carol Uzoamaka Chimah,1 Prosper Obunikem Uche Adogu,2 Kofoworola Odeyemi,3 Amobi Linus Ilika4 1Medical Department, Ministry of Defence Headquarters, Abuja, Nigeria; 2Department of Community Medicine and PHC, Nnamdi Azikiwe University/Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Nigeria; 3Department of Community Health, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria Introduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV occurs across the world, in various cultures, and affects people across societies irrespective of economic status or gender. Most data on IPV before World Health Organization multicountry study (WHOMCS usually came from sources other than the military. Result of this study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge and may serve as a baseline for future studies in military populations. This study compares the prevalence of the different types of IPV against women in military and civilian communities in Abuja, Nigeria.Methods: Using a multistage sampling technique, 260 women who had intimate male partners were selected from military and civilian communities of Abuja. Collected data on personal characteristics and different types of IPV experienced were analyzed to demonstrate comparison of the association between the different forms of IPV and the respondents’ sociodemographic and partner characteristics in the two study populations using percentages and Χ-square statistics, and P-value was assumed to be significant at ≤0.05.Results: The prevalence of the four major types of IPV was higher among the military respondents than among civilians: controlling behavior, 37.1% versus 29.1%; emotional/psychological abuse, 42.4% versus 13.4%; physical abuse, 19.7% versus 5.9%, and sexual abuse, 9.2% versus 8.8%. Significantly more respondents from the military population (59 [45.4%] compared to civilians (21 [19.4%] were prevented by their partners from seeing their friends (P=0.000. The situation is reversed with regard to permission to seek

comparative analysis of some existing kinetic models with proposed

African Journals Online (AJOL)

IGNATIUS NWIDI

two statistical parameters namely; linear regression coefficient of correlation (R2) and ... Keynotes: Heavy metals, Biosorption, Kinetics Models, Comparative analysis, Average Relative Error. 1. ... If the flow rate is low, a simple manual batch.

Wallerstein's World-Systems Analysis in Comparative Education: A Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Tom G.; Knezevic, Lisa

2010-01-01

Since the 1970s, using his world-systems analysis, Immanuel Wallerstein has developed a wide-ranging framework for the social sciences, with potential applications for comparative educational research. In this paper we outline key aspects of Wallerstein's theorising, and then analyse the uptake, understandings, and applications of his analysis in…

Comparative analysis of catfish BAC end sequences with the zebrafish genome

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abernathy Jason

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Comparative mapping is a powerful tool to transfer genomic information from sequenced genomes to closely related species for which whole genome sequence data are not yet available. However, such an approach is still very limited in catfish, the most important aquaculture species in the United States. This project was initiated to generate additional BAC end sequences and demonstrate their applications in comparative mapping in catfish. Results We reported the generation of 43,000 BAC end sequences and their applications for comparative genome analysis in catfish. Using these and the additional 20,000 existing BAC end sequences as a resource along with linkage mapping and existing physical map, conserved syntenic regions were identified between the catfish and zebrafish genomes. A total of 10,943 catfish BAC end sequences (17.3% had significant BLAST hits to the zebrafish genome (cutoff value ≤ e-5, of which 3,221 were unique gene hits, providing a platform for comparative mapping based on locations of these genes in catfish and zebrafish. Genetic linkage mapping of microsatellites associated with contigs allowed identification of large conserved genomic segments and construction of super scaffolds. Conclusion BAC end sequences and their associated polymorphic markers are great resources for comparative genome analysis in catfish. Highly conserved chromosomal regions were identified to exist between catfish and zebrafish. However, it appears that the level of conservation at local genomic regions are high while a high level of chromosomal shuffling and rearrangements exist between catfish and zebrafish genomes. Orthologous regions established through comparative analysis should facilitate both structural and functional genome analysis in catfish.

Comparative genomic hybridization analysis of benign and invasive male breast neoplasms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ojopi, Elida Paula Benquique; Cavalli, Luciane Regina; Cavalieri, Luciane Mara Bogline

2002-01-01

Comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) analysis was performed for the identification of chromosomal imbalances in two benign gynecomastias and one malignant breast carcinoma derived from patients with male breast disease and compared with cytogenetic analysis in two of the three cases. CGH...... analysis demonstrated overrepresentation of 8q in all three cases. One case of gynecomastia presented gain of 1p34.3 through pter, 11p14 through q12, and 17p11.2 through qter, and loss of 1q41 through qter and 4q33 through qter. The other gynecomastia presented del(1)(q41) as detected by both cytogenetic...

A Comparative Analysis of Charter Schools and Traditional Public Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Jodi Renee Abbott

2014-01-01

The focus of this descriptive research study was to compare charter and traditional public schools on the academic knowledge of fifth grade students as measured by Arizona's Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS) in a suburb of a large southwestern city. This analysis also compared charter and traditional public schools on AYP status. It was…

Advantages of Wavelet analysis compared to Fourier analysis for the interpretation of electrochemical noise

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Espada, L.; Sanjurjo, M.; Urrejola, S.; Bouzada, F.; Rey, G.; Sanchez, A.

2003-01-01

Given its simplicity and low cost compared to other types of methodologies, the measurement and interpretation of Electrochemical Noise, is consolidating itself as one of the analysis methods most frequently used for the interpretation of corrosion. As the technique is still evolving, standard treatment methodologies for data retrieved in experiments do not exist yet. To date, statistical analysis and the Fourier analysis are commonly used in order to establish the parameters that may characterize the recording of potential and current electrochemical noise. This study introduces a new methodology based on wavelet analysis and presents its advantages with regards to the Fourier analysis in distinguishes periodical and non-periodical variations in the signal power in time and frequency, as opposed to the Fourier analysis that only considers the frequency. (Author) 15 refs

School staff perpetration of physical violence against students in Uganda: a multilevel analysis of risk factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Merrill, Katherine G; Knight, Louise; Glynn, Judith R; Allen, Elizabeth; Naker, Dipak; Devries, Karen M

2017-08-18

To conduct a multilevel analysis of risk factors for physical violence perpetration by school staff against Ugandan students. Multilevel logistic regression analysis of cross-sectional survey data from 499 staff and 828 caregivers of students at 38 primary schools, collected in 2012 and 2014 during the Good Schools Study. Luwero District, Uganda. Past-week use of physical violence by school staff against students was measured using the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect 'Child Abuse Screening Tool- Child International' and the WHO Multi-Country Study on Women's Health and Domestic Violence against Women. Of 499 staff, 215 (43%) reported perpetration of physical violence against students in the past week. Individual risk factors associated with physical violence perpetration included being a teacher versus another type of staff member (pviolence against non-students (pviolence (IPV) (pviolence perpetration compared with male staff who had not been a victim of IPV. No evidence was observed for school- or community-level risk factors. Physical violence perpetration from school staff is widespread, and interventions are needed to address this issue. Staff who have been victims of violence and who use violence against people other than students may benefit from additional interventions. Researchers should further investigate how school and community contexts influence staff's physical violence usage, given a lack of associations observed in this study. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Alcohol: view 2000 - comparative analysis gasoline versus alcohol

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rocha, P.G. da; Vasconcelos, C.R. de

1990-01-01

The comparative analysis between alcohol and gas reveals the pros and the cons of the use of each one of those energy sources, taking as a basis an analysis of the world supply and demand of oil, and of PETROBRAS sceneries, including price expectancies for next decade, and the repercussion of PROALCOOL during its existence in the country. Regarding competitiveness, gas and the energy substitute hydrous alcohol are analyzed jointly, as an energy policy for carburetant fuels, taking into account aspects related with both the direct and the indirect cost of each energy source, as well as the benefits provided by then both. (author)

Comparative genome analysis of Basidiomycete fungi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Riley, Robert; Salamov, Asaf; Henrissat, Bernard; Nagy, Laszlo; Brown, Daren; Held, Benjamin; Baker, Scott; Blanchette, Robert; Boussau, Bastien; Doty, Sharon L.; Fagnan, Kirsten; Floudas, Dimitris; Levasseur, Anthony; Manning, Gerard; Martin, Francis; Morin, Emmanuelle; Otillar, Robert; Pisabarro, Antonio; Walton, Jonathan; Wolfe, Ken; Hibbett, David; Grigoriev, Igor

2013-08-07

Fungi of the phylum Basidiomycota (basidiomycetes), make up some 37percent of the described fungi, and are important in forestry, agriculture, medicine, and bioenergy. This diverse phylum includes symbionts, pathogens, and saprotrophs including the majority of wood decaying and ectomycorrhizal species. To better understand the genetic diversity of this phylum we compared the genomes of 35 basidiomycetes including 6 newly sequenced genomes. These genomes span extremes of genome size, gene number, and repeat content. Analysis of core genes reveals that some 48percent of basidiomycete proteins are unique to the phylum with nearly half of those (22percent) found in only one organism. Correlations between lifestyle and certain gene families are evident. Phylogenetic patterns of plant biomass-degrading genes in Agaricomycotina suggest a continuum rather than a dichotomy between the white rot and brown rot modes of wood decay. Based on phylogenetically-informed PCA analysis of wood decay genes, we predict that that Botryobasidium botryosum and Jaapia argillacea have properties similar to white rot species, although neither has typical ligninolytic class II fungal peroxidases (PODs). This prediction is supported by growth assays in which both fungi exhibit wood decay with white rot-like characteristics. Based on this, we suggest that the white/brown rot dichotomy may be inadequate to describe the full range of wood decaying fungi. Analysis of the rate of discovery of proteins with no or few homologs suggests the value of continued sequencing of basidiomycete fungi.

IMG: the integrated microbial genomes database and comparative analysis system

Science.gov (United States)

Markowitz, Victor M.; Chen, I-Min A.; Palaniappan, Krishna; Chu, Ken; Szeto, Ernest; Grechkin, Yuri; Ratner, Anna; Jacob, Biju; Huang, Jinghua; Williams, Peter; Huntemann, Marcel; Anderson, Iain; Mavromatis, Konstantinos; Ivanova, Natalia N.; Kyrpides, Nikos C.

2012-01-01

The Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) system serves as a community resource for comparative analysis of publicly available genomes in a comprehensive integrated context. IMG integrates publicly available draft and complete genomes from all three domains of life with a large number of plasmids and viruses. IMG provides tools and viewers for analyzing and reviewing the annotations of genes and genomes in a comparative context. IMG's data content and analytical capabilities have been continuously extended through regular updates since its first release in March 2005. IMG is available at http://img.jgi.doe.gov. Companion IMG systems provide support for expert review of genome annotations (IMG/ER: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/er), teaching courses and training in microbial genome analysis (IMG/EDU: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/edu) and analysis of genomes related to the Human Microbiome Project (IMG/HMP: http://www.hmpdacc-resources.org/img_hmp). PMID:22194640

a comparative analysis of first day neonatal mortality between

African Journals Online (AJOL)

East African Medical Journal Vol. 90 No. 11 November 2013. A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF FIRST DAY NEONATAL MORTALITY BETWEEN ADOLESCENTS AND ADULT. FEMALES GIVING BIRTH AT LIGULA HOSPITAL IN MTWARA, SOUTH EASTERN TANZANIA 2008 – 2009. A. Ramaiya, MSc, Ifakara Health ...

Where do poor women in developing countries give birth? A multi-country analysis of demographic and health survey data.

Science.gov (United States)

Montagu, Dominic; Yamey, Gavin; Visconti, Adam; Harding, April; Yoong, Joanne

2011-02-28

In 2008, over 300,000 women died during pregnancy or childbirth, mostly in poor countries. While there are proven interventions to make childbirth safer, there is uncertainty about the best way to deliver these at large scale. In particular, there is currently a debate about whether maternal deaths are more likely to be prevented by delivering effective interventions through scaled up facilities or via community-based services. To inform this debate, we examined delivery location and attendance and the reasons women report for giving birth at home. We conducted a secondary analysis of maternal delivery data from Demographic and Health Surveys in 48 developing countries from 2003 to the present. We stratified reported delivery locations by wealth quintile for each country and created weighted regional summaries. For sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where death rates are highest, we conducted a subsample analysis of motivations for giving birth at home. In SSA, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, more than 70% of all births in the lowest two wealth quintiles occurred at home. In SSA, 54.1% of the richest women reported using public facilities compared with only 17.7% of the poorest women. Among home births in SSA, 56% in the poorest quintile were unattended while 41% were attended by a traditional birth attendant (TBA); 40% in the wealthiest quintile were unattended, while 33% were attended by a TBA. Seven per cent of the poorest women reported cost as a reason for not delivering in a facility, while 27% reported lack of access as a reason. The most common reason given by both the poorest and richest women for not delivering in a facility was that it was deemed "not necessary" by a household decision maker. Among the poorest women, "not necessary" was given as a reason by 68% of women whose births were unattended and by 66% of women whose births were attended. In developing countries, most poor women deliver at home. This suggests that, at least in the near term, efforts to

Where do poor women in developing countries give birth? A multi-country analysis of demographic and health survey data.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dominic Montagu

2011-02-01

Full Text Available In 2008, over 300,000 women died during pregnancy or childbirth, mostly in poor countries. While there are proven interventions to make childbirth safer, there is uncertainty about the best way to deliver these at large scale. In particular, there is currently a debate about whether maternal deaths are more likely to be prevented by delivering effective interventions through scaled up facilities or via community-based services. To inform this debate, we examined delivery location and attendance and the reasons women report for giving birth at home.We conducted a secondary analysis of maternal delivery data from Demographic and Health Surveys in 48 developing countries from 2003 to the present. We stratified reported delivery locations by wealth quintile for each country and created weighted regional summaries. For sub-Saharan Africa (SSA, where death rates are highest, we conducted a subsample analysis of motivations for giving birth at home. In SSA, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, more than 70% of all births in the lowest two wealth quintiles occurred at home. In SSA, 54.1% of the richest women reported using public facilities compared with only 17.7% of the poorest women. Among home births in SSA, 56% in the poorest quintile were unattended while 41% were attended by a traditional birth attendant (TBA; 40% in the wealthiest quintile were unattended, while 33% were attended by a TBA. Seven per cent of the poorest women reported cost as a reason for not delivering in a facility, while 27% reported lack of access as a reason. The most common reason given by both the poorest and richest women for not delivering in a facility was that it was deemed "not necessary" by a household decision maker. Among the poorest women, "not necessary" was given as a reason by 68% of women whose births were unattended and by 66% of women whose births were attended.In developing countries, most poor women deliver at home. This suggests that, at least in the near term

Where Do Poor Women in Developing Countries Give Birth? A Multi-Country Analysis of Demographic and Health Survey Data

Science.gov (United States)

Montagu, Dominic; Yamey, Gavin; Visconti, Adam; Harding, April; Yoong, Joanne

2011-01-01

Background In 2008, over 300,000 women died during pregnancy or childbirth, mostly in poor countries. While there are proven interventions to make childbirth safer, there is uncertainty about the best way to deliver these at large scale. In particular, there is currently a debate about whether maternal deaths are more likely to be prevented by delivering effective interventions through scaled up facilities or via community-based services. To inform this debate, we examined delivery location and attendance and the reasons women report for giving birth at home. Methodology/Principal Findings We conducted a secondary analysis of maternal delivery data from Demographic and Health Surveys in 48 developing countries from 2003 to the present. We stratified reported delivery locations by wealth quintile for each country and created weighted regional summaries. For sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where death rates are highest, we conducted a subsample analysis of motivations for giving birth at home. In SSA, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, more than 70% of all births in the lowest two wealth quintiles occurred at home. In SSA, 54.1% of the richest women reported using public facilities compared with only 17.7% of the poorest women. Among home births in SSA, 56% in the poorest quintile were unattended while 41% were attended by a traditional birth attendant (TBA); 40% in the wealthiest quintile were unattended, while 33% were attended by a TBA. Seven per cent of the poorest women reported cost as a reason for not delivering in a facility, while 27% reported lack of access as a reason. The most common reason given by both the poorest and richest women for not delivering in a facility was that it was deemed “not necessary” by a household decision maker. Among the poorest women, “not necessary” was given as a reason by 68% of women whose births were unattended and by 66% of women whose births were attended. Conclusions In developing countries, most poor women deliver at home

Implementation and Utilization of Security Assistance: A Multi-Country Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

2015-09-01

drug, prohibition or restriction of U.S. humanitarian assistance, severing of diplomatic relations, tax on U.S. assistance, recruitment or use of...and Myanmar /Burma (SIPRI, 2015), where no FMS or FMF engagement took place (DSCA, 2013). Indonesia, a key partner in maritime security and...were India, China, Algeria, Venezuela, Vietnam, Syria, Azerbaijan, Malaysia, Egypt Myanmar /Burma, Indonesia, Iran, UAE, Uganda, Iraq, and Turkey. The

A situational analysis of priority disaster hazards in Uganda: findings from a hazard and vulnerability analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayega, R W; Wafula, M R; Musenero, M; Omale, A; Kiguli, J; Orach, G C; Kabagambe, G; Bazeyo, W

2013-06-01

Most countries in sub-Saharan Africa have not conducted a disaster risk analysis. Hazards and vulnerability analyses provide vital information that can be used for development of risk reduction and disaster response plans. The purpose of this study was to rank disaster hazards for Uganda, as a basis for identifying the priority hazards to guide disaster management planning. The study as conducted in Uganda, as part of a multi-country assessment. A hazard, vulnerability and capacity analysis was conducted in a focus group discussion of 7 experts representing key stakeholder agencies in disaster management in Uganda. A simple ranking method was used to rank the probability of occurance of 11 top hazards, their potential impact and the level vulnerability of people and infrastructure. In-terms of likelihood of occurance and potential impact, the top ranked disaster hazards in Uganda are: 1) Epidemics of infectious diseases, 2) Drought/famine, 3) Conflict and environmental degradation in that order. In terms of vulnerability, the top priority hazards to which people and infrastructure were vulnerable were: 1) Conflicts, 2) Epidemics, 3) Drought/famine and, 4) Environmental degradation in that order. Poverty, gender, lack of information, and lack of resilience measures were some of the factors promoting vulnerability to disasters. As Uganda develops a disaster risk reduction and response plan, it ought to prioritize epidemics of infectious diseases, drought/famine, conflics and environmental degradation as the priority disaster hazards.

An experimental-numerical method for comparative analysis of joint prosthesis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Claramunt, R.; Rincon, E.; Zubizarreta, V.; Ros, A.

2001-01-01

The difficulty that exists in the analysis of mechanical stresses in bones is high due to its complex mechanical and morphological characteristics. This complexity makes generalists modelling and conclusions derived from prototype tests very questionable. In this article a relatively simple comparative analysis systematic method that allow us to establish some behaviour differences in different kind of prosthesis is presented. The method, applicable in principle to any joint problem, is based on analysing perturbations produced in natural stress states of a bone after insertion of a joint prosthesis and combines numerical analysis using a 3-D finite element model and experimental studies based on photoelastic coating and electric extensometry. The experimental method is applied to compare two total hip prosthesis cement-free femoral stems of different philosophy. One anatomic of new generation, being of oblique setting over cancellous bone and the other madreporique of trochantero-diaphyseal support over cortical bone. (Author) 4 refs

Comparative analysis of transformed potato microtubers and its non ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The rapid progress of transgenic biotechnology has significantly promoted the development and production of genetically modified (GM) crops. The aim of this study was to compare some compositional analysis and genetic variation of transformed potato microtubers (Solanum tuberosum L. Desiree) line (which harbor ...

Comparative analysis of minor histocompatibility antigens genotyping methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. S. Vdovin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The wide range of techniques could be employed to find mismatches in minor histocompatibility antigens between transplant recipients and their donors. In the current study we compared three genotyping methods based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR for four minor antigens. Three of the tested methods: allele-specific PCR, restriction fragment length polymorphism and real-time PCR with TaqMan probes demonstrated 100% reliability when compared to Sanger sequencing for all of the studied polymorphisms. High resolution melting analysis was unsuitable for genotyping of one of the tested minor antigens (HA-1 as it has linked synonymous polymorphism. Obtained data could be used to select the strategy for large-scale clinical genotyping.

Reliability on intra-laboratory and inter-laboratory data of hair mineral analysis comparing with blood analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Namkoong, Sun; Hong, Seung Phil; Kim, Myung Hwa; Park, Byung Cheol

2013-02-01

Nowadays, although its clinical value remains controversial institutions utilize hair mineral analysis. Arguments about the reliability of hair mineral analysis persist, and there have been evaluations of commercial laboratories performing hair mineral analysis. The objective of this study was to assess the reliability of intra-laboratory and inter-laboratory data at three commercial laboratories conducting hair mineral analysis, compared to serum mineral analysis. Two divided hair samples taken from near the scalp were submitted for analysis at the same time, to all laboratories, from one healthy volunteer. Each laboratory sent a report consisting of quantitative results and their interpretation of health implications. Differences among intra-laboratory and interlaboratory data were analyzed using SPSS version 12.0 (SPSS Inc., USA). All the laboratories used identical methods for quantitative analysis, and they generated consistent numerical results according to Friedman analysis of variance. However, the normal reference ranges of each laboratory varied. As such, each laboratory interpreted the patient's health differently. On intra-laboratory data, Wilcoxon analysis suggested they generated relatively coherent data, but laboratory B could not in one element, so its reliability was doubtful. In comparison with the blood test, laboratory C generated identical results, but not laboratory A and B. Hair mineral analysis has its limitations, considering the reliability of inter and intra laboratory analysis comparing with blood analysis. As such, clinicians should be cautious when applying hair mineral analysis as an ancillary tool. Each laboratory included in this study requires continuous refinement from now on for inducing standardized normal reference levels.

A Comparative Analysis of Wiki Discretionary Access Control in a CONOPS Environment

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Crawford, Frederick L

2008-01-01

This research conducts a comparative analysis of discretionary access controls of current wikis by experimenting with their discretionary access controls and functionality, comparing the wiki software...

Discrimination based on HIV/AIDS status: A comparative analysis of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Discrimination based on HIV/AIDS status: A comparative analysis of the Nigerian court's decision in Festus Odaife & Ors v Attorney General of the Federation & Ors with other Commonwealth jurisdictions.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT, BACKROUND FOR SHORT/ MEDIUM COURIER TRANSPORT AIRCRAFT PROCUREMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matei POPA

2010-03-01

Full Text Available In accordance with Air Force requirements, the comparative analysis of short/medium transport aircraft comes to sustain procurement decision of short/medium transport aircraft. This paper presents, in short, the principles and the results of the comparative analysis for short/medium military transport aircraft.

Comparative Analysis of Students’ Media Competences Levels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander Fedorov

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This article analyzed the results of survey of university students’ media literacy competence (on the base of a classification of indicators of media literacy competence of the audience as an effective tool for comparative analysis of the levels of development of media competence of students of the control and experimental groups: the level of media competence of students who have a one-year training course in the framework of media literacy education courses four times higher than in similar indicators in the control group. Analysis of the results of this survey confirmed the general trend of media contacts of student audience – its orientation to entertainment genres of audiovisual media, visually appealing; positive, active, unmarried, childless, educated, highly qualified characters (primarily – male characters aged 19 to 35 years. These heroes are characteristic optimism, independence, intelligence, emotion. They have an excellent command of the life situation and have a positive impact on the development progress of the plot of a media text.

Who gains? allocation of freight transport user benefits from international infrastructure projects in multicountry cost-benefit analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fosgerau, Mogens; Kristensen, Niels Buus

2005-01-01

A public decision by several countries on whether to cofinance an international infrastructure project is the subject of a cost-benefit analysis (CBA). The CBA elements are broken out and analyzed for each country. The issue of freight user benefits is discussed, and results are derived from...

arrayCGHbase: an analysis platform for comparative genomic hybridization microarrays

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moreau Yves

2005-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The availability of the human genome sequence as well as the large number of physically accessible oligonucleotides, cDNA, and BAC clones across the entire genome has triggered and accelerated the use of several platforms for analysis of DNA copy number changes, amongst others microarray comparative genomic hybridization (arrayCGH. One of the challenges inherent to this new technology is the management and analysis of large numbers of data points generated in each individual experiment. Results We have developed arrayCGHbase, a comprehensive analysis platform for arrayCGH experiments consisting of a MIAME (Minimal Information About a Microarray Experiment supportive database using MySQL underlying a data mining web tool, to store, analyze, interpret, compare, and visualize arrayCGH results in a uniform and user-friendly format. Following its flexible design, arrayCGHbase is compatible with all existing and forthcoming arrayCGH platforms. Data can be exported in a multitude of formats, including BED files to map copy number information on the genome using the Ensembl or UCSC genome browser. Conclusion ArrayCGHbase is a web based and platform independent arrayCGH data analysis tool, that allows users to access the analysis suite through the internet or a local intranet after installation on a private server. ArrayCGHbase is available at http://medgen.ugent.be/arrayCGHbase/.

Comparative Life-Cycle Cost Analysis Of Solar Photovoltaic Power ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Comparative Life-Cycle Cost Analysis Of Solar Photovoltaic Power System And Diesel Generator System For Remote Residential Application In Nigeria. ... like capital cost, and diesel fuel costs are varied. The results show the photovoltaic system to be more cost-effective at low-power ranges of electrical energy supply.

Comparative analysis of solid waste management in 20 cities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wilson, D.C.; Rodic-Wiersma, L.; Scheinberg, A.; Velis, C.A.; Alabaster, G.

2012-01-01

This paper uses the ‘lens’ of integrated and sustainable waste management (ISWM) to analyse the new data set compiled on 20 cities in six continents for the UN-Habitat flagship publication Solid Waste Management in the World’s Cities. The comparative analysis looks first at waste generation rates

Comparative analysis of evaluation techniques for transport policies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Browne, David; Ryan, Lisa

2011-01-01

The objective of this paper is to examine and compare the use of a number of policy evaluation tools, which can be used to measure the impact of transport policies and programmes as part of a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) or sustainability appraisal. The evaluation tools that were examined include cost-benefit analysis (CBA), cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) and multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). It was concluded that both CEA and CBA are useful for estimating the costs and/or benefits associated with transport policies but are constrained by the difficulty in quantifying non-market impacts and monetising total costs and benefits. Furthermore, CEA is limited to identifying the most 'cost-effective policy' for achieving a single, narrowly defined objective, usually greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction and is, therefore, not suitable for evaluating policy options with ancillary costs or a variety of potential benefits. Thus, CBA or CEA evaluation should be complemented by a complete environmental and socio-economic impact assessment approach such as MCDA. This method allows for participatory analysis and qualitative assessment but is subject to caveats such as subjectivity and value-laden judgments.

Comparative analysis of clustering methods for gene expression time course data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivan G. Costa

2004-01-01

Full Text Available This work performs a data driven comparative study of clustering methods used in the analysis of gene expression time courses (or time series. Five clustering methods found in the literature of gene expression analysis are compared: agglomerative hierarchical clustering, CLICK, dynamical clustering, k-means and self-organizing maps. In order to evaluate the methods, a k-fold cross-validation procedure adapted to unsupervised methods is applied. The accuracy of the results is assessed by the comparison of the partitions obtained in these experiments with gene annotation, such as protein function and series classification.

Comparing Visual and Statistical Analysis of Multiple Baseline Design Graphs.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolfe, Katie; Dickenson, Tammiee S; Miller, Bridget; McGrath, Kathleen V

2018-04-01

A growing number of statistical analyses are being developed for single-case research. One important factor in evaluating these methods is the extent to which each corresponds to visual analysis. Few studies have compared statistical and visual analysis, and information about more recently developed statistics is scarce. Therefore, our purpose was to evaluate the agreement between visual analysis and four statistical analyses: improvement rate difference (IRD); Tau-U; Hedges, Pustejovsky, Shadish (HPS) effect size; and between-case standardized mean difference (BC-SMD). Results indicate that IRD and BC-SMD had the strongest overall agreement with visual analysis. Although Tau-U had strong agreement with visual analysis on raw values, it had poorer agreement when those values were dichotomized to represent the presence or absence of a functional relation. Overall, visual analysis appeared to be more conservative than statistical analysis, but further research is needed to evaluate the nature of these disagreements.

Comparative analysis of time efficiency and spatial resolution between different EIT reconstruction algorithms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kacarska, Marija; Loskovska, Suzana

2002-01-01

In this paper comparative analysis between different EIT algorithms is presented. Analysis is made for spatial and temporal resolution of obtained images by several different algorithms. Discussions consider spatial resolution dependent on data acquisition method, too. Obtained results show that conventional applied-current EIT is more powerful compared to induced-current EIT. (Author)

Indian Ocean surface winds from NCMRWF analysis as compared

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The quality of the surface wind analysis at the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasts (NCMRWF), New Delhi over the tropical Indian Ocean and its improvement in 2001 are examined by comparing it with in situ buoy measurements and satellite derived surface winds from NASA QuikSCAT satellite (QSCT) ...

Comparative analysis of methods for classification in predicting the quality of bread

OpenAIRE

E. A. Balashova; V. K. Bitjukov; E. A. Savvina

2013-01-01

The comparative analysis of classification methods of two-stage cluster and discriminant analysis and neural networks was performed. System of informative signs which classifies with a minimum of errors has been proposed.

Taxation and Gender Equity: A Comparative Analysis of Direct and ...

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

2010-06-10

Jun 10, 2010 ... Taxation and Gender Equity: A Comparative Analysis of Direct and Indirect Taxes in Developing and Developed Countries ... This highly original book is essential reading for everyone concerned with equality in taxation.

Analogy of ISSR and RAPD markers for comparative analysis of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Analogy of ISSR and RAPD markers for comparative analysis of genetic diversity among different Jatropha curcas genotypes. S Gupta, M Srivastava, GP Mishra, PK Naik, RS Chauhan, SK Tiwari, M Kumar, R Singh ...

Comparative analysis as a basic research orientation: Key methodological problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N P Narbut

2015-12-01

Full Text Available To date, the Sociological Laboratory of the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia has accumulated a vast experience in the field of cross-cultural studies reflected in the publications based on the results of mass surveys conducted in Moscow, Maikop, Beijing, Guangzhou, Prague, Belgrade, and Pristina. However, these publications mainly focus on the comparisons of the empirical data rather than methodological and technical issues, that is why the aim of this article is to identify key problems of the comparative analysis in cross-cultural studies that become evident only if you conduct an empirical research yourself - from the first step of setting the problem and approving it by all the sides (countries involved to the last step of interpreting and comparing the data obtained. The authors are sure that no sociologist would ever doubt the necessity and importance of comparative analysis in the broadest sense of the word, but at the same time very few are ready to discuss its key methodological challenges and prefer to ignore them completely. We summarize problems of the comparative analysis in sociology as follows: (1 applying research techniques to the sample in another country - both in translating and adapting them to different social realities and worldview (in particular, the problematic status of standardization and qualitative approach; (2 choosing “right” respondents to question and relevant cases (cultures to study; (3 designing the research scheme, i.e. justifying the sequence of steps (what should go first - methodology or techniques; (4 accepting the procedures that are correct within one country for cross-cultural work (whether or not that is an appropriate choice.

Institutional arrangements of Currency Boards - Comparative Macroeconomic Analysis

OpenAIRE

Lubomira Anastassova

1999-01-01

This paper is concentrated on the comparative macroeconomic analysis of the differences stemming from the extent to which the institutional framework of the currency board arrangement is implemented in the legal and regulatory systems in the different countries. The main objective of taking into consideration and examining the currency board institutional arrangements is to distinguish between the impact that currency board countries and countries with pegged exchange rate have on different m...

A comparative analysis of the perception and understanding of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A comparative analysis of the perception and understanding of physical education and school sport among South African children aged 6-15 years. ... specifically with regard to 'feeling' about PE and SS, 'values' (importance) of PE and SS, 'comparison' of PE and SS with other school subjects and 'self-rating' on PE and SS.

Comparative Analysis of Resonant Converters for Energy Storage Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vuchev Stoyan

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The following paperwork presents a comparative analysis of multiphase resonant converters for applications in energy storage systems. Models of the examined converters are developed in the software environments of MATLAB and LTspice. Results from the simulation examination of the converters during charging of supercapacitors and rechargeable batteries are presented. These results are compared to results obtained from experimental examination of the converters via a laboratory stand. For the purposes of the experimental examination, a control system is developed on the base of a virtual instrument in LabVIEW. The advantages and disadvantages of the different converters are discussed.

Uncertainty analysis in comparative NAA applied to geological and biological matrices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zahn, Guilherme S.; Ticianelli, Regina B.; Lange, Camila N.; Favaro, Deborah I.T.; Figueiredo, Ana M.G.

2015-01-01

Comparative nuclear activation analysis is a multielemental primary analytical technique that may be used in a rather broad spectrum of matrices with minimal-to-none sample preprocessing. Although the total activation of a chemical element in a sample depends on a rather large set of parameters, when the sample is irradiated together with a well-known comparator, most of these parameters are crossed out and the concentration of that element can be determined simply by using the activities and masses of the comparator and the sample, the concentration of this chemical element in the sample, the half-life of the formed radionuclide and the time between counting the sample and the comparator. This simplification greatly reduces not only the calculations required, but also the uncertainty associated with the measurement; nevertheless, a cautious analysis must be carried out in order to make sure all relevant uncertainties are properly treated, so that the final result can be as representative of the measurement as possible. In this work, this analysis was performed for geological matrices, where concentrations of the interest nuclides are rather high, but so is the density and average atomic number of the sample, as well as for a biological matrix, in order to allow for a comparison. The results show that the largest part of the uncertainty comes from the activity measurements and from the concentration of the comparator, and that while the influence of time-related terms in the final uncertainty can be safely neglected, the uncertainty in the masses may be relevant under specific circumstances. (author)

Uncertainty analysis in comparative NAA applied to geological and biological matrices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zahn, Guilherme S.; Ticianelli, Regina B.; Lange, Camila N.; Favaro, Deborah I.T.; Figueiredo, Ana M.G., E-mail: gzahn@ipen.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2015-07-01

Comparative nuclear activation analysis is a multielemental primary analytical technique that may be used in a rather broad spectrum of matrices with minimal-to-none sample preprocessing. Although the total activation of a chemical element in a sample depends on a rather large set of parameters, when the sample is irradiated together with a well-known comparator, most of these parameters are crossed out and the concentration of that element can be determined simply by using the activities and masses of the comparator and the sample, the concentration of this chemical element in the sample, the half-life of the formed radionuclide and the time between counting the sample and the comparator. This simplification greatly reduces not only the calculations required, but also the uncertainty associated with the measurement; nevertheless, a cautious analysis must be carried out in order to make sure all relevant uncertainties are properly treated, so that the final result can be as representative of the measurement as possible. In this work, this analysis was performed for geological matrices, where concentrations of the interest nuclides are rather high, but so is the density and average atomic number of the sample, as well as for a biological matrix, in order to allow for a comparison. The results show that the largest part of the uncertainty comes from the activity measurements and from the concentration of the comparator, and that while the influence of time-related terms in the final uncertainty can be safely neglected, the uncertainty in the masses may be relevant under specific circumstances. (author)

Statistics Education Research in Malaysia and the Philippines: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Reston, Enriqueta; Krishnan, Saras; Idris, Noraini

2014-01-01

This paper presents a comparative analysis of statistics education research in Malaysia and the Philippines by modes of dissemination, research areas, and trends. An electronic search for published research papers in the area of statistics education from 2000-2012 yielded 20 for Malaysia and 19 for the Philippines. Analysis of these papers showed…

Comparative analysis of methods for classification in predicting the quality of bread

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E. A. Balashova

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The comparative analysis of classification methods of two-stage cluster and discriminant analysis and neural networks was performed. System of informative signs which classifies with a minimum of errors has been proposed.

Global challenges with scale-up of the integrated management of childhood illness strategy: results of a multi-country survey

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Muhe Lulu M

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Integrated Management of Childhood Illness Strategy (IMCI, developed by WHO/UNICEF, aims to contribute to reducing childhood morbidity and mortality (MDG4 in resource-limited settings. Since 1996 more than 100 countries have adopted IMCI. IMCI case management training (ICMT is one of three IMCI components and training is usually residential over 11 consecutive days. Follow-up after ICMT is an essential part of training. We describe the barriers to rapid acceleration of ICMT and review country perspectives on how to address these barriers. Methods A multi-country exploratory cross-sectional questionnaire survey of in-service ICMT approaches, using quantitative and qualitative methods, was conducted in 2006-7: 27 countries were purposively selected from all six WHO regions. Data for this paper are from three questionnaires (QA, QB and QC, distributed to selected national focal IMCI persons/programme officers, course directors/facilitators and IMCI trainees respectively. QC only gathered data on experiences with IMCI follow-up. Results 33 QA, 163 QB and 272 QC were received. The commonest challenges to ICMT scale-up relate to funding (high cost and long duration of the residential ICMT, poor literacy of health workers, differing opinions about the role of IMCI in improving child health, lack of political support, frequent changes in staff or rules at Ministries of Health and lack of skilled facilitators. Countries addressed these challenges in several ways including increased advocacy, developing strategic linkages with other priorities, intensifying pre-service training, re-distribution of funds and shortening course duration. The commonest challenges to follow-up after ICMT were lack of funding (93.1% of respondents, inadequate funds for travelling or planning (75.9% and 44.8% respectively, lack of gas for travelling (41.4%, inadequately trained or few supervisors (41.4% and inadequate job aids for follow-up (27

Comparative analysis through probability distributions of a data set

Science.gov (United States)

Cristea, Gabriel; Constantinescu, Dan Mihai

2018-02-01

In practice, probability distributions are applied in such diverse fields as risk analysis, reliability engineering, chemical engineering, hydrology, image processing, physics, market research, business and economic research, customer support, medicine, sociology, demography etc. This article highlights important aspects of fitting probability distributions to data and applying the analysis results to make informed decisions. There are a number of statistical methods available which can help us to select the best fitting model. Some of the graphs display both input data and fitted distributions at the same time, as probability density and cumulative distribution. The goodness of fit tests can be used to determine whether a certain distribution is a good fit. The main used idea is to measure the "distance" between the data and the tested distribution, and compare that distance to some threshold values. Calculating the goodness of fit statistics also enables us to order the fitted distributions accordingly to how good they fit to data. This particular feature is very helpful for comparing the fitted models. The paper presents a comparison of most commonly used goodness of fit tests as: Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Anderson-Darling, and Chi-Squared. A large set of data is analyzed and conclusions are drawn by visualizing the data, comparing multiple fitted distributions and selecting the best model. These graphs should be viewed as an addition to the goodness of fit tests.

Quality of Financial Policies and Financial System Stress

OpenAIRE

Udaibir S Das; Plamen Yossifov; Richard Podpiera; Dmitriy L Rozhkov

2005-01-01

In this paper, we develop multi-country indices of financial system stress and quality of financial policies and use them in regression analysis of the determinants of financial stress. We find that countries with higher quality of financial policies are better able to contain the effects of macroeconomic pressures on the overall level of stress in the financial system. They are also in a better position to ensure sustainable development of the financial system.

Comparative chemoreactome analysis of dexketoprofen, ketoprofen, and diclofenac

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I. Yu. Torshin

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2 is the main targeted protein of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID; nevertheless, the latter substantially differ in pharmacological properties.Objective: to establish the spectrum of pharmacological actions of dexketoprofen, ketoprofen, and diclofenac, by using a chemoreactome analysis.Material and methods. A chemoinformation analysis was used to determine a list of the chemical structures closest to dexketoprofen. For each molecule, the investigators extracted the results of experimental measurements of the rheological properties of this molecule from databases and a chemoreactome analysis was carried out. The comparative chemoreactome analysis of the molecule of dexketoprofen and control molecules (ketoprofen, diclofenac could assess the biological activity of the studied molecule.Results and discussion. Unlike the molecules of comparison, dexketoprofen was found to be able to accumulate mainly in muscles, adipose tissue, and adrenal glands. The anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect of dexketoprofen can be carried out via modulation not only of the metabolism of prostaglandins, but also that of leukotrienes and encephalins, as well as via inhibition of metalloproteinases and glutamate receptors. In addition, the analysis showed a considerable difference in the interaction profiles of dexketoprofen, ketoprofen, and diclofenac with cytochrome P450 enzymes. Dexketoprofen can enhance the efficacy of anti-arrhythmic and antiadrenergic agents, whereas ketoprofen and diclofenac are able to negatively affect the metabolism of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin D.Conclusion. The chemoreactome analysis could identify the promising vasodilatory, antiplatelet, antidiabetic, and antitumor effects of dexketoprofen in addition to its main action. 

A Comparative Analysis of Quadratics Unit in Singaporean, Turkish and IBDP Mathematics Textbooks

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Reyhan Sağlam

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare the contents of the chapters on quadratics in three mathematics textbooks selected from Turkey, Singapore, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP through content analysis. The analysis of mathematical content showed that the three textbooks have different approaches and priorities in terms of the positions of chapters and weights of the quadratics units, and the time allocated to them within the respective curricular programs. It was also found that the Turkish textbook covers a greater number of learning outcomes targeted for quadratics among the three mathematics syllabi, showing a detailed treatment of the topic compared to the other two textbooks.Key Words: Content analysis, international comparative studies, mathematics textbooks

Construction QA/QC systems: comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Willenbrock, J.H.; Shepard, S.

1980-01-01

An analysis which compares the quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) systems adopted in the highway, nuclear power plant, and U.S. Navy construction areas with the traditional quality control approach used in building construction is presented. Full participation and support by the owner as well as the contractor and AE firm are required if a QA/QC system is to succeed. Process quality control, acceptance testing and quality assurance responsibilities must be clearly defined in the contract documents. The owner must audit these responsibilities. A contractor quality control plan, indicating the tasks which will be performed and the fact that QA/QC personnel are independent of project time/cost pressures should be submitted for approval. The architect must develop realistic specifications which consider the natural variability of material. Acceptance criteria based on the random sampling technique should be used. 27 refs

Comparative Genome Analysis of Basidiomycete Fungi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Riley, Robert; Salamov, Asaf; Morin, Emmanuelle; Nagy, Laszlo; Manning, Gerard; Baker, Scott; Brown, Daren; Henrissat, Bernard; Levasseur, Anthony; Hibbett, David; Martin, Francis; Grigoriev, Igor

2012-03-19

Fungi of the phylum Basidiomycota (basidiomycetes), make up some 37percent of the described fungi, and are important in forestry, agriculture, medicine, and bioenergy. This diverse phylum includes the mushrooms, wood rots, symbionts, and plant and animal pathogens. To better understand the diversity of phenotypes in basidiomycetes, we performed a comparative analysis of 35 basidiomycete fungi spanning the diversity of the phylum. Phylogenetic patterns of lignocellulose degrading genes suggest a continuum rather than a sharp dichotomy between the white rot and brown rot modes of wood decay. Patterns of secondary metabolic enzymes give additional insight into the broad array of phenotypes found in the basidiomycetes. We suggest that the profile of an organism in lignocellulose-targeting genes can be used to predict its nutritional mode, and predict Dacryopinax sp. as a brown rot; Botryobasidium botryosum and Jaapia argillacea as white rots.

Comparative analysis of proliferation resistance assessment methodologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takaki, Naoyuki; Kikuchi, Masahiro; Inoue, Naoko; Osabe, Takeshi

2005-01-01

Comparative analysis of the methodologies was performed based on the discussions in the international workshop on 'Assessment Methodology of Proliferation Resistance for Future Nuclear Energy Systems' held in Tokyo, on March 2005. Through the workshop and succeeding considerations, it is clarified that the proliferation resistance assessment methodologies are affected by the broader nuclear options being pursued and also by the political situations of the state. Even the definition of proliferation resistance, despite the commonality of fundamental issues, derives from perceived threat and implementation circumstances inherent to the larger programs. Deep recognitions of the 'difference' among communities would help us to make further essential and progressed discussion with harmonization. (author)

2004/2008 labour market information comparative analysis report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

The electricity sector has entered into a phase of both challenges and opportunities. Challenges include workforce retirement, labour shortages, and increased competition from other employers to attract and retain the skilled people required to deliver on the increasing demand for electricity in Canada. The electricity sector in Canada is also moving into a new phase, whereby much of the existing infrastructure is either due for significant upgrades, or complete replacement. The increasing demand for electricity means that increased investment and capital expenditure will need to be put toward building new infrastructure altogether. The opportunities for the electricity industry will lie in its ability to effectively and efficiently react to these challenges. The purpose of this report was to provide employers and stakeholders in the sector with relevant and current trend data to help them make appropriate policy and human resource decisions. The report presented a comparative analysis of a 2004 Canadian Electricity Association employer survey with a 2008 Electricity Sector Council employer survey. The comparative analysis highlighted trends and changes that emerged between the 2004 and 2008 studies. Specific topics that were addressed included overall employment trends; employment diversity in the sector; age of non-support staff; recruitment; and retirements and pension eligibility. Recommendations were also offered. It was concluded that the electricity sector could benefit greatly from implementing on-going recruitment campaigns. refs., tabs., figs

Automating data analysis for two-dimensional gas chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry non-targeted analysis of comparative samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Titaley, Ivan A; Ogba, O Maduka; Chibwe, Leah; Hoh, Eunha; Cheong, Paul H-Y; Simonich, Staci L Massey

2018-03-16

Non-targeted analysis of environmental samples, using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC × GC/ToF-MS), poses significant data analysis challenges due to the large number of possible analytes. Non-targeted data analysis of complex mixtures is prone to human bias and is laborious, particularly for comparative environmental samples such as contaminated soil pre- and post-bioremediation. To address this research bottleneck, we developed OCTpy, a Python™ script that acts as a data reduction filter to automate GC × GC/ToF-MS data analysis from LECO ® ChromaTOF ® software and facilitates selection of analytes of interest based on peak area comparison between comparative samples. We used data from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contaminated soil, pre- and post-bioremediation, to assess the effectiveness of OCTpy in facilitating the selection of analytes that have formed or degraded following treatment. Using datasets from the soil extracts pre- and post-bioremediation, OCTpy selected, on average, 18% of the initial suggested analytes generated by the LECO ® ChromaTOF ® software Statistical Compare feature. Based on this list, 63-100% of the candidate analytes identified by a highly trained individual were also selected by OCTpy. This process was accomplished in several minutes per sample, whereas manual data analysis took several hours per sample. OCTpy automates the analysis of complex mixtures of comparative samples, reduces the potential for human error during heavy data handling and decreases data analysis time by at least tenfold. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Comparing robotic, laparoscopic and open cystectomy: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Thomas Fonseka

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing outcomes between Open Radical Cystectomy (ORC, Laparoscopic Radical Cystectomy (LRC and Robot-assisted Radical Cystectomy (RARC. RARC is to be compared to LRC and ORC and LRC compared to ORC. Material and methods: A systematic review of the literature was conducted, collating studies comparing RARC, LRC and ORC. Surgical and oncological outcome data were extracted and a meta-analysis was performed. Results: Twenty-four studies were selected with total of 2,104 cases analyzed. RARC had a longer operative time (OPT compared to LRC with no statistical difference between length of stay (LOS and estimated blood loss (EBL. RARC had a significantly shorter LOS, reduced EBL, lower complication rate and longer OPT compared to ORC. There were no significant differences regarding lymph node yield (LNY and positive surgical margins (PSM. LRC had a reduced EBL, shorter LOS and increased OPT compared to ORC. There was no significant difference regarding LNY. Conclusion: RARC is comparable to LRC with better surgical results than ORC. LRC has better surgical outcomes than ORC. With the unique technological features of the robotic surgical system and increasing trend of intra-corporeal reconstruction it is likely that RARC will become the surgical option of choice.

Risk of maternal mortality in women with severe anaemia during pregnancy and post partum: a multilevel analysis

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Jahnavi Daru, MBBS

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Summary: Background: Anaemia affects as many as half of all pregnant women in low-income and middle-income countries, but the burden of disease and associated maternal mortality are not robustly quantified. We aimed to assess the association between severe anaemia and maternal death with data from the WHO Multicountry Survey on maternal and newborn health. Methods: We used multilevel and propensity score regression analyses to establish the relation between severe anaemia and maternal death in 359 health facilities in 29 countries across Latin America, Africa, the Western Pacific, eastern Mediterranean, and southeast Asia. Severe anaemia was defined as antenatal or postnatal haemoglobin concentrations of less than 70 g/L in a blood sample obtained before death. Maternal death was defined as death any time after admission until the seventh day post partum or discharge. In regression analyses, we adjusted for post-partum haemorrhage, general anaesthesia, admission to intensive care, sepsis, pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, thrombocytopenia, shock, massive transfusion, severe oliguria, failure to form clots, and severe acidosis as confounding variables. These variables were used to develop the propensity score. Findings: 312 281 women admitted in labour or with ectopic pregnancies were included in the adjusted multilevel logistic analysis, and 12 470 were included in the propensity score regression analysis. The adjusted odds ratio for maternal death in women with severe anaemia compared with those without severe anaemia was 2·36 (95% CI 1·60–3·48. In the propensity score analysis, severe anaemia was also associated with maternal death (adjusted odds ratio 1·86 [95% CI 1·39–2·49]. Interpretation: Prevention and treatment of anaemia during pregnancy and post partum should remain a global public health and research priority. Funding: Barts and the London Charity.

Survey sequencing and comparative analysis of the elephant shark (Callorhinchus milii genome.

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Byrappa Venkatesh

2007-04-01

Full Text Available Owing to their phylogenetic position, cartilaginous fishes (sharks, rays, skates, and chimaeras provide a critical reference for our understanding of vertebrate genome evolution. The relatively small genome of the elephant shark, Callorhinchus milii, a chimaera, makes it an attractive model cartilaginous fish genome for whole-genome sequencing and comparative analysis. Here, the authors describe survey sequencing (1.4x coverage and comparative analysis of the elephant shark genome, one of the first cartilaginous fish genomes to be sequenced to this depth. Repetitive sequences, represented mainly by a novel family of short interspersed element-like and long interspersed element-like sequences, account for about 28% of the elephant shark genome. Fragments of approximately 15,000 elephant shark genes reveal specific examples of genes that have been lost differentially during the evolution of tetrapod and teleost fish lineages. Interestingly, the degree of conserved synteny and conserved sequences between the human and elephant shark genomes are higher than that between human and teleost fish genomes. Elephant shark contains putative four Hox clusters indicating that, unlike teleost fish genomes, the elephant shark genome has not experienced an additional whole-genome duplication. These findings underscore the importance of the elephant shark as a critical reference vertebrate genome for comparative analysis of the human and other vertebrate genomes. This study also demonstrates that a survey-sequencing approach can be applied productively for comparative analysis of distantly related vertebrate genomes.

Applying the results based management framework to the CERCA multi-component project in adolescent sexual and reproductive health: a retrospective analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Cordova-Pozo, Kathya; Hoopes, Andrea J; Cordova, Freddy; Vega, Bernardo; Segura, Zoyla; Hagens, Arnold

2018-02-08

the outcomes, the nature of the outcomes, or cost-effectiveness of interventions. This analysis showed that multi-country projects are complex, entail risks in execution and require robust project management. RBM can be a useful tool to ensure a systematic approach at different phases within a multi-country setting.

ANALYSIS OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN ROMANIA COMPARATIVE WITH THE EU COUNTRIES -27

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Tudor Pendiuc

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Entrepreneurship is a socio-economic phenomenon of great complexity, defining the market economy system. As the business environment becomes more complex and competitive, the entrepreneurs must become more creative and receptive to what is new and innovative. For Romania the promotion and development of entrepreneurship were a central objective in the last decade for job creation, competitiveness growth and sustainable economic development. Regardless of the method chosen to develop a business, the entrepreneur must operate with criteria of rationality in terms of choices, decisions and performance evaluation. This work aims a comparative analysis of the main issues concerning the development of entrepreneurship in Romania compared to other EU countries. It emphasizes the following aspects: a option on the status of employee/contractor; b the important factors in the decision on starting/taking over a business; c difficulties to start/taking over a business. Based on the analysis were resulted conclusions on the main economic and social features of entrepreneurship in Romania compared to other European Union member states. It was stressed the importance of entrepreneurship development on the Romanian economy, by analyzing the factors that encourage or discourage the entrepreneurship. The research was conducted using a variety of bibliographic sources such as statistics, analysis, reports, professional articles.

Comparative secretome analysis of rat stomach under different nutritional status

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Lucia L. Senin

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The fact that gastric surgery is at the moment the most effective treatment to fight against obesity highlights the relevance of gastric derived proteins as potential targets to treat this pathology. Taking advantage of a previously established gastric explant model for endocrine studies, the proteomic analysis of gastric secretome was performed. To validate this gastric explant system for proteomic analysis, the identification of ghrelin, a classical gastric derived peptide, was performed by MS. In addition, the differential analysis of gastric secretomes under differential nutritional status (control feeding vs fasting vs re-feeding was performed. The MS identified proteins are showed in the present manuscript. The data supplied in this article is related to the research article entitled “Comparative secretome analysis of rat stomach under different nutritional status” [1].

Housing Improvements and Malaria Risk in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Multi-Country Analysis of Survey Data.

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Lucy S Tusting

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Improvements to housing may contribute to malaria control and elimination by reducing house entry by malaria vectors and thus exposure to biting. We tested the hypothesis that the odds of malaria infection are lower in modern, improved housing compared to traditional housing in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA.We analysed 15 Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS and 14 Malaria Indicator Surveys (MIS conducted in 21 countries in SSA between 2008 and 2015 that measured malaria infection by microscopy or rapid diagnostic test (RDT. DHS/MIS surveys record whether houses are built with finished materials (e.g., metal or rudimentary materials (e.g., thatch. This information was used to develop a binary housing quality variable where houses built using finished wall, roof, and floor materials were classified as "modern", and all other houses were classified as "traditional". Conditional logistic regression was used to determine the association between housing quality and prevalence of malaria infection in children aged 0-5 y, adjusting for age, gender, insecticide-treated net (ITN use, indoor residual spraying, household wealth, and geographic cluster. Individual survey odds ratios (ORs were combined to determine a summary OR using a random effects meta-analysis. Of 284,532 total children surveyed, 139,318 were tested for malaria infection using microscopy (n = 131,652 or RDT (n = 138,540. Within individual surveys, malaria prevalence measured by microscopy ranged from 0.4% (Madagascar 2011 to 45.5% (Burkina Faso 2010 among children living in modern houses and from 0.4% (The Gambia 2013 to 70.6% (Burkina Faso 2010 in traditional houses, and malaria prevalence measured by RDT ranged from 0.3% (Senegal 2013-2014 to 61.2% (Burkina Faso 2010 in modern houses and from 1.5% (The Gambia 2013 to 79.8% (Burkina Faso 2010 in traditional houses. Across all surveys, modern housing was associated with a 9% to 14% reduction in the odds of malaria infection (microscopy

Neo-Deterministic and Probabilistic Seismic Hazard Assessments: a Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Peresan, Antonella; Magrin, Andrea; Nekrasova, Anastasia; Kossobokov, Vladimir; Panza, Giuliano F.

2016-04-01

Objective testing is the key issue towards any reliable seismic hazard assessment (SHA). Different earthquake hazard maps must demonstrate their capability in anticipating ground shaking from future strong earthquakes before an appropriate use for different purposes - such as engineering design, insurance, and emergency management. Quantitative assessment of maps performances is an essential step also in scientific process of their revision and possible improvement. Cross-checking of probabilistic models with available observations and independent physics based models is recognized as major validation procedure. The existing maps from the classical probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA), as well as those from the neo-deterministic analysis (NDSHA), which have been already developed for several regions worldwide (including Italy, India and North Africa), are considered to exemplify the possibilities of the cross-comparative analysis in spotting out limits and advantages of different methods. Where the data permit, a comparative analysis versus the documented seismic activity observed in reality is carried out, showing how available observations about past earthquakes can contribute to assess performances of the different methods. Neo-deterministic refers to a scenario-based approach, which allows for consideration of a wide range of possible earthquake sources as the starting point for scenarios constructed via full waveforms modeling. The method does not make use of empirical attenuation models (i.e. Ground Motion Prediction Equations, GMPE) and naturally supplies realistic time series of ground shaking (i.e. complete synthetic seismograms), readily applicable to complete engineering analysis and other mitigation actions. The standard NDSHA maps provide reliable envelope estimates of maximum seismic ground motion from a wide set of possible scenario earthquakes, including the largest deterministically or historically defined credible earthquake. In addition

Peace Negotiations in the Third World: A Comparative Analysis

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Raúl Benítez Manaut

1995-01-01

Full Text Available In this article the negotiations and peace processes in the Third World are analized from a comparative viewpoint in order to focus in on the case of Centroamerica. Reference is made to the special features and common elements of those peace processes in otherregions of the Third World and they are compared to those which have taken place in Centroamerica. It is a retrospective and comparative analysis. For this reason, the author has decided to carry out a brief typology of those conflicts offered by Centroamerica: inNicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala. Later, the author goes on to analyse the most relevant peace and negotiation processes involving the Third World including one or two from Latin America: the cases of Panama, Afghanistan, Iran-Iraq, Colombia, southern Africa (South Africa, Namibia and Angola and Cambodia. Later, the author goes overthe peace process periods in Centroamerica and the temporary contradictions which are presented by internal conflict, regional conflict and geopolitical conflict. Finally, a comparative methodological exercise is carried out which allows to focus on modes of implementation of the peace processes.

Comparative analysis of prophages in Streptococcus mutans genomes

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Tiwei; Fan, Xiangyu; Long, Quanxin; Deng, Wanyan; Song, Jinlin

2017-01-01

Prophages have been considered genetic units that have an intimate association with novel phenotypic properties of bacterial hosts, such as pathogenicity and genomic variation. Little is known about the genetic information of prophages in the genome of Streptococcus mutans, a major pathogen of human dental caries. In this study, we identified 35 prophage-like elements in S. mutans genomes and performed a comparative genomic analysis. Comparative genomic and phylogenetic analyses of prophage sequences revealed that the prophages could be classified into three main large clusters: Cluster A, Cluster B, and Cluster C. The S. mutans prophages in each cluster were compared. The genomic sequences of phismuN66-1, phismuNLML9-1, and phismu24-1 all shared similarities with the previously reported S. mutans phages M102, M102AD, and ϕAPCM01. The genomes were organized into seven major gene clusters according to the putative functions of the predicted open reading frames: packaging and structural modules, integrase, host lysis modules, DNA replication/recombination modules, transcriptional regulatory modules, other protein modules, and hypothetical protein modules. Moreover, an integrase gene was only identified in phismuNLML9-1 prophages. PMID:29158986

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF INNOVATION ASPECT EVIDENCE IN CONSTRUCTION AND MULTI-SECTOR COMPANIES

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Ricardo Floriani

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The goal of this study is to make a comparative analysis of innovation aspect evidence among construction and multi-sector companies. Descriptive research was done through a content analysis of administration reports from 2005 to 2007. From the researched material, 14 aspects of innovations were extracted, which offer the basis to the content analysis. Two non-probability samples were developed, the first consisting of 22 multi-sector businesses, within 18 economic sectors, which comprises the companies in the comparison. Aspects of innovation found in this group of companies were compared to those stated in the reports of the administration of the 34 construction companies with open capital, which comprise the second sample. The survey results show that the evidence of innovation aspects are different in construction companies when compared to the administration reports of multi-sector business of 2005, 2006 and 2007. The construction companies state fewer innovation aspects in the administration reports than multisector companies in the analyzed period. The conclusion is that while construction companies can be considered fairly innovative, multi-sectorial companies present more innovations on average.

Comparative analysis of old, recycled and new PV modules

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Haroon Ashfaq

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents comparative analysis of old, recycled and new PV modules. It is possible to recycle even very old products by modern standard processes in a value-conserving manner. About 90% of the materials recovered from solar panels can be recycled into useful products. Carbon emission and energy cost are low in manufacturing recycled SPV. Modules can be manufactured with recycled materials and reinstalled in systems as a full quality product with today’s technology good for another 25–30 years. Analysis of all the models of PV module is done with the help of MATLAB. This helps in comparison and proves the effectiveness of the recycled PV module based systems.

Comparative Genomics and Transcriptomic Analysis of Mycobacterium Kansasii

KAUST Repository

Alzahid, Yara

2014-04-01

The group of Mycobacteria is one of the most intensively studied bacterial taxa, as they cause the two historical and worldwide known diseases: leprosy and tuberculosis. Mycobacteria not identified as tuberculosis or leprosy complex, have been referred to by ‘environmental mycobacteria’ or ‘Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM). Mycobacterium kansasii (M. kansasii) is one of the most frequent NTM pathogens, as it causes pulmonary disease in immuno-competent patients and pulmonary, and disseminated disease in patients with various immuno-deficiencies. There have been five documented subtypes of this bacterium, by different molecular typing methods, showing that type I causes tuberculosis-like disease in healthy individuals, and type II in immune-compromised individuals. The remaining types are said to be environmental, thereby, not causing any diseases. The aim of this project was to conduct a comparative genomic study of M. kansasii types I-V and investigating the gene expression level of those types. From various comparative genomics analysis, provided genomics evidence on why M. kansasii type I is considered pathogenic, by focusing on three key elements that are involved in virulence of Mycobacteria: ESX secretion system, Phospholipase c (plcb) and Mammalian cell entry (Mce) operons. The results showed the lack of the espA operon in types II-V, which renders the ESX- 1 operon dysfunctional, as espA is one of the key factors that control this secretion system. However, gene expression analysis showed this operon to be deleted in types II, III and IV. Furthermore, plcB was found to be truncated in types III and IV. Analysis of Mce operons (1-4) show that mce-1 operon is duplicated, mce-2 is absent and mce-3 and mce-4 is present in one copy in M. kansasii types I-V. Gene expression profiles of type I-IV, showed that the secreted proteins of ESX-1 were slightly upregulated in types II-IV when compared to type I and the secreted forms of ESX-5 were highly down

ComPath: comparative enzyme analysis and annotation in pathway/subsystem contexts

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Kim Sun

2008-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Once a new genome is sequenced, one of the important questions is to determine the presence and absence of biological pathways. Analysis of biological pathways in a genome is a complicated task since a number of biological entities are involved in pathways and biological pathways in different organisms are not identical. Computational pathway identification and analysis thus involves a number of computational tools and databases and typically done in comparison with pathways in other organisms. This computational requirement is much beyond the capability of biologists, so information systems for reconstructing, annotating, and analyzing biological pathways are much needed. We introduce a new comparative pathway analysis workbench, ComPath, which integrates various resources and computational tools using an interactive spreadsheet-style web interface for reliable pathway analyses. Results ComPath allows users to compare biological pathways in multiple genomes using a spreadsheet style web interface where various sequence-based analysis can be performed either to compare enzymes (e.g. sequence clustering and pathways (e.g. pathway hole identification, to search a genome for de novo prediction of enzymes, or to annotate a genome in comparison with reference genomes of choice. To fill in pathway holes or make de novo enzyme predictions, multiple computational methods such as FASTA, Whole-HMM, CSR-HMM (a method of our own introduced in this paper, and PDB-domain search are integrated in ComPath. Our experiments show that FASTA and CSR-HMM search methods generally outperform Whole-HMM and PDB-domain search methods in terms of sensitivity, but FASTA search performs poorly in terms of specificity, detecting more false positive as E-value cutoff increases. Overall, CSR-HMM search method performs best in terms of both sensitivity and specificity. Gene neighborhood and pathway neighborhood (global network visualization tools can be used

A Comparative Analysis of Three Unique Theories of Organizational Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Leavitt, Carol C.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to present three classical theories on organizational learning and conduct a comparative analysis that highlights their strengths, similarities, and differences. Two of the theories -- experiential learning theory and adaptive -- generative learning theory -- represent the thinking of the cognitive perspective, while…

Comparing the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Blaauw, Duane; Ditlopo, Prudence; Maseko, Fresier; Chirwa, Maureen; Mwisongo, Aziza; Bidwell, Posy; Thomas, Steve; Normand, Charles

2013-01-24

Job satisfaction is an important determinant of health worker motivation, retention, and performance, all of which are critical to improving the functioning of health systems in low- and middle-income countries. A number of small-scale surveys have measured the job satisfaction and intention to leave of individual health worker cadres in different settings, but there are few multi-country and multi-cadre comparative studies. The objective of this study was to compare the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. We undertook a cross-sectional survey of a stratified cluster sample of 2,220 health workers, 564 from Tanzania, 939 from Malawi, and 717 from South Africa. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire, which included demographic information, a 10-item job satisfaction scale, and one question on intention to leave. Multiple regression was used to identify significant predictors of job satisfaction and intention to leave. There were statistically significant differences in job satisfaction and intention to leave between the three countries. Approximately 52.1% of health workers in South Africa were satisfied with their jobs compared to 71% from Malawi and 82.6% from Tanzania (χ2=140.3, pjob satisfaction is statistically related to intention to leave. We have shown differences in the levels of job satisfaction and intention to leave between different groups of health workers from Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. Our results caution against generalising about the effectiveness of interventions in different contexts and highlight the need for less standardised and more targeted HRH strategies than has been practised to date.

Comparing the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Blaauw, Duane; Ditlopo, Prudence; Maseko, Fresier; Chirwa, Maureen; Mwisongo, Aziza; Bidwell, Posy; Thomas, Steve; Normand, Charles

2013-01-01

Background Job satisfaction is an important determinant of health worker motivation, retention, and performance, all of which are critical to improving the functioning of health systems in low- and middle-income countries. A number of small-scale surveys have measured the job satisfaction and intention to leave of individual health worker cadres in different settings, but there are few multi-country and multi-cadre comparative studies. Objective The objective of this study was to compare the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. Methods We undertook a cross-sectional survey of a stratified cluster sample of 2,220 health workers, 564 from Tanzania, 939 from Malawi, and 717 from South Africa. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire, which included demographic information, a 10-item job satisfaction scale, and one question on intention to leave. Multiple regression was used to identify significant predictors of job satisfaction and intention to leave. Results There were statistically significant differences in job satisfaction and intention to leave between the three countries. Approximately 52.1% of health workers in South Africa were satisfied with their jobs compared to 71% from Malawi and 82.6% from Tanzania (χ2=140.3, pjob satisfaction is statistically related to intention to leave. Conclusions We have shown differences in the levels of job satisfaction and intention to leave between different groups of health workers from Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. Our results caution against generalising about the effectiveness of interventions in different contexts and highlight the need for less standardised and more targeted HRH strategies than has been practised to date. PMID:23364090

A comparative analysis of protected area planning and management frameworks

Science.gov (United States)

Per Nilsen; Grant Tayler

1997-01-01

A comparative analysis of the Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS), Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC), a Process for Visitor Impact Management (VIM), Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (VERP), and the Management Process for Visitor Activities (known as VAMP) decision frameworks examines their origins; methodology; use of factors, indicators, and standards;...

A comparative analysis of Piezoelectric and Magnetostrictive actuators in Smart Structures

OpenAIRE

Pons Rovira, José Luis

2005-01-01

[EN] This paper introduces a comparative analysis of Piezoelectric (PZ) and Magnetostrictive (MS) actuators as components in smart structures. There is an increasing interest in functional structures which are able to adapt to external or internal perturbations, i.e. changes in loading conditions or ageing. Actuator technologies must perform concomitantly as sensors and actuators to be applicable in smart structures. In this paper we will comparatively analyze the possibility of usin...

Dimeric spectra analysis in Microsoft Excel: a comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Gilani, A Ghanadzadeh; Moghadam, M; Zakerhamidi, M S

2011-11-01

The purpose of this work is to introduce the reader to an Add-in implementation, Decom. This implementation provides the whole processing requirements for analysis of dimeric spectra. General linear and nonlinear decomposition algorithms were integrated as an Excel Add-in for easy installation and usage. In this work, the results of several samples investigations were compared to those obtained by Datan. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Comparative thermal buckling analysis of functionally graded plate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Čukanović Dragan V.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A thermal buckling analysis of functionally graded thick rectangular plates accord¬ing to von Karman non-linear theory is presented. The material properties of the functionally graded plate, except for the Poisson’s ratio, were assumed to be graded in the thickness direction, according to a power-law distribution, in terms of the volume fractions of the metal and ceramic constituents. Formulations of equilibrium and stability equations are derived using the high order shear deformation theory based on different types of shape functions. Analytical method for determination of the critical buckling temperature for uniform increase of temperature, linear and non-linear change of temperature across thickness of a plate is developed. Numeri¬cal results were obtained in МATLAB software using combinations of symbolic and numeric values. The paper presents comparative results of critical buckling tempera¬ture for different types of shape functions. The accuracy of the formulation presented is verified by comparing to results available from the literature.

A comparative analysis of national food recall systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gaetano Liuzzo

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Food recall and withdrawal is a fundamental tool for risk management and different countries stated the mandatory application of a system for food; the present work is an analysis of different systems applied in different countries. The main objective of analysed systems is the consumer’s health protection through an audit system and the application of system to rapidly recall/withdraw food on the part of producers. The comparative analysis of different national systems [i.e. European Union (EU, Australia, Canada, US and China] shows differences both of the terminological and legal aspects; the words recall and withdrawal have different meaning in EU legislation than in other counties’ legislations; from a legal point of view, two main recall/withdrawal systems could be identified: a mandatory one (EU and China and a voluntary one (USA, Canada and Australia; all the investigated systems have a co-operative approach between authority and food business operator, but different functions on their respective roles could be identified.

Title: A Comparative Analysis of Nursing Education and other forms of

African Journals Online (AJOL)

DR. MRS. AKPABIO

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF NURSING EDUCATION. AND OTHER ... As a dynamic service oriented profession .... Technology, in line with nursing had come a long way from the .... prominence in future deliberations aimed at improving ...

Hawaiian propolis: comparative analysis and botanical origin.

Science.gov (United States)

Inui, Saori; Hosoya, Takahiro; Kumazaw, Shigenori

2014-02-01

Propolis is a resinous mixture of substances collected and processed from various botanical sources by honeybees (Apis mellifera). We recently obtained Hawaiian propolis, the study of which, to our knowledge, has not been reported. The purpose of this study was to analyze the composition of Hawaiian propolis and to identify its botanical origin. A comparative analysis of Hawaiian and Okinawan propolis and of the glandular trichomes on Macaranga tanarius fruit (the botanical origin of Okinawan propolis) was performed using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with high resolution-electrospray mass spectrometry. Hawaiian propolis contained nine prenylflavonoids that were also isolated from Okinawan propolis. In conclusion, we suggest that the botanical origin of Hawaiian propolis is M. tanarius, the same as that of Okinawan propolis.

Comparative analysis between scientific and the media communication following facial transplantation.

Science.gov (United States)

Belanger, M; Harris, P G; Nikolis, A; Danino, A M

2009-03-01

Our aim was to analyze the communications about three outstanding medical reports. Was there any difference in the reports of the three allografts? Was there a correlation between the media and the scientific world? The Internet sites of three major newspapers were used for the media database. Those results were compared with PubMed between 2005 and 2007 using these key words: "facial graft," "facial allograft," "composite tissue allograft," and names of surgeons of the graft. We did a comparative analysis using a word processor and a quality analysis software. We analyzed 51 articles from the media and six from the PubMed database. In PubMed, 100% of the articles were on the first graft and respected the privacy of the patient compared to 67% of the media who unveiled the identity. The communication following a medical premiere depends on the team, which performes the act. We observed a major difference between the three cases. Ethical considerations are different for the media and for scientists. The communication management of a medical premiere takes preparation and evaluation.

A Comparative Analysis of Method Books for Class Jazz Instruction

Science.gov (United States)

Watson, Kevin E.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze and compare instructional topics and teaching approaches included in selected class method books for jazz pedagogy through content analysis methodology. Frequency counts for the number of pages devoted to each defined instructional content category were compiled and percentages of pages allotted to each…

Efficacy of escitalopram compared to citalopram: a meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Montgomery, Stuart; Hansen, Thomas; Kasper, Siegfried

2011-03-01

The aim of this review was to assess the clinical relevance of the relative antidepressant efficacy of escitalopram and citalopram by meta-analysis. Studies in major depressive disorder (MDD) with both escitalopram and citalopram treatment arms were identified. Adult patients had to meet DSM-IV criteria for MDD. The primary outcome measure was the treatment difference in Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score at week 8 (or last assessment if escitalopram, n=995; citalopram, n=1014). Escitalopram was significantly more effective than citalopram in overall treatment effect, with an estimated mean treatment difference of 1.7 points at week 8 (or last assessment if escitalopram. In this meta-analysis, the statistically significant superior efficacy of escitalopram compared to citalopram was shown to be clinically relevant.

Establishing a framework for comparative analysis of genome sequences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bansal, A.K.

1995-06-01

This paper describes a framework and a high-level language toolkit for comparative analysis of genome sequence alignment The framework integrates the information derived from multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic tree (hypothetical tree of evolution) to derive new properties about sequences. Multiple sequence alignments are treated as an abstract data type. Abstract operations have been described to manipulate a multiple sequence alignment and to derive mutation related information from a phylogenetic tree by superimposing parsimonious analysis. The framework has been applied on protein alignments to derive constrained columns (in a multiple sequence alignment) that exhibit evolutionary pressure to preserve a common property in a column despite mutation. A Prolog toolkit based on the framework has been implemented and demonstrated on alignments containing 3000 sequences and 3904 columns.

Physical activity and asthma: A longitudinal and multi-country study.

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, Melissa A; Janson, Christer; Real, Francisco Gómez; Johannessen, Ane; Waatevik, Marie; Benediktsdóttir, Bryndis; Holm, Mathias; Lindberg, Eva; Schlünssen, Vivi; Raza, Wasif; Dharmage, Shyamali C; Svanes, Cecilie

2017-11-01

To investigate the impact of physical activity on asthma in middle-aged adults, in one longitudinal analysis, and one multi-centre cross-sectional analysis. The Respiratory Health in Northern Europe (RHINE) is a population-based postal questionnaire cohort study. Physical activity, height and weight were self-reported in Bergen, Norway, at RHINE II (1999-2001) and all centres at RHINE III (2010-2012). A longitudinal analysis of Bergen data investigated the association of baseline physical activity with follow-up asthma, incident asthma and symptoms, using logistic and zero-inflated Poisson regression (n = 1782). A cross-sectional analysis of all RHINE III centres investigated the association of physical activity with concurrent asthma and symptoms (n = 13,542) using mixed-effects models. Body mass index (BMI) was categorised (asthma (odds ratio [OR] 0.44, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.22, 0.89), whilst an effect from undertaking vigorous activity 3+ times/week was not detected (OR 1.22, 95% CI 0.44, 2.76). The associations were attenuated with BMI adjustment. In the all-centre cross-sectional analysis an interaction was found, with the association between physical activity and asthma varying across BMI categories. These findings suggest potential longer-term benefit from lighter physical activity, whilst improvement in asthma outcomes from increasing activity intensity was not evident. Additionally, it appears the benefit from physical activity may differ according to BMI.

Dilemmas of Transfer Pricing Comparability Analysis in Manufacturing Entities. Polish-Czech Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Sulik-Górecka, Aleksandra

2018-06-01

Modern manufacturing entities often operate in capital groups, and their role is sometimes limited to the function of cost centers. From the legal point of view, however, they are separate entities obliged to apply transfer pricing regulations. Meeting the requirements of the arm's length principle can be very difficult at this time, given the relationships and conflicts of interest in the capital group. Complexity increases in capital groups operating in different countries, due to differences in tax regulations. The main purpose of the paper is to demonstrate that the need to valuate the sale of finished goods to a manufacturing entity, which is a subject to a different tax jurisdiction, may lead to a problem of compliance with the arm's length principle. In addition, the paper proposes a methodology for comparability analysis that may be used by manufacturing entities to defend conditions of setting transfer pricing. The paper presents the different functional profiles of manufacturing entities and points out the difficulties that they may encounter when preparing the comparability analysis. It has also been noted that there are differences in transfer pricing regulations in different countries, for example by analyzing Polish and Czech regulations. The lack of uniform benchmarking legislation can cause inconsistencies in the selection of comparable data, resulting in differences in transfer pricing. The paper uses the method of legal regulation review and analysis of results of published studies concerning the scope of transfer pricing and comparability analysis. The paper also adopts a case study analysis.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF INNOVATION ASPECT EVIDENCE IN CONSTRUCTION AND MULTI-SECTOR COMPANIES

OpenAIRE

Ricardo Floriani; Ilse Maria Beuren; Nelson Hein

2010-01-01

The goal of this study is to make a comparative analysis of innovation aspect evidence among construction and multi-sector companies. Descriptive research was done through a content analysis of administration reports from 2005 to 2007. From the researched material, 14 aspects of innovations were extracted, which offer the basis to the content analysis. Two non-probability samples were developed, the first consisting of 22 multi-sector businesses, within 18 economic sectors, which comprises th...

Comparative Analysis for Robust Penalized Spline Smoothing Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bin Wang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Smoothing noisy data is commonly encountered in engineering domain, and currently robust penalized regression spline models are perceived to be the most promising methods for coping with this issue, due to their flexibilities in capturing the nonlinear trends in the data and effectively alleviating the disturbance from the outliers. Against such a background, this paper conducts a thoroughly comparative analysis of two popular robust smoothing techniques, the M-type estimator and S-estimation for penalized regression splines, both of which are reelaborated starting from their origins, with their derivation process reformulated and the corresponding algorithms reorganized under a unified framework. Performances of these two estimators are thoroughly evaluated from the aspects of fitting accuracy, robustness, and execution time upon the MATLAB platform. Elaborately comparative experiments demonstrate that robust penalized spline smoothing methods possess the capability of resistance to the noise effect compared with the nonrobust penalized LS spline regression method. Furthermore, the M-estimator exerts stable performance only for the observations with moderate perturbation error, whereas the S-estimator behaves fairly well even for heavily contaminated observations, but consuming more execution time. These findings can be served as guidance to the selection of appropriate approach for smoothing the noisy data.

Case Problems for Problem-Based Pedagogical Approaches: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Dabbagh, Nada; Dass, Susan

2013-01-01

A comparative analysis of 51 case problems used in five problem-based pedagogical models was conducted to examine whether there are differences in their characteristics and the implications of such differences on the selection and generation of ill-structured case problems. The five pedagogical models were: situated learning, goal-based scenario,…

COMPETITIVE SOCIAL POSITION OF THE COUNTRY: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Chornodid

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article reveals the essence of the country's competitive position, a comparative analysis according to international indexes and indicators is provided. Also the competitive social benefits of the country are described. The real situation of the competitive social benefits is considered on international standards and assessments. The estimation of the position of Ukraine is given in terms of freedom, network readiness index, the index of competitiveness of travel and tourism.

Comparative analysis of the district heating systems of two towns in Croatia and Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Čulig-Tokić, Dario; Krajačić, Goran; Doračić, Borna

2015-01-01

This paper compares district heating systems in Zagreb and Aalborg in order to see their similarities and differences from which conclusions are drawn on how to improve the systems. The method chosen is the comparative analysis. Data is organized and structured so to allow clear and concise...... comparison. The results of the comparative analysis show that the district heating system in Aalborg is more advanced than the district heating system in Zagreb. This advantage is prominent in aspects of supply, demand, distribution and economic spheres. Some of the possible improvements include lowering...

Nurses' practice environment and satisfaction with schedule flexibility is related to intention to leave due to dissatisfaction: A multi-country, multilevel study.

Science.gov (United States)

Leineweber, Constanze; Chungkham, Holendro Singh; Lindqvist, Rikard; Westerlund, Hugo; Runesdotter, Sara; Smeds Alenius, Lisa; Tishelman, Carol

2016-06-01

Nursing turnover is a major issue for health care managers, notably during the global nursing workforce shortage. Despite the often hierarchical structure of the data used in nursing studies, few studies have investigated the impact of the work environment on intention to leave using multilevel techniques. Also, differences between intentions to leave the current workplace or to leave the profession entirely have rarely been studied. The aim of the current study was to investigate how aspects of the nurse practice environment and satisfaction with work schedule flexibility measured at different organisational levels influenced the intention to leave the profession or the workplace due to dissatisfaction. Multilevel models were fitted using survey data from the RN4CAST project, which has a multi-country, multilevel, cross-sectional design. The data analysed here are based on a sample of 23,076 registered nurses from 2020 units in 384 hospitals in 10 European countries (overall response rate: 59.4%). Four levels were available for analyses: country, hospital, unit, and individual registered nurse. Practice environment and satisfaction with schedule flexibility were aggregated and studied at the unit level. Gender, experience as registered nurse, full vs. part-time work, as well as individual deviance from unit mean in practice environment and satisfaction with work schedule flexibility, were included at the individual level. Both intention to leave the profession and the hospital due to dissatisfaction were studied. Regarding intention to leave current workplace, there is variability at both country (6.9%) and unit (6.9%) level. However, for intention to leave the profession we found less variability at the country (4.6%) and unit level (3.9%). Intention to leave the workplace was strongly related to unit level variables. Additionally, individual characteristics and deviance from unit mean regarding practice environment and satisfaction with schedule flexibility were

Test Capability of Comparative NAA Method in Analysis of Long Lived Element in SRM 1648

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sri-Wardani

2005-01-01

The comparative NAA method had been examine on the analysis of long-lived elements content in air particulate sample of NIST.SRM 1648 for evaluation of a capability of comparative NAA method that used at P2TRR. From the result of analysis it could be determined analysis elements contained in the sample, namely: Sc, Co, Zn, Br, Rb, Sb, Hf and Th with optimum results in bias of 10%. The optimum result of long-lived elements obtained on a good accuracy and precision. From the analysis data obtained showed that the comparative NAA method with Gamma Trac and APTEC software capable to analyze several kinds of elements in environmental samples. Therefore, this method could be implement in biological and healthy samples. (author)

Anagrelide compared with hydroxyurea in essential thrombocythemia: a meta-analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Samuelson, Bethany; Chai-Adisaksopha, Chatree; Garcia, David

2015-11-01

Cytoreductive therapy, with or without low-dose aspirin, is the mainstay of thrombotic risk reduction in patients with essential thrombocythemia (ET), but the optimal choice of agent remains unclear. The aim of this study was to meta-analyze currently available data comparing anagrelide to hydroxyurea for reduction of rates of thrombosis, bleeding and death among patients with ET. A literature search for randomized, controlled trials comparing anagrelide to hydroxyurea among patients with ET revealed two published studies. Statistical analysis was performed using fixed effects meta-analysis. Rates of thrombosis were similar between patients treated with hydroxyurea vs anagrelide (RR 0.86, 95 % CI 0.64-1.16). Rates of major bleeding were lower in patients treated with hydroxyurea (RR 0.37, 95 % CI 0.18-0.75). Rates of progression to acute myeloid leukemia were not statistically different (RR 1.50, 95 % CI 0.43-5.29). The composite of thrombosis, major bleeding and death favored hydroxyurea (RR 0.78, 95 % CI 0.63-0.97). In conclusion, our analysis supports use of hydroxyurea as a first-line cytoreductive agent for patients with ET, based largely on decreased rates of major bleeding. Anagrelide appears to be equally effective for protection against thrombotic events and may be an appropriate alternative for patients who are intolerant of hydroxyurea.

Mycobacterial species as case-study of comparative genome analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Zakham, F; Belayachi, L; Ussery, D; Akrim, M; Benjouad, A; El Aouad, R; Ennaji, M M

2011-02-08

The genus Mycobacterium represents more than 120 species including important pathogens of human and cause major public health problems and illnesses. Further, with more than 100 genome sequences from this genus, comparative genome analysis can provide new insights for better understanding the evolutionary events of these species and improving drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics tools for controlling Mycobacterial diseases. In this present study we aim to outline a comparative genome analysis of fourteen Mycobacterial genomes: M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis K—10, M. bovis AF2122/97, M. bovis BCG str. Pasteur 1173P2, M. leprae Br4923, M. marinum M, M. sp. KMS, M. sp. MCS, M. tuberculosis CDC1551, M. tuberculosis F11, M. tuberculosis H37Ra, M. tuberculosis H37Rv, M. tuberculosis KZN 1435 , M. ulcerans Agy99,and M. vanbaalenii PYR—1, For this purpose a comparison has been done based on their length of genomes, GC content, number of genes in different data bases (Genbank, Refseq, and Prodigal). The BLAST matrix of these genomes has been figured to give a lot of information about the similarity between species in a simple scheme. As a result of multiple genome analysis, the pan and core genome have been defined for twelve Mycobacterial species. We have also introduced the genome atlas of the reference strain M. tuberculosis H37Rv which can give a good overview of this genome. And for examining the phylogenetic relationships among these bacteria, a phylogenic tree has been constructed from 16S rRNA gene for tuberculosis and non tuberculosis Mycobacteria to understand the evolutionary events of these species.

Comparative analysis of stress in a new proposal of dental implants.

Science.gov (United States)

Valente, Mariana Lima da Costa; de Castro, Denise Tornavoi; Macedo, Ana Paula; Shimano, Antonio Carlos; Dos Reis, Andréa Cândido

2017-08-01

The purpose of this study was to compare, through photoelastic analysis, the stress distribution around conventional and modified external hexagon (EH) and morse taper (MT) dental implant connections. Four photoelastic models were prepared (n=1): Model 1 - conventional EH cylindrical implant (Ø 4.0mm×11mm - Neodent®), Model 2 - modified EH cylindrical implant, Model 3 - conventional MT Conical implant (Ø 4.3mm×10mm - Neodent®) and Model 4 - modified MT conical implant. 100 and 150N axial and oblique loads (30° tilt) were applied in the devices coupled to the implants. A plane transmission polariscope was used in the analysis of fringes and each position of interest was recorded by a digital camera. The Tardy method was used to quantify the fringe order (n), that calculates the maximum shear stress (τ) value in each selected point. The results showed lower stress concentration in the modified cylindrical implant (EH) compared to the conventional model, with application of 150N axial and 100N oblique loads. Lower stress was observed for the modified conical (MT) implant with the application of 100 and 150N oblique loads, which was not observed for the conventional implant model. The comparative analysis of the models showed that the new design proposal generates good stress distribution, especially in the cervical third, suggesting the preservation of bone tissue in the bone crest region. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Research management: the case of RN4CAST.

Science.gov (United States)

Zikos, Dimitrios; Mantas, John

2011-01-01

Successful research management requires multifunctional, equal teamwork and efficient coordination, aiming to increase the impact of the research outcomes. Aim of this paper is to present the strategies that have been followed to successfully manage the RN4CAST study, one of the largest multi country research projects ever conducted. The paper focuses on the core research strategies rather than on the administrative management activities also required for the success of this case report. Management of a multi-country nursing survey requires the use of common data collection tools, applicable to every context, research protocols supporting the scope of the research, data models for multi-country analyses and global dissemination strategies.

Comparative analysis of SLB for OPR1000 by using MEDUSA and CESEC-III codes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Jong Cheol; Park, Chan Eok; Kim, Shin Whan

2005-01-01

The MEDUSA is a system thermal hydraulics code developed by Korea Power Engineering Company (KOPEC) for Non-LOCA and LOCA analysis, using two fluid, three-field governing equations for two phase flow. The detailed descriptions for the MEDUSA code are given in Reference. A lot of effort is now being made to investigate the applicability of the MEDUSA code especially to Non-LOCA analysis, by comparing the analysis results with those from the current licensing code, CESEC-III: The comparative simulations of Pressurizer Level Control System(PLCS) Malfunction and Feedwater Line Break(FLB), which have been accomplished by C.E.Park and M.T.Oh, respectively, already showed that the MEDUSA code is applicable to the analysis of Non-LOCA events. In this paper, detailed thermal hydraulic analyses for Steam Line Break(SLB) without loss of off-site power were performed using the MEDUSA code. The calculation results were also compared with the CESEC-III, 1000(OPR1000), for the purpose of the code verification

Comparative proteomic analysis of ductal and lobular invasive breast carcinoma.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, N C S; Gomig, T H B; Milioli, H H; Cordeiro, F; Costa, G G; Urban, C A; Lima, R S; Cavalli, I J; Ribeiro, E M S F

2016-04-04

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer worldwide and the first among women. Invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) and invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC) are the two major histological subtypes, and the clinical and molecular differences between them justify the search for new markers to distinguish them. As proteomic analysis allows for a powerful and analytical approach to identify potential biomarkers, we performed a comparative analysis of IDC and ILC samples by using two-dimensional electrophoresis and mass spectrometry. Twenty-three spots were identified corresponding to 10 proteins differentially expressed between the two subtypes. ACTB, ACTG, TPM3, TBA1A, TBA1B, VIME, TPIS, PDIA3, PDIA6, and VTDB were upregulated in ductal carcinoma compared to in lobular carcinoma samples. Overall, these 10 proteins have a key role in oncogenesis. Their specific functions and relevance in cancer initiation and progression are further discussed in this study. The identified peptides represent promising biomarkers for the differentiation of ductal and lobular breast cancer subtypes, and for future interventions based on tailored therapy.

Forecasting Financial Stress

OpenAIRE

Jan Willem Slingenberg; Jakob de Haan

2011-01-01

This paper uses a Financial Stress Index (FSI) for 13 OECD countries to examine which variables can help predicting financial stress. A stress index measures the current state of stress in the financial system and summarizes it in a single statistic. We employ three criteria for indicators to be used in constructing a multi-country FSI (the index covers the entire financial system, indicators used are available at a high frequency for many countries for a long period, and are comparable) to c...

ASEAN Economic community and climate change

OpenAIRE

Ditya A Nurdianto; Budy P Resosudarmo

2014-01-01

This paper analyzes the benefits and losses associated with cooperation among ASEAN members in mitigating their CO2 emission, particularly by implementing a uniform carbon tax across ASEAN. To achieve this goal, this paper uses a multi-country CGE model for ASEAN, known as the Inter-Regional System of Analysis for ASEAN (IRSA-ASEAN) model. This study finds that the implementation of a carbon tax scenario is an effective means of reducing carbon emissions in the region. However, this environme...

An application of a grey data envelopment analysis model to the risk comparative analysis among power generation technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garcia, Pauli A.A.; Melo, P.F. Frutuoso e

2005-01-01

The comparative risk analysis is a technique for which one seeks equilibrium among benefits, costs, and risks associated with common-purpose activities performed. In light of the ever-growing world demand for a sustainable power supply, we present in this paper a comparison among different power generation technologies. The data for the comparative analyses has been taken from the literature. A hybrid approach is proposed for performing the comparisons, in which the Grey System Theory and the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) are combined. The purpose of this combination is to take into account different features that influence the risk analysis, when one aims to compare different power generation technologies. The generation technologies considered here are: solar, biomass, wind, hydroelectric, oil, natural gas, coal, and nuclear. The criteria considered in the analysis are: contribution to the life expectancy reduction (in years); contribution to the life expectancy growth (in years); used area (in km 2 ); tons of released CO 2 per GWh generated. The results obtained by using the aforementioned approach are promising and demonstrate the advantages of the Grey-DEA approach for the problem at hand. The results show that investments in the nuclear and solar power generation technologies are the options that present the best relative efficiencies, that is, among all considered options, they presented the best cost-benefit-risk relationships. (author)

Medical student professionalism narratives: a thematic analysis and interdisciplinary comparative investigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernard, Aaron W; Malone, Matthew; Kman, Nicholas E; Caterino, Jeffrey M; Khandelwal, Sorabh

2011-08-12

Professionalism development is influenced by the informal and hidden curriculum. The primary objective of this study was to better understand this experiential learning in the setting of the Emergency Department (ED). Secondarily, the study aimed to explore differences in the informal curriculum between Emergency Medicine (EM) and Internal Medicine (IM) clerkships. A thematic analysis was conducted on 377 professionalism narratives from medical students completing a required EM clerkship from July 2008 through May 2010. The narratives were analyzed using established thematic categories from prior research as well as basic descriptive characteristics. Chi-square analysis was used to compare the frequency of thematic categories to prior research in IM. Finally, emerging themes not fully appreciated in the established thematic categories were created using grounded theory. Observations involving interactions between attending physician and patient were most abundant. The narratives were coded as positive 198 times, negative 128 times, and hybrid 37 times. The two most abundant narrative themes involved manifesting respect (36.9%) and spending time (23.7%). Both of these themes were statistically more likely to be noted by students on EM clerkships compared to IM clerkships. Finally, one new theme regarding cynicism emerged during analysis. This analysis describes an informal curriculum that is diverse in themes. Student narratives suggest their clinical experiences to be influential on professionalism development. Medical students focus on different aspects of professionalism depending on clerkship specialty.

Comparative performance analysis of combined-cycle pulse detonation turbofan engines (PDTEs

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Sudip Bhattrai

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Combined-cycle pulse detonation engines are promising contenders for hypersonic propulsion systems. In the present study, design and propulsive performance analysis of combined-cycle pulse detonation turbofan engines (PDTEs is presented. Analysis is done with respect to Mach number at two consecutive modes of operation: (1 Combined-cycle PDTE using a pulse detonation afterburner mode (PDA-mode and (2 combined-cycle PDTE in pulse detonation ramjet engine mode (PDRE-mode. The performance of combined-cycle PDTEs is compared with baseline afterburning turbofan and ramjet engines. The comparison of afterburning modes is done for Mach numbers from 0 to 3 at 15.24 km altitude conditions, while that of pulse detonation ramjet engine (PDRE is done for Mach 1.5 to Mach 6 at 18.3 km altitude conditions. The analysis shows that the propulsive performance of a turbine engine can be greatly improved by replacing the conventional afterburner with a pulse detonation afterburner (PDA. The PDRE also outperforms its ramjet counterpart at all flight conditions considered herein. The gains obtained are outstanding for both the combined-cycle PDTE modes compared to baseline turbofan and ramjet engines.

The stoma appliances market in five European countries: a comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Cornago, Dante; Garattini, Livio

2002-01-01

This comparative exercise analysed the domestic market for stoma appliances in five European countries--Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. National legislation, prescription procedures, delivery modalities and the market were investigated in each country. The analysis involved reviewing national and international literature on stoma appliances and interviewing a selected expert panel of market operators in each country comprising at least one health authority representative, one distributor of medical devices and one manufacturer. No specific relationship was found between the health care system framework and the stoma market, except for a greater inclination towards home care in national health services. All five countries reimburse stoma bags, but the distribution of these appliances varies widely, ranging from Denmark, where home delivery is mandatory, to Italy, where any channel can be used. The comparative analysis underlined two important features of the stoma bag market: the discretion of enterostomists in directing patients towards a specific brand of bags, and the patients' high brand loyalty. Despite that, the analysis did not identify any single country that could be considered a benchmark for stoma bag regulation. Each country deals with stoma appliances in different ways, making this a very fragmented market.

Assessing the Goodness of Fit of Phylogenetic Comparative Methods: A Meta-Analysis and Simulation Study.

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Dwueng-Chwuan Jhwueng

Full Text Available Phylogenetic comparative methods (PCMs have been applied widely in analyzing data from related species but their fit to data is rarely assessed.Can one determine whether any particular comparative method is typically more appropriate than others by examining comparative data sets?I conducted a meta-analysis of 122 phylogenetic data sets found by searching all papers in JEB, Blackwell Synergy and JSTOR published in 2002-2005 for the purpose of assessing the fit of PCMs. The number of species in these data sets ranged from 9 to 117.I used the Akaike information criterion to compare PCMs, and then fit PCMs to bivariate data sets through REML analysis. Correlation estimates between two traits and bootstrapped confidence intervals of correlations from each model were also compared.For phylogenies of less than one hundred taxa, the Independent Contrast method and the independent, non-phylogenetic models provide the best fit.For bivariate analysis, correlations from different PCMs are qualitatively similar so that actual correlations from real data seem to be robust to the PCM chosen for the analysis. Therefore, researchers might apply the PCM they believe best describes the evolutionary mechanisms underlying their data.

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE COLLEGES IN BRAZIL

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Átila de Melo Lira

2015-06-01

Full Text Available A comparative analysis between the use of performance indicators to public and private organizations have always been required to examine the scenario related to both. This study seeks to analyze the use of Balanced Scorecard (BSC to identify and understand the main differences and similarities in public and private higher education institutions (HEIs in Brazil in relation to the use of other organizations performance indicators. A quantitative and exploratory approach was adopted using institutional documents analysis. Data was searched on the websites of Brazilian higher education public and private organizations in order to accomplish this analysis comparative. The results showed that even reviewing few public institutions the use of performance indicators appears to be more efficient than those applied to the private ones. Private universities should observe and improve their processes and performance indicators based on those used in Brazilian public universities. This initial research still opens a horizon so that other studies be developed within this thought stream.

INSTITUTIONS AND VALUES OF ROMANIANS – COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF HISTORICAL REGIONS

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Iacobuta Andreea-Oana

2009-05-01

Full Text Available Starting from the results of a national survey, a questionnaire on the values of Romanians was applied in April 2008 which was used for a comparative analysis of historical regions of Romania: Moldova, Bucharest, Dobrogea, Transilvania and Muntenia. Ou

Addressing the challenges in using qualitative data in qualitative comparative analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Block, Debora; Vis, B.

2017-01-01

This paper addresses an issue that so far has received relatively little attention in methodological discussions about Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), namely the challenges researchers face when using qualitative data in QCA analyses. Building on a literature review of 22 empirical studies

Elemental analysis using instrumental neutron activation analysis and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry: a comparative study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Yong Sam; Choi, Kwang Soon; Moon, Jong Hwa; Kim, Sun Ha; Lim, Jong Myoung; Kim, Young Jin; Quraishi, Shamshad Begum

2003-05-01

Elemental analyses for certified reference materials were carried out using instrumental neutron activation analysis and inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry. Five Certified Reference Materials (CRM) were selected for the study on comparative analysis of environmental samples. The CRM are Soil (NIST SRM 2709), Coal fly ash (NIST SRM 1633a), urban dust (NIST SRM 1649a) and air particulate on filter media (NIST SRM 2783 and human hair (GBW 09101)

Comparative Analysis of Disruption Tolerant Network Routing Simulations in the One and NS-3

Science.gov (United States)

2017-12-01

The added levels of simulation increase the processing required by a simulation . ns-3’s simulation of other layers of the network stack permits...NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF DISRUPTION TOLERANT NETWORK ROUTING SIMULATIONS IN THE ONE AND NS-3...Thesis 03-23-2016 to 12-15-2017 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF DISRUPTION TOLERANT NETWORK ROUTING SIMULATIONS IN THE ONE AND NS-3 5

Comparation studies of uranium analysis method using spectrophotometer and voltammeter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugeng Pomomo

2013-01-01

Comparation studies of uranium analysis method by spectrophotometer and voltammeter had been done. The objective of experiment is to examine the reliability of analysis method and instrument performance by evaluate parameters; linearity, accuracy, precision and detection limit. Uranyl nitrate hexahydrate is used as standard, and the sample is solvent mixture of tributyl phosphate and kerosene containing uranium (from phosphoric acid purification unit Petrokimia Gresik). Uranium (U) stripping in the sample use HN0 3 0,5 N and then was analyzed by using of both instrument. Analysis of standard show that both methods give a good linearity by correlation coefficient > 0,999. Spectrophotometry give accuration 99,34 - 101,05 % with ratio standard deviation (RSD) 1,03 %; detection limit (DL) 0,05 ppm. Voltammetry give accuration 95,63 -101,49 % with RSD 3,91 %; detection limit (DL) 0,509 ppm. On the analysis of sludge samples were given the significantly different in result; spectrophotometry give U concentration 4,445 ppm by RSD 6,74 % and voltammetry give U concentration 7,693 by RSD 19,53%. (author)

Highly comparative time-series analysis: the empirical structure of time series and their methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Fulcher, Ben D; Little, Max A; Jones, Nick S

2013-06-06

The process of collecting and organizing sets of observations represents a common theme throughout the history of science. However, despite the ubiquity of scientists measuring, recording and analysing the dynamics of different processes, an extensive organization of scientific time-series data and analysis methods has never been performed. Addressing this, annotated collections of over 35 000 real-world and model-generated time series, and over 9000 time-series analysis algorithms are analysed in this work. We introduce reduced representations of both time series, in terms of their properties measured by diverse scientific methods, and of time-series analysis methods, in terms of their behaviour on empirical time series, and use them to organize these interdisciplinary resources. This new approach to comparing across diverse scientific data and methods allows us to organize time-series datasets automatically according to their properties, retrieve alternatives to particular analysis methods developed in other scientific disciplines and automate the selection of useful methods for time-series classification and regression tasks. The broad scientific utility of these tools is demonstrated on datasets of electroencephalograms, self-affine time series, heartbeat intervals, speech signals and others, in each case contributing novel analysis techniques to the existing literature. Highly comparative techniques that compare across an interdisciplinary literature can thus be used to guide more focused research in time-series analysis for applications across the scientific disciplines.

A Comparative Analysis of Polish and Czech International New Ventures

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Lidia Danik

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The goal of this paper is to compare the characteristics of Polish and Czech companies which follow the Born Global internationalization model. More concretely, the analysis aims to discover the differences or similarities in terms of the internationalization paths of Polish and Czech SMEs in the characteristics of their managers in terms of the so-called “international vision” and in their innovativeness level. The introductory part of article provides a description of this internationalization model and the International New Ventures traits (INV and summarizes the recent studies on this topic conducted in Poland and Czech Republic. In the empirical part, the International New Ventures from the two countries are compared. The Polish sample includes 105 companies which were surveyed with use of computer assisted telephone interviews in autumn 2014. For the Czech Republic, the sample consists of 54 small and medium-sized companies, which were surveyed using the computer assisted web interviews from November 2013 till January 2014. The surveyed companies in both countries fulfilled the definition of Born Globals. Descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation analysis and non-parametric tests are applied to accomplish the goals of the paper.

Comparative Analysis of Results of Online and Offline Customer Satisfaction

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Jovović Milorad

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The logic that customer satisfaction is the starting point of marketing and business activities is based on the assumption that customer satisfaction leads to customer loyalty, keeping in mind all of the positive effects that customer loyalty has on business success of an organization. Because of this, marketing and management theory and practice dedicate particular attention to the concepts of customer satisfaction and loyalty. In this paper we will use the surveys of customers of banking services not only to show the levels of their satisfaction and loyalty, but also to make a comparative analysis of data obtained through online and offline research. This approach was made possible because the research was carried out on a sample which was divided in two groups. All of the participants answered the questions from a unique questionnaire, however, one group took the survey via the Internet (online while data from the other group of participants was collected in the field by using printed questionnaires (offline. The findings of the comparative analysis of online and offline survey results are presented in the final part of the paper.

Sociological analysis and comparative education

Science.gov (United States)

Woock, Roger R.

1981-12-01

It is argued that comparative education is essentially a derivative field of study, in that it borrows theories and methods from academic disciplines. After a brief humanistic phase, in which history and philosophy were central for comparative education, sociology became an important source. In the mid-50's and 60's, sociology in the United States was characterised by Structural Functionalism as a theory, and Social Survey as a dominant methodology. Both were incorporated into the development of comparative education. Increasingly in the 70's, and certainly today, the new developments in sociology are characterised by an attack on Positivism, which is seen as the philosophical position underlying both functionalism and survey methods. New or re-discovered theories with their attendant methodologies included Marxism, Phenomenological Sociology, Critical Theory, and Historical Social Science. The current relationship between comparative education and social science is one of uncertainty, but since social science is seen to be returning to its European roots, the hope is held out for the development of an integrated social theory and method which will provide a much stronger basis for developments in comparative education.

Overview, methods and results of multi-country community-based maternal and newborn care economic analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Daviaud, Emmanuelle; Owen, Helen; Pitt, Catherine; Kerber, Kate; Bianchi Jassir, Fiorella; Barger, Diana; Manzi, Fatuma; Ekipara-Kiracho, Elizabeth; Greco, Giulia; Waiswa, Peter; Lawn, Joy E

2017-10-01

Home visits for pregnancy and postnatal care were endorsed by the WHO and partners as a complementary strategy to facility-based care to reduce newborn and maternal mortality. This article aims to synthesise findings and implications from the economic analyses of community-based maternal and newborn care (CBMNC) evaluations in seven countries. The evaluations included five cluster randomized trials (Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda) and programmatic before/after assessments (Bolivia, Malawi). The economic analyses were undertaken using a standardized, comparable methodology the 'Cost of Integrated Newborn Care' Tool, developed by the South African Medical Research Council, with Saving Newborn Lives and a network of African economists. The main driver of costs is the number of community health workers (CHWs), determined by their time availability, as fixed costs per CHW (equipment, training, salary/stipend, supervision and management), independent from the level of activity (number of mothers visited) represented over 96% of economic and financial costs in five of the countries. Unpaid volunteers are not necessarily a cheap option. An integrated programme with multi-purpose paid workers usually has lower costs per visit but requires innovative management, including supervision to ensure that coverage, or quality of care are not compromised since these workers have many other responsibilities apart from maternal and newborn health. If CHWs reach 95% of pregnant women in a standardized 100 000 population, the additional financial cost in all cases would be under USD1 per capita. In five of the six countries, the programme would be highly cost-effective (cost per DALY averted < GDP/capita) by WHO threshold even if they only achieved a reduction of 1 neonatal death per 1000 live births. These results contribute useful information for implementation planning and sustainability of CBMNC programmes. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University

Nursing home quality: a comparative analysis using CMS Nursing Home Compare data to examine differences between rural and nonrural facilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Lutfiyya, May Nawal; Gessert, Charles E; Lipsky, Martin S

2013-08-01

Advances in medicine and an aging US population suggest that there will be an increasing demand for nursing home services. Although nursing homes are highly regulated and scrutinized, their quality remains a concern and may be a greater issue to those living in rural communities. Despite this, few studies have investigated differences in the quality of nursing home care across the rural-urban continuum. The purpose of this study was to compare the quality of rural and nonrural nursing homes by using aggregated rankings on multiple quality measures calculated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and reported on their Nursing Home Compare Web site. Independent-sample t tests were performed to compare the mean ratings on the reported quality measures of rural and nonrural nursing homes. A linear mixed binary logistic regression model controlling for state was performed to determine if the covariates of ownership, number of beds, and geographic locale were associated with a higher overall quality rating. Of the 15,177 nursing homes included in the study sample, 69.2% were located in nonrural areas and 30.8% in rural areas. The t test analysis comparing the overall, health inspection, staffing, and quality measure ratings of rural and nonrural nursing homes yielded statistically significant results for 3 measures, 2 of which (overall ratings and health inspections) favored rural nursing homes. Although a higher percentage of nursing homes (44.8%-42.2%) received a 4-star or higher rating, regression analysis using an overall rating of 4 stars or higher as the dependent variable revealed that when controlling for state and adjusting for size and ownership, rural nursing homes were less likely to have a 4-star or higher rating when compared with nonrural nursing homes (OR = .901, 95% CI 0.824-0.986). Mixed model logistic regression analysis suggested that rural nursing home quality was not comparable to that of nonrural nursing homes. When controlling for

Investigations on the comparator technique used in epithermal neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bereznai, T.; Bodizs, D.; Keoemley, G.

1977-01-01

The possible extension of the comparator technique of reactor neutron activation analysis into the field of epithermal neutron activation has been investigated. Ruthenium was used for multi-isotopic comparator. Experiments show that conversion of the so-called reference k-factors - determined by irradiation with reactor neutrons - into ksup(epi)-factors usable at activation under cadmium filter, can be evaluated with fair accuracy. Sources and extent of errors and their contribution to the final error of analysis are discussed. For equal irradiation and counting times advantage of ENAA for several elements is obvious: the much lower background activity permitted the sample to be measured closer to the detector, under better geometry conditions, consequently, permitting several elements to be determined quantitatively. The number of elements determined and the sensitivity of the method are much dependent on the experimental conditions, especially on the composition of the sample, on the PHIsub(e) value, the irradiation time and the efficiency of the Ge(Li) detector. (T.G.)

A comparative analysis of selected wastewater pretreatment processes in food industry

Science.gov (United States)

Jaszczyszyn, Katarzyna; Góra, Wojciech; Dymaczewski, Zbysław; Borowiak, Robert

2018-02-01

The article presents a comparative analysis of the classical coagulation with the iron sulphate and adsorption on bentonite for the pretreatment of wastewater in the food industry. As a result of the studies, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen (TN) reduction were found to be comparable in both technologies, and a 29% higher total phosphorus removal efficiency by the coagulation was observed. After the coagulation and adsorption processes, a significant difference between mineral and organic fraction in the sludge was found (49% and 51% for bentonite and 28% and 72% for iron sulphate, respectively).

Bisphenol A alters gut microbiome: Comparative metagenomics analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Keng-Po; Chung, Yan-Tung; Li, Rong; Wan, Hin-Ting; Wong, Chris Kong-Chu

2016-11-01

Mounting evidence has shown that an alteration of the gut microbiota is associated with diet, and plays an important role in animal health and metabolic diseases. However, little is known about the influence of environmental contaminants on the gut microbial community. Bisphenol A (BPA), which is widely used for manufacturing plastic products, has recently been classified as an environmental obesogen. Although many studies have demonstrated the metabolic-disrupting effects of BPA on liver and pancreatic functions, the possible effects of this synthetic compound on the metabolic diversity of the intestinal microbiota is unknown. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis on caecum samples of CD-1 mice, the present study aimed to test the hypothesis that dietary BPA intake may influence the gut microbiota composition and functions, an important attributing factor to development of the metabolic syndrome. A high-fat diet (HFD) and high-sucrose diet (HSD) were included as the positive controls for comparing the changes in the intestinal microbial profiles. Our results demonstrated a significant reduction of species diversity in the gut microbiota of BPA-fed mice. Alpha and beta diversity analyses showed that dietary BPA intake led to a similar gut microbial community structure as that induced by HFD and HSD in mice. In addition, comparative analysis of the microbial communities revealed that both BPA and a HFD favored the growth of Proteobacteria, a microbial marker of dysbiosis. Consistently, growth induction of the family Helicobacteraceae and reduction of the Firmicutes and Clostridia populations were observed in the mice fed BPA or a HFD. Collectively, our study highlighted that the effects of dietary BPA intake on the shift of microbial community structure were similar to those of a HFD and HSD, and revealed microbial markers for the development of diseases associated with an unstable microbiota. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Economic Recession, Job Vulnerability, and Tourism Decision Making: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis

OpenAIRE

Papatheodorou, A.; Pappas, Nikolaos

2016-01-01

Occupational uncertainty has a considerable effect upon consumer decisions during a recession, especially with respect to discretionary products and services such as tourism. Using Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), the study examines the complex relations among job vulnerability, disposable income for tourism, marketing activities, and price and quality issues for Greek holiday makers returning from their vacations. The article also compares QCA with the two dominant linear methods of a...

Comparative analysis of the development of franchising in Serbia and worldwide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stefanović Suzana

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The research of franchising as a business model is of great importance for the further development of this concept. At the global level, there is a constant tendency of development of existing and new franchise systems. This area is still unexplored in Serbia. The aim of the paper is to point out the importance of franchising on the global level and the need for more intensive development in Serbia, based on a comparative analysis of development of this concept in Serbia and worldwide. The paper presents the development of franchising as a business concept in the modern economy, with special focus on fundamental characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of franchising systems. Analysis of the franchise worldwide and in Serbia indicates that franchising is still insufficiently regulated by the law in Serbia. For the purpose of comparative analysis of the best known franchise systems in the developed market economies and Serbia, we start from the representative examples of franchise concepts in the United States, Great Britain and Serbia. The paper indicates that a small number of domestic franchise is internationalized, based on a review of selected franchise systems and the presence of foreign franchises in Serbia and Serbian franchise all over the world.

Mapping the field of medical sociology: a comparative analysis of journals.

Science.gov (United States)

Seale, Clive

2008-07-01

A comparative keyword analysis of the content of nine leading journals is used to suggest potential new directions for medical sociology. The major British and American journals in sociology and medical sociology tend to publish authors based in their own countries, contrasting with the internationalism of other social science disciplines relevant to health, although Sociology of Health and Illness is an exception to this. Medical sociology journals on both sides of the Atlantic focus on individual experience more than general sociology journals, which focus more on social systems levels of analysis. While journal contents reveal British medical sociology to be relatively atheoretical when compared with British general sociology journals, American medical sociology appears relatively apolitical on the same comparison with American general journals. American journals of sociology publish more quantitative studies than their British equivalents, more studies concerning race and other social divisions in American society, and less work drawing on social constructionist perspectives or that is engaged with social theory. Analysis of health and health care at societal and global levels and a deeper engagement with the political and public issues that concern non-sociologists represents a possible future for a medical sociology that is internationally relevant and outward looking.

Restrictions of comparative analysis of investing in scientific research and scientific outcomes of the countries in nanotechnology

OpenAIRE

Milanović, Vesna; Bučalina-Matić, Andrea; Golubović, Marina

2016-01-01

The aim of this paper is to provide an insight into restrictions of comparative analysis of investing in scientific research and scientific outcomes of the countries in nanotechnology, having in mind that it is a developing technology which is expected to give significant contribution to science, economy and society in the future. Using the methods of content analysis, comparative methods and relevant literature, certain restrictions of this comparative analysis have been established. They ar...

An Analysis on a Dynamic Amplifier and Calibration Methods for a Pseudo-Differential Dynamic Comparator

Science.gov (United States)

Paik, Daehwa; Miyahara, Masaya; Matsuzawa, Akira

This paper analyzes a pseudo-differential dynamic comparator with a dynamic pre-amplifier. The transient gain of a dynamic pre-amplifier is derived and applied to equations of the thermal noise and the regeneration time of a comparator. This analysis enhances understanding of the roles of transistor's parameters in pre-amplifier's gain. Based on the calculated gain, two calibration methods are also analyzed. One is calibration of a load capacitance and the other is calibration of a bypass current. The analysis helps designers' estimation for the accuracy of calibration, dead-zone of a comparator with a calibration circuit, and the influence of PVT variation. The analyzed comparator uses 90-nm CMOS technology as an example and each estimation is compared with simulation results.

External Shocks and Macroeconomic Policy: Simulations with EUROMON

OpenAIRE

M. Demertzis; L. de Haan

2001-01-01

We carry out a number of policy simulations with DNB's multicountry model, EUROMON. With these simulations we aim to analyse the effectiveness of monetary and fiscal expansion in light of the current global downturn in the US and the Euro area. We thus run two types of simulations in which we examine first, the real and nominal effects of the interest rate reductions implemented over the past year (2002) in both the US and the EU and second compare, the effects of similar macro policies appli...

Comparative analysis of nuclear reactor control system designs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russcher, G.E.

1975-01-01

Control systems are vital to the safe operation of nuclear reactors. Their seismic design requirements are some of the most important criteria governing reactor system design evaluation. Consequently, the seismic analysis for nuclear reactors is directed to include not only the mechanical and structural seismic capabilities of a reactor, but the control system functional requirements as well. In the study described an alternate conceptual design of a safety rod system was compared with a prototypic system design to assess their relative functional reliabilities under design seismic conditions. The comparative methods utilized standard success tree and decision tree techniques to determine the relative figures of merit. The study showed: (1) The methodology utilized can provide both qualitative and quantitative bases for design decisions regarding seismic functional capabilities of two systems under comparison, (2) the process emphasizes the visibility of particular design features that are subject to common mode failure while under seismic loading, and (3) minimal improvement was shown to be available in overall system seismic performance of an independent conceptual design, however, it also showed the system would be subject to a new set of operational uncertainties which would have to be resolved by extensive development programs

Racial classification in the evolutionary sciences: a comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Billinger, Michael S

2007-01-01

Human racial classification has long been a problem for the discipline of anthropology, but much of the criticism of the race concept has focused on its social and political connotations. The central argument of this paper is that race is not a specifically human problem, but one that exists in evolutionary thought in general. This paper looks at various disciplinary approaches to racial or subspecies classification, extending its focus beyond the anthropological race concept by providing a comparative analysis of the use of racial classification in evolutionary biology, genetics, and anthropology.

Chromosome-scale comparative sequence analysis unravels molecular mechanisms of genome evolution between two wheat cultivars

KAUST Repository

Thind, Anupriya Kaur

2018-02-08

Background: Recent improvements in DNA sequencing and genome scaffolding have paved the way to generate high-quality de novo assemblies of pseudomolecules representing complete chromosomes of wheat and its wild relatives. These assemblies form the basis to compare the evolutionary dynamics of wheat genomes on a megabase-scale. Results: Here, we provide a comparative sequence analysis of the 700-megabase chromosome 2D between two bread wheat genotypes, the old landrace Chinese Spring and the elite Swiss spring wheat line CH Campala Lr22a. There was a high degree of sequence conservation between the two chromosomes. Analysis of large structural variations revealed four large insertions/deletions (InDels) of >100 kb. Based on the molecular signatures at the breakpoints, unequal crossing over and double-strand break repair were identified as the evolutionary mechanisms that caused these InDels. Three of the large InDels affected copy number of NLRs, a gene family involved in plant immunity. Analysis of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) density revealed three haploblocks of 8 Mb, 9 Mb and 48 Mb with a 35-fold increased SNP density compared to the rest of the chromosome. Conclusions: This comparative analysis of two high-quality chromosome assemblies enabled a comprehensive assessment of large structural variations. The insight obtained from this analysis will form the basis of future wheat pan-genome studies.

Diclofenac topical solution compared with oral diclofenac: a pooled safety analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roth SH

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Sanford H Roth1, Philip Fuller21Arizona Research and Education, Arthritis Laboratory, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA; 2Medical Affairs, Covidien, Hazelwood, MO, USABackground: Topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID formulations, which produce less systemic exposure compared with oral formulations, are an option for the management of osteoarthritis (OA. However, the overall safety and efficacy of these agents compared with oral or systemic therapy remains controversial.Methods: Two 12-week, double-blind, double-dummy, randomized, controlled, multicenter studies compared the safety and efficacy profiles of diclofenac topical solution (TDiclo with oral diclofenac (ODiclo. Each study independently showed that TDiclo had similar efficacy to ODiclo. To compare the safety profiles of TDiclo and ODiclo, a pooled safety analysis was performed for 927 total patients who had radiologically confirmed symptomatic OA of the knee. This pooled analysis included patients treated with TDiclo, containing 45.5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, and those treated with ODiclo. Safety assessments included monitoring of adverse events (AEs, recording of vital signs, dermatologic evaluation of the study knee, and clinical laboratory evaluation.Results: AEs occurred in 312 (67.1% patients using TDiclo versus 298 (64.5% of those taking ODiclo. The most common AE with TDiclo was dry skin at the application site (24.1% vs 1.9% with ODiclo; P < 0.0001. Fewer gastrointestinal (25.4% vs 39.0%; P < 0.0001 and cardiovascular (1.5% vs 3.5%; P = 0.055 AEs occurred with TDiclo compared with ODiclo. ODiclo was associated with significantly greater increases in liver enzymes and creatinine, and greater decreases in creatinine clearance and hemoglobin (P < 0.001 for all.Conclusions: These findings suggest that TDiclo represents a useful alternative to oral NSAID therapy in the management of OA, with a more favorable safety profile.Keywords: diclofenac, gastropathy

Comparing sensitivity analysis methods to advance lumped watershed model identification and evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. Tang

2007-01-01

Full Text Available This study seeks to identify sensitivity tools that will advance our understanding of lumped hydrologic models for the purposes of model improvement, calibration efficiency and improved measurement schemes. Four sensitivity analysis methods were tested: (1 local analysis using parameter estimation software (PEST, (2 regional sensitivity analysis (RSA, (3 analysis of variance (ANOVA, and (4 Sobol's method. The methods' relative efficiencies and effectiveness have been analyzed and compared. These four sensitivity methods were applied to the lumped Sacramento soil moisture accounting model (SAC-SMA coupled with SNOW-17. Results from this study characterize model sensitivities for two medium sized watersheds within the Juniata River Basin in Pennsylvania, USA. Comparative results for the 4 sensitivity methods are presented for a 3-year time series with 1 h, 6 h, and 24 h time intervals. The results of this study show that model parameter sensitivities are heavily impacted by the choice of analysis method as well as the model time interval. Differences between the two adjacent watersheds also suggest strong influences of local physical characteristics on the sensitivity methods' results. This study also contributes a comprehensive assessment of the repeatability, robustness, efficiency, and ease-of-implementation of the four sensitivity methods. Overall ANOVA and Sobol's method were shown to be superior to RSA and PEST. Relative to one another, ANOVA has reduced computational requirements and Sobol's method yielded more robust sensitivity rankings.

Comparative experimental study of PIXE and X-ray fluorescence analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vega B, L.R. De la.

1994-01-01

PIXE and X RF techniques are powerful analysis instruments in the determination of traces of elements. Although the physical processes characteristic X-rays production (ionization-emission) are similar in both methods, the representative background of each technique, responsible of its sensitivity, are different. This is because the interaction between exciter agents and the matter produces different effects. In PIXE, the background is caused by the radiation produced by the braking of the secondary electrons: Bremsstrahlung. In X RF, the background is due to the elastic and inelastic scattering of photons: Rayleigh and Compton effects. In this work, we have compared the results of the analysis of environmental samples using both methods, in order to know the scope of each one and develop them as complementary techniques. (Author)

A Comparative Analysis of Ability of Mimicking Portfolios in Representing the Background Factors

OpenAIRE

Asgharian, Hossein

2004-01-01

Our aim is to give a comparative analysis of ability of different factor mimicking portfolios in representing the background factors. Our analysis contains a cross-sectional regression approach, a time-series regression approach and a portfolio approach for constructing factor mimicking portfolios. The focus of the analysis is the power of mimicking portfolios in the asset pricing models. We conclude that the time series regression approach, with the book-to-market sorted portfolios as the ba...

Stigma, sex work, and substance use: a comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Benoit, Cecilia; McCarthy, Bill; Jansson, Mikael

2015-03-01

Stigma is a widely used concept in social science research and an extensive literature claims that stigmatisation contributes to numerous negative health outcomes. However, few studies compare groups that vary in the extent to which they are stigmatised and even fewer studies examine stigma's independent and mediating effects. This article addresses these gaps in a comparative study of perceived stigma and drug use among three low-income feminised service occupations: sex work, food and alcoholic beverage serving, and barbering and hairstyling. An analysis of longitudinal data shows positive associations between sex work, perceived stigma, and socially less acceptable drug use (for example, heroin and cocaine), and that stigma mediates part of the link between sex work and the use of these drugs. Our overall findings suggest that perceived stigma is pronounced among those who work in the sex industry and negatively affects health independently of sex work involvement. © 2015 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness.

A comparative analysis of electronic and molecular quantum dot cellular automata

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Umamahesvari, H.; Ajitha, D.

2015-01-01

This paper presents a comparative analysis of electronic quantum-dot cellular automata (EQCA) and Magnetic quantum dot Cellular Automata (MQCA). QCA is a computing paradigm that encodes and processes information by the position of individual electrons. To enhance the high dense and ultra-low power devices, various researches have been actively carried out to find an alternative way to continue and follow Moore’s law, so called “beyond CMOS technology”. There have been several proposals for physically implementing QCA, EQCA and MQCA are the two important QCAs reported so far. This paper provides a comparative study on these two QCAs

Comparative dynamic analysis of the full Grossman model.

Science.gov (United States)

Ried, W

1998-08-01

The paper applies the method of comparative dynamic analysis to the full Grossman model. For a particular class of solutions, it derives the equations implicitly defining the complete trajectories of the endogenous variables. Relying on the concept of Frisch decision functions, the impact of any parametric change on an endogenous variable can be decomposed into a direct and an indirect effect. The focus of the paper is on marginal changes in the rate of health capital depreciation. It also analyses the impact of either initial financial wealth or the initial stock of health capital. While the direction of most effects remains ambiguous in the full model, the assumption of a zero consumption benefit of health is sufficient to obtain a definite for any direct or indirect effect.

Comparative analysis of methods for real-time analytical control of chemotherapies preparations.

Science.gov (United States)

Bazin, Christophe; Cassard, Bruno; Caudron, Eric; Prognon, Patrice; Havard, Laurent

2015-10-15

Control of chemotherapies preparations are now an obligation in France, though analytical control is compulsory. Several methods are available and none of them is presumed as ideal. We wanted to compare them so as to determine which one could be the best choice. We compared non analytical (visual and video-assisted, gravimetric) and analytical (HPLC/FIA, UV/FT-IR, UV/Raman, Raman) methods thanks to our experience and a SWOT analysis. The results of the analysis show great differences between the techniques, but as expected none us them is without defects. However they can probably be used in synergy. Overall for the pharmacist willing to get involved, the implementation of the control for chemotherapies preparations must be widely anticipated, with the listing of every parameter, and remains according to us an analyst's job. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Generational Change in Family Businesses: Comparative Analysis between Italy and Peru

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

César Cáceres Dagnino

2017-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to understand how family firms in Italy and Peru prepare for generational change, by comparing three companies from each of these countries. After a theoretical analysis, having examined and compared the literature to define the family business, the business family and the generational change, an empirical analysis has been made using a quantitative survey (STEP 2013-2014 and its model, which makes a revision of a set of constructs, to identify if there is transgenerational potential in the business families. From the comparison of the six companies it appears that, contrary to what was initially thought, there are no such relevant differences. They are only diverse approaches to different problems of the same phenomenon. It is concluded that the six companies have an adequate transgenerational potential and are ready for a successful generational change.

Efficacy, Safety and Cost of Insecticide Treated Wall Lining, Insecticide Treated Bed Nets and Indoor Wall Wash with Lime for Visceral Leishmaniasis Vector Control in the Indian Sub-continent: A Multi-country Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

Science.gov (United States)

Das, Pradeep; Ghosh, Debashis; Priyanka, Jyoti; Matlashewski, Greg; Kroeger, Axel; Upfill-Brown, Alexander

2016-01-01

Background We investigated the efficacy, safety and cost of lime wash of household walls plus treatment of sand fly breeding places with bleach (i.e. environmental management or EM), insecticide impregnated durable wall lining (DWL), and bed net impregnation with slow release insecticide (ITN) for sand fly control in the Indian sub-continent. Methods This multi-country cluster randomized controlled trial had 24 clusters in each three sites with eight clusters per high, medium or low sand fly density stratum. Every cluster included 45–50 households. Five households from each cluster were randomly selected for entomological measurements including sand fly density and mortality at one, three, nine and twelve months post intervention. Household interviews were conducted for socioeconomic information and intervention acceptability assessment. Cost for each intervention was calculated. There was a control group without intervention. Findings Sand fly mortality [mean and 95%CI] ranged from 84% (81%-87%) at one month to 74% (71%-78%) at 12 months for DWL, 75% (71%-79%) at one month to 49% (43%-55%) at twelve months for ITN, and 44% (34%-53%) at one month to 22% (14%-29%) at twelve months for EM. Adjusted intervention effect on sand fly density measured by incidence rate ratio ranged from 0.28 (0.23–0.34) at one month to 0.62 (0.51–0.75) at 12 months for DWL; 0.72 (0.62–0.85) at one month to 1.02 (0.86–1.22) at 12 months for ITN; and 0.89 (0.76–1.03) at one months to 1.49 (1.26–1.74) at 12 months for EM. Household acceptance of EM was 74% compared to 94% for both DWL and ITN. Operational cost per household in USD was about 5, 8, and 2 for EM, DWL and ITN, respectively. Minimal adverse reactions were reported for EM and ITN while 36% of households with DWL reported transient itching. Interpretation DWL is the most effective, durable and acceptable control method followed by ITN. The Visceral Leishmaniasis (VL) Elimination Program in the Indian sub

Do Breast Implants Influence Breastfeeding? A Meta-Analysis of Comparative Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Fengrui; Dai, Shuiping; Wang, Chiyi; Zeng, Shaoxue; Chen, Junjie; Cen, Ying

2018-06-01

Aesthetic breast implant augmentation surgery is the most popular plastic surgery worldwide. Many women choose to receive breast implants during their reproductive ages, although the long-term effects are still controversial. Research aim: We conducted a meta-analysis to assess the influence of aesthetic breast augmentation on breastfeeding. We also compared the exclusive breastfeeding rates of periareolar versus inframammary incision. A systematic search for comparative studies about breast implants and breastfeeding was performed in PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science through May 2018. Meta-analysis was conducted with a random-effects model (or fixed effects, if heterogeneity was absent). Four cohorts and one cross-sectional study were included. There was a significant reduction in the exclusive breastfeeding rate for women with breast implants compared with women without implants, pooled relative risk = 0.63, 95% confidence interval [0.46, 0.86], as well as the breastfeeding rate, pooled relative risk = 0.88, 95% confidence interval [0.81, 0.95]. There was no evidence that periareolar incision was associated with a reduction in the exclusive breastfeeding rate, pooled relative risk = 0.84, 95% confidence interval [0.45, 1.58]. Participants with breast implants are less likely to establish breastfeeding, especially exclusive breastfeeding. Periareolar incision does not appear to reduce the exclusive breastfeeding rate.

A comparative analysis of Piezoelectric and Magnetostrictive actuators in Smart Structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pons, J. L.

2005-06-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces a comparative analysis of Piezoelectric (PZ and Magnetostrictive (MS actuators as components in smart structures. There is an increasing interest in functional structures which are able to adapt to external or internal perturbations, i.e. changes in loading conditions or ageing. Actuator technologies must perform concomitantly as sensors and actuators to be applicable in smart structures. In this paper we will comparatively analyze the possibility of using PZ and MS actuators in smart structures and in so doing their capability to act concomitantly as sensors and of modifying their material characteristics. We will also focus on the analysis of how them can be integrated in structures and on the analysis of the most appropriate structures for each actuator. The operational performance of PZ (Stacks and MS actuators will be compared and eventually some conclusions will be drawn.

Este artículo presenta un estudio comparativo de actuadores Piezoeléctricos (PZ y Magnetoestrictivos (MS como elementos integrantes de estructuras inteligentes. Existe un interés creciente en estructuras activas que puedan adaptarse a perturbaciones tanto internas como externas, por ejemplo, ante cambios en carga estructural o ante su envejecimiento. Para que un actuador forme parte de una estructura inteligente, debe poder actuar también como sensor. Este artículo presenta un estudio comparativo del uso de actuadores PZ y MS en estructuras inteligentes y, como consecuencia, de su habilidad para actuar y medir simultáneamente así cómo para modificar sus características mecánicas. Nos centraremos también en el análisis de como pueden integrase en estructuras y cuales son las más indicadas para cada actuador. Se compararán las características operacionales de los actuadors PZ multicapa y los MS.

Comparative Transcriptome Analysis of Cultivated and Wild Watermelon during Fruit Development.

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Shaogui; Sun, Honghe; Zhang, Haiying; Liu, Jingan; Ren, Yi; Gong, Guoyi; Jiao, Chen; Zheng, Yi; Yang, Wencai; Fei, Zhangjun; Xu, Yong

2015-01-01

Watermelon [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai] is an important vegetable crop world-wide. Watermelon fruit quality is a complex trait determined by various factors such as sugar content, flesh color and flesh texture. Fruit quality and developmental process of cultivated and wild watermelon are highly different. To systematically understand the molecular basis of these differences, we compared transcriptome profiles of fruit tissues of cultivated watermelon 97103 and wild watermelon PI296341-FR. We identified 2,452, 826 and 322 differentially expressed genes in cultivated flesh, cultivated mesocarp and wild flesh, respectively, during fruit development. Gene ontology enrichment analysis of these genes indicated that biological processes and metabolic pathways related to fruit quality such as sweetness and flavor were significantly changed only in the flesh of 97103 during fruit development, while those related to abiotic stress response were changed mainly in the flesh of PI296341-FR. Our comparative transcriptome profiling analysis identified critical genes potentially involved in controlling fruit quality traits including α-galactosidase, invertase, UDP-galactose/glucose pyrophosphorylase and sugar transporter genes involved in the determination of fruit sugar content, phytoene synthase, β-carotene hydroxylase, 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase and carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase genes involved in carotenoid metabolism, and 4-coumarate:coenzyme A ligase, cellulose synthase, pectinesterase, pectinesterase inhibitor, polygalacturonase inhibitor and α-mannosidase genes involved in the regulation of flesh texture. In addition, we found that genes in the ethylene biosynthesis and signaling pathway including ACC oxidase, ethylene receptor and ethylene responsive factor showed highly ripening-associated expression patterns, indicating a possible role of ethylene in fruit development and ripening of watermelon, a non-climacteric fruit. Our analysis provides

A comparative analysis of selected parameters of roofing used in the Polish construction industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Radziszewska-Zielina Elżbieta

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Roofing is an important element in the construction of the roof. It is also one of the essential elements of the whole building. The choice of roofing should depend on technical parameters that affect the quality of the materials used and the price. The present paper is a comparative analysis of the properties of five roofing materials selected as examples with respect to twelve parameters. As can be seen from the comparative analysis of the roofing parameters, roofing tile is by far the best material, receiving the highest score in the ranking

Managing health care in the digital world: a comparative analysis

OpenAIRE

Cucciniello, Maria; Lapsley, Irvine; Nasi, Greta

2016-01-01

Recently, most reforms affecting healthcare systems have focused on improving the quality of care and containing costs. This has led many scholars to advocate the adoption of Health Information systems, especially electronic medical records, by highlighting their potential benefits. This study is based on a comparative analysis using a multiple method approach to examine the implementation of the same electronic medical record system at two different hospitals. Its findings offer insights int...

Comparative analysis of employment dynamics in leading and lagging rural regions of the EU, 1980-1997.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Terluin, I.J.; Post, J.H.; Sjöström, Å.

1999-01-01

In this study a comparative analysis of factors hampering and encouraging the development of employment in 9 leading and 9 lagging regions in the EU during the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s is made. Derived from this comparative analysis, some lessons, which leading and lagging rural regions

Cost-effectiveness of cardiotocography plus ST analysis of the fetal electrocardiogram compared with cardiotocography only

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vijgen, Sylvia M. C.; Westerhuis, Michelle E. M. H.; Opmeer, Brent C.; Visser, Gerard H. A.; Moons, Karl G. M.; Porath, Martina M.; Oei, Guid S.; van Geijn, Herman P.; Bolte, Antoinette C.; Willekes, Christine; Nijhuis, Jan G.; van Beek, Erik; Graziosi, Giuseppe C. M.; Schuitemaker, Nico W. E.; van Lith, Jan M. M.; van den Akker, Eline S. A.; Drogtrop, Addy P.; van Dessel, Hendrikus J. H. M.; Rijnders, Robbert J. P.; Oosterbaan, Herman P.; Mol, Ben Willem J.; Kwee, Anneke

2011-01-01

To assess the cost-effectiveness of addition of ST analysis of the fetal electrocardiogram (ECG; STAN) to cardiotocography (CTG) for fetal surveillance during labor compared with CTG only. Cost-effectiveness analysis based on a randomized clinical trial on ST analysis of the fetal ECG. Obstetric

Comparative analysis of ciprofloxacin in different pharmaceutical products by high performance liquid chromatograph

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qureshi, M.N.; Rahman, I.U.

2012-01-01

Pharmaceutical products with different trade names having ciprofloxacin as an active ingredient were collected from the market. The products were assayed under similar conditions for active ingredient applying HPLC technique. Results obtained from quantification of ciprofloxacin contents of each product were compared with their label claims. Comparative analysis of these products was performed based on the quantity of ciprofloxacin. (author)

Arabidopsis transcription factors: genome-wide comparative analysis among eukaryotes.

Science.gov (United States)

Riechmann, J L; Heard, J; Martin, G; Reuber, L; Jiang, C; Keddie, J; Adam, L; Pineda, O; Ratcliffe, O J; Samaha, R R; Creelman, R; Pilgrim, M; Broun, P; Zhang, J Z; Ghandehari, D; Sherman, B K; Yu, G

2000-12-15

The completion of the Arabidopsis thaliana genome sequence allows a comparative analysis of transcriptional regulators across the three eukaryotic kingdoms. Arabidopsis dedicates over 5% of its genome to code for more than 1500 transcription factors, about 45% of which are from families specific to plants. Arabidopsis transcription factors that belong to families common to all eukaryotes do not share significant similarity with those of the other kingdoms beyond the conserved DNA binding domains, many of which have been arranged in combinations specific to each lineage. The genome-wide comparison reveals the evolutionary generation of diversity in the regulation of transcription.

Focusing the HIV response through estimating the major modes of HIV transmission: a multi-country analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Gouws, Eleanor; Cuchi, Paloma

2012-01-01

Objective An increasing number of countries have been estimating the distribution of new adult HIV infections by modes of transmission (MOT) to help prioritise prevention efforts. We compare results from studies conducted between 2008 and 2012 and discuss their use for planning and responding to the HIV epidemic. Methods The UNAIDS recommended MOT model helps countries to estimate the proportion of new HIV infections that occur through key transmission modes including sex work, injecting drug use (IDU), men having sex with men (MSM), multiple sexual partnerships, stable relationships and medical interventions. The model typically forms part of a country-led process that includes a comprehensive review of epidemiological data. Recent revisions to the model are described. Results Modelling results from 25 countries show large variation between and within regions. In sub-Saharan Africa, new infections occur largely in the general heterosexual population because of multiple partnerships or in stable discordant relationships, while sex work contributes significantly to new infections in West Africa. IDU and sex work are the main contributors to new infections in the Middle East and North Africa, with MSM the main contributor in Latin America. Patterns vary substantially between countries in Eastern Europe and Asia in terms of the relative contribution of sex work, MSM, IDU and spousal transmission. Conclusions The MOT modelling results, comprehensive review and critical assessment of data in a country can contribute to a more strategically focused HIV response. To strengthen this type of research, improved epidemiological and behavioural data by risk population are needed. PMID:23172348

Replication Research in Comparative Genre Analysis in English for Academic Purposes

Science.gov (United States)

Basturkmen, Helen

2014-01-01

In recent years a number of comparative studies based on an established approach to genre analysis have been published in the English for Academic Purposes (EAP) literature. Studies in this emerging strand of research typically aim to identify how the rhetorical structure of a particular genre (a text type) or part of a genre may vary across…

Comparative analysis of type 1 and type 2 cassava peeling machines

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A comparative analysis of type 1 and type 2 cassava peeling machines with nail lengths of 26mm and 20mm were investigated in order to improve peeling techniques of cassava tubers. The machines were evaluated at four (4) different speeds; (80rev/min, 90rev/min, 100rev/min, and 110rev/min), with 750HP petrol engine.

The European Union Joint Procurement Agreement for cross-border health threats: what is the potential for this new mechanism of health system collaboration?

Science.gov (United States)

Azzopardi-Muscat, Natasha; Schroder-Bäck, Peter; Brand, Helmut

2017-01-01

The Joint Procurement Agreement (JPA) is an innovative instrument for multi-country procurement of medical countermeasures against cross-border health threats. This paper aims to assess its potential performance. A literature review was conducted to identify key features of successful joint procurement programmes. Documentary analysis and a key informants' interview were carried out to analyse the European Union (EU) JPA. Ownership, equity, transparency, stable central financing, standardisation, flexibility and gradual development were identified as important prerequisites for successful establishment of multi-country joint procurement programmes in the literature while security of supply, favourable prices, reduction of operational costs and administrative burden and creation of professional expert networks were identified as desirable outcomes. The EU JPA appears to fulfil the criteria of ownership, transparency, equity, flexibility and gradual development. Standardisation is only partly fulfilled and central EU level financing is not provided. Security of supply is an important outcome for all EU Member States (MS). Price savings, reduction in administrative burden and creation of professional networks may be particularly attractive for the smaller MS. The JPA has the potential to increase health system collaboration and efficiency at EU level provided that the incentives for sustained commitment of larger MS are sufficiently attractive.

N-terminal protein processing: A comparative proteogenomic analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bonissone, Stefano; Gupta, Nitin; Romine, Margaret F.; Bradshaw, Ralph A.; Pevzner, Pavel A.

2013-01-01

N-Terminal Methionine Excision (NME) is a universally conserved mechanism with the same specificity across all life forms that removes the first Methionine in proteins when the second residue is Gly, Ala, Ser, Cys, Thr, Pro, or Val. In spite of its necessity for proper cell functioning, the functional role of NME remains unclear. In 1988, Arfin and Bradshaw connected NME with the N-end protein degradation rule and postulated that the role of NME is to expose the stabilizing residues with the goal to resist protein degradation. While this explanation (that treats 7 stabilizing residues in the same manner) has become the de facto dogma of NME, comparative proteogenomics analysis of NME tells a different story. We suggest that the primary role of NME is to expose only two (rather than seven) amino acids Ala and Ser for post-translational modifications (e.g., acetylation) rather than to regulate protein degradation. We argue that, contrary to the existing view, NME is not crucially important for proteins with 5 other stabilizing residue at the 2nd positions that are merely bystanders (their function is not affected by NME) that become exposed to NME because their sizes are comparable or smaller than the size of Ala and Ser.

The Policy Impact of Social Movements: A Replication Through Qualitative Comparative Analysis

OpenAIRE

Giugni, Marco; Yamasaki, Sakura

2009-01-01

This article reanalyzes the data of a previous study on the policy impact of antinuclear, ecology, and peace movements in three countries with the aim of replicating its findings. Our goal is to see whether using a different analytical technique will yield similar results. The previous study used a regression approach to time-series analysis. Here, we use qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) to analyze the previous study’s data. Specifically, we test the two main hypotheses based on the joi...

Comparative analysis of some brushless motors based on catalog data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anton Kalapish

2005-10-01

Full Text Available Brushless motors (polyphased AC induction, synchronous and brushless DC motors have no alternatives in modern electric drives. They possess highly efficient and very wide range of speeds. The objective of this paper is to represent some relation between the basic parameters and magnitudes of electrical machines. This allows to be made a comparative analysis and a choice of motor concerning each particular case based not only on catalogue data or price for sale.

Comparative analysis of methods for the microcircuit assembly on flexible polyimide carriers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Verbitskiy V. G.

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The article presents a classification of methods for the microcircuit assembly with the use of flexible polyimide carriers of different types, and their comparative analysis. The most appropriate method for the manufacturing of flexible dual-layer carriers is singled out.

A meta-analysis comparing efficacy of continuous terbinafine with intermittent itraconazole for toenail onychomycosis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trivedi N

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Toenail onychomycosis is a challenge for clinicians to treat. While both Itraconazole and terbinafine have proven to be effective against onychomycosis, very little is known about their comparative efficacy in achieving mycological and clinical cure. Aim: The purpose of this meta-analysis is to compare the efficacy of continuous terbinafine with intermittent itraconazole in the treatment of toenail onychomycosis. Material and Methods: all RCTs comparing continuous terbinafine with intermittent itraconazole were identified from PUBMED and BIDS electronic database. Results: analysis of total eight trials including 1181 patients state that treatment with continuous terbinafine is more likely to produce mycological and clinical cure compared to intermittent itraconazole with odds ratio 2.3(95% CI, 1.7 to 3.0 P< 0.0001 Conclusion: though both itraconazole and terbinafine are well tolerated and highly effective drugs, continuous terbinafine is more effective than intermittent itraconazole at achieving mycological cure of toenail onychomycosis

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN CENTRALIZED AND STATE-WISE TOURISM CAMPAIGNS IN INDIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sunaina AHUJA

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose is to distinguish the initiatives taken by the state authorities and Central authorities to promote tourism in India. Gaps in the centralized promotional campaign, "Incredible India" are identified in this study. The methodology includes collection of secondary data and discursive analysis. Information relevance, Promotion strategy, and Key events and places were used for the comparative analysis for the purposes of the research paper. Above mentioned three factors need to be added to the centralized campaign, to give a holistic picture of India. The paper is unique as it is the first time that identification of gaps in the centralized campaign is done.

Comparative Neutronics Analysis of DIMPLE S06 Criticality Benchmark with Contemporary Reactor Core Analysis Computer Code Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wonkyeong Kim

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A high-leakage core has been known to be a challenging problem not only for a two-step homogenization approach but also for a direct heterogeneous approach. In this paper the DIMPLE S06 core, which is a small high-leakage core, has been analyzed by a direct heterogeneous modeling approach and by a two-step homogenization modeling approach, using contemporary code systems developed for reactor core analysis. The focus of this work is a comprehensive comparative analysis of the conventional approaches and codes with a small core design, DIMPLE S06 critical experiment. The calculation procedure for the two approaches is explicitly presented in this paper. Comprehensive comparative analysis is performed by neutronics parameters: multiplication factor and assembly power distribution. Comparison of two-group homogenized cross sections from each lattice physics codes shows that the generated transport cross section has significant difference according to the transport approximation to treat anisotropic scattering effect. The necessity of the ADF to correct the discontinuity at the assembly interfaces is clearly presented by the flux distributions and the result of two-step approach. Finally, the two approaches show consistent results for all codes, while the comparison with the reference generated by MCNP shows significant error except for another Monte Carlo code, SERPENT2.

United States and Israeli Homeland Security: A Comparative Analysis of Emergency Preparedness Efforts

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Pockett, Consuella B

2005-01-01

This paper will provide a comparative analysis of the United States (U.S.) Department of Homeland Security's Emergency Preparedness and Response directorate and the Israel Defense Forces Home Front Command...

Propensity Score Analysis Comparing Videothoracoscopic Lobectomy With Thoracotomy: A French Nationwide Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Pagès, Pierre-Benoit; Delpy, Jean-Philippe; Orsini, Bastien; Gossot, Dominique; Baste, Jean-Marc; Thomas, Pascal; Dahan, Marcel; Bernard, Alain

2016-04-01

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy has recently become the recommended approach for stage I non-small cell lung cancer. However, these guidelines are not based on any large randomized control trial. Our study used propensity scores and a sensitivity analysis to compare VATS lobectomy with open thoracotomy. From 2005 to 2012, 24,811 patients (95.1%) were operated on by open thoracotomy and 1,278 (4.9%) by VATS. The end points were 30-day postoperative death, postoperative complications, hospital stay, overall survival, and disease-free survival. Two propensity scores analyses were performed: matching and inverse probability of treatment weighting, and one sensitivity analysis to unmask potential hidden bias. A subgroup analysis was performed to compare "high-risk" with "low-risk" patients. Results are reported by odds ratios or hazard ratios and their 95% confidence intervals. Postoperative death was not significantly reduced by VATS whatever the analysis. Concerning postoperative complications, VATS significantly decreased the occurrence of atelectasis and pneumopathy with both analysis methods, but there were no differences in the occurrence of other postoperative complications. VATS did not provide a benefit for high-risk patients. The VATS approach decreased the hospital length of stay from 2.4 days (95% confidence interval, -1.7 to -3 days) to -4.68 days (95% confidence interval, -8.5 to 0.9 days). Overall survival and disease-free survival were not influenced by the surgical approach. The sensitivity analysis showed potential biases. The results must be interpreted carefully because of the differences observed according to the propensity scores method used. A multicenter randomized controlled trial is necessary to limit the biases. Copyright © 2016 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Global comparative analysis of ESTs from the southern cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus microplus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pertea Geo

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The southern cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus microplus, is an economically important parasite of cattle and can transmit several pathogenic microorganisms to its cattle host during the feeding process. Understanding the biology and genomics of R. microplus is critical to developing novel methods for controlling these ticks. Results We present a global comparative genomic analysis of a gene index of R. microplus comprised of 13,643 unique transcripts assembled from 42,512 expressed sequence tags (ESTs, a significant fraction of the complement of R. microplus genes. The source material for these ESTs consisted of polyA RNA from various tissues, lifestages, and strains of R. microplus, including larvae exposed to heat, cold, host odor, and acaricide. Functional annotation using RPS-Blast analysis identified conserved protein domains in the conceptually translated gene index and assigned GO terms to those database transcripts which had informative BlastX hits. Blast Score Ratio and SimiTri analysis compared the conceptual transcriptome of the R. microplus database to other eukaryotic proteomes and EST databases, including those from 3 ticks. The most abundant protein domains in BmiGI were also analyzed by SimiTri methodology. Conclusion These results indicate that a large fraction of BmiGI entries have no homologs in other sequenced genomes. Analysis with the PartiGene annotation pipeline showed 64% of the members of BmiGI could not be assigned GO annotation, thus minimal information is available about a significant fraction of the tick genome. This highlights the important insights in tick biology which are likely to result from a tick genome sequencing project. Global comparative analysis identified some tick genes with unexpected phylogenetic relationships which detailed analysis attributed to gene losses in some members of the animal kingdom. Some tick genes were identified which had close orthologues to mammalian genes

Thermal buckling comparative analysis using Different FE (Finite Element) tools

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Banasiak, Waldemar; Labouriau, Pedro [INTECSEA do Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Burnett, Christopher [INTECSEA UK, Surrey (United Kingdom); Falepin, Hendrik [Fugro Engineers SA/NV, Brussels (Belgium)

2009-12-19

High operational temperature and pressure in offshore pipelines may lead to unexpected lateral movements, sometimes call lateral buckling, which can have serious consequences for the integrity of the pipeline. The phenomenon of lateral buckling in offshore pipelines needs to be analysed in the design phase using FEM. The analysis should take into account many parameters, including operational temperature and pressure, fluid characteristic, seabed profile, soil parameters, coatings of the pipe, free spans etc. The buckling initiation force is sensitive to small changes of any initial geometric out-of-straightness, thus the modeling of the as-laid state of the pipeline is an important part of the design process. Recently some dedicated finite elements programs have been created making modeling of the offshore environment more convenient that has been the case with the use of general purpose finite element software. The present paper aims to compare thermal buckling analysis of sub sea pipeline performed using different finite elements tools, i.e. general purpose programs (ANSYS, ABAQUS) and dedicated software (SAGE Profile 3D) for a single pipeline resting on an the seabed. The analyses considered the pipeline resting on a flat seabed with a small levels of out-of straightness initiating the lateral buckling. The results show the quite good agreement of results of buckling in elastic range and in the conclusions next comparative analyses with sensitivity cases are recommended. (author)

Comparative Performance Analysis of Machine Learning Techniques for Software Bug Detection

OpenAIRE

Saiqa Aleem; Luiz Fernando Capretz; Faheem Ahmed

2015-01-01

Machine learning techniques can be used to analyse data from different perspectives and enable developers to retrieve useful information. Machine learning techniques are proven to be useful in terms of software bug prediction. In this paper, a comparative performance analysis of different machine learning techniques is explored f or software bug prediction on public available data sets. Results showed most of the mac ...

PIXE analysis of tree leaves as a possible comparative integral monitor of particulates in urban areas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zucchiati, A.; Annegarm, H.J.; Chisci, R.

1988-01-01

The possibility of obtaing integral comparative data for particulate distribution in urban areas from PIXE analysis of tree leaves is discussed in relation to the leaf gross anatomy, to the diffusion of selected tree species in such areas and to the implementation of experimental techniques necessary to make PIXE analysis effective. Multielemental scans were performed on a small set samples; results are compared to PIXE analysis of typical urban aerosols. The validity of the method and the criteria for yearly relative comparisons of different areas are discissed

Comparing the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles Normand

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Job satisfaction is an important determinant of health worker motivation, retention, and performance, all of which are critical to improving the functioning of health systems in low- and middle-income countries. A number of small-scale surveys have measured the job satisfaction and intention to leave of individual health worker cadres in different settings, but there are few multi-country and multi-cadre comparative studies. Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the job satisfaction and intention to leave of different categories of health workers in Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. Methods: We undertook a cross-sectional survey of a stratified cluster sample of 2,220 health workers, 564 from Tanzania, 939 from Malawi, and 717 from South Africa. Participants completed a self-administered questionnaire, which included demographic information, a 10-item job satisfaction scale, and one question on intention to leave. Multiple regression was used to identify significant predictors of job satisfaction and intention to leave. Results: There were statistically significant differences in job satisfaction and intention to leave between the three countries. Approximately 52.1% of health workers in South Africa were satisfied with their jobs compared to 71% from Malawi and 82.6% from Tanzania (χ2=140.3, p<0.001. 18.8% of health workers in Tanzania and 26.5% in Malawi indicated that they were actively seeking employment elsewhere, compared to 41.4% in South Africa (χ2=83.5, p<0.001. The country differences were confirmed by multiple regression. The study also confirmed that job satisfaction is statistically related to intention to leave. Conclusions: We have shown differences in the levels of job satisfaction and intention to leave between different groups of health workers from Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa. Our results caution against generalising about the effectiveness of interventions in different contexts and

Decision on performing interim analysis for comparative clinical trials.

Science.gov (United States)

Pak, Kyongsun; Jacobus, Susanna; Uno, Hajime

2017-09-01

In randomized-controlled trials, interim analyses are often planned for possible early trial termination to claim superiority or futility of a new therapy. While unblinding is necessary to conduct the formal interim analysis in blinded studies, blinded data also have information about the potential treatment difference between the groups. We developed a blinded data monitoring tool that enables investigators to predict whether they observe such an unblinded interim analysis results that supports early termination of the trial. Investigators may skip some of the planned interim analyses if an early termination is unlikely. We specifically focused on blinded, randomized-controlled studies to compare binary endpoints of a new treatment with a control. Assuming one interim analysis is planned for early termination for superiority or futility, we conducted extensive simulation studies to assess the impact of the implementation of our tool on the size, power, expected number of interim analyses, and bias in the treatment effect. The numerical study showed the proposed monitoring tool does not affect size or power, but dramatically reduces the expected number of interim analyses when the effect of the treatment difference is small. The tool serves as a useful reference when interpreting the summary of the blinded data throughout the course of the trial, without losing integrity of the study. This tool could potentially save the study resources and budget by avoiding unnecessary interim analyses.

Comparative structural analysis of human DEAD-box RNA helicases.

Science.gov (United States)

Schütz, Patrick; Karlberg, Tobias; van den Berg, Susanne; Collins, Ruairi; Lehtiö, Lari; Högbom, Martin; Holmberg-Schiavone, Lovisa; Tempel, Wolfram; Park, Hee-Won; Hammarström, Martin; Moche, Martin; Thorsell, Ann-Gerd; Schüler, Herwig

2010-09-30

DEAD-box RNA helicases play various, often critical, roles in all processes where RNAs are involved. Members of this family of proteins are linked to human disease, including cancer and viral infections. DEAD-box proteins contain two conserved domains that both contribute to RNA and ATP binding. Despite recent advances the molecular details of how these enzymes convert chemical energy into RNA remodeling is unknown. We present crystal structures of the isolated DEAD-domains of human DDX2A/eIF4A1, DDX2B/eIF4A2, DDX5, DDX10/DBP4, DDX18/myc-regulated DEAD-box protein, DDX20, DDX47, DDX52/ROK1, and DDX53/CAGE, and of the helicase domains of DDX25 and DDX41. Together with prior knowledge this enables a family-wide comparative structural analysis. We propose a general mechanism for opening of the RNA binding site. This analysis also provides insights into the diversity of DExD/H- proteins, with implications for understanding the functions of individual family members.

Comparative structural analysis of human DEAD-box RNA helicases.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick Schütz

2010-09-01

Full Text Available DEAD-box RNA helicases play various, often critical, roles in all processes where RNAs are involved. Members of this family of proteins are linked to human disease, including cancer and viral infections. DEAD-box proteins contain two conserved domains that both contribute to RNA and ATP binding. Despite recent advances the molecular details of how these enzymes convert chemical energy into RNA remodeling is unknown. We present crystal structures of the isolated DEAD-domains of human DDX2A/eIF4A1, DDX2B/eIF4A2, DDX5, DDX10/DBP4, DDX18/myc-regulated DEAD-box protein, DDX20, DDX47, DDX52/ROK1, and DDX53/CAGE, and of the helicase domains of DDX25 and DDX41. Together with prior knowledge this enables a family-wide comparative structural analysis. We propose a general mechanism for opening of the RNA binding site. This analysis also provides insights into the diversity of DExD/H- proteins, with implications for understanding the functions of individual family members.

Comparative analysis of face recognition techniques with illumination variation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jondhale, K C; Waghmare, L M

2010-01-01

Illumination variation is one of the major challenges in the face recognition. To deal with this problem, this paper presents comparative analysis of three different techniques. First, the DCT is employed to compensate for illumination variations in the logarithm domain. Since illumination variation lies mainly in the low frequency band, an appropriate number of DCT coefficients are truncated to reduce the variations under different lighting conditions. The nearest neighbor classifier based on Euclidean distance is employed for classification. Second, the performance of PCA is checked on normalized image. PCA is a technique used to reduce multidimensional data sets to a lower dimension for analysis. Third, LDA based methods gives a satisfactory result under controlled lighting condition. But its performance under large illumination variation is not satisfactory. So, the performance of LDA is checked on normalized image. Experimental results on the Yale B and ORL database show that the proposed approach of application of PCA and LDA on normalized dataset improves the performance significantly for the face images with large illumination variations.

How firms set prices for medical materials: a multi-country study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ide, Hiroo; Mollahaliloglu, Salih

2009-09-01

This study presents a comparison of medical material prices, discusses why differences exist, and examines methods for comparing prices. Market prices for drug-eluting stents (DES), non-drug-eluting stents (non-DES), and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) catheters were collected from five countries: the United States, Japan, Korea, Turkey, and Thailand. To compare prices, three adjustment methods were used: currency exchange rates, purchasing power parity (PPP), and gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. The ratios of medical material prices compared with those in the United States were higher in Japan (from 1.4 for DES to 5.0 for PTCA catheters) and Korea (from 1.2 for DES to 4.0 for PTCA catheters), and lower in Turkey (from 0.8 for non-DES to 1.4 for DES) and Thailand (from 0.5 for non-DES to 1.3 for PTCA catheters). The PPP-adjusted ratios changed slightly for Japan, Korea, and Turkey. When the prices were adjusted by GDP per capita, the ratios were much higher. Comparing prices using currency exchange rates or PPP is applicable only between countries with stable economic relations; adjustment by GDP per capita reflects the actual burden. Further study is needed to fully elucidate the factors influencing the global medical material market.

Benefits of global partnerships to facilitate access to medicines in developing countries: a multi-country analysis of patients and patient outcomes in GIPAP

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Vandoros Sotiris

2009-12-01

for the effect of large countries (India, China, Pakistan did not show any important differences when compared to the remaining countries in the sample. Survival analysis shows that at least 66 percent of all patients that entered the program in 2005 were alive and active by the end of 2007. Conclusions GIPAP has a significant positive effect on patient access to important medicines for a life threatening condition such as CML. It impacts both the progress and phase of the disease and leads to a high survival rate. Overall, it sets a good example for access to treatment in developing countries, where such programmes can substitute or complement local efforts to provide care to eligible patients.

Benefits of global partnerships to facilitate access to medicines in developing countries: a multi-country analysis of patients and patient outcomes in GIPAP.

Science.gov (United States)

Kanavos, Panos; Vandoros, Sotiris; Garcia-Gonzalez, Pat

2009-12-31

, Pakistan) did not show any important differences when compared to the remaining countries in the sample. Survival analysis shows that at least 66 percent of all patients that entered the program in 2005 were alive and active by the end of 2007. GIPAP has a significant positive effect on patient access to important medicines for a life threatening condition such as CML. It impacts both the progress and phase of the disease and leads to a high survival rate. Overall, it sets a good example for access to treatment in developing countries, where such programmes can substitute or complement local efforts to provide care to eligible patients.

PHARMACOPOEIA METHODS FOR ELEMENTAL ANALYSIS OF MEDICINES: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

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Tetiana M. Derkach

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the problem of quality assurance of medicinal products, namely the determination of elemental impurity concentration compared to permitted daily exposures for and the correct choice analytical methods that are adequate to the formulated tasks. The paper goal is to compare characteristics of four analytical methods recommended by the Pharmacopoeia of various countries to control the content of elemental impurities in medicines, including medicinal plant raw materials and herbal medicines. Both advantages and disadvantages were described for atomic absorption spectroscopy with various atomising techniques, as well as atomic emission spectroscopy and mass spectrometry with inductively coupled plasma. The choice of the most rational analysis method depends on a research task and is reasoned from the viewpoint of analytical objectives, possible complications, performance attributes, and economic considerations. The methods of ICP-MS and GFAAS were shown to provide the greatest potential for determining the low and ultra-low concentrations of chemical elements in medicinal plants and herbal medicinal products. The other two methods, FAAS and ICP-AES, are limited to the analysis of the main essential elements and the largest impurities. The ICP-MS is the most efficient method for determining ultra-low concentrations. However, the interference of mass peaks is typical for ICP-MS. It is formed not only by impurities but also by polyatomic ions with the participation of argon, as well as atoms of gases from the air (C, N and O or matrices (O, N, H, P, S and Cl. Therefore, a correct sample preparation, which guarantees minimisation of impurity contamination and loss of analytes becomes the most crucial stage of analytical applications of ICP-MS. The detections limits for some chemical elements, which content is regulated in modern Pharmacopoeia, were estimated for each method and analysis conditions of medicinal plant raw

In silico comparative genomic analysis of GABAA receptor transcriptional regulation

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Joyce Christopher J

2007-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Subtypes of the GABAA receptor subunit exhibit diverse temporal and spatial expression patterns. In silico comparative analysis was used to predict transcriptional regulatory features in individual mammalian GABAA receptor subunit genes, and to identify potential transcriptional regulatory components involved in the coordinate regulation of the GABAA receptor gene clusters. Results Previously unreported putative promoters were identified for the β2, γ1, γ3, ε, θ and π subunit genes. Putative core elements and proximal transcriptional factors were identified within these predicted promoters, and within the experimentally determined promoters of other subunit genes. Conserved intergenic regions of sequence in the mammalian GABAA receptor gene cluster comprising the α1, β2, γ2 and α6 subunits were identified as potential long range transcriptional regulatory components involved in the coordinate regulation of these genes. A region of predicted DNase I hypersensitive sites within the cluster may contain transcriptional regulatory features coordinating gene expression. A novel model is proposed for the coordinate control of the gene cluster and parallel expression of the α1 and β2 subunits, based upon the selective action of putative Scaffold/Matrix Attachment Regions (S/MARs. Conclusion The putative regulatory features identified by genomic analysis of GABAA receptor genes were substantiated by cross-species comparative analysis and now require experimental verification. The proposed model for the coordinate regulation of genes in the cluster accounts for the head-to-head orientation and parallel expression of the α1 and β2 subunit genes, and for the disruption of transcription caused by insertion of a neomycin gene in the close vicinity of the α6 gene, which is proximal to a putative critical S/MAR.

A Comparative Analysis of PISA Scientific Literacy Framework in Finnish and Thai Science Curricula

Science.gov (United States)

Sothayapetch, Pavinee; Lavonen, Jari; Juuti, Kalle

2013-01-01

A curriculum is a master plan that regulates teaching and learning. This paper compares Finnish and Thai primary school level science curricula to the PISA 2006 Scientific Literacy Framework. Curriculum comparison was made following the procedure of deductive content analysis. In the analysis, there were four main categories adopted from PISA…

A comparative analysis of spectral exponent estimation techniques for 1/f(β) processes with applications to the analysis of stride interval time series.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaefer, Alexander; Brach, Jennifer S; Perera, Subashan; Sejdić, Ervin

2014-01-30

The time evolution and complex interactions of many nonlinear systems, such as in the human body, result in fractal types of parameter outcomes that exhibit self similarity over long time scales by a power law in the frequency spectrum S(f)=1/f(β). The scaling exponent β is thus often interpreted as a "biomarker" of relative health and decline. This paper presents a thorough comparative numerical analysis of fractal characterization techniques with specific consideration given to experimentally measured gait stride interval time series. The ideal fractal signals generated in the numerical analysis are constrained under varying lengths and biases indicative of a range of physiologically conceivable fractal signals. This analysis is to complement previous investigations of fractal characteristics in healthy and pathological gait stride interval time series, with which this study is compared. The results of our analysis showed that the averaged wavelet coefficient method consistently yielded the most accurate results. Class dependent methods proved to be unsuitable for physiological time series. Detrended fluctuation analysis as most prevailing method in the literature exhibited large estimation variances. The comparative numerical analysis and experimental applications provide a thorough basis for determining an appropriate and robust method for measuring and comparing a physiologically meaningful biomarker, the spectral index β. In consideration of the constraints of application, we note the significant drawbacks of detrended fluctuation analysis and conclude that the averaged wavelet coefficient method can provide reasonable consistency and accuracy for characterizing these fractal time series. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A comparative analysis of spectral exponent estimation techniques for 1/fβ processes with applications to the analysis of stride interval time series

Science.gov (United States)

Schaefer, Alexander; Brach, Jennifer S.; Perera, Subashan; Sejdić, Ervin

2013-01-01

Background The time evolution and complex interactions of many nonlinear systems, such as in the human body, result in fractal types of parameter outcomes that exhibit self similarity over long time scales by a power law in the frequency spectrum S(f) = 1/fβ. The scaling exponent β is thus often interpreted as a “biomarker” of relative health and decline. New Method This paper presents a thorough comparative numerical analysis of fractal characterization techniques with specific consideration given to experimentally measured gait stride interval time series. The ideal fractal signals generated in the numerical analysis are constrained under varying lengths and biases indicative of a range of physiologically conceivable fractal signals. This analysis is to complement previous investigations of fractal characteristics in healthy and pathological gait stride interval time series, with which this study is compared. Results The results of our analysis showed that the averaged wavelet coefficient method consistently yielded the most accurate results. Comparison with Existing Methods: Class dependent methods proved to be unsuitable for physiological time series. Detrended fluctuation analysis as most prevailing method in the literature exhibited large estimation variances. Conclusions The comparative numerical analysis and experimental applications provide a thorough basis for determining an appropriate and robust method for measuring and comparing a physiologically meaningful biomarker, the spectral index β. In consideration of the constraints of application, we note the significant drawbacks of detrended fluctuation analysis and conclude that the averaged wavelet coefficient method can provide reasonable consistency and accuracy for characterizing these fractal time series. PMID:24200509

Comparative analysis of safety related site characteristics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andersson, Johan

2010-12-01

This document presents a comparative analysis of site characteristics related to long-term safety for the two candidate sites for a final repository for spent nuclear fuel in Forsmark (municipality of Oesthammar) and in Laxemar (municipality of Oskarshamn) from the point of view of site selection. The analyses are based on the updated site descriptions of Forsmark /SKB 2008a/ and Laxemar /SKB 2009a/, together with associated updated repository layouts and designs /SKB 2008b and SKB 2009b/. The basis for the comparison is thus two equally and thoroughly assessed sites. However, the analyses presented here are focussed on differences between the sites rather than evaluating them in absolute terms. The document serves as a basis for the site selection, from the perspective of long-term safety, in SKB's application for a final repository. A full evaluation of safety is made for a repository at the selected site in the safety assessment SR-Site /SKB 2011/, referred to as SR-Site main report in the following

Comparative analysis of safety related site characteristics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andersson, Johan (ed.)

2010-12-15

This document presents a comparative analysis of site characteristics related to long-term safety for the two candidate sites for a final repository for spent nuclear fuel in Forsmark (municipality of Oesthammar) and in Laxemar (municipality of Oskarshamn) from the point of view of site selection. The analyses are based on the updated site descriptions of Forsmark /SKB 2008a/ and Laxemar /SKB 2009a/, together with associated updated repository layouts and designs /SKB 2008b and SKB 2009b/. The basis for the comparison is thus two equally and thoroughly assessed sites. However, the analyses presented here are focussed on differences between the sites rather than evaluating them in absolute terms. The document serves as a basis for the site selection, from the perspective of long-term safety, in SKB's application for a final repository. A full evaluation of safety is made for a repository at the selected site in the safety assessment SR-Site /SKB 2011/, referred to as SR-Site main report in the following

Predictive and comparative analysis of Ebolavirus proteins

Science.gov (United States)

Cong, Qian; Pei, Jimin; Grishin, Nick V

2015-01-01

Ebolavirus is the pathogen for Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever (EHF). This disease exhibits a high fatality rate and has recently reached a historically epidemic proportion in West Africa. Out of the 5 known Ebolavirus species, only Reston ebolavirus has lost human pathogenicity, while retaining the ability to cause EHF in long-tailed macaque. Significant efforts have been spent to determine the three-dimensional (3D) structures of Ebolavirus proteins, to study their interaction with host proteins, and to identify the functional motifs in these viral proteins. Here, in light of these experimental results, we apply computational analysis to predict the 3D structures and functional sites for Ebolavirus protein domains with unknown structure, including a zinc-finger domain of VP30, the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase catalytic domain and a methyltransferase domain of protein L. In addition, we compare sequences of proteins that interact with Ebolavirus proteins from RESTV-resistant primates with those from RESTV-susceptible monkeys. The host proteins that interact with GP and VP35 show an elevated level of sequence divergence between the RESTV-resistant and RESTV-susceptible species, suggesting that they may be responsible for host specificity. Meanwhile, we detect variable positions in protein sequences that are likely associated with the loss of human pathogenicity in RESTV, map them onto the 3D structures and compare their positions to known functional sites. VP35 and VP30 are significantly enriched in these potential pathogenicity determinants and the clustering of such positions on the surfaces of VP35 and GP suggests possible uncharacterized interaction sites with host proteins that contribute to the virulence of Ebolavirus. PMID:26158395

Predictive and comparative analysis of Ebolavirus proteins.

Science.gov (United States)

Cong, Qian; Pei, Jimin; Grishin, Nick V

2015-01-01

Ebolavirus is the pathogen for Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever (EHF). This disease exhibits a high fatality rate and has recently reached a historically epidemic proportion in West Africa. Out of the 5 known Ebolavirus species, only Reston ebolavirus has lost human pathogenicity, while retaining the ability to cause EHF in long-tailed macaque. Significant efforts have been spent to determine the three-dimensional (3D) structures of Ebolavirus proteins, to study their interaction with host proteins, and to identify the functional motifs in these viral proteins. Here, in light of these experimental results, we apply computational analysis to predict the 3D structures and functional sites for Ebolavirus protein domains with unknown structure, including a zinc-finger domain of VP30, the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase catalytic domain and a methyltransferase domain of protein L. In addition, we compare sequences of proteins that interact with Ebolavirus proteins from RESTV-resistant primates with those from RESTV-susceptible monkeys. The host proteins that interact with GP and VP35 show an elevated level of sequence divergence between the RESTV-resistant and RESTV-susceptible species, suggesting that they may be responsible for host specificity. Meanwhile, we detect variable positions in protein sequences that are likely associated with the loss of human pathogenicity in RESTV, map them onto the 3D structures and compare their positions to known functional sites. VP35 and VP30 are significantly enriched in these potential pathogenicity determinants and the clustering of such positions on the surfaces of VP35 and GP suggests possible uncharacterized interaction sites with host proteins that contribute to the virulence of Ebolavirus.

A comparative analysis of storage and retrieval equipment at a container terminal

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vis, I.F.A.

2006-01-01

In designing container terminals one have to consider the choice for a certain type of storage and retrieval equipment by performing a feasibility and economic analysis. In this paper, we compare, by means of a simulation study, the performance of manned straddle carriers and automated stacking

Comparative proteomics analysis of oral cancer cell lines: identification of cancer associated proteins

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background A limiting factor in performing proteomics analysis on cancerous cells is the difficulty in obtaining sufficient amounts of starting material. Cell lines can be used as a simplified model system for studying changes that accompany tumorigenesis. This study used two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE) to compare the whole cell proteome of oral cancer cell lines vs normal cells in an attempt to identify cancer associated proteins. Results Three primary cell cultures of normal cells with a limited lifespan without hTERT immortalization have been successfully established. 2DE was used to compare the whole cell proteome of these cells with that of three oral cancer cell lines. Twenty four protein spots were found to have changed in abundance. MALDI TOF/TOF was then used to determine the identity of these proteins. Identified proteins were classified into seven functional categories – structural proteins, enzymes, regulatory proteins, chaperones and others. IPA core analysis predicted that 18 proteins were related to cancer with involvements in hyperplasia, metastasis, invasion, growth and tumorigenesis. The mRNA expressions of two proteins – 14-3-3 protein sigma and Stress-induced-phosphoprotein 1 – were found to correlate with the corresponding proteins’ abundance. Conclusions The outcome of this analysis demonstrated that a comparative study of whole cell proteome of cancer versus normal cell lines can be used to identify cancer associated proteins. PMID:24422745

Comparative analysis of medicinal plants used in traditional medicine in Italy and Tunisia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ghedira Kamel

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Italy and Tunisia (Africa for the Romans, facing each other on the opposite sides of the Mediterranean Sea, have been historically linked since the ancient times. Over the centuries both countries were mutually dominated so the vestiges and traces of a mutual influence are still present. The aim of the present study is to conduct a comparative analysis of the medicinal species present in the respective Floras in order to explore potential analogies and differences in popular phytotherapy that have come out from those reciprocal exchanges having taken place over the centuries Methods The comparative analysis based on the respective floras of both countries takes into consideration the bulk of medicinal species mutually present in Italy and Tunisia, but it focuses on the species growing in areas which are similar in climate. The medicinal uses of these species are considered in accordance with the ethnobotanical literature. Results A list of 153 medicinal species belonging to 60 families, present in both floras and used in traditional medicine, was drawn. A considerable convergence in therapeutic uses of many species emerged from these data. Conclusion This comparative analysis strengthens the firm belief that ethno-botanical findings represent not only an important shared heritage, developed over the centuries, but also a considerable mass of data that should be exploited in order to provide new and useful knowledge.

Comparative analysis of peak-detection techniques for comprehensive two-dimensional chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Latha, Indu; Reichenbach, Stephen E; Tao, Qingping

2011-09-23

Comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) is a powerful technology for separating complex samples. The typical goal of GC×GC peak detection is to aggregate data points of analyte peaks based on their retention times and intensities. Two techniques commonly used for two-dimensional peak detection are the two-step algorithm and the watershed algorithm. A recent study [4] compared the performance of the two-step and watershed algorithms for GC×GC data with retention-time shifts in the second-column separations. In that analysis, the peak retention-time shifts were corrected while applying the two-step algorithm but the watershed algorithm was applied without shift correction. The results indicated that the watershed algorithm has a higher probability of erroneously splitting a single two-dimensional peak than the two-step approach. This paper reconsiders the analysis by comparing peak-detection performance for resolved peaks after correcting retention-time shifts for both the two-step and watershed algorithms. Simulations with wide-ranging conditions indicate that when shift correction is employed with both algorithms, the watershed algorithm detects resolved peaks with greater accuracy than the two-step method. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Advancing team-based primary health care: a comparative analysis of policies in western Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Suter, Esther; Mallinson, Sara; Misfeldt, Renee; Boakye, Omenaa; Nasmith, Louise; Wong, Sabrina T

2017-07-17

We analyzed and compared primary health care (PHC) policies in British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan to understand how they inform the design and implementation of team-based primary health care service delivery. The goal was to develop policy imperatives that can advance team-based PHC in Canada. We conducted comparative case studies (n = 3). The policy analysis included: Context review: We reviewed relevant information (2007 to 2014) from databases and websites. Policy review and comparative analysis: We compared and contrasted publically available PHC policies. Key informant interviews: Key informants (n = 30) validated narratives prepared from the comparative analysis by offering contextual information on potential policy imperatives. Advisory group and roundtable: An expert advisory group guided this work and a key stakeholder roundtable event guided prioritization of policy imperatives. The concept of team-based PHC varies widely across and within the three provinces. We noted policy gaps related to team configuration, leadership, scope of practice, role clarity and financing of team-based care; few policies speak explicitly to monitoring and evaluation of team-based PHC. We prioritized four policy imperatives: (1) alignment of goals and policies at different system levels; (2) investment of resources for system change; (3) compensation models for all members of the team; and (4) accountability through collaborative practice metrics. Policies supporting team-based PHC have been slow to emerge, lacking a systematic and coordinated approach. Greater alignment with specific consideration of financing, reimbursement, implementation mechanisms and performance monitoring could accelerate systemic transformation by removing some well-known barriers to team-based care.

Investigation of the thermophilic mechanism in the genus Porphyrobacter by comparative genomic analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Lin; Wu, Yue-Hong; Zhou, Peng; Cheng, Hong; Liu, Qian; Xu, Xue-Wei

2018-05-23

Type strains of the genus Porphyrobacter belonging to the family Erythrobacteraceae and the class Alphaproteobacteria have been isolated from various environments, such as swimming pools, lake water and hot springs. P. cryptus DSM 12079 T and P. tepidarius DSM 10594 T out of all Erythrobacteraceae type strains, are two type strains that have been isolated from geothermal environments. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology offers a convenient approach for detecting situational types based on protein sequence differences between thermophiles and mesophiles; amino acid substitutions can lead to protein structural changes, improving the thermal stabilities of proteins. Comparative genomic studies have revealed that different thermal types exist in different taxa, and few studies have been focused on the class Alphaproteobacteria, especially the family Erythrobacteraceae. In this study, eight genomes of Porphyrobacter strains were compared to elucidate how Porphyrobacter thermophiles developed mechanisms to adapt to thermal environments. P. cryptus DSM 12079 T grew optimally at 50 °C, which was higher than the optimal growth temperature of other Porphyrobacter type strains. Phylogenomic analysis of the genus Porphyrobacter revealed that P. cryptus DSM 12079 T formed a distinct and independent clade. Comparative genomic studies uncovered that 1405 single-copy genes were shared by Porphyrobacter type strains. Alignments of single-copy proteins showed that various types of amino acid substitutions existed between P. cryptus DSM 12079 T and the other Porphyrobacter strains. The primary substitution types were changes from glycine/serine to alanine. P. cryptus DSM 12079 T was the sole thermophile within the genus Porphyrobacter. Phylogenomic analysis and amino acid frequencies indicated that amino acid substitutions might play an important role in the thermophily of P. cryptus DSM 12079 T . Bioinformatic analysis revealed that major amino acid substitutional types

A comparative analysis of Chikungunya and Zika transmission

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julien Riou

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The recent global dissemination of Chikungunya and Zika has fostered public health concern worldwide. To better understand the drivers of transmission of these two arboviral diseases, we propose a joint analysis of Chikungunya and Zika epidemics in the same territories, taking into account the common epidemiological features of the epidemics: transmitted by the same vector, in the same environments, and observed by the same surveillance systems. We analyse eighteen outbreaks in French Polynesia and the French West Indies using a hierarchical time-dependent SIR model accounting for the effect of virus, location and weather on transmission, and based on a disease specific serial interval. We show that Chikungunya and Zika have similar transmission potential in the same territories (transmissibility ratio between Zika and Chikungunya of 1.04 [95% credible interval: 0.97; 1.13], but that detection and reporting rates were different (around 19% for Zika and 40% for Chikungunya. Temperature variations between 22 °C and 29 °C did not alter transmission, but increased precipitation showed a dual effect, first reducing transmission after a two-week delay, then increasing it around five weeks later. The present study provides valuable information for risk assessment and introduces a modelling framework for the comparative analysis of arboviral infections that can be extended to other viruses and territories.

Construction of phylogenetic trees by kernel-based comparative analysis of metabolic networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Oh, S June; Joung, Je-Gun; Chang, Jeong-Ho; Zhang, Byoung-Tak

2006-06-06

To infer the tree of life requires knowledge of the common characteristics of each species descended from a common ancestor as the measuring criteria and a method to calculate the distance between the resulting values of each measure. Conventional phylogenetic analysis based on genomic sequences provides information about the genetic relationships between different organisms. In contrast, comparative analysis of metabolic pathways in different organisms can yield insights into their functional relationships under different physiological conditions. However, evaluating the similarities or differences between metabolic networks is a computationally challenging problem, and systematic methods of doing this are desirable. Here we introduce a graph-kernel method for computing the similarity between metabolic networks in polynomial time, and use it to profile metabolic pathways and to construct phylogenetic trees. To compare the structures of metabolic networks in organisms, we adopted the exponential graph kernel, which is a kernel-based approach with a labeled graph that includes a label matrix and an adjacency matrix. To construct the phylogenetic trees, we used an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean, i.e., a hierarchical clustering algorithm. We applied the kernel-based network profiling method in a comparative analysis of nine carbohydrate metabolic networks from 81 biological species encompassing Archaea, Eukaryota, and Eubacteria. The resulting phylogenetic hierarchies generally support the tripartite scheme of three domains rather than the two domains of prokaryotes and eukaryotes. By combining the kernel machines with metabolic information, the method infers the context of biosphere development that covers physiological events required for adaptation by genetic reconstruction. The results show that one may obtain a global view of the tree of life by comparing the metabolic pathway structures using meta-level information rather than sequence

Construction of phylogenetic trees by kernel-based comparative analysis of metabolic networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chang Jeong-Ho

2006-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background To infer the tree of life requires knowledge of the common characteristics of each species descended from a common ancestor as the measuring criteria and a method to calculate the distance between the resulting values of each measure. Conventional phylogenetic analysis based on genomic sequences provides information about the genetic relationships between different organisms. In contrast, comparative analysis of metabolic pathways in different organisms can yield insights into their functional relationships under different physiological conditions. However, evaluating the similarities or differences between metabolic networks is a computationally challenging problem, and systematic methods of doing this are desirable. Here we introduce a graph-kernel method for computing the similarity between metabolic networks in polynomial time, and use it to profile metabolic pathways and to construct phylogenetic trees. Results To compare the structures of metabolic networks in organisms, we adopted the exponential graph kernel, which is a kernel-based approach with a labeled graph that includes a label matrix and an adjacency matrix. To construct the phylogenetic trees, we used an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean, i.e., a hierarchical clustering algorithm. We applied the kernel-based network profiling method in a comparative analysis of nine carbohydrate metabolic networks from 81 biological species encompassing Archaea, Eukaryota, and Eubacteria. The resulting phylogenetic hierarchies generally support the tripartite scheme of three domains rather than the two domains of prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Conclusion By combining the kernel machines with metabolic information, the method infers the context of biosphere development that covers physiological events required for adaptation by genetic reconstruction. The results show that one may obtain a global view of the tree of life by comparing the metabolic pathway

Explaining the judicial independence of international courts: a comparative analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beach, Derek

What factors allow some international courts (ICs) to rule against the express preferences of powerful member states, whereas others routinely defer to governments? While judicial independence is not the only factor explaining the strength of a given international institution, it is a necessary...... condition. The paper first develops three sets of competing explanatory variables that potentially can explain variations in the judicial independence of ICs. The causal effects of these explanatory variables upon variance in judicial independence are investigated in a comparative analysis of the ACJ, ECJ...

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ESTIMATION METHODS OF PHARMACY ORGANIZATION BANKRUPTCY PROBABILITY

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V. L. Adzhienko

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A purpose of this study was to determine the probability of bankruptcy by various methods in order to predict the financial crisis of pharmacy organization. Estimating the probability of pharmacy organization bankruptcy was conducted using W. Beaver’s method adopted in the Russian Federation, with integrated assessment of financial stability use on the basis of scoring analysis. The results obtained by different methods are comparable and show that the risk of bankruptcy of the pharmacy organization is small.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES IN SOME EU COUNTRIES

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Ioana Raluca Goldbach

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The comparative analysis of organizational structures highlights similarities and differences between different factors influencing a company in its way of operation with the internal and/or external environment. The paper analyzes the organizational structures of some top companies from England, France and Romania that influence/determine the cultural organizational values and the norms elaborated and implemented, which, in time, become moral values and norms that acquire a social meaning, which means that they have been accepted by all the members of the organization.

A Comparative Analysis of Software Engineering with Mature Engineering Disciplines Using a Problem-Solving Perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tekinerdogan, B.; Aksit, Mehmet; Dogru, Ali H.; Bicer, Veli

2011-01-01

Software engineering is compared with traditional engineering disciplines using a domain specific problem-solving model called Problem-Solving for Engineering Model (PSEM). The comparative analysis is performed both from a historical and contemporary view. The historical view provides lessons on the

RISK DISCLOSURE ANALYSIS IN THE CORPORATE GOVERNANCE ANNUAL REPORT USING FUZZY-SET QUALITATIVE COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

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Pedro Carmona

2016-05-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the necessary and sufficient conditions of good Corporate Governance practices for high risk disclosure by firms in their Corporate Governance Annual Report. Additionally, we explore whether those recipes have changed during the financial crisis. With a sample of 271 Spanish listed companies, we applied fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis to a database of financial and non-financial data. We report that Board of Directors independence, size, level of activity and gender diversity, CEO duality, Audit Committee independence, being audited by the Big Four auditing firms and the presence of institutional investors are associated with high risk disclosure. The conditions included in almost every combination are the presence of institutional investors and being audited by the Big Four. We found similar combinations for 2006 and 2012, while the analysis for 2009 showed the lowest number of causal configurations.

Comparative genomic analysis of four representative plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria in Pseudomonas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Some Pseudomonas strains function as predominant plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). Within this group, Pseudomonas chlororaphis and Pseudomonas fluorescens are non-pathogenic biocontrol agents, and some Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Pseudomonas stutzeri strains are PGPR. P. chlororaphis GP72 is a plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium with a fully sequenced genome. We conducted a genomic analysis comparing GP72 with three other pseudomonad PGPR: P. fluorescens Pf-5, P. aeruginosa M18, and the nitrogen-fixing strain P. stutzeri A1501. Our aim was to identify the similarities and differences among these strains using a comparative genomic approach to clarify the mechanisms of plant growth-promoting activity. Results The genome sizes of GP72, Pf-5, M18, and A1501 ranged from 4.6 to 7.1 M, and the number of protein-coding genes varied among the four species. Clusters of Orthologous Groups (COGs) analysis assigned functions to predicted proteins. The COGs distributions were similar among the four species. However, the percentage of genes encoding transposases and their inactivated derivatives (COG L) was 1.33% of the total genes with COGs classifications in A1501, 0.21% in GP72, 0.02% in Pf-5, and 0.11% in M18. A phylogenetic analysis indicated that GP72 and Pf-5 were the most closely related strains, consistent with the genome alignment results. Comparisons of predicted coding sequences (CDSs) between GP72 and Pf-5 revealed 3544 conserved genes. There were fewer conserved genes when GP72 CDSs were compared with those of A1501 and M18. Comparisons among the four Pseudomonas species revealed 603 conserved genes in GP72, illustrating common plant growth-promoting traits shared among these PGPR. Conserved genes were related to catabolism, transport of plant-derived compounds, stress resistance, and rhizosphere colonization. Some strain-specific CDSs were related to different kinds of biocontrol activities or plant growth promotion. The GP72 genome

Comparative analysis of vitamin status of schoolchildren in recreational period

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L.V. Podrigalo

2013-10-01

Full Text Available It is a comparative analysis of the characteristics of the vitamin status of schoolchildren during the summer recreation of 90th years of the last century and now. The study involved 167 schoolchildren aged 11-14 years. With the help of questionnaires developed by the authors assessed the severity of symptoms of vitamin deficiency, the prevalence of vitamin supplementation, frequency and volume of consumption of fruits and vegetables. It is confirmed that the saturation is the state of the vitamin in children is the best compared with data from 20 years ago, the state of multi-vitamin deficiency is replaced mono-vitamin deficit. The results, data evaluation and the availability of additional fortification of the diet of fruit and vegetables support the need for measures aimed at improving vitamin status. Using the questionnaire method is most appropriate for monitoring the vitamin status of schoolchildren.

A Comparative Analysis of Extract, Transformation and Loading (ETL) Process

Science.gov (United States)

Runtuwene, J. P. A.; Tangkawarow, I. R. H. T.; Manoppo, C. T. M.; Salaki, R. J.

2018-02-01

The current growth of data and information occurs rapidly in varying amount and media. These types of development will eventually produce large number of data better known as the Big Data. Business Intelligence (BI) utilizes large number of data and information for analysis so that one can obtain important information. This type of information can be used to support decision-making process. In practice a process integrating existing data and information into data warehouse is needed. This data integration process is known as Extract, Transformation and Loading (ETL). In practice, many applications have been developed to carry out the ETL process, but selection which applications are more time, cost and power effective and efficient may become a challenge. Therefore, the objective of the study was to provide comparative analysis through comparison between the ETL process using Microsoft SQL Server Integration Service (SSIS) and one using Pentaho Data Integration (PDI).

Symbolic Resources and Marketing Strategies in Ontario Higher Education: A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Pizarro Milian, Roger; Davidson, Cliff

2018-01-01

Existing research on marketing within PSE tends to focus on homogeneous groups of high-status organisations. This study ameliorates this gap in the literature, conducting a comparative analysis of promotional materials produced by public universities and community colleges in Ontario, Canada. We find that these two groups draw on unique strategies…

Comparative dynamics analysis on xonotlite spherical particles synthesized via hydrothermal synthesis

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, F.; Chen, S.; Lin, Q.; Wang, X. D.; Cao, J. X.

2018-01-01

The xonotlite crystals were synthesized via the hydrothermal synthesis manner from CaO and SiO2 as the raw materials with their Si/Ca molar ratio of 1.0. Comparative dynamics analysis on xonotlite spherical particles synthesized via hydrothermal synthesis process was explored in this paper. The accuracy of the dynamic equation of xonotlite spherical particles was verified by two methods, one was comparing the production rate of the xonotlite products calculated by the dynamic equation with the experimental values, and the other was comparing the apparent activation energies calculated by the dynamic equation with that calculated by the Kondo model. The results indicated that the production rates of the xonotlite spherical particles calculated by the dynamic equation were in good agreement with the experimental values and the apparent activation energy of the xonotlite spherical particles calculated by dynamic equation (84 kJ·mol-1) was close to that calculated by Kondo model (77 kJ·mol-1), verifying the high accuracy of the dynamic equation.

Comparative analysis of linear motor geometries for Stirling coolers

Science.gov (United States)

R, Rajesh V.; Kuzhiveli, Biju T.

2017-12-01

Compared to rotary motor driven Stirling coolers, linear motor coolers are characterized by small volume and long life, making them more suitable for space and military applications. The motor design and operational characteristics have a direct effect on the operation of the cooler. In this perspective, ample scope exists in understanding the behavioural description of linear motor systems. In the present work, the authors compare and analyze different moving magnet linear motor geometries to finalize the most favourable one for Stirling coolers. The required axial force in the linear motors is generated by the interaction of magnetic fields of a current carrying coil and that of a permanent magnet. The compact size, commercial availability of permanent magnets and low weight requirement of the system are quite a few constraints for the design. The finite element analysis performed using Maxwell software serves as the basic tool to analyze the magnet movement, flux distribution in the air gap and the magnetic saturation levels on the core. A number of material combinations are investigated for core before finalizing the design. The effect of varying the core geometry on the flux produced in the air gap is also analyzed. The electromagnetic analysis of the motor indicates that the permanent magnet height ought to be taken in such a way that it is under the influence of electromagnetic field of current carrying coil as well as the outer core in the balanced position. This is necessary so that sufficient amount of thrust force is developed by efficient utilisation of the air gap flux density. Also, the outer core ends need to be designed to facilitate enough room for the magnet movement under the operating conditions.

Comparative analysis of the biochemistry undergraduate courses in Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. A. Granjeiro

2014-08-01

Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: The economic and social development of Brazil during the recent decades has contributed to the installation of several new undergraduate and graduate study programs, as is the case of the undergraduate biochemistry programs at UFV, UFSJ and UEM. The new biochemical professionals are being prepared to work mainly in Industries, research Institutes, government agencies and Universities in all fields that involve Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. The aim of this study was to conduct a comparative analysis of the courses in Biochemistry in Brazil. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Comparative analysis of the course units of the UFV, UFSJ and UEM programs, centered on the curricula contents and organization and on the profiles of the students in terms of parameters such as the number of admissions and the graduation completion rates. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The UFV and UEM programs present a very similar distribution of workload over the biological, exact sciences, humanities, biochemical specialties and technological applications. The UFSJ program presents higher workloads in the areas of biological sciences and technological applications. No significant differences in the distribution of the workloads of mandatory and optional disciplines, complementary activities and supervised activities were detected. Over the past five years there was a decrease in the number of students that abandoned the programs, despite the increased retention time in the three courses. Most graduated students at both UFV and UFSJ continue their academic career toward the Master or Doctor degrees. CONCLUSION: Little difference between the study programs analyzed. This is somewhat surprising if one considers the fact that individual conception of each program was based on different local conditions and needs, which indeed justify small differences. The similarity of the programs, on the other hand, reflects the universality of the biochemical sciences and their broad

Comparative analysis of experimental methods for quantification of small amounts of oil in water

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Katika, Konstantina; Ahkami, Mehrdad; Fosbøl, Philip Loldrup

2016-01-01

) and the quantification of oil is then difficult. In this study, we compare four approaches to determine the volume of the collected oil fraction in core flooding effluents. The four methods are: Image analysis, UV/visible spectroscopy, liquid scintillation counting, and low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR...... comparison to a pre-made standard curve. Image analysis, UV/visible spectroscopy, and liquid scintillation counting quantify only the oil fraction by comparing with a pre-made standard curve. The image analysis technique is reliable when more than 0.1 ml oil is present, whereas liquid scintillation counting...... performs well when less than 0.6 ml oil is present. Both UV/visible spectroscopy and NMR spectrometry produced high accuracy results in the entire studied range (0.006-1.1 ml). In terms of laboratory time, the liquid scintillation counting is the fastest and least user dependent, whereas the NMR...

Comparing dynamical systems concepts and techniques for biomechanical analysis

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Richard E.A. van Emmerik; Scott W. Ducharme; Avelino C. Amado; Joseph Hamill

2016-01-01

Traditional biomechanical analyses of human movement are generally derived from linear mathematics. While these methods can be useful in many situations, they do not describe behaviors in human systems that are predominately nonlinear. For this reason, nonlinear analysis methods based on a dynamical systems approach have become more prevalent in recent literature. These analysis techniques have provided new insights into how systems (1) maintain pattern stability, (2) transition into new states, and (3) are governed by short-and long-term (fractal) correlational processes at different spatio-temporal scales. These different aspects of system dynamics are typically investigated using concepts related to variability, stability, complexity, and adaptability. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast these different concepts and demonstrate that, although related, these terms represent fundamentally different aspects of system dynamics. In particular, we argue that variability should not uniformly be equated with stability or complexity of movement. In addition, current dynamic stability measures based on nonlinear analysis methods (such as the finite maximal Lyapunov exponent) can reveal local instabilities in movement dynamics, but the degree to which these local instabilities relate to global postural and gait stability and the ability to resist external perturbations remains to be explored. Finally, systematic studies are needed to relate observed reductions in complexity with aging and disease to the adaptive capabilities of the movement system and how complexity changes as a function of different task constraints.

Comparing dynamical systems concepts and techniques for biomechanical analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard E.A. van Emmerik

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Traditional biomechanical analyses of human movement are generally derived from linear mathematics. While these methods can be useful in many situations, they do not describe behaviors in human systems that are predominately nonlinear. For this reason, nonlinear analysis methods based on a dynamical systems approach have become more prevalent in recent literature. These analysis techniques have provided new insights into how systems (1 maintain pattern stability, (2 transition into new states, and (3 are governed by short- and long-term (fractal correlational processes at different spatio-temporal scales. These different aspects of system dynamics are typically investigated using concepts related to variability, stability, complexity, and adaptability. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast these different concepts and demonstrate that, although related, these terms represent fundamentally different aspects of system dynamics. In particular, we argue that variability should not uniformly be equated with stability or complexity of movement. In addition, current dynamic stability measures based on nonlinear analysis methods (such as the finite maximal Lyapunov exponent can reveal local instabilities in movement dynamics, but the degree to which these local instabilities relate to global postural and gait stability and the ability to resist external perturbations remains to be explored. Finally, systematic studies are needed to relate observed reductions in complexity with aging and disease to the adaptive capabilities of the movement system and how complexity changes as a function of different task constraints.

Comparative Analysis of Photogrammetric Methods for 3D Models for Museums

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hafstað Ármannsdottir, Unnur Erla; Antón Castro, Francesc/François; Mioc, Darka

2014-01-01

The goal of this paper is to make a comparative analysis and selection of methodologies for making 3D models of historical items, buildings and cultural heritage and how to preserve information such as temporary exhibitions and archaeological findings. Two of the methodologies analyzed correspond...... matrix has been used. Prototypes are made partly or fully and evaluated from the point of view of preservation of information by a museum....

The Comparative Analysis of the Efficiency of Coal Liquefaction Technologies

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Rudyka Viktor I.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Organization of production of synthetic liquid fuels (SLF in Ukraine becomes an especially topical and at the same time complex scientific and applied task, taking into consideration criteria of the techno-ecological and economic rationality. The article presents a methodical approach to the comparative analysis of efficiency of the main methods and technologies for the synthetic liquid fuels production and a carried out testing, the results of which allowed to conclude that the most rational is the technology of indirect coal liquefaction based on coal thermal plasma gasification.

Comparative study of destructive and non-destructive methods in the activation analysis of rocks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasconcellos, M.B.A.

1978-01-01

A comparative study between non-destructive thermal neutron activation analysis and activation analysis with radiochemical group separation is made Both methods are applied to the determination of trace elements minor and major elements in rocks. The treatment of the rocks, with special reference to the problems related to grinding and contamination by foreign elements is described. The choice of standards for multielement trace activation analysis is discussed. Two types of computer programs for the evalution of data obtained through Ge-li detector counting are used. All the phases of the destructive and non destructive analysis are described. In the destructive analysis, an adaptation of the group separation scheme developed by Morrison et al for the activation analysis of geological samples is made. The changes introduced make the radiochemical separation simpler and more rapid. Both destructive and non destructive methods are tested by means of the analysis of the United States Geological Survey standard rock AGV-1, which has been analysed by many authors. The same procedure is then applied to some alcaline rocks taken from the apatite mine of Jacupiranga, in the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The knowledge of the trace element concentration in these rocks is important for geochemical studies. A detailed study of the possible interferences encountered in the neutron activation analysis of these rocks is made, considering the interferences due to major activities, and to the proximity of the several gamma ray energies of the radioisotopes produced. Finally, the comparative study between the two methods is presented, using statistical tests for the quantitative evalution of results. (Author) [pt

The Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) System: An Expanding Comparative Analysis Resource

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Markowitz, Victor M.; Chen, I-Min A.; Palaniappan, Krishna; Chu, Ken; Szeto, Ernest; Grechkin, Yuri; Ratner, Anna; Anderson, Iain; Lykidis, Athanasios; Mavromatis, Konstantinos; Ivanova, Natalia N.; Kyrpides, Nikos C.

2009-09-13

The integrated microbial genomes (IMG) system serves as a community resource for comparative analysis of publicly available genomes in a comprehensive integrated context. IMG contains both draft and complete microbial genomes integrated with other publicly available genomes from all three domains of life, together with a large number of plasmids and viruses. IMG provides tools and viewers for analyzing and reviewing the annotations of genes and genomes in a comparative context. Since its first release in 2005, IMG's data content and analytical capabilities have been constantly expanded through regular releases. Several companion IMG systems have been set up in order to serve domain specific needs, such as expert review of genome annotations. IMG is available at .

EMERGING ECONOMIES: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF MIST AND IBSA COUNTRIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gonca Oguz Gok

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Post Second World War liberal economic order and its institutions have been challenged with the rapidly growing powerful economies of some Asian and Latin American countries in the last decade. Yet, there is ambiguity in international political economy field with regard to conceptualizing and categorizing these emerging economies. This study mainly aims to ravel out this obstacle by offering a new quantitative benchmarking framework. In other words, this study proposes a new evaluation criteria set for assessing emerging economies with combining testable domestic and systematic factors. Accordingly, this study presents the cross-country comparison by using quantitative benchmarking analysis between IBSA -India, Brazil and South Africa- and MIST -Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea and Turkey- countries over the period 2008- 2012. We compare these countries based on the criteria of economic growth, human development index, foreign direct investment, and official development assistance. This study also aims to evaluate the group performance of these newly emerging economies- namely the rise of IBSA and MIST countries-in a comparative perspective. In conclusion, the performance of these countries -from both group-of-country and individual-country perspectives- are discussed in light of the results

Comparative analysis on some spatial-domain filters for fringe pattern denoising.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Haixia; Kemao, Qian

2011-04-20

Fringe patterns produced by various optical interferometric techniques encode information such as shape, deformation, and refractive index. Noise affects further processing of the fringe patterns. Denoising is often needed before fringe pattern demodulation. Filtering along the fringe orientation is an effective option. Such filters include coherence enhancing diffusion, spin filtering with curve windows, second-order oriented partial-differential equations, and the regularized quadratic cost function for oriented fringe pattern filtering. These filters are analyzed to establish the relationships among them. Theoretical analysis shows that the four filters are largely equivalent to each other. Quantitative results are given on simulated fringe patterns to validate the theoretical analysis and to compare the performance of these filters. © 2011 Optical Society of America

Comparative Embodied Energy Analysis of a Steel and Concrete Structural System in Ireland

OpenAIRE

Acquaye, Adolf; Duffy, Aidan; Basu, Biswajit

2007-01-01

Engineering building design focuses on optimising operational energy use and ignores the energy required to procure and construct a building. This energy, termed ‘embodied energy’, can be very significant when compared to operational energy. Therefore, it is important to minimise the embodied in buildings; this must be done at the design stage. This paper presents a comparative embodied energy analysis of two structural design solutions for a modern office building: one in concrete and one in...

Comparative genomic analysis by microbial COGs self-attraction rate.

Science.gov (United States)

Santoni, Daniele; Romano-Spica, Vincenzo

2009-06-21

Whole genome analysis provides new perspectives to determine phylogenetic relationships among microorganisms. The availability of whole nucleotide sequences allows different levels of comparison among genomes by several approaches. In this work, self-attraction rates were considered for each cluster of orthologous groups of proteins (COGs) class in order to analyse gene aggregation levels in physical maps. Phylogenetic relationships among microorganisms were obtained by comparing self-attraction coefficients. Eighteen-dimensional vectors were computed for a set of 168 completely sequenced microbial genomes (19 archea, 149 bacteria). The components of the vector represent the aggregation rate of the genes belonging to each of 18 COGs classes. Genes involved in nonessential functions or related to environmental conditions showed the highest aggregation rates. On the contrary genes involved in basic cellular tasks showed a more uniform distribution along the genome, except for translation genes. Self-attraction clustering approach allowed classification of Proteobacteria, Bacilli and other species belonging to Firmicutes. Rearrangement and Lateral Gene Transfer events may influence divergences from classical taxonomy. Each set of COG classes' aggregation values represents an intrinsic property of the microbial genome. This novel approach provides a new point of view for whole genome analysis and bacterial characterization.

Vermiculites of the Northeast Brazilian region: comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silva, P.S.; Hanken, R.B.L.; Raposo, C.M.O.

2009-01-01

Vermiculites are clay minerals similar to montmorillonites differing for crystalline structures. The product exfoliated is odorless, hydrophobic, not irritate the skin and not the lungs. These properties provide the modified thermally vermiculite a product of broad application in the sectors of construction, agriculture and industry. The aim this work is the comparative analysis between two vermiculites micron fractions from different localities of the northeastern Brazilian region, UBM/PB and EUCATEX/PI. Samples exfoliated to 950 deg C were leached for removal of organic matter by oxidation with hydrogen peroxide. The spectroscopy in the infrared, FTIR and X-ray diffraction, XRD, were used to characterize the samples. Data from X-ray diffraction showed that the structural characteristics of the mineral samples were not significantly altered with the process of leaching and the IR spectra proved the efficiency of procedure for removal of organic impurities (author)

The governance of higher education regionalisation: comparative analysis of the Bologna Process and MERCOSUR-Educativo

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verger, A.; Hermo, J.P.

2010-01-01

The article analyses two processes of higher education regionalisation, MERCOSUR‐Educativo in Latin America and the Bologna Process in Europe, from a comparative perspective. The comparative analysis is centered on the content and the governance of both processes and, specifically, on the reasons of

The association between female genital fistula symptoms and gender-based violence: A multicountry secondary analysis of household survey data.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallick, Lindsay; Tripathi, Vandana

2018-01-01

The Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS), which include standardised questions on female genital fistula symptoms, provide a unique opportunity to evaluate the epidemiology of fistula. This study sought to examine associations between self-reported fistula symptoms and experience of gender-based violence (GBV) among women interviewed in DHS surveys. This study used data from thirteen DHS surveys with standardised fistula and domestic violence modules. Data from the most recent survey in each country were pooled, weighting each survey equally. Multivariable logistic regressions controlled for maternal and demographic factors. Prevalence of fistula symptoms in this sample of 95 625 women ranges from 0.3% to 1.8% by country. The majority of women reporting fistula symptoms (56%) have ever experienced physical violence, and more than one-quarter have ever experienced sexual violence (27%), compared with 38% and 13% among women with no symptoms, respectively. Similarly, 16% of women with fistula symptoms report recently experiencing sexual violence-twice the percentage among women not reporting symptoms (8%). Women whose first experience of sexual violence was from a non-partner have almost four times the odds of reporting fistula symptoms compared with women who never experienced sexual violence. These associations indicate a need to investigate temporal and causal relationships between violence and fistula. The increased risk of physical and sexual violence among women with fistula symptoms suggests that fistula programmes should incorporate GBV into provider training and services. © 2017 The Authors. Tropical Medicine & International Health Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Comparative analysis of franchising in international markets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kovačević Maja

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The growing role of franchising at the global level requires its further improvement. This business model has great business potential, especially in the Serbian market, given the current underdevelopment and inaccessibility of information. At the core of our research, we outlined the characteristics of this business model, its impact on business development and at the same time we tried to draw the attention of domestic business entities to the benefits of franchising as a modern way of doing business. We start our research with a focus on the comparative analysis of Serbia, as a very poorly developed market. We then discuss the concept of franchising in Europe, with a special focus on Poland as a country that is ready to export franchising systems, and we continue by providing comparisons with the world's largest markets, namely, the USA and Canada. In this paper, we tried to elaborate on the economic viability of this project, as well as the increasing expansion and importance franchising has been experiencing in the last few years. Emphasis is placed on the use of franchise in many areas of business where there is the possibility of implementing both business models.

Framing Electoral Transparency: A comparative analysis of three e-votes counting ceremonies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schürmann, Carsten; Markussen, Randi; Bélanger, Olivier

2016-01-01

in the field of e-voting has been proved to be di cult to tackle practically as well as analytically. In this paper we introduce the notion of ‘frames of transparency’ and deploy it to conduct a comparative analysis of three e-votes counting ceremonies in Norway, Estonia and Australia. We ask the question...

Comparative genomics and functional analysis of the 936 group of lactococcal Siphoviridae phages

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Murphy, James; Bottacini, Francesca; Mahony, Jennifer; Kelleher, Philip; Neve, Horst; Zomer, Aldert; Nauta, Arjen; van Sinderen, Douwe

2016-01-01

Genome sequencing and comparative analysis of bacteriophage collections has greatly enhanced our understanding regarding their prevalence, phage-host interactions as well as the overall biodiversity of their genomes. This knowledge is very relevant to phages infecting Lactococcus lactis, since they

Comparative analysis of methods and sources of financing of the transport organizations activity

Science.gov (United States)

Gorshkov, Roman

2017-10-01

The article considers the analysis of methods of financing of transport organizations in conditions of limited investment resources. A comparative analysis of these methods is carried out, the classification of investment, methods and sources of financial support for projects being implemented to date are presented. In order to select the optimal sources of financing for the projects, various methods of financial management and financial support for the activities of the transport organization were analyzed, which were considered from the perspective of analysis of advantages and limitations. The result of the study is recommendations on the selection of optimal sources and methods of financing of transport organizations.

Suprapubic compared with transurethral bladder catheterization for gynecologic surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Healy, Eibhlín F

2012-09-01

Suprapubic catheterization is commonly used for postoperative bladder drainage after gynecologic procedures. However, recent studies have suggested an increased rate of complications compared with urethral catheterization. We undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials comparing suprapubic catheterization and urethral catheterization in gynecologic populations.

Comparative secretome analysis of rat stomach under different nutritional status.

Science.gov (United States)

Senin, Lucia L; Roca-Rivada, Arturo; Castelao, Cecilia; Alonso, Jana; Folgueira, Cintia; Casanueva, Felipe F; Pardo, Maria; Seoane, Luisa M

2015-02-26

Obesity is a major public health threat for many industrialised countries. Bariatric surgery is the most effective treatment against obesity, suggesting that gut derived signals are crucial for energy balance regulation. Several descriptive studies have proven the presence of gastric endogenous systems that modulate energy homeostasis; however, these systems and the interactions between them are still not well known. In the present study, we show for the first time the comparative 2-DE gastric secretome analysis under different nutritional status. We have identified 38 differently secreted proteins by comparing stomach secretomes from tissue explant cultures of rats under feeding, fasting and re-feeding conditions. Among the proteins identified, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase was found to be more abundant in gastric secretome and plasma after re-feeding, and downregulated in obesity. Additionally, two calponin-1 species were decreased in feeding state, and other were modulated by nutritional and metabolic conditions. These and other secreted proteins identified in this work may be considered as potential gastrokines implicated in food intake regulation. The present work has an important impact in the field of obesity, especially in the regulation of body weight maintenance by the stomach. Nowadays, the most effective treatment in the fight against obesity is bariatric surgery, which suggests that stomach derived signals might be crucial for the regulation of the energy homeostasis. However, until now, the knowledge about the gastrokines and its mechanism of action has been poorly elucidated. In the present work, we had updated a previously validated explant secretion model for proteomic studies; this analysis allowed us, for the first time, to study the gastric secretome without interferences from other organs. We had identified 38 differently secreted proteins comparing ex vivo cultured stomachs from rats under feeding, fasting and re-feeding regimes

Multi-level governance-perspective on management of nuclear waste disposal. A comparative analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brunnengraeber, Achim; Haefner, Daniel

2015-07-01

The primary aim of the project is to conduct a detailed social and political analysis of the preconditions for the development of an acceptable strategy for nuclear waste disposal in Germany. This includes the identification of stakeholders and their interests, responsibilities, value systems, views and expectations as well as paths for a constructive approach to dialogue and problem-solving. A focus of the research project will be an international comparative multi-level governance analysis of acceptance patterns and steering mechanisms for conflict resolution.

Multi-level governance-perspective on management of nuclear waste disposal. A comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brunnengraeber, Achim; Haefner, Daniel

2015-01-01

The primary aim of the project is to conduct a detailed social and political analysis of the preconditions for the development of an acceptable strategy for nuclear waste disposal in Germany. This includes the identification of stakeholders and their interests, responsibilities, value systems, views and expectations as well as paths for a constructive approach to dialogue and problem-solving. A focus of the research project will be an international comparative multi-level governance analysis of acceptance patterns and steering mechanisms for conflict resolution.

Comparative Analysis of Single and Dual Irradiation Pass of Deep Burn High Temperature Reactor Scenario

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeong, Chang Joon; Jo, Chang Keun; Noh, Jae Man

2012-01-01

A concept of a deep-burn (DB) of trans uranic (TRU) elements in a high temperature reactor (HTR) has been proposed and studied with a single irradiation pass. However, there is still a significant amount of TRU after burn in an HTR. Therefore, it is necessary to burn more TRU in a fast reactor (FR) with repeated reprocessing such as a pyro-process. In this study, the fuel cycle calculations are performed and the results are compared for a singlepass DB-HHR scenario and a dual-pass sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) scenario. For the analysis, front-end and back-end parameters are compared. The calculations were performed by the DANESS (Dynamic Analysis of Nuclear Energy System Strategies), which is an integrated system dynamic fuel cycle analysis code

A Comparative Meta-Analysis of 5E and Traditional Approaches in Turkey

Science.gov (United States)

Anil, Özgür; Batdi, Veli

2015-01-01

The aim of this study is to compare the 5E learning model with traditional learning methods in terms of their effect on students' academic achievement, retention and attitude scores. In this context, the meta-analytic method known as the "analysis of analyses" was used and a review undertaken of the studies and theses (N = 14) executed…

Comparative analysis of bioactive phenolic compounds composition from 26 medicinal plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Sytar, Oksana; Hemmerich, Irene; Zivcak, Marek; Rauh, Cornelia; Brestic, Marian

2018-05-01

Bioactive phenolic compounds are powerful antioxidants in traditionally used medicinal and industrial crop plants and have attracted increased interest in the last years in their application and role in non-destructive methodology for pre-screening analysis of some stress factors. In this study the qualitative target was linked with future possible applications of received data for improving non-destructive methodology as well as for improving existing knowledge regarding antioxidant content in some plant species. Comparative analysis of total phenolics, flavonoid contents, phenolic acid composition, and antioxidant activity in known east central Europe medicinal and industrial crop plants of 26 species of families Asteraceae , Rosaceae and Lamiaceae was done. Among the investigated leaf extracts the highest total phenolic, total flavonoid contents and antioxidant activity have been seen for Stachys byzantine L. ( Lamiaceae ), Calendula officinalis L. ( Asteraceae ) and for Potentilla recta L. ( Rosaceae ). The highest syringic acid content has been found in the leaf extracts of plant family Asteraceae - in the range from 0.782 to 5.078 mg g -1  DW. The representative's family Rosaceae has a higher content of p-anisic acid in the range 0.334-3.442 mg g -1 DW compared to the leaf extracts of families Lamiaceae and Asteraceae . The comparative study showed significant differences of content of phenolic acids in the leaf extracts of different representative's families Rosaceae , Asteraceae and Lamiaceae . We suggest that the presence of some phenolic acids can be used as a possible marker for family botanical specifications of representative families Asteraceae and Rosaceae . It was supposed that some pharmacological effects can be connected with the analyzed data.

A comparative analysis of alternative approaches for quantifying nonlinear dynamics in cardiovascular system.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yun; Yang, Hui

2013-01-01

Heart rate variability (HRV) analysis has emerged as an important research topic to evaluate autonomic cardiac function. However, traditional time and frequency-domain analysis characterizes and quantify only linear and stationary phenomena. In the present investigation, we made a comparative analysis of three alternative approaches (i.e., wavelet multifractal analysis, Lyapunov exponents and multiscale entropy analysis) for quantifying nonlinear dynamics in heart rate time series. Note that these extracted nonlinear features provide information about nonlinear scaling behaviors and the complexity of cardiac systems. To evaluate the performance, we used 24-hour HRV recordings from 54 healthy subjects and 29 heart failure patients, available in PhysioNet. Three nonlinear methods are evaluated not only individually but also in combination using three classification algorithms, i.e., linear discriminate analysis, quadratic discriminate analysis and k-nearest neighbors. Experimental results show that three nonlinear methods capture nonlinear dynamics from different perspectives and the combined feature set achieves the best performance, i.e., sensitivity 97.7% and specificity 91.5%. Collectively, nonlinear HRV features are shown to have the promise to identify the disorders in autonomic cardiovascular function.

Comparative transcriptomic and metabolomic analysis of fenofibrate and fish oil treatments in mice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lu, Y.; Boekschoten, M.V.; Wopereis, S.; Muller, M.R.; Kersten, A.H.

2011-01-01

Elevated circulating triglycerides, which are considered a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, can be targeted by treatment with fenofibrate or fish oil. To gain insight into underlying mechanisms, we carried out a comparative transcriptomics and metabolomics analysis of the effect of 2 wk

Comparative transcriptomics and metabolomic analysis of fenofibrate and fish oil treatments in mice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lu Yingchang (Kevin), Y.; Boekschoten, Mark; Wopereis, Suzan; Muller, Michael; Kersten, Sander

2011-01-01

Elevated circulating triglycerides, which are considered a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, can be targeted by treatment with fenofibrate or fish oil. To gain insight into underlying mechanisms, we carried out a comparative transcriptomics and metabolomics analysis of the effect of 2 week

Comparative expression pathway analysis of human and canine mammary tumors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marconato Laura

2009-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Spontaneous tumors in dog have been demonstrated to share many features with their human counterparts, including relevant molecular targets, histological appearance, genetics, biological behavior and response to conventional treatments. Mammary tumors in dog therefore provide an attractive alternative to more classical mouse models, such as transgenics or xenografts, where the tumour is artificially induced. To assess the extent to which dog tumors represent clinically significant human phenotypes, we performed the first genome-wide comparative analysis of transcriptional changes occurring in mammary tumors of the two species, with particular focus on the molecular pathways involved. Results We analyzed human and dog gene expression data derived from both tumor and normal mammary samples. By analyzing the expression levels of about ten thousand dog/human orthologous genes we observed a significant overlap of genes deregulated in the mammary tumor samples, as compared to their normal counterparts. Pathway analysis of gene expression data revealed a great degree of similarity in the perturbation of many cancer-related pathways, including the 'PI3K/AKT', 'KRAS', 'PTEN', 'WNT-beta catenin' and 'MAPK cascade'. Moreover, we show that the transcriptional relationships between different gene signatures observed in human breast cancer are largely maintained in the canine model, suggesting a close interspecies similarity in the network of cancer signalling circuitries. Conclusion Our data confirm and further strengthen the value of the canine mammary cancer model and open up new perspectives for the evaluation of novel cancer therapeutics and the development of prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers to be used in clinical studies.

Comparative Analysis of Hydrogen Production Methods with Nuclear Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morozov, Andrey

2008-01-01

Hydrogen is highly effective and ecologically clean fuel. It can be produced by a variety of methods. Presently the most common are through electrolysis of water and through the steam reforming of natural gas. It is evident that the leading method for the future production of hydrogen is nuclear energy. Several types of reactors are being considered for hydrogen production, and several methods exist to produce hydrogen, including thermochemical cycles and high-temperature electrolysis. In the article the comparative analysis of various hydrogen production methods is submitted. It is considered the possibility of hydrogen production with the nuclear reactors and is proposed implementation of research program in this field at the IPPE sodium-potassium eutectic cooling high temperature experimental facility (VTS rig). (authors)

Dimensionality Reduction Methods: Comparative Analysis of methods PCA, PPCA and KPCA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Arroyo-Hernández

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The dimensionality reduction methods are algorithms mapping the set of data in subspaces derived from the original space, of fewer dimensions, that allow a description of the data at a lower cost. Due to their importance, they are widely used in processes associated with learning machine. This article presents a comparative analysis of PCA, PPCA and KPCA dimensionality reduction methods. A reconstruction experiment of worm-shape data was performed through structures of landmarks located in the body contour, with methods having different number of main components. The results showed that all methods can be seen as alternative processes. Nevertheless, thanks to the potential for analysis in the features space and the method for calculation of its preimage presented, KPCA offers a better method for recognition process and pattern extraction

Comparative performance analysis of low-temperature Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) using pure and zeotropic working fluids

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aghahosseini, S.; Dincer, I.

2013-01-01

In this paper, a comprehensive thermodynamic analysis of the low-grade heat source Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) is conducted and the cycle performance is analyzed and compared for different pure and zeotropic-mixture working fluids. The comparative performance evaluation of the cycle using a combined energy and exergy analysis is carried out by sensitivity assessment of the cycle certain operating parameters such as efficiency, flow rate, irreversibility, and heat input requirement at various temperatures and pressures. The environmental characteristics of the working fluids such as toxicity, flammability, ODP and GWP are studied and the cycle CO 2 emission is compared with different fuel combustion systems. R123, R245fa, R600a, R134a, R407c, and R404a are considered as the potential working fluids. Results from this analysis provide valuable insight into selection of the most suitable working fluids for power generating application at different operating conditions with a minimal environmental impact. -- Highlights: ► Combined energy and exergy analysis is conducted for Organic Rankine Cycle. ► Comparative assessment is performed for different pure and zeotropic working fluids. ► Exergy and energy efficiency, cycle irreversibility, and required external heat are analyzed. ► Toxicity, flammability, ODP and GWP of considered working fluids are studied. ► Environmental benefits of the renewable/waste heat-based ORC are investigated

Earth mapping - aerial or satellite imagery comparative analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Fotev, Svetlin; Jordanov, Dimitar; Lukarski, Hristo

Nowadays, solving the tasks for revision of existing map products and creation of new maps requires making a choice of the land cover image source. The issue of the effectiveness and cost of the usage of aerial mapping systems versus the efficiency and cost of very-high resolution satellite imagery is topical [1, 2, 3, 4]. The price of any remotely sensed image depends on the product (panchromatic or multispectral), resolution, processing level, scale, urgency of task and on whether the needed image is available in the archive or has to be requested. The purpose of the present work is: to make a comparative analysis between the two approaches for mapping the Earth having in mind two parameters: quality and cost. To suggest an approach for selection of the map information sources - airplane-based or spacecraft-based imaging systems with very-high spatial resolution. Two cases are considered: area that equals approximately one satellite scene and area that equals approximately the territory of Bulgaria.

Use of Germanium as comparator and integral monitor of neutron flux in activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furnari, Juan C.; Cohen, Isaac M.; Arribere, Maria A.; Kestelman, Abraham J.

1997-01-01

The possibility of using germanium as monitor of the thermal and epithermal components of the neutron flux, and comparator in parametric activation analysis, is discussed. The advantages and drawbacks associated to the use of this element are commented on, and the comparison with zirconium, in terms of the determination relative error, is performed. The utilisation of germanium as integral flux monitor, including the fast component of the neutron spectrum, is also discussed. Data corresponding to measurements of k 0 factor for the most relevant gamma transitions from Ge-75 and Be-77 are presented, as well as the results of the reference material analysis, employing germanium as flux monitor and comparator in a simultaneous way. (author). 8 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF RUSSIA’S AND CHINA’S PARTICIPATING IN GLOBAL GOVERNANCE INSTITUTIONS EXPERIENCE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vladimir E. Petrovskiy

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the comparative analysis of Russian and Chinese participation in the current system of global governance, and in its reform. The author views participation of the respective countries in the system of global governance as part of their foreign policy and foreign policy strategy. He shows common and distinctive features of conceptual and practical approaches towards global governance defined by specific features of Russia’s and China’s history, economic development, political culture and traditions. Based on this comparative analysis, the author speculates on the future trends of participation of the two countries in the global governance system, in the spheres of global economy and international security, and on the future trends of their policy coordination in these respective areas.

A comparative analysis of measles virus RNA by oligonucleotide fingerprinting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephenson, J.R.; Meulen, V. ter

1982-01-01

Isolates from two cases of acute measles, one case of acute measles encephalitis and three patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis were compared. This comparison was based upon the electrophoretic analysis of T 1 oligonucleotides from single-stranded, full-length RNA isolated from cytoplasmic nucleocapsids. Although all viruses have oligonucleotides in common, each isolate generated a unique pattern of oligonucleotides. However, no group of oligonucleotides was observed which would allow differentiation between viruses isolated from acute infections and those isolated from CNS diseases; indicating that probably all measles viruses differ in their nucleotide sequence, regardless of origin. (Author)

Comparative Analysis of Emotional Symptoms in Elderly Koreans with Hwa-Byung and Depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Im, Chae-Sung; Baeg, Sengmi; Choi, Jin-Hoon; Lee, Miji; Kim, Hyun-Jin; Chee, Ik-Seung; Ahn, So-Hyun; Kim, Jeong Lan

2017-11-01

This study compared the symptomatic emotional traits of elderly South Korean patients with hwa-byung and those with depression. We enrolled 58 patients with hwa-byung, 180 patients with depression, and 181 healthy control subjects. All participants completed the Hwa-byung Scale, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS), State Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI), Reaction Inventory (RI), and Aggression Questionnaire (AQ). Chi-square tests and a one-way analysis of variance with Games-Howell post-hoc tests were used to compare demographic variables and scores. A binary logistic regression analysis was used to examine risk factors for hwa-byung. Scores in the hwa-byung group were higher than those in the depression group for the HDRS; BDI; GDS; trait anger STAXI subscale (trait anger temperament and trait anger reaction); state anger and anger expression STAXI subscales (anger-in, anger-out, and anger control); physical and verbal aggression as well as anger and hostility AQ subscales; and disturbance, embarrassing circumstances, personal disrespect, and unpleasant encounters RI subscales. A binary logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the state anger STAXI subscale, verbal aggression and anger AQ subscales, and unpleasant encounters RI subscale were significantly associated with hwa-byung. Elderly patients with hwa-byung had more severe anger traits and states as well as higher depression severity compared to those diagnosed with clinical depression. Excessive anger and anger reactivity to unpleasant factors may be risk factors for hwa-byung, whereas the appropriate expression (rather than suppression) of anger may decrease the risk of hwa-byung.

Comparative Analysis of Networks of Phonologically Similar Words in English and Spanish

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael S. Vitevitch

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Previous network analyses of several languages revealed a unique set of structural characteristics. One of these characteristics—the presence of many smaller components (referred to as islands—was further examined with a comparative analysis of the island constituents. The results showed that Spanish words in the islands tended to be phonologically and semantically similar to each other, but English words in the islands tended only to be phonologically similar to each other. The results of this analysis yielded hypotheses about language processing that can be tested with psycholinguistic experiments, and offer insight into cross-language differences in processing that have been previously observed.

Comparative analysis of the CRDA using BNL-TWIGL and RAMONA-3B

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Neogy, P.; Carew, J.F.

1983-06-01

A comparative analysis of the BWR control rod drop accident (CRDA) using BNL-TWIGL and RAMONA-3B has been performed as part of the BNL/NRC evaluation of methods currently used to analyze BWR CRDA events. A principal objective of this analysis was to test the two-dimensional neutronics model used in BNL-TWIGL aganist the full three-dimensional model in RAMONA-3B. Additionally, the results of analyzing the identical transient with the two codes were expected to help evaluate other approximate models used, such as the coarse mesh nodal neutronics scheme in RAMONA-3B and the equilibrium bulk boiling model in BNL-TWIGL

Flavivirus and Filovirus EvoPrinters: New alignment tools for the comparative analysis of viral evolution.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas Brody

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Flavivirus and Filovirus infections are serious epidemic threats to human populations. Multi-genome comparative analysis of these evolving pathogens affords a view of their essential, conserved sequence elements as well as progressive evolutionary changes. While phylogenetic analysis has yielded important insights, the growing number of available genomic sequences makes comparisons between hundreds of viral strains challenging. We report here a new approach for the comparative analysis of these hemorrhagic fever viruses that can superimpose an unlimited number of one-on-one alignments to identify important features within genomes of interest.We have adapted EvoPrinter alignment algorithms for the rapid comparative analysis of Flavivirus or Filovirus sequences including Zika and Ebola strains. The user can input a full genome or partial viral sequence and then view either individual comparisons or generate color-coded readouts that superimpose hundreds of one-on-one alignments to identify unique or shared identity SNPs that reveal ancestral relationships between strains. The user can also opt to select a database genome in order to access a library of pre-aligned genomes of either 1,094 Flaviviruses or 460 Filoviruses for rapid comparative analysis with all database entries or a select subset. Using EvoPrinter search and alignment programs, we show the following: 1 superimposing alignment data from many related strains identifies lineage identity SNPs, which enable the assessment of sublineage complexity within viral outbreaks; 2 whole-genome SNP profile screens uncover novel Dengue2 and Zika recombinant strains and their parental lineages; 3 differential SNP profiling identifies host cell A-to-I hyper-editing within Ebola and Marburg viruses, and 4 hundreds of superimposed one-on-one Ebola genome alignments highlight ultra-conserved regulatory sequences, invariant amino acid codons and evolutionarily variable protein-encoding domains within a

Comparative analysis of metal samples

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lopez M, J.; Ramirez T, J.J.; Sandoval J, A.R.; Villasenor S, P.; Aspiazu F, J.A.

2001-01-01

Metal wastes were analysed to establish its origin with respect to a set of pieces. The elemental analysis was realized using the PIXE technique (Proton induced X-ray emission). Results are presented. (Author)

Comparative energy analysis on a new regenerative Brayton cycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goodarzi, M.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • New regenerative Brayton cycle has been introduced. • New cycle has higher thermal efficiency and lower exhausted heat per output power. • Regenerator may remain useful in the new cycle even at high pressure ratio. • New regenerative Brayton cycle is suggested for low pressure ratio operations. - Abstract: Gas turbines are frequently used for power generation. Brayton cycle is the basis for gas turbine operation and developing the alternative cycles. Regenerative Brayton cycle is a developed cycle for basic Brayton cycle with higher thermal efficiency at low to moderate pressure ratios. A new regenerative Brayton cycle has been introduced in the present study. Energy analysis has been conducted on ideal cycles to compare them from the first law of thermodynamics viewpoint. Comparative analyses showed that the new regenerative Brayton cycle has higher thermal efficiency than the original one at the same pressure ratio, and also lower heat absorption and exhausted heat per unite output power. Computed results show that new cycle improves thermal efficiency from 12% to 26% relative to the original regenerative Brayton cycle in the range of studied pressure ratios. Contrary to the original regenerative Brayton cycle, regenerator remains useful in the new regenerative Brayton cycle even at higher pressure ratio.

An economic analysis of a major bio-fuel program undertaken by OECD countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

Biofuels such as ethanol and bio-diesel are creating a new demand for agricultural output and for agriculture land in Canada. However, the participation of other large countries with a large demand potential is necessary for bio-fuels to have a significant impact on the price of grains and oilseeds. This paper quantified the potential impact that a major bio-fuel program initiated by OECD countries has on grain and oilseed prices. The program was initiated for the period 1999 to 2006. There is considerable interest by Canadian producers to stimulate grain and oilseed prices by increasing demand of biofuels. This renewable energy source produces fewer greenhouse gas emissions than petroleum products. The analysis presented in this paper only considered ethanol from corn or wheat and bio-diesel from vegetable oils. It also focused only on the use of bio-fuels in the OECD transportation sector. The analysis was undertaken with AGLINK, a multi-commodity multi-country policy-specific dynamic model of the international agricultural markets built by the OECD with member countries. It was shown that the increase in world and domestic prices for grains and vegetable oils will remain strong, particularly toward 2006. It was also shown that a major bio-fuel program for all OECD countries would be beneficial to Canadian agriculture. It was concluded that ultimately, an increase in OECD bio-fuels usage has a direct impact on the demand for grains and oilseeds which are important feed-stocks in biofuel production. The analysis presumes an increase in renewable fuel use, but does not consider factors such as financial incentives and regulatory requirements that could bring about this increase. 7 refs., 6 tabs., 4 figs

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

APEIR) is a multi-country, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral research network that enables researchers and experts from several sectors, including agriculture and health, to explore joint research and policy questions in animal and public health.

Comparative Criticality Analysis of Two Monte Carlo Codes on Centrifugal Atomizer: MCNPS and SCALE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, H-S; Jang, M-S; Kim, S-R; Park, J-M; Kim, K-N

2015-01-01

There are two well-known Monte Carlo codes for criticality analysis, MCNP5 and SCALE. MCNP5 is a general-purpose Monte Carlo N-Particle code that can be used for neutron, photon, electron or coupled neutron / photon / electron transport, including the capability to calculate eigenvalues for critical system as a main analysis code. SCALE provides a comprehensive, verified and validated, user-friendly tool set for criticality safety, reactor physics, radiation shielding, radioactive source term characterization, and sensitivity and uncertainty analysis. SCALE was conceived and funded by US NRC to perform standardized computer analysis for licensing evaluation and is used widely in the world. We performed a validation test of MCNP5 and a comparative analysis of Monte Carlo codes, MCNP5 and SCALE, in terms of the critical analysis of centrifugal atomizer. In the criticality analysis using MCNP5 code, we obtained the statistically reliable results by using a large number of source histories per cycle and performing of uncertainty analysis

Comparative Criticality Analysis of Two Monte Carlo Codes on Centrifugal Atomizer: MCNPS and SCALE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, H-S; Jang, M-S; Kim, S-R [NESS, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Park, J-M; Kim, K-N [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

There are two well-known Monte Carlo codes for criticality analysis, MCNP5 and SCALE. MCNP5 is a general-purpose Monte Carlo N-Particle code that can be used for neutron, photon, electron or coupled neutron / photon / electron transport, including the capability to calculate eigenvalues for critical system as a main analysis code. SCALE provides a comprehensive, verified and validated, user-friendly tool set for criticality safety, reactor physics, radiation shielding, radioactive source term characterization, and sensitivity and uncertainty analysis. SCALE was conceived and funded by US NRC to perform standardized computer analysis for licensing evaluation and is used widely in the world. We performed a validation test of MCNP5 and a comparative analysis of Monte Carlo codes, MCNP5 and SCALE, in terms of the critical analysis of centrifugal atomizer. In the criticality analysis using MCNP5 code, we obtained the statistically reliable results by using a large number of source histories per cycle and performing of uncertainty analysis.

Comparative analysis of Klafki and Heimann's didactic models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bojović Žana P.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A comparative analysis of Klafki's didactic thinking which is based on an analysis of different kinds of theories on the nature of education and Heimann's didactic which is based on the theory of teaching and learning shows that both are dealing with teaching in its entirety. Both authors emphasize the role of contents, methods, procedures and resources for material and formal education and both use anthropological and social reality as their starting point. According to Klafki, resources, procedures, and methods are in form of dependency where it is important to know what and why should something be learnt, whereas Heimann sees the same elements in the form of interdependency. Each of the didactic conceptions, from their point of view, define the position of goals and tasks in education as well as how to achieve them. Determination and formulation of objectives is a complex, responsible, and very difficult task, and a goal must be clearly defined, because it emanates the guidelines for the preparation of didactic methodology educational programs and their planning. The selection of content in didactic methodology scenarios of education and learning, are only possible if the knowledge, skills and abilities that are necessary for a student to develop are explicitly indicated. The question of educational goals is the main problem of didactics for only a clearly defined objective implicates the selection of appropriate methods and means for its achievement, and it should be a permanent task of the current didactic conception now and in the future.

Comparative Analysis of Virtual Education Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet KURT

2006-10-01

Full Text Available The research was conducted in order to make comparative analysis of virtual education applications. The research is conducted in survey model. The study group consists of total 300 institutes providing virtual education in the fall, spring and summer semesters of 2004; 246 in USA, 10 in Australia, 3 in South Africa, 10 in India, 21 in UK, 6 in Japan, 4 in Turkey. The information has been collected by online questionnaire sent to the target mass by e-mail. The questionnaire has been developed in two information categories as personal information and institutes and their virtual education applications. The English web design of the online questionnaire and the database has been prepared by Microsoft ASP codes which is the script language of Microsoft Front Page editor and has been tested on personal web site. The questionnaire has been pre applied in institutions providing virtual education in Australia. The English text of the questionnaire and web site design have been sent to educational technology and virtual education specialists in the countries of the study group. With the feedback received, the spelling mistakes have been corrected and concept and language validity have been completed. The application of the questionnaire has taken 40 weeks during March-November 2004. Only 135 institutes have replied. Two of the questionnaires have been discharged because they included mistaken coding, names of the institutions and countries. Valid 133 questionnaires cover approximately 44% of the study group. Questionnaires saved in the online database have been transferred to Microsoft Excel and then to SPSS by external database connection. In regards of the research objectives, the data collected has been analyzed on computer and by using SPSS statistics package program. In data analysis frequency (f, percentage (% and arithmetic mean ( have been used. In comparisons of country, institute, year, and other variables, che-square test, independent t

Comparative analysis of station blackout accident progression in typical PWR, BWR, and PHWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Soo Young; Ahn, Kwang Il

2012-01-01

Since the crisis at the Fukushima plants, severe accident progression during a station blackout accident in nuclear power plants is recognized as a very important area for accident management and emergency planning. The purpose of this study is to investigate the comparative characteristics of anticipated severe accident progression among the three typical types of nuclear reactors. A station blackout scenario, where all off-site power is lost and the diesel generators fail, is simulated as an initiating event of a severe accident sequence. In this study a comparative analysis was performed for typical pressurized water reactor (PWR), boiling water reactor (BWR), and pressurized heavy water reactor (PHWR). The study includes the summarization of design differences that would impact severe accident progressions, thermal hydraulic/severe accident phenomenological analysis during a station blackout initiated-severe accident; and an investigation of the core damage process, both within the reactor vessel before it fails and in the containment afterwards, and the resultant impact on the containment.

Comparative genomic analysis of Drosophila melanogaster and vector mosquito developmental genes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susanta K Behura

Full Text Available Genome sequencing projects have presented the opportunity for analysis of developmental genes in three vector mosquito species: Aedes aegypti, Culex quinquefasciatus, and Anopheles gambiae. A comparative genomic analysis of developmental genes in Drosophila melanogaster and these three important vectors of human disease was performed in this investigation. While the study was comprehensive, special emphasis centered on genes that 1 are components of developmental signaling pathways, 2 regulate fundamental developmental processes, 3 are critical for the development of tissues of vector importance, 4 function in developmental processes known to have diverged within insects, and 5 encode microRNAs (miRNAs that regulate developmental transcripts in Drosophila. While most fruit fly developmental genes are conserved in the three vector mosquito species, several genes known to be critical for Drosophila development were not identified in one or more mosquito genomes. In other cases, mosquito lineage-specific gene gains with respect to D. melanogaster were noted. Sequence analyses also revealed that numerous repetitive sequences are a common structural feature of Drosophila and mosquito developmental genes. Finally, analysis of predicted miRNA binding sites in fruit fly and mosquito developmental genes suggests that the repertoire of developmental genes targeted by miRNAs is species-specific. The results of this study provide insight into the evolution of developmental genes and processes in dipterans and other arthropods, serve as a resource for those pursuing analysis of mosquito development, and will promote the design and refinement of functional analysis experiments.

A Comparative Analysis of Outstanding Claim Reserves

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zlata Djuric

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The key processes in the business of insurance companies which define the financial viability of their business activities, as the most important element, are the adequate amount of technical reserves. A qualitative assessment of the technical reserves level is the basic support to the management of the key business processes and proper strategic and financial decision-making in order to maximize the viability, profitability, competitiveness, and further development of the company. Based on the data on the operations of an insurance company, within a single line of insurance, different, in practice, most frequently used methods were applied in order to determine the deviation amplitude of the projected amounts from the actual claims. Another direction of research focuses on actuarial practice in non-life insurance companies operating in the territory of the Republic of Serbia. The comparative analysis of the obtained projection points to the fact that the chosen methods, commonly used in actuarial practice in the Republic of Serbia, should be monitored and reviewed. The results of the multidirectional research and detection of the existing problems provide a useful framework and a stimulating mechanism, as well as the guidelines to improve the operations and better positioning of insurance in the commercial and economic environment of the Republic of Serbia.

Comparative analysis of bioactive phenolic compounds composition from 26 medicinal plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oksana Sytar

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Bioactive phenolic compounds are powerful antioxidants in traditionally used medicinal and industrial crop plants and have attracted increased interest in the last years in their application and role in non-destructive methodology for pre-screening analysis of some stress factors. In this study the qualitative target was linked with future possible applications of received data for improving non-destructive methodology as well as for improving existing knowledge regarding antioxidant content in some plant species. Comparative analysis of total phenolics, flavonoid contents, phenolic acid composition, and antioxidant activity in known east central Europe medicinal and industrial crop plants of 26 species of families Asteraceae, Rosaceae and Lamiaceae was done. Among the investigated leaf extracts the highest total phenolic, total flavonoid contents and antioxidant activity have been seen for Stachys byzantine L. (Lamiaceae, Calendula officinalis L. (Asteraceae and for Potentilla recta L. (Rosaceae. The highest syringic acid content has been found in the leaf extracts of plant family Asteraceae – in the range from 0.782 to 5.078 mg g−1 DW. The representative’s family Rosaceae has a higher content of p-anisic acid in the range 0.334–3.442 mg g−1DW compared to the leaf extracts of families Lamiaceae and Asteraceae. The comparative study showed significant differences of content of phenolic acids in the leaf extracts of different representative’s families Rosaceae, Asteraceae and Lamiaceae. We suggest that the presence of some phenolic acids can be used as a possible marker for family botanical specifications of representative families Asteraceae and Rosaceae. It was supposed that some pharmacological effects can be connected with the analyzed data. Keywords: Phenolic compounds, Flavonoids, Phenolic acids, Antioxidant activity, Asteraceae, Rosaceae, Lamiaceae

Comparing direct and iterative equation solvers in a large structural analysis software system

Science.gov (United States)

Poole, E. L.

1991-01-01

Two direct Choleski equation solvers and two iterative preconditioned conjugate gradient (PCG) equation solvers used in a large structural analysis software system are described. The two direct solvers are implementations of the Choleski method for variable-band matrix storage and sparse matrix storage. The two iterative PCG solvers include the Jacobi conjugate gradient method and an incomplete Choleski conjugate gradient method. The performance of the direct and iterative solvers is compared by solving several representative structural analysis problems. Some key factors affecting the performance of the iterative solvers relative to the direct solvers are identified.

Christian ethic of love and Hindu ethic of dharma: comparative analysis

OpenAIRE

Pavenkov Oleg Vladimirovich

2014-01-01

This article is devoted to comparative analysis of two ethic systems: Hindu ethic of dharma and Christian ethic of love. If Christian ethic is the ethic of love, love is in the center of Christian moral values, then Hindu ethic is an example of ethic of law. The moral behavior of gods and humans is determined by Karma and cycle of samsara, which is impossible in Christianity. However forgiveness, self-restraint, non-stealing, purity are common moral obligations for Christians and Hindus.

Comparative Analysis of Methodologies for Landscape Ecological Aesthetics in Urban Planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maija Jankevica

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Areas with high level of urbanisation provoke frequent conflicts between nature and people. There is a lack of cooperation between planners and nature scientists in urban studies and planning process. Landscapes usually are studied using the ecological and aesthetical approaches separately. However, the future of urban planning depends on integration of these two approaches. This research study looks into different methods of landscape ecological aesthetics and presents a combined method for urban areas. The methods of landscape visual aesthetical assessment, biotope structure analysis, landscape ecology evaluation and multi-disciplinary expert level are compared in the article. A comparison of obtained values is summarized by making a comparative matrix. As a result, a multi-stage model for landscape ecological aesthetics evaluation in urban territories is presented. This ecological aesthetics model can be successfully used for development of urban territories.

Comparative analysis of heat pump and biomass boiler for small detached house heating

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olkowski Tomasz

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the work is to answer the question - which of the two selected heat sources is more economically beneficial for small detached house: heat pump or biomass boiler fuelled with wood-pellets? The comparative analysis of these sources was carried out to discuss the issue. First, cost of both, equipment and operation of selected heat systems were analysed. Additionally, CO2 emission levels associated with these heat systems were determined. The comparative analysis of the costs of both considered heat systems showed that equipment cost of heat pump system is considerably bigger than the cost of biomass boiler system. The comparison of annual operation costs showed that heat pump operation cost is slightly lower than operation cost of biomass boiler. The analysis of above results shows that lower operation cost of heat pump in comparison with biomass boiler cost lets qualify heat pump as more economically justified only after 38 years of work. For both analysed devices, CO2 emission levels were determined. The considerations take into account the fact that heat pump consumes electricity. It is mostly generated through combustion of coal in Poland. The results show that in Poland biomass boiler can be described as not only more economically justified system but also as considerably more ecological.

Comparative analysis of heat pump and biomass boiler for small detached house heating

Science.gov (United States)

Olkowski, Tomasz; Lipiński, Seweryn; Olędzka, Aneta

2017-10-01

The purpose of the work is to answer the question - which of the two selected heat sources is more economically beneficial for small detached house: heat pump or biomass boiler fuelled with wood-pellets? The comparative analysis of these sources was carried out to discuss the issue. First, cost of both, equipment and operation of selected heat systems were analysed. Additionally, CO2 emission levels associated with these heat systems were determined. The comparative analysis of the costs of both considered heat systems showed that equipment cost of heat pump system is considerably bigger than the cost of biomass boiler system. The comparison of annual operation costs showed that heat pump operation cost is slightly lower than operation cost of biomass boiler. The analysis of above results shows that lower operation cost of heat pump in comparison with biomass boiler cost lets qualify heat pump as more economically justified only after 38 years of work. For both analysed devices, CO2 emission levels were determined. The considerations take into account the fact that heat pump consumes electricity. It is mostly generated through combustion of coal in Poland. The results show that in Poland biomass boiler can be described as not only more economically justified system but also as considerably more ecological.

Placing the public library – a comparative analysis of political perceptions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Evjen, Sunniva

2012-01-01

This thesis explores politicians’ perceptions of the public library and public library development. While many call for a redefined vision for public libraries, eye-catching libraries are built in major cities around the world. What library visions are expressed through such projects? I attempt...... to discern how local politicians view the role of the public library, and how do they want to develop it in their local context, using concepts from institutional theory in the analysis. The research questions include issues concerning norms politicians connect with public libraries compared with those...... and document analysis of local and national policy documents. One important premise for this study has been to find cases where there are on-going developments; in the shape of main library construction. The findings show that politicians have extensive knowledge about the norms and values found...

Phylogeny and comparative genome analysis of a Basidiomycete fungi

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Riley, Robert W.; Salamov, Asaf; Grigoriev, Igor; Hibbett, David

2011-03-14

Fungi of the phylum Basidiomycota, make up some 37percent of the described fungi, and are important from the perspectives of forestry, agriculture, medicine, and bioenergy. This diverse phylum includes the mushrooms, wood rots, plant pathogenic rusts and smuts, and some human pathogens. To better understand these important fungi, we have undertaken a comparative genomic analysis of the Basidiomycetes with available sequenced genomes. We report a phylogeny that sheds light on previously unclear evolutionary relationships among the Basidiomycetes. We also define a `core proteome? based on protein families conserved in all Basidiomycetes. We identify key expansions and contractions in protein families that may be responsible for the degradation of plant biomass such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Finally, we speculate as to the genomic changes that drove such expansions and contractions.

Comparative analysis of the PCA3 gene expression in sediments and exosomes isolated from urine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. S. Mikhaylenko

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Prostate cancer (PCa is one of the common oncological diseases in men. Expression of the PCA3 gene in urine is currently used as a molecular genetic marker of PCa.Objective: to comparative analysis of the PCA3 expression in urine sediments and exosomes for the determination of the biomaterial, which allows detecting the PCA3 expression in more efficient manner.Materials and methods. The 12 patients with different stages of PCa and 8 control samples were examined.Results. The diagnostic accuracy of the PCA3 gene expression analysis in this cohort exceeded 90 %. We had not obtained significant differences in the sensitivity and specificity of the PCA3 hyperexpression in the urine sediments compared with exosomes. This result indicates in favor to using urine sediment for the PCA3 analysis as a biomaterial with less time-consuming sample preparation, although the possible advantage of exosomes for the analysis of the expression marker panels requires further studies.

A Comparative Analysis of MOOC (Massive Open Online Course Platforms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria CONACHE

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The MOOC platforms have known a considerable development in recent years due to the enlargement of online space and the shifting between traditional to virtual activities. These plat-forms made it possible for people almost everywhere to take online academic courses offered by top universities via open access to web and with unlimited participation. Thus, it came naturally to us to address the question what makes them so successful? The purpose of this paper is to report comparatively MOOC platforms in terms of features, based on the user’s implication and demands. First, we chose four relevant lifelong learning platforms and then we structured three main categories for the platforms' qualification, depending on which we built our theory regarding the comparison between them. Our analysis consists of three sets of criteria: business model, course design and popularity among online users. Starting from this perspective, we built a range of representative factors for which we highlighted the major aspects for each plat-form in our comparative research

Comparative Analysis of Future Cooks' Training in Vocational Institutions in Ukraine and Abroad

Science.gov (United States)

Kankovsky, Ihor; Krasylnykova, Hanna; Drozich, Iryna

2017-01-01

The article deals with comparative analysis of conceptual approaches and content of cooks' training in Ukraine, European countries, the USA and Eastern Partnership countries. It has been found out that national vocational education is grounded on education standards and activity-based approach to forming the training content, subject-based…

Iraq 2003-4 and Mesopotamia 1914-18: A Comparative Analysis in Ends and Means

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Scudieri, James

2004-01-01

This paper is a comparative analysis of the linkage between strategic ends with operational ways and means of the current operation in Iraq in 2003-4 and the British campaign in Mesopotamia in 1914-18...

Learning from Learning: the experiences with implementing Adaptive Collaborative Forest Management in Zimbabwe.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mutimukuru, T.; Almekinders, C.J.M.

2011-01-01

Convinced that participatory resource management is the way forward in the conservation of natural resources, despite the increasing criticism of participatory approaches, the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) initiated a multi-country adaptive collaborative management (ACM)

Comparative analysis on the selection of number of clusters in community detection

Science.gov (United States)

Kawamoto, Tatsuro; Kabashima, Yoshiyuki

2018-02-01

We conduct a comparative analysis on various estimates of the number of clusters in community detection. An exhaustive comparison requires testing of all possible combinations of frameworks, algorithms, and assessment criteria. In this paper we focus on the framework based on a stochastic block model, and investigate the performance of greedy algorithms, statistical inference, and spectral methods. For the assessment criteria, we consider modularity, map equation, Bethe free energy, prediction errors, and isolated eigenvalues. From the analysis, the tendency of overfit and underfit that the assessment criteria and algorithms have becomes apparent. In addition, we propose that the alluvial diagram is a suitable tool to visualize statistical inference results and can be useful to determine the number of clusters.

Comparative Analysis of Competitive Strategy Implementation

OpenAIRE

Maina A. S. Waweru

2011-01-01

This paper presents research findings on Competitive Strategy Implementation which compared the levels of strategy implementation achieved by different generic strategy groups, comprising firms inclined towards low cost leadership, differentiation or dual strategic advantage. The study sought to determine the preferences for use of implementation armaments and compared how such armaments related to the level of implementation achieved. Respondents comprised 71 top executives from 59 companies...

Business Society and Corporate Social Responsibility: Comparative analysis in Russia and Japan

OpenAIRE

Satoshi Mizobata

2011-01-01

Comparative analysis of CSR allows characterizing both corporate society and market institutions. Even though transition economies have backwardness of corporate governance institutions and include premature CSR, Russian CSR, paradoxically speaking, can be regarded as hyper one, and specific stakeholders have played a decisive role in its establishment. The present paper empirically and descriptively analyzed evolution of the contemporary Russian CSR and described its characteristics. Observa...

The digital storytelling process: A comparative analysis from various experts

Science.gov (United States)

Hussain, Hashiroh; Shiratuddin, Norshuhada

2016-08-01

Digital Storytelling (DST) is a method of delivering information to the audience. It combines narrative and digital media content infused with the multimedia elements. In order for the educators (i.e the designers) to create a compelling digital story, there are sets of processes introduced by experts. Nevertheless, the experts suggest varieties of processes to guide them; of which some are redundant. The main aim of this study is to propose a single guide process for the creation of DST. A comparative analysis is employed where ten DST models from various experts are analysed. The process can also be implemented in other multimedia materials that used the concept of DST.

Value Frameworks in Oncology: Comparative Analysis and Implications to the Pharmaceutical Industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Slomiany, Mark; Madhavan, Priya; Kuehn, Michael; Richardson, Sasha

2017-07-01

As the cost of oncology care continues to rise, composite value models that variably capture the diverse concerns of patients, physicians, payers, policymakers, and the pharmaceutical industry have begun to take shape. To review the capabilities and limitations of 5 of the most notable value frameworks in oncology that have emerged in recent years and to compare their relative value and application among the intended stakeholders. We compared the methodology of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Value Framework (version 2.0), the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Evidence Blocks, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center DrugAbacus, the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review Value Assessment Framework, and the European Society for Medical Oncology Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale, using a side-by-side comparative approach in terms of the input, scoring methodology, and output of each framework. In addition, we gleaned stakeholder insights about these frameworks and their potential real-world applications through dialogues with physicians and payers, as well as through secondary research and an aggregate analysis of previously published survey results. The analysis identified several framework-specific themes in their respective focus on clinical trial elements, breadth of evidence, evidence weighting, scoring methodology, and value to stakeholders. Our dialogues with physicians and our aggregate analysis of previous surveys revealed a varying level of awareness of, and use of, each of the value frameworks in clinical practice. For example, although the ASCO Value Framework appears nascent in clinical practice, physicians believe that the frameworks will be more useful in practice in the future as they become more established and as their outputs are more widely accepted. Along with patients and payers, who bear the burden of treatment costs, physicians and policymakers have waded into the discussion of defining value in oncology care, as well

Drug supply indicators: Pitfalls and possibilities for improvements to assist comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Singleton, Nicola; Cunningham, Andrew; Groshkova, Teodora; Royuela, Luis; Sedefov, Roumen

2018-06-01

Interventions to tackle the supply of drugs are seen as standard components of illicit drug policies. Therefore drug market-related administrative data, such as seizures, price, purity and drug-related offending, are used in most countries for policy monitoring and assessment of the drug situation. International agencies, such as the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) and the UN Office of Drugs and Crime, also monitor and report on the drug situation cross-nationally and therefore seek to collect and make available key data in a uniform manner from the countries they cover. However, these data are not primarily collected for this purpose, which makes interpretation and comparative analysis difficult. Examples of limitations of these data sources include: the extent to which they reflect operational priorities rather than market changes; question marks over the robustness of and consistency in data collection methods, and issues around the timeliness of data availability. Such problems are compounded by cultural, social and contextual differences between countries. Making sense of such data is therefore challenging and extreme care needs to be taken using it. Nevertheless, these data provide an important window on a hidden area, so improving the quality of the data collected and expanding its scope should be a priority for those seeking to understand or monitor drug markets and supply reduction. In addition to highlighting some of the potential pitfalls in using supply indicators for comparative analysis, this paper presents a selection of options for improvements based on the current EMCDDA programme of work to improve their supply-related monitoring and analysis. The conceptual framework developed to steer this work may have wider application. Adopting this approach has the potential to provide a richer picture of drug markets, at both national and international levels, and make it easier to compare data between countries. Copyright �

Comparative analysis of the modified enclosed energy metric for self-focusing holograms from digital lensless holographic microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Trujillo, Carlos; Garcia-Sucerquia, Jorge

2015-06-01

A comparative analysis of the performance of the modified enclosed energy (MEE) method for self-focusing holograms recorded with digital lensless holographic microscopy is presented. Notwithstanding the MEE analysis previously published, no extended analysis of its performance has been reported. We have tested the MEE in terms of the minimum axial distance allowed between the set of reconstructed holograms to search for the focal plane and the elapsed time to obtain the focused image. These parameters have been compared with those for some of the already reported methods in the literature. The MEE achieves better results in terms of self-focusing quality but at a higher computational cost. Despite its longer processing time, the method remains within a time frame to be technologically attractive. Modeled and experimental holograms have been utilized in this work to perform the comparative study.

Christian ethic of love and Hindu ethic of dharma: comparative analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pavenkov Oleg Vladimirovich

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This article is devoted to comparative analysis of two ethic systems: Hindu ethic of dharma and Christian ethic of love. If Christian ethic is the ethic of love, love is in the center of Christian moral values, then Hindu ethic is an example of ethic of law. The moral behavior of gods and humans is determined by Karma and cycle of samsara, which is impossible in Christianity. However forgiveness, self-restraint, non-stealing, purity are common moral obligations for Christians and Hindus.

Comparative analysis of the development of franchising in Serbia and worldwide

OpenAIRE

Stefanović, Suzana; Stanković, Milica

2013-01-01

The research of franchising as a business model is of great importance for the further development of this concept. At the global level, there is a constant tendency of development of existing and new franchise systems. This area is still unexplored in Serbia. The aim of the paper is to point out the importance of franchising on the global level and the need for more intensive development in Serbia, based on a comparative analysis of development of this concept in Serbia and worldwide. The pa...

A comparative analysis of simulated and observed photosynthetic CO2 uptake in two coniferous forest canopies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ibrom, A.; Jarvis, P.G.; Clement, R.

2006-01-01

-photosynthetically-active-radiation-induced biophysical variability in the simulated Pg. Analysis of residuals identified only small systematic differences between the modeled flux estimates and turbulent flux measurements at high vapor pressure saturation deficits. The merits and limitations of comparative analysis for quality evaluation of both...

Factors influencing recruitment and retention of professional nurses ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

J. Lyn Haskins

factors influencing recruitment and retention of three categories of HPs in KwaZulu-Natal and has ...... tion, with good career opportunities which were similar in both urban and rural .... attract nurses to rural areas: A multicountry discrete choice.

predictors of subjective well-being among older ghanaians

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2014-12-01

Dec 1, 2014 ... WHO as part of a multi-country longitudinal study to complement the existing ageing data sources for moni- toring policy goals and programmes. ... spondents also completed performance tests. Field work and data entry were ...

Comparative metagenomic analysis of plasmid encoded functions in the human gut microbiome

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marchesi Julian R

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Little is known regarding the pool of mobile genetic elements associated with the human gut microbiome. In this study we employed the culture independent TRACA system to isolate novel plasmids from the human gut microbiota, and a comparative metagenomic analysis to investigate the distribution and relative abundance of functions encoded by these plasmids in the human gut microbiome. Results Novel plasmids were acquired from the human gut microbiome, and homologous nucleotide sequences with high identity (>90% to two plasmids (pTRACA10 and pTRACA22 were identified in the multiple human gut microbiomes analysed here. However, no homologous nucleotide sequences to these plasmids were identified in the murine gut or environmental metagenomes. Functions encoded by the plasmids pTRACA10 and pTRACA22 were found to be more prevalent in the human gut microbiome when compared to microbial communities from other environments. Among the most prevalent functions identified was a putative RelBE toxin-antitoxin (TA addiction module, and subsequent analysis revealed that this was most closely related to putative TA modules from gut associated bacteria belonging to the Firmicutes. A broad phylogenetic distribution of RelE toxin genes was observed in gut associated bacterial species (Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria, but no RelE homologues were identified in gut associated archaeal species. We also provide indirect evidence for the horizontal transfer of these genes between bacterial species belonging to disparate phylogenetic divisions, namely Gram negative Proteobacteria and Gram positive species from the Firmicutes division. Conclusions The application of a culture independent system to capture novel plasmids from the human gut mobile metagenome, coupled with subsequent comparative metagenomic analysis, highlighted the unexpected prevalence of plasmid encoded functions in the gut microbial ecosystem. In

Cookstove options for safety and health: Comparative analysis of technological and usability attributes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimemia, David; Van Niekerk, Ashley

2017-01-01

Energy use in low-income households in South Africa is considerably more hazardous than in middle to high-income households. Poverty is a key underlying factor. However, poor quality domestic energy technologies, including stoves, heaters and light sources contribute to this vulnerability. The problem is compounded by behavioural and environmental factors. Since cooking is a key energy-using chore, access to efficient, safe and versatile stoves portend safety improvements. This paper reports on a comparative analysis of eleven technological and usability attributes (CO emissions, firepower, efficiency, fuel toxicity, fuel cost, stove price, controllability, durability, availability, temperature of touchable-parts, and mechanical stability) of commercially available stoves that utilise four energy sources (kerosene, methanol, ethanol gel, and LPG). The ensuing discussion serves as a guide to enable the selection of the best-fit stove-fuel combination for low-income households. The findings indicate that LPG stoves have comparatively better overall rankings for cleanliness, firepower, safety, and durability. This analysis highlights that no combustion technology is risk-proof and there remains a burden on users to exercise diligence. We recommend that South Africa adopts an affirmative policy and strategic actions that discourage the use of kerosene as a household combustion fuel, and promotes the adoption of LPG as a safer and practical alternative. - Highlights: • Inefficient fuel combustion stoves raise risk profile in energy-poor households. • This study uses quantitative methods to compare the attributes of four stove types. • LPG stoves have comparatively better ranking for emissions, safety, and durability. • Transformative policies and strategies are required to promote safe, clean stoves.

Scientific Popularization in Brazil and in Russia: An Essay to a Comparative Analysis of Discourses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sheila Vieira de Camargo Grillo

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The objective of this article is to conduct a comparative analysis of scientific popularization in Brazil and in Russia. The theoretical and methodological basis of this comparison was provided by combining Bakhtin's theory and comparative discourse analysis, present in the works of the Cediscor researchers. Based on it, we constructed a corpus of utterances of the Brazilian and Russian editions of the Scientific American magazine. As a result, we were able to observe, on the one hand, significant similarities in the genres "article" and "report of scientific popularization" in both ethno-linguistic communities, and, on the other hand, differences regarding their relation with reported speech and the use of verbal tenses and moods.

Comparative analysis of the value of national brands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jelena Žugić

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Nation branding is not the “holy grail” of economic development, but it can provide a distinct advantage when it is aligned with a well-defined economic strategy and supported by public policy. A nation brand is the sum of people’s perceptions of a country across the most important areas of national competence. This paper examines the value of the nation brand on a sample of 108 countries, using the Anholt Nation Brands Index and using the mathematical formula for calculating the surface of Anholt’s hexagon for each country individually. In this paper, parameters are taken from six areas of the nation hexagon, from the World Bank and the UNESCO database. The surface of the nation hexagon was calculated with mathematical tools and comparative analysis was done between nation brands. By using strategic nation branding models designed by other branding experts in combination with a proposed mathematical model that shows the advantages and disadvantages of the nation brand of each country (and within the country, their competitiveness on the global stage is expected to improve.

Comparative analysis of used car price evaluation models

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Chuancan; Hao, Lulu; Xu, Cong

2017-05-01

An accurate used car price evaluation is a catalyst for the healthy development of used car market. Data mining has been applied to predict used car price in several articles. However, little is studied on the comparison of using different algorithms in used car price estimation. This paper collects more than 100,000 used car dealing records throughout China to do empirical analysis on a thorough comparison of two algorithms: linear regression and random forest. These two algorithms are used to predict used car price in three different models: model for a certain car make, model for a certain car series and universal model. Results show that random forest has a stable but not ideal effect in price evaluation model for a certain car make, but it shows great advantage in the universal model compared with linear regression. This indicates that random forest is an optimal algorithm when handling complex models with a large number of variables and samples, yet it shows no obvious advantage when coping with simple models with less variables.

[Comparation on Haversian system between human and animal bones by imaging analysis].

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Hui-Ling; Zheng, Jing; Yao, Ya-Nan; Chen, Sen; Wang, Hui-Pin; Chen, Li-Xian; Guo, Jing-Yuan

2006-04-01

To explore the differences in Haversian system between human and animal bones through imaging analysis and morphology description. Thirty-five slices grinding from human being as well as dog, pig, cow and sheep bones were observed to compare their structure, then were analysed with the researchful microscope. Plexiform bone or oeston band was not found in human bones; There were significant differences in the shape, size, location, density of Haversian system, between human and animal bones. The amount of Haversian lamella and diameter of central canal in human were the biggest; Significant differences in the central canal diameter and total area percentage between human and animal bones were shown by imaging analysis. (1) Plexiform bone and osteon band could be the exclusive index in human bone; (2) There were significant differences in the structure of Haversian system between human and animal bones; (3) The percentage of central canals total area was valuable in species identification through imaging analysis.

Comparative Chromatographic Analysis and Pharmacodynamic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The laboratory analysis of the Garcinia Kolanuts extracts showed receptors inhibition of Beta adrenergic sites, adenosine, melatonin, opiate, purine, calcium channel L-type and 5HT5A. Conclusion: Garcinia kolanut extract exhibits a combined effects of all the known antiglaucoma drugs used in comparison. NQJHM Vol.

IMG 4 version of the integrated microbial genomes comparative analysis system

Science.gov (United States)

Markowitz, Victor M.; Chen, I-Min A.; Palaniappan, Krishna; Chu, Ken; Szeto, Ernest; Pillay, Manoj; Ratner, Anna; Huang, Jinghua; Woyke, Tanja; Huntemann, Marcel; Anderson, Iain; Billis, Konstantinos; Varghese, Neha; Mavromatis, Konstantinos; Pati, Amrita; Ivanova, Natalia N.; Kyrpides, Nikos C.

2014-01-01

The Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) data warehouse integrates genomes from all three domains of life, as well as plasmids, viruses and genome fragments. IMG provides tools for analyzing and reviewing the structural and functional annotations of genomes in a comparative context. IMG’s data content and analytical capabilities have increased continuously since its first version released in 2005. Since the last report published in the 2012 NAR Database Issue, IMG’s annotation and data integration pipelines have evolved while new tools have been added for recording and analyzing single cell genomes, RNA Seq and biosynthetic cluster data. Different IMG datamarts provide support for the analysis of publicly available genomes (IMG/W: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/w), expert review of genome annotations (IMG/ER: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/er) and teaching and training in the area of microbial genome analysis (IMG/EDU: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/edu). PMID:24165883

IMG 4 version of the integrated microbial genomes comparative analysis system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Markowitz, Victor M. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Chen, I-Min A. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Palaniappan, Krishna [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Chu, Ken [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Szeto, Ernest [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Pillay, Manoj [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Ratner, Anna [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Huang, Jinghua [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Biological Data Management and Technology Center. Computational Research Division; Woyke, Tanja [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Huntemann, Marcel [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Anderson, Iain [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Billis, Konstantinos [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Varghese, Neha [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Mavromatis, Konstantinos [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Pati, Amrita [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Ivanova, Natalia N. [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program; Kyrpides, Nikos C. [USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Microbial Genome and Metagenome Program

2013-10-27

The Integrated Microbial Genomes (IMG) data warehouse integrates genomes from all three domains of life, as well as plasmids, viruses and genome fragments. IMG provides tools for analyzing and reviewing the structural and functional annotations of genomes in a comparative context. IMG’s data content and analytical capabilities have increased continuously since its first version released in 2005. Since the last report published in the 2012 NAR Database Issue, IMG’s annotation and data integration pipelines have evolved while new tools have been added for recording and analyzing single cell genomes, RNA Seq and biosynthetic cluster data. Finally, different IMG datamarts provide support for the analysis of publicly available genomes (IMG/W: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/w), expert review of genome annotations (IMG/ER: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/er) and teaching and training in the area of microbial genome analysis (IMG/EDU: http://img.jgi.doe.gov/edu).

Transcriptomics and comparative analysis of three antarctic notothenioid fishes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seung Chul Shin

Full Text Available For the past 10 to 13 million years, Antarctic notothenioid fish have undergone extraordinary periods of evolution and have adapted to a cold and highly oxygenated Antarctic marine environment. While these species are considered an attractive model with which to study physiology and evolutionary adaptation, they are poorly characterized at the molecular level, and sequence information is lacking. The transcriptomes of the Antarctic fishes Notothenia coriiceps, Chaenocephalus aceratus, and Pleuragramma antarcticum were obtained by 454 FLX Titanium sequencing of a normalized cDNA library. More than 1,900,000 reads were assembled in a total of 71,539 contigs. Overall, 40% of the contigs were annotated based on similarity to known protein or nucleotide sequences, and more than 50% of the predicted transcripts were validated as full-length or putative full-length cDNAs. These three Antarctic fishes shared 663 genes expressed in the brain and 1,557 genes expressed in the liver. In addition, these cold-adapted fish expressed more Ub-conjugated proteins compared to temperate fish; Ub-conjugated proteins are involved in maintaining proteins in their native state in the cold and thermally stable Antarctic environments. Our transcriptome analysis of Antarctic notothenioid fish provides an archive for future studies in molecular mechanisms of fundamental genetic questions, and can be used in evolution studies comparing other fish.

Discovery and characterization of antibody variants using mass spectrometry-based comparative analysis for biosimilar candidates of monoclonal antibody drugs.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Wenhua; Yang, Bin; Zhou, Dongmei; Xu, Jun; Ke, Zhi; Suen, Wen-Chen

2016-07-01

Liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) is the most commonly used technique for the characterization of antibody variants. MAb-X and mAb-Y are two approved IgG1 subtype monoclonal antibody drugs recombinantly produced in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. We report here that two unexpected and rare antibody variants have been discovered during cell culture process development of biosimilars for these two approved drugs through intact mass analysis. We then used comprehensive mass spectrometry-based comparative analysis including reduced light, heavy chains, and domain-specific mass as well as peptide mapping analysis to fully characterize the observed antibody variants. The "middle-up" mass comparative analysis demonstrated that the antibody variant from mAb-X biosimilar candidate was caused by mass variation of antibody crystalline fragment (Fc), whereas a different variant with mass variation in antibody antigen-binding fragment (Fab) from mAb-Y biosimilar candidate was identified. Endoproteinase Lys-C digested peptide mapping and tandem mass spectrometry analysis further revealed that a leucine to glutamine change in N-terminal 402 site of heavy chain was responsible for the generation of mAb-X antibody variant. Lys-C and trypsin coupled non-reduced and reduced peptide mapping comparative analysis showed that the formation of the light-heavy interchain trisulfide bond resulted in the mAb-Y antibody variant. These two cases confirmed that mass spectrometry-based comparative analysis plays a critical role for the characterization of monoclonal antibody variants, and biosimilar developers should start with a comprehensive structural assessment and comparative analysis to decrease the risk of the process development for biosimilars. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Fundamental Concept of Crime in International Criminal Law: A Comparative Law Analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Marchuk, Iryna

This book examines the rapid development of the fundamental concept of a crime in international criminal law from a comparative law perspective in light of the catalyzing impact of the criminal law theory developed in major world legal systems on the crystallization of the substantive part...... of international criminal law. This study offers a critical overview of international and domestic jurisprudence in regards to the construal of the concept of a crime (actus reus, mens rea, defences, modes of liability) and exposes roots of confusion in international criminal law through a comprehensive...... comparative analysis of substantive criminal laws in selected legal jurisdictions....

Personal dose assessment using region of interest analysis compared with harshaw TLD WinREMS software evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adjei, D.

2010-06-01

Personal dose equivalents, Hp(10), have been evaluated manually using Region of Interest (ROI) analysis and compared with the automated computerized WinREMS software for the occupationally exposed in medical, industrial and research/teaching applications for 2008 and 2009. The mean annual effective dose estimated by the WinREMS software for medical, industrial and research/teaching applications for the study period are 0.459 mSv, 0.549mSv and 0.447 mSv, respectively compared with ROI analysis are 0.424 mSv, 0.520 mSv and 0.407 mSv respectively. The mean annual collective doses evaluated by the WinREMS software for medical, industrial and research/teaching applications for the two-year study period are 0.258 man-Sv, 0.084 man-Sv and 0.032 man-Sv respectively, compared with the ROI analysis with values: 0.238 man-Sv, 0.080 man-Sv and 0.029 man-Sv respectively. The individual doses for the occupationally exposed in Ghana fall within the typical range of individual doses in the UNSCEAR 2008 report. In calibration mode, the WinREMS method overestimated the personal dose equivalent by 51.3% for doses below 1 mSv and 12.0% above 1 mSv. The corresponding values for the Region of Interest analysis method are 13.2% and 6.5%. The results from the study indicate that the ROI analysis provides a better alternative to estimating the personal doses (au).

Public transportation systems: Comparative analysis of quality of service

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Negri, L.; Florio, L. (Rome Univ. La Sapienza (Italy). Facolta' di Ingegneria, Dipt. di Idraulica, Trasporti e Strade)

The evaluation, choice and design of public transportation systems for urban areas requires, in addition to consolidated use parameters, other dimensions essential to supply-demand qualiflcative realignment, e.g.: 'door-to-door time' which allows system differentiation in terms of commercial velocity, frequency and length of route; technical productivity expressed as 'transport power' and 'specific transport power'; and 'system/service quality'. By the means of surveys, these factors can be incorporated into suitable mathematical models representing, in a complete and reliable way, all the functions which a given system actually delivers and those functions which it is expected to deliver by its users. This paper illustrates the application of these concepts in a comparative analysis of different public transportation options - light rail rapid transit, tram and bus networks.

Real Estate Appraisal in Central-Eastern Europe: Comparative Analysis of Poland and Slovakia

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Adamuscin Andrej

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The countries in Central-Eastern Europe have been subjected to dynamic economic changes. Researchers from Poland and Slovakia study the history of the creation of and rules by which the real estate appraiser’s profession functions. They also present the methodological basics for property appraisals. The original value of this article is a comparative analysis depicting the similarities and differences occurring in the research area, in two countries from the same region of Europe. The analysis may also influence the methodological discussions of specialists concerning the correctness and purpose of certain approaches, methods or techniques of property appraisal.

Comparative genomic analysis of multidrug-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates

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Pan F

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Fen Pan,1 Hong Zhang,1 Xiaoyan Dong,2 Weixing Ye,3 Ping He,4 Shulin Zhang,4 Jeff Xianchao Zhu,5 Nanbert Zhong1,2,6 1Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shanghai Children’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China; 2Department of Respiratory, Shanghai Children’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China; 3Shanghai Personal Biotechnology Co., Ltd, Shanghai, China; 4Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; 5Zhejiang Bioruida Biotechnology co. Ltd, Zhejiang, China; 6New York State Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities, Staten Island, NY, USA Introduction: Multidrug resistance in Streptococcus pneumoniae has emerged as a serious problem to public health. A further understanding of the genetic diversity in antibiotic-resistant S. pneumoniae isolates is needed. Methods: We conducted whole-genome resequencing for 25 pneumococcal strains isolated from children with different antimicrobial resistance profiles. Comparative analysis focus on detection of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs and insertions and deletions (indels was conducted. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis was applied to investigate the genetic relationship among these strains. Results: The genome size of the isolates was ~2.1 Mbp, covering >90% of the total estimated size of the reference genome. The overall G+C% content was ~39.5%, and there were 2,200–2,400 open reading frames. All isolates with different drug resistance profiles harbored many indels (range 131–171 and SNPs (range 16,103–28,128. Genetic diversity analysis showed that the variation of different genes were associated with specific antibiotic resistance. Known antibiotic resistance genes (pbps, murMN, ciaH, rplD, sulA, and dpr were identified, and new genes (regR, argH, trkH, and PTS-EII closely related with antibiotic resistance were found, although these genes were primarily annotated

A Comparative Analysis of Uranium Ore using Laser Fluorimetric and gamma Spectrometry Techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madbouly, M.; Nassef, M. H.; El-Mongy, S.A.; Diab, A.M.

2009-01-01

A developed chemical separation method was used for the analysis of uranium in a standard U-ore (IAEA-RGU-1) by LASER fluorimetric technique. The non-destructive gamma assay technique was also applied to verify and compare the uranium content analyzed using laser technique. The results of the uranium analysis obtained by laser fluorimetry were found to be in the range of 360 - 420 μg/g with an average value of 390 μg/g. The bias between the measured and the certified value does not exceed 9.9%. For gamma-ray spectrometric analysis, the results of the measured uranium content were found to be in the range of 393.8 - 399.4 μg/g with an average value of 396.3 μg/g. The % difference in the case of γ- assay was 1.6 %. In general, the methods of analysis used in this study are applicable for a precise determination of uranium. It can be concluded that, laser analysis is preferred for assay of uranium ore due to the required small sample weight, the low time of sample preparation and cost of analysis.

Comparative Analysis of Automatic Exudate Detection between Machine Learning and Traditional Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Sopharak, Akara; Uyyanonvara, Bunyarit; Barman, Sarah; Williamson, Thomas

To prevent blindness from diabetic retinopathy, periodic screening and early diagnosis are neccessary. Due to lack of expert ophthalmologists in rural area, automated early exudate (one of visible sign of diabetic retinopathy) detection could help to reduce the number of blindness in diabetic patients. Traditional automatic exudate detection methods are based on specific parameter configuration, while the machine learning approaches which seems more flexible may be computationally high cost. A comparative analysis of traditional and machine learning of exudates detection, namely, mathematical morphology, fuzzy c-means clustering, naive Bayesian classifier, Support Vector Machine and Nearest Neighbor classifier are presented. Detected exudates are validated with expert ophthalmologists' hand-drawn ground-truths. The sensitivity, specificity, precision, accuracy and time complexity of each method are also compared.

Addressing the Challenges Related to Transforming Qualitative Into Quantitative Data in Qualitative Comparative Analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Block, de Debora; Vis, Barbara

2018-01-01

The use of qualitative data has so far received relatively little attention in methodological discussions on qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). This article addresses this lacuna by discussing the challenges researchers face when transforming qualitative data into quantitative data in QCA. By

A Land Product Characterization System for Comparative Analysis of Satellite Data and Products

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Kevin Gallo

2017-12-01

Full Text Available A Land Product Characterization System (LPCS has been developed to provide land data and products to the community of individuals interested in validating space-based land products by comparing them with similar products available from other sensors or surface-based observations. The LPCS facilitates the application of global multi-satellite and in situ data for characterization and validation of higher-level, satellite-derived, land surface products (e.g., surface reflectance, normalized difference vegetation index, and land surface temperature. The LPCS includes data search, inventory, access, and analysis functions that will permit data to be easily identified, retrieved, co-registered, and compared statistically through a single interface. The system currently includes data and products available from Landsat 4 through 8, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS Terra and Aqua, Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (S-NPP/Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS, and simulated data for the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-16 Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI. In addition to the future inclusion of in situ data, higher-level land products from the European Space Agency (ESA Sentinel-2 and -3 series of satellites, and other high and medium resolution spatial sensors, will be included as available. When fully implemented, any of the sensor data or products included in the LPCS would be available for comparative analysis.

Bayesian meta-analysis models for microarray data: a comparative study

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Song Joon J

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background With the growing abundance of microarray data, statistical methods are increasingly needed to integrate results across studies. Two common approaches for meta-analysis of microarrays include either combining gene expression measures across studies or combining summaries such as p-values, probabilities or ranks. Here, we compare two Bayesian meta-analysis models that are analogous to these methods. Results Two Bayesian meta-analysis models for microarray data have recently been introduced. The first model combines standardized gene expression measures across studies into an overall mean, accounting for inter-study variability, while the second combines probabilities of differential expression without combining expression values. Both models produce the gene-specific posterior probability of differential expression, which is the basis for inference. Since the standardized expression integration model includes inter-study variability, it may improve accuracy of results versus the probability integration model. However, due to the small number of studies typical in microarray meta-analyses, the variability between studies is challenging to estimate. The probability integration model eliminates the need to model variability between studies, and thus its implementation is more straightforward. We found in simulations of two and five studies that combining probabilities outperformed combining standardized gene expression measures for three comparison values: the percent of true discovered genes in meta-analysis versus individual studies; the percent of true genes omitted in meta-analysis versus separate studies, and the number of true discovered genes for fixed levels of Bayesian false discovery. We identified similar results when pooling two independent studies of Bacillus subtilis. We assumed that each study was produced from the same microarray platform with only two conditions: a treatment and control, and that the data sets

Comparative analysis of assessment methods for operational and anesthetic risks in ulcerative gastroduodenal bleeding

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Potakhin S.N.

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Aim of the investigation: to conduct a comparative analysis of methods of evaluation of surgical and anesthetic risks in ulcerative gastroduodenal bleeding. Materials and methods. A retrospective analysis ofthe extent of the surgical and anesthetic risks and results of treatment of 71 patients with peptic ulcer bleeding has been conducted in the study. To evaluate the surgical and anesthetic risks classification trees are used, scale ТА. Rockall and prognosis System of rebleeding (SPRK, proposed by N. V. Lebedev et al. in 2009, enabling to evaluate the probability of a fatal outcome. To compare the efficacy ofthe methods the following indicators are used: sensitivity, specificity and prediction of positive result. Results. The study compared the results ofthe risk assessment emergency operation by using these methods with the outcome ofthe operation. The comparison ofthe prognosis results in sensitivity leads to the conclusion that the scales ТА. Rockall and SPRK are worse than the developed method of classification trees in recognizing patients with poor outcome of surgery. Conclusion. The method of classification trees can be considered as the most accurate method of evaluation of surgical and anesthetic risks in ulcerative gastroduodenal bleeding.

Comparative proteomic analysis of hemolymph from uninfected and Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus-infected Diaphorina citri.

Science.gov (United States)

Gill, T A; Chu, C; Pelz-Stelinski, K S

2017-02-01

Hemolymph was characterized from Diaphorina citri adults infected with the phytopathogen, Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas), and compared with that from uninfected psyllids. This study identified 5531 and 3220 peptides within infected and uninfected hemolymph using nano-LC-MS/MS. A reduced number of proteins were detected for D. citri and all known endosymbionts within infected hemolymph as compared to uninfected hemolymph. A large number of immune defense proteins were absent from D. citri hemolymph; however, a single recognition protein (PGRP), two serine protease inhibitors, three prophenoloxidase (proPO) enzymes, and a single serine protease in an uninfected D. citri were detected. The hemolymph is nearly devoid of nutrient storage proteins. This is the first proteomic analysis of D. citri hemolymph that also analyses the components contributed by all the endosymbionts. By comparing the contribution of each endosymbiont (CCR, CPA, and WB) in the presence and absence of CLas infection, this study offers initial insights regarding the hemolymph response to microbial community shifts associated with D. citri infection status. Our data also present potential protein targets for analysis and disruption of CLas transmission that may facilitate management of huanglongbing (HLB) caused by CLas in citrus.

Comparative analysis of customer satisfaction in postal and banking services

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Ratković Milijanka

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The goal of this study is a comparative analysis of customer satisfaction towards postal and banking services in Serbia. In addition, this paper should provide guidance on how managements of the Post Office and the Bank should behave on the market. The survey was conducted throughout the whole Serbian territory. The subject of the research is to measure the perception of postal and banking services, in order to assess the quality of services and the impact of expectations on the level of perceived quality. Testing and final conclusions about the level of quality of postal and banking services was carried out on the basis of the existing literature and modified SERVQUAL model.

Comparative analysis of DG and solar PV water pumping system

Science.gov (United States)

Tharani, Kusum; Dahiya, Ratna

2016-03-01

Looking at present day electricity scenario, there is a major electricity crisis in rural areas. The farmers are still dependant on the monsoon rains for their irrigation needs and livestock maintenance. Some of the agrarian population has opted to use Diesel Generators for pumping water in their fields. But taking into consideration the economics and environmental conditions, the above choice is not suitable for longer run. An effort to shift from non-renewable sources such as diesel to renewable energy source such as solar has been highlighted. An approximate comparative analysis showing the life cycle costs of a PV pumping system with Diesel Generator powered water pumping is done using MATLAB/STMULTNK.

Causal relationship between nuclear energy consumption and economic growth: A multi-country analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoo, Seung-Hoon; Ku, Se-Ju

2009-01-01

This paper attempts to investigate the causal relationship between nuclear energy consumption and economic growth using the data from six countries among 20 countries that have used nuclear energy for more than 20 years until 2005. To this end, time-series techniques including the tests for unit roots, co-integration, and Granger-causality are employed to Argentina, France, Germany, Korea, Pakistan, and Switzerland. The main conclusion is that the causal relationship between nuclear energy consumption and economic growth is not uniform across countries. In the case of Switzerland, there exists bi-directional causality between nuclear energy consumption and economic growth. This means that an increase in nuclear energy consumption directly affects economic growth and that economic growth also stimulates further nuclear energy consumption. The uni-directional causality runs from economic growth to nuclear energy consumption without any feedback effects in France and Pakistan, and from nuclear energy to economic growth in Korea. However, any causality between nuclear energy consumption and economic growth in Argentina and Germany is not detected.

Success Factors of European Syndromic Surveillance Systems: A Worked Example of Applying Qualitative Comparative Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ziemann, Alexandra; Fouillet, Anne; Brand, Helmut; Krafft, Thomas

2016-01-01

Syndromic surveillance aims at augmenting traditional public health surveillance with timely information. To gain a head start, it mainly analyses existing data such as from web searches or patient records. Despite the setup of many syndromic surveillance systems, there is still much doubt about the benefit of the approach. There are diverse interactions between performance indicators such as timeliness and various system characteristics. This makes the performance assessment of syndromic surveillance systems a complex endeavour. We assessed if the comparison of several syndromic surveillance systems through Qualitative Comparative Analysis helps to evaluate performance and identify key success factors. We compiled case-based, mixed data on performance and characteristics of 19 syndromic surveillance systems in Europe from scientific and grey literature and from site visits. We identified success factors by applying crisp-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis. We focused on two main areas of syndromic surveillance application: seasonal influenza surveillance and situational awareness during different types of potentially health threatening events. We found that syndromic surveillance systems might detect the onset or peak of seasonal influenza earlier if they analyse non-clinical data sources. Timely situational awareness during different types of events is supported by an automated syndromic surveillance system capable of analysing multiple syndromes. To our surprise, the analysis of multiple data sources was no key success factor for situational awareness. We suggest to consider these key success factors when designing or further developing syndromic surveillance systems. Qualitative Comparative Analysis helped interpreting complex, mixed data on small-N cases and resulted in concrete and practically relevant findings.

Mathematical field models of brushless DC motors with permanent magnets and their comparative analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.V. Matyuschenko

2015-03-01

Full Text Available By means of JMAG-Designer 12 the author performed a comparative analysis of the calculation of the EMF, cogging torque and electromagnetic torque of brushless motor with permanent magnets in two-dimensional and three-dimensional formulation of the problem.

New tools for comparing microscopy images : Quantitative analysis of cell types in Bacillus subtilis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Gestel, Jordi; Vlamakis, Hera; Kolter, Roberto

2015-01-01

Fluorescence microscopy is a method commonly used to examine individual differences between bacterial cells, yet many studies still lack a quantitative analysis of fluorescence microscopy data. Here we introduce some simple tools that microbiologists can use to analyze and compare their microscopy

Comparative Study on Interface Elements, Thin-Layer Elements, and Contact Analysis Methods in the Analysis of High Concrete-Faced Rockfill Dams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiao-xiang Qian

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a study on the numerical performance of three contact simulation methods, namely, the interface element, thin-layer element, and contact analysis methods, through the analysis of the contact behavior between the concrete face slab and the dam body of a high concrete-faced rockfill dam named Tianshengqiao-I in China. To investigate the accuracy and limitations of each method, the simulation results are compared in terms of the dam deformation, contact stress along the interface, stresses in the concrete face slab, and separation of the concrete face slab from the cushion layer. In particular, the predicted dam deformation and slab separation are compared with the in-situ observation data to classify these methods according to their agreement with the in-situ observations. It is revealed that the interface element and thin-layer element methods have their limitations in predicting contact stress, slab separation, and stresses in the concrete face slab if a large slip occurs. The contact analysis method seems to be the best choice whether the separation is finite or not.

Uranium solution mining cost estimating technique: means for rapid comparative analysis of deposits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1978-01-01

Twelve graphs provide a technique for determining relative cost ranges for uranium solution mining projects. The use of the technique can provide a consistent framework for rapid comparative analysis of various properties of mining situations. The technique is also useful to determine the sensitivities of cost figures to incremental changes in mining factors or deposit characteristics

The Estimation of Knowledge Solidity Based on the Comparative Analysis of Different Test Results

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. K. Khenner

2012-01-01

Full Text Available At present, the testing techniques of knowledge estimation are widely spread in educational system. However, this method is seriously criticized including its application to the Unified State Examinations. The research is aimed at studying the limitations of testing techniques. The authors recommend a new way of knowledge solid- ity estimation bases on the comparative results analysis of various kinds of tests. While testing the large group of students, the authors found out that the results of the closed and open tests substantially differ. The comparative analysis demonstrates that the open tests assessment of the knowledge solidity is more adequate than that of the closed ones. As the research is only based on a single experiment, the authors recommend using this method further, substantiating the findings concerning the differences in tests results, and analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of the tests in question. 

Comparative Analysis of ACAS-Xu and DAIDALUS Detect-and-Avoid Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, Jason T.; Wu, Minghong G.

2018-01-01

The Detect and Avoid (DAA) capability of a recent version (Run 3) of the Airborne Collision Avoidance System-Xu (ACAS-Xu) is measured against that of the Detect and AvoID Alerting Logic for Unmanned Systems (DAIDALUS), a reference algorithm for the Phase 1 Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS) for DAA. This comparative analysis of the two systems' alerting and horizontal guidance outcomes is conducted through the lens of the Detect and Avoid mission using flight data of scripted encounters from a recent flight test. Results indicate comparable timelines and outcomes between ACAS-Xu's Remain Well Clear alert and guidance and DAIDALUS's corrective alert and guidance, although ACAS-Xu's guidance appears to be more conservative. ACAS-Xu's Collision Avoidance alert and guidance occurs later than DAIDALUS's warning alert and guidance, and overlaps with DAIDALUS's timeline of maneuver to remain Well Clear. Interesting discrepancies between ACAS-Xu's directive guidance and DAIDALUS's "Regain Well Clear" guidance occur in some scenarios.

Aligning the PRME: How Study Abroad Nurtures Responsible Leadership

Science.gov (United States)

Sroufe, Robert; Sivasubramaniam, Nagaraj; Ramos, Diane; Saiia, David

2015-01-01

Productive relationships between business schools and corporate organizations provide fertile ground for bringing business leaders, faculty, students, and community partners face-to-face with contemporaries abroad to foster development of responsible global leadership competencies. While well-orchestrated multicountry collaboration offers unique…

Comparative genomic analysis of Brazilian Leptospira kirschneri serogroup Pomona serovar Mozdok

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Luisa Z Moreno

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Leptospira kirschneri is one of the pathogenic species of the Leptospira genus. Human and animal infection from L. kirschneri gained further attention over the last few decades. Here we present the isolation and characterisation of Brazilian L. kirschneri serogroup Pomona serovar Mozdok strain M36/05 and the comparative genomic analysis with Brazilian human strain 61H. The M36/05 strain caused pulmonary hemorrhagic lesions in the hamster model, showing high virulence. The studied genomes presented high symmetrical identity and the in silico multilocus sequence typing analysis resulted in a new allelic profile (ST101 that so far has only been associated with the Brazilian L. kirschneri serogroup Pomona serovar Mozdok strains. Considering the environmental conditions and high genomic similarity observed between strains, we suggest the existence of a Brazilian L. kirschneri serogroup Pomona serovar Mozdok lineage that could represent a high public health risk; further studies are necessary to confirm the lineage significance and distribution.

Typing and comparative genome analysis of Brucella melitensis isolated from Lebanon.

Science.gov (United States)

Abou Zaki, Natalia; Salloum, Tamara; Osman, Marwan; Rafei, Rayane; Hamze, Monzer; Tokajian, Sima

2017-10-16

Brucella melitensis is the main causative agent of the zoonotic disease brucellosis. This study aimed at typing and characterizing genetic variation in 33 Brucella isolates recovered from patients in Lebanon. Bruce-ladder multiplex PCR and PCR-RFLP of omp31, omp2a and omp2b were performed. Sixteen representative isolates were chosen for draft-genome sequencing and analyzed to determine variations in virulence, resistance, genomic islands, prophages and insertion sequences. Comparative whole-genome single nucleotide polymorphism analysis was also performed. The isolates were confirmed to be B. melitensis. Genome analysis revealed multiple virulence determinants and efflux pumps. Genome comparisons and single nucleotide polymorphisms divided the isolates based on geographical distribution but revealed high levels of similarity between the strains. Sequence divergence in B. melitensis was mainly due to lateral gene transfer of mobile elements. This is the first report of an in-depth genomic characterization of B. melitensis in Lebanon. © FEMS 2017. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Thermo-economic comparative analysis of gas turbine GT10 integrated with air and steam bottoming cycle

Science.gov (United States)

Czaja, Daniel; Chmielnak, Tadeusz; Lepszy, Sebastian

2014-12-01

A thermodynamic and economic analysis of a GT10 gas turbine integrated with the air bottoming cycle is presented. The results are compared to commercially available combined cycle power plants based on the same gas turbine. The systems under analysis have a better chance of competing with steam bottoming cycle configurations in a small range of the power output capacity. The aim of the calculations is to determine the final cost of electricity generated by the gas turbine air bottoming cycle based on a 25 MW GT10 gas turbine with the exhaust gas mass flow rate of about 80 kg/s. The article shows the results of thermodynamic optimization of the selection of the technological structure of gas turbine air bottoming cycle and of a comparative economic analysis. Quantities are determined that have a decisive impact on the considered units profitability and competitiveness compared to the popular technology based on the steam bottoming cycle. The ultimate quantity that can be compared in the calculations is the cost of 1 MWh of electricity. It should be noted that the systems analyzed herein are power plants where electricity is the only generated product. The performed calculations do not take account of any other (potential) revenues from the sale of energy origin certificates. Keywords: Gas turbine air bottoming cycle, Air bottoming cycle, Gas turbine, GT10

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SILODOSIN AND TAMSULOSIN IN DISTAL URETERIC CALCULUS TREATMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Govind Sharma

2016-10-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND The urinary stone disease is one of the most common afflictions of the modern society and it has been described since antiquity with the westernisation of global culture. It has led to a lot of distress physically, mentally and financially to the affected individuals. Mini-invasive techniques like ESWL and ureteroscopy have their own negative aspects with discomfort to the patient being the prime in it. Hence, a need for conservative management in the form of pharmacotherapy has arisen in the past years and here we are investigating the same. The aim of the study is to compare the efficacy of silodosin (8 mg vs. tamsulosin (0.4 mg both in terms of the stone expulsion rate and the time to stone expulsion. MATERIALS AND METHODS A study comprising of 120 patients between the age group of 18-50 years with sonography-proven unilateral, uncomplicated lower ureteric calculus was undertaken from January 2015 to November 2015. Exclusion criteria were calculus more than or equal to 1 cm. Patients were divided in 2 Groups; Group A received silodosin 8 mg once daily for a month while Group B received tamsulosin 0.4 mg once daily. The patients were followed up weekly or biweekly with imaging studies. The endpoint was the stone expulsion rate and time, the rate of the interventions and the side effects. Settings and Design- With ethical committee clearance, a prospective study was conducted in the Department of Urology, Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, India. Statistical Analysis- The SPSS-16 software was used for the statistical analysis of the data. RESULTS Results of our analysis showed that Group A (silodosin patients were benefited more than Group B (tamsulosin and it was also backed by the data showing a statistical significance for spontaneous stone expulsion in favour of the silodosin group. CONCLUSION Hence, we concluded that silodosin’s efficacy in treating patients with distal ureteric calculus was much better when

Array comparative genomic hybridization and cytogenetic analysis in pediatric acute leukemias

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, A.J.; Yanofsky, R.; Vallente, R.; Bal, S.; Schroedter, I.; Liang, L.; Mai, S.

2011-01-01

Most patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia (all) are reported to have acquired chromosomal abnormalities in their leukemic bone marrow cells. Many established chromosome rearrangements have been described, and their associations with specific clinical, biologic, and prognostic features are well defined. However, approximately 30% of pediatric and 50% of adult patients with all do not have cytogenetic abnormalities of clinical significance. Despite significant improvements in outcome for pediatric all, therapy fails in approximately 25% of patients, and these failures often occur unpredictably in patients with a favorable prognosis and “good” cytogenetics at diagnosis. It is well known that karyotype analysis in hematologic malignancies, although genome-wide, is limited because of altered cell kinetics (mitotic rate), a propensity of leukemic blasts to undergo apoptosis in culture, overgrowth by normal cells, and chromosomes of poor quality in the abnormal clone. Array comparative genomic hybridization (acgh—“microarray”) has a greatly increased genomic resolution over classical cytogenetics. Cytogenetic microarray, which uses genomic dna, is a powerful tool in the analysis of unbalanced chromosome rearrangements, such as copy number gains and losses, and it is the method of choice when the mitotic index is low and the quality of metaphases is suboptimal. The copy number profile obtained by microarray is often called a “molecular karyotype.” In the present study, microarray was applied to 9 retrospective cases of pediatric all either with initial high-risk features or with at least 1 relapse. The conventional karyotype was compared to the “molecular karyotype” to assess abnormalities as interpreted by classical cytogenetics. Not only were previously undetected chromosome losses and gains identified by microarray, but several karyotypes interpreted by classical cytogenetics were shown to be discordant with the microarray results. The

Comparative Analysis of Disabled Accessibility Needs of Heritage Building in Perak

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Zahari Nurul Fadzila

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Tourism sector was the sixth highest national income provider to the Malaysian economy in 2014. In order to replenish Malaysian economy through tourism, the Malaysian government has to diversify the present tourism products and offers a wide variety of tourism packages. This has mentioned in the National Key Results Area (NKRA development platform highlighted in the 10th Malaysian Plan. Therefore, the tourism sector needs to continuously re-engineer and adapt its business model to suit every customer’s needs and demands, including disabled people. At the moment, one of the highest tourist attraction contributors in Malaysia is the heritage building sector. The heritage building sector in Malaysia becomes popular due to its diverse historical background and culture. It attracts local and international tourists to visit. However, the lack of facilities provided especially for the disable people has hindered its future prospects to become globally popular. The national heritage should be viewed, explored and enjoyed by everybody without discriminating anyone. Insufficient of provision for disable facilities in heritage act has caused barrier to the disable people to enjoy and visit the heritage sites. The objective of this research is to analyze the comparative data that been retrieved in the field of selected case study. It will be carried out by visiting the selected case study, observation and documentary analysis. This research aims to do a comparative analysis of Disabled Accessibility needs of Heritage Building in Perak. The findings of this research will alert the needs of disabled in visiting the heritage building and documented for future research.

Probabilistic Analysis for Comparing Fatigue Data Based on Johnson-Weibull Parameters

Science.gov (United States)

Vlcek, Brian L.; Hendricks, Robert C.; Zaretsky, Erwin V.

2013-01-01

Leonard Johnson published a methodology for establishing the confidence that two populations of data are different. Johnson's methodology is dependent on limited combinations of test parameters (Weibull slope, mean life ratio, and degrees of freedom) and a set of complex mathematical equations. In this report, a simplified algebraic equation for confidence numbers is derived based on the original work of Johnson. The confidence numbers calculated with this equation are compared to those obtained graphically by Johnson. Using the ratios of mean life, the resultant values of confidence numbers at the 99 percent level deviate less than 1 percent from those of Johnson. At a 90 percent confidence level, the calculated values differ between +2 and 4 percent. The simplified equation is used to rank the experimental lives of three aluminum alloys (AL 2024, AL 6061, and AL 7075), each tested at three stress levels in rotating beam fatigue, analyzed using the Johnson- Weibull method, and compared to the ASTM Standard (E739 91) method of comparison. The ASTM Standard did not statistically distinguish between AL 6061 and AL 7075. However, it is possible to rank the fatigue lives of different materials with a reasonable degree of statistical certainty based on combined confidence numbers using the Johnson- Weibull analysis. AL 2024 was found to have the longest fatigue life, followed by AL 7075, and then AL 6061. The ASTM Standard and the Johnson-Weibull analysis result in the same stress-life exponent p for each of the three aluminum alloys at the median, or L(sub 50), lives

Interactions of cisplatin analogues with lysozyme: a comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferraro, Giarita; De Benedictis, Ilaria; Malfitano, Annamaria; Morelli, Giancarlo; Novellino, Ettore; Marasco, Daniela

2017-10-01

The biophysical characterization of drug binding to proteins plays a key role in structural biology and in the discovery and optimization of drug discovery processes. The search for optimal combinations of biophysical techniques that can correctly and efficiently identify and quantify binding of metal-based drugs to their final target is challenging, due to the physicochemical properties of these agents. Different cisplatin derivatives have shown different citotoxicities in most common cancer lines, suggesting that they exert their biological activity via different mechanisms of action. Here we carried out a comparative analysis, by studying the behaviours of three Pt-compounds under the same experimental conditions and binding assays to properly deepen the determinants of the different MAOs. Indeed we compared the results obtained using surface plasmon resonance, isothermal titration calorimetry, fluorescence spectroscopy and thermal shift assays based on circular dichroism experiments in the characterization of the formation of adducts obtained upon reaction of cisplatin, carboplatin and iodinated analogue of cisplatin, cis-Pt (NH 3 ) 2 I 2 , with the model protein hen egg white lysozyme, both at neutral and acid pHs. Further we reasoned on the applicability of employed techniques for the study the thermodynamics and kinetics of the reaction of a metallodrug with a protein and to reveal which information can be obtained using a combination of these analyses. Data were discussed on the light of the existing structural data collected on the platinated protein.

Risk of maternal mortality in women with severe anaemia during pregnancy and post partum: a multilevel analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Daru, Jahnavi; Zamora, Javier; Fernández-Félix, Borja M; Vogel, Joshua; Oladapo, Olufemi T; Morisaki, Naho; Tunçalp, Özge; Torloni, Maria Regina; Mittal, Suneeta; Jayaratne, Kapila; Lumbiganon, Pisake; Togoobaatar, Ganchimeg; Thangaratinam, Shakila; Khan, Khalid S

2018-05-01

Anaemia affects as many as half of all pregnant women in low-income and middle-income countries, but the burden of disease and associated maternal mortality are not robustly quantified. We aimed to assess the association between severe anaemia and maternal death with data from the WHO Multicountry Survey on maternal and newborn health. We used multilevel and propensity score regression analyses to establish the relation between severe anaemia and maternal death in 359 health facilities in 29 countries across Latin America, Africa, the Western Pacific, eastern Mediterranean, and southeast Asia. Severe anaemia was defined as antenatal or postnatal haemoglobin concentrations of less than 70 g/L in a blood sample obtained before death. Maternal death was defined as death any time after admission until the seventh day post partum or discharge. In regression analyses, we adjusted for post-partum haemorrhage, general anaesthesia, admission to intensive care, sepsis, pre-eclampsia or eclampsia, thrombocytopenia, shock, massive transfusion, severe oliguria, failure to form clots, and severe acidosis as confounding variables. These variables were used to develop the propensity score. 312 281 women admitted in labour or with ectopic pregnancies were included in the adjusted multilevel logistic analysis, and 12 470 were included in the propensity score regression analysis. The adjusted odds ratio for maternal death in women with severe anaemia compared with those without severe anaemia was 2·36 (95% CI 1·60-3·48). In the propensity score analysis, severe anaemia was also associated with maternal death (adjusted odds ratio 1·86 [95% CI 1·39-2·49]). Prevention and treatment of anaemia during pregnancy and post partum should remain a global public health and research priority. Barts and the London Charity. Copyright This is an Open Access article published under the CC BY 3.0 IGO license which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium

The comparative analysis of dermatoscopy picture of lichen planus and psoriasis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sherstobitova K.Yu.

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Aim: analysis of different dermatoscopic patterns of lichen planus and psoriasis. Material and methods. We observed 80 patients: 40 with psoriasis, 40 — with lichen planus. Dermatoscopic study was conducted using video-dermatoscope of expert class "MoleMaxHD" (Derma Medical Systems company, Austria, under magnification from хЗО to x80. Results. Comparing the dermotoscopic findings of psoriatic plaque and lichen planus, vascular features were found to be more significant in psoriasis and in lichen planus non-vascular features were more prominant. Conclusion. Dermoscopy can be successfully used in differential diagnosis of these dermatoses.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF OXALIC ACID PRODUCED FROM RICE HUSK AND PADDY

OpenAIRE

P.I. Oghome; K.O.Amanze; C.I.O.Kamalu; A.C Nkwocha; S.O.Opebiyi

2012-01-01

In this research work, comparative analysis of Oxalic acid produced from Rice husk and Paddy was carried out in order to ascertain which waste sample produced a better yield. Nitric acid oxidation of carbohydrates was the method adopted in the production. The variable ratios of HNO3:H2SO4 used were 80:20, 70:30, 60:40, and 50:50. The variable ratio of 60:40 gave the maximum yield and at a maximum temperature of 75oC. Rice husk sample gave a percentage yield of 53.2, 64.4, 81.0, and 53.3 at te...

Comparative analysis of early ontogeny in Bursatella leachii and Aplysia californica

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Zer Vue

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Opisthobranch molluscs exhibit fascinating body plans associated with the evolution of shell loss in multiple lineages. Sea hares in particular are interesting because Aplysia californica is a well-studied model organism that offers a large suite of genetic tools. Bursatella leachii is a related tropical sea hare that lacks a shell as an adult and therefore lends itself to comparative analysis with A. californica. We have established an enhanced culturing procedure for B. leachii in husbandry that enabled the study of shell formation and loss in this lineage with respect to A. californica life staging.

Energy sources and nuclear energy. Comparative analysis and ethical reflections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoenraet, C.

1999-01-01

Under the authority of the episcopacy of Brugge in Belgium an independent working group Ethics and Nuclear Energy was set up. The purpose of the working group was to collect all the necessary information on existing energy sources and to carry out a comparative analysis of their impact on mankind and the environment. Also attention was paid to economical and social aspects. The results of the study are subjected to an ethical reflection. The book is aimed at politicians, teachers, journalists and every interested layman who wants to gain insight into the consequences of the use of nuclear energy and other energy sources. Based on the information in this book one should be able to objectively define one's position in future debates on this subject

Life Cycle Assessment of Bio-diesel Production—A Comparative Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Chatterjee, R.; Sharma, V.; Mukherjee, S.; Kumar, S.

2014-04-01

This work deals with the comparative analysis of environmental impacts of bio-diesel produced from Jatropha curcas, Rapeseed and Palm oil by applying the life cycle assessment and eco-efficiency concepts. The environmental impact indicators considered in the present paper include global warming potential (GWP, CO2 equivalent), acidification potential (AP, SO2 equivalent) and eutrophication potential (EP, NO3 equivalent). Different weighting techniques have been used to present and evaluate the environmental characteristics of bio-diesel. With the assistance of normalization values, the eco-efficiency was demonstrated in this work. The results indicate that the energy consumption of bio-diesel production is lowest in Jatropha while AP and EP are more in case of Jatropha than that of Rapeseed and Palm oil.

Building an international network for a primary care research program: reflections on challenges and solutions in the set-up and delivery of a prospective observational study of acute cough in 13 European countries

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Veen Robert ER

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Implementing a primary care clinical research study in several countries can make it possible to recruit sufficient patients in a short period of time that allows important clinical questions to be answered. Large multi-country studies in primary care are unusual and are typically associated with challenges requiring innovative solutions. We conducted a multi-country study and through this paper, we share reflections on the challenges we faced and some of the solutions we developed with a special focus on the study set up, structure and development of Primary Care Networks (PCNs. Method GRACE-01 was a multi-European country, investigator-driven prospective observational study implemented by 14 Primary Care Networks (PCNs within 13 European Countries. General Practitioners (GPs recruited consecutive patients with an acute cough. GPs completed a case report form (CRF and the patient completed a daily symptom diary. After study completion, the coordinating team discussed the phases of the study and identified challenges and solutions that they considered might be interesting and helpful to researchers setting up a comparable study. Results The main challenges fell within three domains as follows: i selecting, setting up and maintaining PCNs; ii designing local context-appropriate data collection tools and efficient data management systems; and iii gaining commitment and trust from all involved and maintaining enthusiasm. The main solutions for each domain were: i appointing key individuals (National Network Facilitator and Coordinator with clearly defined tasks, involving PCNs early in the development of study materials and procedures. ii rigorous back translations of all study materials and the use of information systems to closely monitor each PCNs progress; iii providing strong central leadership with high level commitment to the value of the study, frequent multi-method communication, establishing a coherent ethos

Gene Ontology-Based Analysis of Zebrafish Omics Data Using the Web Tool Comparative Gene Ontology.

Science.gov (United States)

Ebrahimie, Esmaeil; Fruzangohar, Mario; Moussavi Nik, Seyyed Hani; Newman, Morgan

2017-10-01

Gene Ontology (GO) analysis is a powerful tool in systems biology, which uses a defined nomenclature to annotate genes/proteins within three categories: "Molecular Function," "Biological Process," and "Cellular Component." GO analysis can assist in revealing functional mechanisms underlying observed patterns in transcriptomic, genomic, and proteomic data. The already extensive and increasing use of zebrafish for modeling genetic and other diseases highlights the need to develop a GO analytical tool for this organism. The web tool Comparative GO was originally developed for GO analysis of bacterial data in 2013 ( www.comparativego.com ). We have now upgraded and elaborated this web tool for analysis of zebrafish genetic data using GOs and annotations from the Gene Ontology Consortium.

Methods of international health technology assessment agencies for economic evaluations--a comparative analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Mathes, Tim; Jacobs, Esther; Morfeld, Jana-Carina; Pieper, Dawid

2013-09-30

The number of Health Technology Assessment (HTA) agencies increases. One component of HTAs are economic aspects. To incorporate economic aspects commonly economic evaluations are performed. A convergence of recommendations for methods of health economic evaluations between international HTA agencies would facilitate the adaption of results to different settings and avoid unnecessary expense. A first step in this direction is a detailed analysis of existing similarities and differences in recommendations to identify potential for harmonization. The objective is to provide an overview and comparison of the methodological recommendations of international HTA agencies for economic evaluations. The webpages of 127 international HTA agencies were searched for guidelines containing recommendations on methods for the preparation of economic evaluations. Additionally, the HTA agencies were requested information on methods for economic evaluations. Recommendations of the included guidelines were extracted in standardized tables according to 13 methodological aspects. All process steps were performed independently by two reviewers. Finally 25 publications of 14 HTA agencies were included in the analysis. Methods for economic evaluations vary widely. The greatest accordance could be found for the type of analysis and comparator. Cost-utility-analyses or cost-effectiveness-analyses are recommended. The comparator should continuously be usual care. Again the greatest differences were shown in the recommendations on the measurement/sources of effects, discounting and in the analysis of sensitivity. The main difference regarding effects is the focus either on efficacy or effectiveness. Recommended discounting rates range from 1.5%-5% for effects and 3%-5% for costs whereby it is mostly recommended to use the same rate for costs and effects. With respect to the analysis of sensitivity the main difference is that oftentimes the probabilistic or deterministic approach is recommended

COMPARABLE ANALYSIS REGARDING KEY MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS ON MOLDOVA’S WAY TOWARDS EUROPEAN INTEGRATION

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Valentina GANCIUCOV

2015-07-01

Full Text Available As Moldova has the purpose to enter the European Union the actual situation in the country is analyzed in this article. The article gives the comparative analysis of the basic parameters of Moldova with the other European Union country-members to define the ways of development of the country in the given direction. Since 1994 relations between Moldova and the European Union have developed on an upward trajectory. The dialogue between the two sides officially started that year with the signing of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA, which entered into force in 1998 and provided the basis for cooperation with the EU in political, commercial, economic, legal, cultural fields. EU-Moldova relations have advanced to a higher level in 2009 when the country participated in the Eastern Partnership – an instrument of European policy that favored the signing on 29 May 2013 of the Association Agreement, the document which came to replace previous PCA and that is currently the most important element of the legal framework of Moldova-EU dialogue. But beyond the respective treaties signed, individually, between EU and states that intend to join the European community, there are a number of fundamental requirements3 (criteria, which condition the process of European integration of the state with declared intentions of accession. The aim of the research is to analyze to what extent Moldovan economy meet the requirements of economic alignment with EU standards, achieving a comparative analysis of the main relevant macroeconomic indicators. Research methodology. For analysis were used analysis-synthesis method, comparison method and others. Results of the analysis. Part of the criteria analyzed converge with EU requirements, while the most relevant indicators regarding standards of living show reserves show reserves for future improvement, such as the average wage, the lending rate, the exchange rate of the Moldovan Leu against the major international

Methods for preparing comparative standards and field samples for neutron activation analysis of soil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glasgow, D.C.; Dyer, F.F.; Robinson, L.

1995-01-01

One of the more difficult problems associated with comparative neutron activation analysis (CNAA) is the preparation of standards which are tailor-made to the desired irradiation and counting conditions. Frequently, there simply is not a suitable standard available commercially, or the resulting gamma spectrum is convoluted with interferences. In a recent soil analysis project, the need arose for standards which contained about 35 elements. In response, a computer spreadsheet was developed to calculate the appropriate amount of each element so that the resulting gamma spectrum is relatively free of interferences. Incorporated in the program are options for calculating all of the irradiation and counting parameters including activity produced, necessary flux/bombardment time, counting time, and appropriate source-to-detector distance. The result is multi-element standards for CNAA which have optimal concentrations. The program retains ease of use without sacrificing capability. In addition to optimized standard production, a novel soil homogenization technique was developed which is a low cost, highly efficient alternative to commercially available homogenization systems. Comparative neutron activation analysis for large scale projects has been made easier through these advancements. This paper contains details of the design and function of the NAA spreadsheet and innovative sample handling techniques. (author) 7 refs.; 5 tabs

Methods for preparing comparative standards and field samples for neutron activation analysis of soil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glasgow, D.C.; Dyer, F.F.; Robinson, L.

1994-01-01

One of the more difficult problems associated with comparative neutron activation analysis (CNAA) is the preparation of standards which are tailor-made to the desired irradiation and counting conditions. Frequently, there simply is not a suitable standard available commercially, or the resulting gamma spectrum is convoluted with interferences. In a recent soil analysis project, the need arose for standards which contained about 35 elements. In response, a computer spreadsheet was developed to calculate the appropriate amount of each element so that the resulting gamma spectrum is relatively free of interferences. Incorporated in the program are options for calculating all of the irradiation and counting parameters including activity produced, necessary flux/bombardment time, counting time, and appropriate source-to-detector distance. The result is multi-element standards for CNAA which have optimal concentrations. The program retains ease of use without sacrificing capability. In addition to optimized standard production, a novel soil homogenization technique was developed which is a low cost, highly efficient alternative to commercially available homogenization systems. Comparative neutron activation analysis for large scale projects has been made easier through these advancements. This paper contains details of the design and function of the NAA spreadsheet and innovative sample handling techniques

European TBM for ITER: Structural material assessment and breeding capability - Comparative analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Herreras, Y.; Perlado, J.M.; Ibarra, A.

2007-01-01

Full text of publication follows: The ITER European Party is currently developing for DEMO reactor specifications two breeding blanket concepts: the Helium-Cooled Lithium-Lead blanket (HCLL), using a liquid breeder; and the Helium-Cooled Pebble-Bed blanket (HCPB), using a lithiated solid breeder. These two research lines are expected to be tested in ITER as Test Blanket Modules (TBM), in order to demonstrate their safety, economical and environmental suitability. In this sense, structural material activation and breeding blanket capability represent two major challenges. This paper presents new calculations regarding neutronic irradiation inside the ITER Vacuum Vessel. In particular, results are focused on the irradiation affecting the equatorial ports, where the TBM will be located for testing. The methodology employed mainly consists in calculating the neutronic irradiation levels at the required locations with the transport code MCNP, where the input geometry has been previously designed with the program CATIA V5. The main structural materials proposed for the European Test blanket Modules are selected in order to carry out a comparative analysis in safety terms: material activation and basic parameters for damage analysis are evaluated with the code ACAB, based on the neutronic irradiation results mentioned above. Finally, the breeding blanket capability is assessed for both breeding blanket concepts; the results are compared considering the choice of the structural material. (authors)

Attitudes and usage of denture adhesives by complete denture wearers: a survey in Greece and the Netherlands.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Polyzois, G.L.; Baat, C. de

2012-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To explore whether there are differences in usage of and attitudes towards denture adhesives among patients in two countries. BACKGROUND: There are no multi-country surveys concerning usage of and attitudes towards denture adhesives from complete denture wearers. MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Walking the village: LiveDiverse – Sustainable livelihoods and biodiversity in developing countries

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Nortje, Karen

2011-01-01

Full Text Available LiveDiverse is a multi-year, multi-country collaborative research project that focuses on the interface between livelihoods and biodiversity of people in rural communities who live in or in the vicinity of a biodiversity ‘hotspot’. Five villages...

Employment and Growth | Page 10 | IDRC - International ...

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

Read more about Fostering Entrepreneurship and Sustainable Livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Multi-country Policy Research and Capacity- Building Initiative. Language English. Read more about Moving Jobs to the Center Stage in Mexico: Case Study for World Development Report 2013. Language English.

Development and validation of multivariable models to predict mortality and hospitalization in patients with heart failure

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Voors, Adriaan A.; Ouwerkerk, Wouter; Zannad, Faiez; van Veldhuisen, Dirk J.; Samani, Nilesh J.; Ponikowski, Piotr; Ng, Leong L.; Metra, Marco; ter Maaten, Jozine M.; Lang, Chim C.; Hillege, Hans L.; van der Harst, Pim; Filippatos, Gerasimos; Dickstein, Kenneth; Cleland, John G.; Anker, Stefan D.; Zwinderman, Aeilko H.

Introduction From a prospective multicentre multicountry clinical trial, we developed and validated risk models to predict prospective all-cause mortality and hospitalizations because of heart failure (HF) in patients with HF. Methods and results BIOSTAT-CHF is a research programme designed to

Development and validation of multivariable models to predict mortality and hospitalization in patients with heart failure

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Voors, Adriaan A.; Ouwerkerk, Wouter; Zannad, Faiez; van Veldhuisen, Dirk J.; Samani, Nilesh J.; Ponikowski, Piotr; Ng, Leong L.; Metra, Marco; ter Maaten, Jozine M.; Lang, Chim C.; Hillege, Hans L.; van der Harst, Pim; Filippatos, Gerasimos; Dickstein, Kenneth; Cleland, John G.; Anker, Stefan D.; Zwinderman, Aeilko H.

2017-01-01

Introduction From a prospective multicentre multicountry clinical trial, we developed and validated risk models to predict prospective all-cause mortality and hospitalizations because of heart failure (HF) in patients with HF. Methods and results BIOSTAT-CHF is a research programme designed to

Mycobacterial species as case-study of comparative genome analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zakham, F.; Belayachi, L.; Ussery, David

2011-01-01

. Pasteur 1173P2, M. leprae Br4923, M. marinum M, M. sp. KMS, M. sp. MCS, M. tuberculosis CDC1551, M. tuberculosis F11, M. tuberculosis H37Ra, M. tuberculosis H37Rv, M. tuberculosis KZN 1435 , M. ulcerans Agy99,and M. vanbaalenii PYR—1, For this purpose a comparison has been done based on their length...... defined for twelve Mycobacterial species. We have also introduced the genome atlas of the reference strain M. tuberculosis H37Rv which can give a good overview of this genome. And for examining the phylogenetic relationships among these bacteria, a phylogenic tree has been constructed from 16S rRNA gene...... the evolutionary events of these species and improving drugs, vaccines, and diagnostics tools for controlling Mycobacterial diseases. In this present study we aim to outline a comparative genome analysis of fourteen Mycobacterial genomes: M. avium subsp. paratuberculosis K—10, M. bovis AF2122/97, M. bovis BCG str...

A Comparative Analysis of Classification Algorithms on Diverse Datasets

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M. Alghobiri

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Data mining involves the computational process to find patterns from large data sets. Classification, one of the main domains of data mining, involves known structure generalizing to apply to a new dataset and predict its class. There are various classification algorithms being used to classify various data sets. They are based on different methods such as probability, decision tree, neural network, nearest neighbor, boolean and fuzzy logic, kernel-based etc. In this paper, we apply three diverse classification algorithms on ten datasets. The datasets have been selected based on their size and/or number and nature of attributes. Results have been discussed using some performance evaluation measures like precision, accuracy, F-measure, Kappa statistics, mean absolute error, relative absolute error, ROC Area etc. Comparative analysis has been carried out using the performance evaluation measures of accuracy, precision, and F-measure. We specify features and limitations of the classification algorithms for the diverse nature datasets.

CoVennTree: A new method for the comparative analysis of large datasets

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Steffen C. Lott

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The visualization of massive datasets, such as those resulting from comparative metatranscriptome analyses or the analysis of microbial population structures using ribosomal RNA sequences, is a challenging task. We developed a new method called CoVennTree (Comparative weighted Venn Tree that simultaneously compares up to three multifarious datasets by aggregating and propagating information from the bottom to the top level and produces a graphical output in Cytoscape. With the introduction of weighted Venn structures, the contents and relationships of various datasets can be correlated and simultaneously aggregated without losing information. We demonstrate the suitability of this approach using a dataset of 16S rDNA sequences obtained from microbial populations at three different depths of the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea. CoVennTree has been integrated into the Galaxy ToolShed and can be directly downloaded and integrated into the user instance.

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS BETWEEN THE FUNDAMENTAL AND TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OF STOCKS

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Nada Petrusheva

2016-04-01

Full Text Available In the world of investing and trading, in order to have a definite advantage and constantly create profit, you need to have a strategic approach. Generally speaking, the two main schools of thought and strategies in financial markets are fundamental and technical analysis. Fundamental and technical analysis differ in several aspects, such as the way of functioning and execution, the time horizon used, the tools used and their objective. These differences lead to certain advantages and disadvantages of each of the analyses. Fundamental and technical analysis are also a subject of critical reviews by the academic and scientific community and many of these reviews concern the methods of their application, i.e. the possibility of combining the two analyses and using them complementarily to fully utilize their strengths and advantages.

Comparative transcriptome analysis of papilla and skin in the sea cucumber, Apostichopus japonicus.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Xiaoxu; Cui, Jun; Liu, Shikai; Kong, Derong; Sun, He; Gu, Chenlei; Wang, Hongdi; Qiu, Xuemei; Chang, Yaqing; Liu, Zhanjiang; Wang, Xiuli

2016-01-01

Papilla and skin are two important organs of the sea cucumber. Both tissues have ectodermic origin, but they are morphologically and functionally very different. In the present study, we performed comparative transcriptome analysis of the papilla and skin from the sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) in order to identify and characterize gene expression profiles by using RNA-Seq technology. We generated 30.6 and 36.4 million clean reads from the papilla and skin and de novo assembled in 156,501 transcripts. The Gene Ontology (GO) analysis indicated that cell part, metabolic process and catalytic activity were the most abundant GO category in cell component, biological process and molecular funcation, respectively. Comparative transcriptome analysis between the papilla and skin allowed the identification of 1,059 differentially expressed genes, of which 739 genes were expressed at higher levels in papilla, while 320 were expressed at higher levels in skin. In addition, 236 differentially expressed unigenes were not annotated with any database, 160 of which were apparently expressed at higher levels in papilla, 76 were expressed at higher levels in skin. We identified a total of 288 papilla-specific genes, 171 skin-specific genes and 600 co-expressed genes. Also, 40 genes in papilla-specific were not annotated with any database, 2 in skin-specific. Development-related genes were also enriched, such as fibroblast growth factor, transforming growth factor-β, collagen-α2 and Integrin-α2, which may be related to the formation of the papilla and skin in sea cucumber. Further pathway analysis identified ten KEGG pathways that were differently enriched between the papilla and skin. The findings on expression profiles between two key organs of the sea cucumber should be valuable to reveal molecular mechanisms involved in the development of organs that are related but with morphological differences in the sea cucumber.

Comparative transcriptome analysis of papilla and skin in the sea cucumber, Apostichopus japonicus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoxu Zhou

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Papilla and skin are two important organs of the sea cucumber. Both tissues have ectodermic origin, but they are morphologically and functionally very different. In the present study, we performed comparative transcriptome analysis of the papilla and skin from the sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus in order to identify and characterize gene expression profiles by using RNA-Seq technology. We generated 30.6 and 36.4 million clean reads from the papilla and skin and de novo assembled in 156,501 transcripts. The Gene Ontology (GO analysis indicated that cell part, metabolic process and catalytic activity were the most abundant GO category in cell component, biological process and molecular funcation, respectively. Comparative transcriptome analysis between the papilla and skin allowed the identification of 1,059 differentially expressed genes, of which 739 genes were expressed at higher levels in papilla, while 320 were expressed at higher levels in skin. In addition, 236 differentially expressed unigenes were not annotated with any database, 160 of which were apparently expressed at higher levels in papilla, 76 were expressed at higher levels in skin. We identified a total of 288 papilla-specific genes, 171 skin-specific genes and 600 co-expressed genes. Also, 40 genes in papilla-specific were not annotated with any database, 2 in skin-specific. Development-related genes were also enriched, such as fibroblast growth factor, transforming growth factor-β, collagen-α2 and Integrin-α2, which may be related to the formation of the papilla and skin in sea cucumber. Further pathway analysis identified ten KEGG pathways that were differently enriched between the papilla and skin. The findings on expression profiles between two key organs of the sea cucumber should be valuable to reveal molecular mechanisms involved in the development of organs that are related but with morphological differences in the sea cucumber.

Exploring the Use of Cost-Benefit Analysis to Compare Pharmaceutical Treatments for Menorrhagia.

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Sanghera, Sabina; Frew, Emma; Gupta, Janesh Kumar; Kai, Joe; Roberts, Tracy Elizabeth

2015-09-01

The extra-welfarist theoretical framework tends to focus on health-related quality of life, whilst the welfarist framework captures a wider notion of well-being. EQ-5D and SF-6D are commonly used to value outcomes in chronic conditions with episodic symptoms, such as heavy menstrual bleeding (clinically termed menorrhagia). Because of their narrow-health focus and the condition's periodic nature these measures may be unsuitable. A viable alternative measure is willingness to pay (WTP) from the welfarist framework. We explore the use of WTP in a preliminary cost-benefit analysis comparing pharmaceutical treatments for menorrhagia. A cost-benefit analysis was carried out based on an outcome of WTP. The analysis is based in the UK primary care setting over a 24-month time period, with a partial societal perspective. Ninety-nine women completed a WTP exercise from the ex-ante (pre-treatment/condition) perspective. Maximum average WTP values were elicited for two pharmaceutical treatments, levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system (LNG-IUS) and oral treatment. Cost data were offset against WTP and the net present value derived for treatment. Qualitative information explaining the WTP values was also collected. Oral treatment was indicated to be the most cost-beneficial intervention costing £107 less than LNG-IUS and generating £7 more benefits. The mean incremental net present value for oral treatment compared with LNG-IUS was £113. The use of the WTP approach was acceptable as very few protests and non-responses were observed. The preliminary cost-benefit analysis results recommend oral treatment as the first-line treatment for menorrhagia. The WTP approach is a feasible alternative to the conventional EQ-5D/SF-6D approaches and offers advantages by capturing benefits beyond health, which is particularly relevant in menorrhagia.

Comparative analysis of fungal genomes reveals different plant cell wall degrading capacity in fungi

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2013-01-01

Background Fungi produce a variety of carbohydrate activity enzymes (CAZymes) for the degradation of plant polysaccharide materials to facilitate infection and/or gain nutrition. Identifying and comparing CAZymes from fungi with different nutritional modes or infection mechanisms may provide information for better understanding of their life styles and infection models. To date, over hundreds of fungal genomes are publicly available. However, a systematic comparative analysis of fungal CAZymes across the entire fungal kingdom has not been reported. Results In this study, we systemically identified glycoside hydrolases (GHs), polysaccharide lyases (PLs), carbohydrate esterases (CEs), and glycosyltransferases (GTs) as well as carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs) in the predicted proteomes of 103 representative fungi from Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, Chytridiomycota, and Zygomycota. Comparative analysis of these CAZymes that play major roles in plant polysaccharide degradation revealed that fungi exhibit tremendous diversity in the number and variety of CAZymes. Among them, some families of GHs and CEs are the most prevalent CAZymes that are distributed in all of the fungi analyzed. Importantly, cellulases of some GH families are present in fungi that are not known to have cellulose-degrading ability. In addition, our results also showed that in general, plant pathogenic fungi have the highest number of CAZymes. Biotrophic fungi tend to have fewer CAZymes than necrotrophic and hemibiotrophic fungi. Pathogens of dicots often contain more pectinases than fungi infecting monocots. Interestingly, besides yeasts, many saprophytic fungi that are highly active in degrading plant biomass contain fewer CAZymes than plant pathogenic fungi. Furthermore, analysis of the gene expression profile of the wheat scab fungus Fusarium graminearum revealed that most of the CAZyme genes related to cell wall degradation were up-regulated during plant infection. Phylogenetic analysis also

Cost minimisation analysis of using acellular dermal matrix (Strattice™) for breast reconstruction compared with standard techniques.

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Johnson, R K; Wright, C K; Gandhi, A; Charny, M C; Barr, L

2013-03-01

We performed a cost analysis (using UK 2011/12 NHS tariffs as a proxy for cost) comparing immediate breast reconstruction using the new one-stage technique of acellular dermal matrix (Strattice™) with implant versus the standard alternative techniques of tissue expander (TE)/implant as a two-stage procedure and latissimus dorsi (LD) flap reconstruction. Clinical report data were collected for operative time, length of stay, outpatient procedures, and number of elective and emergency admissions in our first consecutive 24 patients undergoing one-stage Strattice reconstruction. Total cost to the NHS based on tariff, assuming top-up payments to cover Strattice acquisition costs, was assessed and compared to the two historical control groups matched on key variables. Eleven patients having unilateral Strattice reconstruction were compared to 10 having TE/implant reconstruction and 10 having LD flap and implant reconstruction. Thirteen patients having bilateral Strattice reconstruction were compared to 12 having bilateral TE/implant reconstruction. Total costs were: unilateral Strattice, £3685; unilateral TE, £4985; unilateral LD and implant, £6321; bilateral TE, £5478; and bilateral Strattice, £6771. The cost analysis shows a financial advantage of using acellular dermal matrix (Strattice) in unilateral breast reconstruction versus alternative procedures. The reimbursement system in England (Payment by Results) is based on disease-related groups similar to that of many countries across Europe and tariffs are based on reported hospital costs, making this analysis of relevance in other countries. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Meta-analysis of studies comparing oncologic outcomes of radical prostatectomy and brachytherapy for localized prostate cancer.

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Cozzi, Gabriele; Musi, Gennaro; Bianchi, Roberto; Bottero, Danilo; Brescia, Antonio; Cioffi, Antonio; Cordima, Giovanni; Delor, Maurizio; Di Trapani, Ettore; Ferro, Matteo; Matei, Deliu Victor; Russo, Andrea; Mistretta, Francesco Alessandro; De Cobelli, Ottavio

2017-11-01

The aim of this study was to compare oncologic outcomes of radical prostatectomy (RP) with brachytherapy (BT). A literature review was conducted according to the 'Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses' (PRISMA) statement. We included studies reporting comparative oncologic outcomes of RP versus BT for localized prostate cancer (PCa). From each comparative study, we extracted the study design, the number and features of the included patients, and the oncologic outcomes expressed as all-cause mortality (ACM), PCa-specific mortality (PCSM) or, when the former were unavailable, as biochemical recurrence (BCR). All of the data retrieved from the selected studies were recorded in an electronic database. Cumulative analysis was conducted using the Review Manager version 5.3 software, designed for composing Cochrane Reviews (Cochrane Collaboration, Oxford, UK). Statistical heterogeneity was tested using the Chi-square test. Our cumulative analysis did not show any significant difference in terms of BCR, ACM or PCSM rates between the RP and BT cohorts. Only three studies reported risk-stratified outcomes of intermediate- and high-risk patients, which are the most prone to treatment failure. our analysis suggested that RP and BT may have similar oncologic outcomes. However, the analysis included a limited number of studies, and most of them were retrospective, making it impossible to derive any definitive conclusion, especially for intermediate- and high-risk patients. In this scenario, appropriate urologic counseling remains of utmost importance.

Albendazole versus praziquantel in the treatment of neurocysticercosis: a meta-analysis of comparative trials.

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Dimitrios K Matthaiou

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Neurocysticercosis, infection of the brain with larvae of Taenia solium (pork tapeworm, is one of several forms of human cysticercosis caused by this organism. We investigated the role of albendazole and praziquantel in the treatment of patients with parenchymal neurocysticercosis by performing a meta-analysis of comparative trials of their effectiveness and safety. METHODS AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We performed a search in the PubMed database, Cochrane Database of Controlled Trials, and in references of relevant articles. Six studies were included in the meta-analysis. Albendazole was associated with better control of seizures than praziquantel in the pooled data analysis, when the generic inverse variance method was used to combine the incidence of seizure control in the included trials (patients without seizures/[patients x years at risk] (156 patients in 4 studies, point effect estimate [incidence rate ratio] = 4.94, 95% confidence interval 2.45-9.98. In addition, albendazole was associated with better effectiveness than praziquantel in the total disappearance of cysts (335 patients in 6 studies, random effects model, OR = 2.30, 95% CI 1.06-5.00. There was no difference between albendazole and praziquantel in reduction of cysts, proportion of patients with adverse events, and development of intracranial hypertension due to the administered therapy. CONCLUSIONS: A critical review of the available data from comparative trials suggests that albendazole is more effective than praziquantel regarding clinically important outcomes in patients with neurocysticercosis. Nevertheless, given the relative scarcity of trials, more comparative interventional studies--especially randomized controlled trials--are required to draw a safe conclusion about the best regimen for the treatment of patients with parenchymal neurocysticercosis.

Evaluation of aortic valve stenosis by cardiac multislice computed tomography compared with echocardiography: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Abdulla, Jawdat; Sivertsen, Jacob; Kofoed, Klaus Fuglsang

2009-01-01

a systematic literature review and meta-analysis, was to explore whether MSCT is a reliable method for AVA quantification, and simultaneously to assess the coronary anatomy in patients with AVS. METHODS: A comprehensive systematic literature search and meta-analysis was conducted that included 14 studies...... totaling 470 patients. The meta-analysis was carried out to examine the reliability of MSCT compared to transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). Seven studies including 266 patients with AVS were also eligible for a secondary analysis to compare the accuracy of MSCT...... was concordant with planimetry by TEE, with a small bias of -0.02 (95% CI -0.16, 0.11) cm2 (p = 0.71). MSCT, when compared to invasive angiography for the detection of significant coronary stenosis, showed sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic odds ratio of 95.5% (95% CI 88-99), 81% (95% CI 75-86)%, and 53 (95...

Clinical utility of an array comparative genomic hybridization analysis for Williams syndrome.

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Yagihashi, Tatsuhiko; Torii, Chiharu; Takahashi, Reiko; Omori, Mikimasa; Kosaki, Rika; Yoshihashi, Hiroshi; Ihara, Masahiro; Minagawa-Kawai, Yasuyo; Yamamoto, Junichi; Takahashi, Takao; Kosaki, Kenjiro

2014-11-01

To reveal the relation between intellectual disability and the deleted intervals in Williams syndrome, we performed an array comparative genomic hybridization analysis and standardized developmental testing for 11 patients diagnosed as having Williams syndrome based on fluorescent in situ hybridization testing. One patient had a large 4.2-Mb deletion spanning distally beyond the common 1.5-Mb intervals observed in 10/11 patients. We formulated a linear equation describing the developmental age of the 10 patients with the common deletion; the developmental age of the patient with the 4.2-Mb deletion was significantly below the expectation (developmental age = 0.51 × chronological age). The large deletion may account for the severe intellectual disability; therefore, the use of array comparative genomic hybridization may provide practical information regarding individuals with Williams syndrome. © 2014 Japanese Teratology Society.

Textbooks in transitional countries: Towards a methodology for comparative analysis

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Miha Kovač

2004-01-01

Full Text Available In its first part, the paper analyses the ambiguous nature of the book as a medium: its physical production and its distribution to the end user takes place on a market basis; on the other hand, its content is predominantly consumed in a sector that was at least in the continental Europe traditionally considered as public and non-profit making. This ambiguous nature of the book and with it the impact of the market on the organization of knowledge in book format remains a dark spot in contemporary book research. On the other hand, textbooks are considered as ephemera both in contemporary education and book studies. Therefore, research on textbooks publishing models could be considered as a blind-spot of contemporary social studies. As a consequence, in the majority of European countries, textbook publishing and the organization of the textbook market are considered as self-evident. Throughout a comparative analysis of textbook publishing models in small transitional and developed countries, the paper points out that this self-evident organization of the textbook market is always culturally determined. In its final part, the paper compares different models of textbook publishing and outlines the scenarios for the development of the Slovene textbook market.

Comparative analysis reveals the underlying mechanism of vertebrate seasonal reproduction.

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Ikegami, Keisuke; Yoshimura, Takashi

2016-02-01

Animals utilize photoperiodic changes as a calendar to regulate seasonal reproduction. Birds have highly sophisticated photoperiodic mechanisms and functional genomics analysis in quail uncovered the signal transduction pathway regulating avian seasonal reproduction. Birds detect light with deep brain photoreceptors. Long day (LD) stimulus induces secretion of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) from the pars tuberalis (PT) of the pituitary gland. PT-derived TSH locally activates thyroid hormone (TH) in the hypothalamus, which induces gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and hence gonadotropin secretion. However, during winter, low temperatures increase serum TH for adaptive thermogenesis, which accelerates germ cell apoptosis by activating the genes involved in metamorphosis. Therefore, TH has a dual role in the regulation of seasonal reproduction. Studies using TSH receptor knockout mice confirmed the involvement of PT-derived TSH in mammalian seasonal reproduction. In addition, studies in mice revealed that the tissue-specific glycosylation of TSH diversifies its function in the circulation to avoid crosstalk. In contrast to birds and mammals, one of the molecular machineries necessary for the seasonal reproduction of fish are localized in the saccus vasculosus from the photoreceptor to the neuroendocrine output. Thus, comparative analysis is a powerful tool to uncover the universality and diversity of fundamental properties in various organisms. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparative tolerability of treatments for acute migraine: A network meta-analysis.

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Thorlund, Kristian; Toor, Kabirraaj; Wu, Ping; Chan, Keith; Druyts, Eric; Ramos, Elodie; Bhambri, Rahul; Donnet, Anne; Stark, Richard; Goadsby, Peter J

2017-09-01

Introduction Migraine headache is a neurological disorder whose attacks are associated with nausea, vomiting, photophobia and phonophobia. Treatments for migraine aim to either prevent attacks before they have started or relieve attacks (abort) after onset of symptoms and range from complementary therapies to pharmacological interventions. A number of treatment-related adverse events such as somnolence, fatigue, and chest discomfort have previously been reported in association with triptans. The comparative tolerability of available agents for the abortive treatment of migraine attacks has not yet been systematically reviewed and quantified. Methods We performed a systematic literature review and Bayesian network meta-analysis for comparative tolerability of treatments for migraine. The literature search targeted all randomized controlled trials evaluating oral abortive treatments for acute migraine over a range of available doses in adults. The primary outcomes of interest were any adverse event, treatment-related adverse events, and serious adverse events. Secondary outcomes were fatigue, dizziness, chest discomfort, somnolence, nausea, and vomiting. Results Our search yielded 141 trials covering 15 distinct treatments. Of the triptans, sumatriptan, eletriptan, rizatriptan, zolmitriptan, and the combination treatment of sumatriptan and naproxen were associated with a statistically significant increase in odds of any adverse event or a treatment-related adverse event occurring compared with placebo. Of the non-triptans, only acetaminophen was associated with a statistically significant increase in odds of an adverse event occurring when compared with placebo. Overall, triptans were not associated with increased odds of serious adverse events occurring and the same was the case for non-triptans. For the secondary outcomes, with the exception of vomiting, all triptans except for almotriptan and frovatriptan were significantly associated with increased risk for all

Culture and health reporting: a comparative content analysis of newspapers in the United States and China.

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Tang, Lu; Peng, Wei

2015-01-01

Health reporting has the potential to educate the public and promote health behaviors. Culture influences the style of such communication. Following the theorization of national cultures by Hofstede and Hofstede (2005) and Wilber (2000), this study compares health reporting in the United States and China through a content analysis of leading newspapers. The authors discover significant differences in health reporting in terms of controllability attribution, temporal orientation, citation of authority sources, and use of statistics. As one of the first comparative content analysis studies of health reporting in Eastern and Western cultures, this study provides a unique cultural lens for health communication scholars to better understand health information in the news media.

Comparative analysis of functional food producers' profitability in Serbia: A leader-follower relation

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Draganac Dragana

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The functional food market in Serbia is relatively young and insufficiently explored both from the aspects of producers and consumers, the qualitative aspect and especially from the quantitative aspect. The aim of this paper is to illustrate the results of the comprehensive quantitative financial analysis of profitability which focuses on the example of two companies. The main criterion applied in the selection of companies for the analysis represents the fact that one company is recognizable as a producer of foods with nutritive and health claims and is a leader within that market segment, whereas the other analyzed company mostly produces traditional products and has entered the aforementioned market segment at a later stage. The key idea is to do a comparative analysis of the profitability of these two companies for a four-year period. The profitability ratio analysis and the Du Pont analysis system are used in the paper as well as the analysis of solvency and financial leverage effect. The vertical analysis of income statement is also done in order to reveal the relation between some cost categories and operating revenues. The research results lead to a conclusion that the company that mostly produces functional foods has higher profit margins and rates of return and is therefore in a more favourable position since it can benefit from positive effects of financial leverage to a higher extent. The profitability of the second relevant company is mostly based on the better asset turnover.