FINDING SOLUTIONS AT THE WEST VALLEY DEMONSTRATION PROJECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Drake, John L.; Gramling, James M.; Houston, Helene M.

2003-01-01

The United States Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (DOE-EM) faces a number of sizeable challenges as it begins to transform its mission from managing risk to reducing and eliminating risk throughout the DOE Complex. One of the greatest challenges being addressed by DOE-EM as this transformation takes place is accelerating the deactivation and decommissioning of thousands of facilities within the DOE Complex that were once used to support nuclear-related programs and projects. These facilities are now unused and aging. Finding solutions to complete the cleanup of these aging facilities more safely, efficiently, and effectively while reducing costs is critical to successfully meeting DOE-EM's cleanup challenge. The Large-Scale Demonstration and Deployment Project (LSDDP) of Hot Cells at the West Valley Demonstration Project (WVDP) is a near-term project funded through the DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory (DOE-NETL) for the specific purpose of identifying, evaluating, demonstrating, and deploying commercially available technologies that are capable of streamlining the cleanup of hot cells in unused facilities while improving worker safety. Two DOE project sites are participating in this LSDDP: the WVDP site in West Valley, New York and the Hanford River Corridor Project (RCP) site in Richland, Washington. The WVDP site serves as the host site for the project. Technologies considered for demonstration and potential deployment at both LSDDP sites are targeted for application in hot cells that require the use of remote and semi-remote techniques to conduct various cleanup-related activities because of high radiation or high contamination levels. These hot cells, the type of cleanup activities being conducted, and technologies selected for demonstration are the main topics discussed in this paper. The range of cleanup-related activities addressed include in-situ characterization, size-reduction, contamination control, decontamination, in

75 FR 73059 - Record of Decision and Floodplain Statement of Findings for the Cushman Hydroelectric Project...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-29

... Floodplain Statement of Findings for the Cushman Hydroelectric Project, Mason County, Washington... Project in Mason County, Washington. These components include a new 3.6 megawatt (MW) powerhouse on the... components of the Cushman Hydroelectric Project in Mason County, Washington. These components include a new 3...

Impact of problem finding on the quality of authentic open inquiry science research projects

Science.gov (United States)

Labanca, Frank

2008-11-01

Problem finding is a creative process whereby individuals develop original ideas for study. Secondary science students who successfully participate in authentic, novel, open inquiry studies must engage in problem finding to determine viable and suitable topics. This study examined problem finding strategies employed by students who successfully completed and presented the results of their open inquiry research at the 2007 Connecticut Science Fair and the 2007 International Science and Engineering Fair. A multicase qualitative study was framed through the lenses of creativity, inquiry strategies, and situated cognition learning theory. Data were triangulated by methods (interviews, document analysis, surveys) and sources (students, teachers, mentors, fair directors, documents). The data demonstrated that the quality of student projects was directly impacted by the quality of their problem finding. Effective problem finding was a result of students using resources from previous, specialized experiences. They had a positive self-concept and a temperament for both the creative and logical perspectives of science research. Successful problem finding was derived from an idiosyncratic, nonlinear, and flexible use and understanding of inquiry. Finally, problem finding was influenced and assisted by the community of practicing scientists, with whom the students had an exceptional ability to communicate effectively. As a result, there appears to be a juxtaposition of creative and logical/analytical thought for open inquiry that may not be present in other forms of inquiry. Instructional strategies are suggested for teachers of science research students to improve the quality of problem finding for their students and their subsequent research projects.

Fibroadenomas of the breast showing an ill-defined margin on ultrasonogram: Correlation with histopathologic findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, Ji Young; Choi, Hye Young; Shim, Sung Shine; Rhee, Chung Sik; Sung, Soon Hee

2002-01-01

To correlate the sonographic finding of ill-defined fibroadenoma with the histopathologic findings. Sonographic finding of forty nine surgically proven fibroadenomas were retrospectively correlated with histopathologic findings. We evaluated sonographic findings including the margin, shape, size and the echotexture of fibroadenoma. The histopathologic glandular structure, stromal type of fibroadenoma, type of the surrounding breast tissue and presence of interdigitation between fibroadenoma and the surrounding breast tissue were pathologically reviewed and analyzed statistically. Breast sonography of fibroadenomas demonstrated well-defined margin in 28 (57%) and ill-defined margin in 21 (43%) among 49 lesions. Histopathologically, the glandular structure and type of the surrounding breast tissue were not significantly different between well-defined and ill-defined fibroadenomas. The stromal type of fibroadenoma was sclerotic in 8 (29%) well-defined fibroadenomas while sclerotic in 15 (72%) of 21 ill-defined fibroadenomas,showing difference with a statistical significance between well-defined and ill-defined fibroadenomas (p<0.05). Twenty (71%) of 28 fibroadenomas with well-defined sonographic margins showed well-defined border between mass and the surrounding breast tissue, pathologically. Meanwhile, twenty (95%) of 21 fibroadenomas with ill-defined sonographic margins demonstrated interdigitation of the surrounding breast tissue and mass, exhibiting a statistical significance (p<0.005). Ill-defined margins of fibroadenomas on sonography represent the interdigitation of the surrounding breast tissue with a mass and is seen in the sclerotic stromal type of fibroadenomas.

Fibroadenomas of the breast showing an ill-defined margin on ultrasonogram: Correlation with histopathologic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hwang, Ji Young; Choi, Hye Young; Shim, Sung Shine; Rhee, Chung Sik; Sung, Soon Hee [Ewha Womans University College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2002-12-15

To correlate the sonographic finding of ill-defined fibroadenoma with the histopathologic findings. Sonographic finding of forty nine surgically proven fibroadenomas were retrospectively correlated with histopathologic findings. We evaluated sonographic findings including the margin, shape, size and the echotexture of fibroadenoma. The histopathologic glandular structure, stromal type of fibroadenoma, type of the surrounding breast tissue and presence of interdigitation between fibroadenoma and the surrounding breast tissue were pathologically reviewed and analyzed statistically. Breast sonography of fibroadenomas demonstrated well-defined margin in 28 (57%) and ill-defined margin in 21 (43%) among 49 lesions. Histopathologically, the glandular structure and type of the surrounding breast tissue were not significantly different between well-defined and ill-defined fibroadenomas. The stromal type of fibroadenoma was sclerotic in 8 (29%) well-defined fibroadenomas while sclerotic in 15 (72%) of 21 ill-defined fibroadenomas,showing difference with a statistical significance between well-defined and ill-defined fibroadenomas (p<0.05). Twenty (71%) of 28 fibroadenomas with well-defined sonographic margins showed well-defined border between mass and the surrounding breast tissue, pathologically. Meanwhile, twenty (95%) of 21 fibroadenomas with ill-defined sonographic margins demonstrated interdigitation of the surrounding breast tissue and mass, exhibiting a statistical significance (p<0.005). Ill-defined margins of fibroadenomas on sonography represent the interdigitation of the surrounding breast tissue with a mass and is seen in the sclerotic stromal type of fibroadenomas.

[From Science to Law: Findings of Reha XI Project on Ascertaining the Need for Rehabilitation in Medical Service Assessments].

Science.gov (United States)

Kalwitzki, T; Huter, K; Runte, R; Breuninger, K; Janatzek, S; Gronemeyer, S; Gansweid, B; Rothgang, H

2017-03-01

Introduction: In the broad-based consortium project "Reha XI - Identifying rehabilitative requirements in medical service assessments: evaluation and implementation", a comprehensive analysis of the corresponding procedures was carried out by the medical services of the German Health Insurance Funds (MDK). On the basis of this analysis, a Good Practice Standard (GPS) for assessments was drawn up and scientifically evaluated. This article discusses the findings and applicability of the GPS as the basis for a nationwide standardized procedure in Germany as required by the Second Act to Strengthen Long-Term Care (PSG II) under Vol. XI Para. 18 (6) of the German Social Welfare Code. Method: The consortium project comprised four project phases: 1. Qualitative and quantitative situation analysis of the procedures for ascertaining rehabilitative needs in care assessments carried out by the MDK; 2. Development of a Good Practice Standard (GPS) in a structured, consensus-based procedure; 3. Scientific evaluation of the validity, reliability and practicability of the assessment procedure according to the GPS in the MDK's operational practice; 4. Survey of long-term care insurance funds with respect to the appropriateness of the rehabilitation recommendations drawn up by care assessors in line with the GPS for providing a qualified recommendation for the applicant. The evaluation carried out in the third project phase was subject to methodological limitations that may have given rise to distortions in the findings. Findings: On the basis of the situation analysis, 7 major thematic areas were identified in which improvements were implemented by applying the GPS. For the evaluation of the GPS, a total of 3 247 applicants were assessed in line with the GPS; in 6.3% of the applicants, an indication for medical rehabilitation was determined. The GPS procedure showed a high degree of reliability and practicability, but the values for the validity of the assessment procedure were

Prevalence of incidental findings on magnetic resonance imaging: Cuban project to map the human brain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hernandez Gonzalez, Gertrudis de los Angeles; Alvarez Sanchez, Marilet; Jordan Gonzalez, Jose

2010-01-01

To determine the prevalence of incidental findings in healthy subjects of the Cuban Human Brain Mapping Project sample, it was performed a retrospective descriptive study of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) obtained from 394 healthy subjects that make up the sample of the project, between 2006-2007, with an age range of 18 to 68 years (mean 33,12), of which 269 (68,27 %) are male and 125 (31,73 %) are women. It was shown that 40,36 % had one or more anomaly in the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In total, the number of incidental findings was 188, 23,6 % of which were brain findings and 24,11 % were non-brain findings, among the latter, were the sinusopathy with 20,81 % and maxillary polyps with 3,30 %. The most prevalent brain findings were: intrasellar arachnoidocele, 11,93 %, followed by the prominence of the pituitary gland, 5,84 %, ventricular asymmetry, 1,77 % and bone defects, 1,02 %. Other brain abnormalities found with very low prevalence had no pathological significance, except for two cases with brain tumor, which were immediately sent to a specialist. Incidental findings in MRI are common in the general population (40,36 %), being the sinusopathy, and intrasellar arachnoidocele the most common findings. Asymptomatic individuals who have any type of structural abnormality provide invaluable information on the prevalence of these abnormalities in a presumably healthy population, which may be used as references for epidemiological studies

Clustering ERP implementation project activities: a foundation for project size definition

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssens, G.; Kusters, R.J.; Heemstra, F.J.; Sadiq, A.; Reichert, M.; Schultz, K.; Trienekens, J.J.M.; Moller, C.; Kusters, R.J.

2007-01-01

The size of an ERP project can be a useful measurement for predicting the effort needed to complete an ERP implementation project. Because this measurement does not exist, research is needed to find a set of variables which can define the size of an ERP implementation project. This paper shows 21

Housing First for People With Severe Mental Illness Who Are Homeless: A Review of the Research and Findings From the At Home–Chez soi Demonstration Project

Science.gov (United States)

Aubry, Tim; Nelson, Geoffrey; Tsemberis, Sam

2015-01-01

Objective: To provide a review of the extant research literature on Housing First (HF) for people with severe mental illness (SMI) who are homeless and to describe the findings of the recently completed At Home (AH)–Chez soi (CS) demonstration project. HF represents a paradigm shift in the delivery of community mental health services, whereby people with SMI who are homeless are supported through assertive community treatment or intensive case management to move into regular housing. Method: The AH–CS demonstration project entailed a randomized controlled trial conducted in 5 Canadian cities between 2009 and 2013. Mixed methods were used to examine the implementation of HF programs and participant outcomes, comparing 1158 people receiving HF to 990 people receiving standard care. Results: Initial research conducted in the United States shows HF to be a promising approach, yielding superior outcomes in helping people to rapidly exit homelessness and establish stable housing. Findings from the AH–CS demonstration project reveal that HF can be successfully adapted to different contexts and for different populations without losing its fidelity. People receiving HF achieved superior housing outcomes and showed more rapid improvements in community functioning and quality of life than those receiving treatment as usual. Conclusions: Knowledge translation efforts have been undertaken to disseminate the positive findings and lessons learned from the AH–CS project and to scale up the HF approach across Canada. PMID:26720504

Regional Transmission Projects: Finding Solutions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

The Keystone Center

2005-06-15

The Keystone Center convened and facilitated a year-long Dialogue on "Regional Transmission Projects: Finding Solutions" to develop recommendations that will help address the difficult and contentious issues related to expansions of regional electric transmission systems that are needed for reliable and economic transmission of power within and across regions. This effort brought together a cross-section of affected stakeholders and thought leaders to address the problem with the collective wisdom of their experience and interests. Transmission owners sat at the table with consumer advocates and environmental organizations. Representatives from regional transmission organizations exchanged ideas with state and federal regulators. Generation developers explored common interests with public power suppliers. Together, the Dialogue participants developed consensus solutions about how to begin unraveling some of the more intractable issues surrounding identification of need, allocation of costs, and reaching consensus on siting issues that can frustrate the development of regional transmission infrastructure. The recommendations fall into three broad categories: 1. Recommendations on appropriate institutional arrangements and processes for achieving regional consensus on the need for new or expanded transmission infrastructure 2. Recommendations on the process for siting of transmission lines 3. Recommendations on the tools needed to support regional planning, cost allocation, and siting efforts. List of Dialogue participants: List of Dialogue Participants: American Electric Power American Transmission Company American Wind Energy Association California ISO Calpine Corporation Cinergy Edison Electric Institute Environmental Defense Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Great River Energy International Transmission Company ISO-New England Iowa Public Utility Board Kanner & Associates Midwest ISO National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners National Association

Project Temporalities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tryggestad, Kjell; Justesen, Lise; Mouritsen, Jan

2013-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how animals can become stakeholders in interaction with project management technologies and what happens with project temporalities when new and surprising stakeholders become part of a project and a recognized matter of concern to be taken...... into account. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a qualitative case study of a project in the building industry. The authors use actor-network theory (ANT) to analyze the emergence of animal stakeholders, stakes and temporalities. Findings – The study shows how project temporalities can...... multiply in interaction with project management technologies and how conventional linear conceptions of project time may be contested with the emergence of new non-human stakeholders and temporalities. Research limitations/implications – The study draws on ANT to show how animals can become stakeholders...

Nutrition and Physical Activity Policies and Practices in Family Child Care Homes in Oregon: Baseline Findings from the Healthy Home Child Care Project

Science.gov (United States)

Gunter, Katherine B.; Rice, Kelly R.; Trost, Stewart G.

2012-01-01

Baseline findings from the Healthy Home Child Care Project include data from Family Child Care Providers (FCCPs) in Oregon (n=53) who completed assessments of nutrition and physical activity policies and practices and BMI data for children in the care of FCCPs (n=205). Results show that a significant percentage of FCCPs failed to meet child care…

Horse Palace photovoltaic pilot project findings report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2009-06-15

This paper provided details of a solar photovoltaic (PV) feasibility study conducted as part of the Toronto Exhibition Place's 2010 energy self-sufficiency plan. The 100 kw plant was installed on the roof of the Horse Palace, and when first installed represented the largest urban PV array in Canada. The study was conducted to compare the performance of technology alternatives under otherwise common environmental and operating conditions, to build capacity to operate large roof-mounted PV systems in Toronto, and to gain experience with Ontario's renewable energy standard offer program (RESOP). The initial year of monitoring identified complications with inverters and monitoring equipment, shading issues, and problems with data collection and management. Interconnecting the project with the electricity grid to sell the produced power was a complicated and lengthy procedure. A problem with the baseline performance modeling that was used to assess the project was also identified. In 2008, the project produced 96,724 kWh. Simple payback for the project was estimated at 16.7 years. The plant is now participating in the RESOP and receiving monthly payments. 14 figs., 2 appendices.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Mimicking Alzheimer Disease and Dementia With Lewy Bodies-Findings of FDG PET With 3-Dimensional Stereotactic Surface Projection.

Science.gov (United States)

Miyazawa, Nobuhiko

2017-05-01

A 78-year-old man received a diagnosis of sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease based on symptoms and findings of MRI, FDG PET, and cerebrospinal fluid markers. PET with 3-dimensional stereotactic surface projection (3D-SSP) showed that the distribution of hypometabolism mimicked that of Alzheimer disease. A 68-year-old woman was treated under a diagnosis of convulsion. Findings of MRI, PET, familial history, and cerebrospinal fluid markers revealed familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. FDG PET with 3D-SSP disclosed that the hypometabolic pattern mimicked that of dementia with Lewy bodies. FDG PET with 3D-SSP can demonstrate similar patterns in various neurodegenerative disorders.

Impact of Project P.A.T.H.S. on adolescent developmental outcomes in Hong Kong: findings based on seven waves of data.

Science.gov (United States)

Shek, Daniel T L; Ma, Cecilia M S

2012-01-18

The present study examined the longitudinal impact of Project P.A.T.H.S. (Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programmes) on adolescent developmental outcomes in Hong Kong. Using a longitudinal randomized group design, seven waves of data were collected from 24 experimental schools (n=4049 at wave 1) in which students participated in the Tier 1 Program of Project P.A.T.H.S. and 24 control schools (n=3797 at wave 1). Results based on individual growth curve modeling generally showed that, relative to the control participants, participants in the experimental group had: (a) a higher level of positive development; (b) a lower level of substance abuse; and (c) a lower level of delinquent behavior. Participants who regarded the program to be beneficial also showed higher levels of positive development and lower levels of problem behavior than did the control school students. The present findings suggest that Project P.A.T.H.S. is effective in promoting positive development and preventing adolescent problem behavior in Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong.

Agile project portfolio management, new solutions and new challenges: preliminary findings from a case study of an agile organization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Lars Kristian; Svejvig, Per

project management framework including two complementary perspectives. One perspective, denoted as classical project management (CPM), highlights key characteristics of traditional PPM practices. A second perspective, denoted as rethinking project management (RPM), highlights characteristics...... of progressive PPM practices. We investigate a large Danish company by applying the research question: “How does agile PPM manifests itself in a real organization and what are the observed pros and cons?” Surprisingly, when summa-rizing our results, we find some traits of concepts from the CPM perspective...... that are manifested in strict control of projects and programs. Furthermore, we find the traits of the RPM perspective more dominating than the CPM perspective, and these traits are mostly found to have desirable effects. CPM traits seem to improve the organi-zation’s ability to cope with uncertainty, a so...

Infusing and sustaining aging content in social work education: findings from GeroRich projects.

Science.gov (United States)

Hash, Kristina M; Gottlieb, Jody; Harper-Dorton, Karen V; Crawley-Woods, Geraldine; Shelek-Furbee, Katherine; Smith, John David; Brown, Rita

2007-01-01

This article presents findings from experiences of 67 projects involved in GeroRich, an initiative funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation designed to infuse, enrich and sustain aging content in BSW and MSW curricula. Thematic qualitative analysis was used to uncover themes in answers to open-ended questions contained in End-of-Year 2 project reports. Content areas addressed by open-ended answers were: (1) successes and innovations, and (2) challenges requiring responses. Primary successes and innovations identified were as follows: curriculum enrichment, faculty and student involvement, student-learning activities and community. Challenges to be responded to were identified as lack of faculty involvement, competing demands on faculty and programs, and sustainability of project efforts. Examples of strategies implemented to overcome these obstacles include providing teaching resources, instituting financial and other supports, and developing strategic plans for sustaining content infusion post-funding. Experiences of the GeroRich projects offer practical considerations for other social work programs that accept the challenge of attracting and preparing students to work with the increasing population of older adults.

Perinatal findings of Seckel syndrome: a case report of a fetus showing primordial dwarfism and severe microcephaly.

Science.gov (United States)

Takikawa, Keiko Miyachi; Kikuchi, Akihiko; Yokoyama, Akiko; Ono, Kyoko; Iwasawa, Yuki; Sunagawa, Sorahiro; Takagi, Kimiyo; Kawame, Hiroshi; Nakamura, Tomohiko

2008-01-01

Seckel syndrome is a rare form of primordial dwarfism and most of the previous reports have been limited to postnatal findings. We report on a fetus showing severe microcephaly, intrauterine growth restriction and a few gyri with shallow sulci on the fetal brain suggesting cortical dysplasia, followed by ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging in the prenatal period. Cardiotocograph revealed a reassuring fetal status throughout the whole pregnancy period. A male infant weighing 1,556 g was delivered at 39 weeks' gestation, and a diagnosis of Seckel syndrome was made based on postnatal typical findings. Although previous reports on prenatal findings of Seckel syndrome are quite limited, we think that our case presents typical features of a fetus affected by this syndrome. When prenatal ultrasound shows severe microcephaly and intrauterine growth restriction, this rare syndrome should be included in the differential diagnosis. Moreover, magnetic resonance imaging of the affected fetal brain provides further diagnostic clues. Copyright 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Findings and recommendations of the competency based standards project for radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egan, Ingrid

1993-01-01

In February 1992, the National Office of Overseas Skills Recognition funded a $150,000 research project for the development of Competency Based Standards for the professions of Medical Radiation Science (MRS). The four professions of MRS are now considered to be: Radiography, Radiation Therapy, Nuclear Medicine Science and Sonography. The four national documents have aimed at describing the performances of the MRS practitioner at entry level to the profession. Findings from survey and interviews indicate that the existing structure of the undergraduate courses should be reviewed with emphasis on: problem solving skills, theater radiography, paediatric radiography, image interpretation or radiography pathology as well as venepuncture, if accepted nationally. . 5 refs., 1 tab., 5 figs

Suture Granuloma Showing False-Positive Findings on FDG-PET

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kohei Takahara

2013-01-01

Full Text Available We report a case of a 33-year-old male with a mixed germ-cell testicular tumor. Postoperative follow-up FDG-PET revealed concentration of FDG in the left inguinal area which is not tumor metastasis or local recurrence but suture reactivity granuloma. In this paper, we reviewed suture granulomas associated with false-positive findings on FDG-PET after surgery. If FDG-PET will be used more frequently in the future, it will be necessary to refrain from using silk thread in order to prevent any unnecessary surgery.

Is the Alma Ata vision of comprehensive primary health care viable? Findings from an international project.

Science.gov (United States)

Labonté, Ronald; Sanders, David; Packer, Corinne; Schaay, Nikki

2014-01-01

The 4-year (2007-2011) Revitalizing Health for All international research program (http://www.globalhealthequity.ca/projects/proj_revitalizing/index.shtml) supported 20 research teams located in 15 low- and middle-income countries to explore the strengths and weaknesses of comprehensive primary health care (CPHC) initiatives at their local or national levels. Teams were organized in a triad comprised of a senior researcher, a new researcher, and a 'research user' from government, health services, or other organizations with the authority or capacity to apply the research findings. Multiple regional and global team capacity-enhancement meetings were organized to refine methods and to discuss and assess cross-case findings. Most research projects used mixed methods, incorporating analyses of qualitative data (interviews and focus groups), secondary data, and key policy and program documents. Some incorporated historical case study analyses, and a few undertook new surveys. The synthesis of findings in this report was derived through qualitative analysis of final project reports undertaken by three different reviewers. Evidence of comprehensiveness (defined in this research program as efforts to improve equity in access, community empowerment and participation, social and environmental health determinants, and intersectoral action) was found in many of the cases. Despite the important contextual differences amongst the different country studies, the similarity of many of their findings, often generated using mixed methods, attests to certain transferable health systems characteristics to create and sustain CPHC practices. These include:1. Well-trained and supported community health workers (CHWs) able to work effectively with marginalized communities2. Effective mechanisms for community participation, both informal (through participation in projects and programs, and meaningful consultation) and formal (though program management structures)3.�

Is the Alma Ata vision of comprehensive primary health care viable? Findings from an international project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ronald Labonté

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Background: The 4-year (2007–2011 Revitalizing Health for All international research program (http://www.globalhealthequity.ca/projects/proj_revitalizing/index.shtml supported 20 research teams located in 15 low- and middle-income countries to explore the strengths and weaknesses of comprehensive primary health care (CPHC initiatives at their local or national levels. Teams were organized in a triad comprised of a senior researcher, a new researcher, and a ‘research user’ from government, health services, or other organizations with the authority or capacity to apply the research findings. Multiple regional and global team capacity-enhancement meetings were organized to refine methods and to discuss and assess cross-case findings. Objective: Most research projects used mixed methods, incorporating analyses of qualitative data (interviews and focus groups, secondary data, and key policy and program documents. Some incorporated historical case study analyses, and a few undertook new surveys. The synthesis of findings in this report was derived through qualitative analysis of final project reports undertaken by three different reviewers. Results: Evidence of comprehensiveness (defined in this research program as efforts to improve equity in access, community empowerment and participation, social and environmental health determinants, and intersectoral action was found in many of the cases. Conclusions: Despite the important contextual differences amongst the different country studies, the similarity of many of their findings, often generated using mixed methods, attests to certain transferable health systems characteristics to create and sustain CPHC practices. These include: 1. Well-trained and supported community health workers (CHWs able to work effectively with marginalized communities 2. Effective mechanisms for community participation, both informal (through participation in projects and programs, and meaningful consultation and formal

A child case of meningitis tuberculosa showing interesting CT findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sonsu; Inada, Hiroshi; Matsumura, Masahiro; Matsuoka, Osamu; Murata, Ryosuke; Sano, Yoshiko.

1985-01-01

A 6-year-old boy is presented in whom plain CT failed to reveal specific findings suggesting inflammation, but enhanced CT revealed noticeably abnormal enhancement along the right middle cerebral artery and linear enhancement at the periphery of the artery. The cause of specific enhancement and its clinical value are discussed. (Namekawa, K.)

Evaluation of a tuberculosis active case finding project in peri-urban areas, Myanmar: 2014-2016.

Science.gov (United States)

Aye, Sandar; Majumdar, Suman S; Oo, Myo Minn; Tripathy, Jaya Prasad; Satyanarayana, S; Kyaw, Nang Thu Thu; Kyaw, Khine Wut Yee; Oo, Nay Lynn; Thein, Saw; Thu, Myat Kyaw; Soe, Kyaw Thu; Aung, Si Thu

2018-05-01

We assessed the effect of an active case finding (ACF) project on tuberculosis (TB) case notification and the yields from a household and neigbourhood intervention (screening contacts of historical index TB patients diagnosed >24months ago) and a community intervention (screening attendants of health education sessions/mobile clinics). Cross-sectional analysis of project records, township TB registers and annual TB reports. In the household and neigbourhood intervention, of 56,709 people screened, 1,076 were presumptive TB and 74 patients were treated for active TB with a screening yield of 0.1% and a yield from presumptive cases of 6.9%. In the community intervention, of 162,881 people screened, 4,497 were presumptive TB and 984 were treated for active TB with a screening yield of 0.6% and yield from presumptive cases of 21.9%. Of active TB cases, 94% were new, 89% were pulmonary, 44% were bacteriologically-confirmed and 5% had HIV. Case notification rates per 100,000 in project townships increased from 142 during baseline (2011-2013) to 148 during intervention (2014-2016) periods. The yield from household and neigbourhood intervention was lower than community intervention. This finding highlights reconsidering the strategy of screening of contacts from historical index cases. Strategies to reach high-risk groups should be explored for future ACF interventions to increase yield of TB. Copyright © 2018 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Strengthening government health and family planning programs: findings from an action research project in rural Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Simmons, R; Phillips, J F; Rahman, M

1984-01-01

An ongoing study at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) is based on the premise that public sector health and family planning programs can be improved through an assessment of the dysfunctional aspects of their operations, the development of problem-solving capabilities, and the transfer of strategies successfully tested in a small-scale pilot project. This paper reports findings from a field trial implemented in a subunit of the project area at an early stage of the project. Operational barriers to public sector program implementation are discussed with regard to the quantity of work, the quality of work, supplies and facilities, integration of health and family planning, and leadership, supervision, and decision making. Initial results of the ICDDR,B intervention on these managerial processes are also indicated.

3D DSA findings of uterine artery and its optimal projection position

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Weifu; Zhang Aiwu; Zhou Chunze; Lu Dong; Xiao Jingkun; Wang Weiyu; Zhang Xingming; Zhang Zhengfeng; Hou Changlong

2011-01-01

Objective: to observe the origin site, anatomic features of uterine artery with 3D DSA and to discuss the optimal projection position in order to improve the success rate of super-selective catheterization of uterine artery. Methods: Prospective pelvic angiography was performed in 42 adult females (a total of 84 uterine arteries). 3D DSA was carried out with 206 ° rotation. 3D reconstruction of the obtained images was performed and the angiographic manifestations of the uterine artery were analyzed. The optimal projection position for the displaying of uterine artery was discussed. The quality of images obtained with the projection angle of 15 °-25 °, 25 °-35 ° and 35 °-45 ° was determined and the results were compared with each other. Results: The orifices of all 84 uterine arteries could be well demonstrated on 3D DSA images. The uterine artery was originated from the anterior trunk of internal iliac artery (n=58, 69%), from main stem of internal iliac artery (n=16, 19.1%), from internal pudenda artery (n=8, 9.5%) and from inferior gluteal artery (n=2, 2.4%). The best projection position to show the opening and route of the uterine artery was contralateral oblique view of 25-35 degrees (P<0.05). Conclusion: 3D DSA can clearly display the anatomy of the uterine artery, which is very helpful for the management of super-selective catheterization of uterine artery. The optimal projection position for uterine artery is contralateral oblique view of 25-35 degrees. (authors)

Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact: Kalina Geothermal Demonstration Project Steamboat Springs, Nevada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

N/A

1999-02-22

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) to provide the DOE and other public agency decision makers with the environmental documentation required to take informed discretionary action on the proposed Kalina Geothermal Demonstration project. The EA assesses the potential environmental impacts and cumulative impacts, possible ways to minimize effects associated with partial funding of the proposed project, and discusses alternatives to DOE actions. The DOE will use this EA as a basis for their decision to provide financial assistance to Exergy, Inc. (Exergy), the project applicant. Based on the analysis in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human or physical environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an environmental impact statement is not required and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

Public health impacts of city policies to reduce climate change: Findings from the URGENCHE EU-China project

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sabel, C.E.; Hiscock, R.; Asikainen, A.; Bi, J.; Depledge, M.; Van Den Elshout, S.; Friedrich, R.; Huang, G.; Hurley, F.; Jantunen, M.; Karakitsios, S.P.; Keuken, M.; Kingham, S.; Kontoroupis, P.; Kuenzli, N.; Liu, M.; Martuzzi, M.; Morton, K.; Mudu, P.; Niittynen, M.; Perez, L.; Sarigiannis, D.; Stahl-Timmins, W.; Tobollik, M.; Tuomisto, J.; Willers, S.

2016-01-01

Background: Climate change is a global threat to health and wellbeing. Here we provide findings of an international research project investigating the health and wellbeing impacts of policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in urban environments. Methods: Five European and two Chinese city

Neighborhood Influences on Perceived Social Support Among Parents: Findings from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods

Science.gov (United States)

Tendulkar, Shalini A.; Koenen, Karestan C.; Dunn, Erin C.; Buka, Stephen; Subramanian, S. V.

2012-01-01

Background Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. Methodology/Principal Findings The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03), predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. Conclusion Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time. PMID:22493683

Promoting Energy-Balance Behaviors among Ethnically Diverse Adolescents: Overview and Baseline Findings of the Central Texas CATCH Middle School Project

Science.gov (United States)

Springer, Andrew E.; Kelder, Steven H.; Byrd-Williams, Courtney E.; Pasch, Keryn E.; Ranjit, Nalini; Delk, Joanne E.; Hoelscher, Deanna M.

2013-01-01

The Central Texas Coordinated Approach To Child Health (CATCH) Middle School Project is a 3.5-year school-based project aimed at promoting physical activity (PA), healthy eating, and obesity prevention among public middle school students in Texas. This article describes the CATCH intervention model and presents baseline findings from spring 2009.…

Geriatric cancer trends in the Middle-East: Findings from Lebanese cancer projections until 2025.

Science.gov (United States)

Haddad, Fady Gh; Kattan, Joseph; Kourie, Hampig R; El Rassy, Elie; Assi, Tarek; Adib, Salim M

2018-03-01

By 2020, 70% of all cancers will occur in patients aged 65years and older, causing an increase in related morbidity, mortality, and cost. This study projects cancer trends in the elderly population in Lebanon, a country experiencing accelerating aging trends. Findings will guide future policy decisions regarding geriatric oncology in Lebanon and the surrounding Arab world. Cancer incidence rates were derived for men and women 65years and above, divided into three age groups: 65-69years, 70-74years, and 75years and above. Raw data were obtained from the National Cancer Registry reports 2003-2010. The eight consecutive year data were used to project the incidence until 2025 using a logarithmic model. The Average Annual Percent Change in incidence rates was calculated to determine whether it would significantly increase, decrease, or remain stable over time. Incidence rates are projected to increase significantly in all age groups of both genders until 2025. In men, the fastest rise is expected in prostate cancer, followed by bladder, lung, colorectal, and NHL. In women, the rise will be fastest in breast, followed by colorectal, lung, NHL, and ovary. Projected rates increase faster in the "younger" age group 65-69 compared to the "oldest" ≥75, both in men and women. Only kidney and liver cancers continue to rise significantly after 75. Cancer incidence is projected to increase in individuals between 65 and 74years of age. Lebanese and Middle Eastern physicians must implement adapted therapeutic strategies in the management of the increasing caseload among frail, elderly patients. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Literacy and students' interest on Geosciences - Findings and results of GEOschools project

Science.gov (United States)

Fermeli, Georgia; Steininger, Fritz; Dermitzakis, Michael; Meléndez, Guillermo; Page, Kevin

2014-05-01

GEOschools is a European project supported by the Lifelong Learning Programme. Among the main aims of the project were to investigate the interest secondary school students have on geosciences and the teaching strategies used. Also, the development of a guide for Geosciences Literacy at a European level (Fermeli et al., 2011). GEOschools' literacy framework proposal is based on a comparative analysis of geoscience curricula in the partner countries (Austria, Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal). Results of an "Interest Research" survey involved around 1750 students and 60 teachers from partner countries, combined with specific proposals by the project partners (Calonge et al., 2011). Results of the GEOschools "Interest research" survey evidence students show a higher interest in those topics which have a potentially higher social impact, such as mass extinctions, dinosaurs, geological hazards and disasters and origin and evolution of life (including human evolution). These results provide an evidence base to justify why curriculum content and teaching strategies can be made more effective through focusing mainly on such "interest topics", instead of trying to follow an excessively rigid, or academic, development of teaching programs (Fermeli et al., 2013). GEOschools literacy framework is summarized in 14 separate chapters, each including a brief description of the main themes of each subject, the intended learning outcomes as well as keywords and a bibliography. More particularly, the chapters of the framework describe what students should know and do, and how they should relate, as European citizens, to the geosciences. To face the challenges of the present and the future, modern citizens should be literate in natural sciences and, within the context of the geosciences, be able to: • Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of basic principles, models, laws and terminology of Geosciences. • Know how and where to find and access scientifically reliable

Literature Shows Recurring Efforts at Finding a Method of Teaching Ethics.

Science.gov (United States)

Knudtson, Judy

1994-01-01

Reviews classroom journalism texts and articles published in "Quill and Scroll" and this journal since the early 1970s. Notes that the topic of ethics has been addressed recurrently. Finds a wealth of commitment to and concern for ethical issues for high school journalists. (RS)

A European Seal of Approval for 'gay' businesses: findings from an HIV-prevention pilot project.

Science.gov (United States)

Sherriff, Nigel; Gugglberger, Lisa

2014-05-01

'Gay' businesses can be important settings through which to deliver health promotion interventions to vulnerable populations, such as men who have sex with men (MSM) regarding HIV prevention. This article draws on data from the European Everywhere project, which represents the first scheme to develop and pre-test a common framework for HIV/STI prevention in 'gay' businesses across eight European countries. The scientific basis of the Everywhere framework was developed using a comprehensive consensus-building process over 30 months. This process included: formative scoping research; interviews with 54 'gay' businesses; meetings/workshops with representatives from project partners, 'gay' businesses, public health administrations and external experts; 15 interviews and three focus groups with project partners; a five-month pilot action phase in eight countries, together with support from the project's Advisory Group; and all Everywhere project partners including the Scientific Steering Committee. A voluntary European code setting out differentiated HIV/STI-prevention standards for 'gay' businesses (including sex venues, 'gay' and 'gay' friendly social spaces, travel agencies, hotels, dating websites) was developed and piloted in eight European cities. During a five-month pilot action, 83 'gay' businesses were certified with the Everywhere Seal of Approval representing a considerable increase on the expected pilot target of 30. Everywhere offers a major contribution to the public health and/or health promotion field in the form of a practical, policy-relevant, settings-based HIV-prevention framework for 'gay' businesses that is common across eight European countries. Findings suggest that a European-wide model of prevention is acceptable and feasible to businesses.

Neighborhood influences on perceived social support among parents: findings from the project on human development in Chicago neighborhoods.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shalini A Tendulkar

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03, predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. CONCLUSION: Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time.

Improving food and agricultural production. Thailand. Project findings and recommendations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This document is the terminal report of a United Nations Development Program project to improve food and agricultural production in Thailand by means of nuclear and related technology. The project resulted in improved mutant material to be made available to plant breeders as well as in reports and recommendations on soil-water-plant management practices and livestock management. An additional benefit has been the specialized training that has been provided to many researchers in the country through the project

The "Finding Physics" Project: Recognizing and Exploring Physics Outside the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Beck, Judith; Perkins, James

2016-11-01

Students in introductory physics classes often have difficulty recognizing the relevance of physics concepts outside the confines of the physics classroom, lab, and textbook. Even though textbooks and instructors often provide examples of physics applications from a wide array of areas, students have difficulty relating physics to their own lives. Encouraging students to apply physics to their own surroundings helps them develop the critical analysis skills of a scientifically literate and competent citizen. Fink, in his book Creating Significant Learning Experiences, emphasizes the importance of constructing opportunities to help students connect what they learn in their academic courses with past and current life experiences and link them to possible future life experiences. Several excellent papers in this journal have presented labs and activities that address this concern by encouraging teachers to bring real-world examples into the classroom or to take students into the field for data collection and observation. Alternatively, Smith suggests a writing exercise in which his students identify and explain an event in terms of their understanding of physics. In this paper we present a multiphase exercise that challenges students to find their own examples of physics from outside the classroom and analyze them using the conceptual understanding and quantitative skills which they are developing in the classroom. The ultimate goal of the "Finding Physics" project is to improve students' learning through enhancing their recognition that, to quote one participant's end-of-course survey, "Physics is everywhere!"

Association between tax structure and cigarette consumption: findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation (ITC) Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Shang, Ce; Lee, Hye Myung; Chaloupka, Frank J; Fong, Geoffrey T; Thompson, Mary; O'Connor, Richard J

2018-05-24

Recent studies show that greater price variability and more opportunities for tax avoidance are associated with tax structures that depart from a specific uniform one. These findings indicate that tax structures other than a specific uniform one may lead to more cigarette consumption. This paper aims to examine how cigarette tax structure is associated with cigarette consumption. We used survey data taken from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project in 17 countries to conduct the analysis. Self-reported cigarette consumption was aggregated to average measures for each surveyed country and wave. The effect of tax structures on cigarette consumption was estimated using generalised estimating equations after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, average taxes and year fixed effects. Our study provides important empirical evidence of a relationship between tax structure and cigarette consumption. We find that a change from a specific to an ad valorem structure is associated with a 6%-11% higher cigarette consumption. In addition, a change from uniform to tiered structure is associated with a 34%-65% higher cigarette consumption. The results are consistent with existing evidence and suggest that a uniform and specific tax structure is the most effective tax structure for reducing tobacco consumption. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Key Issues in Global Technological Innovation Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Sbragia

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This article aimed to identify those issues that were present in global technological innovation projects carried out by Brazilian multinational companies and which performance criterions these undertakings met. We investigated 36 global technological innovation projects from Brazilian multinational enterprises through a web-survey. Findings show that these companies went beyond the traditional iron triangle to evaluate their technological efforts and considered additional performance dimensions such as customer satisfaction, business results, and preparation for the future. Results also show high degree of presence for issues emerging from the industry, moderate degree of presence for issues emerging from both the project and R&D activities, and low degree of presence for issues emerging from the headquarters, the subsidiaries, and the external environment. Further research is needed to find out if and how these issues influenced the performance of the global technological innovation projects studied.DOI:10.5585/gep.v3i1.72

Experiences of project developers around CDM projects in South Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thurner, Thomas W.; Varughese, Arun

2013-01-01

Project developers in South Africa are puzzled with the long process of evaluating and registering their CDM projects. In addition to other obstacles, we find that South African big businesses are rather reluctant to engage in any new business activities such as CDM projects and municipalities often lack the necessary flexibility. This offers opportunities for small-scale project developers who spot the opportunities and find creative solutions to overcome these difficulties. - Highlights: • First paper analysing the experience of small project developers in South Africa. • Project developers in South Africa are puzzled with the long process. • South African big businesses are reluctant to engage in CDM projects. • Small-scale project developers spot opportunities and find creative solutions to overcome difficulties. • Also, we saw learning processes of South African administration in support of CDM projects

Key findings from the artist project on aerosol retention in a dry steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dehbi, Abedeloahab; Suckow, Deltef; Lind, Tettaliisa; Guentat, Salih; Danner, Steffen; Mukin, Roman

2016-01-01

A steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) event with a stuck-open safety relief valve constitutes one of the most serious accident sequences in pressurized water reactors (PWRs) because it may create an open path for radioactive aerosol release into the environment. The release may be mitigated by the deposition of fission product particles on a steam generator's (SG's) dry tubes and structures or by scrubbing in the secondary coolant. However, the absence of empirical data, the complexity of the geometry, and the controlling processes have, until recently, made any quantification of retention difficult to justify. As a result, past risk assessment studies typically took little or no credit for aerosol retention in SGTR sequences. To provide these missing data, the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) initiated the Aerosol Trapping In Steam GeneraTor (ARTIST) Project, which aimed to thoroughly investigate various aspects of aerosol removal in the secondary side of a breached steam generator. Between 2003 and 2011, the PSI has led the ARTIST Project, which involved intense collaboration between nearly 20 international partners. This summary paper presents key findings of experimental and analytical work conducted at the PSI within the ARTIST program

Key findings from the artist project on aerosol retention in a dry steam generator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dehbi, Abedeloahab; Suckow, Deltef; Lind, Tettaliisa; Guentat, Salih; Danner, Steffen; Mukin, Roman [Nuclear Energy and Safety Research Department, Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen (Switzerland)

2016-08-15

A steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) event with a stuck-open safety relief valve constitutes one of the most serious accident sequences in pressurized water reactors (PWRs) because it may create an open path for radioactive aerosol release into the environment. The release may be mitigated by the deposition of fission product particles on a steam generator's (SG's) dry tubes and structures or by scrubbing in the secondary coolant. However, the absence of empirical data, the complexity of the geometry, and the controlling processes have, until recently, made any quantification of retention difficult to justify. As a result, past risk assessment studies typically took little or no credit for aerosol retention in SGTR sequences. To provide these missing data, the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) initiated the Aerosol Trapping In Steam GeneraTor (ARTIST) Project, which aimed to thoroughly investigate various aspects of aerosol removal in the secondary side of a breached steam generator. Between 2003 and 2011, the PSI has led the ARTIST Project, which involved intense collaboration between nearly 20 international partners. This summary paper presents key findings of experimental and analytical work conducted at the PSI within the ARTIST program.

Key Findings from the Artist Project on Aerosol Retention in a Dry Steam Generator

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdelouahab Dehbi

2016-08-01

Full Text Available A steam generator tube rupture (SGTR event with a stuck-open safety relief valve constitutes one of the most serious accident sequences in pressurized water reactors (PWRs because it may create an open path for radioactive aerosol release into the environment. The release may be mitigated by the deposition of fission product particles on a steam generator's (SG's dry tubes and structures or by scrubbing in the secondary coolant. However, the absence of empirical data, the complexity of the geometry, and the controlling processes have, until recently, made any quantification of retention difficult to justify. As a result, past risk assessment studies typically took little or no credit for aerosol retention in SGTR sequences. To provide these missing data, the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI initiated the Aerosol Trapping In Steam GeneraTor (ARTIST Project, which aimed to thoroughly investigate various aspects of aerosol removal in the secondary side of a breached steam generator. Between 2003 and 2011, the PSI has led the ARTIST Project, which involved intense collaboration between nearly 20 international partners. This summary paper presents key findings of experimental and analytical work conducted at the PSI within the ARTIST program.

The Difficulty in Following Project Schedule as a Key Project Management Challenge: Family Firm Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanna SADKOWSKA

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The problem of how to manage projects successfully has been gaining growing interest for the last decades. The aforementioned is mainly caused by the fact that project management offers a wide range of methods and tools which, when properly used, can stimulate long-term growth of businesses. As a consequence it offers a particular development opportunity for family enterprises which, due to their specificity, have to overcome many difficulties. The primary objective of this paper is to examine whether family enterprises perceive, and to what extent, the factor of following project schedule as a difficulty in the area of project management. 154 Polish family firms representing different sectors were surveyed. The results of regression analysis show that family firms with global range of business activities, on the contrary to those with local or regional ones, do not find the factor of following project schedule as a difficulty. This results manly from the tools employed and the maturity level they have reached in project management. The findings support the current discussion on the specificity and uniqueness of family businesses in relationship to the knowledge area of project management. It also contributes to filling the gap on understanding the functioning of family firms in the emerging economies of Eastern Europe.

Two cases of Tolosa-Hunt syndrome showing interesting CT findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abe, Masahiro; Hara, Yuzo; Ito, Noritaka; Nishimura, Mieko; Onishi, Yoshitaka; Hasuo, Kanehiro

1982-01-01

CT showed the lesion at the orbital apex in both of the 2 cases of Tolosa-Hunt syndrome. Steroid therapy resulted in improvement of clinical symptoms and regression of the lesion which was confirmed by CT. (Chiba, N.)

Effective Bug Finding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rivas, Iago Abal

Lightweight bug finders (also known as code scanners) are becoming popular, they scale well and can find simple yet common programming errors. It is now considered a good practice to integrate these tools as part of your development process. The Linux project, for instance, has an automated testing...... service, known as the Kbuild robot, that runs a few of these code scanners. In this project, I have carefully studied tens of historical Linux bugs, and I have found that many of these bugs, despite being conceptually simple, were not caught by any code scanning tool. The reason is that, by design, code...... scanners will find mostly superficial errors. Thus, when bugs span multiple functions, even if simple, they become undetectable by most code scanners. The studied set of historical bugs contained many of such cases. This PhD thesis proposes a bug-finding technique that is both lightweight and capable...

Spent nuclear fuel project, Cold Vacuum Drying Facility human factors engineering (HFE) analysis: Results and findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garvin, L.J.

1998-01-01

This report presents the background, methodology, and findings of a human factors engineering (HFE) analysis performed in May, 1998, of the Spent Nuclear Fuels (SNF) Project Cold Vacuum Drying Facility (CVDF), to support its Preliminary Safety Analysis Report (PSAR), in responding to the requirements of Department of Energy (DOE) Order 5480.23 (DOE 1992a) and drafted to DOE-STD-3009-94 format. This HFE analysis focused on general environment, physical and computer workstations, and handling devices involved in or directly supporting the technical operations of the facility. This report makes no attempt to interpret or evaluate the safety significance of the HFE analysis findings. The HFE findings presented in this report, along with the results of the CVDF PSAR Chapter 3, Hazards and Accident Analyses, provide the technical basis for preparing the CVDF PSAR Chapter 13, Human Factors Engineering, including interpretation and disposition of findings. The findings presented in this report allow the PSAR Chapter 13 to fully respond to HFE requirements established in DOE Order 5480.23. DOE 5480.23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports, Section 8b(3)(n) and Attachment 1, Section-M, require that HFE be analyzed in the PSAR for the adequacy of the current design and planned construction for internal and external communications, operational aids, instrumentation and controls, environmental factors such as heat, light, and noise and that an assessment of human performance under abnormal and emergency conditions be performed (DOE 1992a)

Middle-class projects in modern Malaysia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fischer, Johan

2017-01-01

picture surrounding this class and its relationship to Malaysian national repertoires such as Islamic revivalism, politics, consumer culture, social mobility and the state-market nexus. I understand middle-class projects to be the making of local class culture in Malaysia and explore these in four...... research projects that each in their own way examine how Malay Muslim informants understand and practice “middle-classness” in different spatial and temporal contexts. In short, my findings show how Malay Muslim middle-class projects such as Islamic consumption shape local class culture in Malaysia....

An autopsied case of tuberculous meningitis showing interesting CT findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abiko, Takashi; Higuchi, Hiroshi; Imada, Ryuichi; Nagai, Kenichi

1983-01-01

A 61-year-old female patient died of a neurological disorder of unknown origin one month after the first visit and was found to have had tuberculous meningitis at autopsy. CT revealed a low density area showing an enlargement of the cerebral ventricle but did not reveal contrast enhancement in the basal cistern peculiar to tuberculous meningitis. (Namekawa, K.)

Large-Scale No-Show Patterns and Distributions for Clinic Operational Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael L. Davies

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Patient no-shows for scheduled primary care appointments are common. Unused appointment slots reduce patient quality of care, access to services and provider productivity while increasing loss to follow-up and medical costs. This paper describes patterns of no-show variation by patient age, gender, appointment age, and type of appointment request for six individual service lines in the United States Veterans Health Administration (VHA. This retrospective observational descriptive project examined 25,050,479 VHA appointments contained in individual-level records for eight years (FY07-FY14 for 555,183 patients. Multifactor analysis of variance (ANOVA was performed, with no-show rate as the dependent variable, and gender, age group, appointment age, new patient status, and service line as factors. The analyses revealed that males had higher no-show rates than females to age 65, at which point males and females exhibited similar rates. The average no-show rates decreased with age until 75–79, whereupon rates increased. As appointment age increased, males and new patients had increasing no-show rates. Younger patients are especially prone to no-show as appointment age increases. These findings provide novel information to healthcare practitioners and management scientists to more accurately characterize no-show and attendance rates and the impact of certain patient factors. Future general population data could determine whether findings from VHA data generalize to others.

Large-Scale No-Show Patterns and Distributions for Clinic Operational Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, Michael L; Goffman, Rachel M; May, Jerrold H; Monte, Robert J; Rodriguez, Keri L; Tjader, Youxu C; Vargas, Dominic L

2016-02-16

Patient no-shows for scheduled primary care appointments are common. Unused appointment slots reduce patient quality of care, access to services and provider productivity while increasing loss to follow-up and medical costs. This paper describes patterns of no-show variation by patient age, gender, appointment age, and type of appointment request for six individual service lines in the United States Veterans Health Administration (VHA). This retrospective observational descriptive project examined 25,050,479 VHA appointments contained in individual-level records for eight years (FY07-FY14) for 555,183 patients. Multifactor analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed, with no-show rate as the dependent variable, and gender, age group, appointment age, new patient status, and service line as factors. The analyses revealed that males had higher no-show rates than females to age 65, at which point males and females exhibited similar rates. The average no-show rates decreased with age until 75-79, whereupon rates increased. As appointment age increased, males and new patients had increasing no-show rates. Younger patients are especially prone to no-show as appointment age increases. These findings provide novel information to healthcare practitioners and management scientists to more accurately characterize no-show and attendance rates and the impact of certain patient factors. Future general population data could determine whether findings from VHA data generalize to others.

Neighborhood influences on perceived social support among parents: findings from the project on human development in Chicago neighborhoods.

Science.gov (United States)

Tendulkar, Shalini A; Koenen, Karestan C; Dunn, Erin C; Buka, Stephen; Subramanian, S V

2012-01-01

Social support is frequently linked to positive parenting behavior. Similarly, studies increasingly show a link between neighborhood residential environment and positive parenting behavior. However, less is known about how the residential environment influences parental social support. To address this gap, we examine the relationship between neighborhood concentrated disadvantage and collective efficacy and the level and change in parental caregiver perceptions of non-familial social support. The data for this study came from three data sources, the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) Study's Longitudinal Cohort Survey of caregivers and their offspring, a Community Survey of adult residents in these same neighborhoods and the 1990 Census. Social support is measured at Wave 1 and Wave 3 and neighborhood characteristics are measured at Wave 1. Multilevel linear regression models are fit. The results show that neighborhood collective efficacy is a significant (ß = .04; SE = .02; p = .03), predictor of the positive change in perceived social support over a 7 year period, however, not of the level of social support, adjusting for key compositional variables and neighborhood concentrated disadvantage. In contrast concentrated neighborhood disadvantage is not a significant predictor of either the level or change in social support. Our finding suggests that neighborhood collective efficacy may be important for inducing the perception of support from friends in parental caregivers over time.

Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis versus exogenous lipoid pneumonia showing crazy-paving pattern: Comparison of their clinical features and high-resolution CT findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Hei Kyung; Park, Chang Min; Goo, Jin Mo; Lee, Hyun Ju (Dept. of Radiology, Seoul National Univ. College of Medicine, and Inst. of Radiation Medicine, Seoul National Univ. Medical Research Center, Seoul (Korea)), e-mail: cmpark@radiol.snu.ac.kr

2010-05-15

Background: Although pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) and exogenous lipoid pneumonia (ELP) require different treatment strategies, both manifest as a crazy-paving pattern on CT and often have similar clinical manifestations and radiologic features. Purpose: To investigate the clinical features and high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) findings of PAP and ELP showing the crazy-paving pattern. Material and Methods: The clinical features and HRCT findings of eight patients with pathologically proven PAP and six patients with pathologically proven ELP showing the crazy-paving pattern were retrospectively evaluated. Two radiologists analyzed the HRCT findings of PAP and ELP in consensus in terms of the presence, severity, and extent of illdefined centrilobular nodules, consolidations, ground-glass opacities (GGOs), reticulations, and the crazy-paving pattern. Results: With respect to the clinical features of these two diseases, all patients with ELP were retrospectively found to have a history of oil ingestion. In terms of the HRCT findings, ill-defined centrilobular nodules were seen in five of six patients (83%) with ELP, whereas they were not present in any patient with PAP (P=0.003). Consolidation was also more frequently present in patients with ELP (83%) than in those with PAP (11%), which was statistically different (P=0.0265). In terms of the severity and extent, the crazy-paving pattern and reticulations on HRCT were significantly more extensive and severe in patients with PAP than in those with ELP. Conclusion: PAP and ELP with the crazy-paving pattern have several distinctive characteristics with respect to their HRCT findings as well as history of oil ingestion, and can therefore be distinguished from one another

The impact on healthcare, policy and practice from 36 multi-project research programmes: findings from two reviews.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanney, Steve; Greenhalgh, Trisha; Blatch-Jones, Amanda; Glover, Matthew; Raftery, James

2017-03-28

We sought to analyse the impacts found, and the methods used, in a series of assessments of programmes and portfolios of health research consisting of multiple projects. We analysed a sample of 36 impact studies of multi-project research programmes, selected from a wider sample of impact studies included in two narrative systematic reviews published in 2007 and 2016. We included impact studies in which the individual projects in a programme had been assessed for wider impact, especially on policy or practice, and where findings had been described in such a way that allowed them to be collated and compared. Included programmes were highly diverse in terms of location (11 different countries plus two multi-country ones), number of component projects (8 to 178), nature of the programme, research field, mode of funding, time between completion and impact assessment, methods used to assess impact, and level of impact identified. Thirty-one studies reported on policy impact, 17 on clinician behaviour or informing clinical practice, three on a combined category such as policy and clinician impact, and 12 on wider elements of impact (health gain, patient benefit, improved care or other benefits to the healthcare system). In those multi-programme projects that assessed the respective categories, the percentage of projects that reported some impact was policy 35% (range 5-100%), practice 32% (10-69%), combined category 64% (60-67%), and health gain/health services 27% (6-48%). Variations in levels of impact achieved partly reflected differences in the types of programme, levels of collaboration with users, and methods and timing of impact assessment. Most commonly, principal investigators were surveyed; some studies involved desk research and some interviews with investigators and/or stakeholders. Most studies used a conceptual framework such as the Payback Framework. One study attempted to assess the monetary value of a research programme's health gain. The widespread

Uncertainty in project phases: A framework for organisational change management

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kreye, Melanie; Balangalibun, Sarah

2015-01-01

in the early stage of the change project but was delayed until later phases. Furthermore, the sources of uncertainty were found to be predominantly within the organisation that initiated the change project and connected to the project scope. Based on these findings, propositions for future research are defined......Uncertainty is an integral challenge when managing organisational change projects (OCPs). Current literature highlights the importance of uncertainty; however, falls short of giving insights into the nature of uncertainty and suggestions for managing it. Specifically, no insights exist on how...... uncertainty develops over the different phases of OCPs. This paper presents case-based evidence on different sources of uncertainty in OCPs and how these develop over the different project phases. The results showed some surprising findings as the majority of the uncertainty did not manifest itself...

Mid-Columbia Coho Reintroduction Feasibility Project : Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration; Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation; Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife

1999-04-01

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is proposing to fund research for 2 to 3 years on the feasibility of reintroducing coho salmon into mid-Columbia River basin tributaries. The research would take place in the Methow and Wenatchee river basins in Chelan and Okanogan Counties, Washington. BPA has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1282) evaluating the proposed project. Based on the analysis in the EA, BPA has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is not required, and BPA is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact.

Mid-Columbia Coho Reintroduction Feasibility Project. Final Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-01-01

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is proposing to fund research for 2 to 3 years on the feasibility of reintroducing coho salmon into mid-Columbia River basin tributaries. The research would take place in the Methow and Wenatchee river basins in Chelan and Okanogan Counties, Washington. BPA has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-1282) evaluating the proposed project. Based on the analysis in the EA, BPA has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is not required, and BPA is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact

Forecast Inaccuracies in Power Plant Projects From Project Managers' Perspectives

Science.gov (United States)

Sanabria, Orlando

Guided by organizational theory, this phenomenological study explored the factors affecting forecast preparation and inaccuracies during the construction of fossil fuel-fired power plants in the United States. Forecast inaccuracies can create financial stress and uncertain profits during the project construction phase. A combination of purposeful and snowball sampling supported the selection of participants. Twenty project managers with over 15 years of experience in power generation and project experience across the United States were interviewed within a 2-month period. From the inductive codification and descriptive analysis, 5 themes emerged: (a) project monitoring, (b) cost control, (c) management review frequency, (d) factors to achieve a precise forecast, and (e) factors causing forecast inaccuracies. The findings of the study showed the factors necessary to achieve a precise forecast includes a detailed project schedule, accurate labor cost estimates, monthly project reviews and risk assessment, and proper utilization of accounting systems to monitor costs. The primary factors reported as causing forecast inaccuracies were cost overruns by subcontractors, scope gaps, labor cost and availability of labor, and equipment and material cost. Results of this study could improve planning accuracy and the effective use of resources during construction of power plants. The study results could contribute to social change by providing a framework to project managers to lessen forecast inaccuracies, and promote construction of power plants that will generate employment opportunities and economic development.

What drives continuous improvement project success in healthcare?

Science.gov (United States)

Stelson, Paul; Hille, Joshua; Eseonu, Chinweike; Doolen, Toni

2017-02-13

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present findings from a study of factors that affect continuous improvement (CI) project success in hospitals. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative regression analysis was performed on Likert scale survey responses. Qualitative thematic analysis was performed on open-ended survey responses and written reports on CI projects. Findings The paper identifies managerial and employee factors that affect project success. These factors include managerial support, communication, and affective commitment. Affective commitment is the extent to which employees perceive the change as being needed or necessary. Practical implications The results highlight how managerial decisions, approaches to communication - including communication before, during and after CI projects affect project success. The results also show that success depends on the way employees perceive proposed changes. This suggests the need for a more individualized approach to CI, lean, and broader change initiatives. Originality/value This research is the first to fuse project success and sustainability theory to CI projects, beyond Kaizen events, in healthcare environments. The research is particularly important at a time when healthcare organizations are required to make rapid changes with limited resources as they work toward outcome-based assessment and reimbursement rules.

Manpower development for nuclear power programme. China. Project findings and recommendations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Csik, B.J.

1992-01-01

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) project was conceived in April 1985, implementation was started on preliminary authorization by summer 1986, and it was approved and signed in early 1987. The duration was originally planned for three years with a UNDP input of US$ 1,657.500 (including Government cost sharing of US$ 280,000). The project is now essentially completed with a few items still pending, though committed as firmly planned, and the current cost estimate is US$ 1,707.617. The objective of the project was to assist in establishing long-term training programmes in two training centres in the People's Republic of China (Qinshan and Suzhou) and strengthen the training capabilities at these centres. The two centres are intended to provide specialized comprehensive training in basic and applied nuclear power engineering disciplines as well as in construction, operation and maintenance of nuclear power plants to technical personnel assigned to the nuclear power plants in the People's Republic of China

Define Project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munk-Madsen, Andreas

2005-01-01

"Project" is a key concept in IS management. The word is frequently used in textbooks and standards. Yet we seldom find a precise definition of the concept. This paper discusses how to define the concept of a project. The proposed definition covers both heavily formalized projects and informally...... organized, agile projects. Based on the proposed definition popular existing definitions are discussed....

Identifying Coordination Problems in Software Development : Finding Mismatches between Software and Project Team Structures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Amrit, Chintan Amrit; van Hillegersberg, Jos; Kumar, Kuldeep

2012-01-01

Today’s dynamic and iterative development environment brings significant challenges for software project management. In distributed project settings, “management by walking around” is no longer an option and project managers may miss out on key project insights. The TESNA (TEchnical Social Network

Cigarette tax avoidance and evasion: findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project

Science.gov (United States)

Guindon, G. Emmanuel; Driezen, Pete; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Fong, Geoffrey T.

2014-01-01

Background Decades of research have produced overwhelming evidence that tobacco taxes reduce tobacco use and increase government tax revenue. The magnitude and effectiveness of taxes at reducing tobacco use provide an incentive for tobacco users, manufacturers and others, most notably criminal networks, to devise ways to avoid or evade tobacco taxes. Consequently, tobacco tax avoidance and tax evasion can reduce the public health and fiscal benefit of tobacco taxes. Objectives First, this study aims to document, using data from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Project (ITC), levels and trends in cigarette users’ tax avoidance and tax evasion behaviour in a sample of sixteen low-, middle- and high-income countries. Second, this study explores factors associated with cigarette tax avoidance and evasion. Methods We use data from ITC surveys conducted in 16 countries to estimate the extent and the type of cigarette tax avoidance/evasion between countries and across time. We use self-reported information about the source of a smoker’s last purchase of cigarettes or self-reported packaging information, or similar information gathered by the interviewers during face-to-face interviews to measure tax avoidance/evasion behaviours. We use generalized estimating equations (GEE) to explore individual-level factors that may affect the likelihood of cigarette tax avoidance or evasion in Canada, United States, United Kingdom and France. Findings We find prevalence estimates of cigarette tax avoidance/evasion vary substantially between countries and across time. In Canada, France and the United Kingdom, more than 10% of smokers report last purchasing cigarettes from low or untaxed sources while in Malaysia, some prevalence estimates suggest substantial cigarette tax avoidance/evasion. We also find important associations between household income and education and the likelihood to engage in tax avoidance/evasion. These associations, however, vary both in

Renewable fuels: Policy effectiveness and project risk

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leach, Andrew; Doucet, Joseph; Nickel, Trevor

2011-01-01

This paper examines the impact of government policy on the risk profile of a small ethanol production facility. We derive four key results from a simulation model. First, we show that commodity price risk may discourage investment in a project, despite a positive expected rate of return. Second, we show that political uncertainty may have significant impacts on the risk profile of a project. Next, we show that using only production subsidies to attract investors is expensive, since the financial assistance is paid regardless of whether the plant is operating under positive or negative financial conditions. Finally, we show that a capital grant provides a valuable complement to a subsidy, because the grant reduces the amount of value investors must put at risk, and increases their leverage thereby enhancing returns, while the subsidy mitigates commodity price risk. Our results show that compared to a subsidy-only approach, a grant and subsidy combination provides an investment environment with similar downside protection and expected returns for less than 60% of the cost. Further, we show that the two policy tools combined yield a superior investment environment to that created by an equivalent or greater total investment deployed entirely in either of the policy tools without the other. - Research highlights: → We find that government policy may increase both project returns and risk. → We find a policy of capital grants combined with an output price support to be preferred. → Price supports alone will tend to reward those plants which need them the least.

Analysis of final year DVM research projects submitted to the Faculty ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study analyzed the intellectual output of the undergraduate final year students. research projects submitted to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, from 1994 to 2004. The findings of the study show that a total of 194 research projects were produced within the period under study.

Promoting bioethanol production through clean development mechanism: Findings and lessons learnt from ASIATIC project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gnansounou, Edgard; Bedniaguine, Denis; Dauriat, Arnaud

2005-12-15

Global climate change mitigation policies call for increasing use of biomass fuels as renewable substitutes to fossil energy resources. Quantified targets for biofuels introduction in to the market exist in the United States, the European Union, and a number of developing countries. In this context, mixing biologically produced ethanol with conventional gasoline represents an attractive technical option allowing for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases and lessening the dependence on non-renewable petrol in the transportation sector. This paper investigates technological and socio-economic aspects of ethanol production in developing countries, particularly in China, with special focus on determining eligibility of bioethanol projects for Clean Development Mechanism. Basing on the findings of the ASIATIC study (Agriculture and Small to Medium Scale Industries in Peri-urban Areas through Ethanol Production for Transport In China), we analyse how alcohol fuels can be produced in a sustainable way with mutual benefits between rural and urban people. The bioethanol production cost and life cycle CO2 eq. emissions were calculated for six different types of feedstock: sugarcane, sugarcane molasses, sweet sorghum juice, cassava, corn, and sorghum bagasse. Implications of the CDM rules and procedures for bioethanol industry were examined under the angles of environmental and economical additionality, and conformity with the principles of sustainable development. It is found that the starch-based (cassava) ethanol production path has the greatest potential for market penetration in China, followed by the conversion route using sugar-based feedstock (sorghum juice, sugarcane molasses). Meanwhile, the lignocelluloses biomass - to - ethanol technology may represent the highest interest for implementation as Clean Development Mechanism project. (Author)

Informal worker phenomenon in housing construction project

Science.gov (United States)

Wijayaningtyas, Maranatha; Sipan, Ibrahim; Lukiyanto, Kukuh

2017-11-01

The informal workers phenomenon on housing construction projects in Indonesia is different from workers in other sectors who would always request as permanent employees. Substantively, the informal workers are disinclined to be bound as permanent employees which different from the general labor paradigm. Hence, the objective of this study is to find out how the labour selection process, the factors that affected their performance, and the suitable wage system to achieve the target completion of housing construction project. The qualitative method is used to uncover and understand the meaning behind the phenomena (numina) of informal workers action and their influence on housing construction project which called phenomenological approach. Five informal workers and two project managers were selected as informants based on predetermined criteria with in-depth interviews. The results showed that the informal worker were more satisfied with the wage based on unit price while working in the housing construction project for the flexibility in working hours. In addition, the developer was also relieved because they only control the quality and the achievement of the project completion time which supported by informal worker leader. Therefore, these findings are beneficial for both of developer and government as policy maker to succeed the housing program in Indonesia.

Project description and crowdfunding success: an exploratory study.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Mi Jamie; Lu, Baozhou; Fan, Weiguo Patrick; Wang, G Alan

2018-01-01

Existing research on antecedent of funding success mainly focuses on basic project properties such as funding goal, duration, and project category. In this study, we view the process by which project owners raise funds from backers as a persuasion process through project descriptions. Guided by the unimodel theory of persuasion, this study identifies three exemplary antecedents (length, readability, and tone) from the content of project descriptions and two antecedents (past experience and past expertise) from the trustworthy cue of project descriptions. We then investigate their impacts on funding success. Using data collected from Kickstarter, a popular crowdfunding platform, we find that these antecedents are significantly associated with funding success. Empirical results show that the proposed model that incorporated these antecedents can achieve an accuracy of 73 % (70 % in F-measure). The result represents an improvement of roughly 14 percentage points over the baseline model based on informed guessing and 4 percentage points improvement over the mainstream model based on basic project properties (or 44 % improvement of mainstream's performance over informed guessing). The proposed model also has superior true positive and true negative rates. We also investigate the timeliness of project data and find that old project data is gradually becoming less relevant and losing predictive power to newly created projects. Overall, this study provides evidence that antecedents identified from project descriptions have incremental predictive power and can help project owners evaluate and improve the likelihood of funding success.

Organizations, projects and culture

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J. van Cleeff; Pieter van Nispen tot Pannerden

2016-01-01

Purpose: to explore and demonstrate the effects of organizational culture on projects, in particular project culture and project management style. Methodology/approach: descriptive and explorative; through students’ groups. Findings: the cultural relationship between organizations, their projects

Projective-anticipating, projective and projective-lag synchronization of chaotic systems with time-varying delays

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Feng Cunfang; Guan Wei; Wang Yinghai

2013-01-01

We investigate different types of projective (projective-anticipating, projective and projective-lag) synchronization in unidirectionally nonlinearly coupled time-delayed chaotic systems with variable time delays. Based on the Krasovskii–Lyapunov approach, we find both the existence and sufficient stability conditions, using a general class of time-delayed chaotic systems related to optical bistable or hybrid optical bistable devices. Our method has the advantage that it requires only one nonlinearly coupled term to achieve different types of projective synchronization in time-delayed chaotic systems with variable time delays. Compared with other existing works, our result provides an easy way to achieve projective-anticipating, projective and projective-lag synchronization. Numerical simulations of the Ikeda system are given to demonstrate the validity of the proposed method. (paper)

Effective Bug Finding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rivas, Iago Abal

Lightweight bug finders (also known as code scanners) are becoming popular, they scale well and can find simple yet common programming errors. It is now considered a good practice to integrate these tools as part of your development process. The Linux project, for instance, has an automated testing...... service, known as the Kbuild robot, that runs a few of these code scanners. In this project, I have carefully studied tens of historical Linux bugs, and I have found that many of these bugs, despite being conceptually simple, were not caught by any code scanning tool. The reason is that, by design, code...... by matching temporal bug-patterns against the control-flow graph of this program abstraction. I have implemented a proof-of-concept bug finder based on this technique, EBA, and confirmed that it is both scalable and effective at finding bugs. On a benchmark of historical Linux double-lock bugs, EBA was able...

Predictors of Adolescent Breakfast Consumption: Longitudinal Findings from Project EAT

Science.gov (United States)

Bruening, Meg; Larson, Nicole; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne; Hannan, Peter

2011-01-01

Objective: To identify predictors of breakfast consumption among adolescents. Methods: Five-year longitudinal study Project EAT (Eating Among Teens). Baseline surveys were completed in Minneapolis-St. Paul schools and by mail at follow-up by youth (n = 800) transitioning from middle to high school. Linear regression models examined associations…

Effective Bug Finding in C Programs with Shape and Effect Abstractions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abal, Iago; Brabrand, Claus; Wasowski, Andrzej

2017-01-01

Software projects tend to suffer from conceptually simple resource manipulation bugs, such as accessing a de-allocated memory region, or acquiring a non-reentrant lock twice. Static code scanners are used extensively to remove these bugs from projects like the Linux kernel. Yet, when the manipula......Software projects tend to suffer from conceptually simple resource manipulation bugs, such as accessing a de-allocated memory region, or acquiring a non-reentrant lock twice. Static code scanners are used extensively to remove these bugs from projects like the Linux kernel. Yet, when...... the Linux kernel. Our results show that our tool is more effective at finding bugs than similar code-scanning tools. EBA analyzes the drivers/ directory of Linux (nine thousand files) in less than thirty minutes, and uncovers a handful previously unknown double-lock bugs in various drivers....

A community's response to suicide through public art: stakeholder perspectives from the Finding the Light Within project.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohatt, Nathaniel V; Singer, Jonathan B; Evans, Arthur C; Matlin, Samantha L; Golden, Jane; Harris, Cathy; Burns, James; Siciliano, Catherine; Kiernan, Guy; Pelleritti, Margaret; Tebes, Jacob Kraemer

2013-09-01

Suicide is a preventable public health problem and a leading cause of death in the United States. Despite recognized need for community-based strategies for suicide prevention, most suicide prevention programs focus on individual-level change. This article presents seven first person accounts of Finding the Light Within, a community mobilization initiative to reduce the stigma associated with suicide through public arts participation that took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 2011 through 2012. The stigma associated with suicide is a major challenge to suicide prevention, erecting social barriers to effective prevention and treatment and enhancing risk factors for people struggling with suicidal ideation and recovery after losing a loved one to suicide. This project engaged a large and diverse audience and built a new community around suicide prevention through participatory public art, including community design and production of a large public mural about suicide, storytelling and art workshops, and a storytelling website. We present this project as a model for how arts participation can address suicide on multiple fronts-from raising awareness and reducing stigma, to promoting community recovery, to providing healing for people and communities in need.

Laying the Foundations: Early Findings from the New Mathways Project

Science.gov (United States)

Zachry Rutschow, Elizabeth; Diamond, John

2015-01-01

National studies reveal that 50 percent to 70 percent of community college students are required to take developmental, or remedial, math courses upon enrollment, and only 20 percent of developmental math students ever successfully complete a college-level math course. Taking up the challenge is the "New Mathways Project" (NMP),…

PROJECT - RESOURCE MANAGEMENT OF INNOVATIONS IN EDUCATION: ANTHROPOLOGICAL PROJECTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Galina Aleksandrovna Ignat’eva

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the research was to denote a way to solve the problem of education mana-gement ΄s insufficient efficiency considered from the point of view of education opportunities to influence on the formation of mechanisms for sustainable development of society as a whole and its educational component. The concept «project-resource management of innovation in education» regarded on the basis of the anthropological project-transforming paradigm. Conceptually-categorical context presented by conceptual cluster composed of coordinated concepts «project», «resource», «educational reality», «organizational-resource potential», «project commonality». In the theoretical part of the study on the basis of analysis of the normative and exploratory approaches to educational innovations organization and management it was established the search approach ΄s leading role in the methodological substantiation of project-resource management. The study have indicated that in the presence of variable models of innovation management in education, corresponding to various predictive models of continuing education post-industrial society, project-resource management is an universal mechanism for the transition from separate innovation΄s precedents to the an authentic reality of innovative education. In the technological part of the study the main concern was to submit the project-resource management by the management goal’s system, each of which includes the specific management actions, projected results and the organizational forms. The project-resource management ΄s professional – activity context of the study showed evolution of managerial positions: an effective performer – an effective leader – strategist, implemented during the transition from directly directive management to the project management and further to the project-resource management. Based on the findings identified the key factors of initiatively-problem projects

How Project Managers Really Manage: An Indepth Look at Some Managers of Large, Complex NASA Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Mulenburg, Gerald M.; Impaeilla, Cliff (Technical Monitor)

2000-01-01

This paper reports on a research study by the author that examined ten contemporary National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) complex projects. In-depth interviews with the project managers of these projects provided qualitative data about the inner workings of the project and the methodologies used in establishing and managing the projects. The inclusion of a variety of space, aeronautics, and ground based projects from several different NASA research centers helped to reduce potential bias in the findings toward any one type of project, or technical discipline. The findings address the participants and their individual approaches. The discussion includes possible implications for project managers of other large, complex, projects.

WEpods project : Finding the potential for automated road public transport

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Homem De Almeida Rodriguez Correia, G.

2016-01-01

Vehicle automation is developing rapidly, nevertheless a lot of wor k is still lacking, as we are not yet at a point where vehicles are able to drive themselves on a road without a human behind the wheel. One of the possibilities of automation is its use as public transport. In theWEpods project,

Projective Dimension in Filtrated K-Theory

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bentmann, Rasmus Moritz

2013-01-01

Under mild assumptions, we characterise modules with projective resolutions of length n∈N in the target category of filtrated K-theory over a finite topological space in terms of two conditions involving certain Tor -groups. We show that the filtrated K-theory of any separable C∗dash-algebra over...... any topological space with at most four points has projective dimension 2 or less. We observe that this implies a universal coefficient theorem for rational equivariant KK-theory over these spaces. As a contrasting example, we find a separable C∗dash-algebra in the bootstrap class over a certain five......-point space, the filtrated K-theory of which has projective dimension 3. Finally, as an application of our investigations, we exhibit Cuntz-Krieger algebras which have projective dimension 2 in filtrated K-theory over their respective primitive spectrum....

A multilevel study of the impact of project manager's leadership on extra-role performance of project team members

Science.gov (United States)

Shokory, Suzyanty Mohd; Suradi, Nur Riza Mohd

2018-04-01

The current study examines the impact of transformational and transactional leadership of project manager on the extra-role performance of project team members. In addition, this study also identifies factor dominant to extra-role performance of project team members when the transformational and transactional leadership of project managers are analyzed simultaneously. The study involved 175 of project team members from 35 project teams (each project team consists of different contracting companies registered in the Selangor (N = 175 from 35 contractors company). A multilevel analysis with hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) approach was used in this study. The analysis showed that transformational and transactional leadership of the project manager is a positive significant with extra-role performance project team members when analyzed separately. However when the two constructs (transformational leadership and transactional leadership of project manager) were analyzed simultaneously, transformational leadership was found to have more impact on extra-role performance project team members compared to transactional leadership. These findings explained that although transformational and transactional leadership of project managers can improve extra-role performance project team members, but this study has proved that transformational leadership of project managers affect extra-role performance project team members more as compared to transactional leadership.

Correlation of Imaging Findings with Pathologic Findings of Sclerosing Adenosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Bo Bae; Shu, Kwang Sun

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mammographic and sonographic findings of pure sclerosing adenosis. We retrospectively reviewed the mammographic and sonographic findings in 40 cases of pure sclerosing adenosis confirmed by core needle biopsy (n = 23), vacuum-assisted biopsy (n = 7), excision biopsy (n = 9), and lumpectomy (n = 1) from January 2002 to March 2010. All imaging findings were analyzed according to the American College of Radiology (ACR) breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS). Radiologic features were correlated with pathologic findings. Although most mammograms showed negative findings (57%), calcification was the most common abnormal finding of sclerosing adenosis. On sonography, the most common finding was a circumscribed oval hypoechoic mass without posterior features (78%). Most masses showed BI-RADS category 3, (75%, 27/36). Five cases showed categories 4 or 5 (14%, 5/36). Most mammographic and sonographic findings of sclerosing adenosis are non-specific and non-pathognomonic, even though sometimes sclerosing adenosis can be radiologically or histopathologically confused with malignancy

Project stakeholder management

CERN Document Server

Eskerod, Pernille

2013-01-01

Carrying out a project as planned is not a guarantee for success. Projects may fail because project management does not take the requirements, wishes and concerns of stakeholders sufficiently into account. Projects can only be successful though contributions from stakeholders. And in the end, it is the stakeholders that evaluate whether they find that the project is a success. To manage stakeholders effectively, you need to know your stakeholders, their behaviours and attitudes towards the project. In Project Stakeholder Management, the authors give guidance on how to adopt an analytical and s

The Impact of Project Organizational Culture on the Performance of Construction Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luong Hai Nguyen

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Cultural influence has recently received significant attention from academics due to its vital role in the success or failure of a project. In the construction industry, several empirical investigations have examined the influence of culture on project management. The aim of this study is to determine the impact of project organizational culture on the performance of construction projects. A total of 199 completed construction projects in Vietnam with specific data gathering through questionnaires were analyzed. The findings reveal that contractor commitment to contract agreements is the most significant cultural factor affecting project performance. Goal alignment and reliance, contractor commitment, and worker orientation (i.e., commitment to workers contribute to improved overall performance and participant satisfaction. Contractor commitment and cooperative orientation enhance labor productivity, whereas goal alignment and trust and contractor commitment ensure learning performance (i.e., learning from experience. The findings of this study may assist construction professionals in implementing practices that can contribute to the sustainability and success of construction projects.

Leading global projects for professional and accidental project leaders

CERN Document Server

Moran, Robert T

2008-01-01

This book is a must-read for anyone responsible for projects and initiatives that span functional and geographical divides. Authors Moran and Youngdahl bring extensive experience and learning from industry practice to present a clear and straightforward treatment of the leadership skills and knowledge required to lead projects that are global in nature. They have written the first book of its kind to address the three essential skills of global project leaders - strategic project management, project leadership, and cross-cultural leadership. The authors argue that global project leadership is an essential skill in our project-based world and that we are all either intentional or accidental project leaders. Intentional project leaders pursue formal project management education and even certification whereas accidental project leaders find themselves leading global projects and initiatives as a result of a special assignment or promotion. Moran and Youndahl have found that the vast majority of global projects ...

Innovative use of ICT in schools based on the findings in ELFE project

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Frederiksson, Ulf; Jedeskog, Gunilla; Plomp, T.

2008-01-01

The European e-Learning Forum for Education (ELFE) is a project initiated by the ETUCE (European Trade Union Committee on Education). An important objective of the project has been to study good experiences with implementing the use of ICT in schools. This objective has been broken down in seven

Project-based fieldwork: perspectives of graduate entry students and project sponsors.

Science.gov (United States)

Fortune, Tracy; McKinstry, Carol

2012-08-01

This article builds on an earlier viewpoint regarding the need for project-focussed fieldwork. It presents the findings of an evaluative study into the value of project placements undertaken by final year graduate entry master's students as part of a capstone subject. The authors argue that provision of project placements enable impending graduates to develop and implement macro level strategies to develop prevention, resource and service development skills often required of contemporary occupational therapy practitioners. A qualitative approach is adopted. Student cohorts from 2005 and 2006 completed open-ended, written questionnaires, and agency project sponsors were interviewed to obtain their perspectives of the project placement experience. Despite some concern that project placements might be undertaken at the expense of 'clinical' placements these findings reveal that projects managed by students were perceived by services to add great value enabling them to advance important priorities. Students and sponsors highlighted a range of positive learning outcomes, including the ability to work collaboratively with supervisors and develop advanced communication skills and political acumen. The success of such placements depends on supportive supervision from academic staff. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY: The findings promote project placements as a highly authentic aspect of work integrated learning enabling learners to draw together a range of attributes that support the ability to manage complex issues that have occupational relevance at a macro level. In addition, such experiences help learners to develop agency and political acumen both increasingly important capabilities for the contemporary workplace. © 2012 The Authors Australian Occupational Therapy Journal © 2012 Occupational Therapy Australia.

SpaceWire Tiger Team Findings and Suggestions

Science.gov (United States)

Ishac, Joseph A.

2011-01-01

This technical report intends to highlight the key findings and recommendations of the SpaceWire Tiger Team for the CoNNeCT project. It covers findings which are technical in nature, covering design concepts and approaches.

Film showing - Higgs: into the heart of imagination

CERN Multimedia

CERN Bulletin

2010-01-01

On 29 April at 7pm Dutch filmmakers, Hannie van den Bergh and Jan van den Berg, will introduce their directorial debut, Higgs: into the heart of imagination in CERN’s Main Auditorium.   This documentary is about the curiousity, passion and imaginative powers of science. Featuring physicists working at CERN, in particular in ATLAS, and filmed over four years, the film-makers have created a cinematic journey into the heart of imagination. They follow Stan Bentvelsen, head of the Dutch research group at CERN, and watch as he prepares his team for the start of the LHC, as well as the scientific competition to find the elusive Higgs particle. The film also features Peter Higgs as he discusses his work from 1964. The directors have created theatre productions and other multimedia projects under the title The Imagination of Invisible Dimensions, which allow for adventurous dialogues between art and science. All are welcome to attend this showing and afterwards there will be a short question...

Relation of project managers' personality and project performance: An approach based on value stream mapping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maurizio Bevilacqua

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Purpose: This work investigates the influence of project managers’ personality on the success of a project in a Multinational Corporation. The methodology proposed for analyzing the project managers’ personality is based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.Design/methodology/approach: Forty projects carried out in 2012 by multinational corporation, concerning new product development (NPD, have been analyzed, comparing the profile of project managers with results obtained in terms of traditional performance indexes (time delay and over-budget of projects and performance indexes usually used in “Lean Production” sector (waste time and type of “wastes”. A detailed analysis of the most important “wastes” during the project development is carried out using the Value Stream Mapping (VSM technique.Findings and Originality/value: Relying on the Myers–Briggs personality instrument, results show that extroverted managers (as opposed to introverted managers carry out projects that show lower delay and lower waste time. Introverted managers often make “Over-processing” and “Defect” types of waste. Moreover, lower delay and over-budget have been shown by perceiving managers.Research limitations: Regarding the limitations of this work it is necessary to highlight that we collected data from project managers in a retrospective way. While we believe that several aspects of our data collection effort helped enhance the accuracy of the results, future research could conduct real-time case study research to get more detailed insights into the proposed relationships and avoid retrospective bias. Moreover we focused on a single respondent, the project manager. This helped us ensure that their interpretations played an important role in product development. But, we cannot examined the opinion of team members that could be different from project managers opinion regarding some questions.Originality/value: This research provides insight useful

An Accurate and Impartial Expert Assignment Method for Scientific Project Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mingliang Yue

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: This paper proposes an expert assignment method for scientific project review that considers both accuracy and impartiality. As impartial and accurate peer review is extremely important to ensure the quality and feasibility of scientific projects, enhanced methods for managing the process are needed. Design/methodology/approach: To ensure both accuracy and impartiality, we design four criteria, the reviewers’ fitness degree, research intensity, academic association, and potential conflict of interest, to express the characteristics of an appropriate peer review expert. We first formalize the expert assignment problem as an optimization problem based on the designed criteria, and then propose a randomized algorithm to solve the expert assignment problem of identifying reviewer adequacy. Findings: Simulation results show that the proposed method is quite accurate and impartial during expert assignment. Research limitations: Although the criteria used in this paper can properly show the characteristics of a good and appropriate peer review expert, more criteria/conditions can be included in the proposed scheme to further enhance accuracy and impartiality of the expert assignment. Practical implications: The proposed method can help project funding agencies (e.g. the National Natural Science Foundation of China find better experts for project peer review. Originality/value: To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first publication that proposes an algorithm that applies an impartial approach to the project review expert assignment process. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Project-based production and project management : Findings and trends in research on temporary systems in multiple contexts

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pretorius, M.W.; Oerlemans, L.A.G.

2014-01-01

Globalisation is challenging almost every aspect of the political, economic, social and technological environment. Organisations, whether public or private, have to adapt their strategies and operations to stay competitive and efficient. Historically, organisations adopted project-based operations

New findings on the biogas production from sugar beets; Neue Erkenntnisse zur Biogasproduktion aus Zuckerrueben

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bormann, Hinnerk; Schlaefer, Ottmar; Sievers, Michael [CUTEC-Institut GmbH, Clausthal-Zellerfeld (Germany); Trommler, Marcus; Postel, Jan [Deutsches Biomasseforschungszentrum (DBFZ) gemeinnuetzige GmbH, Leipzig (Germany); Felde, Andreas von; Harling, Hinrich; Rother, Beate [KWS Saat AG, Einbeck (Germany); Franke, Henning; Tkocz, Lisa [INPUT Ingenieure GmbH, Sehnde (Germany)

2013-10-01

Main purpose of the project is the process improvement to acquire the full potential of sugar beet based biomethane production. This covers the optimization of breeding and cultivation, as well as improvements of the overall logistic and production process. The project results show that breeding of regional adapted sugar beets can lead to higher yields in cultivation as well as technical enhancements within the biogas production chain can lower the production costs. Both approaches are part of an overall optimization of sugar beets for biomethane production. Project findings indicate a competitive position in comparison to biomethane based on different agricultural feedstock. (orig.)

The pediatric resident training on tobacco project: baseline findings from the Parent/Guardian Tobacco Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Hymowitz, Norman; Schwab, Joseph; Haddock, Christopher keith; Pyle, Sara; Moore, Glenisha; Meshberg, Sarah

2005-07-01

Pediatricians have an important and unique role to play in the anti-tobacco arena. They may prevent relapse to smoking in women who stopped smoking during pregnancy, encourage parents to protect infants and young children from environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), prevent the onset of smoking in children and adolescents, and help patients and parents who smoke or use other forms of tobacco to quit. Unfortunately, few pediatricians intervene on tobacco use or ETS, and few pediatric residency training programs prepare residents to address tobacco. The Pediatric Residency Training on Tobacco Project is a 4-year randomized prospective study of the effectiveness of training pediatric residents to intervene on tobacco in patients and parents. In this paper, we present findings from the Baseline Parent/Guardian Tobacco Survey. Fifteen pediatric residency training programs participated in the Pediatric Residency Training on Tobacco Project, and they were assigned randomly to special and standard training conditions. The Baseline Parent/Guardian Tobacco Survey was administered to 1770 participants, a minimum of 100 from each site. The Parent/Guardian Survey was designed to describe the population under study. It addressed demographic information, family tobacco use, rules concerning smoking in the home and elsewhere, smoking behavior and beliefs, and parent/guardian reports of resident intervention on tobacco. Data analyses described the population served by Continuity Clinics associated with the pediatric residency training programs and determined the degree to which residents addressed tobacco in parents/guardians. The parents/guardians were primarily low-income African American and Hispanic females. Approximately 20% reported that they smoked cigarettes, and about 60% prohibited smoking in their home. Seventy percent of the parents reported that the resident asked about cigarette smoking, and about half indicated that the resident talked with them about ETS. However, only

Washington Wildlife Mitigation Projects : Final Programmatic Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration; Washington (State). Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.

1996-08-01

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) proposes to fund the portion of the Washington Wildlife Mitigation Agreement (Agreement) pertaining to wildlife habitat mitigation projects to be undertaken in a cooperative effort with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). This Agreement serves to establish a monetary budget funded by BPA for projects proposed by Washington Wildlife Coalition members and approved by BPA to protect, mitigate, and improve wildlife and/or wildlife habitat within the State of Washington that has been affected by the construction of Federal dams along the Columbia River. This Environmental Assessment examines the potential environmental effects of acquiring and/or improving wildlife habitat within five different project areas. These project areas are located throughout Grant County and in parts of Okanogan, Douglas, Adams, Franklin, Kittias, Yakima, and Benton Counties. The multiple projects would involve varying combinations of five proposed site-specific activities (habitat improvement, operation and maintenance, monitoring and evaluation, access and recreation management, and cultural resource management). All required Federal, State, and tribal coordination, permits and/or approvals would be obtained prior to ground-disturbing activities.

Washington wildlife mitigation projects. Final programmatic environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-08-01

Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) proposes to fund the portion of the Washington Wildlife Mitigation Agreement (Agreement) pertaining to wildlife habitat mitigation projects to be undertaken in a cooperative effort with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). This Agreement serves to establish a monetary budget funded by BPA for projects proposed by Washington Wildlife Coalition members and approved by BPA to protect, mitigate, and improve wildlife and/or wildlife habitat within the State of Washington that has been affected by the construction of Federal dams along the Columbia River. This Environmental Assessment examines the potential environmental effects of acquiring and/or improving wildlife habitat within five different project areas. These project areas are located throughout Grant County and in parts of Okanogan, Douglas, Adams, Franklin, Kittias, Yakima, and Benton Counties. The multiple projects would involve varying combinations of five proposed site-specific activities (habitat improvement, operation and maintenance, monitoring and evaluation, access and recreation management, and cultural resource management). All required Federal, State, and tribal coordination, permits and/or approvals would be obtained prior to ground-disturbing activities

Number projection method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaneko, K.

1987-01-01

A relationship between the number projection and the shell model methods is investigated in the case of a single-j shell. We can find a one-to-one correspondence between the number projected and the shell model states

Phase 1 studies summary of major findings of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project, South San Francisco Bay, California

Science.gov (United States)

Valoppi, Laura

2018-04-02

Wildlife, the Santa Clara Valley Water District, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.To implement the AMP, the PMT have selected and funded applied studies and monitoring projects to address key uncertainties. This information is used by the PMT to make decisions about current management of the project area and future restoration actions in order to meet project.This document summarizes the major scientific findings from studies conducted from 2009 to 2016, as part of the science program that was conducted in conjunction with Phase 1 restoration and management actions. Additionally, this report summarizes the management response to the study results under the guidance of the AMP framework and provides a list of suggested studies to be conducted in “Phase 2–A scorecard summarizing the Project’s progress toward meeting the AMP goals for a range of Project objectives.” The scoring to date indicates that the Project is meeting or exceeding expectations for sediment accretion and western snowy plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) recovery. There is uncertainty with respect to objectives for California gulls (Larus californicus), California least tern (Sternula antillarum), steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), and regulatory water quality objectives. Water quality and algal blooms, specifically of the managed ponds, is indicated as trending negative. However, the vast majority of objectives are trending positive, including increased abundance for a number of bird guilds, increasing marsh habitat, maintenance of mudflats, visitor experience, estuarine fish numbers, and special-status marsh species numbers.

Finding Futures: A Spatio-Visual Experiment In Participatory Engagement

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Davies, Sarah Rachael; Selin, Cynthia; Gano, Gretchen

2013-01-01

The Finding Futures Project explores innovative ways of deliberating the future of cities through an emphasis on embodied spatio-visual engagement with urban landscapes. The first instantiation of the project - which took place in Lisbon in 2011 - is reported through a discussion of the project's...

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

Science.gov (United States)

2008-08-01

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

The Research of Stakeholder Power Impact on Project Implementation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Artur Biskupek

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose of the article: The article show summarized information about stakeholders and their role in project implementation based on literature review. The second part of the article is dedicated for the research about stakeholder influence on project implementation. The only condition to participate in the survey was managing projects. Although the respondents are employed in the area of south Poland, they implement projects all over Poland. The research tool was a questionnaire which was sent by e-mail to the respondents. 90 project managers from the area of south Poland were invited to join the project, and 62 people sent back a completed questionnaire. Methodology/methods: The research was done by a questionnaire with twenty two question, which was divided into three parts. The first part was the imprint, which consisted of three questions. The second part consisted of two questions, which concerned the way of defining the word “stakeholder”. The third part concerned the topic of the research and consisted of seventeen questions. Scientific aim: The aim of the article is presenting the results of the research which was done, to show the research results of project stakeholder influence on the project implementation. Findings: The results received from the survey in the process of analysis and interpretation allow to put forward a thesis that stakeholders as a whole group are significant for the implementation of the whole project. Their impact is so important that it is possible to tell that they decide also about the project success or failure. Conclusions: The respondents show that stakeholders affect every area in large extent or very big extent. The fact has been proved in table 1 which shows the most frequently chosen answers by responders. However, by conducted analysis by the standard deviation it is possible to see a large dispersion of the results.

Organizing Cultural Projects Through Legitimising as Cultural Entrepreneurship

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindkvist, Lars; Hjorth, Daniel

2015-01-01

Purpose This paper is a study of creating organization in the case of cultural projects; cultural entrepreneurship. This includes taking advantage of opportunities and using ones social capital through networks. It is a case study of Vandalorum which is an Swedish international art- and design...... and Design Centre. Findings The case of Vandalorum shows that organizing a cultural project like Vandalorum is characterized by no well-defined starting and stopping point, but – quite typically for entrepreneurship as an organization-creation process – builds momentum and legitimacy narratively. Originality...

eHealth for Remote Regions: Findings from Central Asia Health Systems Strengthening Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Sajwani, Afroz; Qureshi, Kiran; Shaikh, Tehniat; Sayani, Saleem

2015-01-01

Isolated communities in remote regions of Afghanistan, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan and Tajikistan lack access to high-quality, low-cost health care services, forcing them to travel to distant parts of the country, bearing an unnecessary financial burden. The eHealth Programme under Central Asia Health Systems Strengthening (CAHSS) Project, a joint initiative between the Aga Khan Foundation, Canada and the Government of Canada, was initiated in 2013 with the aim to utilize Information and Communication Technologies to link health care institutions and providers with rural communities to provide comprehensive and coordinated care, helping minimize the barriers of distance and time. Under the CAHSS Project, access to low-cost, quality health care is provided through a regional hub and spoke teleconsultation network of government and non-government health facilities. In addition, capacity building initiatives are offered to health professionals. By 2017, the network is expected to connect seven Tier 1 tertiary care facilities with 14 Tier 2 secondary care facilities for teleconsultation and eLearning. From April 2013 to September 2014, 6140 teleconsultations have been provided across the project sites. Additionally, 52 new eLearning sessions have been developed and 2020 staff members have benefitted from eLearning sessions. Ethics and patient rights are respected during project implementation.

Examination of the relationship between project management critical success factors and project success of oil and gas drilling projects

Science.gov (United States)

Alagba, Tonye J.

Oil and gas drilling projects are the primary means by which oil companies recover large volumes of commercially available hydrocarbons from deep reservoirs. These types of projects are complex in nature, involving management of multiple stakeholder interfaces, multidisciplinary personnel, complex contractor relationships, and turbulent environmental and market conditions, necessitating the application of proven project management best practices and critical success factors (CSFs) to achieve success. Although there is some practitioner oriented literature on project management CSFs for drilling projects, none of these is based on empirical evidence, from research. In addition, the literature has reported alarming rates of oil and gas drilling project failure, which is attributable not to technical factors, but to failure of project management. The aim of this quantitative correlational study therefore, was to discover an empirically verified list of project management CSFs, which consistent application leads to successful implementation of oil and gas drilling projects. The study collected survey data online, from a random sample of 127 oil and gas drilling personnel who were members of LinkedIn's online community "Drilling Supervisors, Managers, and Engineers". The results of the study indicated that 10 project management factors are individually related to project success of oil and gas drilling projects. These 10 CSFs are namely; Project mission, Top management support, Project schedule/plan, Client consultation, Personnel, Technical tasks, Client acceptance, Monitoring and feedback, Communication, and Troubleshooting. In addition, the study found that the relationships between the 10 CSFs and drilling project success is unaffected by participant and project demographics---role of project personnel, and project location. The significance of these findings are both practical, and theoretical. Practically, application of an empirically verified CSFs list to oil

Show Me the Money: Importance of Crowdfunding Factors on Backers’ Decisions to Financially Support Kickstarter Campaigns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rita Colistra

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Through the use of an online survey and supporting interviews of funders, this study explores which factors are most influential in people’s decisions to financially back Kickstarter projects. Findings suggest that Kickstarter has several distinct benefits for those who support its projects and offers them an experience that traditional production channels cannot. The results also indicate that backers typically feel involved in the process of creating the projects they support, and they are willing to take risks to see projects that are important to them come to fruition. This research helps to improve our understanding of the attitudes that drive Kickstarter funding, and it helps project creators know what aspects of their campaigns prospective supporters find most important.

How do ICT project managers manage project knowledge in the public sector? An empirical enquiry from the Victorian Public Sector in Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yakub Karagoz

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Projects are temporal organisation forms that are highly knowledge-intensive and play an important role in modern public (and private sector organisations. The effective and efficient creation, dissemination, application and conservation of relevant knowledge are a critical success factor in the management of projects. Yet, project management (PM and knowledge management (KM are two distinct disciplines. This paper explores the relationship between PM and KM by analysing the literature at the intersection of those disciplines and presenting the empirical results of a case study of the Victorian Public Sector (VPS in Australia. A series of 14 interviews were conducted to explore how ICT project managers manage project knowledge across the departments of the VPS. Findings show a strong preference among the participants for informal, face-to-face interactions and agile approaches to facilitate knowledge transfer and creation in ICT project environments.

EMSODEV and EPOS-IP: key findings for effective management of EU research infrastructure projects

Science.gov (United States)

Materia, Paola; Bozzoli, Sabrina; Beranzoli, Laura; Cocco, Massimo; Favali, Paolo; Freda, Carmela; Sangianantoni, Agata

2017-04-01

EMSO (European Multidisciplinary Seafloor and water-column Observatory, http://www.emso-eu.org) and EPOS (European Plate Observing System, https://www.epos-ip.org) are pan-European Research Infrastructures (RIs) in the ESFRI 2016 Roadmap. EMSO has recently become an ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium), whilst EPOS application is in progress. Both ERICs will be hosted in Italy and the "Representing Entity" is INGV. EMSO consists of oceanic environment observation systems spanning from the Arctic through the Atlantic and Mediterranean, to the Black Sea for long-term, high-resolution, real-time monitoring of natural and man-induced processes such as hazards, climate, and marine ecosystems changes to study their evolution and interconnections. EPOS aims at creating a pan-European infrastructure for solid Earth science to support a safe and sustainable society. EPOS will enable innovative multidisciplinary research for a better understanding of Earth's physical and chemical processes controlling earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, ground instability, tsunami, and all those processes driving tectonics and Earth's surface dynamics. Following the conclusion of their Preparatory Phases the two RIs are now in their Implementation Phase still supported by the EC through the EMSODEV and EPOS-IP projects, both run by dedicated Project Management Offices at INGV with sound experience in EU projects. EMSODEV (H2020 project, 2015-2018) involves 11 partners and 9 associate partners and aims at improving the harmonization among the EMSO ERIC observation systems through the realization of EMSO Generic Instrument Modules (EGIMs), and a Data Management Platform (DMP) to implement interoperability and standardization. The DMP will provide access to data from all EMSO nodes, providing a unified, homogeneous, infrastructure-scale and user-oriented platform integrated with the increased measurement capabilities and functions provided by the EGIMs. EPOS IP (H2020 project, 2015

Locale-Specific Categorization of IT Projects for Proper Project Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Nasir

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper we aim to show that not only are the project management techniques important for small-scale projects, but following proper project management techniques is one of the most important requirements. However, there come slight variations in implementing project management techniques in small projects as compared with larger projects. Therefore, proper categorization of projects holds the key to success in many situations. Our paper will show that categorization of a project as small-scale or large-scale should always be locale specific. In this regards, we develop a criteria and evaluate how the projects are categorized as small-scale and large-scale in different parts of the world with focus on IT projects. This research concludes that some methods cannot be used for projects of different scales.

IT Project Selection

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Keld

2016-01-01

for initiation. Most of the research on project selection is normative, suggesting new methods, but available empirical studies indicate that many methods are seldom used in practice. This paper addresses the issue by providing increased understanding of IT project selection practice, thereby facilitating...... the development of methods that better fit current practice. The study is based on naturalistic decision-making theory and interviews with experienced project portfolio managers who, when selecting projects, primarily rely on political skills, experience and personal networks rather than on formal IT project......-selection methods, and these findings point to new areas for developing new methodological support for IT project selection....

A rural virtual health sciences library project: research findings with implications for next generation library services.

Science.gov (United States)

Richwine, M P; McGowan, J J

2001-01-01

The Shared Hospital Electronic Library of Southern Indiana (SHELSI) research project was designed to determine whether access to a virtual health sciences library and training in its use would support medical decision making in rural southern Indiana and achieve the same level of impact seen by targeted information services provided by health sciences librarians in urban hospitals. Based on the results of a needs assessment, a virtual medical library was created; various levels of training were provided. Virtual library users were asked to complete a Likert-type survey, which included questions on intent of use and impact of use. At the conclusion of the project period, structured interviews were conducted. Impact of the virtual health sciences library showed a strong correlation with the impact of information provided by health sciences librarians. Both interventions resulted in avoidance of adverse health events. Data collected from the structured interviews confirmed the perceived value of the virtual library. While librarians continue to hold a strong position in supporting information access for health care providers, their roles in the information age must begin to move away from providing information toward selecting and organizing knowledge resources and instruction in their use.

Radiologic findings of sacroiliitis : emphasis on MR findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Ik; Park, Hai Jung; Lee, Yul; Chung, Soo Young; Park, Jong Ho

1997-01-01

To compare the characteristic MR findings of infectious sacroiliitis (IS) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS). We retrospectively reviewed MR findings in eight patients with IS (pyogenic in six, tuberculosis in two) confirmed by culture and clinical follow-up, and in six with AS by HLA-B27 typing. AA control group of 13 asymptomatic volunteers was formed, and they underwent MRI Findings were analysed for morphology, degree of bone erosion, and adjacent soft tissue change. CT findings of AS in four patients and IS in four were also compared to MR findings. MR characteristics of IS included unilaterality (100%), abnormal cartilage signal intensity (100%), bone marrow change (100%), contrast enhancement (100%), erosion (63%), and soft tissue change (63%). MR findings of AS showed bilaterality (67%), abnormal cartilage signal intensity (80%), bone marrow change (80%), erosion (80%), contrast enhancement (44%) and soft tissue change (10%). CT scan showed bony sclerosis and erosion (86%), and abnormal joint space (71%). MR findings of sacroiliitis were loss of thin zone of a cartilage and erosions on T1-weighted image, and increased signal intensity on T2-weighted image. MRI is regarded as a useful diagnostic method where conventional diagnosis is difficult, and is able to image cartilage abnormalities directly and noninvasively. Significant differences in MR findings between IS and AS were not noted, however

Managing a project's legacy: implications for organizations and project management

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Lynne P.; Hecht, Michael H.; Majchrzak, Ann

2003-01-01

Organizations that rely on projects to implement their products must find effective mechanisms for propagating lessons learned on one project throughout the organization. A broad view of what constitutes a project's 'legacy' is presented that includes not just the design products and leftover parts, but new processes, relationships, technology, skills, planning data, and performance metrics. Based on research evaluating knowledge reuse in innovative contexts, this paper presents an approach to project legacy management that focuses on collecting and using legacy knowledge to promote organizational learning and effective reuse, while addressing factors of post-project responsibility, information obsolescence, and the importance of ancillary contextual information. .

A path finding implementation for multi-layer networks

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijkstra, F.; van der Ham, J.; Grosso, P.; de Laat, C.

2009-01-01

The goal of the OptIPuter project is to tightly couple research applications with dynamically allocated paths. Since OptIPuter is a multi-disciplinary project, the paths through the network often span multiple network domains, and the applications are challenged to find valid network connections

A path finding implementation for multi-layer network

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dijkstra, F.; Ham, J.J. van der; Grosso, P.; Laat, C. de

2009-01-01

The goal of the OptIPuter project is to tightly couple research applications with dynamically allocated paths. Since OptIPuter is a multi-disciplinary project, the paths through the network often span multiple network domains, and the applications are challenged to find valid network connections

Using Project Performance to Measure Effectiveness of Quality Management System Maintenance and Practices in Construction Industry

Science.gov (United States)

Leong, Tiong Kung; Ariff, Mohd. Shoki Md.

2014-01-01

This paper proposed seven existing and new performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of quality management system (QMS) maintenance and practices in construction industry. This research is carried out with a questionnaire based on QMS variables which are extracted from literature review and project performance indicators which are established from project management's theory. Data collected was analyzed using correlation and regression analysis. The findings indicate that client satisfaction and time variance have positive and significant relationship with QMS while other project performance indicators do not show significant results. Further studies can use the same project performance indicators to study the effectiveness of QMS in different sampling area to improve the generalizability of the findings. PMID:24701182

Using Project Performance to Measure Effectiveness of Quality Management System Maintenance and Practices in Construction Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tiong Kung Leong

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper proposed seven existing and new performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of quality management system (QMS maintenance and practices in construction industry. This research is carried out with a questionnaire based on QMS variables which are extracted from literature review and project performance indicators which are established from project management's theory. Data collected was analyzed using correlation and regression analysis. The findings indicate that client satisfaction and time variance have positive and significant relationship with QMS while other project performance indicators do not show significant results. Further studies can use the same project performance indicators to study the effectiveness of QMS in different sampling area to improve the generalizability of the findings.

Using project performance to measure effectiveness of quality management system maintenance and practices in construction industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Leong, Tiong Kung; Zakuan, Norhayati; Mat Saman, Muhamad Zameri; Ariff, Mohd Shoki Md; Tan, Choy Soon

2014-01-01

This paper proposed seven existing and new performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of quality management system (QMS) maintenance and practices in construction industry. This research is carried out with a questionnaire based on QMS variables which are extracted from literature review and project performance indicators which are established from project management's theory. Data collected was analyzed using correlation and regression analysis. The findings indicate that client satisfaction and time variance have positive and significant relationship with QMS while other project performance indicators do not show significant results. Further studies can use the same project performance indicators to study the effectiveness of QMS in different sampling area to improve the generalizability of the findings.

The TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study: Methods and Findings from an Exploratory Research Project on Eighth-Grade Mathematics Instruction in Germany, Japan, and the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Stigler, James W.; Gonzales, Patrick; Kawanaka, Takako; Knoll, Steffen; Serrano, Ana

1999-01-01

Describes the methods and preliminary findings of the Videotape Classroom Study, a video survey of eighth-grade mathematics lessons in Germany, Japan, and the United States. Part of the Third International Mathematics and Science study, this research project is the first study of videotaped records from national probability samples. (SLD)

Quality Cost in the Construction Industry ' Preliminary Findings in Malaysia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mukhtar Che Ali

2010-06-01

Full Text Available One of the key areas being emphasis in ISO 9001 Quality Management System (QMS is performance measurement towards continual improvement. Among the primary measuring tools is quality cost approach. Quality cost has been well practice in manufacturing sector but slowly gain its importance in construction industry. In fact Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK has reckoned quality cost as one of the tool and technique in few of its management processes. In view of such circumstances that has prompted an effort to undertake a study to ascertain the level of knowledge and practice on quality cost in Malaysian construction landscape. The targeted group of respondents was the personnel in the project management team. Capitalizing Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB National Electronic Tendering Initiatives (NETI road shows which were held in year 2007 throughout the country, the author was able to garner 263 respondents representing the project management team. Subsequently the data gathered from the completed forms were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS software. General findings indicated that the level of knowledge and practice on quality cost among the project management team were relatively low. One of the main contributing factors was poor knowledge in the area related to quality cost. Despite of such scenario most of the respondents showed their interest in acquiring knowledge in the field of quality cost. Hence quality cost approach is at the infancy stage in Malaysian construction industry.

Complementarity of technical skills with art and culture: theoretical reflections, the Talent Show Project experiment at IFRJ – campus Realengo and a proposal for its expansion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Célia Dantas Pollig

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the theoretical basis I have used to better understand the dimension of the task I intend to accomplish. As Educational Advisor at the Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Rio de Janeiro (IFRJ, campus Realengo, my plan is to develop and expand the so called Talent Show Project, by complementing technical training, and providing opportunities for artistic and cultural expression. The study also presents several reflections for achieving the expansion of the scope of the Project intervention, which can become an institutional program developed at IFRJ.

The effectiveness of community-based cycling promotion: findings from the Cycling Connecting Communities project in Sydney, Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Merom Dafna

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Encouraging cycling is an important way to increase physical activity in the community. The Cycling Connecting Communities (CCC Project is a community-based cycling promotion program that included a range of community engagement and social marketing activities, such as organised bike rides and events, cycling skills courses, the distribution of cycling maps of the area and coverage in the local press. The aim of the study was to assess the effectiveness of this program designed to encourage the use of newly completed off-road cycle paths through south west Sydney, Australia. Methods The evaluation used a quasi-experimental design that consisted of a pre- and post-intervention telephone survey (24 months apart of a cohort of residents (n = 909 in the intervention area (n = 520 (Fairfield and Liverpool and a socio-demographically similar comparison area (n = 389 (Bankstown. Both areas had similar bicycle infrastructure. Four bicycle counters were placed on the main bicycle paths in the intervention and comparison areas to monitor daily bicycle use before and after the intervention. Results The telephone survey results showed significantly greater awareness of the Cycling Connecting Communities project (13.5% vs 8.0%, p Conclusion Despite relatively modest resources, the Cycling Connecting Communities project achieved significant increases in bicycle path use, and increased cycling in some sub-groups. However, this community based intervention with limited funding had very limited reach into the community and did not increase population cycling levels.

Your Project Management Coach Best Practices for Managing Projects in the Real World

CERN Document Server

Biafore, Bonnie

2012-01-01

A pragmatic approach to project management Many projects fail to deliver on time or on budget, or even to deliver a workable product that satisfies the customer. While good project management goes a long way towards ensuring success, managers often fail to follow the plans they implement. This unique guide helps you understand and successfully handle project management, once and for all. Covering practical ways to solve problems you'll typically face when managing actual projects, this pragmatic book takes you through a full project management lifecycle. You'll find ample tips, tricks, and bes

From Surveillance to Intervention: Overview and Baseline Findings for the Active City of Liverpool Active Schools and SportsLinx (A-CLASS Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nicola McWhannell

2018-03-01

Full Text Available This paper outlines the implementation of a programme of work that started with the development of a population-level children’s health, fitness and lifestyle study in 1996 (SportsLinx leading to selected interventions one of which is described in detail: the Active City of Liverpool, Active Schools and SportsLinx (A-CLASS Project. The A-CLASS Project aimed to quantify the effectiveness of structured and unstructured physical activity (PA programmes on children’s PA, fitness, body composition, bone health, cardiac and vascular structures, fundamental movement skills, physical self-perception and self-esteem. The study was a four-arm parallel-group school-based cluster randomised controlled trial (clinical trials no. NCT02963805, and compared different exposure groups: a high intensity PA (HIPA group, a fundamental movement skill (FMS group, a PA signposting (PASS group and a control group, in a two-schools-per-condition design. Baseline findings indicate that children’s fundamental movement skill competence levels are low-to-moderate, yet these skills are inversely associated with percentage body fat. Outcomes of this project will make an important contribution to the design and implementation of children’s PA promotion initiatives.

From Surveillance to Intervention: Overview and Baseline Findings for the Active City of Liverpool Active Schools and SportsLinx (A-CLASS) Project

Science.gov (United States)

McWhannell, Nicola; Henaghan, Jayne L.

2018-01-01

This paper outlines the implementation of a programme of work that started with the development of a population-level children’s health, fitness and lifestyle study in 1996 (SportsLinx) leading to selected interventions one of which is described in detail: the Active City of Liverpool, Active Schools and SportsLinx (A-CLASS) Project. The A-CLASS Project aimed to quantify the effectiveness of structured and unstructured physical activity (PA) programmes on children’s PA, fitness, body composition, bone health, cardiac and vascular structures, fundamental movement skills, physical self-perception and self-esteem. The study was a four-arm parallel-group school-based cluster randomised controlled trial (clinical trials no. NCT02963805), and compared different exposure groups: a high intensity PA (HIPA) group, a fundamental movement skill (FMS) group, a PA signposting (PASS) group and a control group, in a two-schools-per-condition design. Baseline findings indicate that children’s fundamental movement skill competence levels are low-to-moderate, yet these skills are inversely associated with percentage body fat. Outcomes of this project will make an important contribution to the design and implementation of children’s PA promotion initiatives.

Public health impacts of city policies to reduce climate change: findings from the URGENCHE EU-China project.

Science.gov (United States)

Sabel, Clive E; Hiscock, Rosemary; Asikainen, Arja; Bi, Jun; Depledge, Mike; van den Elshout, Sef; Friedrich, Rainer; Huang, Ganlin; Hurley, Fintan; Jantunen, Matti; Karakitsios, Spyros P; Keuken, Menno; Kingham, Simon; Kontoroupis, Periklis; Kuenzli, Nino; Liu, Miaomiao; Martuzzi, Marco; Morton, Katie; Mudu, Pierpaolo; Niittynen, Marjo; Perez, Laura; Sarigiannis, Denis; Stahl-Timmins, Will; Tobollik, Myriam; Tuomisto, Jouni; Willers, Saskia

2016-03-08

Climate change is a global threat to health and wellbeing. Here we provide findings of an international research project investigating the health and wellbeing impacts of policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in urban environments. Five European and two Chinese city authorities and partner academic organisations formed the project consortium. The methodology involved modelling the impact of adopted urban climate-change mitigation transport, buildings and energy policy scenarios, usually for the year 2020 and comparing them with business as usual (BAU) scenarios (where policies had not been adopted). Carbon dioxide emissions, health impacting exposures (air pollution, noise and physical activity), health (cardiovascular, respiratory, cancer and leukaemia) and wellbeing (including noise related wellbeing, overall wellbeing, economic wellbeing and inequalities) were modelled. The scenarios were developed from corresponding known levels in 2010 and pre-existing exposure response functions. Additionally there were literature reviews, three longitudinal observational studies and two cross sectional surveys. There are four key findings. Firstly introduction of electric cars may confer some small health benefits but it would be unwise for a city to invest in electric vehicles unless their power generation fuel mix generates fewer emissions than petrol and diesel. Second, adopting policies to reduce private car use may have benefits for carbon dioxide reduction and positive health impacts through reduced noise and increased physical activity. Third, the benefits of carbon dioxide reduction from increasing housing efficiency are likely to be minor and co-benefits for health and wellbeing are dependent on good air exchange. Fourthly, although heating dwellings by in-home biomass burning may reduce carbon dioxide emissions, consequences for health and wellbeing were negative with the technology in use in the cities studied. The climate-change reduction policies reduced

Adapting Project Management Practices to Research-Based Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Bahr, P.; Baker, T.; Corbin, B.; Keith, L.; Loerch, L.; Mullenax, C.; Myers, R.; Rhodes, B.; Skytland, N.

2007-01-01

From dealing with the inherent uncertainties in outcomes of scientific research to the lack of applicability of current NASA Procedural Requirements guidance documentation, research-based projects present challenges that require unique application of classical project management techniques. If additionally challenged by the creation of a new program transitioning from basic to applied research in a technical environment often unfamiliar with the cost and schedule constraints addressed by project management practices, such projects can find themselves struggling throughout their life cycles. Finally, supplying deliverables to a prime vehicle customer, also in the formative stage, adds further complexity to the development and management of research-based projects. The Biomedical Research and Countermeasures Projects Branch at NASA Johnson Space Center encompasses several diverse applied research-based or research-enabling projects within the newly-formed Human Research Program. This presentation will provide a brief overview of the organizational structure and environment in which these projects operate and how the projects coordinate to address and manage technical requirements. We will identify several of the challenges (cost, technical, schedule, and personnel) encountered by projects across the Branch, present case reports of actions taken and techniques implemented to deal with these challenges, and then close the session with an open forum discussion of remaining challenges and potential mitigations.

Process Evaluation of the Tier 1 Program (Secondary 1 Curriculum of the Project P.A.T.H.S.: Findings Based on the Full Implementation Phase

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel T. L. Shek

2008-01-01

Full Text Available To understand the implementation quality of the Tier 1 Program (Secondary 1 Curriculum of the Project P.A.T.H.S. (Positive Adolescent Training through Holistic Social Programmes, observers carried out process evaluation in the form of systematic observations of 22 units in 14 randomly selected schools. Results showed that the overall level of program adherence was generally high (range: 45–100%, with an average of 86.3%. High implementation quality of the program in the areas of student interest, student participation and involvement, classroom control, use of interactive delivery method, use of strategies to enhance student motivation, use of positive and supportive feedbacks, instructors’ familiarity with the students, degree of achievement of the objectives, time management, lesson preparation, overall implementation quality, and success of implementation was also found. The present findings are consistent with those observations based on the experimental implementation phase, suggesting that the implementation quality of the Tier 1 Program (Secondary 1 Curriculum was generally high.

The online good practice guide on job finding

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Levinsen, Karin Tweddell; Ørngreen, Rikke; Andreasen, Lars Birch

2010-01-01

The Online Good Practice Guide on Job Finding is a result of the project L@JOST, 'Learn about finding jobs through digital storytelling', with the purpose of enhancing the employability possibilities of graduated students through the use of e-portfolio and digital storytelling....

A rural virtual health sciences library project: research findings with implications for next generation library services*

Science.gov (United States)

Richwine, Margaret (Peggy); McGowan, Julie J.

2001-01-01

Purpose: The Shared Hospital Electronic Library of Southern Indiana (SHELSI) research project was designed to determine whether access to a virtual health sciences library and training in its use would support medical decision making in rural southern Indiana and achieve the same level of impact seen by targeted information services provided by health sciences librarians in urban hospitals. Methods: Based on the results of a needs assessment, a virtual medical library was created; various levels of training were provided. Virtual library users were asked to complete a Likert-type survey, which included questions on intent of use and impact of use. At the conclusion of the project period, structured interviews were conducted. Results: Impact of the virtual health sciences library showed a strong correlation with the impact of information provided by health sciences librarians. Both interventions resulted in avoidance of adverse health events. Data collected from the structured interviews confirmed the perceived value of the virtual library. Conclusion: While librarians continue to hold a strong position in supporting information access for health care providers, their roles in the information age must begin to move away from providing information toward selecting and organizing knowledge resources and instruction in their use. PMID:11209799

Grounded Theory Study of Conflicts in Norwegian Agile Software Projects: The Project Managers’ Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lubna Siddique

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to explore the process of conflicts in agile software projects. The purpose was to investigate the causes and consequences of these conflicts. For this purpose, we conducted a qualitative study involving agile software projects in Norway. Grounded theory was used to analyze the data and the interview findings are presented using Glaser´s Six C model (context, condition, causes, consequences, contingencies, and covariance. The research findings suggest that there are several causes of conflicts. These include: the role of the product owner, an inexperienced project manager, the customer’s lack of knowledge about methodology organizational hierarchy in public companies, contracting, personal egos, financial issues, not getting the right team. Consequences of conflicts include: decreased productivity, wastage of time and resources, diverted attention from project objectives loss of motivation, poor decision making, loss of communication. Based on interview data, different conflict strategies are suggested and these include appropriately skilled project manager, communication and negotiation, defining clear roles, stakeholder analysis, managing stakeholder´s expectations, discussion, finding the root cause of conflict. Project managers are using these strategies to avoid or resolve conflicts. The competencies required to handle these kind of conflicts are also discussed in the paper, while the implications of theory and practice of conflict management theory are also presented.

Project Half Double

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svejvig, Per; Gerstrøm, Anna; Frederiksen, Signe Hedeboe

The Half Double mission: Project Half Double has a clear mission. We want to succeed in finding a project methodology that can increase the success rate of our projects while increasing the development speed of new products and services. We are convinced that by doing so we can strengthen...... the competitiveness of Denmark and play an important role in the battle for jobs and future welfare. The overall goal is to deliver “Projects in half the time with double the impact” where projects in half the time should be understood as half the time to impact (benefit realization, effect is achieved......) and not as half the time for project execution. The Half Double project journey: It all began in May 2013 when we asked ourselves: How do we create a new and radical project paradigm that can create successful projects? Today we are a movement of hundreds of passionate project people, and it grows larger...

Virtual Project Teams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjørn, Pernille

technology in six real-life virtual teams, two in industry and four in education, applying interpretative research and action research methods. Two main lines of investigation are pursued: the first involves an examination of the organisational issues related to groupware adaptation in virtual project teams......, professional disciplines, time differences and technology. This thesis comprises a general introduction, referred to as the summary report, and seven research papers, which deal in detail with the results and findings of the empirical cases. The summary report provides a general introduction to the research......, while the second looks at the social context and practices of virtual project teams. Two of the key findings are 1) that the process of groupware adaptation by virtual project teams can be viewed as a process of expanding and aligning the technological frames of the participants, which includes mutual...

Key Findings from the U.S.-India Partnership for Climate Resilience Workshop on Development and Application of Downscaling Climate Projections

Science.gov (United States)

Kunkel, K.; Dissen, J.; Easterling, D. R.; Kulkarni, A.; Akhtar, F. H.; Hayhoe, K.; Stoner, A. M. K.; Swaminathan, R.; Thrasher, B. L.

2017-12-01

s part of the Department of State U.S.-India Partnership for Climate Resilience (PCR), scientists from NOAA NCEI, CICS-NC, Texas Tech University (TTU), Stanford University (SU), and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) held a workshop at IITM in Pune, India during 7-9 March 2017 on the development, techniques and applications of downscaled climate projections. Workshop participants from TTU, SU, and IITM presented state-of-the-art climate downscaling techniques using the ARRM method, NASA NEX climate products, CORDEX-South Asia and analysis tools for resilience planning and sustainable development. PCR collaborators in attendance included Indian practitioners, researchers and other NGO including the WRI Partnership for Resilience and Preparedness (PREP), The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), and NIH. The scientific techniques were provided to workshop participants in a software package written in R by TTU scientists and several sessions were devoted to hands-on experience with the software package. The workshop further examined case studies on the use of downscaled climate data for decision making in a range of sectors, including human health, agriculture, and water resources management as well as to inform the development of the India State Action Plans. This talk will discuss key outcomes including information needs for downscaling climate projections, importance of QA/QC of the data, key findings from select case studies, and the importance of collaborations and partnerships to apply downscaling projections to help inform the development of the India State Action Plans.

Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance: an IPY television series using community engagement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catherine L. Carry

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The three-part television broadcast Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance was an International Polar Year communications and outreach project concerning Inuit health and wellness. The goal of this project was to engage the Inuit public and others in “real-time” dialogue about health and wellness issues and health research, and to deliver key messages. It was aired live in the Inuit language (with English captions/sub-titles from Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada, in May 2009 and simultaneously webcast. Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance used an Inuit communications model for remote communities that was developed in the Arctic in 1994 by the Inuit Broadcasting Corporation/Inuit Communications. In Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance more than 250 people were engaged through the use of a diverse range of methods, including content working groups, stakeholder input, music recordings, pre-recorded community programme videos, live and public screening of the broadcasts, live panels, live audiences, public phone-ins, Skype video-conferencing and real-time online chat, focus groups and e-mail. This article examines the project in light of the principles of “community engagement”, demonstrating that Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance exemplifies community engagement in a number of significant ways, including heavily involving community members in the selection of the health theme content of the televised programmes and through the formation of focus groups. Based on challenges encountered during the Qanuqtuurniq—finding the balance project, the article offers recommendations for future projects.

Something of value Governance of Projects in the Project-Based Organisation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Riis, Eva

2013-01-01

The paper presents a conceptual framework for studying Governance of Projects and issues of value in the project-based organisation. Attempts at exploring and conceptualising the issues in the current literature are reviewed. Issues pertinent to gaining value by Governance of Projects have mainly...... for a better understanding of Governance of Projects and value contribution. The findings presented here form the conceptual foundation for subsequent empirical studies of value by Governance of Projects....... been explored from the perspective of economic theory. Models found in the literature are not typically concerned with value for the implementing organisation as a whole; their scope is limited to the time just after project completion. No valid, empirically-based models of value creation by Governance...

Project Half Double

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svejvig, Per; Ehlers, Michael; Adland, Karoline Thorp

activities carried out within the framework of the projects. The formal part of Project Half Double was initiated in June 2015. We started out by developing, refining and testing the Half Double methodology on seven pilot projects in the first phase of the project, which will end June 2016. The current......Project Half Double has a clear mission to succeed in finding a project methodology that can increase the success rate of our projects while increasing the speed at which we generate new ideas and develop new products and services. Chaos and complexity should be seen as a basic condition...... and as an opportunity rather than a threat and a risk. We are convinced that by doing so, we can strengthen Denmark’s competitiveness and play an important role in the battle for jobs and future welfare. The overall goal is to deliver “projects in half the time with double the impact”, where projects in half the time...

Orchestrating Information Sharing among Intra- And Inter-Organisational Core Actors in a Large New Product Development Project - The Particular Role of The Project Manager

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jepsen, Lisbeth Brøde

The success of NPD projects of high-cost, engineering-intensive, and customized development products is largely dependent on information sharing with actors from customers regarding their specific requirements (Von Hippel, 1986). But information sharing is also necessary among actors from different...... information sharing among other intra- or inter-organisational actors during the progression of an NPD project. In other words, this study emphasises the importance of the PM’s relationships on a day-to-day basis in information sharing among intra- and inter-organisational actors during the phases of an NPD...... organisations. Further, the findings show that to orchestrate the information sharing during the NPD project, the PM relies on relationships with several core intra-organisational actors who are particularly important to the orchestrating of information sharing during the early phases of the NPD project...

The international Chernobyl project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gonzalez, A.J.

1992-01-01

The findings of the International Chernobyl Project are summarized herewith. The project focused on four key issues related to the radiological consequences of the Chernobyl accident which are of concern to the population and policy makers: the true extent of the current contamination in inhabited areas of Belarus, Russia and the Ukraine; the past, current and future radiation exposure of the population; the actual and potential health effects; and the adequacy or measures being taken to protect the public. The project findings are expected to contribute towards alleviating the consequences of the accident by presenting factual information to allow future policy and worldwide assistance to be channelled to where it is most needed and where it can be best used. (author)

Project Management Yinyang: Coupling project success and client satisfaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Greg Stewart Usher

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Our research applies paradox theory to a project management construct to help project management researchers and practitioners understand the tensions that can exist between project success and client satisfaction. Our research highlights that although project success and client satisfaction are both present within a project management construct, they also belong to different functional systems. Project success and client satisfaction have different systemic-discourses and use different language games to convey information. These distinctions can create latent and sometimes salient tensions within the project management construct that project managers must understand, embrace, and work with. We have used a Grounded Theory (GT methodology to explore the lived experience of project managers, and from this have identified a phenomenon which we have termed project management yinyang. Project management yinyang is the state that exists when both project success and Client satisfaction are tightly coupled within the project management construct. Project management yinyang highlights that these two phenomena cannot be viewed as separate elements because the ‘seed’ of each exists within the other. And to truly achieve one, you must also achieve the other. Our findings indicate that in order to create project management yinyang the project manager must embrace a paradoxical yet holistic philosophy. They must understand the complementarity, interdependency, and structural coupling that exists between the positivist and interpretivist paradigms within the project management construct. They must understand how satisfaction (Yin and success (Yang are created through focus. Furthermore, they must understand how project management yinyang is separate from, but borne from, the convergence of the other two elements.

On Helical Projection and Its Application in Screw Modeling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riliang Liu

2014-04-01

Full Text Available As helical surfaces, in their many and varied forms, are finding more and more applications in engineering, new approaches to their efficient design and manufacture are desired. To that end, the helical projection method that uses curvilinear projection lines to map a space object to a plane is examined in this paper, focusing on its mathematical model and characteristics in terms of graphical representation of helical objects. A number of interesting projective properties are identified in regard to straight lines, curves, and planes, and then the method is further investigated with respect to screws. The result shows that the helical projection of a cylindrical screw turns out to be a Jordan curve, which is determined by the screw's axial profile and number of flights. Based on the projection theory, a practical approach to the modeling of screws and helical surfaces is proposed and illustrated with examples, and its possible application in screw manufacturing is discussed.

Rethinking project portfolio management: A case study of a public organization

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Lars Kristian; Svejvig, Per

2018-01-01

analytical perspectives. One perspective, denoted as classical project management (CPM), highlights key characteristics of traditional PPM research. A second perspective, denoted as rethinking project management (RPM), highlights characteristics of progressive PPM research. Against this background, we...... diagnose PPM practices in a large public organization and find that organizational top management use the vocabulary and request the values emphasized by the CPM perspective, such as executability, controllability, instrumentality and linearity. However, below top management level, we find managers...... practices. Taking into account the limitations of our single case study design, our research shows how an organization, which differs considerably from advise provided by the conventional CPM perspective, and best PPM practices, may be well functioning – or at least, in large, meets the organization’ PPM...

What Is the Key for Older People to Show Interest in Playing Digital Learning Games? Initial Qualitative Findings from the LEAGE Project on a Multicultural European Sample.

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz-Orueta, Unai; Facal, David; Nap, Henk Herman; Ranga, Myrto-Maria

2012-04-01

Learning digital games can influence both older adults' health condition and their capacity to carry on activities in their actual environment. The goal of the current study was to explore and define the user requirements for developing digital learning games for older Europeans, focusing on types of learning games, motivational and social aspects, and preferences on game controllers. For this initial stage, a qualitative focus group study was performed in three participating countries (Spain, The Netherlands, and Greece) where both games existing in the market and others developed in other European Commission projects like HERMES were presented to them, both on video presentations and also with the possibility to actually test some of them. Challenge, socialization, fun, providing learning opportunities, and escape from daily routine were extracted as the main keys why older people would be interested in playing digital games. Users described themselves as active and participating in many leisure activities, and this level of activity appeared to be related with the contents proposed for digital games, such as physical activity, culture, arts, and other human sciences (history, geography, traveling, foreign languages, music), and daily life skills (cooking, computer use, first aid). The knowledge gathered from the focus groups will be used as input for the design of a learning game that will be largely compatible with the needs and abilities of a wide range of older Europeans.

Critical success factors influencing the performance of development projects: An empirical study of Constituency Development Fund projects in Kenya

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Debadyuti Das

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The present work attempts to identify critical success factors (CSFs influencing the performance of development projects based on their key performance indicators (KPIs. It has considered the case of Constituency Development Fund (CDF projects constructed between 2003 and 2011 in Kenya and secured the perceptions of 175 respondents comprising clients, consultants and contractors involved in the implementation of CDF projects on 30 success variables. Findings reveal that individual items constituting these six factors represent six CSFs namely project-related, client-related, consultant-related, contractor-related, supply chain-related, and external environment-related factor. The findings are also relevant to development projects undertaken in other developing countries.

Understanding the Meaning of “Project Success”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Goparaju Purna Sudhakar

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Fortune 500 organizations are executing their tasks using projects. Project management is the area of concentration across the world. Different stakeholders have a different perspective about project success. The meaning of project success had been explained in this article. In addition, the Project Critical Success Factors (CSFs were mentioned. The research of Standish Group on project success and project success metrics was presented. Earlier research on the meaning of project success and project critical success factors was highlighted. The works of Jeffery K. Pinto and Dennis P. Slevin, David and Adam, DeLone and McLean, and The Standish Group Research were discussed in this article. The methodology included secondary research based on literature view of prominent empirical studies and the literature reviews by making note of findings and observations from those studies. The initial literature collected led to further search of articles based on their references. The research findings indicate that the top of the most success factors for many projects include project objective, top management commitment, competent project team, and user involvement.

Value of Uncertainty: The Lost Opportunities in Large Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnar Johansen

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The uncertainty management theory has become well established over the last 20–30 years. However, the authors suggest that it does not fully address why opportunities often remain unexploited. Empirical studies show a stronger focus on mitigating risks than exploiting opportunities. This paper therefore addresses why so few opportunities are explored in large projects. The theory claims that risks and opportunities should be equally managed in the same process. In two surveys, conducted in six (private and public companies over a four-year period, project managers stated that uncertainty management is about managing risk and opportunities. However, two case studies from 12 projects from the same companies revealed that all of them had their main focus on risks, and most of the opportunities were left unexploited. We have developed a theoretical explanation model to shed light on this phenomena. The concept is a reflection based on findings from our empirical data up against current project management, uncertainty, risk and stakeholder literature. Our model shows that the threshold for pursuing a potential opportunity is high. If a potential opportunity should be considered, it must be extremely interesting, since it may require contract changes, and the project must abandon an earlier-accepted best solution.

Understanding errors in EIA projections of energy demand

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fischer, Carolyn; Herrnstadt, Evan; Morgenstern, Richard [Resources for the Future, 1616 P St. NW, Washington, DC 20036 (United States)

2009-08-15

This paper investigates the potential for systematic errors in the Energy Information Administration's (EIA) widely used Annual Energy Outlook, focusing on the near- to mid-term projections of energy demand. Based on analysis of the EIA's 22-year projection record, we find a fairly modest but persistent tendency to underestimate total energy demand by an average of 2 percent per year after controlling for projection errors in gross domestic product, oil prices, and heating/cooling degree days. For 14 individual fuels/consuming sectors routinely reported by the EIA, we observe a great deal of directional consistency in the errors over time, ranging up to 7 percent per year. Electric utility renewables, electric utility natural gas, transportation distillate, and residential electricity show significant biases on average. Projections for certain other sectors have significant unexplained errors for selected time horizons. Such independent evaluation can be useful for validating analytic efforts and for prioritizing future model revisions. (author)

Smart Gun Technology project. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weiss, D.R.

1996-05-01

The goal of the Smart Gun Technology project is to eliminate the capability of an unauthorized user form firing a law officer`s firearm by implementing user-recognizing-and-authorizing (or {open_quotes}smart{close_quotes}) surety technologies. This project was funded by the National Institute of Justice. This report lists the findings and results of the project`s three primary objectives. First, to find and document the requirements for a smart firearm technology that law enforcement officers will value. Second, to investigate, evaluate, and prioritize technologies that meet the requirements for a law enforcement officer`s smart firearm. Third, to demonstrate and document the most promising technology`s usefulness in models of a smart firearm.

ALIGNMENT BETWEEN THE TYPES OF PROJECTS AND SKILLS PROJECT MANAGEMENT IN THE AES SUL DISTRIBUIDORA GAÚCHA DE ENERGIA S.A

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Greice de Bem Noro

2011-10-01

Full Text Available The pursuit of excellence and new markets and customers has driven companies to build methods to reach goals and improve their strategies and competitive advantages. Therefore, the project management (PM has played a key role in the organizations to adjust deadlines, organizing methods and decision-making. Although many companies already use the PM as resource, this research attempt to contribute to increase the area trough the debate about alignment of companies projects types with the choice of the leader, in line with their skills. The study was developed in the AES Sul Distribuidora Gaúcha de Energia SA (AES Sul and examined how the alignment of the types of projects and management competencies can add value to the organization. The methodological procedure is classified as qualitative, quantitative and descriptive, conducted through a case study. The main results show the need for adjustments between the essential skills and AES Sul types of projects, beyond find some gaps regarding the leaders competencies.

Application of isotopes and radiation to increasing agricultural production - Phase 2. Indonesia. Project findings and recommendations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

This Phase 2 Project was primarily aimed at consolidating the advances made during the previous phase, formulating practical agricultural technologies which can be adopted by farmers, disseminating and applying these technologies, and enhancing the capability of the Centre for Application of Isotopes and Radiation (CAIR) to conduct agricultural research using nuclear and related techniques. Outputs generated by this project were generally in accordance with those anticipated in the Project Document. Some outputs have been transferred to the target beneficiaries (farmers) through existing systems of extension, in co-operation with the main implementing agency (BATAN). Other outputs have potential for further assessment, and may lead to practical applications in future. The rest remain as important contributions to scientific knowledge. The project has been managed to assure sustainability after project termination. A strong indication of such sustainability is evident in the on-going research and development work at CAIR and the adoption of transferred technologies by the end-users. To keep up with rapid global advancements in bio-science and technology, a new project on application of nuclear and related techniques in agricultural bio-science and technology would be needed in relation to the second long-term phase of the national development programmes. (author)

Project network-oriented materials management policy for complex projects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dixit, Vijaya; Srivastava, Rajiv K; Chaudhuri, Atanu

2015-01-01

This work devises a materials management policy integrated with project network characteristics of complex projects. It proposes a relative quantitative measure, overall criticality (OC), for prioritisation of items based on penalty incurred due to their non-availability. In complex projects...... managerial tacit knowledge which provides them enough flexibility to provide information in real form. Computed OC values can be used for items prioritisation and as shortage cost coefficient in inventory models. The revised materials management policy was applied to a shipbuilding project. OC values were......, practicing managers find it difficult to measure OC of items because of the subjective factors and intractable nature of penalties involved. However, using their experience, they can linguistically identify the antecedents and relate them to consequent OC. This work adopts Fuzzy Set Theory to capture...

The Use of ICT Platforms to Promote Knowledge Exchange in Project-Based Organisations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Priyono Anjar

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This study aims to investigate the use of information and communication technology (ICT to support knowledge exchange in project-based organisations. The primary ICT tool investigated in this research is WhatsApp, a messaging application that has been widely used since its introduction. An ethnographic case study method was utilised to analyse qualitative data collected from interviews and focus group discussions. Three projects in an Indonesian university with a duration ranging from 8 months to 2 years were examined as object of investigations. Broadly, the findings show that ICT tools are generally useful in supporting knowledge exchange, which ultimately positively affects project performance. The project teams relied on WhatsApp for the success of the projects. Although face-to-face meetings were rare, team communication was highly intensive, supported by WhatsApp. In addition, managers are encouraged to promote knowledge exchange between team members. Through knowledge exchange, there will be knowledge development, which facilitates the invention of new techniques and methods for promoting project success. The most prominent findings are presented using direct quotations to provide first hand insight from the field. At the end of the paper, recommendations regarding what project managers should do during and after the project has been completed are presented. The recommendations are classified based on the knowledge management life cycle, representing a structured method to manage knowledge in project-based organisations.

"I Wish Everyone Had a Library Like This": Year 2 Report on the Baltimore Elementary and Middle School Library Project

Science.gov (United States)

Sheldon, Steven B.; Davis, Marcia H.

2015-01-01

This report focuses on the opening of new school libraries and their impact on schools, teachers and students after two years of implementation of the Baltimore Elementary and Middle School Library Project (Library Project). The findings build on the first report of this project and show that it is not just new facilities, but also the added…

Imaging Findings of Complex Fibroadenoma of the Breast: Correlation with Pathologic Findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

You, Sun Kyoung; Choi, Bo Bae; Kim, Kyung Hee [Chungnam National University Hospital College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2010-12-15

The imaging findings of complex fibroadenoma have been rarely reported even though the risk of developing breast carcinoma in a patient with complex fibroadenoma is higher than that for a patient with simple fibroadenoma. We reviewed the imaging features and pathologic findings of complex fibroadenomas. Between April 2003 and April 2010, the mammographic and sonographic findings of five patients with complex fibroadenomas were retrospectively reviewed according to the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS). The pathologic findings were retrospectively reviewed for all 5 patients. The mammography findings showed masses (3 cases) and asymmetry (1 case). On ultrasonography, complex echo patterns were noted in all the patients, and all the lesions were assigned to BI-RADS category 4, suspicious for abnormality. The complex echoic patterns showed two types: 1) a mixture of a heterogeneous hypoechoic central portion and a fuzzy hyperechoic peripheral area in 2 cases, 2) a mixture of tiny anechoic and hypoehoic lesions in 3 cases. Multiple cystic changes were noted in all the cases on the pathologic analysis. Complex fibroadenomas showed different ultrasonographic findings from simple fibroadenomas such as two types of complex echo patterns, even though the other findings were similar to those of simple fibroadenoma. Cystic changes were noted in all the cases on the pathologic analysis. Awareness of these imaging findings will help us to properly diagnose complex fibroadenoma

Imaging Findings of Complex Fibroadenoma of the Breast: Correlation with Pathologic Findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

You, Sun Kyoung; Choi, Bo Bae; Kim, Kyung Hee

2010-01-01

The imaging findings of complex fibroadenoma have been rarely reported even though the risk of developing breast carcinoma in a patient with complex fibroadenoma is higher than that for a patient with simple fibroadenoma. We reviewed the imaging features and pathologic findings of complex fibroadenomas. Between April 2003 and April 2010, the mammographic and sonographic findings of five patients with complex fibroadenomas were retrospectively reviewed according to the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BIRADS). The pathologic findings were retrospectively reviewed for all 5 patients. The mammography findings showed masses (3 cases) and asymmetry (1 case). On ultrasonography, complex echo patterns were noted in all the patients, and all the lesions were assigned to BI-RADS category 4, suspicious for abnormality. The complex echoic patterns showed two types: 1) a mixture of a heterogeneous hypoechoic central portion and a fuzzy hyperechoic peripheral area in 2 cases, 2) a mixture of tiny anechoic and hypoehoic lesions in 3 cases. Multiple cystic changes were noted in all the cases on the pathologic analysis. Complex fibroadenomas showed different ultrasonographic findings from simple fibroadenomas such as two types of complex echo patterns, even though the other findings were similar to those of simple fibroadenoma. Cystic changes were noted in all the cases on the pathologic analysis. Awareness of these imaging findings will help us to properly diagnose complex fibroadenoma

Managing uncertainty for sustainability of complex projects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brink, Tove

2017-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reveal how management of uncertainty can enable sustainability of complex projects. Design/methodology/approach – The research was conducted from June 2014 to May 2015 using a qualitative deductive approach among operation and maintenance actors in offshore...... wind farms. The research contains a focus group interview with 11 companies, 20 individual interviews and a seminar presenting preliminary findings with 60 participants. Findings – The findings reveal the need for management of uncertainty through two different paths. First, project management needs...... to join efforts. Research limitations/implications – Further research is needed to reveal the generalisability of the findings in other complex project contexts containing “unknown unknowns”. Practical implications – The research leads to the development of a tool for uncertainty management...

Scrum Project Management

CERN Document Server

Pries, Kim H

2010-01-01

Scrum, which was originally invented solely for software development, can now be applied to all types of projects. This book shows project managers how to implement Scrum by explaining the artifacts, rituals, and roles used. The text provides Scrum planning methods to control project scope and schedule as well as Scrum tracking methods to focus teams on improving throughput and streamlining communications. The authors show how to combine traditional project methods with Scrum and how to adapt the familiar work breakdown structure to create Scrum backlogs and sprints. They also demonstrate how

Project Management Communication 2.0

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berggreen, Line; Kampf, Constance Elizabeth

2015-01-01

How can we understand project management communication practices for developing effective practices in professional and technical communication? In this article we explore an approach to project management that focuses on projects as having a technical documentation structure with content...... that is developed through social or interpersonal communication practices. Looking at the broader picture of project management which besides the implementation phase also includes conception, planning and closure, we see a project management framework that brings together both technical and social aspects...... of project communication. To understand how this works, we interviewed project managers about their understanding and strategy in communicating about the projects they lead. Findings demonstrate that more experienced project managers have a more nuanced understanding of project communication as both...

Root finding with threshold circuits

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Jeřábek, Emil

2012-01-01

Roč. 462, Nov 30 (2012), s. 59-69 ISSN 0304-3975 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA100190902; GA MŠk(CZ) 1M0545 Institutional support: RVO:67985840 Keywords : root finding * threshold circuit * power series Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics Impact factor: 0.489, year: 2012 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304397512008006#

Conjoint utility analysis of technical maturity and project progress of construction project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma Wei

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, taking construction project as the research object, the relationship between the project maturity index calculated by the construction project technical risks with different fine degree and the project progress index is studied, and the equilibrium relationship between the Party A’s utility curve and the Party B’s cost curve of using project maturity index and project progress index as the research variables is analyzed. The results show that, when the construction project technical risk division is more precise, the conjoint utility of the project's technical maturity index and the project progress is higher, and the project’s Party A and Party B two sides are closer to the optimal equilibrium. This shows that the construction project technical risk must be finely divided, and managed and controlled respectively, which will help to improve the conjoint utility of the project Party A and Party B two sides.

Embracing Diversity: The Exploration of User Motivations in Citizen Science Astronomy Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Lo

2018-06-01

Online citizen science projects ask members of the public to donate spare time on their personal computers to process large datasets. A critical challenge for these projects is volunteer recruitment and retention. Many of these projects use Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC), a piece of middleware, to support their operations. This poster analyzes volunteer motivations in two large, BOINC-based astronomy projects, Einstein@Home and Milkyway@Home. Volunteer opinions are addressed to assess whether and how competitive elements, such as credit and ranking systems, motivate volunteers. Findings from a study of project volunteers, comprising surveys (n=2,031) and follow-up interviews (n=21), show that altruism is the main incentive for participation because volunteers consider scientific research to be critical for humans. Multiple interviewees also revealed a passion for extrinsic motivations, i.e. those that involve recognition from other people, such as opportunities to become co-authors of publications or to earn financial benefits. Credit and ranking systems motivate nearly half of interviewees. By analyzing user motivations in astronomical BOINC projects, this research provides scientists with deeper understandings about volunteer communities and various types of volunteers. Building on these findings, scientists can develop different strategies, for example, awarding volunteers badges, to recruit and retain diverse volunteers, and thus enhance long-term user participation in astronomical BOINC projects.

Efficient Project Delivery Using Lean Principles - An Indian Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Kovvuri, P. Ramachandra Reddy; Sawhney, Anil; Ahuja, Ritu; Sreekumar, Aiswarya

2016-03-01

Construction industry in India is growing at a rapid pace. Along with this growth, the industry is facing numerous challenges that are making delivery of projects inefficient. Experts believe that capacity constraints in the industry need to be addressed immediately. Government has recommended `introduction of efficient technologies and modern management techniques' to increase the productivity of the industry. In this context, lean principles can act as a lever to make project delivery more efficient and provide the much needed impetus to the Indian construction sector. Around the globe lean principles are showing positive results on the projects. Project teams are reporting improvements in construction time, cost and quality along with softer benefits of enhanced collaboration, coordination and trust in project teams. Can adoption of lean principles provide similar benefits in the Indian construction sector? This research was conducted to answer this question. Using an action research approach a key lean construction tool called Last Planner System (LPS) was tested on a large Indian construction project. The work described in this work investigates the improvements achieved in project delivery by adopting LPS in Indian construction sector. Comparison in pre- and post-implementation data demonstrates increase in the certainty of work-flow and improves schedule compliance. This is measured through a simple LPS metric called percent plan complete. Explicit improvements in schedule performance are seen during 8 week LPS implementation along with implicit improvements in coordination, collaboration and trust in the project team. This work reports the findings of LPS implementation on the case study project outlining the barriers and drivers to adoption, strategies needed to ensure successful implementation and roadmap for implementation. Based on the findings the authors envision that lean construction can make project delivery more efficient in India.

Sustainability in Open Source Software Commons: Lessons Learned from an Empirical Study of SourceForge Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles M. Schweik

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In this article, we summarize a five-year US National Science Foundation funded study designed to investigate the factors that lead some open source projects to ongoing collaborative success while many others become abandoned. Our primary interest was to conduct a study that was closely representative of the population of open source software projects in the world, rather than focus on the more-often studied, high-profile successful cases. After building a large database of projects (n=174,333 and implementing a major survey of open source developers (n=1403, we were able to conduct statistical analyses to investigate over forty theoretically-based testable hypotheses. Our data firmly support what we call the conventional theory of open source software, showing that projects start small, and, in successful cases, grow slightly larger in terms of team size. We describe the “virtuous circle” supporting conventional wisdom of open source collaboration that comes out of this analysis, and we discuss two other interesting findings related to developer motivations and how team members find each other. Each of these findings is related to the sustainability of these projects.

Application of scenario analysis in the investment projects evaluation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brzaković Tomislav

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Investing represents an investment in the present to achieve certain effects in the future, and risk is an essential part of the investment process. Scenario analysis involves key risk factors of the project, its sensitivity to changes in key factors and the likelihood of their changes. Scenario analysis allows us to assign probabilities to the base case, the best case and the worst case so that we can find the expected value and standard deviation of the project's NPV to get a better idea of the project's risk. The goal is to determine whether it is possible to make relevant investment decisions on the basis of the parameters of projects risk, such as the standard deviation and the coefficient of variation. The paper is based on a mathematical model, applied to a specific agricultural company. In our case, the project has a wide range of possibilities and a large potential negative value, which suggests a great risk of the project. Although the scenario analysis shows a higher risk, it is not clear if the project should be accepted or not, and therefore, it is necessary to conduct simulation analysis, in order to get reliable answers.

Science Projects | Akron-Summit County Public Library

Science.gov (United States)

Hours & Locations Main Library Science & Technology Division Science Projects Science Projects Have fun with science experiments. Whether you need to do a project for a school science fair or you want to be a mad scientist, our Science Project Index and other resources can get you started. Find how

The Dietary Patterns Methods Project: Synthesis of Findings across Cohorts and Relevance to Dietary Guidance1234

Science.gov (United States)

Liese, Angela D; Krebs-Smith, Susan M; Subar, Amy F; George, Stephanie M; Harmon, Brook E; Neuhouser, Marian L; Boushey, Carol J; Schap, TusaRebecca E; Reedy, Jill

2015-01-01

The Dietary Patterns Methods Project (DPMP) was initiated in 2012 to strengthen research evidence on dietary indices, dietary patterns, and health for upcoming revisions of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, given that the lack of consistent methodology has impeded development of consistent and reliable conclusions. DPMP investigators developed research questions and a standardized approach to index-based dietary analysis. This article presents a synthesis of findings across the cohorts. Standardized analyses were conducted in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, the Multiethnic Cohort, and the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study (WHI-OS). Healthy Eating Index 2010, Alternative Healthy Eating Index 2010 (AHEI-2010), alternate Mediterranean Diet, and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) scores were examined across cohorts for correlations between pairs of indices; concordant classifications into index score quintiles; associations with all-cause, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and cancer mortality with the use of Cox proportional hazards models; and dietary intake of foods and nutrients corresponding to index quintiles. Across all cohorts in women and men, there was a high degree of correlation and consistent classifications between index pairs. Higher diet quality (top quintile) was significantly and consistently associated with an 11–28% reduced risk of death due to all causes, CVD, and cancer compared with the lowest quintile, independent of known confounders. This was true for all diet index–mortality associations, with the exception of AHEI-2010 and cancer mortality in WHI-OS women. In all cohorts, survival benefit was greater with a higher-quality diet, and relatively small intake differences distinguished the index quintiles. The reductions in mortality risk started at relatively lower levels of diet quality. Higher scores on each of the indices, signifying higher diet quality, were associated with marked reductions in mortality

The programme benefits of improving project team communication through a contact centre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bond-Barnard, T. J.

2013-08-01

Full Text Available A South African national programme to repair government infrastructure uses a contact centre (or call centre to facilitate and manage communication. An important question is: How does the contact centre benefit the programme and its projects? This study discusses the findings of a survey that quantified the benefits of the programme when the communication between team members in the programme was improved by using a contact centre. The results show that, by using a contact centre to improve the communication between project team members, their perception of communication effectiveness, quality of project deliverables, service delivery, and customer satisfaction of the programme dramatically increases.

Highway project cost estimating and management.

Science.gov (United States)

2009-02-01

"This report provides detailed information about the project objectives, deliverables, and findings. The project team : thoroughly reviewed the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) structure, operations, and current procedures as : related to M...

Adaptive projective filters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dikusar, N.D.

1993-01-01

The new approach to solving of the finding problem is proposed. The method is based on Discrete Projective Transformations (DPT), the List Square Fitting (LSF) and uses the information feedback in tracing for linear or quadratic track segments (TS). The fast and stable with respect to measurement errors and background points recurrent algorithm is suggested. The algorithm realizes the family of digital adaptive projective filters (APF) with known nonlinear weight functions-projective invariants. APF can be used in adequate control systems for collection, processing and compression of data, including tracking problems for the wide class of detectors. 10 refs.; 9 figs

The influences of attributes, skills and knowledge of managers on refurbishment project performance

Science.gov (United States)

Ishak, Nurfadzillah

2018-02-01

Recently, the momentum on the growth of national building industry shows the increasing of the demand in refurbishment works becomes a trend spreading over the Malaysia. However, the potential of these activities normally related with the complexity in technical aspect compared to new build schemes. It will be reflecting on the unsatisfactory project performance. A competent manager is required to have the appropriate attributes, skills and knowledge in able to perform all the duties associated with managing the refurbishment building projects. Therefore, this paper is to identify the most appropriate attributes, skills and knowledge that required for managers to indicate the relationship between the influences on the refurbishment projects performance. This finding is indicate the importance of development the personal attributes, skills, and knowledge of managers and adds as benefit of raising the profile and image of managers in refurbishment building industry through a dissemination of the findings.

CT findings of focal organizing pneumonia: correlation with pathologic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yang Soo; Kim, Young Goo; Park, Un Sup [College of Medicine, Chungang University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1994-11-15

To evaluate the CT findings of focal organizing pneumonia and to correlate them with pathologic findings to help differentiating from lung cancer. We evaluated radiologic and pathologic findings of five patients with solitary pulmonary nodule which were confirmed as focal organizing pneumonia pathologically. On CT scan, focal organizing pneumonia had irregular margin contacting the pleura in all five cases. The shape of the nodules were spherical to wedge or elliptical and the size from 3.5cm to 5.5cm(average 4.2 cm) in largest diameter. On postcontrast CT scan, all nodules showed enhancement and four cases showed central low density components. Two nodules contained air within the nodule. In four cases, pleural changes such as effusion and/or focal thickening were noted. No lymphadenopathy was found in all cases. Pathologically, the enhancing portion on CT showed findings of organizing pneumonia such as granulation tissue with fibroblast proliferation in alveolar space and interstitial thickening. The central low density areas on CT were due to ischemic necrosis, abscess and exudate, transudate and infiltration of foamy histiocyte. The possibility of focal organizing pneumonia should be considered when peripherally located solitary pulmonary nodule had enhancing component with no combined lymphadenopathy on CT scan.

CT findings of focal organizing pneumonia: correlation with pathologic findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yang Soo; Kim, Young Goo; Park, Un Sup

1994-01-01

To evaluate the CT findings of focal organizing pneumonia and to correlate them with pathologic findings to help differentiating from lung cancer. We evaluated radiologic and pathologic findings of five patients with solitary pulmonary nodule which were confirmed as focal organizing pneumonia pathologically. On CT scan, focal organizing pneumonia had irregular margin contacting the pleura in all five cases. The shape of the nodules were spherical to wedge or elliptical and the size from 3.5cm to 5.5cm(average 4.2 cm) in largest diameter. On postcontrast CT scan, all nodules showed enhancement and four cases showed central low density components. Two nodules contained air within the nodule. In four cases, pleural changes such as effusion and/or focal thickening were noted. No lymphadenopathy was found in all cases. Pathologically, the enhancing portion on CT showed findings of organizing pneumonia such as granulation tissue with fibroblast proliferation in alveolar space and interstitial thickening. The central low density areas on CT were due to ischemic necrosis, abscess and exudate, transudate and infiltration of foamy histiocyte. The possibility of focal organizing pneumonia should be considered when peripherally located solitary pulmonary nodule had enhancing component with no combined lymphadenopathy on CT scan

Social risk perception: recent findings in Spain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prades-Lopez, A.; Martinez-Arias, R.; Diaz-Hidalgo, M.

1998-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to present our main results from a survey carried out in Spain in the context of social risk perception. This survey is included in a broad project (PRISP) sponsored by the UE and the national Civil Protection Service, and carried out simultaneously in three countries: Spain, Italy and UK. The project combined qualitative and quantitative assessment methods, although only survey results are presented here. A random sample of 600 subjects from two different Spanish communities close to a COMAH chemical site was selected for the research. Main findings regarding, differential perception between both community populations, sex differences, and 'bias perception' of risks among others have been achieved. Main dimensions were obtained by multidimensional scaling and Factor Analysis. Dimensions reported here are similar to the usual findings from the psychometric paradigm. (authors)

Interagency Partnerships in Aid-Recipient Countries: Lessons from an Aquaculture Project in Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, David J.

1998-01-01

An action research investigation of an aquaculture project in Bangladesh resulted in a process model of interagency partnerships between nongovernmental organizations and government. Findings showed partnerships are diverse and highly vulnerable to external forces such as economics, politics, culture, and support of those in power. (SK)

Embedded Linux projects using Yocto project cookbook

CERN Document Server

González, Alex

2015-01-01

If you are an embedded developer learning about embedded Linux with some experience with the Yocto project, this book is the ideal way to become proficient and broaden your knowledge with examples that are immediately applicable to your embedded developments. Experienced embedded Yocto developers will find new insight into working methodologies and ARM specific development competence.

Pollution! Find a STEM solution!

Science.gov (United States)

Takač, Danijela; Moćan, Marina

2016-04-01

Primary and secondary school Pantovčak is an innovative school in downtown Zagreb, Croatia. The school is involved in many projects concerning STEM education. Pollution! Find a STEM solution! is a two year long cross-curricular project that grew out of identified need to develop STEM and ICT skills more. Pisa results make evident that students' knowledge is poor and motivation for math and similar subjects is low. Implying priorities of European Commission, like e-learning, raises motivation and also develops basic skills and improves knowledge in science, math, physic, ICT. Main objectives are to increase students' interest in STEM education and careers and introduce them to all available new trends in technology, engineering and science in their region by visiting clean technology industries and strengthening links with them, to introduce some future digital jobs and prepare students for rapid technological changes by integrating ICT into classroom practice more, to highlight the importance of global environmental issues and improve the knowledge in the areas of sustainable development and renewable energy, to develop collaborative partnership between schools and the wider community in formal, non-formal and informal learning, to support multilingualism by publishing Open Educational Resources in 8 different languages and to strengthen the professional profile of the teaching profession. The project brings together 231 teachers and 2729 students from five different European countries in learning to think globally and work on activities that contribute to the community's well-being. There are altogether 33 activities, divided in 4 categories. STEM activities are focused on students building the devices for measuring air, light and noise pollution in their school and homes. They use the scientific method to analyze the data and compare the results with their peers to find a solution. Eskills, digital literacy and digital jobs are focused on introducing career

Virtual Mobility in Reality: A Study of the Use of ICT in Finnish Leonardo da Vinci Mobility Projects.

Science.gov (United States)

Valjus, Sonja

An e-mail survey and interviews collected data on use of information and communications technology (ICT) in Finnish Leonardo da Vinci mobility projects from 2000-02. Findings showed that the most common ICT tools used were e-mail, digital tools, and the World Wide Web; ICT was used during all project phases; the most common problems concerned…

A case of typical atrioventricular nodal (AVN) reentrant tachycardia confined to the compact AV node, showing a variety of rare electrophysiological findings, including eccentric AVN echoes

OpenAIRE

Tanaka, Kazushi; Shiotani, Shinji; Fukuda, Keisuke; Fujihara, Masahiko; Higashimori, Akihiro; Morioka, Nobuyuki; Yokoi, Yoshiaki; Fujimura, Osamu

2014-01-01

Herein, we report the case of a 49-year-old woman with typical atrioventricular nodal (AVN) reentrant tachycardia, confined to the compact atrioventricular node, showing numerous rare electrophysiological findings such as unique AVN reentrant echoes, double ventricular responses, latent retrograde dual AVN pathways, antegrade triple AVN pathways, and longitudinal dissociation within the lower final common pathway.

A case of typical atrioventricular nodal (AVN reentrant tachycardia confined to the compact AV node, showing a variety of rare electrophysiological findings, including eccentric AVN echoes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazushi Tanaka, M.D., Ph.D.

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Herein, we report the case of a 49-year-old woman with typical atrioventricular nodal (AVN reentrant tachycardia, confined to the compact atrioventricular node, showing numerous rare electrophysiological findings such as unique AVN reentrant echoes, double ventricular responses, latent retrograde dual AVN pathways, antegrade triple AVN pathways, and longitudinal dissociation within the lower final common pathway.

Status of APE projects

CERN Document Server

Alfieri, R; Onofri, E; Bartoloni, A; Battista, C; Cabibbo, Nicola; Cosimi, M; Lonardo, A; Michelotti, A; Proietti, B; Rapuano, F; Rossetti, D; Sacco, G; Tassa, S; Torelli, M; Vicini, P; Pène, O; Errico, W; Magazzù, G; Sartori, L; Schiiano, F; Tripiccione, R; De Riso, P; Petronzio, Roberto; Destri, C; Frezzotti, R; Marchesini, G; Gensch, Ulrich; Jansen, K; Kretzschmann, A; Leich, H; Paschedag, N; Pleiter, D; Schwendicke, U; Simma, H; Sommer, Rainer; Sulanke, K; Wegner, P; Fucci, A; Martin, B; Pech, J; Panizzi, E; Petricola, A

2001-01-01

This talk is divided in two parts. In the first part, we will summarize the status of the APEmille project that will be completed by the end of the year. We will then devote the rest of the talk to the description of a new project for a multi-TeraFlop machine, ape NEXT. The interested reader will find a much more detailed discussion of all the items touched upon here in the full proposal of the project that will shortly appear on hep-lat. (9 refs).

Target prioritization and strategy selection for active case-finding of pulmonary tuberculosis: a tool to support country-level project planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Nishikiori, Nobuyuki; Van Weezenbeek, Catharina

2013-02-02

Despite the progress made in the past decade, tuberculosis (TB) control still faces significant challenges. In many countries with declining TB incidence, the disease tends to concentrate in vulnerable populations that often have limited access to health care. In light of the limitations of the current case-finding approach and the global urgency to improve case detection, active case-finding (ACF) has been suggested as an important complementary strategy to accelerate tuberculosis control especially among high-risk populations. The present exercise aims to develop a model that can be used for county-level project planning. A simple deterministic model was developed to calculate the number of estimated TB cases diagnosed and the associated costs of diagnosis. The model was designed to compare cost-effectiveness parameters, such as the cost per case detected, for different diagnostic algorithms when they are applied to different risk populations. The model was transformed into a web-based tool that can support national TB programmes and civil society partners in designing ACF activities. According to the model output, tuberculosis active case-finding can be a costly endeavor, depending on the target population and the diagnostic strategy. The analysis suggests the following: (1) Active case-finding activities are cost-effective only if the tuberculosis prevalence among the target population is high. (2) Extensive diagnostic methods (e.g. X-ray screening for the entire group, use of sputum culture or molecular diagnostics) can be applied only to very high-risk groups such as TB contacts, prisoners or people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. (3) Basic diagnostic approaches such as TB symptom screening are always applicable although the diagnostic yield is very limited. The cost-effectiveness parameter was sensitive to local diagnostic costs and the tuberculosis prevalence of target populations. The prioritization of appropriate target

Applying the Capital Jury Project Findings to Court-Martial Practice

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-11

Hollywood portrayals to shape our understanding of what happens inside the deliberation room.1 For example, in the movie 12 Angry Men,2 an 18-year old...we see in courts-martial for sexual assaults, where a tough merits case leads to a guilty finding, but the sentence is too light, in a normative...protect the stability and finality of verdicts, protect panel members from harassment and embarrassment, and to prevent unlawful command influence

The 5th National Audit Project (NAP5) on accidental awareness during general anaesthesia: summary of main findings and risk factors.

Science.gov (United States)

Pandit, J J; Andrade, J; Bogod, D G; Hitchman, J M; Jonker, W R; Lucas, N; Mackay, J H; Nimmo, A F; O'Connor, K; O'Sullivan, E P; Paul, R G; Palmer, J H MacG; Plaat, F; Radcliffe, J J; Sury, M R J; Torevell, H E; Wang, M; Hainsworth, J; Cook, T M

2014-10-01

We present the main findings of the 5th National Audit Project on accidental awareness during general anaesthesia. Incidences were estimated using reports of accidental awareness as the numerator, and a parallel national anaesthetic activity survey to provide denominator data. The incidence of certain/probable and possible accidental awareness cases was ~1:19 600 anaesthetics (95% CI 1:16 700-23 450). However, there was considerable variation across subtypes of techniques or subspecialties. The incidence with neuromuscular blockade was ~1:8200 (1:7030-9700), and without it was ~1:135 900 (1:78 600-299 000). The cases of accidental awareness during general anaesthesia reported to 5th National Audit Project were overwhelmingly cases of unintended awareness during neuromuscular blockade. The incidence of accidental awareness during caesarean section was ~1:670 (1:380-1300). Two thirds (82, 66%) of cases of accidental awareness experiences arose in the dynamic phases of anaesthesia, namely induction of and emergence from anaesthesia. During induction of anaesthesia, contributory factors included: use of thiopental; rapid sequence induction; obesity; difficult airway management; neuromuscular blockade; and interruptions of anaesthetic delivery during movement from anaesthetic room to theatre. During emergence from anaesthesia, residual paralysis was perceived by patients as accidental awareness, and commonly related to a failure to ensure full return of motor capacity. One third (43, 33%) of accidental awareness events arose during the maintenance phase of anaesthesia, most due to problems at induction or towards the end of anaesthesia. Factors increasing the risk of accidental awareness included: female sex; age (younger adults, but not children); obesity; anaesthetist seniority (junior trainees); previous awareness; out-of-hours operating; emergencies; type of surgery (obstetric, cardiac, thoracic); and use of neuromuscular blockade. The following factors were

Accuracy of past projections of US energy consumption

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Neill, B.C.; Desai, Mausami

2005-01-01

Energy forecasts play a key role in development of energy and environmental policy. Evaluations of the accuracy of past projections can provide insight into the uncertainty that may be associated with current forecasts. They can also be used to identify sources of inaccuracies, and potentially lead to improvements in projections over time. Here we assess the accuracy of projections of US energy consumption produced by the Energy Information Administration over the period 1982-2000. We find that energy consumption projections have tended to underestimate future consumption. Projections 10-13 years into the future have had an average error of about 4%, and about half that for shorter time horizons. These errors mask much larger, offsetting errors in the projection of GDP and energy intensity (EI). GDP projections have consistently been too high, and EI projection consistently too low, by more than 15% for projections of 10 years or more. Further work on the source of these sizable inaccuracies should be a high priority. Finally, we find no evidence of improvement in projections of consumption, GDP, or EI since 1982

Child welfare caseworkers as service brokers for youth in foster care: findings from project focus.

Science.gov (United States)

Dorsey, Shannon; Kerns, Suzanne E U; Trupin, Eric W; Conover, Kate L; Berliner, Lucy

2012-02-01

Youth in the foster care system have substantially higher rates of mental health needs compared to the general population, yet they rarely receive targeted, evidence-based practices (EBPs). Increasingly emerging in the literature on mental health services is the importance of "brokers" or "gateway providers" of services. For youth in foster care, child welfare caseworkers often play this role. This study examines caseworker-level outcomes of Project Focus, a caseworker training and consultation model designed to improve emotional and behavioral outcomes for youth in foster care through increased linkages with EBPs. Project Focus was tested through a small, randomized trial involving four child welfare offices. Caseworkers in the Project Focus intervention group demonstrated an increased awareness of EBPs and a trend toward increased ability to identify appropriate EBP referrals for particular mental health problems but did not have significantly different rates of actual referral to EBPs. Dose of consultation was associated with general awareness of EBPs. Implications for practice and outcomes for youth are discussed.

The Better Beginnings, Better Futures Project: Findings from Grade 3 to Grade 9

Science.gov (United States)

Peters, Ray DeV.; Bradshaw, Alison J.; Petrunka, Kelly; Nelson, Geoffrey; Herry, Yves; Craig, Wendy M.; Arnold, Robert; Parker, Kevin C. H.; Khan, Shahriar R.; Hoch, Jeffrey S.; Pancer, S. Mark; Loomis, Colleen; Belanger, Jean-Marc; Evers, Susan; Maltais, Claire; Thompson, Katherine; Rossiter, Melissa D.

2010-01-01

Although comprehensive and ecological approaches to early childhood prevention are commonly advocated, there are few examples of long-term follow-up of such programs. In this monograph, we investigate the medium- and long-term effects of an ecological, community-based prevention project for primary school children and families living in three…

The International Resilience Project Findings from the Research and the Effectiveness of Interventions.

Science.gov (United States)

Grotberg, Edith H.

This article discusses the nature of resilience in children, means to measure and verify it, and attempts to promote it through education; it also describes a study of parental, teacher and caregiver efforts to promote resilience in children. The International Resilience Project examined resilience factors children and their parents use in…

Development of a Pilot Data Management Infrastructure for Biomedical Researchers at University of Manchester – Approach, Findings, Challenges and Outlook of the MaDAM Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Meik Poschen

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Management and curation of digital data has been becoming ever more important in a higher education and research environment characterised by large and complex data, demand for more interdisciplinary and collaborative work, extended funder requirements and use of e-infrastructures to facilitate new research methods and paradigms. This paper presents the approach, technical infrastructure, findings, challenges and outlook (including future development within the successor project, MiSS of the ‘MaDAM: Pilot data management infrastructure for biomedical researchers at University of Manchester’ project funded under the infrastructure strand of the JISC Managing Research Data (JISCMRD programme. MaDAM developed a pilot research data management solution at the University of Manchester based on biomedical researchers’ requirements, which includes technical and governance components with the flexibility to meet future needs across multiple research groups and disciplines.

Students' Views of Assessment in Project-Led Engineering Education: Findings from a Case Study in Portugal

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandes, Sandra; Flores, Maria Assuncao; Lima, Rui Manuel

2012-01-01

According to the demands of the Bologna process, new educational methods and strategies are needed in order to enhance student-centred learning. Project work is one of those approaches. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of project-led education (PLE) on students' learning processes and outcomes, within the context of a first-year engineering…

IT Project Prioritization Process

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Shollo, Arisa; Constantiou, Ioanna

2013-01-01

In most of the large companies IT project prioritization process is designed based on principles of evidencebased management. We investigate a case of IT project prioritization in a financial institution, and in particular, how managers practice evidence-based management during this process. We use...... a rich dataset built from a longitudinal study of the prioritization process for the IT projects. Our findings indicate that managers reach a decision not only by using evidence but from the interplay between the evidence and the judgment devices that managers employ. The interplay between evidence...

Project Documentation as a Risk for Public Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vladěna Štěpánková

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Purpose of the article: The paper presents the different methodologies used for creating documentation and focuses on public projects and their requirements for this documentation. Since documentation is also incorporated in the overall planning of the project and its duration is estimated using expert qualified estimate, can any change in this documentation lead to project delays, or increase its cost as a result of consuming administration, and therefore the documentation is seen as a risk, which may threaten the project as a public contract by which a company trying to achieve and obtains it, and generally any project. Methodology/methods: There are used methods of obtaining information in this paper. These are mainly structured interviews in combination with a brainstorming, furthermore also been used questionnaire for companies dealing with public procurement. As a data processing program was used MS Excel and basic statistical methods based on regression analysis. Scientific aim: The article deals with the construction market in the Czech Republic and examines the impact of changes in project documentation of public projects on their turnover. Findings: In this paper we summarize the advantages and disadvantages of having project documentation. In the case of public contracts and changes in legislation it is necessary to focus on creating documentation in advance, follow the new requirements and try to reach them in the shortest possible time. Conclusions: The paper concludes with recommendations on how to proceed, if these changes and how to reduce costs, which may cause the risk of documentation.

Characterization of plaque in the internal carotid artery. Comparison neuroradiological findings with pathological findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishikawa, Misao; Nishio, Akimasa; Takami, Toshihiro; Goto, Takeo; Ueda, Makiko; Hara, Mitsuhiro

2006-01-01

We evaluate the morphology of the carotid plaque using echogram, CT scan and MRI and compare those neuroradiological findings with histological findings of the plaque. We evaluated 14 cases operated with carotid endoarterectomy for carotid stenosis. We estimated the findings of the echogram, enhanced CT scan and black blood MRI (BB MRI), in comparison with the histological findings of the carotid plaque. Echogram, enhanced CT scan and MRI clearly demonstrated the plaque in cervical carotid stenosis. In most cases, echograms could show the plaque, but in some cases could not due to the back shadow caused by plaque calcification. Enhanced CT scan clearly demonstrated the calcification and the neovasculization in plaque. BB MRI clearly showed the carotid plaque. Low-intensity lesions in T1 and T2 weighted images showed hard and fibrous plaque. High-intensity lesions in T1 and T2 weighted images showed soft plaque with lipoprotein and/or hemorrhage. This study demonstrates the potential of a systemic approach to atherosclerotic plaque with enhanced CT scan and BB MRI compared with histological findings of the carotid plaque. These estimations elucidate the growth mechanism of carotid plaque. (author)

Computational performance of a projection and rescaling algorithm

OpenAIRE

Pena, Javier; Soheili, Negar

2018-01-01

This paper documents a computational implementation of a {\\em projection and rescaling algorithm} for finding most interior solutions to the pair of feasibility problems \\[ \\text{find} \\; x\\in L\\cap\\mathbb{R}^n_{+} \\;\\;\\;\\; \\text{ and } \\; \\;\\;\\;\\; \\text{find} \\; \\hat x\\in L^\\perp\\cap\\mathbb{R}^n_{+}, \\] where $L$ denotes a linear subspace in $\\mathbb{R}^n$ and $L^\\perp$ denotes its orthogonal complement. The projection and rescaling algorithm is a recently developed method that combines a {\\...

Review of issues and challenges for public private partnership (PPP) project performance in Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Hashim, H.; Che-Ani, A. I.; Ismail, K.

2017-10-01

Public Private Partnership (PPP) in Malaysia aims to stimulate economic growth and overcome the weakness of conventional system. Over the years, many critics have been reported along the massive growth of PPP project development. Within that context, this study provides a review of issues and challenges for PPP pertaining to project performance in Malaysia. The study also attempts to investigate four performance measurement models around the globe as a basis for improvement of PPP in Malaysia. A qualitative method was used to analyse literature review from previous published literatures while comparative analysis was carried out within the models to identify their advantages and disadvantages. The findings show that the issues and challenges occurred were related to human, technical and financial factor that could hinder the implementation of PPP project in Malaysia. From the analysis, KPIs, guideline / framework, risk allocation, efficiency & flexibility are perceived as dominant issues. Finally, the findings provide an informed basis on the opportunity areas to be considered for improvement in order to achieved project effectiveness.

Raspberry Pi robotics projects

CERN Document Server

Grimmett, Richard

2015-01-01

This book is for enthusiasts who want to use the Raspberry Pi to build complex robotics projects. With the aid of the step-by-step instructions in this book, you can construct complex robotics projects that can move, talk, listen, see, swim, or fly. No previous Raspberry Pi robotics experience is assumed, but even experts will find unexpected and interesting information in this invaluable guide.

Forty project management strategies for the medical practice staff.

Science.gov (United States)

Hills, Laura Sachs

2010-01-01

Most every medical practice will embark at one time or another on a large and complex new project. The practice may, for instance, undertake a project in office construction or renovation, practice expansion, new technology, or a new large-scale event. The medical practice staff may find itself creating the project plan, overseeing its execution, and working through the plan day to day until its completion. In short, the staff may find itself responsible for project management. This article contains 40 specific, easy-to-implement project management strategies medical practice employees can use to manage both the large and small projects they undertake on behalf of the practice. It suggests effective project management strategies the staff can use before the onset of a new project as well as strategies to help define the project, to deliver the project, and to close and review the project. This article also describes five reasons medical practices often fail at project management and suggests more effective approaches that will ensure that the projects the medical practice undertakes are completed well, on time, and within budget.

Mathematics authentic assessment on statistics learning: the case for student mini projects

Science.gov (United States)

Fauziah, D.; Mardiyana; Saputro, D. R. S.

2018-03-01

Mathematics authentic assessment is a form of meaningful measurement of student learning outcomes for the sphere of attitude, skill and knowledge in mathematics. The construction of attitude, skill and knowledge achieved through the fulfilment of tasks which involve active and creative role of the students. One type of authentic assessment is student mini projects, started from planning, data collecting, organizing, processing, analysing and presenting the data. The purpose of this research is to learn the process of using authentic assessments on statistics learning which is conducted by teachers and to discuss specifically the use of mini projects to improving students’ learning in the school of Surakarta. This research is an action research, where the data collected through the results of the assessments rubric of student mini projects. The result of data analysis shows that the average score of rubric of student mini projects result is 82 with 96% classical completeness. This study shows that the application of authentic assessment can improve students’ mathematics learning outcomes. Findings showed that teachers and students participate actively during teaching and learning process, both inside and outside of the school. Student mini projects also provide opportunities to interact with other people in the real context while collecting information and giving presentation to the community. Additionally, students are able to exceed more on the process of statistics learning using authentic assessment.

Finding the Optimum Scenario in Risk-benefit Assessment: An Example on Vitamin D

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berjia, Firew Lemma; Hoekstra, J.; Verhagen, H.

2014-01-01

an optimum scenario that provides maximum net health gain in health risk-benefit assessment of dietary exposure as expressed by serum vitamin D level. With regard to the vitamin D assessment, a considerable health gain is observed due to the reduction of risk of other cause mortality, fall and hip fractures......Background: In risk-benefit assessment of food and nutrients, several studies so far have focused on comparison of two scenarios to weigh the health effect against each other. One obvious next step is finding the optimum scenario that provides maximum net health gains. Aim: This paper aims to show...... that provides maximum net health gains. As a common health metric, Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALY) has been used to project the net health effect by using the QALIBRA (Quality of Life for Benefit Risk Assessment) software. Results: The method used in the vitamin D example shows that it is feasible to find...

Identifying the most critical project complexity factors using Delphi method: the Iranian construction industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Mehdi Mozaffari

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Complexity is one of the most important issues influencing success of any construction project and there are literally different studies devoted to detect important factors increasing complexity of projects. During the past few years, there have been growing interests in developing mass construction projects in Iran. The proposed study of this paper uses Delphi technique to find out about important factors as barriers of construction projects in Iran. The results show that among 47 project complexity factors, 19 factors are more important than others are. The study groups different factors into seven categories including environmental, organizational, objectives, tasks, stakeholders, technological, information systems and determines the relative importance of each. In each group, many other sub group activities are determined and they are carefully investigated. The study provides some detailed suggestions on each category to reduce the complexity of construction project.

On Services for Collaborative Project Management

Science.gov (United States)

Ollus, Martin; Jansson, Kim; Karvonen, Iris; Uoti, Mikko; Riikonen, Heli

This paper presents an approach for collaborative project management. The focus is on the support of collaboration, communication and trust. Several project management tools exist for monitoring and control the performance of project tasks. However, support of important intangible assets is more difficult to find. In the paper a leadership approach is identified as a management means and the use of new IT technology, especially social media for support of leadership in project management is discussed.

The Little Black Book of Project Management

CERN Document Server

Thomsett, Michael C

2009-01-01

For nearly twenty years, The Little Black Book of Project Management has provided businesspeople everywhere with a quick and effective introduction to project management tools and methodology. The revised and updated third edition reflects the newest techniques, the latest project management software, as well as the most recent changes to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK™). Readers will find invaluable strategies for: • Organizing any project • Choosing the project team • Preparing a budget and sticking to it • Scheduling, flowcharting, and controlling a project • Preparing proj

A patient with Cotard syndrome who showed an improvement in single photon emission computed tomography findings after successful treatment with antidepressants.

Science.gov (United States)

Hashioka, Sadayuki; Monji, Akira; Sasaki, Masayuki; Yoshida, Ichiro; Baba, Kanji; Tashiro, Nobutada

2002-01-01

We report the case of a presenile woman with Cotard syndrome, in the context of major depression, who showed an improvement in bilateral frontal hypoperfusion in a SPECT study using 99mTc-HMPAO after undergoing successful treatment with antidepressant therapy. We also retrospectively evaluated her clinical course based on the clinical stages. The symptoms of Cotard syndrome have been reported to change dramatically according to the stages. This peculiarity made it difficult for us to rapidly diagnose Cotard syndrome in the context of major depression, and not dementia, and thereby adequately treat the patient in our case. Differences in the reduced blood flow regions and a time lag from psychiatric remission were observed before the improvement in the SPECT findings when comparing our case with a previously reported case of Cotard syndrome. These differences suggest that the mechanism of Cotard syndrome is still not well understood at the present time.

The TackSHS project - a collaborative H2020 project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esteve Fernandez

2016-03-01

Full Text Available TackSHS is a new research project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme. It aims to improve our understanding of second-hand tobacco smoke and e-cigarette emissions and find ways of tackling the health burden caused by exposure to them. Within a fast changing environment, the project will try to elucidate the comprehensive impact that SHS and e-cigarette aerosols have on respiratory health of the European population and how health impacts vary according to socio-economic parameters with particular emphasis on specific vulnerable groups such as patients suffering from chronic lung diseases.

Finding the Optimum Scenario in Risk-benefit Assessment: An Example on Vitamin D

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berjia, Firew Lemma; Hoekstra, J.; Verhagen, H.

2014-01-01

when changing from the reference to the optimum scenario. Conclusion: The method allowed us to find the optimum serum level in the vitamin D example. Additional case studies are needed to further validate the applicability of the approach to other nutrients or foods, especially with regards...... a method for finding the optimum scenario that provides maximum net health gains. Methods: A multiple scenario simulation. The method is presented using vitamin D intake in Denmark as an example. In addition to the reference scenario, several alternative scenarios are simulated to detect the scenario...... that provides maximum net health gains. As a common health metric, Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALY) has been used to project the net health effect by using the QALIBRA (Quality of Life for Benefit Risk Assessment) software. Results: The method used in the vitamin D example shows that it is feasible to find...

The term structure of credit spreads in project finance

OpenAIRE

Marco Sorge; Blaise Gadanecz

2004-01-01

This paper finds that the term structure of credit spreads in project finance is hump-shaped. This contrasts with other types of debt, where credit risk is shown instead to increase monotonically with maturity ceteris paribus. We emphasize a number of peculiar features of project finance structures that might underlie this finding, such as high leverage decreasing over time, long-term political risk guarantees and the sequential resolution of uncertainty along project advancement stages. Our ...

Selecting users for participation in IT projects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Rasmus; Christensen, Anders S.; Fjeldsted, Tobias

2011-01-01

The selection of users for participation in IT projects involves trade-offs between multiple criteria, one of which is selecting a representative cross-section of users. This criterion is basic because trading it for other criteria means basing designs on information biased toward some user groups...... at the expense of others. Based on interviews in development and customer organizations we find that their criteria for user selection favour persons who can contribute to the progress of the IT project over persons who are representative of the full range of users. A highly valued contribution from...... participating users is the ability to advocate a vision for the system and champion its organizational implementation. A survey in one customer organization shows that respondents’ personal traits explain up to 31% of the variation in their experience of aspects of the usability of a recently introduced system...

Delivering below the line in project management – A conceptual exploration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Udechukwu Ojiako

2013-06-01

Design/Methodology/Approach: The study is conceptual in nature and draws upon literature on complexity theory, expectations theories and stakeholder theory. Findings: The paper finds that there is a need to articulate a different assessment of project outcomes than has been traditionally undertaken. Such assessments may emphasise the perceptions of project clients formed through their experience of projects throughout the project lifecycle. Implications: This paper raises questions on whether the outcomes of projects are best ‘measured’ or ‘assessed’.

Projections of Three-Dimensional Regions

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez, Felix; Rosa, De La

2005-01-01

When first-year calculus students are interested in studying double integrals, they can find, in standard textbooks, a detailed description of the different regions of integration. The aims of this paper are: to give a criterion to select the plane that will be projected, to classify the projections, and to give a simple rule to obtain them.…

Intelligent Materials Tracking System for Construction Projects Management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Narimah Kasim

2015-05-01

Full Text Available An essential factor adversely affecting the performance of construction projects is the improper handling of materials during site activities. In addition, paper-based reports are mostly used to record and exchange information related to the material components within the supply chain, which is problematic and inefficient. Generally, technologies (such as wireless systems and RFID are not being adequately used to overcome human errors and are not well integrated with project management systems to make tracking and management of materials easier and faster. Findings from a literature review and surveys showed that there is a lack of positive examples of such tools having been used effectively. Therefore, this research focused on the development of a materials tracking system that integrates RFID-based materials management with resources modelling to improve on-site materials tracking. Rapid prototyping was used to develop the system and testing of the system was carried out to examine the functionality and working appropriately. The proposed system is intended to promote the employment of RFID for automatic materials tracking with integration of resource modelling (Microsoft (R Office Project in the project management system in order to establish which of the tagged components are required resources for certain project tasks. In conclusion, the system provides an automatic and easy tracking method for managing materials during materials delivery and inventory management processes in construction projects.

Building Sustainable Smallholder Cooperatives in Emerging Market Economies: Findings from a Five-Year Project in Kenya

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John E. Meador

2016-07-01

Full Text Available A comparative study of two smallholder dairy cooperatives in Kenya examines the question: what factors are conducive to producing sustainable smallholder cooperatives that can gain entry into the vertical value chain in liberalized post-colonial economies? The relative weight of income advantage; selective individual incentives and, social capital on maintaining member patronage are assessed within variable environmental constraints and opportunities facing different cooperatives. The methodology includes case study observation of the cooperatives during a five-year period, as well as sample surveys of members and non-members that include indicators of dairy income; reasons why farmers elect to join or not join the cooperative; and assessments of the importance of different services provided by the cooperative. The findings show how the relative weight of specific incentives for cooperative membership can vary from one environment to another within the same nation. The most important finding is that maintaining sustainable smallholder cooperatives within an increasingly competitive environment depends on the ability of managers to create business strategies that are compatible with the cooperative’s environmental constraints but, at the same time, incentivize members’ patronage.

Factors Affecting Project Governance Of Arusha Archdiocesan Food Security And Livelihood Project In Monduli District Tanzania.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kisame Deogratious

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract This research project dealt with the factors affecting governance of Food security and livelihood projects a case study of the Food security and livelihood project that was implemented by AAIDRO in Monduli district and included 60 respondents all together. The specific objectives of this study intended to access the Leadership styles that are being used in project governance. The findings of the study indicated that 91.7 of the respondents were in favor of their leaders project governance styles it was portrayed that participative leadership style was being used by the leaders for project governance. Based on a sample of 60 project members this study had confirmed that a project leaders leadership roles like mentor facilitator innovator and coordinator are important in influencing project governance effectiveness which includes team mission goal achievement and empowerment open and honest communication

Project 2010 For Dummies

CERN Document Server

Muir, Nancy C

2010-01-01

A friendly reference guide to Microsoft Project, the leading enterprise project management software. As project management software, Microsoft Project allows you to oversee your business activities effectively. You can manage resources, share project info, perform modeling and scenario analysis, and standardize reporting processes. This easy-to-understand guide is completely updated to cover the latest changes and newest enhancements to Project 2010 and shows you how to get Project 2010 to work for you. After an introduction to basic project management concepts, you'll discover the mechanics o

Limb-body wall complex: Prenatal sonographic findings versus autopsy findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Mi Jin; Cho, Jeong Yeon; Lee, Young Ho

2001-01-01

To evaluate prenatal ultrasonographic findings of limb-body wall complex and to correlate them with autopsy findings. From October 1995 to June 2000, a retrospectively review of prenatal ultrasonography (US) of 11 patients with pathologically proven limb-body wall complex was done. US findings were then compared with autopsy findings. Prenatal ultrasonography revealed thoraco-abdominoschists (n=7.64%), kyphoscoliosis (n=7.64%), cranial defect (n=5.45%), limb defect (n=4.36%), facial defect (n=1.10%), amniotic band (n=5.45%), and umbilical cord anomaly (n=3.27%). Meanwhile, autopsy findings showed thoraco-abdominoschisis (n=8.72%), limb defect (n=7.64%), facial defect (n=7.64%), kyphoscoliosis (n=5.45%), cranial defect (n=5.45%), amniotic band (n=5.45%) and umbilical cord anomaly (n=4.36%). The most common ultrasonography features of limb-body wall complex were thoraco-abdominoschisis and kyphoscoliosis while the thoraco-abdominoschisis and limb defects were the most frequent findings at autopsy.

The association between tax structure and cigarette price variability: findings from the ITC Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Shang, Ce; Chaloupka, Frank J; Fong, Geoffrey T; Thompson, Mary; O'Connor, Richard J

2015-07-01

Recent studies have shown that more opportunities exist for tax avoidance when cigarette excise tax structure departs from a uniform specific structure. However, the association between tax structure and cigarette price variability has not been thoroughly studied in the existing literature. To examine how cigarette tax structure is associated with price variability. The variability of self-reported prices is measured using the ratios of differences between higher and lower prices to the median price such as the IQR-to-median ratio. We used survey data taken from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation (ITC) Project in 17 countries to conduct the analysis. Cigarette prices were derived using individual purchase information and aggregated to price variability measures for each surveyed country and wave. The effect of tax structures on price variability was estimated using Generalised Estimating Equations after adjusting for year and country attributes. Our study provides empirical evidence of a relationship between tax structure and cigarette price variability. We find that, compared to the specific uniform tax structure, mixed uniform and tiered (specific, ad valorem or mixed) structures are associated with greater price variability (p≤0.01). Moreover, while a greater share of the specific component in total excise taxes is associated with lower price variability (p≤0.05), a tiered tax structure is associated with greater price variability (p≤0.01). The results suggest that a uniform and specific tax structure is the most effective tax structure for reducing tobacco consumption and prevalence by limiting price variability and decreasing opportunities for tax avoidance. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

VIRTUAL EXHIBITION AND FRUITION OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. M. Manferdini

2012-09-01

Full Text Available During the last two decades, since digital technologies have become more sophisticated in acquiring real data and building faithful copies of them, their improvements have suggested interesting applications in the field of valorisation of Historical, Cultural and Artistic Heritage, with significant consequences in the share and widespread of knowledge. But although several technologies and methodologies for 3d digitization have recently been developed and improved, the lack of a standard procedure and the costs connected to their use still doesn't encourage the systematic digital acquisition of wide collections and heritage. The aim of this paper is to show the state of the art of a project whose aim is to provide a methodology and a procedure to create digital reproductions of artefacts for Institutions called to preserve, manage and enhance the fruition of archaeological finds inside museums or through digital exhibitions. Our project’s aim is to find the most suitable procedure to digitally acquire archaeo logical artefacts that usually have small dimensions and have very complex and detailed surfaces. Within our methodology, particular attention has been paid to the use of widely shared and open-source visualization systems that enhance the involvement of the user by emphasizing three-dimensional characteristics of artefacts through virtual reality.

Managing a sensitive project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Etcheber, Pascal

1998-01-01

A 'sensitive' project needs to be managed differently from a 'normal' project. This statement might seem simple enough. However, it does not seem to be a simple task to prove it in twenty minutes. This paper is an attempt to share with the audience some of the experiences the company had dealing with sensitive projects. It describes what a sensitive project is, though of all people, the 'nuclear' should know. Then the common mistakes are described, that are made in the hoping that some personal experiences are recognised. Finally the company's strategy is shown, how we foster third party support and the main tools to be used. Ultimately, success is ensured by having a sufficient quantity of allies. A sensitive project does not die because it has too many opponents, but because it has too few allies. Finding and helping allies to act is the thrust of our activity. It enables sensitive projects which deserve to succeed to do so, where traditional management fails miserably

Choosing to Cofinance: Analysis of Project-Specific Alliances in the Movie Industry

OpenAIRE

Darius Palia; S. Abraham Ravid; Natalia Reisel

2008-01-01

We use a movie industry project-by-project dataset to analyze the choice of financing a project internally versus financing it through outside alliances. The results indicate that project risk is positively correlated with alliance formation. Movie studios produce a variety of films and tend to develop their safest projects internally. Our findings are consistent with internal capital market explanations. We find mixed evidence regarding resource pooling, i.e., sharing the cost of large proje...

Project Finance and Projects in the Energy Sector in Developing Countries

OpenAIRE

ERMELA KRIPA; HALIT XHAFA

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study is to show the importance of using project finance in infrastructure investments in developing countries. The paper will be focused only on one infrastructure sector, which is energy. Structurally, power project finance has involved largely buildown-transfer (BOT) project structures and long-term contracts. The projects largely reflect a rational allocation of risks among public and private participants. Private sponsors and lenders generally assume risks for complet...

The TIMSS Videotape Classroom Study: Methods and Findings from an Exploratory Research Project on Eighth-Grade Mathematics Instruction in Germany, Japan, and the United States. A Research and Development Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Stigler, James W.; Gonzales, Patrick; Kwanaka, Takako; Knoll, Steffen; Serrano, Ana

This report presents the methods and preliminary findings of the Videotape Classroom Study, a video study of eighth-grade mathematics lessons in Germany, Japan, and the United States. This exploratory research project is part of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). The study included 231 eighth-grade mathematics…

MR findings of cerebral palsy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Sang Hum; Chang, Seung Kuk; Cho, Mee Young; Park, Dong Woo; Kim, Jong Deok; Eun, Choong Ki

1994-01-01

To evaluate the MR findings of brain damage in cerebral palised patients and to correlate it with gestational age and the time of damage. A retrospective analysis was performed in 40 patients who underwent MR scanning for evaluation of brain lesion in clinically diagnosed cerebral palsy. Authors classified the patients into two groups as premature and full-term and compared MR findings of the two groups. Abnormal MR findings were noted in 28 cases (70%). Five out of 6 patients who had been born prematurely showed isolate periventricular white matter lesions. Twenty-three out of 34 patients who had been born at full-term showed abnormal MR findings. Of these 23 patients, migration anomalies in 7 patients, isolate periventricular white matter lesions in 3 patients, and other combined periventricular subcortical white matter and deep gray matter lesions in 14 patients were seen. At least, 10 patients(43%) of full term group showed abnormal MRI findings reflecting intrauterine brain damage and all 5 patients of premature group showed isolate periventricular white matter lesions suggesting immaturity of brain. MRI is thought to be very useful in the assessment of brain damage for the patients with cerebral palsy by recognizing the location of the lesion and estimating the time of damage

MR findings of cerebral palsy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoon, Sang Hum; Chang, Seung Kuk; Cho, Mee Young; Park, Dong Woo; Kim, Jong Deok; Eun, Choong Ki [Pusan Paik Hospital, Pusan (Korea, Republic of)

1994-11-15

To evaluate the MR findings of brain damage in cerebral palised patients and to correlate it with gestational age and the time of damage. A retrospective analysis was performed in 40 patients who underwent MR scanning for evaluation of brain lesion in clinically diagnosed cerebral palsy. Authors classified the patients into two groups as premature and full-term and compared MR findings of the two groups. Abnormal MR findings were noted in 28 cases (70%). Five out of 6 patients who had been born prematurely showed isolate periventricular white matter lesions. Twenty-three out of 34 patients who had been born at full-term showed abnormal MR findings. Of these 23 patients, migration anomalies in 7 patients, isolate periventricular white matter lesions in 3 patients, and other combined periventricular subcortical white matter and deep gray matter lesions in 14 patients were seen. At least, 10 patients(43%) of full term group showed abnormal MRI findings reflecting intrauterine brain damage and all 5 patients of premature group showed isolate periventricular white matter lesions suggesting immaturity of brain. MRI is thought to be very useful in the assessment of brain damage for the patients with cerebral palsy by recognizing the location of the lesion and estimating the time of damage.

Bulgaria: Introduction of Informatics in Education of Children. Project Findings and Recommendations. Terminal Report.

Science.gov (United States)

United Nations Development Programme, Geneva (Switzerland).

In 1987, the Bulgarian government and cooperating international agencies launched the program, "Children in the Information Age," a project aimed at: conducting and promoting national research into, exchange of information about, development and application of, practical training in, and methods and techniques for the introduction of…

Causes of Low-Skilled Workers’ Performance in Construction Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alhaji Ali Zannah

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Skilled workers’ performance is one of the crucial aspects of labour productivity that requires proper attention for effective projects delivery in the construction industry. The level of skilled workers’ low performance has been seen to be a major factor which contributes toward inefficient construction projects productivity. Therefore, the objective of this research is to identify the causes of low-skilled workers’ performance in construction projects in the Nigeria. The objective was achieved through a structured quantitative method of questionnaire distributed to 150 respondents that comprise of active stakeholders in the Nigerian construction industry. 111 responses representing 74 % were retrieved. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance (ANOVA. The finding shows that; low wages of skilled, lack of sufficient skill acquisition centres and lack of incentive schemes for skilled workers were the most significant causes of low-skilled workers’ performance in the Nigerian construction industry. The homogenous analysis indicates that there are significant differences in perception of respondents on few variables whereas majority of respondents have similarities in most of the variables. The research findings indicate the need for stakeholders in the Nigerian construction industry to provide incentives and motivate skilled workers, provide training and retraining, conducive working condition, supply of quality materials and equipment, and proper site management in order improve low-skilled workers’ performance in Nigerian construction industry towards optimal performance.

Agile Project Management with Scrum

CERN Document Server

Schwaber, Ken

2009-01-01

The rules and practices for Scrum-a simple process for managing complex projects-are few, straightforward, and easy to learn. But Scrum's simplicity itself-its lack of prescription-can be disarming, and new practitioners often find themselves reverting to old project management habits and tools and yielding lesser results. In this illuminating series of case studies, Scrum co-creator and evangelist Ken Schwaber identifies the real-world lessons-the successes and failures-culled from his years of experience coaching companies in agile project management. Through them, you'll understand how to

Timely loss recognition and termination of unprofitable projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anup Srivastava

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Ideally, firms should discontinue projects that become unprofitable. Managers, however, continue to operate such projects because of their limited employment horizons and empire-building motivations (Jensen, 1986; Ball, 2001. Prior studies suggest that timely loss recognition in accounting earnings enables lenders, shareholders, and boards of directors to identify unprofitable projects; thereby, enabling them to force managers to discontinue such projects before large value erosion occurs. However, this conjecture has not been tested empirically. Consistent with this notion, we find that timely loss recognition increases the likelihood of timely closures of unprofitable projects. Moreover, managers, by announcing late discontinuations of such projects, reveal their inability to select good projects and/or to contain losses, when projects turn unprofitable. Accordingly, thereafter, the fund providers and board of directors are likely to demand improved timeliness of loss recognition and stringent scrutiny of firms’ capital expenditure plans. Consistently, we find that firms that announce large discontinuation losses reduce capital expenditures and improve timeliness of loss recognition in subsequent years. Our study provides evidence that timely loss reporting affects “real” economic decisions and creates economic benefits.

Ultrasonographic findings of right-side colonic diverticulitis: Correlation with pathologic findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Hoi Soo; Kim, Young Hoon; Kim, Joung Sook; Cho, Woo Ho; Lim, Sung Jig; Lee, Jin Ho; Kim, Young Duk; Cha, Soon Joo

2002-01-01

To evaluate ultrasonographic (US) findings of right-side colonic diverticulitis and to correlate them with pathologic findings. Twenty nine patients with surgically (n=7) and radiographically (n=8) proven diverticulitis in the cecum and ascending colon for the past five years were included in this study, and they all underwent US due to right lower quadrant abdominal pain. US findings were analyzed by two radiologists with a special emphasis on: (1) the presence, size, and internal echo of hypoechoic lesion bulging out from the colonic wall (thickened diverticulum), (2) changes in the adjacent cecum and ascending colon, (3) changes in the adjacent mesentery, (4) accompanying fluid collection, and (5) the presence of lymphadenopathy. US finding of 18 surgically proven patients were correlated with pathologic findings. On US, 25 of 29 patients (86.2%0 were found to have thicken diverticulum with the greater dimension of 8-20 mm (mean,, 12 mm). Wall thickening of the adjacent cecum and ascending colon was seen in 28 patients (96.5%), and 22 (75.9%) of them had eccentrically thickened wall. Comparing US findings with pathologic findings in 18 surgically proven patients, all revealed to have inflamed diverticulum on surgery, but only 15 showed thickened diverticulum on US. In 12 patients, fecalith, purulent exudates, and hemorrhage were found within diverticulum on surgery. In case of diverticulitis containing fecalith, all of their echogenecities were increased. All patients showed wall thickening of the adjacent colon and increased echogenecity of the adjacent mesentery on US. Pathologic findings of these thickened walls contained nonspecific inflammatory change and hemorrhage while the mesentery with an increased echogenecity contained purulent or hemorrhagic exudates. Ultrasonography can diagnose the right-side colonic diverticulitis when there is the presence of thickened diverticulum in the area with the thickened right side colonic wall in patients with right

Implementing Climate-Compatible Development in the Context of Power: Lessons for Encouraging Procedural Justice through Community-Based Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benjamin T. Wood

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Climate-compatible development (CCD is being operationalised across the developing world through projects that integrate development, adaptation and mitigation using community-based approaches—community-based CCD (CB-CCD. By incorporating and considering local people’s concerns, these projects are positioned as more effective, efficient and sustainable than ‘top-down’ climate and development solutions. However, the literature pays little attention to whether and how these projects achieve procedural justice by recognising local people’s identities, cultures and values; and providing local people with meaningful participatory opportunities. We address this gap through an analysis of two donor-funded CB-CCD projects in Malawi, drawing on household surveys, semi-structured interviews and documentary materials. Our findings show that the projects had only limited success in facilitating procedural justice for the target populations. Households’ meaningful engagement in project activities and decision-making was often curtailed because power asymmetries went unchallenged. While many households were well engaged in projects, the recognition and participation of others—including many of the most vulnerable households—was limited. Building on our findings, we present a six-step approach to help CB-CCD project staff understand, manage and challenge power asymmetries; and create widespread recognition of, and meaningful participatory opportunities for, local people.

Project brief of pre-contract in project management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohd Jamil Hashim; Mohd Azmi Sidid Omar; Abdul Rahman Norazumin; Zakaria Dris; Abdul Murad Abu Bakar; Alwi Othman

2010-01-01

Project brief is a comprehensive document used in translating the user needs and requirement for the project implementation. This document is important for the designer as a main guidance towards establishing project details. Research shown that problem usually arises from not well-defined scope and needs by the user. With lack of information the designer tend to assume and interprets wrong translation. Other issues arise from project management are time, cost, budgetary, lack of communication and establishing quality management. Some ideas of improvement were gain by doing cross reference with JKR quality system management, workshop and brainstorming. It shows that an improvement of data collection system has to be integrating with some basic format details, drawings and declaration forms to be established. (author)

Radiofrequency ablation of rabbit liver. Correlation between dual CT findings and pathological findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuda, Masashi; Rikimaru, Yuya; Saito, Haruo; Ishibashi, Tadashi; Takahashi, Shyoki; Miyachi, Hideo; Yamada, Syogo

2002-01-01

The purpose of this study was to present the time-related imaging findings and correlative pathologic findings of radiofrequency pulse-irradiated regions of the liver. Radiofrequency (RF) ablation was performed in 22 rabbit livers with 15-gauge RF probes inserted percutaneously. Regions were imaged with dual-phase CT at 3 days (n=6), 2 weeks (n=6), 4 weeks (n=6), and 12 weeks (n=4) after RF ablation. At 3 days, the regions showed a two-zone structure on plain CT and peripheral enhancement. The regions presented a three-zone structure on pathological study. Hepatocytes appeared as acidophilic bodies, and nuclei were pyknotic at the inner necrotic zone. The middle whitish zone showed enlarged sinusoids. The marginal zone was a regenerative band. At 2 weeks, the two-zone structure was obscured on unenhanced CT. The region showed a two-zone structure on pathological study. At the inner zone, acidophilic degeneration had progressed, however, cell structure remained. The marginal zone showed fibrous tissue bundles. At 12 weeks, the region was obscured on plain CT. Nuclei and cell structures had disappeared almost completely at the inner zone. Collagen fiber had replaced the marginal zone. Zone structural CT findings reflect the pathological findings and time-related changes after RF ablation. Peripheral enhancement in the arterial phase reflects the granulation tissue layer, and its time-related decrease reflects replacement by fibrous tissue. (author)

Leadership and Project Success in Development Sector

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saghir Ahmed

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Aim/purpose - The study aims to investigate the relationship among the leadership, operational efficiency and project success in general and the impact of transformational leadership and operational efficiency on project success in particular. Design/methodology/approach - Mean comparison from descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression from inferential statistics was used to determine the association between variables and further impact of the transformational leadership and operational efficiency on project success in the development sector. The paper presents the results of a survey conducted among 200 employees from the top, middle & lower management levels of various national & international development organizations working in Pakistan like Microfinance Banks and other Rural Support Programs. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS was used to process data. Findings - The result shows positive association among transformational leadership, operational efficiency and project success. In addition, it was found that transformational leadership and operational efficiency have a positive and statistically significant impact on the project success. It is concluded that both transformational leadership and operational efficiency are vital to achieving the optimum level of success in any project, especially in the development sector. Research implications/limitations - The integral limitation of the study was the respondents because most of the development organizations have their operations in rural areas where access was difficult because of limited time and resources. In addition, such organizations are always reluctant to provide survey feedback. Originality/value/contribution - The paper contribution is in the theoretical and practical knowledge of the project success factors in the development sector which is still a somehow unexplored area. Regulators of the development sector may be benefited from this study.

The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management

CERN Document Server

Verzuh, Eric

2011-01-01

An updated and revised edition of the bestselling guide to managing projects For any professional responsible for coordinating projects among different departments, across executive levels, or with technical complexity, The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management offers comprehensive instruction on how to deliver on time and on budget. Get the step-by-step advice you need to find the right sponsor, clarify objectives, and set realistic schedules and budget projections. This Fourth Edition of the 200,000-copy bestseller now covers critical new topics including: software and IT projects, agile te

Environmental assessment in slum improvement programs: Some evidence from a study on infrastructure projects in two Dhaka slums

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chowdhury, Farhat Jahan; Amin, A.T.M. Nurul

2006-01-01

This paper reports findings from a study on slum improvement projects to show the difference that environmental assessment (EA) can make in such interventions and to suggest mechanisms for its integration into such projects. The findings are based on a field survey that was carried out in two slums of Dhaka where infrastructure projects were implemented. In one slum, the EA process was considered in designing and locating infrastructure and in the other it was not. The survey results traced the severe problems that existed in both slums before the implementation of infrastructure improvement projects and reveal that after the intervention the situation has considerably improved in the slum where EA was conducted. In contrast, some problems still persist in the other slum where EA was not considered. To make it worse, the newly built infrastructures have even given rise to a set of new problems. In order to avoid such negative outcomes from development interventions, the paper finally develops the mechanism for integration of EA into slum improvement project

The Association between Tax Structure and Cigarette Price Variability: Findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation (ITC) Project

Science.gov (United States)

Shang, Ce; Chaloupka, Frank J.; Fong, Geoffrey T; Thompson, Mary; O’Connor, Richard J

2015-01-01

Background Recent studies have shown that more opportunities exist for tax avoidance when cigarette excise tax structure departs from a uniform specific structure. However, the association between tax structure and cigarette price variability has not been thoroughly studied in the existing literature. Objective To examine how cigarette tax structure is associated with price variability. The variability of self-reported prices is measured using the ratios of differences between higher and lower prices to the median price such as the IQR-to-median ratio. Methods We used survey data taken from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation (ITC) Project in 17 countries to conduct the analysis. Cigarette prices were derived using individual purchase information and aggregated to price variability measures for each surveyed country and wave. The effect of tax structures on price variability was estimated using Generalised Estimating Equations after adjusting for year and country attributes. Findings Our study provides empirical evidence of a relationship between tax structure and cigarette price variability. We find that, compared to the specific uniform tax structure, mixed uniform and tiered (specific, ad valorem or mixed) structures are associated with greater price variability (p≤0.01). Moreover, while a greater share of the specific component in total excise taxes is associated with lower price variability (p≤0.05), a tiered tax structure is associated with greater price variability (p≤0.01). The results suggest that a uniform and specific tax structure is the most effective tax structure for reducing tobacco consumption and prevalence by limiting price variability and decreasing opportunities for tax avoidance. PMID:25855641

Health-related quality of life among US military personnel injured in combat: findings from the Wounded Warrior Recovery Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodruff, Susan I; Galarneau, Michael R; McCabe, Cameron T; Sack, Daniel I; Clouser, Mary C

2018-05-01

Little is known about the long-term, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of those wounded in combat during Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn. The present study described the overall HRQOL for a large group of US service members experiencing mild-to-severe combat-related injuries, and assessed the unique contribution of demographics, service- and injury-related characteristics, and mental health factors on long-term HRQOL. The Wounded Warrior Recovery Project examines patient-reported outcomes in a cohort of US military personnel wounded in combat. Participants were identified from the Expeditionary Medical Encounter Database, a US Navy-maintained deployment health database, and invited to complete a web-based survey. At the time of this study, 3245 service members consented and completed the survey. Hierarchical linear regression analyses were conducted to assess the unique contribution of each set of antecedents on HRQOL scores. HRQOL was uniquely associated with a number of demographics, and service- and injury-related characteristics. Nevertheless, screening positive for posttraumatic stress disorder (B = - .09; P < .001), depression (B = - .10; P < .001), or both as a set (B = - .19; P < .001) were the strongest predictors of lower long-term HRQOL. Postinjury HRQOL among service members wounded in combat was associated with service and injury experience, and demographic factors, but was most strongly linked with current mental health status. These findings underscore the significance of mental health issues long after injury. Further, findings reinforce that long-term mental health screening, services, and treatment are needed for those injured in combat.

The Southern Forest Futures Project: technical report

Science.gov (United States)

David N. Wear; John G. Greis

2013-01-01

Please visit the Southern Forest Futures Project website for more information.The Southern Forest Futures Project provides a science-based “futuring” analysis of the forests of the 13 States of the Southeastern United States. With findings...

Project Leadership and Quality Performance of Construction Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SPG Buba

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Background: The construction industry in Nigeria, is pigeonholed by poor quality of construction products as a result of the inherent corruption in the country. Lack of purposeful leadership and inappropriate choice of leadership styles in the industry have been attributed to project failure. Abandoned and failed projects are more predominant in the public sector which litters every corner of the country. Objectives: The objective of this paper is to assess the impact of leadership styles on quality performance criteria of public projects in Nigeria. Methodology: A total of 43 questionnaires were distributed to 3 key groups of respondents (Quantity Surveyors, Builders, and Architects who are project managers in Nigeria. Descriptive and Inferential statistics were used to analyse the data using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS. Likert Scale was used to measure the independent variables (leadership style: facilitative, coaching, delegating and directing; and the level of achievement of projects based on the dependent variables (quality and function performance criteria which are: achieving highest aesthetic quality; and functional building that fits its purpose. Findings: The study revealed that Directing is the major leadership style used by project managers in Nigeria. Amongst the leadership styles which has the most impact on quality performance indicators is also directing which has the most relative influence on achieving highest aesthetic quality and functional building that fits its purpose. Conclusion/Recommendation/Way forward: The underlying relationship between Directing leadership styles and the performance criteria of achieving highest aesthetic quality and functional building that fits its purpose will be beneficial to the Nigerian construction environment.

Amoco-US Environmental Protection Agency, pollution prevention project, Yorktown, Virginia: Solid waste data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kizior, G.J.

1991-01-01

In late 1989 Amoco and the US Environmental Protection Agency initiated a joint project to review pollution prevention alternatives at Amoco Oil Company's Yorktown, Virginia, Refinery as a case study site. The report summarizes the solid waste emissions inventory, solids source identification, and the solid waste sampling program that was conducted at the Amoco Yorktown Refinery on September 25-27, 1990, in support of the Pollution Prevention Project. Major findings showed that the majority of solid waste generation occurs as end-of-pipe solids resulting from the treatment of wastewaters from the refinery sewer. Based on a regression analysis of the composition data for samples collected during this project, major upstream contributors to these solids appear to be soils. Solids from process units are also significant contributors

From industry to academia: Benefits of integrating a professional project management standard into (geo)science research

Science.gov (United States)

Cristini, Luisa

2017-04-01

Scientific and technological research carried out within universities and public research institutions often involves large collaborations across several countries. Despite the considerable budget (typically millions of Euros), the high expectations (high impact scientific findings, new technological developments and links with policy makers, industry and civil society) and the length of the project over several years, these international projects often rely heavily on the personal skills of the management team (project coordinator, project manager, principal investigators) without a structured, transferable framework. While this approach has become an established practice, it's not ideal and can jeopardise the success of the entire effort with consequences ranging from schedule delays, loss of templates/systems, financial charges and ultimately project failure. In this presentation I will show the advantages of integrating a globally recognised standard for professional project management, such as the PMP® by the Project Management Institute, into academic research. I will cover the project management knowledge areas (integration management, scope management, time management, cost management, quality management, human resources management, risk management, procurement management, and stakeholder management) and the processes within these throughout the phases of the project lifetime (project initiation, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closure). I will show how application of standardised, transferable procedures, developed within the business & administration sector, can benefit academia and more generally scientific research.

The Personal Genome Project Canada: findings from whole genome sequences of the inaugural 56 participants.

Science.gov (United States)

Reuter, Miriam S; Walker, Susan; Thiruvahindrapuram, Bhooma; Whitney, Joe; Cohn, Iris; Sondheimer, Neal; Yuen, Ryan K C; Trost, Brett; Paton, Tara A; Pereira, Sergio L; Herbrick, Jo-Anne; Wintle, Richard F; Merico, Daniele; Howe, Jennifer; MacDonald, Jeffrey R; Lu, Chao; Nalpathamkalam, Thomas; Sung, Wilson W L; Wang, Zhuozhi; Patel, Rohan V; Pellecchia, Giovanna; Wei, John; Strug, Lisa J; Bell, Sherilyn; Kellam, Barbara; Mahtani, Melanie M; Bassett, Anne S; Bombard, Yvonne; Weksberg, Rosanna; Shuman, Cheryl; Cohn, Ronald D; Stavropoulos, Dimitri J; Bowdin, Sarah; Hildebrandt, Matthew R; Wei, Wei; Romm, Asli; Pasceri, Peter; Ellis, James; Ray, Peter; Meyn, M Stephen; Monfared, Nasim; Hosseini, S Mohsen; Joseph-George, Ann M; Keeley, Fred W; Cook, Ryan A; Fiume, Marc; Lee, Hin C; Marshall, Christian R; Davies, Jill; Hazell, Allison; Buchanan, Janet A; Szego, Michael J; Scherer, Stephen W

2018-02-05

The Personal Genome Project Canada is a comprehensive public data resource that integrates whole genome sequencing data and health information. We describe genomic variation identified in the initial recruitment cohort of 56 volunteers. Volunteers were screened for eligibility and provided informed consent for open data sharing. Using blood DNA, we performed whole genome sequencing and identified all possible classes of DNA variants. A genetic counsellor explained the implication of the results to each participant. Whole genome sequencing of the first 56 participants identified 207 662 805 sequence variants and 27 494 copy number variations. We analyzed a prioritized disease-associated data set ( n = 1606 variants) according to standardized guidelines, and interpreted 19 variants in 14 participants (25%) as having obvious health implications. Six of these variants (e.g., in BRCA1 or mosaic loss of an X chromosome) were pathogenic or likely pathogenic. Seven were risk factors for cancer, cardiovascular or neurobehavioural conditions. Four other variants - associated with cancer, cardiac or neurodegenerative phenotypes - remained of uncertain significance because of discrepancies among databases. We also identified a large structural chromosome aberration and a likely pathogenic mitochondrial variant. There were 172 recessive disease alleles (e.g., 5 individuals carried mutations for cystic fibrosis). Pharmacogenomics analyses revealed another 3.9 potentially relevant genotypes per individual. Our analyses identified a spectrum of genetic variants with potential health impact in 25% of participants. When also considering recessive alleles and variants with potential pharmacologic relevance, all 56 participants had medically relevant findings. Although access is mostly limited to research, whole genome sequencing can provide specific and novel information with the potential of major impact for health care. © 2018 Joule Inc. or its licensors.

Ambidextrous Leadership and Sustainability-Based Project Performance: The Role of Project Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Junwei Zheng

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Most studies in the project management field emphasized the effects of leaders or managers, but these effects have rarely been examined at the project level. To cover this research gap, this study applies organizational ambidexterity theory to examine the effects among ambidextrous leadership, ambidextrous culture and sustainability-based project performance. Using a valid sample of 217 project leaders and members from Chinese construction projects, the method of multiple linear regression was adopted to assess the direct relationship among ambidextrous leadership, ambidextrous culture and project performance. Moreover, the bootstrapping technique through structural equation modeling, has been used to analyze the mediating effect of ambidextrous culture. Additionally, the sample data was divided into different groups according to the median value of the variables to conduct the ANOVA and to assess the within-group differences. The results indicated a positive and direct relationship that ambidextrous leadership has on project performance and ambidextrous culture. In addition, there was also a mediating impact of ambidextrous leadership on project performance via ambidextrous culture. Thus, ambidextrous leadership combined with transformational leadership as well as transactional leadership likely has a stronger positive impact on project performance through fostering the adaptive culture and consistent culture. Our findings contribute to an in-depth understanding of the role of the leader and culture for project outcomes. The project-based organization in construction projects could train project leaders’ ambidextrous leadership behavior to facilitate the formation of an ambidextrous culture and to increase project performance. Moreover, this study enriches the existing literature on leadership and project management by highlighting the important path of ambidextrous leadership and ambidextrous culture on the performance at the project level

The international Chernobyl project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

This article summarizes the official report of the International Advisory Committee at the conference of the International Chernobyl Project held in Vienna, May 1991. More details will be found in the actual report, ''The International Chernobyl Project: An Overview'' (INI22:066284/5). Measurements and assessments carried out under the project provided general corroboration of the levels of surface cesium-137 contamination reported in the official maps. The project also concluded that the official procedures for estimating radiation doses to the population were scientifically sound, although they generally resulted in overestimates of two- to threefold. The project could find no marked increase in the incidence of leukemia or cancer, but reported absorbed thyroid doses in children might lead to a statistically detectable rise in the incidence of thyroid tumors. Significant non-radiation-related health disorders were found, and the accident had substantial psychological consequences in terms of anxiety and stress. The project concluded that the protective measures taken were too extreme, and that population relocation and foodstuff restrictions should have been less extensive

Some Findings Concerning Requirements in Agile Methodologies

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez, Pilar; Yagüe, Agustín; Alarcón, Pedro P.; Garbajosa, Juan

Agile methods have appeared as an attractive alternative to conventional methodologies. These methods try to reduce the time to market and, indirectly, the cost of the product through flexible development and deep customer involvement. The processes related to requirements have been extensively studied in literature, in most cases in the frame of conventional methods. However, conclusions of conventional methodologies could not be necessarily valid for Agile; in some issues, conventional and Agile processes are radically different. As recent surveys report, inadequate project requirements is one of the most conflictive issues in agile approaches and better understanding about this is needed. This paper describes some findings concerning requirements activities in a project developed under an agile methodology. The project intended to evolve an existing product and, therefore, some background information was available. The major difficulties encountered were related to non-functional needs and management of requirements dependencies.

Pre-emptive resource-constrained multimode project scheduling using genetic algorithm: A dynamic forward approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aidin Delgoshaei

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Purpose: The issue resource over-allocating is a big concern for project engineers in the process of scheduling project activities. Resource over-allocating drawback is frequently seen after scheduling of a project in practice which causes a schedule to be useless. Modifying an over-allocated schedule is very complicated and needs a lot of efforts and time. In this paper, a new and fast tracking method is proposed to schedule large scale projects which can help project engineers to schedule the project rapidly and with more confidence. Design/methodology/approach: In this article, a forward approach for maximizing net present value (NPV in multi-mode resource constrained project scheduling problem while assuming discounted positive cash flows (MRCPSP-DCF is proposed. The progress payment method is used and all resources are considered as pre-emptible. The proposed approach maximizes NPV using unscheduled resources through resource calendar in forward mode. For this purpose, a Genetic Algorithm is applied to solve. Findings: The findings show that the proposed method is an effective way to maximize NPV in MRCPSP-DCF problems while activity splitting is allowed. The proposed algorithm is very fast and can schedule experimental cases with 1000 variables and 100 resources in few seconds. The results are then compared with branch and bound method and simulated annealing algorithm and it is found the proposed genetic algorithm can provide results with better quality. Then algorithm is then applied for scheduling a hospital in practice. Originality/value: The method can be used alone or as a macro in Microsoft Office Project® Software to schedule MRCPSP-DCF problems or to modify resource over-allocated activities after scheduling a project. This can help project engineers to schedule project activities rapidly with more accuracy in practice.

An O-"fish"-ial Research Project

Science.gov (United States)

Newman, James; Krustchinsky, Rick; Vanek, Karen; Nguyen, Kim-Thoa

2009-01-01

In this "O-"fish"-ial" research project, third-grade students use multiple resources to research several fish species, write a research paper and develop a PowerPoint presentation to communicate their findings. In addition, students actually examine these species up close with samples from the local market, and then conclude the project with a…

The Missing Point Of Knowledge Management in PFI Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kipli Kumalasari

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The Private Finance Initiative (PFI procurement model is a complex system which includes long-term commitment; customers’ satisfaction and through-life collaborative working. The projects based on this type of procurement has start from the year 1992 in the UK and year 2006 in Malaysia. Along the process, the PFI projects face few problems despite its advantages. These problem has effected the projects performance such as delay and cost overruns. It seems that the problems occurred are repeatable despite many types of research delved into solving the issues. This paper seeks, to find out the most common problems occur in PFI projects and highlights the best solution to tackle the problems. It also looks at whether similar problems occur in Malaysian construction industry. This research has summarised and critically review the literature on the repeated issues and problem in PFI projects which effect the performance of the projects in term of time, quality and money. It was found that similar problems occur and that similar suggestions were proposed. This shows that the proposed solutions have weaknesses somewhat and hence need to enhance further. This research highlighted the potential of incorporating knowledge management concept through its elements to address the problems. Finally, the paper proposes recommendations to improve the performance of PFI projects with the enhancement of knowledge management especially at the initial and planning stage up to bidding stage where the problem reviewed in the literature always occurred

Kotka ecopower IGCC-project, the attempt to transfer the biocycle project to Finland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salo, K.

1998-01-01

The Danish utilities Elsam and Elkraft planned to build a small (7 MW e ) IGCC-plant in Denmark, called Biocycle Project, based on the gasification and gas clean-up technology of Enviropower Inc. EU/THERMIE program committed to finance part of the investment. The project, however, was not feasible due to the difficulty of finding a suitable customer and sufficient amount of reasonably priced biomass. For this reason a new host and site was found for the Biocycle project. The new site was in Kotka, Finland, where Kotka Energy Ltd., the Energy Board of the City of Kotka acted as the main partner. The fuel of the IGCC project would have been sugar mill wood residue from Xyrofin Inc. During the feasibility investigation (project definition phase) Xyrofin Inc. made the decision to change the production process which eliminated the wood waste production. Without no-cost fuel and due to the low electricity price in Finland the small size IGCC power plant proved not to be feasible. (author)

The PredictAD project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Antila, Kari; Lötjönen, Jyrki; Thurfjell, Lennart

2013-01-01

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia affecting 36 million people worldwide. As the demographic transition in the developed countries progresses towards older population, the worsening ratio of workers per retirees and the growing number of patients with age-related illnes...... candidates and implement the framework in software. The results are currently used in several research projects, licensed to commercial use and being tested for clinical use in several trials....... objective of the PredictAD project was to find and integrate efficient biomarkers from heterogeneous patient data to make early diagnosis and to monitor the progress of AD in a more efficient, reliable and objective manner. The project focused on discovering biomarkers from biomolecular data...

Project Final Report: HPC-Colony II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jones, Terry R [ORNL; Kale, Laxmikant V [University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Moreira, Jose [IBM T. J. Watson Research Center

2013-11-01

This report recounts the HPC Colony II Project which was a computer science effort funded by DOE's Advanced Scientific Computing Research office. The project included researchers from ORNL, IBM, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The topic of the effort was adaptive system software for extreme scale parallel machines. A description of findings is included.

Student Attitudes Towards and Impressions of Project Citizen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sara Winstead FRY

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Project Citizen is a civic education curriculum used across the United States and internationally, yet research about its impact on students is lacking in the literature. This article reports the results of a preliminary study designed to answer the following questions: What are students’ attitudes toward and perceptions of Project Citizen? How do their attitudes and perceptions compare to those of students who completed senior projects? Tenhigh school students and 23 first-year college students completed a questionnaire designed for this study. Our findings indicate that the high school students had positive perceptions of Project Citizen, and they self-reported anunderstanding and high levels of efficacy regarding civic responsibility. In contrast, the first-year college students had lower levels of efficacy regarding civic responsibility. Our findings suggest the importance of specific learning experiences to help students develop civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions, and indicate the need for further research into civic programs such as Project Citizen

Organizational Diagnosis in Project-Based Companies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Behrouz Zarei

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to develop a new method for corporate diagnosis (CD. To this end, a method is developed for the diagnosis process of project-based companies. The article presents a case study in a large company where data have been collected through focus groups. Project delay, high project cost, and low profitability are examples of project deficiency in project-based companies. Such issues have made managers pay special attention to find effective solutions to improve them. Prominent factors are inappropriate strategy, structure, system, human resource management, and PMBOK(Project Management Body of Knowledge processes. Thus, CD and analysis is an important task in improvement of corporate performance. The CD model that is developed in this article could be used for project-based companies. The proposed method can be used for CD in any project-based company. This article provides an emphatic application of CD as a prerequisite for restructuring in project-based companies.

The relation between project management education and newer streams in project management research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Leimbach, Timo; Goodall, Julie Bladt

2017-01-01

In the last decades, research in project management (PM) has experienced significant new inputs from a range of new PM methodologies and critical research streams. As a consequence, members of the more critical streams have called for the education of project managers to advance from that of trai......In the last decades, research in project management (PM) has experienced significant new inputs from a range of new PM methodologies and critical research streams. As a consequence, members of the more critical streams have called for the education of project managers to advance from...... that of training technicians, to fostering reflective practitioners that are better equipped to handle the increasing complexity of the profession. This paper is based on a recently commenced re-search project titled "Rethinking Project Management Education – the Role of Universities" that is aimed at analysing...... how the development of PM research is reflected in the education of project managers. On the basis of a short overview of the state of the art of PM education research and practices, the possible challenges for the development of PM education are discussed, and, finding that there is a lack...

Conditions, factors and criteria for successful project implementation: generalization of experience of project management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Feraru Galina Sergeevna

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The article addresses issues characterizing features of project management contributing to their competitive advantage; shows the factors and criteria of success of projects and the main reasons for their failures, making the failed efforts of developers to create projects.

The Project Team: Features, Effectiveness and Leadership

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramona-Elena GABREA

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The project team that is responsible for providing flexibility and innovation to this structure in order to enable organizations to remain successful (1. The very nature of the project team's work underpins a collective task much more complex than that assumed by other types of work teams. The aim of this paper is to explore the main factors that determine the project team effectiveness. The research methodology was the literature review. The main finding reveals that the organizational structure of projects and the project team should not be considered as a panacea for all problems of organizational effectiveness.

Raspberry Pi hardware projects 1

CERN Document Server

Robinson, Andrew

2013-01-01

Learn how to take full advantage of all of Raspberry Pi's amazing features and functions-and have a blast doing it! Congratulations on becoming a proud owner of a Raspberry Pi, the credit-card-sized computer! If you're ready to dive in and start finding out what this amazing little gizmo is really capable of, this ebook is for you. Taken from the forthcoming Raspberry Pi Projects, Raspberry Pi Hardware Projects 1 contains three cool hardware projects that let you have fun with the Raspberry Pi while developing your Raspberry Pi skills. The authors - PiFace inventor, Andrew Robinson and Rasp

PROJECT PORTFOLIO SELECTION COMPETENCES RESEARCH INUNIVERSITIES OF LITHUANIA

OpenAIRE

R #363;ta #268;iutien #279;; Evelina Meilien #279;; Bronius Neverauskas

2011-01-01

As a result of the theoretical findings, the paperdemonstrates that projectportfolio selection is crucial project management problem. Successful ProjectPortfolio management requires specific competences.Every project of projectportfolio must be evaluated according to the basedcriteria and parameters.Empirical study was based on framework matrix withfour parameters of projectportfolio selection and only two phases of projectportfolio formation. The r...

Assessing Projection Bias in Consumers' Food Preferences.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tiziana de-Magistris

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to test whether projection bias exists in consumers' purchasing decisions for food products. To achieve our aim, we used a non-hypothetical experiment (i.e., experimental auction, where hungry and non-hungry participants were incentivized to reveal their willingness to pay (WTP. The results confirm the existence of projection bias when consumers made their decisions on food products. In particular, projection bias existed because currently hungry participants were willing to pay a higher price premium for cheeses than satiated ones, both in hungry and satiated future states. Moreover, participants overvalued the food product more when they were delivered in the future hungry condition than in the satiated one. Our study provides clear, quantitative and meaningful evidence of projection bias because our findings are based on economic valuation of food preferences. Indeed, the strength of this study is that findings are expressed in terms of willingness to pay which is an interpretable amount of money.

Enhancing Scientific Inquiry Literacy of Prospective Biology Teachers through Inquiry Lab Project in Microbiology

Science.gov (United States)

Kusnadi, K.; Rustaman, N. Y.; Redjeki, S.; Aryantha, I. N. P.

2017-09-01

The implementation of the inquiry laboratory based project to enhance scientific inquiry literacy of prospective biology teachers in Microbiology course has been done. The inquiry lab based project was designed by three stages were debriefing of basic microbiology lab skills, guided inquiry and free inquiry respectively. The Study was quasi experimental with control group pretest-posttest design. The subjects were prospective biology teachers consists of 80 students. The scientific inquiry literacy instrument refers to ScInqLiT by Wenning. The results showed that there was significant difference of scientific inquiry literacy posttest scores between experiment and control (α 0,05) and was obtained N-gain score was 0.49 (medium) to experiment and 0.24 (low) to control. Based on formative assessment showed that development of student’s scientific attitude, research and microbiology lab skills during conducting project were increased. Student’s research skills especially in identification of variables, constructing a hypothesis, communicating and concluding were increased. During implementation of inquiry project also showed that they carried out mind and hands-on and so collaborative group investigation lab activities. Our findings may aid in reforming higher-education, particularly in microbiology laboratory activities to better promote scientific inquiry literacy, scientific attitude, research and laboratory skills.

Two-spinor description of massive particles and relativistic spin projection operators

Science.gov (United States)

Isaev, A. P.; Podoinitsyn, M. A.

2018-04-01

On the basis of the Wigner unitary representations of the covering group ISL (2 , C) of the Poincaré group, we obtain spin-tensor wave functions of free massive particles with arbitrary spin. The wave functions automatically satisfy the Dirac-Pauli-Fierz equations. In the framework of the two-spinor formalism we construct spin-vectors of polarizations and obtain conditions that fix the corresponding relativistic spin projection operators (Behrends-Fronsdal projection operators). With the help of these conditions we find explicit expressions for relativistic spin projection operators for integer spins (Behrends-Fronsdal projection operators) and then find relativistic spin projection operators for half integer spins. These projection operators determine the numerators in the propagators of fields of relativistic particles. We deduce generalizations of the Behrends-Fronsdal projection operators for arbitrary space-time dimensions D > 2.

Freedom Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alejandra Suarez

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Freedom Project trains prisoners in nonviolent communication and meditation. Two complementary studies of its effects are reported in this article. The first study is correlational; we found decreased recidivism rates among prisoners trained by Freedom Project compared with recidivism rates in Washington state. The second study compared trained prisoners with a matched-pair control group and found improvement in self-reported anger, self-compassion, and certain forms of mindfulness among the trained group. Ratings of role-plays simulating difficult interactions show increased social skills among the group trained by Freedom Project than in the matched controls.

New Inspiring Planetarium Show Introduces ALMA to the Public

Science.gov (United States)

2009-03-01

As part of a wide range of education and public outreach activities for the International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009), ESO, together with the Association of French Language Planetariums (APLF), has produced a 30-minute planetarium show, In Search of our Cosmic Origins. It is centred on the global ground-based astronomical Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) project and represents a unique chance for planetariums to be associated with the IYA2009. ESO PR Photo 09a/09 Logo of the ALMA Planetarium Show ESO PR Photo 09b/09 Galileo's first observations with a telescope ESO PR Photo 09c/09 The ALMA Observatory ESO PR Photo 09d/09 The Milky Way band ESO PR Video 09a/09 Trailer in English ALMA is the leading telescope for observing the cool Universe -- the relic radiation of the Big Bang, and the molecular gas and dust that constitute the building blocks of stars, planetary systems, galaxies and life itself. It is currently being built in the extremely arid environment of the Chajnantor plateau, at 5000 metres altitude in the Chilean Andes, and will start scientific observations around 2011. ALMA, the largest current astronomical project, is a revolutionary telescope, comprising a state-of-the-art array of 66 giant 12-metre and 7-metre diameter antennas observing at millimetre and submillimetre wavelengths. In Search of our Cosmic Origins highlights the unprecedented window on the Universe that this facility will open for astronomers. "The show gives viewers a fascinating tour of the highest observatory on Earth, and takes them from there out into our Milky Way, and beyond," says Douglas Pierce-Price, the ALMA Public Information Officer at ESO. Edited by world fulldome experts Mirage3D, the emphasis of the new planetarium show is on the incomparable scientific adventure of the ALMA project. A young female astronomer guides the audience through a story that includes unique animations and footage, leading the viewer from the first observations by Galileo

Research Project Evaluation-Learnings from the PATHWAYS Project Experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Galas, Aleksander; Pilat, Aleksandra; Leonardi, Matilde; Tobiasz-Adamczyk, Beata

2018-05-25

Every research project faces challenges regarding how to achieve its goals in a timely and effective manner. The purpose of this paper is to present a project evaluation methodology gathered during the implementation of the Participation to Healthy Workplaces and Inclusive Strategies in the Work Sector (the EU PATHWAYS Project). The PATHWAYS project involved multiple countries and multi-cultural aspects of re/integrating chronically ill patients into labor markets in different countries. This paper describes key project's evaluation issues including: (1) purposes, (2) advisability, (3) tools, (4) implementation, and (5) possible benefits and presents the advantages of a continuous monitoring. Project evaluation tool to assess structure and resources, process, management and communication, achievements, and outcomes. The project used a mixed evaluation approach and included Strengths (S), Weaknesses (W), Opportunities (O), and Threats (SWOT) analysis. A methodology for longitudinal EU projects' evaluation is described. The evaluation process allowed to highlight strengths and weaknesses and highlighted good coordination and communication between project partners as well as some key issues such as: the need for a shared glossary covering areas investigated by the project, problematic issues related to the involvement of stakeholders from outside the project, and issues with timing. Numerical SWOT analysis showed improvement in project performance over time. The proportion of participating project partners in the evaluation varied from 100% to 83.3%. There is a need for the implementation of a structured evaluation process in multidisciplinary projects involving different stakeholders in diverse socio-environmental and political conditions. Based on the PATHWAYS experience, a clear monitoring methodology is suggested as essential in every multidisciplinary research projects.

'Show me the money': energy projects financing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ball, C.

2006-01-01

This paper describes the business and business model of Corpfinance International (CFI). CFI consists of three businesses: structured financing, private equity/corporate finance advisory and securitization. Furthermore, CFI is the lender of record acting on behalf of and based on strong relationship with various Life Insurance Companies, Pension Funds and International Banks. CFI has in-house expertise in support of its lending advisory and investing activities

Integrating a Procurement Management Process into Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM: A Case-Study on Oil and Gas Projects, the Piping Process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sung-Hwan Jo

2018-05-01

results show that, in not considering material uncertainty (resource buffers, projects schedules have the potential for approximately a 5% schedule growth with the accompanying delay charges. The findings have far-reaching applications for both oil and gas and other sectors. This CCPM case-study exemplifies that the material management method represents an opportunity for industry to administrate pipeline installation projects more effectively, eliminate project duration extension, develop schedule-based risk mitigation measures pre-construction, and enable project teams to efficiently manage limited human and material resources.

The Herpetology Project

Science.gov (United States)

Vacchina, Peter; Aguirre, Mary

2008-01-01

In this article, the authors describe their ongoing experience with the Herpetology Project. Through this field study, students catch and track amphibians and reptiles in the Assabet River area, record and analyze data, share their findings with the community, and ultimately, work toward protecting turtles' habitats. The authors chose to focus on…

Critical success factors influencing the performance of development projects: An empirical study of Constituency Development Fund projects in Kenya

OpenAIRE

Debadyuti Das; Christopher Ngacho

2017-01-01

The present work attempts to identify critical success factors (CSFs) influencing the performance of development projects based on their key performance indicators (KPIs). It has considered the case of Constituency Development Fund (CDF) projects constructed between 2003 and 2011 in Kenya and secured the perceptions of 175 respondents comprising clients, consultants and contractors involved in the implementation of CDF projects on 30 success variables. Findings reveal that individual items co...

Measuring the effects of using ICT/BIM in construction projects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lambrecht, Jan Fuglsig; Vestergaard, Flemming; Karlshøj, Jan

2016-01-01

This paper focuses on presenting part of the findings from a research project completed in the period of 2009-2013.The research project was funded by the Danish Building & Property Agency with the primary aim to identify and measure the economic effects of using ICT/BIM in construction projects....... Firstly, this paper presents a conceptual evaluation method developed in order to define and describe how case studies focusing on use of ICT/BIM in construction projects could be completed in order to measure (both quantitatively and qualitatively) the effects achieved from using ICT/BIM in construction...... projects. In this context effects are defined both as tangible and intangible effects (both economically and non-economically) directly and/or indirectly as a consequence of using ICT/BIM in a construction project. Secondly, the paper presents and analyses findings achieved from completing four case...

Exploring alternative terrain in the rehabilitation and treatment of offenders: findings from a prison-based music project

OpenAIRE

Caulfield, L.S; Wilkinson, D.J; Wilson, D

2016-01-01

The arts in prison settings have provided an alternative or complimentary component to rehabilitation. Despite increased interest, studies capturing the voice of offenders participating in projects and the long-term impact are limited. Data from semistructured interviews with 18 men who had taken part in a music-based project while incarcerated, including one group of five participants who were tracked for 18 months with supplemented data from correctional staff and official documentation, is...

Superconformal compactifications in weighted projective space

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Greene, B.R.

1990-01-01

We discuss some aspects of string vacua constructed from orbifolded nonminimal Landau-Ginzburg theories which correspond to Calabi-Yau manifolds in weighted projective space. In contrast to previous expectations, we find that these theories allow for the construction of numerous stable (2, 0) Calabi-Yau vacua (most of which are not simply deformations of an underlying (2, 2) theory) thus indicating that this phenomenologically promising sector of the space of classical vacua is quite robust. We briefly discuss methods for extracting the phenomenology of these models and show, for example, that the full renormalizable superpotential of our SU(5) theories is not corrected by world sheet instantons and is thus given exactly by its tree-level value. (orig.)

COORDINATES OF A RISK MANAGEMENT PROJECT

OpenAIRE

ALEXANDRU OLTEANU; MĂDĂLINA ANTOANETA RĂDOI

2013-01-01

High risk – high benefit: a well-known correlation both in the economic field and in the day-to-day life. Another correlation, on which this article is based: large project – numerous participants – increased risks and other malfunctions. The risk management concept is challenged by those projects and is forced to find the most adequate “customized” ways for each project at its turn. In this respect, the assessment of management has followed the trend of the last three decades, marked by movi...

Environmental assessment for the Waste Water Treatment Facility at the West Valley Demonstration Project and finding of no significant impact

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1992-12-31

The possible environmental impacts from the construction and operation of a waste water treatment facility for the West Valley Demonstration Project are presented. The West Valley Project is a demonstration project on the solidification of high-level radioactive wastes. The need for the facility is the result of a rise in the work force needed for the project which rendered the existing sewage treatment plant incapable of meeting the nonradioactive waste water treatment needs.

Environmental assessment for the Waste Water Treatment Facility at the West Valley Demonstration Project and finding of no significant impact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The possible environmental impacts from the construction and operation of a waste water treatment facility for the West Valley Demonstration Project are presented. The West Valley Project is a demonstration project on the solidification of high-level radioactive wastes. The need for the facility is the result of a rise in the work force needed for the project which rendered the existing sewage treatment plant incapable of meeting the nonradioactive waste water treatment needs

Parental eating behaviours, home food environment and adolescent intakes of fruits, vegetables and dairy foods: longitudinal findings from Project EAT.

Science.gov (United States)

Arcan, Chrisa; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne; Hannan, Peter; van den Berg, Patricia; Story, Mary; Larson, Nicole

2007-11-01

To examine longitudinal associations of parental report of household food availability and parent intakes of fruits, vegetables and dairy foods with adolescent intakes of the same foods. This study expands upon the limited research of longitudinal studies examining the role of parents and household food availability in adolescent dietary intakes. Longitudinal study. Project EAT-II followed an ethnically and socio-economically diverse sample of adolescents from 1999 (time 1) to 2004 (time 2). In addition to the Project EAT survey, adolescents completed the Youth Adolescent Food-Frequency Questionnaire in both time periods, and parents of adolescents completed a telephone survey at time 1. General linear modelling was used to examine the relationship between parent intake and home availability and adolescent intake, adjusting for time 1 adolescent intakes. Associations were examined separately for the high school and young adult cohorts and separately for males and females in combined cohorts. The sample included 509 pairs of parents/guardians and adolescents. Vegetables served at dinner significantly predicted adolescent intakes of vegetables for males (P = 0.037), females (P = 0.009), high school (P = 0.033) and young adults (P = 0.05) at 5-year follow-up. Among young adults, serving milk at dinner predicted dairy intake (P = 0.002). Time 1 parental intakes significantly predicted intakes of young adults for fruit (P = 0.044), vegetables (P = 0.041) and dairy foods (P = 0.008). Parental intake predicted intake of dairy for females (P = 0.02). The findings suggest the importance of providing parents of adolescents with knowledge and skills to enhance the home food environment and improve their own eating behaviours.

Strengthening the Role of Unmarried Fathers: Findings from the Co-Parent Court Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Marczak, Mary S; Becher, Emily H; Hardman, Alisha M; Galos, Dylan L; Ruhland, Ebony

2015-12-01

While the importance of fathers in unmarried coparent families is a strong area of social and political interest, a dearth of community-based interventions exists for supporting the role of fathers in at-risk families. The Co-Parent Court (CPC) was a 3-year demonstration project evaluating the effectiveness of a collaborative intervention to support unmarried coparents establishing paternity and improving their coparenting relationships and paternal involvement in their child's life. A randomized-control experimental design was employed. The paper will explore father involvement and coparent relationship outcomes. © 2015 Family Process Institute.

Study finds declining construction leadtimes for nukes being built

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smock, R.

1983-01-01

A new Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) study of 26 nuclear projects shows a decrease in the leadtime for nuclear plants under construction in contrast to the findings of other studies. The EPRI study plots construction leadtime against the year of construction permit issuance rather than the year of completion, and it eliminates management delays, physical plant differences, and management differences. The result is a two-part trendline reflecting the discontinuity of regulatory ratchet effects, which cause 50% of construction leadtime delay while labor material delivery problems account for 20% and deliberate delays 22% of leadtime delay. When allowance is made for deliberate delays, there is no growth in construction leadtime. There was no correlation of utility finances, the accuracy of load growth forecasts, or the state regulatory environment to the length of construction. 3 figures,

A Priority Rule-Based Heuristic for Resource Investment Project Scheduling Problem with Discounted Cash Flows and Tardiness Penalties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amir Abbas Najafi

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Resource investment problem with discounted cash flows (RIPDCFs is a class of project scheduling problem. In RIPDCF, the availability levels of the resources are considered decision variables, and the goal is to find a schedule such that the net present value of the project cash flows optimizes. In this paper, we consider a new RIPDCF in which tardiness of project is permitted with defined penalty. We mathematically formulated the problem and developed a heuristic method to solve it. The results of the performance analysis of the proposed method show an effective solution approach to the problem.

Project Scheduling Based on Risk of Gas Transmission Pipe

Science.gov (United States)

Silvianita; Nurbaity, A.; Mulyadi, Y.; Suntoyo; Chamelia, D. M.

2018-03-01

The planning of a project has a time limit on which must be completed before or right at a predetermined time. Thus, in a project planning, it is necessary to have scheduling management that is useful for completing a project to achieve maximum results by considering the constraints that will exists. Scheduling management is undertaken to deal with uncertainties and negative impacts of time and cost in project completion. This paper explains about scheduling management in gas transmission pipeline project Gresik-Semarang to find out which scheduling plan is most effectively used in accordance with its risk value. Scheduling management in this paper is assissted by Microsoft Project software to find the critical path of existing project scheduling planning data. Critical path is the longest scheduling path with the fastest completion time. The result is found a critical path on project scheduling with completion time is 152 days. Furthermore, the calculation of risk is done by using House of Risk (HOR) method and it is found that the critical path has a share of 40.98 percent of all causes of the occurence of risk events that will be experienced.

High order modes in Project-X linac

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sukhanov, A., E-mail: ais@fnal.gov; Lunin, A.; Yakovlev, V.; Awida, M.; Champion, M.; Ginsburg, C.; Gonin, I.; Grimm, C.; Khabiboulline, T.; Nicol, T.; Orlov, Yu.; Saini, A.; Sergatskov, D.; Solyak, N.; Vostrikov, A.

2014-01-11

Project-X, a multi-MW proton source, is now under development at Fermilab. In this paper we present study of high order modes (HOM) excited in continues-wave (CW) superconducting linac of Project-X. We investigate effects of cryogenic losses caused by HOMs and influence of HOMs on beam dynamics. We find that these effects are small. We conclude that HOM couplers/dampers are not needed in the Project-X SC RF cavities.

Which Type of Project Manager are You?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2017-01-01

Which type of project manager best describes you — are you a prophet, gambler, expert or executor? Take this twelve-question quiz to find out right now. There are no wrong answers, but the result may surprise you — and understanding your personal strength can help guide your career and project...

Project SEARCH UK--Evaluating Its Employment Outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Kaehne, Axel

2016-01-01

Background: The study reports the findings of an evaluation of Project SEARCH UK. The programme develops internships for young people with intellectual disabilities who are about to leave school or college. The aim of the evaluation was to investigate at what rate Project SEARCH provided employment opportunities to participants. Methods: The…

Two-spinor description of massive particles and relativistic spin projection operators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.P. Isaev

2018-04-01

Full Text Available On the basis of the Wigner unitary representations of the covering group ISL(2,C of the Poincaré group, we obtain spin-tensor wave functions of free massive particles with arbitrary spin. The wave functions automatically satisfy the Dirac–Pauli–Fierz equations. In the framework of the two-spinor formalism we construct spin-vectors of polarizations and obtain conditions that fix the corresponding relativistic spin projection operators (Behrends–Fronsdal projection operators. With the help of these conditions we find explicit expressions for relativistic spin projection operators for integer spins (Behrends–Fronsdal projection operators and then find relativistic spin projection operators for half integer spins. These projection operators determine the numerators in the propagators of fields of relativistic particles. We deduce generalizations of the Behrends–Fronsdal projection operators for arbitrary space–time dimensions D>2.

The Danish Agenda for Rethinking Project Management

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svejvig, Per; Grex, Sara

2016-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the similarities and differences between the Danish Re-thinking Project Management initiative named Project Half Double (PHD) and the rethinking project man-agement (RPM) research stream. The paper furthermore discusses how PHD and RPM can inspire...... ideas and local implementations. Findings – RPM and PHD share a focus on value creation, social processes, learning and complexity while PHD also focuses on lean thinking, agile thinking, front-end loading and leadership, which are largely topics beyond the RPM research stream. Originality...... a foundation for further development of both rethinking project management and Project Half Double....

Setting up crowd science projects.

Science.gov (United States)

Scheliga, Kaja; Friesike, Sascha; Puschmann, Cornelius; Fecher, Benedikt

2016-11-29

Crowd science is scientific research that is conducted with the participation of volunteers who are not professional scientists. Thanks to the Internet and online platforms, project initiators can draw on a potentially large number of volunteers. This crowd can be involved to support data-rich or labour-intensive projects that would otherwise be unfeasible. So far, research on crowd science has mainly focused on analysing individual crowd science projects. In our research, we focus on the perspective of project initiators and explore how crowd science projects are set up. Based on multiple case study research, we discuss the objectives of crowd science projects and the strategies of their initiators for accessing volunteers. We also categorise the tasks allocated to volunteers and reflect on the issue of quality assurance as well as feedback mechanisms. With this article, we contribute to a better understanding of how crowd science projects are set up and how volunteers can contribute to science. We suggest that our findings are of practical relevance for initiators of crowd science projects, for science communication as well as for informed science policy making. © The Author(s) 2016.

Research Project Evaluation—Learnings from the PATHWAYS Project Experience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleksander Galas

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Background: Every research project faces challenges regarding how to achieve its goals in a timely and effective manner. The purpose of this paper is to present a project evaluation methodology gathered during the implementation of the Participation to Healthy Workplaces and Inclusive Strategies in the Work Sector (the EU PATHWAYS Project. The PATHWAYS project involved multiple countries and multi-cultural aspects of re/integrating chronically ill patients into labor markets in different countries. This paper describes key project’s evaluation issues including: (1 purposes, (2 advisability, (3 tools, (4 implementation, and (5 possible benefits and presents the advantages of a continuous monitoring. Methods: Project evaluation tool to assess structure and resources, process, management and communication, achievements, and outcomes. The project used a mixed evaluation approach and included Strengths (S, Weaknesses (W, Opportunities (O, and Threats (SWOT analysis. Results: A methodology for longitudinal EU projects’ evaluation is described. The evaluation process allowed to highlight strengths and weaknesses and highlighted good coordination and communication between project partners as well as some key issues such as: the need for a shared glossary covering areas investigated by the project, problematic issues related to the involvement of stakeholders from outside the project, and issues with timing. Numerical SWOT analysis showed improvement in project performance over time. The proportion of participating project partners in the evaluation varied from 100% to 83.3%. Conclusions: There is a need for the implementation of a structured evaluation process in multidisciplinary projects involving different stakeholders in diverse socio-environmental and political conditions. Based on the PATHWAYS experience, a clear monitoring methodology is suggested as essential in every multidisciplinary research projects.

Incentive contracts for development projects

Science.gov (United States)

Finley, David T.; Smith, Byron; DeGroff, B.

2012-09-01

Finding a contract vehicle that balances the concerns of the customer and the contractor in a development project can be difficult. The customer wants a low price and an early delivery, with as few surprises as possible as the project progresses. The contractor wants sufficient cost and schedule to cover risk. Both want to clearly define what each party will provide. Many program offices do not want to award cost plus contracts because their funding sources will not allow it, their boards do not want an open ended commitment, and they feel like they lose financial control of the project. A fixed price incentive contract, with a mutually agreed upon target cost, provides the owner with visibility into the project and input into the execution of the project, encourages both parties to save costs, and stimulates a collaborative atmosphere by aligning the respective interests of customers and contractors.

Annual colloquium 1976 of the project nuclear safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1976-11-01

The present report gives the full text of the nine papers read during the annual colloquium 1976 of the Project Nuclear Safety at Karlsruhe Nuclear Research Centre, in which the main activities and findings of the project in 1976 are contained. (RW) [de

Occipital projections in the skeletal dysplasias

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takamine, Yuji; Field, Fiona M.; Lachman, Ralph S.; Rimoin, David L.

2004-01-01

Occipital projections of the cranium have been reported in a number of skeletal dysplasias and syndromes. We observed two cases of atelosteogenesis type I with a bony occipital projection. This finding has neither been noted nor reported in any form of atelosteogenesis. This led us to search the International Skeletal Dysplasia Registry for occipital projections, and we found them in four other syndromes in which they had not been reported. Thus occipital spurs are a non-diagnostic feature that can be found in at least ten distinct disorders as well as a normal variant. (orig.)

Projective configurations in projectivegeometrical drawings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivashchenko Andrey Viktorovich

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The article focuses on the optimization of the earlier discussed computer method of obtaining new forms of polyhedra based on projective geometry drawings (trace Diagrams.While working on getting new multifaceted forms by projective geometry methods based on the well-known models of polyhedra on the first stage of the work it is required to calculate the parameters of projective geometry drawings, and then to build them. This is an often used apparatus of analytical geometry. According to it, at first the parameters of the polyhedron (core system of planes are calculated, then we obtain the equation of the plane of the face of the polyhedron, and finally we obtain the equations of lines the next plane faces on the selected curve plane. At each stage of application such a method requires the use of the algorithms of floating point arithmetic, on the one hand, leads to some loss of accuracy of the results and, on the other hand, the large amount of computer time to perform these operations in comparison with integer arithmetic operations.The proposed method is based on the laws existing between the lines that make up the drawing - the known configurations of projective geometry (complete quadrilaterals, configuration of Desargues, Pappus et al..The authors discussed in detail the analysis procedure of projective geometry drawing and the presence of full quadrilaterals, Desargues and Pappus configurations in it.Since the composition of these configurations is invariant with respect to projective change of the original nucleus, knowing them, you can avoid the calculations when solving the equations for finding direct projective geometry drawing analytically, getting them on the basis of belonging to a particular configuration. So you can get a definite advantage in accuracy of the results, and in the cost of computer time. Finding these basic configurations significantly enriches the set of methods and the use of projective geometry drawings.

The Oregon Applied Academics Project: Final Report

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, Donna; Richardson, George B.; Sawyer, Jennifer M.

2013-01-01

This report contains the findings of the Oregon Applied Academics research and development project which spanned three academic years from 2010 through 2013. The overall purpose of the project was to develop and implement a technical math course that would meet graduation requirements and improve student performance. The State of Oregon has been…

The DIMBI project – innovative approaches for teaching business informatics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivan Kuyumdzhiev

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to collect and analyze data on existing methods of teaching business informatics in leading Bulgarian universities and suggest areas for improvements. Based on a collected data guidelines for innovative teaching methods in the field of BI and DW are developed. Proposed methods are divided in several sections – lectures, exercises (groups’ size, tools used, software, hardware, teaching methods, and real life customers, students’ projects, control methods. The findings of conducted feasibility study show that the business, students and universities need an innovative methodology of teaching business informatics and properly implemented this methodology has a high probability of success. This paper is written within the Erasmus plus KA2 project “Developing the innovative methodology of teaching business informatics” (DIMBI, 2015-1-PL01-KA203-0016636.

Solving Conic Systems via Projection and Rescaling

OpenAIRE

Pena, Javier; Soheili, Negar

2015-01-01

We propose a simple projection and rescaling algorithm to solve the feasibility problem \\[ \\text{ find } x \\in L \\cap \\Omega, \\] where $L$ and $\\Omega$ are respectively a linear subspace and the interior of a symmetric cone in a finite-dimensional vector space $V$. This projection and rescaling algorithm is inspired by previous work on rescaled versions of the perceptron algorithm and by Chubanov's projection-based method for linear feasibility problems. As in these predecessors, each main it...

Cost Finding Principles and Procedures. Preliminary Field Review Edition. Technical Report 26.

Science.gov (United States)

Ziemer, Gordon; And Others

This report is part of the Larger Cost Finding Principles Project designed to develop a uniform set of standards, definitions, and alternative procedures that will use accounting and statistical data to find the full cost of resources utilized in the process of producing institutional outputs. This technical report describes preliminary procedures…

Incorporating modern neuroscience findings to improve brain-computer interfaces: tracking auditory attention.

Science.gov (United States)

Wronkiewicz, Mark; Larson, Eric; Lee, Adrian Kc

2016-10-01

Brain-computer interface (BCI) technology allows users to generate actions based solely on their brain signals. However, current non-invasive BCIs generally classify brain activity recorded from surface electroencephalography (EEG) electrodes, which can hinder the application of findings from modern neuroscience research. In this study, we use source imaging-a neuroimaging technique that projects EEG signals onto the surface of the brain-in a BCI classification framework. This allowed us to incorporate prior research from functional neuroimaging to target activity from a cortical region involved in auditory attention. Classifiers trained to detect attention switches performed better with source imaging projections than with EEG sensor signals. Within source imaging, including subject-specific anatomical MRI information (instead of using a generic head model) further improved classification performance. This source-based strategy also reduced accuracy variability across three dimensionality reduction techniques-a major design choice in most BCIs. Our work shows that source imaging provides clear quantitative and qualitative advantages to BCIs and highlights the value of incorporating modern neuroscience knowledge and methods into BCI systems.

Private Water Projects

OpenAIRE

Izaguirre, Ada Karina; Hunt, Catherine

2005-01-01

Drawing on the World Bank's Private Participation in Infrastructure Project Database, this Note reviews developments in the water and sewerage sector of developing countries in 2004 and changes in private participation in the sector since 2001. Data for 2004 show that total investment in water and sewerage projects with private participation amounted to nearly US$2 billion. Recent private ...

Theory of affine projection algorithms for adaptive filtering

CERN Document Server

Ozeki, Kazuhiko

2016-01-01

This book focuses on theoretical aspects of the affine projection algorithm (APA) for adaptive filtering. The APA is a natural generalization of the classical, normalized least-mean-squares (NLMS) algorithm. The book first explains how the APA evolved from the NLMS algorithm, where an affine projection view is emphasized. By looking at those adaptation algorithms from such a geometrical point of view, we can find many of the important properties of the APA, e.g., the improvement of the convergence rate over the NLMS algorithm especially for correlated input signals. After the birth of the APA in the mid-1980s, similar algorithms were put forward by other researchers independently from different perspectives. This book shows that they are variants of the APA, forming a family of APAs. Then it surveys research on the convergence behavior of the APA, where statistical analyses play important roles. It also reviews developments of techniques to reduce the computational complexity of the APA, which are important f...

Time Overrun in Construction Project

Science.gov (United States)

Othman, I.; Shafiq, Nasir; Nuruddin, M. F.

2017-12-01

Timely completion is the key criteria to achieve success in any project despite the industry. Unfortunately construction industry in Malaysia has been labelled as industry facing poor performance leading to failure in achieving effective time management. As the consequence most of the project face huge amount of time overrun. This study assesses the causes of construction projects time overrun in Malaysia using structured questionnaire survey. Each respondent is asked to assign a one-to-five rating for each of the 18 time factors identified from literature review. Out of the 50 questionnaires sent out, 33 were received back representing 68% of the response rate. Data received from the questionnaires were analysed and processed using the descriptive statistics procedures. Findings from the study revealed that design and documentation issues, project management and contract administration, ineffective project planning and scheduling, contractor’s site management, financial resource management were the major factors that cause the time overrun. This study is hoped to help the practitioners to implement the mitigation measure at planning stage in order to achieve successful construction projects.

Project management - Factors leading to success or failure

Science.gov (United States)

Kelley, A. J.; Murphy, D. C.

1974-01-01

This paper presents initial findings of a study designed to detail the relationships among situational, structural, and process variables as they relate to project effectiveness. In the paper, emphasis is placed on delineating those variables which tend to improve and those which tend to impede project effectiveness.

An analysis of project selection and assignment criteria of Danish tenders in Europe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jasper Kranker Larsen

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Public construction agencies are one of the largest developers within the Danish construction industry, where such agencies own and develop new public construction projects. Most of these projects are put out in European tender. This study analyses the selection and assignment criteria employed by these agencies in different types of public sector projects. Some of the objectives pursued by the study include the determination of 1/ the selection and assignment criteria mostly used in Danish public tenders 2/ how different types of projects use selection and assignment criteria in the bidding process, and 3/ any significant difference between the use of selection and assignment criteria in Danish public construction projects. The study uses a quantitative research approach where 157 Danish public tender cases were selected from the European Tenders Electronic Daily database between the period: January 2010 to March 2013. Fisher's Exact Test was conducted to determine if there was any significant use of some selection and assignment criteria. The findings of the study showed that invited tenders with pre-qualification and lowest price in 69.8% of the tenders are the most used selection and assignment criteria, with little regard to project type.

Scheduling for decommissioning projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Podmajersky, O.E.

1987-01-01

This paper describes the Project Scheduling system being employed by the Decommissioning Operations Contractor at the Shippingport Station Decommissioning Project (SSDP). Results from the planning system show that the project continues to achieve its cost and schedule goals. An integrated cost and schedule control system (C/SCS) which uses the concept of earned value for measurement of performance was instituted in accordance with DOE orders. The schedule and cost variances generated by the C/SCS system are used to confirm management's assessment of project status. This paper describes the types of schedules and tools used on the SSDP project to plan and monitor the work, and identifies factors that are unique to a decommissioning project that make scheduling critical to the achievement of the project's goals. 1 fig

Is Project Towards No Drug Abuse (Project TND) an evidence-based drug and violence prevention program? A review and reappraisal of the evaluation studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Gorman, Dennis M

2014-08-01

This paper critically reviews the published evidence pertaining to Project Towards No Drug Abuse (Project TND). Publications from seven evaluation studies of Project TND are reviewed, and the results from these are discussed as related to the following outcomes: main effects on the use of cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana; main effects on the use of "hard drugs," defined in the evaluations as cocaine, hallucinogens, stimulants, inhalants, ecstasy and other drugs (e.g., depressants, PCP, steroids and heroin); subgroup and interaction analyses of drug use; and violence-related behaviors. Very few main effects have been found for cigarette, alcohol and marijuana use in the Project TND evaluations. While studies do report main effects for hard drug use, these findings are subject to numerous threats to validity and may be attributable to the data analyses employed. Similarly, while isolated subgroup and interaction effects were found for alcohol use among baseline nonusers and some violence-related behaviors in the early Project TND evaluations, these findings have not been replicated in more recent studies and may result from multiple comparisons between study conditions. In conclusion, there is little evidence to support the assertion that Project TND is an effective drug or violence prevention program. The broader implications of these findings for prevention science are discussed and suggestions are made as to how the quality of research in the field might be improved.

Risk variables in evaluation of transport projects

Science.gov (United States)

Vařbuchta, Petr; Kovářová, Hana; Hromádka, Vít; Vítková, Eva

2017-09-01

Depending on the constantly increasing demands on assessment of investment projects, especially assessment of large-scale projects in transport and important European projects with wide impacts, there is constantly increasing focus on risk management, whether to find mitigations, creating corrective measures or their implementation in assessment, especially in the context of Cost-Benefit analysis. To project assessment is often used implementation of certain risk variables, which can generate negative impacts of project outputs in framework of assess. Especially in case of transportation infrastructure projects is taken much emphasis on the influence of risk variables. However, currently in case of assessment of transportation projects is in Czech Republic used a few risk variables, which occur in the most projects. This leads to certain limitation in framework of impact assessment of risk variables. This papers aims to specify a new risk variables and process of applying them to already executed project assessment. Based on changes generated by new risk variables will be evaluated differences between original and adapted assessment.

ORGANIZATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT MATURITY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yana Derenskaya

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The present article is aimed at developing a set of recommendations for achieving a higher level of organizational project maturity at a given enterprise. Methodology. For the purposes of the current research, the available information sources on the components of project management system are analysed; the essence of “organizational maturity” and the existing models of organizational maturity are studied. The method of systemic and structural analysis, as well as the method of logical generalization, are employed in order to study the existing models of organizational maturity, to describe levels of organizational maturity, and finally to develop a set of methodological recommendations for achieving a higher level of organizational project maturity at a given enterprise. The results of the research showed that the core elements of project management system are methodological, organizational, programtechnical, and motivational components. Project management encompasses a wide range of issues connected with organizational structure, project team, communication management, project participants, etc. However, the fundamental basis for developing project management concept within a given enterprise starts with defining its level of organizational maturity. The present paper describes various models of organizational maturity (staged, continuous, petal-shaped and their common types (H. Кеrzner Organizational Maturity Model, Berkeley PM Maturity Model, Organizational Project Management Maturity Model, Portfolio, Program & Project Management Maturity Model. The analysis of available theoretic works showed that the notion “organizational project maturity” refers to the capability of an enterprise to select projects and manage them with the intention of achieving its strategic goals in the most effective way. Importantly, the level of maturity can be improved by means of formalizing the acquired knowledge, regulating project-related activities

Complexity Management In Projects Between Rational Momentum And Complex Conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mac, Anita; Schlamovitz, Jesper

2015-01-01

Abstract: This study takes its departure in a model of complexity, developed by Stacey (1993), to test and discuss its practical benefit as perceived by practicing project managers. Based on a survey, the study finds that complexity is a phenomenon recognized by project managers, and complexity...... management is associated with benefits in the development of tasks and managing stakeholders. It is also associated with some difficulty in terms of an increased need for dialogue and a risk of creating goal ambiguity. Based on the findings, we conclude that classical project management approaches can...... benefit from incorporating complexity management....

Complexity management in projects between rational momentum and complex conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mac, Anita; Schlamovitz, Jesper

This study takes its departure in a model of complexity, developed by Stacey (1993), to test and discuss its practical benefit as perceived by practicing project managers. Based on a survey, the study finds that complexity is a phenomenon recognized by project managers, and complexity management...... is associated with benefits in the development of tasks and managing stakeholders. It is also associated with some difficulty in terms of an increased need for dialogue and a risk of creating goal ambiguity. Based on the findings, we conclude that classical project management approaches can benefit from...... incorporating complexity management....

Investing in mental health and well-being: findings from the DataPrev project

Science.gov (United States)

Mcdaid, David; Park, A-La

2011-01-01

A systematic review was conducted to determine the extent to which an economic case has been made in high-income countries for investment in interventions to promote mental health and well-being. We focused on areas of interest to the DataPrev project: early years and parenting interventions, actions set in schools and workplaces and measures targeted at older people. Economic evaluations had to have some focus on promotion of mental health and well-being and/or primary prevention of poor mental health through health-related means. Studies preventing exacerbations in existing mental health problems were excluded, with the exception of support for parents with mental health problems, which might indirectly affect the mental health of their children. Overall 47 studies were identified. There was considerable variability in their quality, with a variety of outcome measures and different perspectives: societal, public purse, employer or health system used, making policy comparisons difficult. Caution must therefore be exercised in interpreting results, but the case for investment in parenting and health visitor-related programmes appears most strong, especially when impacts beyond the health sector are taken into account. In the workplace an economic return on investment in a number of comprehensive workplace health promotion programmes and stress management projects (largely in the USA) was reported, while group-based exercise and psychosocial interventions are of potential benefit to older people. Many gaps remain; a key first step would be to make more use of the existence evidence base on effectiveness and model mid- to long-term costs and benefits of action in different contexts and settings. PMID:22079932

Industrial sterilization of medical supplies. Turkey. Terminal report. Project findings and recommendations. Report prepared for the Government of Turkey

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-08-01

The document contains the terminal report on the implementation of the project IAEA/UNDP-TUR/88/040 'Industrial Sterilization of Medical Supplies' (1988-1995). The objective of the project was to set up a Radiation Sterilization Centre in Ankara for health care products indigenously manufactured

An Undergraduate Endeavor: Assembling a Live Planetarium Show About Mars

Science.gov (United States)

McGraw, Allison M.

2016-10-01

Viewing the mysterious red planet Mars goes back thousands of years with just the human eye but in more recent years the growth of telescopes, satellites and lander missions unveil unrivaled detail of the Martian surface that tells a story worth listening to. This planetarium show will go through the observations starting with the ancients to current understandings of the Martian surface, atmosphere and inner-workings through past and current Mars missions. Visual animations of its planetary motions, display of high resolution images from the Hi-RISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) and CTX (Context Camera) data imagery aboard the MRO (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) as well as other datasets will be used to display the terrain detail and imagery of the planet Mars with a digital projection system. Local planetary scientists and Mars specialists from the Lunar and Planetary Lab at the University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ) will be interviewed and used in the show to highlight current technology and understandings of the red planet. This is an undergraduate project that is looking for collaborations and insight in order gain structure in script writing that will teach about this planetary body to all ages in the format of a live planetarium show.

Simple steps help minimize costs, risks in project contracts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Camps, J.A.

1996-01-01

Contrary to prevailing opinion, risks and project financing costs can be higher for lump sum (LS) project contracts than under reimbursable-type contracts. An element-by-element analysis of the risks and costs associated with a project enables investors to develop variations of reimbursable contracts. Project managers can use this three-step procedure, along with other recommendations, to measure the hidden project costs and risks associated with LS contracts. The author bases his conclusions on case studies of recent projects in the petroleum refining and petrochemical industries. The findings, however, are general enough to be applicable in other industrial sectors

El Metodo Llamado Proyecto (The Project Approach). ERIC Digest.

Science.gov (United States)

Katz, Lilian G.

A project is an in-depth investigation of a topic worth learning more about, usually undertaken by a group of children within a class. The goal of a project is to learn more about a topic rather than to find answers to questions posed by a teacher. Project work is complementary to the systematic parts of a curriculum. Whereas systematic…

Sonographic findings of renal tuberculosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Chong Hyun; Lee, Chang Joon; Kim, Seung Hyun

1990-01-01

In order to determine sonographic characteristic of renal tuberculosis, we retrospectively collected 27 cases during a 5 year period. Infected kidneys showed large size (52%) and lobulating contour (76%). In 19 cases of increased parenchymal echogenicity, most of them (16 cases) showed decreased parenchymal thickness. We divided hydronephrotic patterns into 4 categories; predominant calyceal dilatation with mild or no pelvic dilatation (67%), focal calyectasis without pelvic dilation (15%), parenchymal cavitation without hydronephrosis (11%) and proportional hydronephrosis with calyceal deformity (7%). Our findings suggest that disproportional hydronephrosis would be the characteristic finding of renal tuberculosis

Process evaluation of the project P.A.T.H.S. (secondary 2 program): findings based on the co-walker scheme.

Science.gov (United States)

Shek, Daniel T L; Tam, Suet-yan

2009-01-01

To understand the implementation quality of the Tier 1 Program (Secondary 2 Curriculum) of the P.A.T.H.S. Project, process evaluation was carried out by co-walkers through classroom observation of 195 units in 131 schools. Results showed that the overall level of program adherence was generally high with an average of 84.55%, and different factors of the implementation process were evaluated as positive. Quality of program implementation and achievement of program objectives were predicted by students' participation and involvement, strategies to enhance students' motivation, opportunity for reflection, time management, and class preparation. Success in program implementation was predicted by students' participation and involvement, classroom control, interactive delivery method, strategies to enhance students' motivation, opportunity for reflection, and lesson preparation.

How to Find Optimal National Model of Pension System: the Projection on Russia (Book Review: Barr, N. Pension reform: A short guide [Text] / N. Barr, P. Diamond. – Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2010. – 261 p.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karen Avakovich Tumanyants

2015-12-01

Full Text Available How to Find Optimal National Model of Pension System: the Projection on Russia (Book Review: Barr, N. Pension reform: A short guide [Text] / N. Barr, P. Diamond. – Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2010. – 261 p.

Open Source Approach to Project Management Tools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Romeo MARGEA

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Managing large projects involving different groups of people and complex tasks can be challenging. The solution is to use Project management software, which allows a more efficient management of projects. However, famous project management systems can be costly and may require expensive custom servers. Even if free software is not as complex as Microsoft Project, is noteworthy to think that not all projects need all the features, amenities and power of such systems. There are free and open source software alternatives that meet the needs of most projects, and that allow Web access based on different platforms and locations. A starting stage in adopting an OSS in-house is finding and identifying existing open source solution. In this paper we present an overview of Open Source Project Management Software (OSPMS based on articles, reviews, books and developers’ web sites, about those that seem to be the most popular software in this category.

Information systems project management: methods, tools, and techniques

OpenAIRE

Mcmanus, John; Wood-Harper, Trevor

2004-01-01

Information Systems Project Management offers a clear and logical exposition of how to plan, organise and monitor projects effectively in order to deliver quality information systems within time, to budget and quality. This new book by John McManus and Trevor Wood-Harper is suitable for upper level undergraduates and postgraduates studying project management and Information Systems. Practising managers will also find it to be a valuable tool in their work. Managing information systems pro...

Research Applications for Teaching (RAFT) Project. Final Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomson, James R., Jr.; Handley, Herbert M.

A report is given of the development and progress of the Research Applications for Teaching (RAFT) project, developed at Mississippi State University. Based upon research findings relative to effective teaching and effective schooling, five curriculum modules were prepared and implemented in instruction. In the second year of the project the…

Extended abstract: Partial row projection methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bramley, R.; Lee, Y. [Indiana Univ., Bloomington, IN (United States)

1996-12-31

Accelerated row projection (RP) algorithms for solving linear systems Ax = b are a class of iterative methods which in theory converge for any nonsingular matrix. RP methods are by definition ones that require finding the orthogonal projection of vectors onto the null space of block rows of the matrix. The Kaczmarz form, considered here because it has a better spectrum for iterative methods, has an iteration matrix that is the product of such projectors. Because straightforward Kaczmarz method converges slowly for practical problems, typically an outer CG acceleration is applied. Definiteness, symmetry, or localization of the eigenvalues, of the coefficient matrix is not required. In spite of this robustness, work has generally been limited to structured systems such as block tridiagonal matrices because unlike many iterative solvers, RP methods cannot be implemented by simply supplying a matrix-vector multiplication routine. Finding the orthogonal projection of vectors onto the null space of block rows of the matrix in practice requires accessing the actual entries in the matrix. This report introduces a new partial RP algorithm which retains advantages of the RP methods.

Housing projects in Trabzon: Marketting discourses and physical environmental features

OpenAIRE

AYDIN TÜRK, Yelda; KARADENİZ, Beyza

2018-01-01

Thehousing projects, that have turned into concept projects promoted as acommodity since last decade in Turkey. These projects, are marketed withdiscourses such as “the long-awaited life”, “ideal home” and are constructed onthe urban fringes. In this study, the housing projects that developed inTrabzon in recent years have been examined in this context. Marketing discourseand physical environmental characteristics of the projects have been analyzed.Thus, the study finds out to what extent the...

What You Need to Know about Project Management

CERN Document Server

O'Connell, Fergus

2012-01-01

What You Need to Know About Project Management Project Management is all about getting things done without spending too much or taking too long. But when you start hearing things like man-days, PSOs and stakeholders, it just makes it difficult to understand. So what do you really need to know about project management? Find out:Why setting clear goals mattersHow to estimate absolutely everything.How to get things back on track after they've gone wrongHow to track big projectsWhy work/life balance matters when you're running a big project This clear and simple approach will mean you'll never pan

Vinayaka : A Semi-Supervised Projected Clustering Method Using Differential Evolution

OpenAIRE

Satish Gajawada; Durga Toshniwal

2012-01-01

Differential Evolution (DE) is an algorithm for evolutionary optimization. Clustering problems have beensolved by using DE based clustering methods but these methods may fail to find clusters hidden insubspaces of high dimensional datasets. Subspace and projected clustering methods have been proposed inliterature to find subspace clusters that are present in subspaces of dataset. In this paper we proposeVINAYAKA, a semi-supervised projected clustering method based on DE. In this method DE opt...

The Importance of Soft Skills and it Project Managers’ Personality Type

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cíntia Araújo

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Information technology (IT is a strategic element in business as it is fundamental to create value to organizations. To be efficient, project managers need to develop other competencies besides their technical skills (“hard skills”. This paper aims to show the importance of soft skills in the development of IT project managers’ competencies by answering the following questions (1 “which is the impact of “soft skills” on IT projects management?” and (2 “the personality type of the project manager can influence the development of his/her soft skills?”. To answer these questions, we conducted an exploratory and qualitative research. To collect data, we interviewed IT project managers and applied the MBTI test to identify their personality type. As we crossed the results of MBTI tests and content of the interviews, we noticed that some professionals have a personality type that might hinder them from developing some soft skills. Another important finding is that leadership and communication are the most important soft skills in project management according to IT project managers.  This research contributes to the academia as it indicates opportunities for further studies on the relationship of personality type and competence development. A managerial implication of research results is that managers and leaders can use personality tests such as MBTI to prevent relationship conflicts in teams as well as to design training programs that best suit their subordinates’ personality traits.

Agile Project Management for e-Learning Developments

Science.gov (United States)

Doherty, Iain

2010-01-01

We outline the project management tactics that we developed in praxis in order to manage elearning projects and show how our tactics were enhanced through implementing project management techniques from a formal project management methodology. Two key factors have contributed to our project management success. The first is maintaining a clear…

IPMA Standard Competence Scope in Project Management Education

Science.gov (United States)

Bartoška, Jan; Flégl, Martin; Jarkovská, Martina

2012-01-01

The authors of the paper endeavoured to find out key competences in IPMA standard for educational approaches in project management. These key competences may be used as a basis for project management university courses. An incidence matrix was set up, containing relations between IPMA competences described in IPMA competence baseline. Further,…

Advanced Decentralized Water/Energy Network Design for Sustainable Infrastructure presentation at the 2012 National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders'Show

Science.gov (United States)

A university/industry panel will report on the progress and findings of a fivesteve-year project funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The project's end product will be a Web-based, 3D computer-simulated residential environment with a decision support system to assist...

High-resolution projections of surface water availability for Tasmania, Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. C. Bennett

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Changes to streamflows caused by climate change may have major impacts on the management of water for hydro-electricity generation and agriculture in Tasmania, Australia. We describe changes to Tasmanian surface water availability from 1961–1990 to 2070–2099 using high-resolution simulations. Six fine-scale (∼10 km² simulations of daily rainfall and potential evapotranspiration are generated with the CSIRO Conformal Cubic Atmospheric Model (CCAM, a variable-resolution regional climate model (RCM. These variables are bias-corrected with quantile mapping and used as direct inputs to the hydrological models AWBM, IHACRES, Sacramento, SIMHYD and SMAR-G to project streamflows.

The performance of the hydrological models is assessed against 86 streamflow gauges across Tasmania. The SIMHYD model is the least biased (median bias = −3% while IHACRES has the largest bias (median bias = −22%. We find the hydrological models that best simulate observed streamflows produce similar streamflow projections.

There is much greater variation in projections between RCM simulations than between hydrological models. Marked decreases of up to 30% are projected for annual runoff in central Tasmania, while runoff is generally projected to increase in the east. Daily streamflow variability is projected to increase for most of Tasmania, consistent with increases in rainfall intensity. Inter-annual variability of streamflows is projected to increase across most of Tasmania.

This is the first major Australian study to use high-resolution bias-corrected rainfall and potential evapotranspiration projections as direct inputs to hydrological models. Our study shows that these simulations are capable of producing realistic streamflows, allowing for increased confidence in assessing future changes to surface water variability.

Expert finding by the Dempster‐Shafer theory for evidence combination

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Torkzadeh mahani, N.; Dehghani, M.; Mirian, M.S.; Shakery, A.; Taheri, K.

The expertise of human experts can be formally extracted from their written documents, research projects, and everyday activities. The process whereby experts are recognized according to their activities is called expert finding. In this paper, we propose an approach to identify the experts in a

National Automated Highway System Consortium: Modeling Stakeholder Preferences Project

OpenAIRE

Lathrop, John; Chen, Kan

1997-01-01

This document is the final report of the Modeling Stakeholder Preferences Project. The results of the project consist of three results: 1) evaluation framework; 2) focus group non-quantitative findings/ recommendations; and, 3) performance/impact measures, their endpoints, rankings and weights, for each stakeholder group.

A Role for Soft Systems Methodology in ELT Projects.

Science.gov (United States)

Holliday, Adrian

1990-01-01

Discusses the uses for soft systems methodology (SSM) in English language training (ELT) projects. It is suggested that ethnographic techniques may help in achieving the understanding needed to start an ELT project while SSM may provide a useful means for structuring ethnographic findings. (Author/VWL)

The upper Rhine waste heat project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schikarski, W.

1977-03-01

The tasks and targets of the project are: 1) Determination of the parameters relevant for an assessment of consequences, e.g.: General influences on weather and climate, anthropogenic influences on weather and climate, effects, affected systems, boundary conditions, anthropogenic changes in boundary conditions. 2) Developing a method of evaluation. 3) Establishing a sensitivity model and carrying out analyses. 4) Determining interface parameters which relate this project to other projects. 5) Summary of the findings and preparation of the main study. The cooperating institutions are: UBA, GfK, KFA, Deutscher Wetterdienst, University Bonn (Inst. f. Meteorology), Bonnenberg + Drescher GmbH, ISI (FhG Karlsruhe). (orig./HP) [de

The Southern Forest Futures Project: summary report

Science.gov (United States)

David N. Wear; John G. Greis

2012-01-01

The Southern Forest Futures Project provides a science-based “futuring” analysis of the forests of the 13 States of the Southeastern United States. With findings organized in a set of scenarios and using a combination of computer models and science synthesis, the authors of the Southern Forest Futures Project examine a variety of possible futures that could shape...

US findings of tubal pregnancy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Hwa Sung; Kim, Hyun Hee; Jee, Mi Hyun; Kweon, Young Hwa; Oh, Yoon Jin; Hong, Ju Hee; Kim, Soon Yong; Kim, Sang Young

1994-01-01

Early diagnosis of ruptured and unruptured tubal pregnancy became more accurate with the introduction of transvaginal sonographic equipment. The management principle of tubal pregnancy might be changed according to the sonographic findings. The purposes of this study were to define the sonographic findings of tubal pregnancy and to determine whether it is possible to differentiate the unruptured tubal pregnancies from the ruptured ones depending on the sonographic findings. The authors investigated the sonographic findings of the surgically confirmed 25 tubal pregnancy patients. There were 22(88%) unruptured and 3(12%) ruptured tubal pregnancies. Unruptured pregnancies showed tubal ring in 8, well defined hematosalpinx in 11, and poorly defined hematosalpinxin 2 patients. Ruptured pregnancies showed tubal sac with irregular margin in 2, and ill-defined hematosalpinx in one patient. In summary, well marginated tubal ring and hematosalpinx suggested unruptured tubal pregnancy, while tubal sac with irregular margin suggested ruptured pregnancy. However, it was difficult to differentiate the unruptured tubal pregnancy from the ruptured one when hematosalpinx was ill-defined

Taking Libraries’ Cultural Content to the User – Approaches and Experiences from the EEXCESS Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Timo Borst

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Before the advent of the internet users had to physically visit libraries and other cultural institutions in order to search, find and access content. With the emergence and massive use of the World Wide Web and associated tools and technologies this situation has changed drastically. If content is to be found and used, it must be present where users do their daily digital work. The aim of the EU project EEXCESS (http://eexcess.eu/ is to inject the content into the working environments of the users. In this paper, we show some of the approaches, use cases and technical implementations we developed in the project.

Using facilitative skills in project management

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Lauge Baungaard; Hansen, Mette Sanne; Jacobsen, Peter

2013-01-01

Project management can be seen as a profession, discipline and conceptual framework. It has been developed from different fields, including military engineering, mechanical engineering, social sciences and construction. During recent decades, there has been a number of challenges as to its efficacy...... cooperation, mediated by interconnected and diversified systems, is becoming more and more common. These relatively new forms of interaction imply new demands on skills and methods facilitating project cooperation within and among various organizations. Given the pervasiveness of these demands, project...... managers are frequently finding themselves in situations where using facilitating skills is not an option, but a requirement. Facilitation is to be viewed as a process of ‘obstetric’ aid to meet the challenges of coping with the changing conditions for project management described briefly above...

Carbon Dioxide Physiological Forcing Dominates Projected Eastern Amazonian Drying

Science.gov (United States)

Richardson, T. B.; Forster, P. M.; Andrews, T.; Boucher, O.; Faluvegi, G.; Fläschner, D.; Kasoar, M.; Kirkevâg, A.; Lamarque, J.-F.; Myhre, G.; Olivié, D.; Samset, B. H.; Shawki, D.; Shindell, D.; Takemura, T.; Voulgarakis, A.

2018-03-01

Future projections of east Amazonian precipitation indicate drying, but they are uncertain and poorly understood. In this study we analyze the Amazonian precipitation response to individual atmospheric forcings using a number of global climate models. Black carbon is found to drive reduced precipitation over the Amazon due to temperature-driven circulation changes, but the magnitude is uncertain. CO2 drives reductions in precipitation concentrated in the east, mainly due to a robustly negative, but highly variable in magnitude, fast response. We find that the physiological effect of CO2 on plant stomata is the dominant driver of the fast response due to reduced latent heating and also contributes to the large model spread. Using a simple model, we show that CO2 physiological effects dominate future multimodel mean precipitation projections over the Amazon. However, in individual models temperature-driven changes can be large, but due to little agreement, they largely cancel out in the model mean.

Project and Sports Events Management

OpenAIRE

Sebastian Madalin MUNTEANU

2011-01-01

This paper tries to capture the importance it holds the project management in socio-cultural sector which stands out when we refer to the sport. So when we talk about project management in sport, to consider a much larger vision, a new project management perspective, they involve a responsibility for the implementation of an event with global impact on very long term. Sports projects, as history shows us, played a significant role in developing societies. Also, all major sports industry proje...

Epstein-Barr virus encephalitis and encephalomyelitis: MR findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shian, W.J.; Chi, C.S.

1996-01-01

The purpose of this project is to investigate the clinical and brain MR characteristics of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encephalitis and encephalomyelitis. Clinical and 30 MR findings of 29 patients with EBV encephalitis or encephalomyelitis were retrospectively reviewed. Patients included 24 with encephalitis, 3 with encephalomyelitis, and 2 with brain-stem encephalitis. Altered consciousness, seizures, visual hallucination, and acute psychotic reaction were the common presentations. Eight patients had positive MR findings. These included T2 prolongation over gray and white matter, periventricular leukomalacia, and brain atrophy. Transient T2 prolongation over gray and white matter was found in one patient. Our results indicate that EBV encephalitis and encephalomyelitis have a wide range of both clinical and MR findings. The MR lesions may disappear in a short period, so the timing for the MR scan may be critical. (orig.). With 5 figs., 2 tabs

Epstein-Barr virus encephalitis and encephalomyelitis: MR findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shian, W.J. [Department of Pediatrics, Tao-Yuan Veterans Hospital, No. 100, Sec 3, Cheng-Kung Rd, City of Tao-Yuan, Taiwan (Taiwan, Province of China); Chi, C.S. [Department of Pediatrics, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan (Taiwan, Province of China)

1996-09-01

The purpose of this project is to investigate the clinical and brain MR characteristics of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) encephalitis and encephalomyelitis. Clinical and 30 MR findings of 29 patients with EBV encephalitis or encephalomyelitis were retrospectively reviewed. Patients included 24 with encephalitis, 3 with encephalomyelitis, and 2 with brain-stem encephalitis. Altered consciousness, seizures, visual hallucination, and acute psychotic reaction were the common presentations. Eight patients had positive MR findings. These included T2 prolongation over gray and white matter, periventricular leukomalacia, and brain atrophy. Transient T2 prolongation over gray and white matter was found in one patient. Our results indicate that EBV encephalitis and encephalomyelitis have a wide range of both clinical and MR findings. The MR lesions may disappear in a short period, so the timing for the MR scan may be critical. (orig.). With 5 figs., 2 tabs.

A comparative study on the Environmental Impact Assessment of industrial projects in Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Marmaya, E. A.; Mahbub, R.

2018-02-01

In the past decade, mankind has been manipulating the natural environment to better suit its needs for providing buildings and infrastructure for residential, commercial, business and industrial purposes. The rapid industrialization that has taken place has generated several issues regarding the environment. Therefore, managing environmental risks in construction projects has been recognized as an important process to achieve the project objectives in terms of time, cost, quality, safety and environmental sustainability. The aim of this research is to assess the environmental impact of industrial projects to the surrounding areas. The impact to the environment can be categorized into several aspects such as ecosystem impact, natural resources impact and public impact. This research employs the quantitative approach, that is, a questionnaire survey targeted at the occupants living in the surrounding areas of the case study location, namely the industrial sites in Sabah Ammonia Urea (SAMUR), Sipitang, Sabah and Lynas Advanced Materials Plant (LAMP), Gebeng Pahang. The findings of the research show that the two projects are perceived to have negative environmental impact especially for land pollution and green-house gas emissions.

What Climate Sensitivity Index Is Most Useful for Projections?

Science.gov (United States)

Grose, Michael R.; Gregory, Jonathan; Colman, Robert; Andrews, Timothy

2018-02-01

Transient climate response (TCR), transient response at 140 years (T140), and equilibrium climate sensitivity (ECS) indices are intended as benchmarks for comparing the magnitude of climate response projected by climate models. It is generally assumed that TCR or T140 would explain more variability between models than ECS for temperature change over the 21st century, since this timescale is the realm of transient climate change. Here we find that TCR explains more variability across Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 than ECS for global temperature change since preindustrial, for 50 or 100 year global trends up to the present, and for projected change under representative concentration pathways in regions of delayed warming such as the Southern Ocean. However, unexpectedly, we find that ECS correlates higher than TCR for projected change from the present in the global mean and in most regions. This higher correlation does not relate to aerosol forcing, and the physical cause requires further investigation.

Primary epiploic appendagitis: US and CT findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Molla, E.; Ripolles, T.; Martinez, M.J.; Morote, V.; Rosello-Sastre, E.

1998-01-01

A retrospective review is presented of seven cases of epiploic appendagitis, with surgical confirmation in one case. The main clinico-analytical data and the US and CT findings are described, as well as the histopathologic features in the sole case that underwent surgical resection. We also calculated the frequency of this entity in patients undergoing emergency abdominal US on clinical suspicion of diverticulitis. In all seven cases the clinico-analytical evidence was nonspecific (localized acute abdominal pain and slight leukocytosis), mimicking in six cases the clinical presentation of sigmoid diverticulitis and in one case that of acute appendicitis. US imaging findings were characteristic: a hyperechoic mass localized under the point of maximum pain, adjacent to the anterior peritoneal wall and fixed during deep breathing. In none of the cases did color Doppler US show flow. CT findings were also typical and showed a mass with a peripheral hyperattenuated rim surrounding an area of fatty attenuation. Overall 7.1 % of patients investigated to exclude sigmoid diverticulitis finally showed findings of primary epiploic appendagitis. Primary epiploic appendagitis thus shows characteristic US and CT findings that allow its diagnosis and follow-up. This entity is much more frequent than previously reported, especially in patients referred for US to exclude sigmoid diverticulitis. (orig.)

Tenure Issues in REDD+ Pilot Project Sites in Tanzania

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Therese Dokken

2014-02-01

Full Text Available REDD+ has been proposed as a viable option for addressing climate change in the near term, and at relatively low cost. There is a broad consensus that clearly defined tenure rights are important for the implementation and success of REDD+, both to manage forests effectively and to protect local communities’ livelihoods. We use primary data from 23 villages in six REDD+ pilot sites in Tanzania to identify causes of deforestation and forest degradation, and tenure rights issues, at the village level prior to project implementation. Further, interviews with project proponents and examination of project documents yields insights into how the proponents plan to address tenure issues. Most villages perceive their tenure as secure and have exclusion rights, while collective action challenges are prevalent in villages experiencing deforestation and forest degradation. These findings suggest that the main tenure issues are related to internal institutional arrangements. While we find that tenure is high on the agenda for all the project proponents, they are mainly focusing on formalization and securing tenure rights from state to community level. Though we do find this to be a precondition for reducing deforestation and degradation, some of their focus should be shifted to strengthening village institutions and enhancing internal compliance.

Reliance on and Reliability of the Engineer’s Estimate in Heavy Civil Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George Okere

2017-06-01

Full Text Available To the contractor, the engineer’s estimate is the target number to aim for, and the basis for a contractor to evaluate the accuracy of their estimate. To the owner, the engineer’s estimate is the basis for funding, evaluation of bids, and for predicting project costs. As such the engineer’s estimate is the benchmark. This research sought to investigate the reliance on, and the reliability of the engineer’s estimate in heavy civil cost estimate. The research objective was to characterize the engineer’s estimate and allow owners and contractors re-evaluate or affirm their reliance on the engineer’s estimate. A literature review was conducted to understand the reliance on the engineer’s estimate, and secondary data from Washington State Department of Transportation was used to investigate the reliability of the engineer’s estimate. The findings show the need for practitioners to re-evaluate their reliance on the engineer’s estimate. The empirical data showed that, within various contexts, the engineer’s estimate fell outside the expected accuracy range of the low bids or the cost to complete projects. The study recommends direct tracking of costs by project owners while projects are under construction, the use of a second estimate to improve the accuracy of their estimates, and use of the cost estimating practices found in highly reputable construction companies.

Project management for profit a failsafe guide to keeping projects on track and on budget

CERN Document Server

Knight, Joe; Angus, Brad; Case, John

2012-01-01

If your work involves projects, then this book is for you. It will show every company owner and project manager—at businesses large and small—how to run projects differently. You’ll benefit if you’ve ever: • been over budget on a project • exceeded a timeline on a project • worked on a project that completely stalled as you neared the finish line • lost money on a sure-thing project and had no idea why • noticed that scope and feature creep held you back • watched a project take three times as long as planned • felt too embarrassed to perform a review of your successes and failures • wondered whether your project actually made any money By the time you finish the book, you’ll be ready to implement Project Management for Profit in your own company—and be prepared to keep your projects on track and on budget.

SharePoint 2010 for Project Management

CERN Document Server

Sy, Dux

2012-01-01

If you were to analyze your team's performance on a typical project, you'd be surprised how much time is wasted on non-productive tasks. This hands-on guide shows you how to work more efficiently by organizing and managing projects with SharePoint 2010. You'll learn how to build a Project Management Information System (PMIS), customized to your project, that can effectively coordinate communication and collaboration among team members. Written by a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and Microsoft SharePoint MVP with 15 years of IT project management experience, each chapter incl

MR imaging findings of high-voltage electrical burns in the upper extremities: correlation with angiographic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Gyung Kyu; Kang, Ik Won; Hwang, Dae Hyun; Min, Seon Jung; Han, You Mi (Dept. of Radiology, Hallym Univ. College of Medicine, Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)); Suh, Kyung Jin (Dept. of Radiology, Dongguk Univ. College of Medicine, Gyeongju Hospital, Gyeongju (Korea, Republic of)), email: kyungjin.suh@gmail.com; Choi, Min Ho (Dept. of Internal Medicine, Hallym Univ. College of Medicine, Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of))

2011-02-15

Background: A high-voltage electrical burn is often associated with deep muscle injuries. Hidden, undetected deep muscle injuries have a tendency for progressive tissue necrosis, and this can lead to major amputations or sepsis. MRI has excellent soft tissue contrast and it may aid in differentiating the areas of viable deep muscle from the areas of non-viable deep muscle. Purpose: To describe the MR imaging findings of a high-voltage electrical burn in the upper extremity with emphasis on the usefulness of the gadolinium-enhanced MRI and to compare the MR imaging findings with angiography. Material and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the imaging studies of six patients with high-voltage electrical burns who underwent both MRI and angiography at the burn center of our hospital from January 2005 to December 2009. The imaging features were evaluated for the involved locations, the MR signal intensity of the affected muscles, the MR enhancement pattern, the involved arteries and the angiographic findings (classified as normal, sluggish flow, stenosis or occlusion) of the angiography of the upper extremity. We assessed the relationship between the MR imaging findings and the angiographic findings. Results: The signal intensities of affected muscles were isointense or of slightly high signal intensity as compared with the adjacent unaffected skeletal muscle on the T1-weighted MR images. Affected muscles showed heterogenous high signal intensity relative to the adjacent unaffected skeletal muscle on the T2- weighted images. The gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted images showed diffuse inhomogeneous enhancement or peripheral rim enhancement of the affected muscles. The angiographic findings of the arterial injuries showed complete occlusion in three patients, severe stenosis in two patients and sluggish flow in one patient. Of these, the five patients with complete occlusion or severe stenosis on angiography showed non-perfused and non-viable areas of edematous muscle on

Exploring the experiences of female students in introductory project-based engineering courses at two- and four-year institutions

Science.gov (United States)

Swan, Amy K.

2011-12-01

This qualitative study explored the experiential and contextual factors that shaped female students' pathways into introductory project-based engineering classes at two community colleges and one four-year institution, as well as female students' experiences within and outside of these classes. The study was framed by Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) (Lent, Brown & Hackett, 1996) and Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory. Findings were based on analyses of data gathered through multiple methods: observations; individual interviews with female students; focus group interviews with project teams; and document collection. The findings of this study revealed that while positive experiences with math or science were a likely pre-cursor to engineering interest, experiential learning appeared to be a more powerful force in fostering students' engineering interest. Specifically, participants developed an interest in engineering through academic, professional, and extracurricular engineering- and design-related activities that familiarized them with the tasks and skills involved in engineering work and helped them develop a sense of selfefficacy with regard to this work. Interest and self-efficacy, in turn, played a role in students' postsecondary educational decision-making processes, as did contextual factors including families and finances. This study's findings also showed that participants' project teams were a critically important microsystem within participants' ecological environments. Within this sometimes "chilly" microsystem, female students negotiated intrateam processes, which were in some cases affected by gender norms. Intrateam processes that influenced female students' project-based learning experiences included: interpersonal dynamics; leadership; and division of labor. This study also identified several ways in which the lived experiences of participants at the community colleges were different from, or similar to, those of participants

Risk assessment of underpass infrastructure project based on IS0 31000 and ISO 21500 using fishbone diagram and RFMEA (project risk failure mode and effects analysis) method

Science.gov (United States)

Purwanggono, Bambang; Margarette, Anastasia

2017-12-01

Completion time of highway construction is very meaningful for smooth transportation, moreover expected number of ownership motor vehicle will increase each year. Therefore, this study was conducted with to analyze the constraints that contained in an infrastructure development project. This research was conducted on Jatingaleh Underpass Project, Semarang. This research was carried out while the project is running, on the implementation, this project is experiencing delays. This research is done to find out what are the constraints that occur in execution of a road infrastructure project, in particular that causes delays. The method that used to find the root cause is fishbone diagram to obtain a possible means of mitigation. Coupled with the RFMEA method used to determine the critical risks that must be addressed immediately on road infrastructure project. The result of data tabulation in this study indicates that the most possible mitigation tool to make a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) recommendations to disrupt utilities that interfere project implementation. Process of risk assessment has been carried out systematically based on ISO 31000:2009 on risk management and for determination of delayed variables, the requirements of process groups according to ISO 21500:2013 on project management were used.

Success and fail factors in sustainable real estate renovation projects

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Volker, L.

2011-01-01

Sustainability remains an important issue for the construction industry. Yet, sustainable real estate developments are still considered as highly ambitious projects. To find out how and why sustainable renovation projects actually became sustainable we systematically evaluated 21 leading Dutch real

Procuring complex performance:case: public infrastructure projects

OpenAIRE

Leppänen, T. (Tero)

2015-01-01

Abstract This research studies procuring complex performance (PCP) in the case of public infrastructure projects. Focus of the research is on the interface between public clients and private sector contractors. Purpose of this research is to find out what are the main challenges of different project delivery methods according to literature (RQ1) and what are the practical challenges of public procurement (RQ2). As an end re...

Uncertainties in projecting climate-change impacts in marine ecosystems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Payne, Mark; Barange, Manuel; Cheung, William W. L.

2016-01-01

with a projection and building confidence in its robustness. We review how uncertainties in such projections are handled in marine science. We employ an approach developed in climate modelling by breaking uncertainty down into (i) structural (model) uncertainty, (ii) initialization and internal variability......Projections of the impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems are a key prerequisite for the planning of adaptation strategies, yet they are inevitably associated with uncertainty. Identifying, quantifying, and communicating this uncertainty is key to both evaluating the risk associated...... and highlight the opportunities and challenges associated with doing a better job. We find that even within a relatively small field such as marine science, there are substantial differences between subdisciplines in the degree of attention given to each type of uncertainty. We find that initialization...

MR findings of chondromalacia Patella : correlation of the grade and associated lesions with arthroscopic findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Yon Su; Kwon, Soon Tae; Lee, Hwan Do; Kang, Yong Soo; Byun, Ki Yong; Rhee, Kwang Jin

1998-01-01

To assess the MR findings of chondromalacia patella and correlate the grade and associated lesions with the arthroscopic findings. Twenty-five patients with pain in the anterior part of the knee underwent fat-suppressed axial and coronal T2-weighted and T2-weighted imaging, using a 10-cm field of view, and a 5-inch general purpose coil. We retrospectively assessed these findings, and the locations, grades and associated lesions, and correlated these with arthroscopic findings. We evaluated the exact location and grade of chondromalacia patella and associated lesions, as seen on MR images. These and the arthroscopic findings showed close correlation, and in cases involving this condition, MRI is thus a useful indicator of an appropriate surgical method and plan. (author). 18 refs., 5 figs

MR findings of chondromalacia Patella : correlation of the grade and associated lesions with arthroscopic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chung, Yon Su; Kwon, Soon Tae; Lee, Hwan Do; Kang, Yong Soo; Byun, Ki Yong; Rhee, Kwang Jin [Chungnam National Univ., Taejon (Korea, Republic of). Coll. of Medicine

1998-02-01

To assess the MR findings of chondromalacia patella and correlate the grade and associated lesions with the arthroscopic findings. Twenty-five patients with pain in the anterior part of the knee underwent fat-suppressed axial and coronal T2-weighted and T2-weighted imaging, using a 10-cm field of view, and a 5-inch general purpose coil. We retrospectively assessed these findings, and the locations, grades and associated lesions, and correlated these with arthroscopic findings. We evaluated the exact location and grade of chondromalacia patella and associated lesions, as seen on MR images. These and the arthroscopic findings showed close correlation, and in cases involving this condition, MRI is thus a useful indicator of an appropriate surgical method and plan. (author). 18 refs., 5 figs.

Activity modes selection for project crashing through deterministic simulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ashok Mohanty

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: The time-cost trade-off problem addressed by CPM-based analytical approaches, assume unlimited resources and the existence of a continuous time-cost function. However, given the discrete nature of most resources, the activities can often be crashed only stepwise. Activity crashing for discrete time-cost function is also known as the activity modes selection problem in the project management. This problem is known to be NP-hard. Sophisticated optimization techniques such as Dynamic Programming, Integer Programming, Genetic Algorithm, Ant Colony Optimization have been used for finding efficient solution to activity modes selection problem. The paper presents a simple method that can provide efficient solution to activity modes selection problem for project crashing.Design/methodology/approach: Simulation based method implemented on electronic spreadsheet to determine activity modes for project crashing. The method is illustrated with the help of an example.Findings: The paper shows that a simple approach based on simple heuristic and deterministic simulation can give good result comparable to sophisticated optimization techniques.Research limitations/implications: The simulation based crashing method presented in this paper is developed to return satisfactory solutions but not necessarily an optimal solution.Practical implications: The use of spreadsheets for solving the Management Science and Operations Research problems make the techniques more accessible to practitioners. Spreadsheets provide a natural interface for model building, are easy to use in terms of inputs, solutions and report generation, and allow users to perform what-if analysis.Originality/value: The paper presents the application of simulation implemented on a spreadsheet to determine efficient solution to discrete time cost tradeoff problem.

CERN cars drive by the Geneva Motor Show

CERN Multimedia

CERN Bulletin

2011-01-01

One of CERN's new gas-fuelled cars was a special guest at the press days of the Geneva motor show this year. The car enjoyed a prominent position on the Gazmobil stand, right next to the latest Mazeratis and Ferraris. Journalists previewing the motor show could discover CERN's support for green technologies and also find out more about the lab - home to the fastest racetrack on the planet, with protons in the LHC running at 99.9999991% of the speed of light.    

Rock stress measurements. Preparatory stage of the equipment development project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mononen, S.; Hakala, M.; Mikkola, P.

2002-01-01

In recent years the rock stress measurement methods used in Finland have been overcoring and hydraulic fracturing. There have been mainly two companies involved in these measurements, namely Suomen Malmi Oy (Smoy) and SwedPower AB. Smoy has done measurements for mines and for rock engineering projects, whereas SwedPower AB has mainly been involved in nuclear waste disposal investigations and conducted hydraulic fracturing measurements in deep boreholes. Smoy together with its partners started in February 2001 a project named JTM, which was a preliminary stage for a future project, which aims to develop a device most suitable for rock stress measurements in Finland. The partners in the project were HUT Rock Engineering, Posiva Oy, Saanio and Riekkola Oy, Gridpoint Finland Oy and Geopros Oy. Tekes, the National Technology Agency, provided almost half of the project funding. In the management group of the project were Pekka Mikkola (chairman) and Tero Laurila from Smoy, Pekka Saerkkae and Sakari Mononen (full-time researcher) from HUT, Aimo Hautojaervi (Posiva Oy), Erik Johansson (Saanio and Riekkola Oy), Matti Hakala (Gridpoint Finland Oy) and Heikki Haemaelaeinen (Geopros Oy). The aim of the JTM-project was to find out the needs for the development of a device most suitable for rock stress measurements in Finnish mines and rock engineering projects. During the project work was done to find out the range of rock stress measurement devices available, to find out the needs for measurements, and to get acquainted to the measurements done in Scandinavia. Also a report of the most suitable methods for Finnish rock conditions was done based on literature and on interviews of rock stress experts. Based on all the information collected during the project a clear picture of the needs for rock stress measurements in Finland could be formed and a preliminary plan of a future project was done. The aim of the suggested project is to build a device based on hydraulic fracturing

Knowledge collaborative incentive based on inter-organizational cooperative innovation of project-based supply chain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guangdong Wu

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Purpose: Within project-based supply chain inter-organizational cooperative innovation, the achievement of project value-adding reflects by factors such as project-based organizational effect level, the relationship between project cooperative innovation objectives etc. The purpose is to provide a reliable reference for the contractor reasonably allocate the effect level and resources between the knowledge input and innovation stage and realize the knowledge collaboration for project-based supply chain. Design/methodology/approach: Based on the assumption of equal cooperation between project-based organizations, from the view of maximizing project value-adding and the relationship of effect cost between knowledge input and innovation stage in consideration, the knowledge collaborative incentive model for project-based supply chain inter-organizational cooperative innovation was established, and solved through the first-order and second-order approach, then the digital simulation and example analysis were presented. Findings: The results show that, the project management enterprise resorted to adjust project knowledge collaboration incentive intensity and implemented knowledge input-innovation coordinative incentive strategy, not only could achieve project value-adding maximization, but also could realize net earnings Pareto improvement between project management enterprise and contractor. Research limitations/implications: To simplify the knowledge flow among project-based organizations, the knowledge flow in the model hypothesis is presented as knowledge input and knowledge innovation stage, thus it may affect the final analysis results. Originality/value: In construction project practice, knowledge is become more and more important to achieve project value-adding. The research can provide a theoretical guideline for the project-based organizations, such as the contractor, the owner, especially how to utilize their core knowledge.

Using implementation tools to design and conduct quality improvement projects for faster and more effective improvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Ovretveit, John; Mittman, Brian; Rubenstein, Lisa; Ganz, David A

2017-10-09

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to enable improvers to use recent knowledge from implementation science to carry out improvement changes more effectively. It also highlights the importance of converting research findings into practical tools and guidance for improvers so as to make research easier to apply in practice. Design/methodology/approach This study provides an illustration of how a quality improvement (QI) team project can make use of recent findings from implementation research so as to make their improvement changes more effective and sustainable. The guidance is based on a review and synthesis of improvement and implementation methods. Findings The paper illustrates how research can help a quality project team in the phases of problem definition and preparation, in design and planning, in implementation, and in sustaining and spreading a QI. Examples of the use of different ideas and methods are cited where they exist. Research limitations/implications The example is illustrative and there is little limited experimental evidence of whether using all the steps and tools in the one approach proposed do enable a quality team to be more effective. Evidence supporting individual guidance proposals is cited where it exists. Practical implications If the steps proposed and illustrated in the paper were followed, it is possible that quality projects could avoid waste by ensuring the conditions they need for success are in place, and sustain and spread improvement changes more effectively. Social implications More patients could benefit more quickly from more effective implementation of proven interventions. Originality/value The paper is the first to describe how improvement and implementation science can be combined in a tangible way that practical improvers can use in their projects. It shows how QI project teams can take advantage of recent advances in improvement and implementation science to make their work more effective and sustainable.

Stigma Reduction in Adolescents and Young Adults Newly Diagnosed with HIV: Findings from the Project ACCEPT Intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Lemos, Diana; Hosek, Sybil G.

2014-01-01

Abstract This article describes the influence of a group-based behavioral intervention for adolescents and young adults newly diagnosed with HIV (Project ACCEPT) on four dimensions of HIV-related stigma—personalized stigma, disclosure concerns, negative self-image, and concern with public attitudes about people with HIV—as measured by the Berger HIV Stigma Scale. Stigma was addressed in a holistic manner during the intervention by providing HIV/AIDS-related information, facilitating the acquisition of coping skills, and providing contact with other youth living with HIV in order to improve social support. Fifty youth (28 male, 22 female; mean age=19.24 years) newly diagnosed with HIV from four geographically diverse clinics participated in a one-group pretest-posttest design study whereby they received the intervention over a 12-week period, and completed assessments at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-month follow-up. Results from the combined sample (males and females) revealed overall reductions in stigma in three dimensions: personalized stigma, disclosure concerns, and negative self-image, although only the combined-sample effects for negative self-image were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Gender-specific analyses revealed that the intervention reduced stigma for males across all four dimensions of stigma, with all effects being maintained to some degree at the 3-month follow-up. Only personalized stigma demonstrated a decrease for females, although this effect was not maintained at the 3-month follow-up; while the other three types of stigma increased at post-intervention and 3-month follow-up. Findings are discussed in terms of gender specific outcomes and the need for a different type of intervention to reduce stigma for young women. PMID:25216106

Stigma reduction in adolescents and young adults newly diagnosed with HIV: findings from the Project ACCEPT intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Harper, Gary W; Lemos, Diana; Hosek, Sybil G

2014-10-01

This article describes the influence of a group-based behavioral intervention for adolescents and young adults newly diagnosed with HIV (Project ACCEPT) on four dimensions of HIV-related stigma-personalized stigma, disclosure concerns, negative self-image, and concern with public attitudes about people with HIV-as measured by the Berger HIV Stigma Scale. Stigma was addressed in a holistic manner during the intervention by providing HIV/AIDS-related information, facilitating the acquisition of coping skills, and providing contact with other youth living with HIV in order to improve social support. Fifty youth (28 male, 22 female; mean age=19.24 years) newly diagnosed with HIV from four geographically diverse clinics participated in a one-group pretest-posttest design study whereby they received the intervention over a 12-week period, and completed assessments at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-month follow-up. Results from the combined sample (males and females) revealed overall reductions in stigma in three dimensions: personalized stigma, disclosure concerns, and negative self-image, although only the combined-sample effects for negative self-image were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Gender-specific analyses revealed that the intervention reduced stigma for males across all four dimensions of stigma, with all effects being maintained to some degree at the 3-month follow-up. Only personalized stigma demonstrated a decrease for females, although this effect was not maintained at the 3-month follow-up; while the other three types of stigma increased at post-intervention and 3-month follow-up. Findings are discussed in terms of gender specific outcomes and the need for a different type of intervention to reduce stigma for young women.

Dream Team--The Case of an Undergraduate Surgical Talent Development Project

Science.gov (United States)

Jensen, Rune Dall; Ljungmann, Ken; Christensen, Mette Krogh; Møldrup, Ulla; Grøndal, Anne Krogh; Mogensen, Mads Filtenborg; Seyer-Hansen, Mikkel

2016-01-01

To be successful, a surgeon must master a variety of skills. To meet the high demand for surgical expertise, an extracurricular undergraduate project was launched. The extracurricular project consists of hands-on laparoscopic training and a mentorship programme. The project aims to find the best surgical talents among fourth-year medical students.…

PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSIDERED IN A 2014 PERSPECTIVE

OpenAIRE

GRAPA ADELINA-ROXANA; SOARE ALICE-MAGDALENA

2014-01-01

Project Management has come of age, yet multiple surveys and reports confirm the fact that the majority of projects are challenged. Given the more demanding and strict financial constraints associated with the current fiscal climate, project management is regarded as a tool that can deliver more with less. The literature on Project Management shows that, in spite of advancement in Project Management processes, tools and systems, project success has not significantly improved. T...

Family meals and adolescents: what have we learned from Project EAT (Eating Among Teens)?

Science.gov (United States)

Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne; Larson, Nicole I; Fulkerson, Jayne A; Eisenberg, Marla E; Story, Mary

2010-07-01

The purpose of the present paper is to provide an integrated overview of the research methodology and key findings from a decade of research on family meals as part of Project EAT (Eating Among Teens), a large, population-based study of adolescents. Focus groups conducted with 141 middle-school and high-school adolescents suggested the importance of family meals in influencing adolescents' food choices. These findings led to the inclusion of questions on family meals in the Project EAT-I survey, completed by 4746 middle-school and high-school students, and in the Project EAT-II longitudinal survey, completed by 2516 of the original participants five years later. A subset of 902 parents also participated in telephone interviews as part of Project EAT-I. Findings indicate that many adolescents and parents view family meals in a positive light, but there is great diversity in the context and frequency of family meal patterns in the homes of adolescents. Findings further suggest that family meals may have benefits in terms of dietary intake, disordered eating behaviours, substance use and psychosocial health. Findings from Project EAT, in conjunction with other research studies on family meals, suggest the importance of working with families to increase the frequency and improve the quality of family meals. Further research is needed in order to elucidate the pathways that underpin the relationships between family meals and health outcomes. Suggestions for a future research agenda based on what was learned from Project EAT are provided.

Structural Equation Model for Evaluating Factors Affecting Quality of Social Infrastructure Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shahid Hussain

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The quality of the constructed social infrastructure project has been considered a necessary measure for the sustainability of projects. Studies on factors affecting project quality have used various techniques and methods to explain the relationships between particular variables. Unexpectedly, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM has acquired very little concern in factors affecting project quality studies. To address this limitation in the body of knowledge, the objective of this study was to apply the SEM approach and build a model that explained and identified the critical factors affecting quality in social infrastructure projects. The authors developed a quantitative approach using smart-PLS version 3.2.7. This study shed light on the views of different experts based on their experience in public construction projects in Pakistan. Particularly, the authors aimed to find out the relationships between construction, stakeholders, materials, design, and external factors, and how these relate to project quality. The findings of this study revealed that the R2 value of the model was scored at 0.749, which meant that the five exogenous latent constructs collectively explained 74.9% of the variance in project quality. The Goodness-of-Fit of the model was 0.458. The construction related factor was the most important out of the five constructs. This study determined that better planning and monitoring and evaluation should be developed to better address and control the quality defects by decision-makers, project managers as well as contractors. These findings might support practitioners and decision makers to focus on quality related problems that might occur in their current or future projects.

Mismanagement Reasons of the Projects Execution Phase

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hatem Khaleefah Al-Agele

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The execution phase of the project is most dangerous and the most drain on the resources during project life cycle, therefore, its need to monitor and control by specialists to exceeded obstructions and achieve the project goals. The study aims to detect the actual reasons behind mismanagement of the execution phase. The study begins with theoretical part, where it deals with the concepts of project, project selection, project management, and project processes. Field part consists of three techniques: 1- brainstorming, 2- open interviews with experts and 3- designed questionnaire (with 49 reason. These reasons result from brainstorming and interviewing with experts., in order to find the real reasons behind mismanagement of the execution phase. The most important reasons which are negatively impact on management of the execution phase that proven by the study were (Inability of company to meet project requirements because it's specialized and / or large project, Multiple sources of decision and overlap in powers, Inadequate planning, Inaccurate estimation of cost, Delayed cash flows by owners, Poor performance of project manager, inefficient decision making process, and the Negative impact of people in the project area. Finally, submitting a set of recommendations which will contribute to overcome the obstructions of successful management of the execution phase.

Mind the Gap: Lessons from the UK to Brazil about the Roles of TTOs throughout Collaborative R&D Projects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elisa Thomas

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The literature about collaboration for innovation has reported fundamental activities performed by intermediaries. In this paper, universities’ technology transfer offices (TTOs are placed as intermediaries between academic research and the industry. Our study focuses on collaborative research and development (R&D projects between universities and industry in order to understand the roles of TTOs throughout the whole duration of the project. The main aim of this paper is to identify the roles of TTOs throughout collaborative R&D projects and suggest some lessons for Brazilian TTOs based on the experience of the United Kingdom. Through qualitative case studies in the United Kingdom and Brazil, the analyses show that both TTOs performed critical activities for collaborative R&D projects. Similar activities at both TTOs were the management of partnerships in terms of negotiating contracts and the protection and licensing of intellectual property. Findings also show that the search for partners in the beginning of the project, the pacifier role of the TTO to help mutual understanding, and the active commercialisation of academic research to external partners happened only in the UK case, which may generate implications for TTOs in Brazil.

Implementation of municipal health promoting projects in primary schools: teachers perspective

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nordin, Lone Lindegard

2013-01-01

. The project is funded by the Danish Ministry of Science, University of Aarhus and Silkeborg municipality, and involves 5 primary schools, 23 teachers and 233 pupils from 7th to 9 class. The project is positioned within the critical approach to school health education and health promotion, developed......Implementation of municipally health promoting projects' in primary schools: teachers perspective Research question This paper discusses the findings from a qualitative research, that aimed to investigate how teachers in primary schools implemented municipal health promoting projects focusing...... that there is a “gap” between policy and practice according to aim, content and methods, and that teachers practice can be explained as coping mechanism. The key findings include: • Teachers practice is closer to traditional health education than critical health education. • Teachers priorities the mandatory teaching...

Raspberry Pi projects for dummies

CERN Document Server

Cook, Mike; Craft, Brock

2015-01-01

Join the Raspberry revolution with these fun and easy Pi projects The Raspberry Pi has opened up a whole new world of innovation for everyone from hardware hackers and programmers to students, hobbyists, engineers, and beyond. Featuring a variety of hands-on projects, this easy-to-understand guide walks you through every step of the design process and will have you creating like a Raspberry Pi pro in no time. You'll learn how to prepare your workspace, assemble the necessary tools, work with test equipment, and find your way around the Raspberry Pi before moving on to a series of fun, livel

Stakeholder Salience in ERP Projects

OpenAIRE

Salhotra, Eashan

2014-01-01

The aim of this study is to examine stakeholder involvement in an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System project that involves implementation and improvement of the implemented system. The study targets stakeholders, their classification, and their degree of importance during different phases of an ERP project life cycle, i.e. planning, implementation, stabilisation and improvement. The study shows that stakeholder involvement and their salience vary along the ERP project life cycle a...

Environmental setting for biological variability at PTEPBN project of West Kalimantan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suwadji, E.; Endrawanto

1995-01-01

Biological variability was needed in the arrangement of environmental evaluation study on term of environmental impact assessment. The activity was carried out at PTEPBN project to find out and to predict the environmental setting of outgoing and ongoing project as well as the project operational after post construction. Methods to find out the environmental setting on biological variability were proposed. Based on the observation data on its terrestrial and aquatic flora and fauna, it can be concluded that terrestrial flora was found at fair to good value, terrestrial fauna at fair to good whereas aquatic flora and fauna at good. (author). 8 refs, 7 tabs, 1 fig

Preconditioned alternating projection algorithms for maximum a posteriori ECT reconstruction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krol, Andrzej; Li, Si; Shen, Lixin; Xu, Yuesheng

2012-01-01

We propose a preconditioned alternating projection algorithm (PAPA) for solving the maximum a posteriori (MAP) emission computed tomography (ECT) reconstruction problem. Specifically, we formulate the reconstruction problem as a constrained convex optimization problem with the total variation (TV) regularization. We then characterize the solution of the constrained convex optimization problem and show that it satisfies a system of fixed-point equations defined in terms of two proximity operators raised from the convex functions that define the TV-norm and the constraint involved in the problem. The characterization (of the solution) via the proximity operators that define two projection operators naturally leads to an alternating projection algorithm for finding the solution. For efficient numerical computation, we introduce to the alternating projection algorithm a preconditioning matrix (the EM-preconditioner) for the dense system matrix involved in the optimization problem. We prove theoretically convergence of the PAPA. In numerical experiments, performance of our algorithms, with an appropriately selected preconditioning matrix, is compared with performance of the conventional MAP expectation-maximization (MAP-EM) algorithm with TV regularizer (EM-TV) and that of the recently developed nested EM-TV algorithm for ECT reconstruction. Based on the numerical experiments performed in this work, we observe that the alternating projection algorithm with the EM-preconditioner outperforms significantly the EM-TV in all aspects including the convergence speed, the noise in the reconstructed images and the image quality. It also outperforms the nested EM-TV in the convergence speed while providing comparable image quality. (paper)

Can tuberculosis case finding among health-care seeking adults be improved?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rudolf, F; Haraldsdottir, Thorny Linda; Mendes, M S

2014-01-01

SETTING: The Bandim Health Project study area in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau. OBJECTIVE: To assess the potential usefulness of predictors (elsewhere applied) and clinical scores (TBscore and TBscore II) based on signs and symptoms typical of tuberculosis (TB) in case finding. DESIGN: Observational...

The Human Genome Diversity Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cavalli-Sforza, L. [Stanford Univ., CA (United States)

1994-12-31

The Human Genome Diversity Project (HGD Project) is an international anthropology project that seeks to study the genetic richness of the entire human species. This kind of genetic information can add a unique thread to the tapestry knowledge of humanity. Culture, environment, history, and other factors are often more important, but humanity`s genetic heritage, when analyzed with recent technology, brings another type of evidence for understanding species` past and present. The Project will deepen the understanding of this genetic richness and show both humanity`s diversity and its deep and underlying unity. The HGD Project is still largely in its planning stages, seeking the best ways to reach its goals. The continuing discussions of the Project, throughout the world, should improve the plans for the Project and their implementation. The Project is as global as humanity itself; its implementation will require the kinds of partnerships among different nations and cultures that make the involvement of UNESCO and other international organizations particularly appropriate. The author will briefly discuss the Project`s history, describe the Project, set out the core principles of the Project, and demonstrate how the Project will help combat the scourge of racism.

Managing projects a team-based approach

CERN Document Server

Brown, Karen A

2010-01-01

Students today are likely to be assigned to project teams or to be project managers almost immediately in their first job. Managing Projects: A Team-Based Approach was written for a wide range of stakeholders, including project managers, project team members, support personnel, functional mangers who provide resources for projects, project customers (and customer representatives), project sponsors, project subcontractors, and anyone who plays a role in the project delivery process. The need for project management is on the rise as product life cycles compress, demand for IT systems increases, and business takes on an increasingly global character. This book adds to the project management knowledge base in a way that fills an unmet need—it shows how teams can apply many of the standard project management tools, as well as several tools that are relatively new to the field. Managing Projects: A Team-Based Approach offers the academic rigor found in most textbooks along with the practical attributes often foun...

Kryolize - KT Fund Project

CERN Multimedia

CERN. Geneva

2016-01-01

Safety standards and best practices do exist in the field of cryogenics but, as in most domains, they are generally inserted in a few ‘envelope’ cases commonly used in the industry, whereas applicability to the particularity of research facilities are not fully tailored to its needs. The main objective in these cases is to find a harmonised approach, based on lessons learnt and scientific knowledge. The Kryolize Project was created in order to produce tools with a harmonized approach to size pressure relief devices for cryogenic applications. In view of disseminating such tools to other institutes and industrial partners, the project was submitted to CERN’s KT Fund committee. This talk will focus on the process and deliverables of the KT-Funded Kryolize project, including the method on how to cope with the sizing of pressure relief devices and the R&D collaboration agreement between CERN and Karlsruhe Institute of Technology for an experimental programme.

Brands matter: Major findings from the Alcohol Brand Research Among Underage Drinkers (ABRAND) project.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Sarah P; Siegel, Michael B; DeJong, William; Ross, Craig S; Naimi, Timothy; Albers, Alison; Skeer, Margie; Rosenbloom, David L; Jernigan, David H

Alcohol research focused on underage drinkers has not comprehensively assessed the landscape of brand-level drinking behaviors among youth. This information is needed to profile youth alcohol use accurately, explore its antecedents, and develop appropriate interventions. We collected national data on the alcohol brand-level consumption of underage drinkers in the United States and then examined the association between those preferences and several factors including youth exposure to brand-specific alcohol advertising, corporate sponsorships, popular music lyrics, and social networking sites, and alcohol pricing. This paper summarizes our findings, plus the results of other published studies on alcohol branding and youth drinking. Our findings revealed several interesting facts regarding youth drinking. For example, we found that: 1) youth are not drinking the cheapest alcohol brands; 2) youth brand preferences differ from those of adult drinkers; 3) underage drinkers are not opportunistic in their alcohol consumption, but instead consume a very specific set of brands; 4) the brands that youth are heavily exposed to in magazines and television advertising correspond to the brands they most often report consuming; and 5) youth consume more of the alcohol brands to whose advertising they are most heavily exposed. The findings presented here suggests that brand-level alcohol research will provide important insight into youth drinking behaviors, the factors that contribute to youth alcohol consumption, and potential avenues for effective public health surveillance and programming.

Census of Institutional Repositories in the United States: MIRACLE Project Research Findings. CLIR Publication No. 140

Science.gov (United States)

Markey, Karen; Rieh, Soo Young; St. Jean, Beth; Kim, Jihyun; Yakel, Elizabeth

2007-01-01

In this report, the authors describe results of a nationwide census of institutional repositories in U.S. academic institutions. The census is one of several activities of the MIRACLE Project, an Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)-funded research program based at the University of Michigan. The acronym MIRACLE means "Making…

Space Projects: Improvements Needed in Selecting Future Projects for Private Financing

Science.gov (United States)

1990-01-01

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and NASA jointly selected seven projects for commercialization to reduce NASA's fiscal year 1990 budget request and to help achieve the goal of increasing private sector involvement in space. However, the efforts to privately finance these seven projects did not increase the commercial sector's involvement in space to the extent desired. The General Accounting Office (GAO) determined that the projects selected were not a fair test of the potential of increasing commercial investment in space at an acceptable cost to the government, primarily because the projects were not properly screened. That is, neither their suitability for commercialization nor the economic consequences of seeking private financing for them were adequately evaluated before selection. Evaluations and market tests done after selection showed that most of the projects were not viable candidates for private financing. GAO concluded that projects should not be removed from NASA's budget for commercial development until after careful screening has been done to determine whether adequate commercial demand exists, development risks are commercially acceptable and private financing is found or judged to be highly likely, and the cost effectiveness of such a decision is acceptable. Premature removal of projects from NASA's budget ultimately can cause project delays and increased costs when unsuccessful commercialization candidates must be returned to the budget. NASA also needs to ensure appropriate comparisons of government and private financing options for future commercialization projects.

Clinical application and validation of an iterative forward projection matching algorithm for permanent brachytherapy seed localization from conebeam-CT x-ray projections

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pokhrel, Damodar; Murphy, Martin J.; Todor, Dorin A.; Weiss, Elisabeth; Williamson, Jeffrey F. [Department of Radiation Oncology, School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia 23298 (United States)

2010-09-15

Purpose: To experimentally validate a new algorithm for reconstructing the 3D positions of implanted brachytherapy seeds from postoperatively acquired 2D conebeam-CT (CBCT) projection images. Methods: The iterative forward projection matching (IFPM) algorithm finds the 3D seed geometry that minimizes the sum of the squared intensity differences between computed projections of an initial estimate of the seed configuration and radiographic projections of the implant. In-house machined phantoms, containing arrays of 12 and 72 seeds, respectively, are used to validate this method. Also, four {sup 103}Pd postimplant patients are scanned using an ACUITY digital simulator. Three to ten x-ray images are selected from the CBCT projection set and processed to create binary seed-only images. To quantify IFPM accuracy, the reconstructed seed positions are forward projected and overlaid on the measured seed images to find the nearest-neighbor distance between measured and computed seed positions for each image pair. Also, the estimated 3D seed coordinates are compared to known seed positions in the phantom and clinically obtained VariSeed planning coordinates for the patient data. Results: For the phantom study, seed localization error is (0.58{+-}0.33) mm. For all four patient cases, the mean registration error is better than 1 mm while compared against the measured seed projections. IFPM converges in 20-28 iterations, with a computation time of about 1.9-2.8 min/iteration on a 1 GHz processor. Conclusions: The IFPM algorithm avoids the need to match corresponding seeds in each projection as required by standard back-projection methods. The authors' results demonstrate {approx}1 mm accuracy in reconstructing the 3D positions of brachytherapy seeds from the measured 2D projections. This algorithm also successfully localizes overlapping clustered and highly migrated seeds in the implant.

Clinical application and validation of an iterative forward projection matching algorithm for permanent brachytherapy seed localization from conebeam-CT x-ray projections.

Science.gov (United States)

Pokhrel, Damodar; Murphy, Martin J; Todor, Dorin A; Weiss, Elisabeth; Williamson, Jeffrey F

2010-09-01

To experimentally validate a new algorithm for reconstructing the 3D positions of implanted brachytherapy seeds from postoperatively acquired 2D conebeam-CT (CBCT) projection images. The iterative forward projection matching (IFPM) algorithm finds the 3D seed geometry that minimizes the sum of the squared intensity differences between computed projections of an initial estimate of the seed configuration and radiographic projections of the implant. In-house machined phantoms, containing arrays of 12 and 72 seeds, respectively, are used to validate this method. Also, four 103Pd postimplant patients are scanned using an ACUITY digital simulator. Three to ten x-ray images are selected from the CBCT projection set and processed to create binary seed-only images. To quantify IFPM accuracy, the reconstructed seed positions are forward projected and overlaid on the measured seed images to find the nearest-neighbor distance between measured and computed seed positions for each image pair. Also, the estimated 3D seed coordinates are compared to known seed positions in the phantom and clinically obtained VariSeed planning coordinates for the patient data. For the phantom study, seed localization error is (0.58 +/- 0.33) mm. For all four patient cases, the mean registration error is better than 1 mm while compared against the measured seed projections. IFPM converges in 20-28 iterations, with a computation time of about 1.9-2.8 min/ iteration on a 1 GHz processor. The IFPM algorithm avoids the need to match corresponding seeds in each projection as required by standard back-projection methods. The authors' results demonstrate approximately 1 mm accuracy in reconstructing the 3D positions of brachytherapy seeds from the measured 2D projections. This algorithm also successfully localizes overlapping clustered and highly migrated seeds in the implant.

Comprehensive assessment of the status scientific and technical projects using Technology Project Readiness Level

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. N. Petrov

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The balanced methodology for assessing the Technology Project Readiness Level for commercialization (TPRL is proposed. TPRL allows to determine the dynamics and balance of development projects that use the standardized approaches used in assessing the readiness of the technology. Validation of the methodology undertaken for the projects of Federal target programs “Research and development on priority directions of development of scientific-technological complex of Russia for 2007–2013” and “Research and development on priority directions of development of scientific-technological complex of Russia for 2014–2020”. The obtained results showed the possibility of application of the methodology for the evaluation of projects, improving efficiency of expert activity in the evaluation of projects, monitoring the status of individual project and group of projects (portfolio. The application of the methodology allowed us to improve the management of individual project and portfolio of projects.Methodology TPRL will allow the implementers, industry partners, investors, and innovative industrial companies to improve the efficiency of its activities.

New features of the maximal abelian projection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bornyakov, V.G.; Polikarpov, M.I.; Syritsyn, S.N.; Schierholz, G.; Suzuki, T.

2005-12-01

After fixing the Maximal Abelian gauge in SU(2) lattice gauge theory we decompose the nonabelian gauge field into the so called monopole field and the modified nonabelian field with monopoles removed. We then calculate respective static potentials and find that the potential due to the modified nonabelian field is nonconfining while, as is well known, the monopole field potential is linear. Furthermore, we show that the sum of these potentials approximates the nonabelian static potential with 5% or higher precision at all distances considered. We conclude that at large distances the monopole field potential describes the classical energy of the hadronic string while the modified nonabelian field potential describes the string fluctuations. Similar decomposition was observed to work for the adjoint static potential. A check was also made of the center projection in the direct center gauge. Two static potentials, determined by projected Z 2 and by modified nonabelian field without Z 2 component were calculated. It was found that their sum is a substantially worse approximation of the SU(2) static potential than that found in the monopole case. It is further demonstrated that similar decomposition can be made for the flux tube action/energy density. (orig.)

Measuring Carbon Footprint of Flexible Pavement Construction Project in Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Utomo Dwi Hatmoko Jati

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Road infrastructure in Indonesia is mainly dominated by flexible pavement type. Its construction process, however, has raised concerns in terms of its environment impacts. This study aims to track and measure the carbon footprint of flexible pavement. The objectives are to map the construction process in relation to greenhouse gas (GHG emissions, to quantify them in terms of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e as generated by the process of production and transportation of raw materials, and the operation of plant off-site and on-site project. Data collection was done by having site observations and interviews with project stakeholders. The results show a total emissions of 70.888 tonnes CO2e, consisting of 34.248 tonnes CO2e (48.31% off-site activities and 36.640 tonnes CO2e (51.687% on-site activities. The two highest CO2e emissions were generated by the use of plant for asphalt concrete laying activities accounted 34.827 tonnes CO2e (49.130%, and material transportation accounted 24.921 (35.155%. These findings provide a new perspective of the carbon footprint in flexible pavement and suggest the urgent need for the use of more efficient and environmentally friendly plant in construction process as it shows the most significant contribution on the CO2e. This study provides valuable understanding on the environmental impact of typical flexible pavement projects in Indonesia, and further can be used for developing green road framework.

Measuring Carbon Footprint of Flexible Pavement Construction Project in Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Hatmoko, Jati Utomo Dwi; Hidayat, Arif; Setiawati, Apsari; Prasetyo, Stefanus Catur Adi

2018-02-01

Road infrastructure in Indonesia is mainly dominated by flexible pavement type. Its construction process, however, has raised concerns in terms of its environment impacts. This study aims to track and measure the carbon footprint of flexible pavement. The objectives are to map the construction process in relation to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, to quantify them in terms of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) as generated by the process of production and transportation of raw materials, and the operation of plant off-site and on-site project. Data collection was done by having site observations and interviews with project stakeholders. The results show a total emissions of 70.888 tonnes CO2e, consisting of 34.248 tonnes CO2e (48.31%) off-site activities and 36.640 tonnes CO2e (51.687%) on-site activities. The two highest CO2e emissions were generated by the use of plant for asphalt concrete laying activities accounted 34.827 tonnes CO2e (49.130%), and material transportation accounted 24.921 (35.155%). These findings provide a new perspective of the carbon footprint in flexible pavement and suggest the urgent need for the use of more efficient and environmentally friendly plant in construction process as it shows the most significant contribution on the CO2e. This study provides valuable understanding on the environmental impact of typical flexible pavement projects in Indonesia, and further can be used for developing green road framework.

DEVELOPMENT MODEL OF PATISSERIE PROJECT-BASED LEARNING

OpenAIRE

Ana Ana; Lutfhiyah Nurlaela

2013-01-01

The study aims to find a model of patisserie project-based learning with production approach that can improve effectiveness of patisserie learning. Delphi Technique, Cohen's Kappa and percentages of agreements were used to assess model of patisserie project based learning. Data collection techniques employed in the study were questionnaire, check list worksheet, observation, and interview sheets. Subjects were 13 lectures of expertise food and nutrition and 91 students of Food and Nutrition ...

A desk evaluation review of project RAF/9/005 radiation protection development. Project desk evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The Agency has been assisting member nations through a number of national TC projects in radiation protection and related areas over the years. In addition, a regional project RAF/9/005 - Radiation Protection Development (which is under this review) was approved in 1988, with the aim of assessing existing radiation protection practices in the African Member States in relation to the Agency's new basic safety standards for radiation protection, and to advise Governments on improvements. The project was subsequently extended up to 1994 as an umbrella project to assist all African Member States in the development of appropriate radiation protection services; to co-ordinate the implementation of the relevant national TC projects; and to develop co-operation amongst groups of Member States on a regional and sub-regional basis. Particular emphasis was to be given to manpower development through workshops, seminars and training courses in radiation protection and safety. In parallel thereto, the Agency's Radiation Protection Advisory Teams (RAPATs) visited nineteen African Member States during the period 1986 through 1993, to review and assess their radiation protection activities, identify priorities, and design long-term radiation protection programmes. RAPAT findings and recommendations were considered in drawing up programmes for implementation under project RAF/9/005

The One-Page Project Manager Comunicate and Manage Any Project With a Single Sheet of Paper

CERN Document Server

Campbell, Clark A

2007-01-01

The One-Page Project Manager shows you how to boil down any project into a simple, one-page document that can be used to communicate all essential details to upper management, other departments, suppliers, and audiences. This practical guide will save time and effort, helping you identify the vital parts of a project and communicate those parts and duties to other team members.

Dissemination of the Project's Findings. National Seminar (14th, Zagreb, Yugoslavia, July 5-7, 1989). The CDCC's Project No. 8: "Innovation in Primary Education."

Science.gov (United States)

Galton, Maurice

A 3-day conference was convened in Zagreb, Yugoslavia for the purpose of disseminating results of the Council of Europe's Council for Cultural Cooperation's (CDCC) Project 8, Innovation in Primary Education (IPE). Changes in theoretical approaches to and organizational practices of primary education in Yugoslavia were discussed. A total of 61…

MRI findings of Guillain-Barre syndrome

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Won Kyu; Lee, Hwa Jin; Byun, Woo Mok [Yeungnam Univ. College of Medicine, Taegu (Korea, Republic of)

1997-04-01

To evaluate MRI findings of Guillain-Barre syndrome. In six patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome diagnosed by clinical, cerebrospinal fluid and electrophysiologic findings, a retrospective review of MR findings was conducted. Follow-up MRI scans were carried out in two patients showing minimal clinical improvement. Marked or moderate enhancement of thickened nerve roots was seen in all cases on gadopentetate dimeglumine enhanced axial T1-weighted images. Two patterns were seen; one was even enhancement of both anterior and posterior nerve roots (n=1) and the other was enhancement of anterior nerve roots only (n=5). Enhancement and thickness of nerve roots was seen to have slightly decreased on MRI follow-up at 32 and 50 days; clinical and electrophysiologic examination showed minimal improvement. Although MRI findings of nerve root enhancement are nonspecific and can be seen in neoplastic and other inflammatory diseases, the enhancement of thickened anterior nerve roots within the cal sac suggests Guillain-Barre syndrome.

MRI findings of Guillain-Barre syndrome

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Won Kyu; Lee, Hwa Jin; Byun, Woo Mok

1997-01-01

To evaluate MRI findings of Guillain-Barre syndrome. In six patients with Guillain-Barre syndrome diagnosed by clinical, cerebrospinal fluid and electrophysiologic findings, a retrospective review of MR findings was conducted. Follow-up MRI scans were carried out in two patients showing minimal clinical improvement. Marked or moderate enhancement of thickened nerve roots was seen in all cases on gadopentetate dimeglumine enhanced axial T1-weighted images. Two patterns were seen; one was even enhancement of both anterior and posterior nerve roots (n=1) and the other was enhancement of anterior nerve roots only (n=5). Enhancement and thickness of nerve roots was seen to have slightly decreased on MRI follow-up at 32 and 50 days; clinical and electrophysiologic examination showed minimal improvement. Although MRI findings of nerve root enhancement are nonspecific and can be seen in neoplastic and other inflammatory diseases, the enhancement of thickened anterior nerve roots within the cal sac suggests Guillain-Barre syndrome

Managing complex industrial change through projects

OpenAIRE

Perotti , Clément; Minel , Stéphanie; Benoit , Roussel; Jean , Renaud

2010-01-01

International audience; This paper proposes some elements showing that project is an appropriate way to manage organizational change, and that an individual change occurs during these phases. We suggest that project team should manage individual change in the framework of project for three main reasons. First, being at the crossroad of strategic and operational levels, project team is in the right position in organisation to "translate" organizational change to individuals, and vice-versa. Se...

Diversity of layer 5 projection neurons in the mouse motor cortex

Science.gov (United States)

Oswald, Manfred J.; Tantirigama, Malinda L. S.; Sonntag, Ivo; Hughes, Stephanie M.; Empson, Ruth M.

2013-01-01

In the primary motor cortex (M1), layer 5 projection neurons signal directly to distant motor structures to drive movement. Despite their pivotal position and acknowledged diversity these neurons are traditionally separated into broad commissural and corticofugal types, and until now no attempt has been made at resolving the basis for their diversity. We therefore probed the electrophysiological and morphological properties of retrogradely labeled M1 corticospinal (CSp), corticothalamic (CTh), and commissural projecting corticostriatal (CStr) and corticocortical (CC) neurons. An unsupervised cluster analysis established at least four phenotypes with additional differences between lumbar and cervical projecting CSp neurons. Distinguishing parameters included the action potential (AP) waveform, firing behavior, the hyperpolarisation-activated sag potential, sublayer position, and soma and dendrite size. CTh neurons differed from CSp neurons in showing spike frequency acceleration and a greater sag potential. CStr neurons had the lowest AP amplitude and maximum rise rate of all neurons. Temperature influenced spike train behavior in corticofugal neurons. At 26°C CTh neurons fired bursts of APs more often than CSp neurons, but at 36°C both groups fired regular APs. Our findings provide reliable phenotypic fingerprints to identify distinct M1 projection neuron classes as a tool to understand their unique contributions to motor function. PMID:24137110

Diversity of Layer 5 Projection Neurons in the Mouse Motor Cortex

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manfred J Oswald

2013-10-01

Full Text Available In the primary motor cortex (M1, layer 5 projection neurons signal directly to distant motor structures to drive movement. Despite their pivotal position and acknowledged diversity these neurons are traditionally separated into broad commissural and corticofugal types, and until now no attempt has been made at resolving the basis for their diversity. We therefore probed the electrophysiological and morphological properties of retrogradely labelled M1 corticospinal (CSp, corticothalamic (CTh, and commissural projecting corticostriatal (CStr and corticocortical (CC neurons. An unsupervised cluster analysis established at least four phenotypes with additional differences between lumbar and cervical projecting CSp neurons. Distinguishing parameters included the action potential (AP waveform, firing behaviour, the hyperpolarisation-activated sag potential, sublayer position, and soma and dendrite size. CTh neurons differed from CSp neurons in showing spike frequency acceleration and a greater sag potential. CStr neurons had the lowest AP amplitude and maximum rise rate of all neurons. Temperature influenced spike train behaviour in corticofugal neurons. At 26 ºC CTh neurons fired bursts of APs more often than CSp neurons, but at 36 ºC both groups fired regular APs. Our findings provide reliable phenotypic fingerprints to identify distinct M1 projection neuron classes as a tool to understand their unique contributions to motor function.

The Projected Utilization of Initial Public Offer (IPO Proceeds in Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bamidele M. Ilo

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Most young private firms use the Initial Public Offer (IPO method to raise additional external equity fund to finance their growth and later create a secondary market for stocks. This study analysed the projected utilisation of IPO cash proceeds by Nigerian firms with a view to providing investors with information on the most critical areas that firms intend to channel those funds. The study used the cross-sectional data collected by Ilo (2012 on firms that issued IPOs from 1999 to 2009 on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics such as, the means and percentage and analysis of variance. The results show that the average of IPO price is N19.09 per share. About 51% of the net proceeds is projected to be expended on business growth/ expansion and facility acquisition while 20 % is reserved for working capital needs to support the expansion. The initial investors are to enjoy a promoters’ cash-out of about 24% of the net cash raised. These projections are laudable investors should interpret the findings with caution since actual deployment of such funds may not necessarily conform with the projections except they are able to ensure adequate monitoring of the managers.

Solving a mixed-integer linear programming model for a multi-skilled project scheduling problem by simulated annealing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H Kazemipoor

2012-04-01

Full Text Available A multi-skilled project scheduling problem (MSPSP has been generally presented to schedule a project with staff members as resources. Each activity in project network requires different skills and also staff members have different skills, too. This causes the MSPSP becomes a special type of a multi-mode resource-constrained project scheduling problem (MM-RCPSP with a huge number of modes. Given the importance of this issue, in this paper, a mixed integer linear programming for the MSPSP is presented. Due to the complexity of the problem, a meta-heuristic algorithm is proposed in order to find near optimal solutions. To validate performance of the algorithm, results are compared against exact solutions solved by the LINGO solver. The results are promising and show that optimal or near-optimal solutions are derived for small instances and good solutions for larger instances in reasonable time.

Latest data shows long-term security of uranium supply

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2010-01-01

capacity projections developed in this edition, by the year 2035, world nuclear capacity is projected to grow to between 500 and 785 GWe net. Accordingly, world reactor- related uranium requirements are also projected to rise. As observed in the past, increased investment in exploration has resulted in important discoveries and the identification of new resources. It is foreseen that, if market conditions improve further, additional exploration will be stimulated leading to the identification of additional resources of economic interest. Even in the high-growth scenario to 2035, less than half of the identified resources described in this edition would be consumed. The challenge remains to develop mines in a timely and environmentally sustainable fashion as uranium demand increases. A strong market will be required for these resources to be developed within the time frame required to meet future uranium demand. In addition, current projections of uranium mine production capacities could satisfy projected high-case world uranium requirements until the late 2020s. However, given the challenges and length of time associated with increasing production at existing mines and opening new mines, it is unlikely that all production increases will proceed as planned. As a result, secondary sources of previously mined uranium will continue to be required, complemented to the extent possible by uranium savings achieved by specifying lower tails assays at enrichment facilities and technical developments in fuel cycle technology. While the status of supply and demand is considered from today's technologies perspective, it should be recognised that the deployment of advanced reactor and fuel cycle technologies can positively affect the long-term availability of uranium and could conceivably extend it to thousands of years. These are some of the findings from Uranium 2009: Resources, Production and Demand , a joint study by the OECD/NEA and the IAEA, carried out in co-operation with their

The impact of natural science contextual teaching through project method to students’ achievement in MTsN Miri Sragen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anik Sunarsih

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This study aims to describe the science learning skills among students’ who follow contextual learning through project method with experiment method. The population of this research is the students’ of class VII MTS Negeri Miri Kab. Sragen on the teaching period of 2016/2017. Cluster random sampling technique is used as sample. This research was designed using contextual teaching through project method as an independent variable. The results of this Improvement show that there is a difference in the achievement of students' learning skill that follows contextual learning through the project method with the experimental method with Fobs = 8,83 and significant number 4,04 (p <0,05. Based on these findings contextual learning through the project is one of the learning methods that provide a positive influence on improving the achievement of science learning skills. This ain increase, because CTL is can help students’ understand the material by relating the problems that exist. Project methods are used by students’ in solving problems.

A rural virtual health sciences library project: research findings with implications for next generation library services*

OpenAIRE

Richwine, Margaret (Peggy); McGowan, Julie J.

2001-01-01

Purpose: The Shared Hospital Electronic Library of Southern Indiana (SHELSI) research project was designed to determine whether access to a virtual health sciences library and training in its use would support medical decision making in rural southern Indiana and achieve the same level of impact seen by targeted information services provided by health sciences librarians in urban hospitals.

Computed tomography (CT) findings in 88 neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) patients: Prevalence rates and correlations of thoracic findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ueda, Ken; Honda, Osamu; Satoh, Yukihisa; Kawai, Misa; Gyobu, Tomoko; Kanazawa, Toru; Hidaka, Shojiro; Yanagawa, Masahiro; Sumikawa, Hiromitsu; Tomiyama, Noriyuki

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Various thoracic CT findings, including cysts, mediastinal masses, etc. were found. • Cysts show upper and peripheral dominant distribution. • The number, size, and distribution of the pulmonary cysts in NF-1 revealed significant correlation. • It is suspected that thoracic CT findings in NF-1 occur independently. - Abstract: Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence rates and the correlations of thoracic computed tomography (CT) findings of neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) in 88 patients. Materials and methods: Chest CT images of 88 NF1 patients were independently reviewed by three observers, and the CT findings were evaluated. If abnormal findings were present, their number, size, and distribution were recorded. The prevalence rate of each CT finding was calculated, and the correlations between CT findings were analyzed. Results: Of the 88 cases, 13 were positive for cysts, 16 for emphysema, 8 for nodules, 8 for GGNs (ground glass nodules), 13 for mediastinal masses, 20 for scoliosis, 44 for subcutaneous nodules, and 34 for skin nodules. Cysts showed upper and peripheral dominant distributions. Regarding 13 mediastinal masses, 2 were diagnosed as malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs), 1 was diagnosed as primary lung cancer, 2 were diagnosed as lateral meningocele, 3 were diagnosed as neurofibromas, and the remaining 7 were considered neurofibromas. There was a significant correlation between the prevalence of subcutaneous nodules and that of skin nodules. Significant positive correlations were also seen between size and number, size and rate of central distribution, and number and rate of central distribution of cysts. Conclusion: Various CT findings were found in NF-1 patients, and the prevalence rates of subcutaneous and skin nodules were higher than other findings. Though the prevalence rates of subcutaneous nodules and skin nodules were significantly correlated, the other CT findings in NF-1 occurred independently. The number, size, and

Computed tomography (CT) findings in 88 neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) patients: Prevalence rates and correlations of thoracic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ueda, Ken, E-mail: k-ueda@radiol.med.osaka-u.ac.jp [Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine (Japan); Honda, Osamu [Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine (Japan); Satoh, Yukihisa [Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Osaka Medical Center for Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases (Japan); Kawai, Misa; Gyobu, Tomoko; Kanazawa, Toru; Hidaka, Shojiro; Yanagawa, Masahiro [Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine (Japan); Sumikawa, Hiromitsu [Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Osaka Rosai Hospital (Japan); Tomiyama, Noriyuki [Department of Radiology, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine (Japan)

2015-06-15

Highlights: • Various thoracic CT findings, including cysts, mediastinal masses, etc. were found. • Cysts show upper and peripheral dominant distribution. • The number, size, and distribution of the pulmonary cysts in NF-1 revealed significant correlation. • It is suspected that thoracic CT findings in NF-1 occur independently. - Abstract: Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence rates and the correlations of thoracic computed tomography (CT) findings of neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) in 88 patients. Materials and methods: Chest CT images of 88 NF1 patients were independently reviewed by three observers, and the CT findings were evaluated. If abnormal findings were present, their number, size, and distribution were recorded. The prevalence rate of each CT finding was calculated, and the correlations between CT findings were analyzed. Results: Of the 88 cases, 13 were positive for cysts, 16 for emphysema, 8 for nodules, 8 for GGNs (ground glass nodules), 13 for mediastinal masses, 20 for scoliosis, 44 for subcutaneous nodules, and 34 for skin nodules. Cysts showed upper and peripheral dominant distributions. Regarding 13 mediastinal masses, 2 were diagnosed as malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs), 1 was diagnosed as primary lung cancer, 2 were diagnosed as lateral meningocele, 3 were diagnosed as neurofibromas, and the remaining 7 were considered neurofibromas. There was a significant correlation between the prevalence of subcutaneous nodules and that of skin nodules. Significant positive correlations were also seen between size and number, size and rate of central distribution, and number and rate of central distribution of cysts. Conclusion: Various CT findings were found in NF-1 patients, and the prevalence rates of subcutaneous and skin nodules were higher than other findings. Though the prevalence rates of subcutaneous nodules and skin nodules were significantly correlated, the other CT findings in NF-1 occurred independently. The number, size, and

Project management practice and its effects on project success in Malaysian construction industry

Science.gov (United States)

Haron, N. A.; Devi, P.; Hassim, S.; Alias, A. H.; Tahir, M. M.; Harun, A. N.

2017-12-01

The rapid economic development has increased the demand for construction of infrastructure and facilities globally. Sustainable development and globalization are the new ‘Zeitgeist’ of the 21st century. In order to implement these projects successfully and to meet the functional aim of the projects within their lifetime, an efficient project management practice is needed. The aim of this study is to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) and the extent of use of project management practice which affects project success, especially during the implementation stage. Data were obtained from self-administered questionnaires with 232 respondents. A mixed method of data collection was adopted using semi-structured interview and questionnaire approach. The result of the analysis of data obtained showed that new and emerging criteria such as customer satisfaction, competency of the project team, and performance of subcontractors/suppliers are becoming measures of success in addition to the classic iron triangle’s view of time, cost and quality. An insight on the extent of use of different project management practice in the industry was also achieved from the study.

Finding-specific display presets for computed radiography soft-copy reading.

Science.gov (United States)

Andriole, K P; Gould, R G; Webb, W R

1999-05-01

Much work has been done to optimize the display of cross-sectional modality imaging examinations for soft-copy reading (i.e., window/level tissue presets, and format presentations such as tile and stack modes, four-on-one, nine-on-one, etc). Less attention has been paid to the display of digital forms of the conventional projection x-ray. The purpose of this study is to assess the utility of providing presets for computed radiography (CR) soft-copy display, based not on the window/level settings, but on processing applied to the image optimized for visualization of specific findings, pathologies, etc (i.e., pneumothorax, tumor, tube location). It is felt that digital display of CR images based on finding-specific processing presets has the potential to: speed reading of digital projection x-ray examinations on soft copy; improve diagnostic efficacy; standardize display across examination type, clinical scenario, important key findings, and significant negatives; facilitate image comparison; and improve confidence in and acceptance of soft-copy reading. Clinical chest images are acquired using an Agfa-Gevaert (Mortsel, Belgium) ADC 70 CR scanner and Fuji (Stamford, CT) 9000 and AC2 CR scanners. Those demonstrating pertinent findings are transferred over the clinical picture archiving and communications system (PACS) network to a research image processing station (Agfa PS5000), where the optimal image-processing settings per finding, pathologic category, etc, are developed in conjunction with a thoracic radiologist, by manipulating the multiscale image contrast amplification (Agfa MUSICA) algorithm parameters. Soft-copy display of images processed with finding-specific settings are compared with the standard default image presentation for 50 cases of each category. Comparison is scored using a 5-point scale with the positive scale denoting the standard presentation is preferred over the finding-specific processing, the negative scale denoting the finding

Modernization projects in Santa Maria e Garona

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marcos, R.; Alutiz, J. I.; Garcia Sanchez, M.

2011-01-01

This article shows a vision of the Santa Maria de Garona power Plant modernization guidelines and it also presents the most significant projects deployed in the last decade at the power plant grouped in mechanics projects, electrical projects, instrumentations projects and IT projects. At the same time three projects are explained in more detail: the change of one of the main transformers, the evolution from paper recorders to paperless video graphic recorders and the new plant data information system. (Author)

Portland Public Schools Project Chrysalis: Year 2 Evaluation Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Stephanie J.; Gabriel, Roy M.; Hahn, Karen J.; Laws, Katherine E.

In 1994, the Chrysalis Project in Portland Public Schools received funding to prevent or delay the onset of substance abuse among a special target population: high-risk, female adolescents with a history of childhood abuse. Findings from the evaluation of the project's second year of providing assistance to these students are reported here. During…

Imaging findings of sternal abnormalities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Franquet, T.; Gimenez, A.; Alegret, X.; Sanchis, E.; Rivas, A.

1997-01-01

Radiographic findings in the sternal abnormalities are often nonspecific, showing appearances from a localized benign lesion to an aggressive lesion as seen with infections and malignant neoplasms. A specific diagnosis of sternal abnormalities can be suggested on the basis of CT and MR characteristics. Familiarity with the presentation and variable appearance of sternal abnormalities may aid the radiologist is suggesting a specific diagnosis. We present among others characteristic radiographic findings of hemangioma, chondrosarcoma, hydatid disease, and SAPHO syndrome. In those cases in which findings are not specific, cross-sectional imaging modalities may help the clinician in their management. (orig.)

CT and MR imaging findings of xanthogranulomatous cholecystitis: correlation with pathologic findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shuto, R.; Kiyosue, H.; Komatsu, E.; Matsumoto, S.; Mori, H. [Oita Medical Univ. (Japan). Dept. of Radiology; Kawano, K. [Oita Medical Univ. (Japan). Dept. of First Surgery; Kondo, Y.; Yokoyama, S. [Oita Medical Univ. (Japan). Dept. of First Pathology

2004-03-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate CT and MRI findings in xanthogranulomatous cholecystitis (XGC) and to correlate the imaging findings with various pathologic parameters. The study included 13 patients with histopathologically confirmed XGC. The CT (n=13) and MRI (n=5) obtained in these patients were evaluated retrospectively. On CT, low-attenuation areas in the wall of XGC correlated with foam and inflammatory cells or necrosis and/or abscess in XGC. Areas of iso- to slightly high signal intensity on T2-weighted images, showing slight enhancement at early phase and strong enhancement at last phase on dynamic study, corresponded with areas of abundant xanthogranulomas. Areas with very high signal intensity on T2-weighted images without enhancement corresponded with necrosis and/or abscesses. Luminal surface enhancement (LSE) of gallbladder wall represented preservation of the epithelial layer. The early-enhanced areas of the liver bed on dynamic CT and MR images corresponded with accumulation of inflammatory cells and abundant fibrosis. Our results indicate that CT and MRI findings correlate well with the histopathologic findings of XGC.

PROJECT ABANDONMENT, CORRUPTION AND RECOVERY OF UNSPENT BUDGETED PUBLIC FUNDS IN NIGERIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard INGWE

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Large amounts of unspent funds budgeted for implementing development projects have been recovered from Nigeria’s public officials since President Yar Adua directed in 2007 that responsible Nigerian Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs must refund such funds at the end of every fiscal year. While unspent funds recovery represents some progress in the “war on corruption” entrenched by previous governments in the 1980s, the current policy limited by concentrating narrowly on recovery of financial resources thereby excluding accounting for other project resources (human skills application, time management or optimization among others that are usually applied to project implementation but lost through public officers’ failure and/or delays to implement planned projects. This article examines the magnitude of unspent funds recently recovered by the government from its various ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs. The general objective of this article is to contribute towards improving the development project management culture in Nigeria. The specific objectives are: To highlight the magnitude of unspent funds in Nigeria’s MDAs; and to show some adverse consequences of failing (or delaying to spend funds allocated in the budget forimplementing projects in economic sectors and on the pursuit of development objectives. Survey and description methods were used. Data on the refund of unspent funds was obtained from secondary sources (records of MDAs and analysed using qualitative and simple quantitative techniques. Results show that a high rate of projects delay and /or abandonment was discovered shortly after the inauguration of President Yar’ Adua and his administration in May 2007. Although some project funds have been recovered, other project resources (time wasted, human skills/hours and development benefits that would have accrued from completion of the planned and financed projects have not been recovered but lost. The fact

Leadership and management influences the outcome of wildlife reintroduction programs: findings from the Sea Eagle Recovery Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Sutton, Alexandra E

2015-01-01

Wildlife reintroductions and translocations are statistically unlikely to succeed. Nevertheless, they remain a critical part of conservation because they are the only way to actively restore a species into a habitat from which it has been extirpated. Past efforts to improve these practices have attributed the low success rate to failures in the biological knowledge (e.g., ignorance of social behavior, poor release site selection), or to the inherent challenges of reinstating a species into an area where threats have already driven it to local extinction. Such research presumes that the only way to improve reintroduction outcomes is through improved biological knowledge. This emphasis on biological solutions may have caused researchers to overlook the potential influence of other factors on reintroduction outcomes. I employed a grounded theory approach to study the leadership and management of a successful reintroduction program (the Sea Eagle Recovery Project in Scotland, UK) and identify four critical managerial elements that I theorize may have contributed to the successful outcome of this 50-year reintroduction. These elements are: 1. Leadership & Management: Small, dedicated team of accessible experts who provide strong political and scientific advocacy ("champions") for the project. 2. Hierarchy & Autonomy: Hierarchical management structure that nevertheless permits high individual autonomy. 3. Goals & Evaluation: Formalized goal-setting and regular, critical evaluation of the project's progress toward those goals. 4. Adaptive Public Relations: Adaptive outreach campaigns that are open, transparent, inclusive (esp. linguistically), and culturally relevant.

Incorporation of project-based learning into an occupational health course.

Science.gov (United States)

Dehdashti, Alireza; Mehralizadeh, Semira; Kashani, Masoud Motalebi

2013-01-01

Use of an appropriate teaching approach is a major concern for faculty members who are involved in occupational health and safety academic education. The challenge is to explore teaching tools to equip students with knowledge and skills to prepare them for their practices, in which they will encounter occupational health and safety issues in various occupational settings. The current study presents the design and implementation of a team project-based learning approach for undergraduate occupational health students to examine the appropriateness and perceptions of students and educators with regard to such a learning experience. Steps were taken to guide the educators and students through the learning process based on projects completed in teams. The research tools for collecting data were a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with participants. The results illustrated that use of the proposed teaching approach as part of occupational health education may have the potential to motivate and enhance the active roles of educators and students in the learning process, and improve students' technical and social skills that are crucial for practice in the occupational health field. The study findings showed that project-based learning may provide a promising teaching strategy in the education and training of occupational health students. In addition, academic institutions should encourage educators to plan, introduce and evaluate the effectiveness of project-based learning.

Organising Sustainable Transition: Understanding the Product, Project and Service Domain of the Built Environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thuesen, Christian; Koch-Ørvad, Nina; Maslesa, Esmir

2016-01-01

of three generic domains - the Project, Product and Service domain - with widely different markets, companies, business models and regulation. Besides identifying the characteristics of the different domains, the findings show that these domains are interdependent, but largely live their own lives......Sustainable transition of the built environment con struction industry is challenging the existing construction practices and business models. This article presents a framework for understanding and facilitating sustainable transition in the built environment. The framework was developed through...

78 FR 75370 - Draft Supplemental Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for Flood...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-11

... Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for Flood Control Improvements to the Rio Grande... Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). SUMMARY: Pursuant to... Significant Impact for Flood Control Improvements to the Rio Grande Canalization Project in Vado, New Mexico...

Optimized Projection Matrix for Compressive Sensing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianping Xu

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Compressive sensing (CS is mainly concerned with low-coherence pairs, since the number of samples needed to recover the signal is proportional to the mutual coherence between projection matrix and sparsifying matrix. Until now, papers on CS always assume the projection matrix to be a random matrix. In this paper, aiming at minimizing the mutual coherence, a method is proposed to optimize the projection matrix. This method is based on equiangular tight frame (ETF design because an ETF has minimum coherence. It is impossible to solve the problem exactly because of the complexity. Therefore, an alternating minimization type method is used to find a feasible solution. The optimally designed projection matrix can further reduce the necessary number of samples for recovery or improve the recovery accuracy. The proposed method demonstrates better performance than conventional optimization methods, which brings benefits to both basis pursuit and orthogonal matching pursuit.

Technology Uncertainty and Project Managers' Information Sharing - A comparative case study of two new product development projects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jepsen, Lisbeth Brøde; Dietrich, Perttu

2014-01-01

uncertainty during various phases of new product development (NPD) projects. In this study, we compare two longitudinal NPD sub-projects that differ in uncertainty within the same large NPD project, in which the data source is the complete email exchange between a project manager and various actors...... (consisting of 3979 emails). The results show high levels of information sharing with the customer in both the early and late phases of high uncertainty. Interestingly, in the low uncertainty project, information sharing with the production department and the supplier is higher during the late phase...... of the NPD project. Unexpectedly, in both sub-projects, the project manager shares information with a wider range of both intra- and inter-organization actors in the early phases of the projects than in the late phases....

Lessons from the Field: One Teacher's Findings from Using the Project Approach in a 6th Grade Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Bills, Patricia; Griebling, Susan; Waspe, Noah

2018-01-01

While we have known about the benefits of project-based learning for decades, it has been difficult to maintain momentum in learning how to do it well, especially as the policy context in education turned toward high-stakes accountability measures in the early 2000s. Currently, many schools across the country are incorporating project-based…

Planning and Managing Drupal Projects

CERN Document Server

Nordin, Dani

2011-01-01

If you're a solo website designer or part of a small team itching to build interesting projects with Drupal, this concise guide will get you started. Drupal's learning curve has thrown off many experienced designers, particularly the way it handles design challenges. This book shows you the lifecycle of a typical Drupal project, with emphasis on the early stages of site planning. Learn how to efficiently estimate and set up your own project, so you can focus on ways to make your vision a reality, rather than let project management details constantly distract you. Plan and estimate your projec

The international Chernobyl project. Technical report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

This report contains the findings of the International Chernobyl Project. Separate chapters deal with the history of the accident and the Soviet emergency measures, environmental contamination, radiation exposure of the population, health impact, and protective measures. The conclusions and recommendations of the Project are presented, and an annex gives the available data on cesium 137 and strontium 90 contamination levels in populated areas of the BSSR, the RSFSR and the UkrSSR from June/July 1989: these data were used to draw up the area contamination maps. Ref, figs and tabs

Steam generator replacement project in 2000

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cerjak, J.; Holz, R.; Haus, J.; Gloaguen, C.

1999-01-01

NE Krsko has awarded the contract for the Steam Generator Replacement Project, which is one of the modernization projects in Krsko, to the Consortium of Siemens / Framatome in February 1998. This paper deals with the various aspects of the project: scope planning, engineering, preparation of modification packages for licensing, management, major techniques used, etc., showing also the status of the activities for the project which are scheduled to be performed in April through June 2000. The project is being performed on a turnkey basis, that means the Consortium is performing all engineering, preparation of the modification packages and site activities; NE Krsko is dealing with the licensing of the project.(author)

Advanced energy projects FY 1992 research summaries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-09-01

The Division of Advanced Energy Projects (AEP) provides support to explore the feasibility of novel, energy-related concepts that evolve from advances in basic research. These concepts are typically at an early stage of scientific definition and, therefore, are beyond the scope of ongoing applied research or technology development programs. The Division provides a mechanism for converting basic research findings to applications that eventually could impact the Nation's energy economy. Technical topics include physical, chemical, materials, engineering, and biotechnologies. Projects can involve interdisciplinary approaches to solve energy-related problems. Projects are supported for a finite period of time, which is typically three years. Annual funding levels for projects are usually about $300,000 but can vary from approximately $50,000 to $500,000. It is expected that, following AEP support, each concept will be sufficiently developed and promising to attract further funding from other sources in order to realize its full potential. There were 39 research projects in the Division of Advanced Energy Projects during Fiscal Year 1992 (October 1, 1991 -- September 30, 1992). The abstracts of those projects are provided to introduce the overall program in Advanced Energy Projects. Further information on a specific project may be obtained by contacting the principal investigator, who is listed below the project title. Projects completed during FY 1992 are indicated