Modelling intentions to provide smoking cessation support among mental health professionals in the Netherlands.

Science.gov (United States)

Blankers, Matthijs; Buisman, Renate; Hopman, Petra; van Gool, Ronald; van Laar, Margriet

2016-01-01

Tobacco use prevalence is elevated among people with mental illnesses, leading to elevated rates of premature smoking-related mortality. Opportunities to encourage smoking cessation among them are currently underused by mental health professionals. In this paper, we aim to explore mechanisms to invigorate professionals' intentions to help patients stop smoking. Data stem from a recent staff survey on the provision of smoking cessation support to patients with mental illnesses in the Netherlands. Items and underlying constructs were based on the theory of planned behaviour and literature on habitual behaviour. Data were weighted and only data from staff members with regular patient contact (n = 506) were included. Descriptive statistics of the survey items are presented and in a second step using structural equation modelling (SEM), we regressed the latent variables attitudes, subjective norms (SN), perceived behavioural control (PBC), past cessation support behaviour (PB) and current smoking behaviour on intentions to provide support. In optimisation steps, models comprising a subset of this initial model were evaluated. A sample of 506 mental health workers who had direct contact with patients completed the survey. The majority of them were females (70.0 %), respondents had an average age of 42.5 years (SD = 12.0). Seventy-five percent had at least a BSc educational background. Of the respondents, 76 % indicated that patients should be encouraged more to quit smoking. Respondents were supportive to train their direct colleagues to provide cessation support more often (71 %) and also supported the involvement of mental health care facilities in providing cessation support to patients (69 %). The majority of the respondents feels capable to provide cessation support (66 %). Two thirds of the respondents wants to provide support, however only a minority (35 %) intends to actually do so during the coming year. Next, using SEM an acceptable fit was

Design integration of favorable geometry, structural support and containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Purcell, J.A.; McGehee, G.A.

1991-07-01

In designs for fissile processes at Savannah River site, different approaches have been used to provide engineered margins of safety for criticality with containment and seismic resistance as additional requirements. These requirements are frequently at odds in engineered systems. This paper proposes a plan to take advantage of vessels with favorable geometry to provide seismic resistance and to support a glovebox for containment. Thin slab tanks, small diameter pencil tanks, annular tanks, and other novel designs have been used for criticality safety. The requirement for DBE seismic resistance and rigid control of dimensions leads the designer to consider annular tanks for meeting these requirements. The high strength of annular tanks may logically be used to support secondary containment. Hands-on access to all instruments, piping etc. within containment can be provided through gloveports, thus a specialized glovebox. This paper examines the advantages of using an annular tank design to provide favorable geometry, structural support and containment

Instructional support and implementation structure during elementary teachers' science education simulation use

Science.gov (United States)

Gonczi, Amanda L.; Chiu, Jennifer L.; Maeng, Jennifer L.; Bell, Randy L.

2016-07-01

This investigation sought to identify patterns in elementary science teachers' computer simulation use, particularly implementation structures and instructional supports commonly employed by teachers. Data included video-recorded science lessons of 96 elementary teachers who used computer simulations in one or more science lessons. Results indicated teachers used a one-to-one student-to-computer ratio most often either during class-wide individual computer use or during a rotating station structure. Worksheets, general support, and peer collaboration were the most common forms of instructional support. The least common instructional support forms included lesson pacing, initial play, and a closure discussion. Students' simulation use was supported in the fewest ways during a rotating station structure. Results suggest that simulation professional development with elementary teachers needs to explicitly focus on implementation structures and instructional support to enhance participants' pedagogical knowledge and improve instructional simulation use. In addition, research is needed to provide theoretical explanations for the observed patterns that should subsequently be addressed in supporting teachers' instructional simulation use during professional development or in teacher preparation programs.

Design of the core support and restraint structures for FFTF and CRBRP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sutton, H.G.; Rylatt, J.A.

1977-12-01

This paper presents and compares the design and fabrication of the FFTF and CRBRP reactor structures which support and restrain the reactor core assemblies. The fabrication of the core support structure (CSS) for the FFTF reactor was completed October 1972 and this paper discusses how the fabrication problems encountered with the FFTF were avoided in the subsequent design of the CRBR CSS. The radial core restraint structure of the FFTF was designed and fabricated such that an active system could replace the present passive system which is segmented and relies on the CSS core barrel for total structure integrity to maintain core geometry. The CRBR core restraint structure is designed for passive restraint only, and this paper discusses how the combined strengths of the restraint structure former rings and the CSS core barrel are utilized to maintain core geometry. Whereas the CSS for the FFTF interfaces directly with the reactor core assemblies, the CRBR CSS does not. A comparison is made on how intermediate structures in CRBR (inlet modules) provide the necessary design interfaces for supporting and providing flow distribution to the reactor core assemblies. A discussion is given on how the CRBR CSS satisfied the design requirements of the Equipment Specification, including thermal transient, dynamic and seismic loadings, and results of flow distribution testing that supported the CRBR design effort. The approach taken to simplify fabrication of the CRBR components, and a novel 20 inch deep narrow gap weld joint in the CSS are described

Evaluating Restorative Justice Circles of Support and Accountability: Can Social Support Overcome Structural Barriers?

Science.gov (United States)

Bohmert, Miriam Northcutt; Duwe, Grant; Hipple, Natalie Kroovand

2018-02-01

In a climate in which stigmatic shaming is increasing for sex offenders as they leave prison, restorative justice practices have emerged as a promising approach to sex offender reentry success and have been shown to reduce recidivism. Criminologists and restorative justice advocates believe that providing ex-offenders with social support that they may not otherwise have is crucial to reducing recidivism. This case study describes the expressive and instrumental social support required and received, and its relationship to key outcomes, by sex offenders who participated in Circles of Support and Accountability (COSAs), a restorative justice, reentry program in Minnesota. In-depth interviews with re-entering sex offenders and program volunteers revealed that 75% of offenders reported weak to moderate levels of social support leaving prison, 70% reported receiving instrumental support in COSAs, and 100% reported receiving expressive support. Findings inform work on social support, structural barriers, and restorative justice programming during sex offender reentry.

Structural analysis of support structure for ITER vacuum vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, Nobukazu; Ohmori, Junji; Nakahira, Masataka

2004-12-01

ITER vacuum vessel (VV) is a safety component confining radioactive materials such as tritium and activated dust. An independent VV support structure with multiple flexible plates located at the bottom of VV lower port is proposed. This independent concept has two advantages: (1) thermal load due to the temperature deference between VV and the lower temperature components such as TF coil becomes lower and (2) the other components such as TF coil is categorized as a non-safety component because of its independence from VV. Stress analyses have been performed to assess the integrity of the VV support structure using a precisely modeled VV structure. As a result, (1) the maximum displacement of the VV corresponding to the relative displacement between VV and TF coil is found to be 15 mm, much less than the current design value of 100 mm, and (2) the stresses of the whole VV system including VV support are estimated to be less than the allowable ones defined by ASME Section III Subsection NF, respectively. Based on these assessments, the feasibility of the proposed independent VV support has been verified as a VV support. (author)

Basic studies on design supporting system of offshore structure. Part 2. Implementation of structural design supporting system of offshore structures; Kaiyo kozobutsu wo taisho to shita sekkei shien system ni kansuru kisoteki kenkyu. 2. Kaiyo kozobutsu no kozo sekkei shien system no kochiku

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nomoto, T.; Hamada, K.; Aoyama, K. [The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan)

1996-12-31

In order to improve the existing design-supporting system for offshore structures, new functions are added to evaluate information of the products, especially those for structural designs. The structural analysis system should be provided with a function of design modification, to efficiently support the structural analysis of these structures. The new system adds hierarchy of various offshore structure models and three-dimensional dimensions to clarify structural and geometrical constraints and design-modification function. The design-modification function is included by use of the hierarchy. The other new functions are finite element analysis systems for the main structure and components, and rigidity calculation for the main structure. The main structure and functional element models are confirmed to be useful also for utilization of information, and provide necessary information of the product models. 11 refs., 11 figs.

Basic studies on design supporting system of offshore structure. Part 2. Implementation of structural design supporting system of offshore structures; Kaiyo kozobutsu wo taisho to shita sekkei shien system ni kansuru kisoteki kenkyu. 2. Kaiyo kozobutsu no kozo sekkei shien system no kochiku

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nomoto, T; Hamada, K; Aoyama, K [The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan)

1997-12-31

In order to improve the existing design-supporting system for offshore structures, new functions are added to evaluate information of the products, especially those for structural designs. The structural analysis system should be provided with a function of design modification, to efficiently support the structural analysis of these structures. The new system adds hierarchy of various offshore structure models and three-dimensional dimensions to clarify structural and geometrical constraints and design-modification function. The design-modification function is included by use of the hierarchy. The other new functions are finite element analysis systems for the main structure and components, and rigidity calculation for the main structure. The main structure and functional element models are confirmed to be useful also for utilization of information, and provide necessary information of the product models. 11 refs., 11 figs.

Health organizations providing and seeking social support: a Twitter-based content analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Rui, Jian Raymond; Chen, Yixin; Damiano, Amanda

2013-09-01

Providing and seeking social support are important aspects of social exchange. New communication technologies, especially social network sites (SNSs), facilitate the process of support exchange. An increasing number of health organizations are using SNSs. However, how they provide and seek social support via SNSs has yet to garner academic attention. This study examined the types of social support provided and sought by health organizations on Twitter. A content analysis was conducted on 1,500 tweets sent by a random sample of 58 health organizations within 2 months. Findings indicate that providing informational and emotional support, as well as seeking instrumental support, were the main types of social support exchanged by health organizations through Twitter. This study provides a typology for studying social support exchanges by health organizations, and recommends strategies for health organizations regarding the effective use of Twitter.

Rural health professionals' perspectives on providing grief and loss support in cancer care.

Science.gov (United States)

Breen, L J; O'Connor, M

2013-11-01

Research demonstrates considerable inequalities in service delivery and health outcomes for people with cancer living outside large metropolitan cities. Semi-structured interviews with 11 professionals providing grief and loss support for people with cancer and their families in rural, regional, and remote areas Western Australia revealed the challenges they faced in delivering such support. The data are presented in four themes - Inequity of regional versus metropolitan services, Strain of the 'Jack of all trades' role, Constraints to accessing professional development, and Challenges in delivering post-bereavement services. These challenges are likely to be of growing concern given that populations are declining in rural areas as Australia becomes increasingly urban. The findings have implications in enhancing the loss and grief support services available in rural, regional, and remote Western Australia, including those grieving the death of a loved one through cancer. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Outsourcing customer support : The role of provider customer focus

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wuyts, S.H.K.; Rindfleisch, A.; Citrin, A.

An increasing number of firms are outsourcing customer support to external service providers. This creates a triadic setting in which an outsourcing provider serves end customers on behalf of its clients. While outsourcing presents an opportunity to serve customers, service providers differ in their

A qualitative exploration of psychosocial specialists' experiences of providing support in UK burn care services.

Science.gov (United States)

Guest, Ella; Griffiths, Catrin; Harcourt, Diana

2018-01-01

A burn can have a significant and long-lasting psychosocial impact on a patient and their family. The National Burn Care Standards (2013) recommend psychosocial support should be available in all UK burn services; however, little is known about how it is provided. The current study aimed to explore experiences of psychosocial specialists working in UK burn care, with a focus on the challenges they experience in their role. Semi-structured telephone interviews with eight psychosocial specialists (two psychotherapists and six clinical psychologists) who worked within UK burn care explored their experiences of providing support to patients and their families. Thematic analysis revealed two main themes: burn service-related experiences and challenges reflected health professionals having little time and resources to support all patients; reduced patient attendance due to them living large distances from service; psychosocial appointments being prioritised below wound-related treatments; and difficulties detecting patient needs with current outcome measures. Therapy-related experiences and challenges outlined the sociocultural and familial factors affecting engagement with support, difficulties treating patients with pre-existing mental health conditions within the burn service and individual differences in the stage at which patients are amenable to support. Findings provide an insight into the experiences of psychosocial specialists working in UK burn care and suggest a number of ways in which psychosocial provision in the NHS burn service could be developed.

Engineering review of the core support structure of the Gas Cooled Fast Breeder Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-09-01

The review of the core support structure of the gas cooled fast breeder reactor (GCFR) covered such areas as the design criteria, the design and analysis of the concepts, the development plan, and the projected manufacturing costs. Recommendations are provided to establish a basis for future work on the GCFR core support structure

Seismic structural response analysis for multiple support excitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shaw, D.E.

1975-01-01

In the seismic analysis of nuclear power plant equipment such as piping systems situations often arise in which piping systems span between adjacent structures or between different elevations in the same structure. Owing to the differences in the seismic time history response of different structures or different elevations of the same structure, the input support motion will differ for different supports. The concept of a frequency dependent participation factor and rotational response spectra accounting for phase differences between support excitations is developed by using classical equations of motion to formulate the seismic response of a structure subjected to multiple support excitation. The essence of the method lies in describing the seismic excitation of a multiply excited structure in terms of translational and rotational spectra used at every support and a frequency dependent spatial distribution function derived from the phase relationships of the different support time histories. In this manner it is shown that frequency dependent participation factors can be derived from the frequency dependent distribution functions. Examples are shown and discussed relative to closed form solutions and the state-of-the-art techniques presently being used for the solution of problems of multiply excited structures

Cryogenic structural material and design of support structures for the Large Helical Device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishimura, Arata; Imagawa, Shinsaku; Tamura, Hitoshi

1997-01-01

This paper describes a short history of material selection for the cryogenic support structures for the Large Helical Device (LHD) which has superconducting coils. Since the support structures are cooled down to 4.4 K together with the coils, SUS 316 was chosen because of its stable austenitic phase, sufficient mechanical properties at cryogenic temperature and good weldability. Also, outlines of the design and fabrication processes of the support structures are summarized. On the design of the support structures, a deformation analysis was carried out to maintain the proper magnetic field during operation. Afterwards, a stress analysis was performed. During machining and assembling, tolerance was noticed to keep coil positions accurate. Special welding grooves and fabrication processes were considered and achieved successfully. Finally, a cryogenic supporting post which sustains the cryogenic structures and superconducting coils is presented. CFRP was used in this specially developed supporting post to reduce the heat conduction from ambient 300 K structures. (author)

Supporting undergraduate nursing students through structured personal tutoring: Some reflections.

Science.gov (United States)

Watts, Tessa E

2011-02-01

Support is imperative for nursing students worldwide as they face the many challenges associated with learning and working. Moreover enhancing student retention is an increasing concern for institutions across the globe. The personal tutor is a frequently hidden yet potentially significant figure in many students' experience of higher education. This paper offers some critical reflections on a structured approach to personal tutoring within an undergraduate nursing programme in a research focused Welsh university. Structured personal tutoring can provide an organised, coherent and proactive support system throughout students' educational programmes. However the approach changes the shape of personal tutoring and has the potential to increase academics' workloads and with it costs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrated Multidisciplinary Constrained Optimization of Offshore Support Structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haghi, Rad; Molenaar, David P; Ashuri, Turaj; Van der Valk, Paul L C

2014-01-01

In the current offshore wind turbine support structure design method, the tower and foundation, which form the support structure are designed separately by the turbine and foundation designer. This method yields a suboptimal design and it results in a heavy, overdesigned and expensive support structure. This paper presents an integrated multidisciplinary approach to design the tower and foundation simultaneously. Aerodynamics, hydrodynamics, structure and soil mechanics are the modeled disciplines to capture the full dynamic behavior of the foundation and tower under different environmental conditions. The objective function to be minimized is the mass of the support structure. The model includes various design constraints: local and global buckling, modal frequencies, and fatigue damage along different stations of the structure. To show the usefulness of the method, an existing SWT-3.6-107 offshore wind turbine where its tower and foundation are designed separately is used as a case study. The result of the integrated multidisciplinary design optimization shows 12.1% reduction in the mass of the support structure, while satisfying all the design constraints

FIRST TIME ONLINE LEARNERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF SUPPORT SERVICES PROVIDED

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephanie HUNTE

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The number of online continuous education and training initiatives continues to increase in Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS and by extension, the number of adult learners who are unfamiliar with the peculiarities of the online teaching and learning environment. The extent to which these learners can derive maximum benefit from these initiatives depends on the rate at which they can adapt to the new circumstances and, as a result, function effectively in this type of teaching and learning environment. To this end, while supporting learners is recognized as a critical success factor little has been explored or documented specific to the Caribbean-SIDS context. The purpose of this study therefore was to describe the support services provided first time online learners in the context of Caribbean-SIDS and examine what if any benefit learners derived from them through their perceptions of these services. The findings reveal that participants’ overall perception of the support services was high. They also reveal that although participants’ awareness of ongoing support services was variable, their rating of the need for and importance of this type of support was also high. The findings suggest that providing support for first time online learners in the context of Caribbean SIDS positively impacts their performance in the online teaching and learning environment.

Numerical evaluation of micro-structural parameters of porous supports in metal-supported solid oxide fuel cells

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Reiss, Georg; Frandsen, Henrik Lund; Brandstätter, Wilhelm

2014-01-01

Metallic supported Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) are considered as a durable and cost effective alternative to the state-of-the-art ceramic supported cell designs. In order to understand the mass and charge transport in the metal-support of this new type of cell a novel technique involving X......-ray tomography and micro-structural modelling is presented in this work. The simulation technique comprises a novel treatment of the boundary conditions, which leads to more accurate effective transport parameters compared to those, which can be achieved with the conventional homogenisation procedures....... Furthermore, the porosity distribution in the metal-support was determined, which provided information about the inhomogeneous nature of the material. In addition to that, transport parameters for two identified, different dense layers of the metal-support are evaluated separately. The results...

A Customizable MR Brain Imaging Atlas of Structure and Function for Decision Support.

Science.gov (United States)

U., Sinha; S., El-Saden; G., Duckwiler; L., Thompson; S., Ardekani; H., Kangarloo

2003-01-01

We present a MR brain atlas for structure and function (diffusion weighted images). The atlas is customizable for contrast and orientation to match the current patient images. In addition, the atlas also provides normative values of MR parameters. The atlas is designed on informatics principles to provide context sensitive decision support at the time of primary image interpretation. Additional support for diagnostic interpretation is provided by a list of expert created most relevant ‘Image Finding Descriptors’ that will serve as cues to the user. The architecture of the atlas module is integrated into the image workflow of a radiology department to provide support at the time of primary diagnosis. PMID:14728244

Reflections on providing sport science support for athletes with learning difficulties.

Science.gov (United States)

Hills, Laura; Utley, Andrea

2010-01-01

To highlight the benefits and the need for sport science support for athletes with learning difficulties, and to reflect on our experience of working with the GB squad for athletes with learning difficulties. A review of key and relevant literature is presented, followed by a discussion of the sport science support provision and the issues that emerged in working with athletes with learning difficulties. Pre- and post- physiological tests along with evaluations of athletes' potential to benefit from sport psychology support were conducted. The aim of these tests was to provide information for the athletes and the coaches on fitness levels, to use this information to plan future training, and to identify how well the performance could be enhanced. A case study is presented for one athlete, who had competed in distance events. The focus is the psychological support that was provided. It is clear that athletes with learning difficulties require the same type of sports science support as their mainstream peers. However, sport scientists will need to consider ways to extend their practice in order to provide the appropriate level of support.

Development of piping support structure design software based on PDMS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang Yongtao; Guan Hui; Su Rongfu; Huang Wei; Mao Huihui

2014-01-01

In order to enhance the efficiency of nuclear power process system piping support design, the veracity of interface with support, piping and anchor, and decrease the clash between supports and other disciplines, developed piping support structure design software NPHS based on PDMS independently. That achieved the seamless integration of PDMS and NPHS by method of embedded development, reduce the size of program code, improve the running efficiency; That predigested the 3D modeling and information storage for support parts, that increased the support database opening and maintenance using the special mechanism and configuration of database. The support modeling efficiency due to setting of the connection key point of support parts is improved. Practices in several real nuclear power projects proved that NPHS software is provided with such outstanding performances: quick running, strong stability, accurate data, easy to operate and maintain, and output results satisfied the engineering requirements. (authors)

Impact on perceived postnatal support, maternal anxiety and symptoms of depression in new mothers in Nepal when their husbands provide continuous support during labour.

Science.gov (United States)

Sapkota, Sabitri; Kobayashi, Toshio; Takase, Miyuki

2013-11-01

when a husband provides continuous support during his wife's labour, his presence is considered effective in reducing her dissatisfaction with the childbirth process. The impact of this on the postnatal well-being of a new mother, however, is not clear. to examine the impact on postnatal support, maternal anxiety and symptoms of depression experienced by new mothers in Nepal when their husband supported them continuously during labour. the study involved 231 Nepali women, of whom 77 were supported continuously by their husbands, 75 by female friends, and 79 were not supported by any companion during childbirth. They were contacted at six to eight weeks post partum, when postpartum support questionnaires, a state-trait anxiety inventory and the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale were administered. Structural equation modelling was conducted. observations showed that continuous support from a husband during his wife's labour was related to a greater degree of postnatal support than those who were not supported by their husband during labour (β=0.23, pdepression (β=0.43, pdepression in new mothers in Nepal. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

APT/LEDA RFQ and support frame structural analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ellis, S.

1997-01-01

This report documents structural analysis of the Accelerator Production of Tritium Low Energy Demonstration Accelerator (APT/LEDA) Radio Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) accelerator structure and its associated support frame. This work was conducted for the Department of Energy in support of the APT/LEDA. Structural analysis of the RFQ was performed to quantify stress levels and deflections due to both vacuum loading and gravity loading. This analysis also verified the proposed support scheme geometry and quantified interface loads. This analysis also determined the necessary stiffness and strength requirements of the RFQ support frame verifying the conceptual design geometry and allowing specification of individual frame elements. Complete structural analysis of the frame was completed subsequently. This report details structural analysis of the RFQ assembly with regard to gravity and vacuum loads only. Thermally induced stresses from the Radio Frequency (RF) surface resistance heating were not considered

Collaborative learning: A next step in the training of peer support providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Cronise, Rita

2016-09-01

This column explores how peer support provider training is enhanced through collaborative learning. Collaborative learning is an approach that draws upon the "real life" experiences of individual learners and encompasses opportunities to explore varying perspectives and collectively construct solutions that enrich the practice of all participants. This description draws upon published articles and examples of collaborative learning in training and communities of practice of peer support providers. Similar to person-centered practices that enhance the recovery experience of individuals receiving services, collaborative learning enhances the experience of peer support providers as they explore relevant "real world" issues, offer unique contributions, and work together toward improving practice. Three examples of collaborative learning approaches are provided that have resulted in successful collaborative learning opportunities for peer support providers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Support for argument structures review and assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cyra, Lukasz; Gorski, Janusz

2011-01-01

Argument structures are commonly used to develop and present cases for safety, security and for other properties of systems. Such structures tend to grow excessively, which causes problems with their review and assessment. Two issues are of particular interest: (1) systematic and explicit assessment of the compelling power of an argument, and (2) communication of the result of such an assessment to relevant recipients. The paper presents a solution to these problems. The method of Visual Assessment of Arguments (VAA), being this solution, is based on the Dempster-Shafer theory of evidence applied to the assessment of the strength of arguments, and a visual mechanism of issuing and presenting assessments, supported by the so-called opinion triangle. In the paper we explain theoretical grounding for the method and provide guidance on its application. The results of some validation experiments are also presented.

[Learning about the social support provided to the family caregiver assisting a family dependent].

Science.gov (United States)

Nardi, Edileuza de Fátima Rosina; de Oliveira, Magda Lúcia Félix

2008-03-01

The elderly suffering disability caused by diseases need a network of support in order to continue feeling socially active. This study aims at characterizing the social support provided to the family caregiver who looks after an elderly dependent, in Brazil. A descriptive study with qualitative approach was conducted at the municipality of Jandaia do Sul, Paraná, Brazil. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews with 19 primary family caregivers. Data analysis was based on Thematic Analysis. The results show that when it comes to informal sources, the reference to grown up children was mostly used, while as formal ones Unidade Básica de Saúde, the Brazilian Basic Health Unit, and the team from Programa Saúde da Familia, Brazilian Pro-Family Health Program, were referred to. However, the image of Community Health Agent was the most mentioned. Thus, it is necessary to create support nets to integrate both formal and informal systems.

Large coil program support structure conceptual design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Litherland, P.S.

1977-01-01

The purpose of the Large Coil Program (LCP) is to perform tests on both pool boiling and force cooled superconducting toroidal field coils. The tests will attempt to approximate conditions anticipated in an ignition tokamak. The test requirements resulted in a coil support design which accommodates up to six (6) test coils and is mounted to a structure capable of resisting coil interactions. The steps leading to the present LCP coil support structure design, details on selected structural components, and the basic assembly sequence are discussed

Providing Co-Curricular Support: A Multi-Case Study of Engineering Student Support Centers

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Walter C., Jr.

2015-01-01

In response to the student retention and diversity issues that have been persistent in undergraduate engineering education, many colleges have developed Engineering Student Support Centers (ESSCs) such as Minority Engineering Programs (MEPs) and Women in Engineering Programs (WEPs). ESSCs provide underrepresented students with co-curricular…

Design and structural analysis of support structure for ITER vacuum vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, Nobukazu; Ohmori, Junji; Nakahira, Masataka; Shibanuma, Kiyoshi

2004-01-01

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) vacuum vessel (VV) is a safety component confining radioactive materials such as tritium and activated dust. An independent VV support structure with multiple flexible plates located at the bottom of VV lower port is proposed as a new concept, which is deferent from the current design, i.e., the VV support is directly connected to the toroidal coils (TF coils). This independent concept has two advantages comparing to the current one: (1) thermal load due to the temperature deference between VV and TF coils becomes lower and (2) the TF coils are categorized as non-safety components because of its independence from VV. Stress Analyses have been performed to assess the integrity of the VV support structure using a precisely modeled VV structure. As a result, (1) the maximum displacement of the VV corresponding to the relative displacement between VV and TF coils is found to be 15 mm, much less than the current design clearance of 100 mm, and (2) the stresses of the whole VV system including VV support are estimated to be less than the allowable ones defined by ASME Section III Subsection NF, respectively. Based on these assessments, the feasibility of the proposed independent VV support has been verified as a VV support. (author)

Macintosh support is provided at the level of the Service Desk

CERN Multimedia

2011-01-01

Since September 2010 the Apple laptops & desktops with Mac OS are recognized and supported at CERN by the IT department. Therefore, the “Macintosh support” procedure now follows the same ITIL*) schema as for all IT services, i.e.: All CERN users must address any request for support on Macintosh PCs to the Service Desk. The Service Desk will move on questions or problems they cannot solve to “IT 2nd level” support people, provided by the “computing support” contract managed by IT department. Mac OS being officially supported by the IT department, a 3rd level support is provided by CERN IT staff; they may give specialized expert assistance, within the scope described at the ITUM-2 presentation, for all incidents or requests which can be neither resolved nor fulfilled by the Service Desk (1st level) and the 2nd level support people. Therefore, users who have problems related to Mac OS should simply fill-in the appropriate form from th...

Liquid metal systems development: reactor vessel support structure evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McEdwards, J.A.

1981-01-01

Results of an evaluation of support structures for the reactor vessel are reported. The U ring, box ring, integral ring, tee ring and tangential beam supports were investigated. The U ring is the recommended vessel support structure configuration

Core support structure for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steinkamp, E.; Tautz, J.; Ries, H.

1979-01-01

A core support structure for nuclear power plants includes a grid of mutually crossing bridges and a support ring surrounding the grid and connected to ends of the outer bridges of the grid, the grid being formed of profile rod crosses having legs of given length, respective legs of pairs of adjacent crosses abutting one another endwise to form together a side of the smallest mesh opening of the grid, and weld means for securing the profile rod crosses to one another at the mutually abutting ends of the legs thereof; and method of producing the foregoing core support structure

Coral reef structural complexity provides important coastal protection from waves under rising sea levels

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Daniel L.; Rovere, Alessio; Casella, Elisa; Power, Hannah; Canavesio, Remy; Collin, Antoine; Pomeroy, Andrew; Webster, Jody M.; Parravicini, Valeriano

2018-01-01

Coral reefs are diverse ecosystems that support millions of people worldwide by providing coastal protection from waves. Climate change and human impacts are leading to degraded coral reefs and to rising sea levels, posing concerns for the protection of tropical coastal regions in the near future. We use a wave dissipation model calibrated with empirical wave data to calculate the future increase of back-reef wave height. We show that, in the near future, the structural complexity of coral reefs is more important than sea-level rise in determining the coastal protection provided by coral reefs from average waves. We also show that a significant increase in average wave heights could occur at present sea level if there is sustained degradation of benthic structural complexity. Our results highlight that maintaining the structural complexity of coral reefs is key to ensure coastal protection on tropical coastlines in the future. PMID:29503866

METHOD FOR PROVIDING SHAPED BIODEGRADABLE AND ELASTOMERIC STRUCTURES OF (CO) POLYMERS OF 1,3-TRIMETHYLENE CARBONATE (TMC), SHAPED BIODEGRADABLE AND ELASTOMERIC STRUCTURES, AND THE USE OF THESE STRUCTURES

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Grijpma, D.W.; Pêgo, A.P.; Feijen, Jan

2004-01-01

The present invention relates to methods for providing shaped biodegradable and elastomeric structures of (co)polymers of 1,3­trimethylene carbonate (TMC) with improved (mechanical) properties which can be used for tissue or tissue component support, generation or regeneration. Such shaped

Vessel supporting structure for liquid metal cooled nuclear reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahe, Armel; Jullien, Georges

1974-01-01

The supporting structure described is for a liquid metal cooled nuclear reactor, the vessel being of the type suspended to the end slab of the reactor. It includes a ring connected at one of its two ends to a single shell and at the other end to two shells. One of these three shells connected to the lower end of the ring forms the upper part of the vessel to be supported. The two other shells are embedded in two sperate parts of the slab. The ring and shell assembly is housed in an annular space provided in the end slab and separating it into two parts, namely a central part and a peripheral part [fr

Structural evaluation report of piping and support structure for design-changed hot-water layer system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryu, Jeong Soo

1998-05-01

After hot-water layer system had been installed, the verification tests to reduce the radiation level at the top of reactor pool were performed many times. The major goal of this report is to assess the structural integrity on the piping and the support structures of design-changed hot-water layer system. The piping stress analysis was performed by using ADLPIPE program for the pump suction line and the pump discharge line subjected to dead weight, pressure, thermal expansion and seismic loadings. The stress analysis of the support structure was carried out using the reaction forces obtained from the piping stress analysis. The results of structural evaluation for the pipings and the support structures showed that the structural acceptance criteria were satisfied, in compliance with ASME, subsection ND for the piping and subsection NF for the support structures. Therefore based on the results of the analysis and the design, the structural integrity on the piping and the support structures of design-changed hot-water system was proved. (author). 9 refs., 9 tabs., 14 figs

Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of the Need-Supportive Teaching Style Scale for Physical Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jing-Dong; Chung, Pak-Kwong

2017-08-01

The purpose of the current study was to examine the factor structure and measurement invariance of a scale measuring students' perceptions of need-supportive teaching (Need-Supportive Teaching Style Scale in Physical Education; NSTSSPE). We sampled 615 secondary school students in Hong Kong, 200 of whom also completed a follow-up assessment two months later. Factor structure of the scale was examined through exploratory structural equation modeling (ESEM). Further, nomological validity of the NSTSSPE was evaluated by examining the relationships between need-supportive teaching style and student satisfaction of psychological needs. Finally, four measurement models-configural, metric invariance, scalar invariance, and item uniqueness invariance-were assessed using multiple group ESEM to test the measurement invariance of the scale across gender, grade, and time. ESEM results suggested a three-factor structure of the NSTSSPE. Nomological validity was supported, and weak, strong, and strict measurement invariance of the NSTSSPE was evidenced across gender, grade, and time. The current study provides initial psychometric support for the NSTSSPE to assess student perceptions of teachers' need-supportive teaching style in physical education classes.

Employer-provided support services and job dissatisfaction in Canadian registered nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkins, Kathryn; Shields, Margot

2012-10-01

Previous research indicates that nurses' job dissatisfaction relates to their work organization and environment; rarely has the contribution of employer provided support services been examined while controlling for the influence of other factors. The objective of this study was to examine job dissatisfaction among Canadian registered nurses in relation to employer-provided programs for child care and fitness or recreation. Data are from 2,993 respondents to the 2005 National Survey of the Work and Health of Nurses, weighted to represent Canada's 91,600 registered nurses in full-time, permanent positions who deliver direct care in hospitals or long-term care facilities. Multivariate modeling was used to examine job dissatisfaction in relation to employer-provided support programs, controlling for personal characteristics and variables reflecting work organization and the work environment. Employer-provided child care assistance programs were available to 16% of nurses, and fitness or recreation programs were available to 38%. An estimated 13% of nurses were dissatisfied with their jobs. Even when controlling for personal characteristics, overtime, shift work, shift length, weekly hours, overload, staffing inadequacy, autonomy, nurse-physician relations, and coworker respect, inverse associations with job dissatisfaction emerged for employer-supported child care (odds ratio = 0.49, 95% confidence interval = 0.27-0.88) and fitness programs (odds ratio = 0.65, 95% confidence interval = 0.42-0.99). This study provides new information suggesting that employer-provided support programs are protective against nurses' job dissatisfaction. This is a key finding in view of nursing shortages and the importance of job satisfaction to retention.

Framework of the outreach after a school shooting and the students perceptions of the provided support

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tuija Turunen

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Background: A large number of bereaved family members, surviving students, and their relatives as well as school staff and the wider community were in need of psychosocial support as a result of a school shooting in Kauhajoki, Finland, 2008. A multilevel outreach project provided psychosocial care to the trauma-affected families, students, schools staff, and wider community for 2 years and 4 months. Objective: This article is twofold. First, it presents the theoretical rationale behind the psychosocial support and describes the multimodal elements of the services. Second, it analyzes the trauma-exposed students’ help-seeking behavior and perceptions of the usefulness of the support they were offered in different phases of recovery. Method: Information of students’ help-seeking and perceptions of support is based on a follow-up data from 4 months (T1, N=236, 16 months (T2, N=180, and 28 months (T3, N=137 after the shootings. Mean age of students was 24.9 (SD=10.2; 95% women. Their perceptions of the offered psychosocial support were collected with structured and open questions constructed for the study. Results: The results confirmed the importance of enhancing the natural networks after a major trauma and offering additional professional support for those in greatest need. The students’ perceptions of the provided care confirmed that the model of the acute and long-term outreach can be used after major tragedies in diverse situations and in other countries as well.

Framework of the outreach after a school shooting and the students perceptions of the provided support.

Science.gov (United States)

Turunen, Tuija; Haravuori, Henna; Pihlajamäki, Jaakko J; Marttunen, Mauri; Punamäki, Raija-Leena

2014-01-01

A large number of bereaved family members, surviving students, and their relatives as well as school staff and the wider community were in need of psychosocial support as a result of a school shooting in Kauhajoki, Finland, 2008. A multilevel outreach project provided psychosocial care to the trauma-affected families, students, schools staff, and wider community for 2 years and 4 months. This article is twofold. First, it presents the theoretical rationale behind the psychosocial support and describes the multimodal elements of the services. Second, it analyzes the trauma-exposed students' help-seeking behavior and perceptions of the usefulness of the support they were offered in different phases of recovery. Information of students' help-seeking and perceptions of support is based on a follow-up data from 4 months (T1, N=236), 16 months (T2, N=180), and 28 months (T3, N=137) after the shootings. Mean age of students was 24.9 (SD=10.2; 95% women). Their perceptions of the offered psychosocial support were collected with structured and open questions constructed for the study. The results confirmed the importance of enhancing the natural networks after a major trauma and offering additional professional support for those in greatest need. The students' perceptions of the provided care confirmed that the model of the acute and long-term outreach can be used after major tragedies in diverse situations and in other countries as well.

MATHEMATICAL AND INFORMATION SUPPORT FOR CALCULATION AND DESIGN OF TUBE GAS HEATERS LOCATED IN STRUCTURES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

CHORNOMORETS H. Y.

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Raising of problem. For the design and construction of tube gas heaters in building structures to need solve the problems of analysis and synthesis of such heating system. The mathematical model of this system is consists of: mathematical model of the tube gas heater, mathematical model of heat distribution in the building structure and corresponding boundary conditions. To solve the tasks of analysis and synthesis must be appropriate mathematical and information support. Purpose. The purpose of this paper is to describe the developed mathematical and information support that solve the problems of analysis and synthesis of heating systems with gas tube heaters, located in building constructions.Conclusion. Mathematical support includes the development of algorithms and software for the numerical solution of problems analysis and synthesis heating system. Information support includes all the necessary parameters characterizing the thermal properties of materials which used in the heating system, and the parameters characterizing the heat exchange between the coolant and components of the heating system. It was developed algorithms for solving problems of analysis and synthesis heating system with tube gas heater located in structures to use evolutionary search algorithm and software. It was made experimental study and was obtained results allow to calculate the heat transfer from the gas-air mixture to the boundary surface of the building structure. This results and computation will provide full information support for solving problems of analysis and synthesis of the heating system. Was developed mathematical and software support, which allows to solve the problems of analysis and synthesis heating systems with gas tube heaters, located in building structures. Tube gas heaters located in the building structures allows with small capital expenditures to provide space heating. Is necessary to solve the problems of analysis (calculation and

Structural Analysis of Cabinet Support under Static and Seismic Loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, Kwangsub; Lee, Sangjin; Oh, Jinho

2014-01-01

The cabinet support consists of frames including steel channels and steel square tubes. Four tap holes for screw bolts are located on the support frame of a steel channel to fix the cabinet on the support. The channels and square tubes are assembled by welded joints. The cabinet supports are installed on the outer walls of the reactor concrete island. The KEPIC code, MNF, is used for the design of the cabinet support. In this work, the structural integrity of the cabinet support is analyzed under consideration of static and seismic loads. A 3-D finite element model of the cabinet support was developed. The structural integrity of the cabinet support under postulated service loading conditions was evaluated through a static analysis, modal analysis, and response spectrum analysis. From the structural analysis results, it was concluded that the structural integrity of the cabinet support is guaranteed

Webvise: Browser and Proxy support for open hypermedia structuring mechanisms on the WWW

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Grønbæk, Kaj; Sloth, Lennard; Ørbæk, Peter

1999-01-01

Web pages. Support for providing links to/from parts of non-HTML data, such as sound and movie, will be possible via interfaces to plug-ins and Java-based media players. The hypermedia structures are stored in a hypermedia database, developed from the Devise Hypermedia framework, and the service...... be manipulated and used via special Java applets and a pure proxy server solution is provided for users who only need to browse the structures. A user can create and use the external structures as ‘transparency' layers on top of arbitrary Web pages, the user can switch between viewing pages with one or more...

Alignment of the MSGC barrel support structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kari, Tammi; Miikka, Kotamaki; Tommi, Vanhala; Antti, Onnela

1999-01-01

The MSGC barrel is a sub-part of the tracking system of the CMS experiment at the LHC. The mechanical support structure of the MSGC barrel consists of ladder-like support beams carrying the detector modules and of four disks supporting the ladders. The required alignment precision of the modules, a few tens of micrometers, is designed to be obtained by precise part manufacture and by careful measurement of the alignment during the assembly of the structure. In the paper the use of digital photogrammetry for the measurement of the alignment of the disks and for the structural verification is presented. Digital photogrammetry was chosen from a number of potential methods after a careful evaluation. The use of photogrammetry for the structural verification of a prototype is presented. The displacements were measured both of unloaded and loaded disk by using photogrammetry and linear displacement transducers for verification. The displacements obtained from the two measurement methods corresponded well, not only to each other, but also to the results given by finite element analysis. The structural verification will be done and the alignment procedure will be tested with a full-sized prototype of a half of the MSGC barrel. Preparations for the photogrammetry measurements are presented and the design of the required supplementary equipment is shown. (authors)

Alignment of the MSGC barrel support structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kari, Tammi; Miikka, Kotamaki; Tommi, Vanhala [HIP, Helsinki Institute of Physics, CERN/EP, Geneva (Switzerland); Antti, Onnela [CERN, Conseil Europeen pour la recherche nucleaire, Laboratoire europeen pour la physique des particules, Geneve (Switzerland)

1999-07-01

The MSGC barrel is a sub-part of the tracking system of the CMS experiment at the LHC. The mechanical support structure of the MSGC barrel consists of ladder-like support beams carrying the detector modules and of four disks supporting the ladders. The required alignment precision of the modules, a few tens of micrometers, is designed to be obtained by precise part manufacture and by careful measurement of the alignment during the assembly of the structure. In the paper the use of digital photogrammetry for the measurement of the alignment of the disks and for the structural verification is presented. Digital photogrammetry was chosen from a number of potential methods after a careful evaluation. The use of photogrammetry for the structural verification of a prototype is presented. The displacements were measured both of unloaded and loaded disk by using photogrammetry and linear displacement transducers for verification. The displacements obtained from the two measurement methods corresponded well, not only to each other, but also to the results given by finite element analysis. The structural verification will be done and the alignment procedure will be tested with a full-sized prototype of a half of the MSGC barrel. Preparations for the photogrammetry measurements are presented and the design of the required supplementary equipment is shown. (authors)

Performance of pile supported sign structures : [brief].

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-01

Sign structures in Wisconsin are typically supported by drilled shaft foundations or spread : footing foundations. However, when the soil conditions are not suitable to be supported on : drilled shafts or spread footings, a group of piles could suppo...

The Work-Family Support Roles of Child Care Providers across Settings

Science.gov (United States)

Bromer, Juliet; Henly, Julia R.

2009-01-01

This paper presents a qualitative investigation of the work-family support roles of a sample of 29 child care providers serving low-income families in the Chicago area (16 family, friend, and neighbor providers (FFN), 7 licensed family child care providers (FCC), and 6 center-based teachers). Providers report offering low-income parents…

Seismic Dynamic Damage Characteristics of Vertical and Batter Pile-supported Wharf Structure Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Jiren

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Considering a typical steel pipe pile-supported wharf as the research object, finite element analytical models of batter and vertical pile structures were established under the same construction site, service, and geological conditions to investigate the seismic dynamic damage characteristics of vertical and batter pile-supported wharf structures. By the numerical simulation and the nonlinear time history response analysis of structure system and the moment–axial force relation curve, we analyzed the dynamic damage characteristics of the two different structures of batter and vertical piles under different seismic ground motions to provide reasonable basis and reference for designing and selecting a pile-supported wharf structure. Results showed that the axial force of batter piles was dominant in the batter pile structure and that batter piles could effectively bear and share seismic load. Under the seismic ground motion with peak ground acceleration (PGA of 350 Gal and in consideration of the factors of the design requirement of horizontal displacement, the seismic performance of the batter pile structure was better than that of the vertical pile structure. Under the seismic ground motion with a PGA of 1000 Gal, plastic failure occurred in two different structures. The contrastive analysis of the development of plastic damage and the absorption and dissipation for seismic energy indicated that the seismic performance of the vertical pile structure was better than that of the batter pile structure.

Super-light and pearl-chain technology for support of ancient structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hertz, Kristian Dahl; Schmidt, Jacob Wittrup; Goltermann, Per

2014-01-01

optimal and often curved paths of strong concrete assembled from smaller segments by prestressing wires, so that expensive curved moulds and supports can be avoided. Pearl-chains can provide a resistance to impact and earthquake of ancient structures. High-strength concrete and prestressed carbon fibre......The patented super-light technology is inspired by ancient Roman concrete structures with strong concrete placed, where the engineer would like the forces to be, and light concrete fills out the shape stabilizing the strong and protecting it. Pearl-chain technology is invented in order to create...... reinforcement may be applied, because the new technology solves the main problems for that, since the light aggregate concrete provides a fire protection needed for both materials and provides a stabilization of the slender cores in compression. The paper explains more about the new technology...

Providing support to nursing students in the clinical environment: a nursing standard requirement.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Carina; Moxham, Lorna; Broadbent, Marc

2016-10-01

This discussion paper poses the question 'What enables or deters Registered Nurses to take up their professional responsibility to support undergraduate nursing students through the provision of clinical education?'. Embedded within many nursing standards are expectations that Registered Nurses provide support and professional development to undergraduate nursing students undertaking clinical placements. Expectations within nursing standards that Registered Nurses provide support and professional development to nursing students are important because nursing students depend on Registered Nurses to help them to become competent practitioners. Contributing factors that enable and deter Registered Nurses from fulfilling this expectation to support nursing students in their clinical learning include; workloads, preparedness for the teaching role, confidence in teaching and awareness of the competency requirement to support students. Factors exist which can enable or deter Registered Nurses from carrying out the licence requirement to provide clinical education and support to nursing students.

Flat and complex temperate reefs provide similar support for fish: Evidence for a unimodal species-habitat relationship.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Avery B Paxton

Full Text Available Structural complexity, a form of habitat heterogeneity, influences the structure and function of ecological communities, generally supporting increased species density, richness, and diversity. Recent research, however, suggests the most complex habitats may not harbor the highest density of individuals and number of species, especially in areas with elevated human influence. Understanding nuances in relationships between habitat heterogeneity and ecological communities is warranted to guide habitat-focused conservation and management efforts. We conducted fish and structural habitat surveys of thirty warm-temperate reefs on the southeastern US continental shelf to quantify how structural complexity influences fish communities. We found that intermediate complexity maximizes fish abundance on natural and artificial reefs, as well as species richness on natural reefs, challenging the current paradigm that abundance and other fish community metrics increase with increasing complexity. Naturally occurring rocky reefs of flat and complex morphologies supported equivalent abundance, biomass, species richness, and community composition of fishes. For flat and complex morphologies of rocky reefs to receive equal consideration as essential fish habitat (EFH, special attention should be given to detecting pavement type rocky reefs because their ephemeral nature makes them difficult to detect with typical seafloor mapping methods. Artificial reefs of intermediate complexity also maximized fish abundance, but human-made structures composed of low-lying concrete and metal ships differed in community types, with less complex, concrete structures supporting lower numbers of fishes classified largely as demersal species and metal ships protruding into the water column harboring higher numbers of fishes, including more pelagic species. Results of this study are essential to the process of evaluating habitat function provided by different types and shapes of

IMPROVEMENT OF THE SUPPORTING STRUCTURE OF PLATFORM CAR FOR HIGHER EFFICIENCY OF CONTAINER TRANSPORTATIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. O. Lovska

2017-02-01

supporting structure has been proposed. The strength model of the supporting structure for the platform car of articulated type based on the standard platform car has been developed. Results of the research can be used in designing of platform cars of articulated type to provide their strength at mixed transportations.

Design and Analysis of Muon Beam Stop Support Structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okafor, Udenna [Northern Illinois Univ., DeKalb, IL (United States)

2015-01-01

The primary objective of this thesis is to design and analyze support structures to be used in the installation, test and final positioning of the MBS throughout the life of the Mu2e experiment. There several requirements for the MBS imposed by both the scope of the experiment and, other components within the DS bore. The functions of the MBS are: 1. To limit the induced rates in the Tracker, the Calorimeter and the Cosmic Ray Veto due to backsplash-and-secondary interactions, and 2. To reduce radiation levels external to the Detector solenoid. The structures used in supporting the MBS will also adhere to requirements imposed by its functions. These requirements are critical to the support structures and affect design decisions. Other requirements critical to the design are imposed by the weight, positional tolerance and assembly procedure of the MBS, and also, the magnetic field and vacuum dose rate of the DS bore. A detailed breakdown of how each requirement affects the structural design can be found in chapter 2. Chapter 3 describes the design of each support structure and its attachment to the MBS while chapter 4 describes the results from structural analysis of the support structures. Chapter 5 describes evaluation for the design through testing and calculations while the conclusion in chapter 6 reports the current status at the time of this thesis submission with a plan for future work to be completed until final design and installation.

Manufacture and installation of JET MKII divertor support structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Celentano, G.; Altmann, H.; Macklin, B.; Miele, P.; Pick, M.A.; Tait, J.; Moletta, L.; Romagnolo, A.; Shaw, R.

1995-01-01

The water cooled support structure, comprising twenty-four modules is the main component of the JET MKII divertor system. It is to be installed in the vacuum vessel with high accuracy with respect to the magnetic center and the other in-vessel components. The paper describes the design and manufacturing cycle including the required tolerances, the assembly and installation method and the material production process required to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the MKII support structure system. The water cooling holes, machined into the support structure require the procurement of special material to prevent risks of leaks inside the vacuum vessel

[Functional characteristics of flexible supporting structures for heart valve bioprosthesis].

Science.gov (United States)

Dobrova, N B; Agafonov, A V; Barbarash, L S; Zavalishin, N N; Neniukov, A K

1984-01-01

Hydraulic characteristics of heart valve bioprostheses mounted on supporting structures of various rigidity have been studied under physiologic conditions. An actual mobility of the supporting structures made of different polymers is determined. Static and dynamic components of the support displacements have been shown to develop as the bioprosthesis is under the load, the dynamic component being strongly dependent upon the rigidity of fastening the bioprosthesis on the axis. It is noted that considerable improvements in hydraulic characteristics of bioprostheses are achieved through the use of flexible supporting structures.

Vertical load analysis of cylindrical ACS support structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kennedy, J.M.; Belytschko, T.B.

1984-01-01

A new concept in LMFBR design ACS (above-core structures) supports which has generated some interest is to use a single large radius cylinder. The advantages of a single cylinder are reduced cost of fabrication, increased lateral stiffness, which enhances seismic resistance, and easier access to the fuel. However, the performance of these support structures when submitted to vertical loads from the core area may be substantially different, for the buckling and postbuckling behavior of a cylinder differs substantially from that of cylindrical beams. In this paper, a comparative analysis of an old prototypical support by 4 columns is compared with a cylindrical support. It is assumed that the single cylinder replaces the 4 columns in the original design. The dimensions of the two designs are compared

Organizational Structures that Support Internal Program Evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Lambur, Michael T.

2008-01-01

This chapter explores how the structure of large complex organizations such as Cooperative Extension affects their ability to support internal evaluation of their programs and activities. Following a literature review of organizational structure and its relation to internal evaluation capacity, the chapter presents the results of interviews with…

Towards a Tool for Computer Supported Structuring of Products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Claus Thorp

1997-01-01

. However, a product possesses not only a component structure but also various organ structures which are superimposed on the component structure. The organ structures carry behaviour and make the product suited for its life phases.Our long-term research goal is to develop a computer-based system...... that is capable of supporting synthesis activities in engineering design, and thereby also support handling of various organ structures. Such a system must contain a product model, in which it is possible to describe and manipulate both various organ structures and the component structure.In this paper we focus...... on the relationships between organ structures and the component structure. By an analysis of an existing product it is shown that a component may contribute to more than one organ. A set of organ structures is identified and their influence on the component strucute is illustrated....

Earthquake-proof support structures for the recycling pump in FBR type reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakagawa, Masaki; Shigeta, Masayuki.

1984-01-01

Purpose: To improve the earthquake proofness of the recycling pump for use in FBR type reactors upon earthquake by reducing the vibration response of the pump. Constitution: The outer casing of a recycle pump suspended into liquid sodium is extended to the portion that penetrates a reactor core support structures. Support structures surrounding the outer side of the recycling pump are disposed with a gap not restraining the free thermal deformations of the recycling pump to the inside of the partition wall structures and the portion of the recycling pump penetrating the reator core support structures, to integrate the support structures with the reactor core support structures. Accordingly, there are no interferences between the recycling pump and the support structures with respect to the thermal deformations that change gradually with time. Upon vibrating under the rapidly changing external forces of earthquakes, however, the pressure resulted to the liquid in the gap due to the vibrations of the recycling pump is transmitted with no escape to the support structures, the recycling pump and the support structures integrally resist the vibrations thereby enabling to reduce the vibrations in the recycling pumps. (Horiuchi, T.)

Indicial response test for the support post structure of VHTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Futakawa, Masatoshi; Kikuchi, Kenji; Tachibana, Katsumi; Muto, Yasushi

1985-11-01

Fuel blocks and removable reflector blocks, which constitute a core of VHTR, are supported by support posts. Each support post is in contact with a hot plenum block at the top end and with a lower plenum block at the bottom end through hemispherical seats to absorb a relative displacement generated by the lateral movement of both blocks by means of small inclination or rotation of support posts. Indicial response tests have been carried out by using a specified one-dimensional vibration model in order to estimate the effects of the support post length, the mass of hot plenum block and the hemispherical radii of both support and post seat on the vibrational characteristics in the support post structure. Futhermore the experimental results have been compared with the analytical ones obtained from the Lagrange's equation. The following are the conclusions derived. (1) The hemispherical radii of support post and post seat have a large effect on the frequency of vibration in the support post structure. (2) The frequency of vibration in the support post structure is predictable using the Lagrange's equation. (author)

Provider-identified barriers and facilitators to implementing a supported employment program in spinal cord injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Cotner, Bridget A; Ottomanelli, Lisa; O'Connor, Danielle R; Trainor, John K

2018-06-01

In a 5-year study, individual placement and support (IPS) significantly increased employment rate of United States Veterans with spinal cord injury (SCI), a historically underemployed population. In a follow-up study, data on barriers and facilitators to IPS implementation were identified. Over 24 months of implementation, 82 key medical and vocational staff underwent semi-structured interviews (n = 130). Interviews were digitally recorded and qualitatively analyzed (ATLAS.ti v0.7) using a constant comparative method to generate themes. Some barriers to implementation occurred throughout the study, such as Veterans' lack of motivation and providers' difficulty integrating vocational and medical rehabilitation. Other barriers emerged at specific stages, for example, early barriers included a large geographic service area and a large patient caseload, and late barriers included need for staff education. Facilitators were mostly constant throughout implementation and included leadership support and successful integration of vocational staff into the medical care team. Implementation strategies need to be adjusted as implementation progresses and matures. The strategies that succeeded in this setting, which were situated in a real-world context of providing IPS as a part of SCI medical care, may inform implementation of IPS for other populations with physical disabilities. Implications for Rehabilitation Key facilitators to IPS in SCI implementation are integrating vocational staff with expertise in IPS and SCI on clinical rehabilitation teams and providing leadership support. Ongoing barriers to IPS in SCI include patient specific and program administration factors such as caseload size and staffing patterns. Varying implementation strategies are needed to address barriers as they arise and facilitate successful implementation.

Self-centering connections for traffic sign supporting structures.

Science.gov (United States)

2015-03-01

Steel structures supporting traffic sign panels are designed as intended to dissipate energy by : yielding structural members during severe wind loading (ex. strong hurricanes). Yielding results : in inelastic deformations, which are permanent damage...

The development of the design method of nuclear piping system supported by elasto-plastic support structures (Part 1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Endo, R.; Murota, M.; Kawahata, J.-I.; Sato, T.; Mekomoto, Y.; Takayama, Y.; Kobayashi, H.; Hirose, J.

1993-01-01

The conventional aseismic design method of nuclear piping system is very conservative because of the accumulation of various safety factors in the design process, and nuclear piping systems are thought to have a large safety margin. Considering this situation, we promoted research to further rationalize nuclear power plants by reducing the amount of support structures and reducing the piping seismic response through vibration energy absorption resulting from the elasto-plastic behavior of piping support structures. The research has the following three stages. In the first stage, we select conventional piping support structures in Japanese light-water reactors that exhibit elasto-plastic behavior, and study the displacement dependency and the vibration frequency dependency on the stiffness and the energy absorption by testing their model. In the second stage, we make a piping test model with support structures whose characteristics have already been obtained, and perform vibration tests on a shaking table. In this way, we analyze the piping vibration characteristics by sinusoidal wave sweep tests and the piping response characteristics by seismic wave vibration tests, when the support structures are in an elasto-plastic condition. In the third stage, a general method is developed to evaluate the characteristics of the support structures obtained in the tests and it is applied to the evaluation of the characteristics of general support structures. A simplified analysis method is developed to evaluate the piping seismic response using the piping model test result. To expand the results mentioned above, we are developing a seismic design method of piping systems that allows support structures to have elasto-plastic behaviour. This paper reports the results of experiments conducted under the joint research program of Japanese electric power companies with support elements in the first stage and those with piping models in the second stage

Development and Application of an Evaluation Method for the Supporting Structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Young Ho; Lee, Kang Hee; Kim, Jae Yong; Yoon, Kyung Ho; Kim, Hyung Kyu

2009-01-01

A dual cooled fuel (i.e. annular fuel) has both internal and external cooling which would allow a substantial increase in power density and safety margins compared to a solid fuel in operating PWR plants. When considering the sufficient cross-sectional area of the internal cooling channel and an acceptable amount of fuel pellet, the diameter of an outer tube should be increased for applying the compatible design concept of the dual cooled fuel to current operating PWRs. However, this results in a narrow gap between a dual cooled fuel rod and its supporting structure due to a fixed fuel assembly size. As all the fuel rods should be supported with safety and reliability for operating periods, any kinds of supporting structures should be installed in a dual cooled fuel assembly. Consequently, the positions of supporting structures around the dual cooled fuel rod should be modified from the rod-to-rod center to subchannel regions of grid structure and their shapes are designed and improved based on the advantages of current spacer grid technologies. Even though the vibration characteristics of the dual cooled fuel rod itself were not systematically evaluated, the characteristics of designed supporting structures and their wear resistances should be evaluated at the initial development stage. In this study, the evaluation method for the characteristics of designed supporting structures is developed by using a new test rig and compared with the analytical results. The final objective is to develop the evaluation method of their fretting wear resistances which accommodates the various shape of supporting structures without actual Zirconium supporting structures

Fuel assembly supporting structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aisch, F.W.; Fuchs, H.P.; Knoedler, D.; Steinke, A.; Steven, J.

1976-01-01

For use in forming the core of a pressurized-water reactor, a fuel assembly supporting structure for holding a bundle of interspaced fuel rods, is formed by interspaced end pieces having holes in which the end portions of control rod guide tubes are inserted, fuel rod spacer grids being positioned by these guide tubes between the end pieces. The end pieces are fastened to the end portions of the guide tubes, to integrate the supporting structure, and in the case of at least one of the end pieces, this is done by means which releases that end piece from the guide tubes when the end pieces receive an abnormal thrust force directed towards each other and which would otherwise place the guide tubes under a compressive stress that would cause them to buckle. The spacer grids normally hold the fuel rods interspaced by distances determined by nuclear physics, and buckling of the control rod guide tubes can distort the fuel rod spacer grids with consequent dearrangement of the fuel rod interspacing. A sudden loss of pressure in a pressurized-water reactor pressure vessel can result in the pressurized coolant in the vessel discharging from the vessel at such high velocity as to result in the abnormal thrust force on the end pieces of each fuel assembly, which could cause buckling of the control rod guide tubes when the end pieces are fixed to them in the normal rigid and unyielding manner

Simultaneous topology optimization of structures and supports

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Buhl, Thomas

2002-01-01

supported areas. The method is applied to compliance minimization and mechanism design. In the case of mechanism design, the large displacements of the mechanism are modelled using geometrically nonlinear FE-analysis. Examples with minimization of the compliance demonstrate the effects of using variable......The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a method for and the benefits of simultaneously designing structure and support distribution using topology optimization. The support conditions are included in the topology optimization by introducing, a new set of design variables that represents...... cost of supports in a design domain. Other examples show that more efficient mechanisms are obtained by introducing the support conditions in the topology optimization problem....

Final report WP 4.2 : Support Structure Concepts for Deep Water Sites: Deliverable D4.2.8 (WP4: offshore foundations and support structures)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Vries, W.E.; Vemula, N.K.; Passon, P.; Fischer, T.; Kaufer, D.; Matha, D.; Schmidt, B.; Vorpahl, F.

2011-01-01

With the number of offshore wind farms rapidly increasing, in a wide variety of site conditions and using different turbine sizes, the need for alternative support structures other than the conventional monopile structure is apparent and several projects have been realised using other support

Structural analysis of TFTR TF coils and support structure for 6 Tesla operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zatz, I.J.; Cargulia, G.; Lontai, L.

1995-01-01

The Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor (TFTR), which has been on line since December 1982, has successfully operated at its design Toroidal Field (TF) of 5.2 Tesla. Analysis of test data has indicated that the measured peak D-D neutron power in supershots may be scaled to the fourth power of TF field. Increasing the TF field to 6 Tesla provides the opportunity to explore the possibility of improving the D-T fusion yield, with the use of tritium. This increase in TF field from 5.2 to 6.0 Tesla increases the centering force by 33% and the out-of-plane force by 15% over previous peak operating levels. To examine the impact of the increase in loads on the TF coil, case and supporting structure, finite element analyses (FEA) were performed with and without the presence of loose bolts in the TF case. Note that the loose bolts comprise a fraction of the total number of bolts fastening the TF case sidewalls to the inner and outer rings of the case. Extensive analysis was performed using the FEA results in conjunction with supplementary calculations. Results are presented for the TF case, bolts, copper conductors, insulation, and supporting structure which indicate that the TF coils can successfully operate at 6 Tesla for a reasonable number of pulses

Layout of PWR in-core instrumentation system tubing and support structure with Bechtel 3D-CADD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ichikawa, T.; Pfeifer, B.W.; Mulay, J.N.

1987-01-01

The optimization study of the PWR In-Core Instrumentation System (ICIS) tubing layout and support structure presented an opportunity to utilize the Bechtel 3D-CADD program to perform this task. This paper provides a brief summary of the Bechtel 3D-CADD program development and capabilities and outlines the process of developing and optimizing the ICIS tube layout. Specific aspects relating to the ICIS tube layout criteria, support, alignment, electronic interference check and erection sequence are provided. (orig.)

A Guide to Providing Social Support for Apprentices. Good Practice Guide

Science.gov (United States)

National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER), 2016

2016-01-01

The main purpose of this guide is to provide some ideas for employers of apprentices to provide an environment in which strong informal bases of support can succeed. Formal mentoring is an important aspect of apprenticeships; however, it is also informal mentoring--practices that are difficult to formally nurture--that plays a significant and…

Swarm Intelligence: New Techniques for Adaptive Systems to Provide Learning Support

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Lung-Hsiang; Looi, Chee-Kit

2012-01-01

The notion of a system adapting itself to provide support for learning has always been an important issue of research for technology-enabled learning. One approach to provide adaptivity is to use social navigation approaches and techniques which involve analysing data of what was previously selected by a cluster of users or what worked for…

Self-supporting rhombic infill structures for additive manufacturing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wu, Jun; Wang, Charlie C.L.; Zhang, Xiaoting

2016-01-01

Recent work has demonstrated that the interior material layout of a 3D model can be designed to make a fabricated replica satisfy application-specific demands on its physical properties, such as resistance to external loads. A widely used practice to fabricate such models is by layer-based additive...... manufacturing (AM), which however suffers from the problem of adding and removing interior supporting structures. In this paper, we present a novel method for generating application-specific infill structures on rhombic cells so that the resultant structures can automatically satisfy manufacturing requirements...... on overhang-angle and wall-thickness. Additional supporting structures can be avoided entirely in our framework. To achieve this, we introduce the usage of an adaptive rhombic grid, which is built from an input surface model. Starting from the initial sparse set of rhombic cells, via numerical optimization...

The development of design method of nuclear piping system supported by elasto-plastic support structures (part 2)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Endo, R.; Murota, M.; Kawabata, J-I.; Hirose, J.; Nekomoto, Y.; Takayama, Y.; Kobayashi, H.

1995-01-01

The conventional seismic design method of nuclear piping system is very conservative because of the accumulation of various safety factors in the design process, and nuclear piping systems are thought to have a large safety margin. Considering this situations, research program was promoted to furthermore rationalize nuclear power plants by reducing the amount of support structures and reducing the piping's seismic response through vibration energy absorption resulting from the elasto-plastic behavior of piping support structures. The research had the following three stages. In the first stage, we selected conventional piping support structures in light-water reactors that exhibited elasto-plastic behavior, and studied the effect of displacement and the vibration frequency on the stiffness and on the energy absorption by testing these models. In the second stage, vibration tests were performed using piping models with support structures on shaking tables. The piping vibration characteristics were clarified by sinusoidal sweep tests and the piping response characteristics by seismic wave vibration tests when the support structures were in an elasto-plastic condition. In the third stage, a general method was developed to evaluate the characteristics of a variety of support structures in the tests. A simplified analysis method was also developed to evaluate the piping seismic response using the piping model test result. To expand the results mentioned above, we also established a new seismic design method of piping systems that allowed support structures to have elasto-plastic behavior. This paper reports the newly developed seismic design method based on the results of experiments conducted under the joint research program of Japanese electric power companies (The Japan Atomic Power Co., Hokkaido EPC, Tohoku EPC, Tokyo EPC, Chubu EPC, Hokuriku EPC, Kansai EPC, Chugoku EPC, Shikoku EPC, Kyushu EPC) and nuclear plant makers (Hitachi Ltd., Toshiba Co., MHI Ltd., HEC Ltd

Engineering Analyses of NCSX Modular Coil and Its Supporting Structure for EM Loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fan, H.M.; Williamson, D.

2003-01-01

NCSX modular coil is a major parts of the NCSX coil systems that surround the highly shaped plasma and vacuum vessel. The flexible copper cable conductors are used to form modular coil on both sides of the ''tee'' beam, which is cast inside the supporting shell structure. The Engineering analyses comprise sequentially coupled-field analyses that include an electromagnetic analysis to calculate the magnetic fields and EM forces, and a structural analysis to evaluate the structural responses. In the sequential EM-structural analysis, nodal forces obtained from the EM analysis were applied as ''nodal force'' loads in the subsequent stress analysis using the identical nodal points and elements. The shell model was imported directly from Pro/ENGINEER files in order to obtain an accurate structural representation. The Boolean operations provided by the ANSYS preprocessor were then applied to subdivide the solid model for more desirable finite element meshing. Material properties of the modular coil were based on test results. Analyses using the ANSYS program to evaluate structural responses of the complicated modular coil systems provided a clear understanding of the structural behaviors and the directions for improving the structural design

The use of counselling principles and skills to develop practitioner-athlete relationships by practitioners who provide sport psychology support

OpenAIRE

Longstaff, Fran; Gervis, Misia

2016-01-01

This study examined how practitioners who provide sport psychology support use counselling principles and skills to develop practitioner-athlete relationships. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with thirteen competent practitioners (Mean age = 41.2 ± 10.9 years old, five men, eight women). Thematic analysis revealed that the participants used a range of counselling principles to develop practitioner-athlete relationships including: the facilitative conditions, self-disclosure, counsel...

Generalized Nuclear Data: A New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling Nuclear Data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mattoon, C.M.; Beck, B.R.; Patel, N.R.; Summers, N.C.; Hedstrom, G.W.; Brown, D.A.

2012-01-01

The Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) format was designed in the 1960s to accommodate neutron reaction data to support nuclear engineering applications in power, national security and criticality safety. Over the years, the scope of the format has been extended to handle many other kinds of data including charged particle, decay, atomic, photo-nuclear and thermal neutron scattering. Although ENDF has wide acceptance and support for many data types, its limited support for correlated particle emission, limited numeric precision, and general lack of extensibility mean that the nuclear data community cannot take advantage of many emerging opportunities. More generally, the ENDF format provides an unfriendly environment that makes it difficult for new data evaluators and users to create and access nuclear data. The Cross Section Evaluation Working Group (CSEWG) has begun the design of a new Generalized Nuclear Data (or 'GND') structure, meant to replace older formats with a hierarchy that mirrors the underlying physics, and is aligned with modern coding and database practices. In support of this new structure, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has updated its nuclear data/reactions management package Fudge to handle GND structured nuclear data. Fudge provides tools for converting both the latest ENDF format (ENDF-6) and the LLNL Evaluated Nuclear Data Library (ENDL) format to and from GND, as well as for visualizing, modifying and processing (i.e., converting evaluated nuclear data into a form more suitable to transport codes) GND structured nuclear data. GND defines the structure needed for storing nuclear data evaluations and the type of data that needs to be stored. But unlike ENDF and ENDL, GND does not define how the data are to be stored in a file. Currently, Fudge writes the structured GND data to a file using the eXtensible Markup Language (XML), as it is ASCII based and can be viewed with any text editor. XML is a meta-language, meaning that it

Generalized Nuclear Data: A New Structure (with Supporting Infrastructure) for Handling Nuclear Data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mattoon, C.M. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore CA (United States); Beck, B.R.; Patel, N.R.; Summers, N.C.; Hedstrom, G.W. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore CA (United States); Brown, D.A. [National Nuclear Data Center, Upton NY (United States)

2012-12-15

The Evaluated Nuclear Data File (ENDF) format was designed in the 1960s to accommodate neutron reaction data to support nuclear engineering applications in power, national security and criticality safety. Over the years, the scope of the format has been extended to handle many other kinds of data including charged particle, decay, atomic, photo-nuclear and thermal neutron scattering. Although ENDF has wide acceptance and support for many data types, its limited support for correlated particle emission, limited numeric precision, and general lack of extensibility mean that the nuclear data community cannot take advantage of many emerging opportunities. More generally, the ENDF format provides an unfriendly environment that makes it difficult for new data evaluators and users to create and access nuclear data. The Cross Section Evaluation Working Group (CSEWG) has begun the design of a new Generalized Nuclear Data (or 'GND') structure, meant to replace older formats with a hierarchy that mirrors the underlying physics, and is aligned with modern coding and database practices. In support of this new structure, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has updated its nuclear data/reactions management package Fudge to handle GND structured nuclear data. Fudge provides tools for converting both the latest ENDF format (ENDF-6) and the LLNL Evaluated Nuclear Data Library (ENDL) format to and from GND, as well as for visualizing, modifying and processing (i.e., converting evaluated nuclear data into a form more suitable to transport codes) GND structured nuclear data. GND defines the structure needed for storing nuclear data evaluations and the type of data that needs to be stored. But unlike ENDF and ENDL, GND does not define how the data are to be stored in a file. Currently, Fudge writes the structured GND data to a file using the eXtensible Markup Language (XML), as it is ASCII based and can be viewed with any text editor. XML is a meta-language, meaning that it

Structural Integrity Evaluation of the KALIMER-600 Reactor Core Support Structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Chang Gyu; Kim, Jong Bum; Lee, Jae Han

2005-01-01

KALIMER-600(Korea Advanced LIquid MEtal Reactor, 600MWe) is a pool type sodium-cooled liquid metal reactor. Since the normal operating temperature of KALIMER-600 is 545 .deg. C, the reactor structures in the hot pool region are designed and evaluated according to the elevated temperature design rules such as the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code Section III, Subsection NH. Since the core support structure of KALIMER-600 is in the cold pool region under 400 .deg. C, a high temperature inelastic behavior is not expected. Thus the stress and fatigue limits are the main concerns to assure the structural design integrity following the ASME Subsection NG. In this paper, the evaluations of the stress and fatigue damage for the core support structure of KALIMER-600 are carrried out in the case of a normal operation condition using the rules of ASME Subsection NG. To obtain the stress values, a heat transfer analysis and a stress analysis under a combined loading condition are performed. From the stress distribution results, the critical sections are selected and the stress and fatigue limits are evaluated for the selected regions

Surface/structure functionalization of copper-based catalysts by metal-support and/or metal–metal interactions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Konsolakis, Michalis, E-mail: mkonsol@science.tuc.gr [School of Production Engineering and Management, Technical University of Crete, GR-73100 Chania, Crete (Greece); Ioakeimidis, Zisis [Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Western Macedonia, Bakola and Sialvera, GR-50100 Kozani (Greece)

2014-11-30

Highlights: • The surface chemistry of Cu-based catalysts is adjusted by metal-support or metal–metal interactions. • Three series of catalysts, i.e., Cu/REOs, Cu/Ce{sub 1−x}Sm{sub x}O{sub δ} and Cu–Co/CeO{sub 2} were prepared. • The local structure of Cu sites is remarkably affected by support or active phase modification. • Useful insights toward the fundamental understanding of Cu-catalyzed reactions are provided. - Abstract: Cu-based catalysts have recently attracted great attention both in catalysis and electro-catalysis fields due to their excellent catalytic performance and low cost. Given that their performance is determined, to a great extent, by Cu sites local environment, considerable efforts have been devoted on the strategic modifications of the electronic and structural properties of Cu sites. In this regard, the feasibility of tuning the local structure of Cu entities by means of metal-support or metal–metal interactions is investigated. More specifically, the physicochemical properties of Cu entities are modified by employing: (i) different oxides (CeO{sub 2}, La{sub 2}O{sub 3}, Sm{sub 2}O{sub 3}), or (ii) ceria-based mixed oxides (Ce{sub 1−x}Sm{sub x}O{sub δ}) as supporting carriers, and (iii) a second metal (Cobalt) adjacent to Cu (bimetallic Cu–Co/CeO{sub 2}). A characterization study, involving BET, XRD, TPR, and XPS, reveal that significant modifications on structural, redox and electronic properties of Cu sites can be induced by adopting either different oxide carriers or bimetallic complexes. Fundamental insights into the tuning of Cu local environment by metal-support or metal–metal interactions are provided, paving the way for real-life industrial applications.

Structural assessments of plate type support system for APR1400 reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nguyen, Anh Tung; Namgung, Ihn, E-mail: inamgung@kings.ac.kr

2017-04-01

Highlights: • This paper investigates plate-type support structure for the reactor vessel of the APR 1400. • The tall column supports of APR1400 reactor challenges in seismic and severe accident events. • A plate-type support of reactor vessel was proposed and evaluated based on ASME code. • The plate-type support was assessed to show its higher rigidity than column-type. - Abstract: This paper investigates an alternative form of support structure for the reactor vessel of the APR 1400. The current reactor vessel adopts a four-column support arrangement locating on the cold legs of the vessel. Although having been successfully designed, the tall column structure challenges in seismic events. In addition, for the mitigation of severe accident consequences, the columns inhibit ex-vessel coolant flow, hence the elimination of the support columns proposes extra safety advantages. A plate-type support was proposed and evaluated for the adequacy of meeting the structural stiffness by Finite Element Analysis (FEA) approach. ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code was used to verify the design. The results, which cover thermal and static structural analysis, show stresses are within allowable limits in accordance with the design code. Even the heat conduction area is increased for the plate-type of support system, the results showed that the thermal stresses are within allowable limits. A comparison of natural frequencies and mode shapes for column support and plate-type support were presented as well which showed higher fundamental frequencies for the plate-type support system resulting in greater rigidity of the support system. From the outcome of this research, the plate-type support is proven to be an alternative to current APR column type support design.

Creating a Structured Support System for Postsecondary Success

Science.gov (United States)

White, Carol Cutler

2018-01-01

For numerous reasons, it can be difficult for foster youth to succeed in postsecondary education. This chapter offers insight into state-level policies and programs, community college programs dedicating to supporting foster youth, and a framework for creating a structured support system to increase student success.

Assembly, Loading, and Cool‐down of the FRESCA2 Support Structure

CERN Document Server

Muñoz Garcia, J E; Ziemianski, D T; Rondeaux, F; de Rijk, G; Bajas, H; Rifflet, J M; Perez, J C; Durante, M; Charrondiere, M; Bajko, M; Devaux, M; Guinchard, M; Ferracin, P; Fessia, P; Manil, P

2014-01-01

This paper reports on the assembly process and cool-down to cryogenic temperature of the support structure of FRESCA2, which is a dipole magnet for upgrading the actual CERN cable test facility FRESCA. The structure of the FRESCA2 magnet is designed to provide the adequate pre-stress, through the use of keys, bladders, and an Al alloy shrinking cylinder. In order to qualify the assembly and loading procedures, the structure was assembled with Al blocks (dummy coils) that replaced the brittle Nb$_{3}$Sn coils, and then cooled-down to 77 K with liquid nitrogen. The evolution of the mechanical behaviour was monitored via strain gauges located on different components of the structure (shell, rods, yokes and dummy coils). We focus on the expected stresses within the structure after assembly, loading and cool-down. The expected stresses were determined from the 3D finite element model of the structure. A comparison of the 3D model stress predictions with the strain gauge data measurements is made. The coherence bet...

Seismic tests of a pile-supported structure in liquefiable sand using large-scale blast excitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamijo, Naotaka; Saito, Hideaki; Kusama, Kazuhiro; Kontani, Osamu; Nigbor, Robert

2004-01-01

Extensive, large-amplitude vibration tests of a pile-supported structure in a liquefiable sand deposit have been performed at a large-scale mining site. Ground motions from large-scale blasting operations were used as excitation forces for vibration tests. A simple pile-supported structure was constructed in an excavated 3 m-deep pit. The test pit was backfilled with 100% water-saturated clean uniform sand. Accelerations were measured on the pile-supported structure, in the sand in the test pit, and in the adjacent free field. Excess pore water pressures in the test pit and strains of one pile were also measured. Vibration tests were performed with six different levels of input motions. The maximum horizontal acceleration recorded at the adjacent ground surface varied from 20 Gals to 1353 Gals. These alternations of acceleration provided different degrees of liquefaction in the test pit. Sand boiling phenomena were observed in the test pit with larger input motions. This paper outlines vibration tests and investigates the test results

Co-Assembled Supported Catalysts: Synthesis of Nano-Structured Supported Catalysts with Hierarchic Pores through Combined Flow and Radiation Induced Co-Assembled Nano-Reactors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Galip Akay

2016-05-01

Full Text Available A novel generic method of silica supported catalyst system generation from a fluid state is presented. The technique is based on the combined flow and radiation (such as microwave, thermal or UV induced co-assembly of the support and catalyst precursors forming nano-reactors, followed by catalyst precursor decomposition. The transformation from the precursor to supported catalyst oxide state can be controlled from a few seconds to several minutes. The resulting nano-structured micro-porous silica supported catalyst system has a surface area approaching 300 m2/g and X-ray Diffraction (XRD-based catalyst size controlled in the range of 1–10 nm in which the catalyst structure appears as lamellar sheets sandwiched between the catalyst support. These catalyst characteristics are dependent primarily on the processing history as well as the catalyst (Fe, Co and Ni studied when the catalyst/support molar ratio is typically 0.1–2. In addition, Ca, Mn and Cu were used as co-catalysts with Fe and Co in the evaluation of the mechanism of catalyst generation. Based on extensive XRD, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM studies, the micro- and nano-structure of the catalyst system were evaluated. It was found that the catalyst and silica support form extensive 0.6–2 nm thick lamellar sheets of 10–100 nm planar dimensions. In these lamellae, the alternate silica support and catalyst layer appear in the form of a bar-code structure. When these lamellae structures pack, they form the walls of a micro-porous catalyst system which typically has a density of 0.2 g/cm3. A tentative mechanism of catalyst nano-structure formation is provided based on the rheology and fluid mechanics of the catalyst/support precursor fluid as well as co-assembly nano-reactor formation during processing. In order to achieve these structures and characteristics, catalyst support must be in the form of silane coated silica nano

Factors Supporting the Employment of Young Adult Peer Providers: Perspectives of Peers and Supervisors.

Science.gov (United States)

Delman, Jonathan; Klodnick, Vanessa V

2017-10-01

Peer providers are a promising practice for transition-age youth community mental health treatment engagement and support, yet little is known about the experience of being a young adult peer provider or what helps to make an individual in this role successful. Utilizing a capital theory lens, this study uses data from focus groups (two with young adult peer providers and two with their supervisors) to examine facilitators of young adult peer provider success in community mental health treatment settings. Eight factors were identified as critical to young adult peer provider on-the-job success: persistence, job confidence, resilience, job training, skilled communications with colleagues, regular and individualized supervision, support from colleagues, and family support. Findings suggest that young adult peer providers may benefit immensely from an agency level focus on fostering social organizational capital as well as more individualized efforts to increase cultural, social, and psychological capital through training and supervision.

Assessing diabetes support in adolescents: factor structure of the Modified Diabetes Social Support Questionnaire (M-DSSQ-Family)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Malik, J.A.; Koot, H.M.

2011-01-01

Objectives: To determine the underlying factor structure of diabetes specific support using a modified diabetes family social support questionnaire, the M-DSSQ-Family, in one half of a sample of adolescents with type 1 diabetes, confirm it in the second half, test invariance in factor structure

LED provides engineering and electrooptics support to the Laser Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pehrson, D.

1985-01-01

The work of the Laser Engineering Division is reviewed. The division provides engineering and electrooptics support to the laser program. The laser program has been an integral part of the efforts to explore the potential of lasers in harnessing thermonuclear fusion for energy and for defense-related physics studies and in efficiently separating fissile fuels

Tuning the Electronic Structure of Titanium Oxide Support to Enhance the Electrochemical Activity of Platinum Nanoparticles

KAUST Repository

Shi, Feifei

2013-09-11

Two times higher activity and three times higher stability in methanol oxidation reaction, a 0.12 V negative shift of the CO oxidation peak potential, and a 0.07 V positive shift of the oxygen reaction potential compared to Pt nanoparticles on pristine TiO2 support were achieved by tuning the electronic structure of the titanium oxide support of Pt nanoparticle catalysts. This was accomplished by adding oxygen vacancies or doping with fluorine. Experimental trends are interpreted in the context of an electronic structure model, showing an improvement in electrochemical activity when the Fermi level of the support material in Pt/TiOx systems is close to the Pt Fermi level and the redox potential of the reaction. The present approach provides guidance for the selection of the support material of Pt/TiOx systems and may be applied to other metal-oxide support materials, thus having direct implications in the design and optimization of fuel cell catalyst supports. © 2013 American Chemical Society.

Rationales for Support That African American Grandmothers Provide to Their Children Who Are Parenting Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Sumo, Jen'nea; Dancy, Barbara; Julion, Wrenetha; Wilbur, JoEllen

2015-01-01

African American grandmothers are known to be a major source of support for their children who are parenting adolescents, but little is known about why they provide support. The purpose of this study was to describe the kinds of support provided by African American maternal and paternal grandmothers to their parenting adolescents and the reasons…

Modern Theories of Pelvic Floor Support : A Topical Review of Modern Studies on Structural and Functional Pelvic Floor Support from Medical Imaging, Computational Modeling, and Electromyographic Perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Peng, Yun; Miller, Brandi D; Boone, Timothy B; Zhang, Yingchun

2018-02-12

Weakened pelvic floor support is believed to be the main cause of various pelvic floor disorders. Modern theories of pelvic floor support stress on the structural and functional integrity of multiple structures and their interplay to maintain normal pelvic floor functions. Connective tissues provide passive pelvic floor support while pelvic floor muscles provide active support through voluntary contraction. Advanced modern medical technologies allow us to comprehensively and thoroughly evaluate the interaction of supporting structures and assess both active and passive support functions. The pathophysiology of various pelvic floor disorders associated with pelvic floor weakness is now under scrutiny from the combination of (1) morphological, (2) dynamic (through computational modeling), and (3) neurophysiological perspectives. This topical review aims to update newly emerged studies assessing pelvic floor support function among these three categories. A literature search was performed with emphasis on (1) medical imaging studies that assess pelvic floor muscle architecture, (2) subject-specific computational modeling studies that address new topics such as modeling muscle contractions, and (3) pelvic floor neurophysiology studies that report novel devices or findings such as high-density surface electromyography techniques. We found that recent computational modeling studies are featured with more realistic soft tissue constitutive models (e.g., active muscle contraction) as well as an increasing interest in simulating surgical interventions (e.g., artificial sphincter). Diffusion tensor imaging provides a useful non-invasive tool to characterize pelvic floor muscles at the microstructural level, which can be potentially used to improve the accuracy of the simulation of muscle contraction. Studies using high-density surface electromyography anal and vaginal probes on large patient cohorts have been recently reported. Influences of vaginal delivery on the

Case study: highly loaded MSE bridge supporting structure, Syncrude NMAPS conveyor overpasses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scherger, B.; Brockbank, B. [Reinforced Earth Company Ltd., Edmonton, AB (Canada); Mimura, W. [Syncrude Canada Ltd., Edmonton, AB (Canada)

2005-07-01

A crusher and conveyor system was constructed at the Mildred Lake Oil Sands Mine near Fort McMurray, Alberta in order to facilitate ore delivery from Syncrude's North Mine. As part of this North Mine Auxiliary Production System (NMAPS), Syncrude Canada and their consultant Cosyn Technology identified the need for 3 overpasses over conveyors in the North Mine in order to provide unrestricted crossing over the operating conveyor system for the heavy hauler trucks and light vehicle mine traffic. The overpasses were designed to support the dead load of the granular fill and the live load of two loaded heavy hauler trucks, with a design load for each loaded hauler of 670 900 kg. This paper reviewed various aspects of the design from planning, structure selection, and overall stability and bearing capacity considerations. The different designs in the 3 new overpasses accommodated foundation and loading requirements. The designs ranged from the use of precast one-piece reinforced concrete arches, Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) bridge abutment technology, and a combination of the two. The MSE retaining walls directly supported the bridge superstructure without the use of piles or other deep structural foundations. The design was challenging because of the significant vertical stresses transferred onto the wall. All 3 overpasses also used MSE walls for the supporting end wing walls. The main focus of this paper was on the heavily loaded MSE walls supporting the bridge abutment style overpasses. This structure has illustrated the capability of properly designed MSE wall structures with steel soil reinforcement and reinforced precast concrete face panels to successfully carry bridge footing pressure loadings up to 545 kPa. It was concluded that this case has good potential for use in future bridge projects in both the industrial and highway sectors. 2 refs., 7 figs.

Doulas' Perspectives about Providing Support to Incarcerated Women: A Feasibility Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Shlafer, Rebecca J; Hellerstedt, Wendy L; Secor-Turner, Molly; Gerrity, Erica; Baker, Rae

2015-01-01

To document the logistical feasibility of a doula program for pregnant incarcerated women and to assess doulas' perceptions of their achievements. Six doulas provided written case notes ("birth stories") about their experiences with 18 pregnant women in one Midwestern state prison. The birth stories were analyzed by two coders to identify major themes related to doulas' perceptions about providing support to incarcerated women. Analyses involved coder consensus about major themes and doula affirmation of findings. All doulas reported that they met key objectives for a successful relationship with each of their clients. Key themes were their ability to empower clients, establish a trusting relationship, normalize the delivery, and support women as they were separated from their newborns. The intervention was logistically feasible, suggesting that doulas can adapt their practice for incarcerated women. Doulas may need specific training to prepare themselves for institutional restrictions that may conflict with the traditional roles of doula care. It may be important for doulas to understand the level of personal and professional resources they may have to expend to support incarcerated women if they are separated from their infants soon after delivery. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Child Support Payment: A Structural Model of Predictive Variables.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, David W.; Price, Sharon J.

A major area of concern in divorced families is compliance with child support payments. Aspects of the former spouse relationship that are predictive of compliance with court-ordered payment of child support were investigated in a sample of 58 divorced persons all of whom either paid or received child support. Structured interviews and…

Additive Manufacturing of Overhang Structures Using Moisture-Cured Silicone with Support Material

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohan Muthusamy

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Additive manufacturing (AM of soft materials has a wide variety of applications, such as customized or wearable devices. Silicone is one popular material for these applications given its favorable material properties. However, AM of silicone parts with overhang structures remains challenging due to the soft nature of the material. Overhang structures are the areas where there is no underlying structure. Typically, a support material is used and built in the underlying space so that the overhang structures can be built upon it. Currently, there is no support structure that has been used for AM of silicone. The goal of this study is to develop an AM process to fabricate silicone parts with overhang structures. We first identified and confirmed poly-vinyl alcohol (PVA, a water-soluble material, as a suitable support material for silicone by evaluating the adhesion strength between silicone and PVA. Process parameters for the support material, including critical overhang angle and minimum infill density for the support material, are identified. However, overhang angle alone is not the only determining factor for support material. As silicone is a soft material, it deflects due to its own weight when the height of the overhang structure increases. A finite element model is developed to estimate the critical overhang height paired with different overhang angles to determine whether the use of support material is needed. Finally, parts with overhang structures are printed to demonstrate the capability of the developed process.

Nuclear fuel assembly incorporating primary and secondary structural support members

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carlson, W.R.; Gjertsen, R.K.; Miller, J.V.

1987-01-01

A nuclear fuel assembly, comprising: (a) an upper end structure; (b) a lower end structure; (c) elongated primary structural members extending longitudinally between and rigidly interconnecting the upper and lower end structures, the upper and lower end structures and primary structural members together forming a rigid structural skeleton of the fuel assembly; (d) transverse grids supported on the primary structural members at axially spaced locations therealong between the upper and lower end structures; (e) fuel rods extending through and supported by the grids between the upper and lower end structures so as to extend in generally side-by-side spaced relation to one another and to the primary structural members; and (f) elongated secondary structural members extending longitudinally between but unconnected with the upper and lower end structures, the secondary structural members extending through and rigidly interconnected with the grids to extend in generally side-by-side spaced relation to one another, to the fuel rods and to the primary structural members so as to bolster the stiffness of the structural skeleton of the fuel assembly

Support Schemes and Ownership Structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ropenus, Stephanie; Schröder, Sascha Thorsten; Costa, Ana

, Denmark, France and Portugal. Another crucial aspect for the diffusion of the mCHP technology is possible ownership structures. These may range from full consumer ownership to ownership by utilities and energy service companies, which is discussed in Section 6. Finally, a conclusion (Section 7) wraps up......In recent years, fuel cell based micro‐combined heat and power has received increasing attention due to its potential contribution to energy savings, efficiency gains, customer proximity and flexibility in operation and capacity size. The FC4Home project assesses technical and economic aspects...... of support scheme simultaneously affects risk and technological development, which is the focus of Section 4. Subsequent to this conceptual overview, Section 5 takes a glance at the national application of support schemes for mCHP in practice, notably in the three country cases of the FC4Home project...

Concerned parents, belligerent adolescent: Providing support to distressed parents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Siddharth Sarkar

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Societal changes have brought about transformation in the family dynamics in India. The youth of today is exposed to a wide variety of influences, and their tendency toward experimentation makes them vulnerable to get into unpleasant situations. Adding to that, issues related to use and abuse of substances sometimes bring them into contact with mental health professionals. Parents come with high expectations that the treatment provider would provide “treatment” that would miraculously mend the ways of the belligerent adolescent. The treatment provider may find himself or herself sandwiched between a poorly motivated, somewhat deviant adolescent and concerned parents who press for a lasting solution. The progression of therapeutic encounters presents certain challenges to the mental health professional. In this case discussion, I would like to present few issues and challenges and put forth some reflections about an adolescent with substance use and behavioral problems brought by family members. Over time, the stance of the therapist changed from attempting to “reform” the adolescent to providing support to the distressed parents. At the same time, the potential ways of dealing with such a situation are explored further.

A Digital Coach That Provides Affective and Social Learning Support to Low-Literate Learners

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schouten, D.G.M.; Venneker, F.; Bosse, T.; Neerincx, M.; Cremer, A.H.M.

In this study, we investigate if a digital coach for low-literate learners that provides cognitive learning support based on scaffolding can be improved by adding affective learning support based on motivational interviewing, and social learning support based on small talk. Several knowledge gaps

The Structure and Validity of the Multidimensional Social Support Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Hardesty, Patrick H.; Richardson, George B.

2012-01-01

The factor structure and concurrent validity of the Multidimensional Social Support Questionnaire, a brief measure of perceived social support for use with adolescents, was examined. Findings suggest that four dimensions of perceived social support may yield more information than assessments of the unitary construct of support. (Contains 8 tables…

Earthquake-proof supporting structure in reactor vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakurai, Akio; Sekine, Katsuhisa; Madokoro, Manabu; Katoono, Shin-ichi; Konno, Mutsuo; Suzuki, Takuro.

1990-01-01

Conventional earthquake-proof structure comprises a vessel vibration stopper integrated to a reactor vessel, powder for restricting the horizontal displacements, a safety vessel surrounds the outer periphery of the reactor vessel and a safety vessel vibration stopper integrated therewith, which are fixed to buildings. However, there was a problem that a great amount of stresses are generated in the base of the reactor vessel vibration stopper due to reaction of the powders which restrict thermal expansion. In order to remarkably reduce the reaction of the powers, powders are charged into a spaces formed between each of the reactor vessel vibration stopper, the safety vessel vibration stopper and the flexible member disposed between them. According to this constitution, the reactor vessel vibration stopper does not undergo a great reaction of the powers upon thermal expansion of the reactor vessel to moderate the generated stresses, maintain the strength and provide earthquake-proof supporting function. (N.H.)

Experimental Studies of Turbulent Intensity around a Tidal Turbine Support Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stuart Walker

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Tidal stream energy is a low-carbon energy source. Tidal stream turbines operate in a turbulent environment, and the effect of the structure between the turbine and seabed on this environment is not fully understood. An experimental study using 1:72 scale models based on a commercial turbine design was carried out to study the support structure influence on turbulent intensity around the turbine blades. The study was conducted using the wave-current tank at the Laboratory of Maritime Engineering (LABIMA, University of Florence. A realistic flow environment (ambient turbulent intensity = 11% was established. Turbulent intensity was measured upstream and downstream of a turbine mounted on two different support structures (one resembling a commercial design, the other the same with an additional vertical element, in order to quantify any variation in turbulence and performance between the support structures. Turbine drive power was used to calculate power generation. Acoustic Doppler velocimetry (ADV was used to record and calculate upstream and downstream turbulent intensity. In otherwise identical conditions, performance variation of only 4% was observed between two support structures. Turbulent intensity at 1, 3 and 5 blade diameters, both upstream and downstream, showed variation up to 21% between the two cases. The additional turbulent structures generated by the additional element of the second support structure appears to cause this effect, and the upstream propagation of turbulent intensity is believed to be permitted by surface waves. This result is significant for the prediction of turbine array performance.

Structural Characteristics of Bimetallic Catalysts Supported on Nano-Ceria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. F. Bozeman

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Cu-Pt bimetal catalysts supported on nanocrystalline CeO2 (nano-ceria are synthesized via the low-cost sol-gel approach followed by impregnation processing. The average particle size of the catalytic composites is 63 nm. Ceria nanopowders sequentially impregnated in copper solution and then in Pt solution transformed into Pt-skin-structured Cu-Pt/ceria nanocomposite, based on the surface elemental and bulk compositional analyses. The ceria supporter has a fluorite structure, but the structure of Cu and Pt catalytic contents, not detected by X-ray diffraction spectroscopy due to the low loading level, is yet conclusive. The bimetallic catalytic nanocomposites may potentially serve as sulfur-tolerant anode in solid oxide fuel cells.

Writing for publication: institutional support provides an enabling environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Kramer, Beverley; Libhaber, Elena

2016-04-18

Due to the excessive service delivery loads in public hospitals supported by academic institutions in developing environments, researchers at these institutions have little time to develop scientific writing skills or to write up their research. It is imperative to expand the writing skills of researchers and train the next generation of health sciences academics in order to disseminate research findings. This study reports on the implementation of approaches for writing and publication and the extent of support to staff suffering from the overload of service delivery and of heavy teaching duties. Workshops in scientific writing and writing retreats were initiated and were offered to all staff. Feedback from participants of the writing skills workshops indicated that the workshops provided an injection of confidence and proficiency. Protected writing time resulted in 132 papers submitted to journals and 95 in preparation from 230 participants of the writing retreats over a two year period. Staff commended the off-site, collegial environment, which also supported future collaboration with new-found colleagues. This enabling environment facilitates not only the development of writing skills per se, but also the dissemination of the generated scientific knowledge. In addition, the training in writing skills of this generation will be of value in the training of future cohorts in countries with similar health care deliverables.

A Digital Coach That Provides Affective and Social Learning Support to Low-Literate Learners

Science.gov (United States)

Schouten, Dylan G. M.; Venneker, Fleur; Bosse, Tibor; Neerincx, Mark A.; Cremers, Anita H. M.

2018-01-01

In this study, we investigate if a digital coach for low-literate learners that provides cognitive learning support based on scaffolding can be improved by adding affective learning support based on motivational interviewing, and social learning support based on small talk. Several knowledge gaps are identified: motivational interviewing and small…

Structural studies of supported tin catalysts

Science.gov (United States)

Nava, Noel; Viveros, Tomás

1999-11-01

Tin oxide was supported on aluminium oxide, titanium oxide, magnesium oxide and silicon oxide, and the resulting interactions between the components in the prepared samples and after reduction were characterized by Mössbauer spectroscopy. It was observed that in the oxide state, tin is present as SnO2 on alumina, magnesia and silica, but on titania tin occupies Ti sites in the structure. After hydrogen treatment at high temperatures, tin is reduced from Sn(4) to Sn(2) on alumina and titania; it is reduced from Sn(4) to Sn(0) on silica, and is practically not reduced on magnesia. These results reveal the degree of interaction between tin and the different supports studied.

Structural studies of supported tin catalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nava, Noel; Viveros, Tomas

1999-01-01

Tin oxide was supported on aluminium oxide, titanium oxide, magnesium oxide and silicon oxide, and the resulting interactions between the components in the prepared samples and after reduction were characterized by Moessbauer spectroscopy. It was observed that in the oxide state, tin is present as SnO 2 on alumina, magnesia and silica, but on titania tin occupies Ti sites in the structure. After hydrogen treatment at high temperatures, tin is reduced from Sn(4) to Sn(2) on alumina and titania; it is reduced from Sn(4) to Sn(0) on silica, and is practically not reduced on magnesia. These results reveal the degree of interaction between tin and the different supports studied

Earthquake analysis with nonlinear soil-structure interaction and nonlinear supports of components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hansson, V.

1990-01-01

For the determination of the seismic response of a structure the soil-structure interaction in most cases is modelled by a mass-spring-damper-system. Normally design concepts for components and piping are based on linear calculations and stress limitations. A concept for a reactor building for the HTR 100 consisted of a relatively high structure compared with the dimensions of the foundation. The structure was comparatively deep embedded in the soil, so here the embedment influences significantly the soil-structure interaction. The assembly of reactor vessel, heat exchanger and circulators has a height of about 37 m. Supports are arranged at different levels. Due to temperature deformations of the vessel and of the support constructions small gaps at the supports may only be avoided by complicated constructions of the supports. Nonlinear analyses were performed for soil, building and component with all supports. The finite element analyses used time histories. In order to describe the radiation damping the hysteresis of the soil with 1 percent material damping was considered. Nonlinearities in the interface of soil and foundation and due to gaps and friction at the supports were taken into account. The stiffness of the support constructions influences reactions and accelerations to a high extent. Properly chosen stiffnesses of the support constructions lead to a behaviour similar to linear elastic behaviour. 13 figs

Theoretical Investigation of the Structural Stabilities of Ceria Surfaces and Supported Metal Nanocluster in Vapor and Aqueous Phases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ren, Zhibo [State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China; Institute for Integrated Catalysis, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Liu, Ning [State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China; Institute for Integrated Catalysis, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States; Chen, Biaohua [State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China; Li, Jianwei [State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, China; Mei, Donghai [Institute for Integrated Catalysis, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, United States

2018-01-25

Understanding the structural stability and dynamics at the interface between the solid metal oxide and aqueous phase is significant in a variety of industrial applications including heterogeneous catalysis and environmental remediation. In the present work, the stabilities of three low-index ceria (CeO2) surfaces, i.e., (111), (110) and (100) in vapor and aqueous phases were studied using ab initio molecular dynamics simulations and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Gibbs surface free energies as a function of temperature, water partial pressure, and water coverages were calculated using DFT based atomistic thermodynamic approach. On the basis of surface free energies, the morphology and exposed surface structures of the CeO2 nanoparticle were predicted using Wulff construction principle. It is found that the partially hydroxylated (111) and (100) are two major surface structures of CeO2 nanoparticles in vapor phase at ambient temperature (300 K). As the temperature increases, the fully dehydrated (111) surface gradually becomes the most dominant surface structure. While in aqueous phase, the exposed surface of the CeO2 nanoparticle is dominated by the hydroxylated (110) structure at 393 K. Finally, the morphology and stability of a cuboctahedron Pt13 nanocluster supported on CeO2 surfaces in both gas and aqueous phases were investigated. In gas phase, the supported Pt13 nanocluster has the tendency to wetting the CeO2 surface due to the strong metal-support interaction. The calculated interaction energies suggest the CeO2(110) surface provides the best stability for the Pt13 nanocluster. The CeO2 supported Pt13 nanoclusters are oxidized. Compared to the gas phase, the morphology of the CeO2 supported Pt13 nanocluster is less distorted due to the solvation effect provided by surrounding water molecules in aqueous phase. More electrons are transferred from the Pt13 nanocluster to the CeO2 support, implying the supported Pt13 nanocluster is further

Use of Intranasal Naloxone by Basic Life Support Providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Weiner, Scott G; Mitchell, Patricia M; Temin, Elizabeth S; Langlois, Breanne K; Dyer, K Sophia

2017-01-01

Intranasal delivery of naloxone to reverse the effects of opioid overdose by Advanced Life Support (ALS) providers has been studied in several prehospital settings. In 2006, in response to the increase in opioid-related overdoses, a special waiver from the state allowed administration of intranasal naloxone by Basic Life Support (BLS) providers in our city. This study aimed to determine: 1) if patients who received a 2-mg dose of nasal naloxone administered by BLS required repeat dosing while in the emergency department (ED), and 2) the disposition of these patients. This was a retrospective review of patients transported by an inner-city municipal ambulance service to one of three academic medical centers. We included patients aged 18 and older that were transported by ambulance between 1/1/2006 and 12/12/2012 and who received intranasal naloxone by BLS providers as per a state approved protocol. Site investigators matched EMS run data to patients from each hospital's EMR and performed a chart review to confirm that the patient was correctly identified and to record the outcomes of interest. Descriptive statistics were then generated. A total of 793 patients received nasal naloxone by BLS and were transported to three hospitals. ALS intervened and transported 116 (14.6%) patients, and 11 (1.4%) were intubated in the field. There were 724 (91.3%) patients successfully matched to an ED chart. Hospital A received 336 (46.4%) patients, Hospital B received 210 (29.0%) patients, and Hospital C received 178 (24.6%) patients. Mean age was 36.2 (SD 10.5) years and 522 (72.1%) were male; 702 (97.1%) were reported to have abused heroin while 21 (2.9%) used other opioids. Nasal naloxone had an effect per the prehospital record in 689 (95.2%) patients. An additional naloxone dose was given in the ED to 64 (8.8%) patients. ED dispositions were: 507 (70.0%) discharged, 105 (14.5%) admitted, and 112 (15.5%) other (e.g., left against medical advice, left without being seen, or

MASS TRANSFER IN PORE STRUCTURES OF SUPPORTED CATALYSTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F.R.C. Silva

1997-09-01

Full Text Available The effects of gas-solid interaction and mass transfer in fixed-bed systems of supported catalysts were analyzed for g -Al2O3 (support and Cu/g -Al2O3 (catalyst systems. Evaluations of the mass transfer coefficients in the macropores and of the diffusivity in the micropores, as formed by the crystallite agglomerates of the metallic phases, were obtained. Dynamic experiments with gaseous tracers permitted the quantification of the parameters based on models for these two pore structures. With a flow in a range of 18 cm3 s-1 to 39.98 cm3 s-1 at 45oC, 65oC and 100oC, mass transfer coefficients km =4.33x10-4 m s-1 to 7.38x10-4 m s-1 for macropore structures and diffusivities Dm =1.29x10-11 m2 s-1 to 5.35x10-11 m2 s-1 for micropore structures were estimated

Diabetes self-management support for patients with low health literacy: Perceptions of patients and providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Fransen, Mirjam P; Beune, Erik J A J; Baim-Lance, Abigail M; Bruessing, Raynold C; Essink-Bot, Marie-Louise

2015-05-01

The aim of the present study was to explore perceptions and strategies of health care providers regarding diabetes self-management support for patients with low health literacy (LHL), and to compare their self-management support with the needs of patients with LHL and type 2 diabetes. This study serves as a problem analysis for systematic intervention development to improve diabetes self-management among patients with LHL. This qualitative study used in-depth interviews with general practitioners (n = 4), nurse practitioners (n = 5), and patients with LHL (n = 31). The results of the interviews with health care providers guided the patient interviews. In addition, we observed 10 general practice consultations. Providers described patients with LHL as uninvolved and less motivated patients who do not understand self-management. Their main strategy to improve self-management was to provide standard information on a repeated basis. Patients with LHL seemed to have a different view of diabetes self-management than their providers. Most demonstrated a low awareness of what self-management involves, but did not express needing more information. They reported several practical barriers to self-management, although they seemed reluctant to use the information provided to overcome them. Providing and repeating information does not fit the needs of patients with LHL regarding diabetes self-management support. Health care providers do not seem to have the insight or the tools to systematically support diabetes self-management in this group. Systematic intervention development with a focus on skills-based approaches rather than cognition development may improve diabetes self-management support of patients with LHL. © 2014 Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Support structure concept for integration of ITER diagnostics in the port cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Udintsev, V.S., E-mail: victor.udintsev@iter.org [ITER Organization, Route de Vinon sur Verdon, 13115 St. Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Portalès, M.; Giacomin, T.; Darcourt, O.; Direz, M.-F.; Martins, J.P.; Penot, C.; Arumugam, A.P.; Drevon, J.-M.; Friconneau, J.P.; Levesy, B.; Maquet, P.; Patel, K.M.; Pitcher, C.S. [ITER Organization, Route de Vinon sur Verdon, 13115 St. Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Popova, E. [Russian Federation Domestic Agency, Moscow (Russian Federation); Proust, M. [ITER Organization, Route de Vinon sur Verdon, 13115 St. Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Ronden, D.M.S. [DIFFER, Nieuwegein (Netherlands); Walker, C.I.; Walsh, M.J.; Watts, C. [ITER Organization, Route de Vinon sur Verdon, 13115 St. Paul-Lez-Durance (France)

2013-10-15

Highlights: ► An interspace support structure to support the diagnostic systems from the back of the upper and equatorial port plugs to the biological shield plug. ► Port cell support structures are foreseen to handle the equipment in the port cell. ► Both ISS and PCSS will be supported by means of RH rail system. ► The structures will be positioned with a certain tolerance. ► The proposed concepts are found to fulfil the needs for support of the diagnostics in ITER. -- Abstract: Development of the diagnostics for ITER tokamak, which is presently under construction by several international partners at Cadarache in France, is a major challenge because of severe environment, strict engineering requirements, and the need for high reliability in the measurements. The diagnostic systems in the upper, equatorial and lower port cells on ITER are designed to be integrated within the interspace and port cell support structures. These structures are interfacing with remote handling rail system for the cask operations, thus facilitating the removal and installation of the diagnostics in the port and hence minimizing time for working close to the tokamak. In this paper, the challenges associated with the integration of the diagnostics in the port interspace and port cell, as well as their solutions will be addressed and presented. The interspace and the port cell support structures, as well as their interfaces with the biological shield, will be discussed.

Design of a far infrared interferometer diagnostic support structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brooksby, C.A.; Rice, B.W.; Peebles, W.A.

1987-10-01

The Far Infrared Interferometer (FIR) diagnostic will operate in the 119 to 400 micron range to measure the plasma electron density on the Microwave Tokamak Experiment (MTX) being set up at LLNL. This diagnostic is a multi-channel system which incorporates a long elliptically shaped beam that passes through the plasma and is imaged onto an array of 14 detectors that are located on a table above the machine. The reference beam is brought around the machine and mixed with the plasma beam onto the detectors. The density is measured by a phase shift between these beams and is, therefore, very sensitive to path length changes between the two beam paths due to motion of the support structure. The design goal for allowable phase shifts caused by changes in the path length due to structure movement is 1/50th of a wavelength (2.4 to 8 microns). The structure needs to maintain this stability during the 0.5 second plasma shot. The structure is approximately 5 meters tall to support the optics table above the machine. In order to reduce the structure motion to the required level the forces acting on it were evaluated. The forces evaluated were eddy currents from the pulsed electromagnetic fields, the ambient ground motion, and the floor movement as the magnets are pulsed. The designs for similar diagnostic interferometers on other tokamaks were also reviewed to evaluate the forces and motions that might cause such small deflections in the support structure. Our structure is somewhat unique in that it is designed for operation in relatively large pulsed magnetic fields (100 to 7000 gauss) arising from the air core transformer of MTX. The design chosen incorporates a very rigid structure with high resistive and non-conductive materials. The choice of materials selected is discussed with reference to their response to expected forces. 14 refs., 10 figs

The Anterior Thalamus Provides A Subcortical Circuit Supporting Memory And Spatial Navigation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shane M O‘Mara

2013-08-01

Full Text Available The anterior thalamic nuclei, a central component of Papez’ circuit, are generally assumed to be key constituents of the neural circuits responsible for certain categories of learning and memory. Supporting evidence for this contention is that damage to either of two brain regions, the medial temporal lobe and the medial diencephalon, is most consistently associated with anterograde amnesia. Within these respective regions, the hippocampal formation and the anterior thalamic nuclei (anteromedial, anteroventral, anterodorsal are the particular structures of interest. The extensive direct and indirect hippocampal-anterior thalamic interconnections and the presence of theta-modulated cells in both sites further support the hypothesis that these structures constitute a neuronal network crucial for memory and cognition. The major tool in understanding how the brain processes information is the analysis of neuronal output at each hierarchical level along the pathway of signal propagation coupled with neuroanatomical studies. Here, we discuss the electrophysiological properties of cells in the anterior thalamic nuclei with an emphasis on their role in spatial navigation. In addition, we describe neuroanatomical and functional relationships between the anterior thalamic nuclei and hippocampal formation.

Capturing information needs of care providers to support knowledge sharing and distributed decision making.

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers, M; Zach, L; An, Y; Dalrymple, P

2012-01-01

This paper reports on work carried out to elicit information needs at a trans-disciplinary, nurse-managed health care clinic that serves a medically disadvantaged urban population. The trans-disciplinary model provides a "one-stop shop" for patients who can receive a wide range of services beyond traditional primary care. However, this model of health care presents knowledge sharing challenges because little is known about how data collected from the non-traditional services can be integrated into the traditional electronic medical record (EMR) and shared with other care providers. There is also little known about how health information technology (HIT) can be used to support the workflow in such a practice. The objective of this case study was to identify the information needs of care providers in order to inform the design of HIT to support knowledge sharing and distributed decision making. A participatory design approach is presented as a successful technique to specify requirements for HIT applications that can support a trans-disciplinary model of care. Using this design approach, the researchers identified the information needs of care providers working at the clinic and suggested HIT improvements to integrate non-traditional information into the EMR. These modifications allow knowledge sharing among care providers and support better health decisions. We have identified information needs of care providers as they are relevant to the design of health information systems. As new technology is designed and integrated into various workflows it is clear that understanding information needs is crucial to acceptance of that technology.

Support Structures in Social Entrepreneurship Ecosystems: Comparing the Swedish and the French Environments.

OpenAIRE

Bouges, Alexis

2015-01-01

This thesis compares the Swedish and the French social entrepreneurship ecosystems. After an examination of the definitions and current legal frameworks around social enterprises in each country, their levels of social entrepreneurship activity are compared. The existing support structures providing non-financial help to social entrepreneurs (i.e. incubators, accelerators, co-working spaces and networks) are identified in Paris and in Stockholm, while perceptions from social entrepreneurs ben...

Structural Support of High-Performance Athletes' Education: Supporting Dual Careers in Greece

Science.gov (United States)

Pavlidis, George; Gargalianos, Dimitris

2014-01-01

This article describes how the current Greek sport-education context seems to offer relatively poor dual-career support in comparison to other available structures in the world. This results in additional obstacles for Greek athletes who wish to educate themselves and an ambiguous prospect for their future. Consequently, the Greek…

Supporting and structuring "contributing student pedagogy" in Computer Science curricula

Science.gov (United States)

Falkner, Katrina; Falkner, Nickolas J. G.

2012-12-01

Contributing student pedagogy (CSP) builds upon social constructivist and community-based learning principles to create engaging and productive learning experiences. What makes CSP different from other, related, learning approaches is that it involves students both learning from and also explicitly valuing the contributions of other students. The creation of such a learning community builds upon established educational psychology that encourages deep learning, reflection and engagement. Our school has recently completed a review and update of its curriculum, incorporating student content-creation and collaboration into the design of key courses across the curriculum. Our experiences, based on several years of experimentation and development, support CSP-based curriculum design to reinforce the value of the student perspective, the clear description of their own transformative pathway to knowledge and the importance of establishing student-to-student networks in which students are active and willing participants. In this paper, we discuss the tools and approaches that we have employed to guide, support and structure student collaboration across a range of courses and year levels. By providing an account of our intentions, our approaches and tools, we hope to provide useful and transferrable knowledge that can be readily used by other academics who are considering this approach.

In-vivo job development training among peer providers of homeless veterans supported employment programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Ni; Dolce, Joni; Rio, John; Heitzmann, Carma; Loving, Samantha

2016-06-01

This column describes a goal-oriented, time-limited in vivo coaching/training approach for skills building among peer veterans vocational rehabilitation specialists of the Homeless Veteran Supported Employment Program (HVSEP). Planning, implementing, and evaluating the training approach for peer providers was intended, ultimately, to support veterans in their goal of returning to community competitive employment. The description draws from the training experience that aimed to improve the ability of peer providers to increase both rates of employment and wages of the homeless veterans using their services. Training peers using an in vivo training approach provided a unique opportunity for the veterans to improve their job development skills with a focus to support employment outcomes for the service users. Peers who received training also expressed that learning skills through an in vivo training approach was more engaging than typical classroom trainings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

The Role of Health Care Provider and Partner Decisional Support in Patients' Cancer Treatment Decision-Making Satisfaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Palmer-Wackerly, Angela L; Krieger, Janice L; Rhodes, Nancy D

2017-01-01

Cancer patients rely on multiple sources of support when making treatment decisions; however, most research studies examine the influence of health care provider support while the influence of family member support is understudied. The current study fills this gap by examining the influence of health care providers and partners on decision-making satisfaction. In a cross-sectional study via an online Qualtrics panel, we surveyed cancer patients who reported that they had a spouse or romantic partner when making cancer treatment decisions (n = 479). Decisional support was measured using 5-point, single-item scales for emotional support, informational support, informational-advice support, and appraisal support. Decision-making satisfaction was measured using Holmes-Rovner and colleagues' (1996) Satisfaction With Decision Scale. We conducted a mediated regression analysis to examine treatment decision-making satisfaction for all participants and a moderated mediation analysis to examine treatment satisfaction among those patients offered a clinical trial. Results indicated that partner support significantly and partially mediated the relationship between health care provider support and patients' decision-making satisfaction but that results did not vary by enrollment in a clinical trial. This study shows how and why decisional support from partners affects communication between health care providers and cancer patients.

A structural design of the multi-ringed seismic support for PCPV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muto, Kiyoshi; Ujiie, Koji.

1979-01-01

This report describes the multi-ringed cylindrical support newly developed as the supporting structure for a Prestressed Concrete Pressure Vessel. This support is composed of several thin cylinders of concentric circles, which are made of reinforced concrete or steel reinforced concrete. The characteristics of the support is such that it can allow two contradictory conditions to occur. That is, it can follow smoothly the radial displacement of PCPV induced by inner pressure, inner heat and etc. At the same time, it has enough rigidity to bear the earthquake forces from PCPV and to transmit them to the ground with certainty. The shape, characteristics and structural design of the support are described hereunder. (author)

Surface/structure functionalization of copper-based catalysts by metal-support and/or metal-metal interactions

Science.gov (United States)

Konsolakis, Michalis; Ioakeimidis, Zisis

2014-11-01

Cu-based catalysts have recently attracted great attention both in catalysis and electro-catalysis fields due to their excellent catalytic performance and low cost. Given that their performance is determined, to a great extent, by Cu sites local environment, considerable efforts have been devoted on the strategic modifications of the electronic and structural properties of Cu sites. In this regard, the feasibility of tuning the local structure of Cu entities by means of metal-support or metal-metal interactions is investigated. More specifically, the physicochemical properties of Cu entities are modified by employing: (i) different oxides (CeO2, La2O3, Sm2O3), or (ii) ceria-based mixed oxides (Ce1-xSmxOδ) as supporting carriers, and (iii) a second metal (Cobalt) adjacent to Cu (bimetallic Cu-Co/CeO2). A characterization study, involving BET, XRD, TPR, and XPS, reveal that significant modifications on structural, redox and electronic properties of Cu sites can be induced by adopting either different oxide carriers or bimetallic complexes. Fundamental insights into the tuning of Cu local environment by metal-support or metal-metal interactions are provided, paving the way for real-life industrial applications.

Further HTGR core support structure reliability studies. Interim report No. 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Platus, D.L.

1976-01-01

Results of a continuing effort to investigate high temperature gas cooled reactor (HTGR) core support structure reliability are described. Graphite material and core support structure component physical, mechanical and strength properties required for the reliability analysis are identified. Also described are experimental and associated analytical techniques for determining the required properties, a procedure for determining number of tests required, properties that might be monitored by special surveillance of the core support structure to improve reliability predictions, and recommendations for further studies. Emphasis in the study is directed towards developing a basic understanding of graphite failure and strength degradation mechanisms; and validating analytical methods for predicting strength and strength degradation from basic material properties

Characteristics of Adults Seeking Health Care Provider Support Facilitated by Mobile Technology: Secondary Data Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Bosak, Kelly; Park, Shin Hye

2017-12-21

Mobile health technology is rapidly evolving with the potential to transform health care. Self-management of health facilitated by mobile technology can maximize long-term health trajectories of adults. Little is known about the characteristics of adults seeking Web-based support from health care providers facilitated by mobile technology. This study aimed to examine the following: (1) the characteristics of adults who seek human support from health care providers for health concerns using mobile technology rather than from family members and friends or others with similar health conditions and (2) the use of mobile health technology among adults with chronic health conditions. Findings of this study were interpreted in the context of the Efficiency Model of Support. We first described characteristics of adults seeking Web-based support from health care providers. Using chi-square tests for categorical variables and t test for the continuous variable of age, we compared adults seeking Web-based and conventional support by demographics. The primary aim was analyzed using multivariate logistic regression to examine whether chronic health conditions and demographic factors (eg, sex, income, employment status, race, ethnicity, education, and age) were associated with seeking Web-based support from health care providers. The sample included adults (N=1453), the majority of whom were female 57.60% (837/1453), white 75.02% (1090/1453), and non-Hispanic 89.13% (1295/1453). The age of the participants ranged from 18 to 92 years (mean 48.6, standard deviation [SD] 16.8). The majority 76.05% (1105/1453) of participants reported college or higher level of education. A disparity was found in access to health care providers via mobile technology based on socioeconomic status. Adults with annual income of US $30,000 to US $100,000 were 1.72 times more likely to use Web-based methods to contact a health care provider, and adults with an annual income above US $100,000 were 2.41 to

Deliverable D74.2. Probabilistic analysis methods for support structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gintautas, Tomas

2018-01-01

Relevant Description: Report describing the probabilistic analysis for offshore substructures and results attained. This includes comparison with experimental data and with conventional design. Specific targets: 1) Estimate current reliability level of support structures 2) Development of basis...... for probabilistic calculations and evaluation of reliability for offshore support structures (substructures) 3) Development of a probabilistic model for stiffness and strength of soil parameters and for modeling geotechnical load bearing capacity 4) Comparison between probabilistic analysis and deterministic...

Assessing diabetes support in adolescents: factor structure of the modified Diabetes Social Support Questionnaire (DSSQ-Friends)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Malik, J.A.; Koot, H.M.

2012-01-01

Aims To determine the underlying factor structure of friends' enacted support behaviours for adolescents with Type 1 diabetes, confirm it in a second sample, delineate distinctive aspects of friends' support and test the reliability of resulting scale. Methods The study included a total of 434

The effect of providing climate and health information on support for alternative electricity portfolios

Science.gov (United States)

Sergi, Brian; Davis, Alex; Azevedo, Inês

2018-02-01

Support for addressing climate change and air pollution may depend on the type of information provided to the public. We conduct a discrete choice survey assessing preferences for combinations of electricity generation portfolios, electricity bills, and emissions reductions. We test how participants’ preferences change when emissions information is explicitly provided to them. We find that support for climate mitigation increases when mitigation is accompanied by improvements to air quality and human health. We estimate that an average respondent would accept an increase of 19%-27% in their electricity bill if shown information stating that either CO2 or SO2 emissions are reduced by 30%. Furthermore, an average respondent is willing to pay an increase of 30%-40% in electricity bills when shown information stating that both pollutants are reduced by 30% simultaneously. Our findings suggest that the type of emissions information provided to the public will affect their support for different electricity portfolios.

Ultrasonic imaging of tube/support structure of power plant steam generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saniie, J.; Nagle, D.T.

1987-01-01

The corrosion and erosion of steam generator tubing in nuclear power plants can present problems of both safety and economics. In steam generators, the inconel tubes are fit loosely through holes drilled in carbon steel support plates. Corrosion is of particular concern with such tube/support plate structures. Non-protective magnetite can build up on the inner surface of the support plate holes, and allowed to continue unchecked, will fill the gap, eventually denting and fracturing the tube walls. Therefore, periodic nondestructive inspection can be valuable in characterizing corrosion and can be used in evaluating the effectiveness of chemical treatments used to control or reduce corrosion. Presently, they are investigating the feasibility and practicality of using ultrasound in routing testing for gap measurement, for evaluating the corrosion and assessing the degree of denting. The tube/support structure can be modeled as a multilayer, reverberant target, which when tested with ultrasound results in two sets of reverberating echoes [1]. One set corresponds to the tube wall and the other to the support plate. These echoes must be decomposed and identified in order to evaluate the tube/support structure. This report presents experimental results along with a discussion of various measurements and processing techniques for decomposing and interpreting tube/support echoes at different stages of corrosion

Thermal–structural analysis of ITER triangular support for dominant load verification

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yu-Gyeong, E-mail: aspirany@hhi.co.kr [Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., 1000, Bangeojinsunhwando-ro, Dong-gu, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of); Hwang, Jong-Hyun; Jung, Yung-Jin [Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., 1000, Bangeojinsunhwando-ro, Dong-gu, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hyun-Soo; Ahn, Hee-Jae [National Fusion Research Institute, 113 Gwahangno, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon-si (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-15

Highlights: • The load combination method is introduced to thermal–structural analysis for contradictive loads occurred simultaneously. • The one-way coupling analysis also conducted for thermal–structural analysis and its validity is checked by comparing with the load combination. • The dominant load for triangular support bracket is determined as the baking condition. - Abstract: The triangular support is located on the lower inner shell of vacuum vessel of ITER, which should be designed to withstand various loads such as nuclear heat, coolant pressure and so on. The appropriateness of its design is evaluated under the dominant load that could represent the most conservative condition among the design loads. In order to decide the dominant load, a valid method for thermal–structural analysis is firstly verified considering contradictory behaviors between heat and structural loads. In this paper, two approaches; one-way coupling and load combination, are introduced for thermal–structural analysis. The one-way coupling is a method generally used but has a limit to apply on contradictory conditions. The load combination could give a proper solution since it evaluates each load independently and then adds up each result linearly. Based on the results of each case, structural analysis for another load case, baking condition with incident, is conducted to find out which load is dominant for triangular support. Consequently, it is found that the baking condition is the dominant load for triangular support bracket. The proposed load combination method gives a physically reasonable solution which can be used as a reference for checking the validity of other thermal–structural analysis. It is expected that these results could be applied for manufacturing design of the triangular support under various load conditions.

Thermal–structural analysis of ITER triangular support for dominant load verification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yu-Gyeong; Hwang, Jong-Hyun; Jung, Yung-Jin; Kim, Hyun-Soo; Ahn, Hee-Jae

2014-01-01

Highlights: • The load combination method is introduced to thermal–structural analysis for contradictive loads occurred simultaneously. • The one-way coupling analysis also conducted for thermal–structural analysis and its validity is checked by comparing with the load combination. • The dominant load for triangular support bracket is determined as the baking condition. - Abstract: The triangular support is located on the lower inner shell of vacuum vessel of ITER, which should be designed to withstand various loads such as nuclear heat, coolant pressure and so on. The appropriateness of its design is evaluated under the dominant load that could represent the most conservative condition among the design loads. In order to decide the dominant load, a valid method for thermal–structural analysis is firstly verified considering contradictory behaviors between heat and structural loads. In this paper, two approaches; one-way coupling and load combination, are introduced for thermal–structural analysis. The one-way coupling is a method generally used but has a limit to apply on contradictory conditions. The load combination could give a proper solution since it evaluates each load independently and then adds up each result linearly. Based on the results of each case, structural analysis for another load case, baking condition with incident, is conducted to find out which load is dominant for triangular support. Consequently, it is found that the baking condition is the dominant load for triangular support bracket. The proposed load combination method gives a physically reasonable solution which can be used as a reference for checking the validity of other thermal–structural analysis. It is expected that these results could be applied for manufacturing design of the triangular support under various load conditions

Supporting structures of the toroidal field coils of intor-net

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farfaletti-Casali, F.; Biggio, M.; Macco, A.; Perfumo, A.; Reale, M.

1984-01-01

The design of the toroidal field (TF) coil supporting structures for INTOR-NET Phase 2A (European Configuration) is described. In order to identify the proposed design several preliminary evaluations were performed. These evaluations indicated that suitable supporting structures are those shown in the annexed figures, where each coil is guided and centered by a separate reinforcing structure, on which the intercoil structures are attached. A simplified structural analysis was carried out considering only the cyclic out-of-plane loads due to the poloidal field, acting on the coils, since this constitutes the most critical loading condition due to its impact on the fatigue behavior of the material. This analysis was performed with finite element method for displacements and stresses calculations by using the SAP IV-code. The calcaulation model was made with the aid of the GIFTS system. The results show that the maximum equivalent stress does not exceed the stress limit assumed in the INTOR specifications for stainless steel (AISI 316 type) at cryogenic temperature and under cyclic loading, for the operating conditions of INTOR. Consequently the proposed concept for the support of the TF coils can be considered a workable scheme. Further detailed analysis must be done, so as to demonstrate the complete feasibility of the system. (orig.)

Social reintegration of TBI patients: a solution to provide long-term support.

Science.gov (United States)

Bulinski, Leszek

2010-01-01

This article evaluates the effectiveness of a workable long-term program to provide social support for TBI patients, based on the "Academy of Life" concept. Disability after TBI causes numerous disruptions of normal life, which affect the patient, the family, and society. The patient needs the particular kind of support the program was designed to provide. The study involved 200 married couples with a TBI spouse previously enrolled in the "Academy of Life." The methods included documentation analysis, clinical interviews, the Family Bonds Scale, the Social Isolation Scale, and the Social Functions subscale from a battery used to evaluate QOL after TBI. The subjects were examined before and after completing the program. In the first examination all types of family bonds were found to be severely weakened; there was deep social isolation, loneliness, sadness, a feeling of being surrounded by hostility, and no purposeful social activity. The most common form of support from significant others was pity and unwanted interference, accompanied by lack of understanding and social ostracism. In the second examination there was selective improvement of all parameters, significantly greater in patients without PTSD symptoms. The best effects were achieved in the reduction of social dysfunctions, the growth of purposeful social activity, and improvement in the type of support received, and a reduction of selected parameters of social isolation. The program here described is selectively effective for the social reintegration of TBI-patients, especially those without PTSD symptoms.

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

2014-03-01

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

Older Adults’ Perceptions of Supporting Factors of Trust in a Robot Care Provider

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel E. Stuck

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The older adult population is increasing worldwide, leading to an increased need for care providers. An insufficient number of professional caregivers will lead to a demand for robot care providers to mitigate this need. Trust is an essential element for older adults and robot care providers to work effectively. Trust is context dependent. Therefore, we need to understand what older adults would need to trust robot care providers, in this specific home-care context. This mixed methods study explored what older adults, who currently receive assistance from caregivers, perceive as supporting trust in robot care providers within four common home-care tasks: bathing, transferring, medication assistance, and household tasks. Older adults reported three main dimensions that support trust: professional skills, personal traits, and communication. Each of these had subthemes including those identified in prior human-robot trust literature such as ability, reliability, and safety. In addition, new dimensions perceived to impact trust emerged such as the robot’s benevolence, the material of the robot, and the companionability of the robot. The results from this study demonstrate that the older adult-robot care provider context has unique dimensions related to trust that should be considered when designing robots for home-care tasks.

Understanding Older Adult's Perceptions of Factors that Support Trust in Human and Robot Care Providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Stuck, Rachel E; Rogers, Wendy A

2017-06-01

As the population of older adults increase so will the need for care providers, both human and robot. Trust is a key aspect to establish and maintain a successful older adult-care provider relationship. However, due to trust volatility it is essential to understand it within specific contexts. This proposed mixed methods study will explore what dimensions of trust emerge as important within the human-human and human-robot dyads in older adults and care providers. First, this study will help identify key qualities that support trust in a care provider relationship. By understanding what older adults perceive as needing to trust humans and robots for various care tasks, we can begin to provide recommendations based on user expectations for design to support trust.

Structural Disorder Provides Increased Adaptability for Vesicle Trafficking Pathways

Science.gov (United States)

Tompa, Peter

2013-01-01

Vesicle trafficking systems play essential roles in the communication between the organelles of eukaryotic cells and also between cells and their environment. Endocytosis and the late secretory route are mediated by clathrin-coated vesicles, while the COat Protein I and II (COPI and COPII) routes stand for the bidirectional traffic between the ER and the Golgi apparatus. Despite similar fundamental organizations, the molecular machinery, functions, and evolutionary characteristics of the three systems are very different. In this work, we compiled the basic functional protein groups of the three main routes for human and yeast and analyzed them from the structural disorder perspective. We found similar overall disorder content in yeast and human proteins, confirming the well-conserved nature of these systems. Most functional groups contain highly disordered proteins, supporting the general importance of structural disorder in these routes, although some of them seem to heavily rely on disorder, while others do not. Interestingly, the clathrin system is significantly more disordered (∼23%) than the other two, COPI (∼9%) and COPII (∼8%). We show that this structural phenomenon enhances the inherent plasticity and increased evolutionary adaptability of the clathrin system, which distinguishes it from the other two routes. Since multi-functionality (moonlighting) is indicative of both plasticity and adaptability, we studied its prevalence in vesicle trafficking proteins and correlated it with structural disorder. Clathrin adaptors have the highest capability for moonlighting while also comprising the most highly disordered members. The ability to acquire tissue specific functions was also used to approach adaptability: clathrin route genes have the most tissue specific exons encoding for protein segments enriched in structural disorder and interaction sites. Overall, our results confirm the general importance of structural disorder in vesicle trafficking and

[Structure of Relationships Formed by Occupational Health Nurses for Co-operating with Managers to Support Workers with Mental Health Concerns].

Science.gov (United States)

Hatanaka, Junko; Takasaki, Masako; Hatanaka, Michiyo

2018-05-31

Occupational health staff and managers play important roles in supporting workers with mental health concerns and mutual co-operation among them is a necessary element. However, when co-operating with other professionals, several problems arise that often make such co-operation a challenge. Effective mutual actions are needed to promote such co-operation, and relationships must be formed for this purpose. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to clarify how occupational health nurses form relationships for facilitating co-operation with managers to provide support to workers with mental health concerns. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 11 occupational health nurses who provide individualized mental health support and who have at least 5 years of experience as occupational health nurses. Analysis of the recorded interviews was performed using a qualitative statistical method (KJ method). Six elements that constitute the formation of relationships were identified. When occupational health nurses form relationships for facilitating co-operation with a manager to provide support to workers, they "form relationships through strategic communication" with them and when co-operation is required, they form a relationship by "acting in a manner that suits the manager," such as his/her character and the situation. To support this relationship, occupational health nurses "provide mental support to the manager" by listening to his/her anxiety or real intention about supporting the subordinate with mental health concerns and provide relief while understanding their burdens during the co-operation. Occupational health nurses even "provide support to the manager in their activities," which assessed the situation at the workplace as the specialist and advised the manager to understand how to concern to the subordinate specifically. In addition, they "indirectly support the manager" which included coordinating with the concerned persons so as to not excessively

Adhesion and Atomic Structures of Gold on Ceria Nanostructures:The Role of Surface Structure and Oxidation State of Ceria Supports

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Yuyuan [Northwestern University, Evanston; Wu, Zili [ORNL; Wen, Jianguo [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL); Poeppelmeier, Kenneth R [Northwestern University, Evanston; Marks, Laurence D [Northwestern University, Evanston

2015-01-01

Recent advances in heterogeneous catalysis have demonstrated that oxides supports with the same material but different shapes can result in metal catalysts with distinct catalytic properties. The shape-dependent catalysis was not well-understood owing to the lack of direct visualization of the atomic structures at metal-oxide interface. Herein, we utilized aberration-corrected electron microscopy and revealed the atomic structures of gold particles deposited on ceria nanocubes and nanorods with {100} or {111} facets exposed. For the ceria nanocube support, gold nanoparticles have extended atom layers at the metal-support interface. In contrast, regular gold nanoparticles and rafts are present on the ceria nanorod support. After hours of water gas shift reaction, the extended gold atom layers and rafts vanish, which is associated with the decrease of the catalytic activities. By understanding the atomic structures of the support surfaces, metal-support interfaces, and morphologies of the gold particles, a direct structure-property relationship is established.

Nonlinear structural damage detection using support vector machines

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Li; Qu, Wenzhong

2012-04-01

An actual structure including connections and interfaces may exist nonlinear. Because of many complicated problems about nonlinear structural health monitoring (SHM), relatively little progress have been made in this aspect. Statistical pattern recognition techniques have been demonstrated to be competitive with other methods when applied to real engineering datasets. When a structure existing 'breathing' cracks that open and close under operational loading may cause a linear structural system to respond to its operational and environmental loads in a nonlinear manner nonlinear. In this paper, a vibration-based structural health monitoring when the structure exists cracks is investigated with autoregressive support vector machine (AR-SVM). Vibration experiments are carried out with a model frame. Time-series data in different cases such as: initial linear structure; linear structure with mass changed; nonlinear structure; nonlinear structure with mass changed are acquired.AR model of acceleration time-series is established, and different kernel function types and corresponding parameters are chosen and compared, which can more accurate, more effectively locate the damage. Different cases damaged states and different damage positions have been recognized successfully. AR-SVM method for the insufficient training samples is proved to be practical and efficient on structure nonlinear damage detection.

SupportNet for Frontline Behavioral Health Providers

Science.gov (United States)

2014-06-30

to help women and their children achieve safety and wellbeing while challenging communities to end sexual and family violence. In the process, TESSA...did not engage with the SupportNet intervention as a function of their level of burnout. Lack of military support was cited by staff as being a barrier...October 2013, which resulted in government employees being furloughed. Since the project itself was funded by the Department of Defense, the project was

20 CFR 670.525 - What residential support services must Job Corps center operators provide?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

..., vending machines, disciplinary fines, and donations, and is run by an elected student government, with the... the Secretary: (a) A quality living and learning environment that supports the overall training... week, 24 hours a day; (b) An ongoing, structured counseling program for students; (c) Food service...

Response spectra for differential motion of structures supports during earthquakes in Egypt

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed I.S. Elmasry

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Differential motions of ground supports of stiff structures with large plan dimensions and separate foundations under earthquakes were studied by researchers during the last few decades. Such a type of structural response was previously underestimated. The importance of studying such a response comes up from the fact that usually the structures affected are of strategic importance such as bridges. During their expected life, structures may experience vibrations excited by ground waves of short wavelengths during near-source earthquakes, or during amplified earthquake signals, during explosions, or during vibrations induced from nearby strong vibration sources. This is the case when the differential motion of supports becomes considerable. This paper aims to review the effects of seismic signal variations along the structures dimensions with emphasis on Egypt as a case study. The paper shows some patterns of the damage imposed by such differential motion. A replication of the differential motion in the longitudinal direction is applied on a frame bridge model. The resulting straining actions show the necessity for considering the differential motion of supports in the design of special structures in Egypt. Finally, response spectra for the differential motion of supports, based on the available data from previous earthquakes in Egypt, is derived and proposed for designers to include in the design procedure when accounting for such type of structural response, and especially in long-span bridges.

Prediction of backbone dihedral angles and protein secondary structure using support vector machines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hirst Jonathan D

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The prediction of the secondary structure of a protein is a critical step in the prediction of its tertiary structure and, potentially, its function. Moreover, the backbone dihedral angles, highly correlated with secondary structures, provide crucial information about the local three-dimensional structure. Results We predict independently both the secondary structure and the backbone dihedral angles and combine the results in a loop to enhance each prediction reciprocally. Support vector machines, a state-of-the-art supervised classification technique, achieve secondary structure predictive accuracy of 80% on a non-redundant set of 513 proteins, significantly higher than other methods on the same dataset. The dihedral angle space is divided into a number of regions using two unsupervised clustering techniques in order to predict the region in which a new residue belongs. The performance of our method is comparable to, and in some cases more accurate than, other multi-class dihedral prediction methods. Conclusions We have created an accurate predictor of backbone dihedral angles and secondary structure. Our method, called DISSPred, is available online at http://comp.chem.nottingham.ac.uk/disspred/.

An Action Research in Science: Providing Metacognitive Support to Year 9 Students

Science.gov (United States)

Wagaba, Francis; Treagust, David F.; Chandrasegaran, A. L.; Won, Mihye

2016-01-01

An action research study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of providing metacognitive support to enhance Year 9 students' metacognitive capabilities in order to better understand science concepts related to light, environmental health, ecosystems, genetics, ecology, atoms and the Periodic Table. The study was conducted over three years…

Experience in working with volunteers as providers of support to victims and witnesses in victim and witness support departments at the courts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamer-Vidmar Nikica

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to present the results of a survey on the experience of engaging volunteers as providers of support for victims and witnesses in Victim and Witness Support Departments at the courts. The Independent Service for Victim and Witness Support in Ministry of Justice is responsible for the development of the victim and witness support system in Croatia. The Independent Service also coordinates the work of Victim and Witness Support Departments and develops and provides training programs and supervision for support officers and volunteers. A survey was conducted in order to determine volunteer motivation, assess the volunteers’ required qualities, their educational needs, the emotional impact arising from the work with victims and witnesses and the volunteers‘ assessment of the level of acceptance by court officials. In order to improve the level of safety of volunteers and the organization itself, the selection and educational processes for volunteers have been improved, according to both the experience achieved by working with volunteers and the results of the aforementioned survey. Engaging volunteers in the judicial system is a large step forward in the field of co-operation between the judiciary and the community.

New approach to the design of core support structures for large LMFBR plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burelbach, J.P.; Kann, W.J.; Pan, Y.C.; Saiveau, J.G.; Seidensticker, R.W.

1984-01-01

The paper describes an innovative design concept for a LMFBR Core Support Structure. A hanging Core Support Structure is described and analyzed. The design offers inherent safety features, constructibility advantages, and potential cost reductions

Stress analysis on a PWR pressure vessel support structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cruz, J.R.B.; Mattar Neto, M.; Jesus Miranda, C.A. de.

1992-01-01

The paper presents the stress analysis of a research PWR vessel support structure. Different geometries and thermal boundary conditions are evaluated. The finite element analysis is performed using ANSYS program. The ASME Section III criteria are applied for the stress verification and the following points are discussed: stress classification and linearization; jurisdictional boundary between ASME Subsection NB (Class 1 Components) and Subsection NF (Component Supports). (author)

Changing access to mental health care and social support when people living with HIV/AIDS become service providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Alan Tai-Wai; Wales, Joshua; Wong, Josephine Pui-Hing; Owino, Maureen; Perreault, Yvette; Miao, Andrew; Maseko, Precious; Guiang, Charlie

2015-01-01

As people living with HIV/AIDS (PHAs) achieve more stable health, many have taken on active peer support and professional roles within AIDS service organizations. Although the increased engagement has been associated with many improved health outcomes, emerging program and research evidence have identified new challenges associated with such transition. This paper reports on the results of a qualitative interpretive study that explored the effect of this role transition on PHA service providers' access to mental health support and self care. A total of 27 PHA service providers of diverse ethno-racial backgrounds took part in the study. Results show that while role transition often improves access to financial and health-care benefits, it also leads to new stress from workload demands, emotional triggers from client's narratives, feeling of burnout from over-immersion in HIV at both personal and professional levels, and diminished self care. Barriers to seeking support included: concerns regarding confidentiality; self-imposed and enacted stigma associated with accessing mental health services; and boundary issues resulting from changes in relationships with peers and other service providers. Evolving support mechanisms included: new formal and informal peer support networks amongst colleagues or other PHA service providers to address both personal and professional challenges, and having access to professional support offered through the workplace. The findings suggest the need for increased organizational recognition of HIV support work as a form of emotional labor that places complex demands on PHA service providers. Increased access to employer-provided mental health services, supportive workplace policies, and adequate job-specific training will contribute to reduced work-related stress. Community level strategies that support expansion of social networks amongst PHA service providers would reduce isolation. Systemic policies to increase access to insurance

Structural Stability of Light-harvesting Protein LH2 Adsorbed on Mesoporous Silica Supports.

Science.gov (United States)

Shibuya, Yuuta; Itoh, Tetsuji; Matsuura, Shun-ichi; Yamaguchi, Akira

2015-01-01

In the present study, we examined the reversible thermal deformation of the membrane protein light-harvesting complex LH2 adsorbed on mesoporous silica (MPS) supports. The LH2 complex from Thermochromatium tepidum cells was conjugated to MPS supports with a series of pore diameter (2.4 to 10.6 nm), and absorption spectra of the resulting LH2/MPS conjugates were observed over a temperature range of 273 - 313 K in order to examine the structure of the LH2 adsorbed on the MPS support. The experimental results confirmed that a slight ellipsoidal deformation of LH2 was induced by adsorption on the MPS supports. On the other hand, the structural stability of LH2 was not perturbed by the adsorption. Since the pore diameter of MPS support did not influence the structural stability of LH2, it could be considered that the spatial confinement of LH2 in size-matches pore did not improve the structural stability of LH2.

Training Veterans to Provide Peer Support in a Weight-Management Program: MOVE!

Science.gov (United States)

Haynes-Maslow, Lindsey; Carr, Carol; Orr, Melinda; Kahwati, Leila C.; Weiner, Bryan J.; Kinsinger, Linda

2013-01-01

Introduction The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has implemented MOVE!, a weight-management program for veterans designed to address the increasing proportion of overweight and obese veterans. The objective of our study was to determine whether peer support employing motivational interviewing (MI) could positively influence lifestyle changes, thus expanding the reach of the MOVE! program. We describe the initial evaluation of the peer training program. Methods We developed an MI peer counselor training program for volunteer veterans, the “Buddies” program, to provide one-on-one telephone support for veterans enrolled in MOVE!. Buddies were recruited at 5 VHA sites and trained to provide peer support for the 6-month MOVE! intervention. We used a DVD to teach MI skills and followed with 2 to 3 booster sessions. We observed training, conducted pre- and posttraining surveys, and debriefed focus groups to assess training feasibility. Results Fifty-six Buddies were trained. Results indicate positive receipt of the program (89% reported learning about peer counseling and 87% reported learning communication skills). Buddies showed a small improvement in MI self-efficacy on posttraining surveys. We also identified key challenges to learning MI and training implementation. Conclusions MI training is feasible to implement and acceptable to volunteer Buddies. Trainers must assess how effectively volunteers learn MI skills in order to enhance its effective use in health promotion. PMID:24199738

Structured telephone support or non-invasive telemonitoring for patients with heart failure.

Science.gov (United States)

Inglis, Sally C; Clark, Robyn A; Dierckx, Riet; Prieto-Merino, David; Cleland, John G F

2015-10-31

Specialised disease management programmes for heart failure aim to improve care, clinical outcomes and/or reduce healthcare utilisation. Since the last version of this review in 2010, several new trials of structured telephone support and non-invasive home telemonitoring have been published which have raised questions about their effectiveness. To review randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of structured telephone support or non-invasive home telemonitoring compared to standard practice for people with heart failure, in order to quantify the effects of these interventions over and above usual care. We updated the searches of the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE), Health Technology AsseFssment Database (HTA) on the Cochrane Library; MEDLINE (OVID), EMBASE (OVID), CINAHL (EBSCO), Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (CPCI-S) on Web of Science (Thomson Reuters), AMED, Proquest Theses and Dissertations, IEEE Xplore and TROVE in January 2015. We handsearched bibliographies of relevant studies and systematic reviews and abstract conference proceedings. We applied no language limits. We included only peer-reviewed, published RCTs comparing structured telephone support or non-invasive home telemonitoring to usual care of people with chronic heart failure. The intervention or usual care could not include protocol-driven home visits or more intensive than usual (typically four to six weeks) clinic follow-up. We present data as risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Primary outcomes included all-cause mortality, all-cause and heart failure-related hospitalisations, which we analysed using a fixed-effect model. Other outcomes included length of stay, health-related quality of life, heart failure knowledge and self care, acceptability and cost; we described and tabulated these. We performed meta-regression to assess homogeneity (the

Structural damage in masonry : Developing diagnostic decision support

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Vent, I.A.E.

2011-01-01

This thesis deals with the diagnosis of structural damage in traditional masonry: cracks, deformations and tilts. Establishing the cause of this type of damage can be difficult. This research project has aimed to improve and facilitate the diagnostic process by offering support in the initial phase

Caregiver Café: Providing Education and Support to Family Caregivers of Patients With Cancer
.

Science.gov (United States)

Finley, Joanne P

2018-02-01

The many burdens faced by caregivers of patients with cancer are well documented. Caregivers are asked to perform procedures, make assessments, coordinate care, and communicate with healthcare providers at an increasingly complex level. A caregiver quality improvement project, in the form of a Caregiver Café, was instituted at a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center.
. The objectives of the café are to (a) provide respite and a place for caregivers to relax and be nurtured, (b) provide a place for caregivers to meet and support each other, (c) provide answers to caregiver questions, and (d) recommend appropriate caregiver resources.
. The weekly Caregiver Café is led by an advanced practice nurse, and the format varies depending on the needs of the caregivers who attend.
. Caregivers have verbalized the importance of the café in helping them cope with their loved ones' cancers and treatments, and many attend on a regular basis. The Caregiver Café provides support and information and a place to get away from it all.

A Novel High-Performance Beam-Supported Membrane Structure with Enhanced Design Flexibility for Partial Discharge Detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chenzhao Fu

2017-03-01

Full Text Available A novel beam-supported membrane (BSM structure for the fiber optic extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer (EFPI sensors showing an enhanced performance and an improved resistance to the temperature change was proposed for detecting partial discharges (PDs. The fundamental frequency, sensitivity, linear range, and flatness of the BSM structure were investigated by employing the finite element simulations. Compared with the intact membrane (IM structure commonly used by EFPI sensors, BSM structure provides extra geometrical parameters to define the fundamental frequency when the diameter of the whole membrane and its thickness is determined, resulting in an enhanced design flexibility of the sensor structure. According to the simulation results, it is noted that BSM structure not only shows a much higher sensitivity (increased by almost four times for some cases, and a wider working range of fundamental frequency to choose, but also an improved linear range, making the system development much easier. In addition, BSM structure presents a better flatness than its IM counterpart, providing an increased signal-to-noise ratio (SNR. A further improvement of performance is thought to be possible with a step-forward structural optimization. The BSM structure shows a great potential to design the EFPI sensors, as well as others for detecting the acoustic signals.

An Intelligent Virtual Human System For Providing Healthcare Information And Support

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

healthcare system, and also to other SMs and Veterans by way of a variety of social networking tools (e.g., 2nd Life, Facebook, etc.). The user can progress... CyberPsychology and Behavior 8, 3 (2005), 187-211. [2] T. Parsons & A.A. Rizzo, Affective Outcomes of Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy for Anxiety...VH System for Providing Healthcare Information and Support508 [4] G. Riva, Virtual Reality in Psychotherapy: Review, CyberPsychology and Behavior 8

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

2017-05-09

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

High cycle fatigue analysis of vortex suppression plate and secondary core support structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xue Guohong; Li Yuan; Zhao Feiyun; Feng Shaodong; Yu Hao

2013-01-01

Background: Reactor internals are important equipment s in the reactor coolant system, its structure design needs high reliability in the entire lifetime, Reactor internals have occurred breakdown and the damage event due to flow induced vibrations in the domestic and foreign nuclear power plants, which make immediate influence on reactor safe operation and economic efficiency. Purpose: In this work, the dynamic response of reactor internals-vortex suppression plate and secondary core support structure (SCSS) under the loading from pump induced vibrations and flow induced vibrations are studied. Methods: Based on the finite element model of SCSS, Spectrum analysis and the harmonious analysis are performed, in order to get the response of the structure under flow induced vibrations. Then, the high fatigue of the structure is assessed according to the ASME B and PV Code. Results: The results indicate that alternate stresses of all the components satisfy the limiting value in the correlative requirements. Conclusions: The structure of SCSS could bear the vibration induced from the flow and the pump, and the method used in this article provides the reference for other reactor internals structure analysis like this. (authors)

Research success and structured support: Developing early career ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article discusses the programme structure, participants' evaluation of the year-long intervention and longitudinal data from a follow-up study conducted in 2008. It is evident in studies conducted in South Africa (Geber 2006) and elsewhere (Sorcinelli 2000) that support including mentoring and coaching is necessary for ...

A novel self-supporting GEM-based amplification structure for a time projection chamber at the ILC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Behnke, Ties; Diener, Ralf; Rosemann, Christoph; Steder, Lea

2012-11-15

In this paper, a new self-supporting way to mount Gas Electron Multipliers is presented. It has been developed to provide a method to cover large readout areas while ensuring the flatness of the foils and keeping the amount of dead material minimal. The structure has been tested in a Time Projection Chamber prototype, using cosmic muon tracks. The impact of the mounting structure on the track reconstruction and the single point resolution is quantified and its impact on the tracking efficiency and dE/dx measurements is estimated.

Making Plant-Support Structures From Waste Plant Fiber

Science.gov (United States)

Morrow, Robert C.; < oscjmocl. < attjew K/; {ertzbprm. A,amda; Ej (e. Cjad); Hunt, John

2006-01-01

Environmentally benign, biodegradable structures for supporting growing plants can be made in a process based on recycling of such waste plant fiber materials as wheat straw or of such derivative materials as paper and cardboard. Examples of structures that can be made in this way include plant plugs, pots, planter-lining mats, plant fences, and root and shoot barriers. No chemical binders are used in the process. First, the plant material is chopped into smaller particles. The particles are leached with water or steam to remove material that can inhibit plant growth, yielding a fibrous slurry. If the desired structures are plugs or sheets, then the slurry is formed into the desired shapes in a pulp molding subprocess. If the desired structures are root and shoot barriers, pots, or fences, then the slurry is compression-molded to the desired shapes in a heated press. The processed materials in these structures have properties similar to those of commercial pressboard, but unlike pressboard, these materials contain no additives. These structures have been found to withstand one growth cycle, even when wet

Providing supportive care to cancer patients: a study on inter-organizational relationships

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kevin Brazil

2008-02-01

Full Text Available Background: Supportive cancer care (SCC has historically been provided by organizations that work independently and possess limited inter-organizational coordination. Despite the recognition that SCC services must be better coordinated, little research has been done to examine inter-organizational relationships that would enable this goal. Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe relationships among programs that support those affected by cancer. Through this description the study objective was to identify the optimal approach to coordinating SCC in the community. Methods: Senior administrators in programs that provided care to persons and their families living with or affected by cancer participated in a personal interview. Setting: South-central Ontario, Canada. Study population: administrators from 43 (97% eligible programs consented to participate in the study. Results: Network analysis revealed a diffuse system where centralization was greater in operational than administrative activities. A greater number of provider cliques were present at the operational level than the administrative level. Respondents identified several priorities to improve the coordination of cancer care in the community including: improving standards of care; establishing a regional coordinating body; increasing resources; and improving communication between programs. Conclusion: Our results point to the importance of developing a better understanding on the types of relationships that exist among service programs if effective integrated models of care are to be developed.

Fatigue risks in the connections of sign support structures.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-01

This research effort develops a reliability-based approach for prescribing inspection intervals for mast-arm sign support : structures corresponding to user-specified levels of fatigue-induced fracture risk. The resulting level of risk for a : partic...

Diabetes self-management support for patients with low health literacy: Perceptions of patients and providers

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Fransen, Mirjam P.; Beune, Erik J. A. J.; Baim-Lance, Abigail M.; Bruessing, Raynold C.; Essink-Bot, Marie-Louise

2015-01-01

The aim of the present study was to explore perceptions and strategies of health care providers regarding diabetes self-management support for patients with low health literacy (LHL), and to compare their self-management support with the needs of patients with LHL and type 2 diabetes. This study

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

2017-06-30

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

You can't always give what you want: the challenge of providing social support to low self-esteem individuals.

Science.gov (United States)

Marigold, Denise C; Cavallo, Justin V; Holmes, John G; Wood, Joanne V

2014-07-01

It can be challenging for support providers to facilitate effective social support interactions even when they have the best intentions. In the current article, we examine some reasons for this difficulty, with a focus on support recipients' self-esteem as a crucial variable. We predicted that recipients' receptiveness to support would be influenced by both support strategy and recipient self-esteem and that receptiveness in turn would impact providers' perceived caregiving efficacy and relationship quality. Study 1 (hypothetical scenarios), Study 2 (confederate interaction), and Study 3 (reports of recently received support) showed that individuals with low self-esteem (LSEs) are less receptive than are individuals with high self-esteem (HSEs) to support that positively reframes their experience but are equally receptive to support that validates their negative feelings. In Study 4, providers demonstrated some knowledge that positive reframing would be less helpful to LSEs than to HSEs but indicated equal intention to give such support. Study 5 showed that, in a real interaction, friends were indeed equally likely to offer positive reframing to both LSEs and HSEs but were less likely to offer validation to LSEs. LSEs were less accepting of such support, and in turn providers felt worse about the interaction, about themselves, and about their friendship more broadly. Study 6 confirmed that recipients' receptivity to support directly influenced providers' experience of a support interaction as well as their self- and relationship evaluations. The findings illustrate how well-meaning support attempts that do not match recipients' particular preferences may be detrimental to both members of the dyad.

Regulatory design for RES-E support mechanisms: Learning curves, market structure, and burden-sharing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batlle, C.; Pérez-Arriaga, I.J.; Zambrano-Barragán, P.

2012-01-01

Drawing from relevant experiences in power systems around the world, this paper offers a review of existing policy support mechanisms for RES-E, with a detailed analysis of their regulatory implications. While recent studies provide an account of current RES-E support systems, in this paper we focus on some of the impacts these mechanisms have on the overall energy market structure and its performance. Given the rising importance of RES-E in systems everywhere, these impacts should no longer be overlooked. - Highlights: ► This paper offers a critical review of RES-E support mechanisms and their regulatory implications. ► The discussion focuses on how the different schemes impact the performance of the energy markets. ► We propose to redesign of current RES-E mechanisms to optimize incentives and market performance. ► Our recommendation is also to gradually move from price-based mechanisms to auctions.

Glycerophospholipid Supplementation as a Potential Intervention for Supporting Cerebral Structure in Older Adults

Science.gov (United States)

Reddan, Jeffery M.; White, David J.; Macpherson, Helen; Scholey, Andrew; Pipingas, Andrew

2018-01-01

Modifying nutritional intake through supplementation may be efficacious for altering the trajectory of cerebral structural decline evident with increasing age. To date, there have been a number of clinical trials in older adults whereby chronic supplementation with B vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, or resveratrol, has been observed to either slow the rate of decline or repair cerebral tissue. There is also some evidence from animal studies indicating that supplementation with glycerophospholipids (GPL) may benefit cerebral structure, though these effects have not yet been investigated in adult humans. Despite this paucity of research, there are a number of factors predicting poorer cerebral structure in older humans, which GPL supplementation appears to beneficially modify or protect against. These include elevated concentrations of homocysteine, unbalanced activity of reactive oxygen species both increasing the risk of oxidative stress, increased concentrations of pro-inflammatory messengers, as well as poorer cardio- and cerebrovascular function. As such, it is hypothesized that GPL supplementation will support cerebral structure in older adults. These cerebral effects may influence cognitive function. The current review aims to provide a theoretical basis for future clinical trials investigating the effects of GPL supplementation on cerebral structural integrity in older adults. PMID:29563868

A synchronous increase in hydraulic conductive capacity and mechanical support in conifers with relatively uniform xylem structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Jagels, Richard; Visscher, George E

2006-02-01

The dual function provided by longitudinal tracheids in conifers has led to a generally held trade-off concept that increasing wall thickness and/or volume of latewood tracheids improves mechanical support, while increasing cell diameter and/or volume of earlywood tracheids enhances conductive potential. Yet, some conifers have either uniform cell structure across the growth ring or, at most, a small amount of latewood. How do these trees accomplish the needs for increasing support and conduction with height growth? We examined Metasequoia glyptostroboides, a species that we previously demonstrated improves its mechanical properties with increasing age without a change in specific gravity or secondary wall microfibril angle. In this paper, we showed that lignin and extractive contents are not contributing factors, and through composite structure analysis, we eliminated a role for tracheid length. Using micromorphometric analysis, we demonstrated that as cell diameter increases, total primary wall decreases, secondary wall increases, and strength and conductive capacity increase with no change in specific gravity. Meta-analysis using other species of Cupressaceae, Podocarpaceae, and Araucariaceae provided strong corroborative evidence for this design strategy.

45 CFR 287.125 - What supportive and job retention services may be provided under the NEW Program?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 45 Public Welfare 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false What supportive and job retention services may be provided under the NEW Program? 287.125 Section 287.125 Public Welfare Regulations Relating to Public... Operations § 287.125 What supportive and job retention services may be provided under the NEW Program? The...

Graduating to Postdoc: Information-Sharing in Support of Organizational Structures and Needs

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Richard M.; Lucas, Paul J.; Compton, Michael M.; Stewart, Helen J.; Baya, Vinod; DelAlto, Martha

1999-01-01

The deployment of information-sharing systems in large organizations can significantly impact existing policies and procedures with regard to authority and control over information. Unless information-sharing systems explicitly support organizational structures and needs, these systems will be rejected summarily. The Postdoc system is a deployed Web-based information-sharing system created specifically to address organizational needs. Postdoc contains various organizational support features including a shared, globally navigable document space, as well as specialized access control, distributed administration, and mailing list features built around the key notion of hierarchical group structures. We review successes and difficulties in supporting organizational needs with Postdoc

Social support for diabetes illness management: supporting adolescents and caregivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Idalski Carcone, April; Ellis, Deborah A; Weisz, Arlene; Naar-King, Sylvie

2011-10-01

The aim of this research study was to examine the relationship between 4 sources of social support (support for the adolescent from family, support for the adolescent from friends, support for the caregiver from another adult, and support to the family from the health care provider) and adolescents' diabetes outcomes (illness management behavior and health status) using a diverse sample of urban adolescents. One hundred forty-one adolescents with insulin-managed diabetes and their primary caregivers completed questionnaires assessing social support and illness management behavior. Glucose meters were downloaded and hemoglobin A1c assays were obtained. Structural equation modeling was used to test a model social support informed by social ecological theory. The results of the structural equation modeling indicated that support for the caregiver from another adult was directly and positively related to support for the adolescent from family and indirectly related to better illness management. Support for the adolescent from family was directly related to better diabetes management and, through better management, to better diabetes health. Support to the family from the health care provider was not related to support for the adolescent and support to the adolescent from friends was not related to illness management, as hypothesized. This study identifies a novel target for social support intervention to improve adolescents' illness management behavior-the caregivers of adolescents with diabetes. By enhancing the social support caregivers receive from other adults in their lives, caregivers' ability to support their adolescent children with diabetes might also be improved which, in turn, improves adolescents' illness outcomes.

Leisure activities are linked to mental health benefits by providing time structure: comparing employed, unemployed and homemakers.

Science.gov (United States)

Goodman, William K; Geiger, Ashley M; Wolf, Jutta M

2017-01-01

Unemployment has consistently been linked to negative mental health outcomes, emphasising the need to characterise the underlying mechanisms. The current study aimed at testing whether compared with other employment groups, fewer leisure activities observed in unemployment may contribute to elevated risk for negative mental health via loss of time structure. Depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression), leisure activities (exercise, self-focused, social), and time structure (Time Structure Questionnaire (TSQ)) were assessed cross-sectionally in 406 participants (unemployed=155, employed=140, homemakers=111) recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Controlling for gender and age, structural equation modelling revealed time structure partially (employed, homemakers) and fully (unemployed) mediated the relationship between leisure activities and depressive symptoms. With the exception of differential effects for structured routines, all other TSQ factors (sense of purpose, present orientation, effective organisation and persistence) contributed significantly to all models. These findings support the idea that especially for the unemployed, leisure activities impose their mental health benefits through increasing individuals' perception of spending their time effectively. Social leisure activities that provide a sense of daily structure may thereby be a particularly promising low-cost intervention to improve mental health in this population. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Design and heat load analysis of support structure of CR superconducting dipole magnet for FAIR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu Yinfeng; Wu Songtao; Wu Weiyue; Xu Houchang; Liu Changle

2008-01-01

In order to meet the requirement of the Collector ring (CR) dipole superconducting magnet of FAIR in the process of operation, meanwhile, and to ensure the heat loads coming from the support structures to be lower than the design demands, the 3D models of support structures have been constructed with CATIA, then the calculation of low-temperature heat-load and the structure analysis have been done with ANSYS, the support structure material, 316LN+G10, is decided according to the heat-load calculation and the structure optimization, these results are necessary for manufacturing the formal magnet. (authors)

Seismic response analysis of structural system subjected to multiple support excitation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

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

1978-01-01

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

Social support, self-rated health, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender identity disclosure to cancer care providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamen, Charles S; Smith-Stoner, Marilyn; Heckler, Charles E; Flannery, Marie; Margolies, Liz

2015-01-01

To describe factors related to diagnosis, identity disclosure, and social support among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) patients with cancer, and to explore associations between these factors and self-rated health. Cross-sectional self-report survey design using descriptive and exploratory multivariate statistical approaches. Online, Internet-based. 291 LGBT patients (89% Caucasian; 50% gay, 36% lesbian, 7% bisexual, 3% transgender) with mixed cancers. Participants completed a researcher-designed online survey assessing experiences of cancer diagnosis among LGBT patients at a single time point. Demographics, which provider(s) delivered the patients' cancer diagnoses, to whom patients had disclosed their LGBT identity, how they disclosed, who was on their social support team at the time of diagnosis, and current self-rated health. 79% of participants reported disclosing their identities to more than one cancer care provider. Participants most commonly introduced the topic of LGBT identity themselves, sometimes as a way to correct heterosexual assumptions (34%). Friends were the most common members of LGBT patients' support teams (79%). Four disclosure and support factors were consistently associated with better self-rated health. Disclosure of LGBT identity is a common experience in the context of cancer care, and disclosure and support factors are associated with better self-reported health among LGBT patients. Creating safe environments for LGBT patients to disclose could improve cancer care delivery to this underserved population. Nurses and other providers should acknowledge and include diverse support team members in LGBT patients' care.

Key components of a service model providing early childhood support for women attending opioid treatment clinics: an Australian state health service review.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Susan R; Schmied, Virginia; Nicholls, Daniel; Dahlen, Hannah

2012-09-01

To report the findings of a service review--specifically the strategy to provide early childhood services 'on site' at opioid treatment clinics to address access difficulties. Child and family health nurses are skilled in the assessment and support of families during early childhood. However, women with a history of substance abuse are often cautious when engaging with universal and other health services, with the result that the infant may miss recommended developmental screening and early referral to improve health outcomes. In 2006, an internal review was undertaken of the integration of early childhood and parenting services at opioid treatment clinics in a large Area Health Service of New South Wales, Australia. A qualitative study design, using semi-structured interview questions was used. Data were collected via six focus groups (4-15 participants in each group) and individual interview of child and family health nurses, nurse unit managers and clinical staff (n=58). Three key components of a model for providing early childhood support in collaboration with opioid treatment services were identified. First, the importance of building a trusting relationship between the woman and the child and family health nurses, second, maintaining continuity of care and a multidisciplinary/multiagency approach, and finally the importance of staff education, support and professional development. The provision of early childhood and parenting services on site, as part of a multidisciplinary 'one stop shop' approach to service delivery was a clear recommendation of the review. Reduction of access difficulties to specialised early childhood support is of benefit to clients, community health services attempting to provide a service to this difficult to reach population and to drug and alcohol services seeking to provide a high level of holistic care for clients. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Steady-state response of periodically supported structures to a moving load

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Metrikine, A.V.; Wolfert, A.R.M.; Vrouwenvelder, A.C.W.M.

1999-01-01

Steady-state vibrations of periodically supported structures under a moving load are analytically investigated. The following three structures are considered: an overhead power line for a train, a long suspended bridge and a railway track. The study is based on the application of so-called

A CONTEXT AWARE BASED PRE-HANDOFF SUPPORT APPROACH TO PROVIDE OPTIMAL QOS FOR STREAMING APPLICATIONS OVER VEHICULAR AD HOC NETWORKS – HOSA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. RAMESH BABU

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Large variations in network Quality of Service (QoS such as bandwidth, latency, jitter, and reliability may occur during media transfer over vehicular ad hoc networks (VANET. Usage of VANET over mobile and wireless computing applications experience “bursty” QoS behavior during the execution over distributed network scenarios. Applications such as streaming media services need to adapt their functionalities to any change in network status. Moreover, an enhanced software platform is necessary to provide adaptive network management services to upper software components. HOSA, a handoff service broker based architecture for QoS adaptation over VANET supports in providing awareness. HOSA is structured as a middleware platform both to provide QoS awareness to streaming applications as well to manage dynamic ad hoc network resources with support over handoff in an adaptive fashion. HOSA is well analyzed over routing schemes such as TIBSCRPH, SIP and ABSRP where performance of HOSA was measured using throughput, traffic intensity and end to end delay. HOSA has been analyzed using JXTA development toolkit over C++ implemented classes to demonstrate its performance over varying node mobility established using vehicular mobility based conference application.

Seismic Base Isolators For A Silo Supporting Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bîtcă Daniel

2015-05-01

Full Text Available A 3000 tones capacity silo, located in a seismic area with ground acceleration ag = 0,20g and TC =1,0s, was designed in a classical solution The supporting structure has an octagonal shape in planview, and columns with “Maltese cross sections”. The main lateral resisting system is made up of centric bracings with cross-section class I.

Supportive Accountability: A model for providing human support for internet and ehealth interventions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mohr, D.C.; Cuijpers, P.; Lehman, K.A.

2011-01-01

The effectiveness of and adherence to eHealth interventions is enhanced by human support. However, human support has largely not been manualized and has usually not been guided by clear models. The objective of this paper is to develop a clear theoretical model, based on relevant empirical

Development of visual inspection technology for HTTR core support graphite structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maruyama, So; Iyoku, Tatsuo; Inagaki, Yoshiyuki; Shiozawa, Shusaku; Masuma, Yoshitaka; Miki, Toshiya.

1996-01-01

The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute is now constructing the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR), which employs a visual inspection of core support graphite structure, as an inservice inspection (ISI). In this inspection, TV camera will be used to investigate the alignment and integrity of the structure. Therefore, the ISI system, a combination of radiation tolerant TV camera and graphic processing system, is developed and examined its detectability and viewing angles using a simulated hot plenum of HTTR, which has artificial defects. As a result of a series of tests, it was confirmed that this system satisfied the requirements and was quite applicable for the ISI system of HTTR core support graphite structure. In addition, further improvement of the system, like a remote control procedure, will be investigated. (author)

Enhanced Solubility of the Support in an FDM-Based 3D Printed Structure Using Hydrogen Peroxide under Ultrasonication

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seong Je Park

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Fused deposition modeling (FDM, one of the archetypal 3D printing processes, typically requires support structures matched to printed model parts that principally have undercut or overhung features. Thus, the support removal is an essential postprocessing step after the FDM process. Here, we present an efficient and rapid method to remove the support part of an FDM-manufactured product using the phenomenon of oxidative degradation of hydrogen peroxide. This mechanism was significantly effective on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA, which has been widely used as a support material in the FDM process. Compared to water, hydrogen peroxide provided a two times faster dissolution rate of the PVA material. This could be increased another two times by applying ultrasonication to the solvent. In addition to the rapidness, we confirmed that amount of the support residues removed was enhanced, which was essentially caused by the surface roughness of the FDM-fabricated part. Furthermore, we demonstrated that there was no deterioration with respect to the mechanical properties or shape geometries of the obtained 3D printed parts. Taken together, these results are expected to help enhance the productivity of FDM by reducing the postprocessing time and to allow the removal of complicated and fine support structures, thereby improving the design capability of the FDM technique.

Structural and Biochemical Characterization of Chlamydia trachomatis Hypothetical Protein CT263 Supports That Menaquinone Synthesis Occurs through the Futalosine Pathway*

Science.gov (United States)

Barta, Michael L.; Thomas, Keisha; Yuan, Hongling; Lovell, Scott; Battaile, Kevin P.; Schramm, Vern L.; Hefty, P. Scott

2014-01-01

The obligate intracellular human pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis is the etiological agent of blinding trachoma and sexually transmitted disease. Genomic sequencing of Chlamydia indicated this medically important bacterium was not exclusively dependent on the host cell for energy. In order for the electron transport chain to function, electron shuttling between membrane-embedded complexes requires lipid-soluble quinones (e.g. menaquionone or ubiquinone). The sources or biosynthetic pathways required to obtain these electron carriers within C. trachomatis are poorly understood. The 1.58Å crystal structure of C. trachomatis hypothetical protein CT263 presented here supports a role in quinone biosynthesis. Although CT263 lacks sequence-based functional annotation, the crystal structure of CT263 displays striking structural similarity to 5′-methylthioadenosine nucleosidase (MTAN) enzymes. Although CT263 lacks the active site-associated dimer interface found in prototypical MTANs, co-crystal structures with product (adenine) or substrate (5′-methylthioadenosine) indicate that the canonical active site residues are conserved. Enzymatic characterization of CT263 indicates that the futalosine pathway intermediate 6-amino-6-deoxyfutalosine (kcat/Km = 1.8 × 103 m−1 s−1), but not the prototypical MTAN substrates (e.g. S-adenosylhomocysteine and 5′-methylthioadenosine), is hydrolyzed. Bioinformatic analyses of the chlamydial proteome also support the futalosine pathway toward the synthesis of menaquinone in Chlamydiaceae. This report provides the first experimental support for quinone synthesis in Chlamydia. Menaquinone synthesis provides another target for agents to combat C. trachomatis infection. PMID:25253688

The effect of promoters on the electronic structure of ruthenium catalysts supported on carbon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guraya, Monica; Sprenger, Susanne; Rarog-Pilecka, Wioletta; Szmigiel, Dariusz; Kowalczyk, Zbigniew; Muhler, Martin

2004-01-01

Alkali- and earth-alkali-promoted ruthenium catalysts supported on graphitized carbon were investigated by means of X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS and UPS) in order to study the effect of promoters on the electronic structure of this metal-support system. Samples were measured as prepared and after thorough reduction in hydrogen. The C 1s spectra of reduced alkali-promoted catalysts showed a shift towards higher binding energies and an asymmetric broadening. Neither non-promoted nor Ba-promoted Ru/C samples exhibited such a behaviour after similar treatments. The most important feature in the UP spectra of the reduced alkali-promoted catalysts was the appearance of a well defined Fermi edge absent in the semimetal-like electronic structure of graphite. No significant effects appeared in the case of non-promoted or Ba-promoted catalysts. The increase in the density of occupied states at the Fermi energy indicates a shift of this level into the conduction band, due to a charge transfer from the promoter to the support. This interpretation also provides an explanation for the observed higher C 1s binding energy and asymmetric broadening, due to the off-set introduced in the binding energy scale and the increasing probability of inelastic excitations near the Fermi level. In addition to photoelectron spectroscopy, low energy ion scattering (ISS) was used to obtain information about the localisation of the promoters. Based on the mild sputtering effect during prolonged series of spectra, it was possible to conclude that potassium covers both the carbon support and the Ru metal particles

Dental School Administrators' Attitudes Towards Providing Support Services for LGBT-Identified Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Behar-Horenstein, Linda S; Morris, Dustin R

2015-08-01

A lack of curriculum time devoted to teaching dental students about the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) health care patient needs and biases against LGBT students and faculty have been reported. Understanding dental school administrators' attitudes about LGBT students' needs might provide further insight into these long-standing issues. The aims of this study were to develop a survey to assess dental administrators' attitudes regarding the support services they believe LGBT-identified students need, to identify dental schools' current diversity inclusion policies, and to determine what types of support dental schools currently provide to LGBT students. A survey developed with the aid of a focus group, cognitive interviewing, and pilot testing was sent to 136 assistant and associate deans and deans of the 65 U.S. and Canadian dental schools. A total of 54 responses from 43 (66%) schools were received from 13 deans, 29 associate deans, and 11 assistant deans (one participant did not report a position), for a 40% response rate. The findings suggest there is a considerable lack of knowledge or acknowledgment of LGBT dental students' needs. Future studies are needed to show the importance of creating awareness about meeting the needs of all dental student groups, perhaps through awareness campaigns initiated by LGBT students.

Innovating science communication: the structure supporting ATLAS Education & Outreach

Science.gov (United States)

Goldfarb, Steven; Marcelloni, Claudia; Shaw, Kate; ATLAS Experiment

2016-04-01

The ATLAS Education & Outreach project has, over the years, developed a strong reputation for supporting innovation. Animated event displays, musical CDs, 3d movies, 3-storey murals, photo books, data sonifications, multi-media art installations, pub slams, masterclasses, documentaries, pop-up books, LEGO® models, and virtual visits are among the many diverse methods being exploited to communicate to the world the goals and accomplishments of the ATLAS Experiment at CERN. This variety of creativity and innovation does not pop out of a vacuum. It requires underlying motivation by the collaboration to communicate with the public; freedom and encouragement to do so in a creative manner; and a support structure for developing, implementing and promoting these activities. The ATLAS Outreach project has built this support structure on a well-defined communication plan, high-quality content, and effective delivery platforms. Most importantly, implementation of the program has been based on the effective engagement of the participating institutes and other key partners, not only to leverage modest human resources and funding, but also to take advantage of the rich imagination and inspiration of a diverse, global human collaboration. We present our current plan, on-going activities, and a few more fun innovations for the future.

Glycerophospholipid Supplementation as a Potential Intervention for Supporting Cerebral Structure in Older Adults

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffery M. Reddan

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Modifying nutritional intake through supplementation may be efficacious for altering the trajectory of cerebral structural decline evident with increasing age. To date, there have been a number of clinical trials in older adults whereby chronic supplementation with B vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, or resveratrol, has been observed to either slow the rate of decline or repair cerebral tissue. There is also some evidence from animal studies indicating that supplementation with glycerophospholipids (GPL may benefit cerebral structure, though these effects have not yet been investigated in adult humans. Despite this paucity of research, there are a number of factors predicting poorer cerebral structure in older humans, which GPL supplementation appears to beneficially modify or protect against. These include elevated concentrations of homocysteine, unbalanced activity of reactive oxygen species both increasing the risk of oxidative stress, increased concentrations of pro-inflammatory messengers, as well as poorer cardio- and cerebrovascular function. As such, it is hypothesized that GPL supplementation will support cerebral structure in older adults. These cerebral effects may influence cognitive function. The current review aims to provide a theoretical basis for future clinical trials investigating the effects of GPL supplementation on cerebral structural integrity in older adults.

Measurements of the solar UVR protection provided by shade structures in New Zealand primary schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Gies, Peter; Mackay, Christina

2004-01-01

To reduce ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure during childhood, shade structures are being erected in primary schools to provide areas where children can more safely undertake outdoor activities. This study to evaluate the effectiveness of existing and purpose built shade structures in providing solar UVR protection was carried out on 29 such structures in 10 schools in New Zealand. Measurements of the direct and scattered solar UVR doses within the central region of the shade structures were made during the school lunch break period using UVR-sensitive polysulfone film badges. These measurements indicate that many of the structures had UVR protection factors (PF) of 4-8, which was sufficient to provide protection during the school lunch hour. However, of the 29 structures examined, only six would meet the suggested requirements of UVR PF greater than 15 required to provide all-day protection.

Techniques and Tools Providing Strategic Decision Support: A Framework, Review, and Guidelines

Science.gov (United States)

1990-07-01

associations in a dream (Lacan, 1977). But the cognitive operations at level 5 are in themselves beyond the language or the person carrying them out (Jameson...formalizing techniques. A major problem for the design of systems able to provide support at this level is that, as in dream interpretation, what needs to...the development of object relations and affects. International Journal of Psychoanalysis , 59, 285-296. Savage, L.J., 1954. The foundations of

Providing a Full Circle of Support to Teachers in an Inclusive Elementary School

Science.gov (United States)

Waldron, Nancy L.; Redd, Lacy

2011-01-01

Providing a full circle of support to teachers in an inclusive elementary school, the Newberry Elementary School (NES) principal and staff have worked for 5 years to ensure the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. The authors would like to share their perceptions of how this full circle (the multiple systems) of…

The lived experience of rescuing people who have driven into floodwater: Understanding challenges and identifying areas for providing support.

Science.gov (United States)

Keech, Jacob J; Smith, Stephanie R; Peden, Amy E; Hagger, Martin S; Hamilton, Kyra

2018-06-11

Drowning is a major public health issue, with risk increasing during times of flood. Driving though floodwater is a major risk factor for flood-related drowning and injury, and despite widespread public health campaigns, many people continue to undertake this risky behaviour and require rescue. We aimed to identify key challenges faced by emergency services personnel when rescuing those who have driven into floodwater, and to identify strategies for supporting rescuers in this important role. Australian flood rescue operators (N=8) who had previously rescued a driver who had driven through floodwater, participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Four challenges emerged from their experiences: Involvement of untrained personnel, varying information provided by emergency telephone operators, behaviour of drivers complicating the rescue, people sightseeing floods or flood rescues, or ignoring closed roads providing sources of distraction and frustration. We propose five strategies for translating these results into practice, including: training and protocol development for (1) emergency personnel and (2) telephone operators, (3) training for rescuers regarding non-compliant rescuees, (4) educating the public, and (5) increasing compliance with closed roads. Current findings provide valuable insights into how rescuers can be supported in performing their roles, and implementation of these strategies has the potential to reduce fatalities occurring due to driving through floodwater. SO WHAT?: The strategies presented have the potential to reduce the frequency and improve the outcomes of floodwater rescues, aiding in the prevention of injury and death. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Ectopic lymphoid structures support ongoing production of class-switched autoantibodies in rheumatoid synovium.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frances Humby

2009-01-01

were closely associated with circulating human IgG ACPA in mouse sera. Finally, the survival and proliferation of functional B cell niches was associated with persistent overexpression of genes regulating ectopic lymphoneogenesis.Our demonstration that FDC+ follicular units invariably express AID and are surrounded by ACPA-producing plasma cells provides strong evidence that ectopic lymphoid structures in the RA synovium are functional and support autoantibody production. This concept is further confirmed by evidence of sustained AID expression, B cell proliferation, ongoing CSR, and production of human IgG ACPA from GC+ synovial tissue transplanted into SCID mice, independently of new B cell influx from the systemic circulation. These data identify AID as a potential therapeutic target in RA and suggest that survival of functional synovial B cell niches may profoundly influence chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, and response to B cell-depleting therapies.

Ectopic lymphoid structures support ongoing production of class-switched autoantibodies in rheumatoid synovium.

Science.gov (United States)

Humby, Frances; Bombardieri, Michele; Manzo, Antonio; Kelly, Stephen; Blades, Mark C; Kirkham, Bruce; Spencer, Jo; Pitzalis, Costantino

2009-01-13

closely associated with circulating human IgG ACPA in mouse sera. Finally, the survival and proliferation of functional B cell niches was associated with persistent overexpression of genes regulating ectopic lymphoneogenesis. Our demonstration that FDC+ follicular units invariably express AID and are surrounded by ACPA-producing plasma cells provides strong evidence that ectopic lymphoid structures in the RA synovium are functional and support autoantibody production. This concept is further confirmed by evidence of sustained AID expression, B cell proliferation, ongoing CSR, and production of human IgG ACPA from GC+ synovial tissue transplanted into SCID mice, independently of new B cell influx from the systemic circulation. These data identify AID as a potential therapeutic target in RA and suggest that survival of functional synovial B cell niches may profoundly influence chronic inflammation, autoimmunity, and response to B cell-depleting therapies.

Performance of a novel type of electrolyte-supported solid oxide fuel cell with honeycomb structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruiz-Morales, Juan Carlos; Savvin, Stanislav N.; Nunez, Pedro [Departmento de Quimica Inorganica, Universidad de La Laguna, 38200 Tenerife (Spain); Marrero-Lopez, David [Departamento de Fisica Aplicada I, Universidad de Malaga, 29071 Malaga (Spain); Pena-Martinez, Juan; Canales-Vazquez, Jesus [Instituto de Energias Renovables-Universidad de Castilla la Mancha, 02006 Albacete (Spain); Roa, Joan Josep; Segarra, Merce [DIOPMA, Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales e Ing. Metalurgica, 08028 Barcelona (Spain)

2010-01-15

A novel design, alternative to the conventional electrolyte-supported solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is presented. In this new design, a honeycomb-electrolyte is fabricated from hexagonal cells, providing high mechanical strength to the whole structure and supporting the thin layer used as electrolyte of a SOFC. This new design allows a reduction of {proportional_to}70% of the electrolyte material and it renders modest performances over 320 mW cm{sup -2} but high volumetric power densities, i.e. 1.22 W cm{sup -3} under pure CH{sub 4} at 900 C, with a high OCV of 1.13 V, using the standard Ni-YSZ cermet as anode, Pt as cathode material and air as the oxidant gas. (author)

SupportNet for Frontline Behavioral Health Providers

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-01

Review of the Impact of Adherence on the Effectiveness of e-Therapies. Journal of Medical Internet Research , 13(3), 52. Frank, R. (2003, January...Improve the Uptake and Impact of eHealth Technologies. Journal of Medical Internet Research , 13(4), 111. 41 Appendix V SupportNet

Demonstration for the Applicability of the EPRI ETSS on the SG Tube Wear Defects Formed at the Tube Support Structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shin, Ki Seok; Cheon, Keun Young; Nam, Min Woo; Min, Kyong Mahn

2013-01-01

In this paper, the authorized EPRI ETSS 27906.2 applied to the detection of tapered wear volumetric indications and depth sizing within the free span area, loose part not present was reviewed and applied to the site SG tubes for getting the actual value of the wear depth and providing structural integrity interpretation based on engineering evaluation. The experiment to demonstrate the applicability of EPRI ETSS was performed by the employment of the newly prepared STD tube and resulted in ensuring the effectiveness and equivalency of the EPRI ETSS as well. The authorized EPRI ETSS 27906.2 for getting the actual value of the wear depth and providing structural integrity interpretation based on engineering evaluation was reviewed and applied to the site SG tubes. The testing results were reviewed with the influences of SG tube material and the support structure. The impact of the tube materials was insignificant and that of the tube support structure showed somewhat conservative results. The testing resulted in successful demonstration of applicability of the EPRI ETSS on the SG tube wear defects at the tube support. One of the major flaw mechanisms detected in the currently operating domestic OPR-1000 pressurized water reactors(PWR's) steam generator(SG) tubes is wear defect. In general, wear defect has been constantly detected in the upper tube bundle imposed to the flow induced vibration interaction between tube and its support structure, and the quantity of the affected tubes has also shown the tendency to increase as plant operation life is added. In order to take appropriate measures and maintain the structural integrity for the SG tubes, wear defect is currently categorized as active damage mechanism and the tubes containing 40% or greater wear depth of the nominal tube wall thickness shall be plugged per SGMP(SG Management Program) Recently, a fairly large amplitude of wear defects on the Batwing(BW), one of the upper tube support structures in the SG tubes

Demonstration for the Applicability of the EPRI ETSS on the SG Tube Wear Defects Formed at the Tube Support Structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shin, Ki Seok; Cheon, Keun Young; Nam, Min Woo [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. Ltd, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Min, Kyong Mahn [Universal Monitoring and Inspection Inc., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-10-15

In this paper, the authorized EPRI ETSS 27906.2 applied to the detection of tapered wear volumetric indications and depth sizing within the free span area, loose part not present was reviewed and applied to the site SG tubes for getting the actual value of the wear depth and providing structural integrity interpretation based on engineering evaluation. The experiment to demonstrate the applicability of EPRI ETSS was performed by the employment of the newly prepared STD tube and resulted in ensuring the effectiveness and equivalency of the EPRI ETSS as well. The authorized EPRI ETSS 27906.2 for getting the actual value of the wear depth and providing structural integrity interpretation based on engineering evaluation was reviewed and applied to the site SG tubes. The testing results were reviewed with the influences of SG tube material and the support structure. The impact of the tube materials was insignificant and that of the tube support structure showed somewhat conservative results. The testing resulted in successful demonstration of applicability of the EPRI ETSS on the SG tube wear defects at the tube support. One of the major flaw mechanisms detected in the currently operating domestic OPR-1000 pressurized water reactors(PWR's) steam generator(SG) tubes is wear defect. In general, wear defect has been constantly detected in the upper tube bundle imposed to the flow induced vibration interaction between tube and its support structure, and the quantity of the affected tubes has also shown the tendency to increase as plant operation life is added. In order to take appropriate measures and maintain the structural integrity for the SG tubes, wear defect is currently categorized as active damage mechanism and the tubes containing 40% or greater wear depth of the nominal tube wall thickness shall be plugged per SGMP(SG Management Program) Recently, a fairly large amplitude of wear defects on the Batwing(BW), one of the upper tube support structures in the SG

Design study of an IHX support structure for a POOL-TYPE Sodium-cooled fast reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Chang Gyu; Kim, Jong Bum; Lee, Jae Han

2009-01-01

The IHX (Intermediate Heat eXchanger) for a pool-type SFR (Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor) system transfers heat from the primary high temperature sodium to the intermediate cold temperature sodium. The upper structure of the IHX is a coaxial structure designed to form a flow path for both the secondary high temperature and low temperature sodium. The coaxial structure of the IHX consists of a central downcomer and riser for the incoming and outgoing intermediate sodium, respectively. The IHX of a pool-type SFR is supported at the upper surface of the reactor head with an IHX support structure that connects the IHX riser cylinder to the reactor head. The reactor head is generally maintained at the low temperature regime, but the riser cylinder is exposed in the elevated temperature region. The resultant complicated temperature distribution of the co-axial structure including the IHX support structure may induce a severe thermal stress distribution. In this study, the structural feasibility of the current upper support structure concept is investigated through a preliminary stress analysis and an alternative design concept to accommodate the IHTS (Intermediate Heat Transport System) piping expansion loads and severe thermal stress is proposed. Through the structural analysis it is found that the alternative design concept is effective in reducing the thermal stress and acquiring structural integrity

ESF GROUND SUPPORT - STRUCTURAL STEEL ANALYSIS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

T. Misiak

1996-06-26

The purpose and objective of this analysis are to expand the level of detail and confirm member sizes for steel sets included in the Ground Support Design Analysis, Reference 5.20. This analysis also provides bounding values and details and defines critical design attributes for alternative configurations of the steel set. One possible configuration for the steel set is presented. This analysis covers the steel set design for the Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) entire Main Loop 25-foot diameter tunnel.

Structure-activity relationship study of oxindole-based inhibitors of cyclin-dependent kinases based on least-squares support vector machines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Jiazhong; Liu Huanxiang; Yao Xiaojun; Liu Mancang; Hu Zhide; Fan Botao

2007-01-01

The least-squares support vector machines (LS-SVMs), as an effective modified algorithm of support vector machine, was used to build structure-activity relationship (SAR) models to classify the oxindole-based inhibitors of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) based on their activity. Each compound was depicted by the structural descriptors that encode constitutional, topological, geometrical, electrostatic and quantum-chemical features. The forward-step-wise linear discriminate analysis method was used to search the descriptor space and select the structural descriptors responsible for activity. The linear discriminant analysis (LDA) and nonlinear LS-SVMs method were employed to build classification models, and the best results were obtained by the LS-SVMs method with prediction accuracy of 100% on the test set and 90.91% for CDK1 and CDK2, respectively, as well as that of LDA models 95.45% and 86.36%. This paper provides an effective method to screen CDKs inhibitors

The structural and functional brain networks that support human social networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Noonan, M P; Mars, R B; Sallet, J; Dunbar, R I M; Fellows, L K

2018-02-20

Social skills rely on a specific set of cognitive processes, raising the possibility that individual differences in social networks are related to differences in specific brain structural and functional networks. Here, we tested this hypothesis with multimodality neuroimaging. With diffusion MRI (DMRI), we showed that differences in structural integrity of particular white matter (WM) tracts, including cingulum bundle, extreme capsule and arcuate fasciculus were associated with an individual's social network size (SNS). A voxel-based morphology analysis demonstrated correlations between gray matter (GM) volume and SNS in limbic and temporal lobe regions. These structural changes co-occured with functional network differences. As a function of SNS, dorsomedial and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex showed altered resting-state functional connectivity with the default mode network (DMN). Finally, we integrated these three complementary methods, interrogating the relationship between social GM clusters and specific WM and resting-state networks (RSNs). Probabilistic tractography seeded in these GM nodes utilized the SNS-related WM pathways. Further, the spatial and functional overlap between the social GM clusters and the DMN was significantly closer than other control RSNs. These integrative analyses provide convergent evidence of the role of specific circuits in SNS, likely supporting the adaptive behavior necessary for success in extensive social environments. Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The vaccinia virus DNA polymerase structure provides insights into the mode of processivity factor binding

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Tarbouriech, N.; Ducournau, C.; Hutin, S.; Mas, P.J.; Man, Petr; Forest, E.; Hart, D.J.; Peyrefitte, Ch.N.; Burmeister, W.P.; Iseni, F.

2017-01-01

Roč. 8, NOV 13 (2017), s. 1-12, č. článku 1455. ISSN 2041-1723 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LQ1604 Institutional support: RVO:61388971 Keywords : PROTEIN SECONDARY STRUCTURE * CRYSTAL-STRUCTURE * GENETIC-CHARACTERIZATION Subject RIV: CE - Biochemistry OBOR OECD: Biochemistry and molecular biology Impact factor: 12.124, year: 2016

Relating performance of thin-film composite forward osmosis membranes to support layer formation and structure

KAUST Repository

Tiraferri, Alberto

2011-02-01

Osmotically driven membrane processes have the potential to treat impaired water sources, desalinate sea/brackish waters, and sustainably produce energy. The development of a membrane tailored for these processes is essential to advance the technology to the point that it is commercially viable. Here, a systematic investigation of the influence of thin-film composite membrane support layer structure on forward osmosis performance is conducted. The membranes consist of a selective polyamide active layer formed by interfacial polymerization on top of a polysulfone support layer fabricated by phase separation. By systematically varying the conditions used during the casting of the polysulfone layer, an array of support layers with differing structures was produced. The role that solvent quality, dope polymer concentration, fabric layer wetting, and casting blade gate height play in the support layer structure formation was investigated. Using a 1M NaCl draw solution and a deionized water feed, water fluxes ranging from 4 to 25Lm-2h-1 with consistently high salt rejection (>95.5%) were produced. The relationship between membrane structure and performance was analyzed. This study confirms the hypothesis that the optimal forward osmosis membrane consists of a mixed-structure support layer, where a thin sponge-like layer sits on top of highly porous macrovoids. Both the active layer transport properties and the support layer structural characteristics need to be optimized in order to fabricate a high performance forward osmosis membrane. © 2010 Elsevier B.V.

Routine outcome measurement in mental health service consumers: who should provide support for the self-assessments?

Science.gov (United States)

Gelkopf, Marc; Pagorek-Eshel, Shira; Trauer, Tom; Roe, David

2015-06-01

This study examined whether mental health community service users completed outcome self-reports differently when assessments were supervised by internal vs. external staff. The examination of potential differences between the two has useful implications for mental health systems that take upon themselves the challenge of Routine Outcome Measurement (ROM), as it might impact allocation of public resources and managed care program planning. 73 consumers completed the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life (MANSA), a shortened version of the Recovery Assessment Scale (RAS), and a functioning questionnaire. Questionnaires were administered, once using support provided by internal staff and once using support provided by external professional staff, with a one-month time interval and in random order. A MANOVA Repeated Measures showed no differences in outcomes of quality of life and recovery between internal and external support. Functioning scores were higher for the internal support when the internal assessments were performed first. Overall, except for the differences in functioning assessment, outcome scores were not determined by the supporting agency. This might indicate that when measuring quality of life and recovery, different supporting methods can be used to gather outcome measures and internal staff might be a good default agency to do this. Differences found in functioning assessment are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of the Impact of the EU Structural Support on the Competitiveness of Lithuanian Economics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rita Remeikiene

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Increasing amounts of the EU structural support in Lithuania require theoretical and practical research to disclose the determinants that have a significant impact on the competitiveness of Lithuanian economics. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the impact of the EU structural support on the competitiveness of Lithuanian economics. The methods of the research include systematic and comparative analysis of the scientific literature, expert evaluation and linear regression. The research disclosed the main determinants of country’s competitiveness. The results have revealed that EU structural support has the most significant impact on Lithuanian engineering and technological infrastructure. The impact of the support on country’s macroeconomic, scientific and social environment can also be considered as significant. The EU structural support has medium strong impact on education and business environment conditions in Lithuania. It has been established that, in the field of business advancement, Lithuanian should be rated as medium competitive. Hence, the increase in country’s competitiveness by employing EU structural funds should be treated as one of priority aims. In addition, responsible authorities should perform with higher efficiency seeking for higher competitiveness of the country.

Supporting family carers providing end-of-life home care: a qualitative study on the impact of a hospice at home service.

Science.gov (United States)

Jack, Barbara A; O'Brien, Mary R; Scrutton, Joyce; Baldry, Catherine R; Groves, Karen E

2015-01-01

To explore bereaved family carers' perceptions and experiences of a hospice at home service. The increasing demand for the development of home-based end-of-life services is not confined to the western world; such services are also emerging in resource-poor countries where palliative care services are developing with limited inpatient facilities. Despite this growing trend, studies show a variety of interrelated factors, with an emphasis on the availability of informal carers and their ability to cope, which can influence whether terminally ill patients actually remain at home. A hospice at home service was developed to meet patients' and families' needs by providing individually tailored resources. A qualitative study. Data were collected by semi-structured, digitally recorded interviews from 20 family carers who had experienced the service. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and a thematic approach adopted for analysis. All participants reported a personal positive impact of the service. Family carers commented the service provided a valued presence, they felt in good hands and importantly it helped in supporting normal life. The impact of an individualised, targeted, hospice at home service using dedicated, palliative care trained, staff, is perceived positively by family carers and importantly, supportive of those with additional caring or employment commitments. The emergence of hospice at home services has resulted in more options for patients and their families, when the increased amount of care a family member has to provide in these circumstances needs to be adequately supported, with the provision of a flexible service tailored to individual needs and delivered by appropriately trained staff. © 2014 The Authors. Journal of Clinical Nursing Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Horizontal cooperations between logistics service providers:motives, structure, performance

OpenAIRE

Schmoltzi, Christina; Wallenburg, Carl Marcus

2011-01-01

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich. This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively. Purpose – This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the motives, structure and performance attributes of horizontal cooperations between logistics service provi...

Research and Design of Fixed Photovoltaic Support Structure Based on SAP2000

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wang Xingxing

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In the solar photovoltaic power station project, PV support is one of the main structures, and fixed photovoltaic PV support is one of the most commonly used stents. For the the actual demand in a Japanese photovoltaic power, SAP2000 finite element analysis software is used in this paper, based on Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS C 8955-2011, describing the system of fixed photovoltaic support structure design and calculation method and process. The results show that: (1 according to the general requirements of 4 rows and 5 columns fixed photovoltaic support, the typical permanent load of the PV support is 4679.4 N, the wind load being 1.05 kN/m2, the snow load being 0.89 kN/m2 and the seismic load is 5877.51 N; (2 by theoretical calculation of the two ends extended beam model, the beam span under the rail is determined 2200 mm; (3 by the way of using the single factor experiment, through the calculation and analysis of SAP2000, the three best supporting points of the support of the W stent are determined; (4 by comprehensive simulation, the optimal parameters for the rail, beam, support and bolt are 60× 60× 1.0, 60× 60× 1.0, 40× 50× 2.0, and M10 respectively.

Preliminary structural evaluations of the STAR-LM reactor vessel and the support design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koo, Gyeong-Hoi; Sienicki, James J.; Moisseytsev, Anton

2007-01-01

In this paper, preliminary structural evaluations of the reactor vessel and support design of the STAR-LM (The Secure, Transportable, Autonomous Reactor - Liquid Metal variant), which is a lead-cooled reactor, are carried out with respect to an elevated temperature design and seismic design. For an elevated temperature design, the structural integrity of a direct coolant contact to the reactor vessel is investigated by using a detail structural analysis and the ASME-NH code rules. From the results of the structural analyses and the integrity evaluations, it was found that the design concept of a direct coolant contact to the reactor vessel cannot satisfy the ASME-NH rules for a given design condition. Therefore, a design modification with regards to the thermal barrier is introduced in the STAR-LM design. For a seismic design, detailed seismic time history response analyses for a reactor vessel with a consideration of a fluid-structure interaction are carried out for both a top support type and a bottom support type. And from the results of the hydrodynamic pressure responses, an investigation of the minimum thickness design of the reactor vessel is tentatively carried out by using the ASME design rules

Identifying the Types of Support Needed by Interprofessional Teams Providing Pediatric End-of-Life Care: A Thematic Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Riotte, Clare O; Kukora, Stephanie K; Keefer, Patricia M; Firn, Janice I

2018-04-01

Despite the number of interprofessional team members caring for children at the end of life, little evidence exists on how institutions can support their staff in providing care in these situations. We sought to evaluate which aspects of the hospital work environment were most helpful for multidisciplinary team members who care for patients at the end of life and identify areas for improvement to better address staff needs. Qualitative thematic analysis was completed of free-text comments from a survey distributed to interprofessional staff members involved in the care of a recently deceased pediatric patient. A total of 2701 surveys were sent; 890 completed. Free-text responses were provided by 306 interprofessional team members. Interprofessional team members involved in the care of a child who died at a 348 bed academic children's hospital in the Midwestern United States. Realist thematic analysis of free-text responses was completed in Dedoose using a deductive and inductive approach with line-by-line coding. Descriptive statistics of demographic information was completed using Excel. Thematic analysis of the 306 free-text responses identified three main support-related themes. Interprofessional team members desire to have (1) support through educational efforts such as workshops, (2) support from colleagues, and (3) support through institutional practices. Providers who participate in end-of-life work benefit from ongoing support through education, interpersonal relationships, and institutional practices. Addressing these areas from an interprofessional perspective enables staff to provide the optimal care for patients, patients' families, and themselves.

Degradation and Reinforcement of Industrial Gas Tank Support Structures. Thirty-Year Long Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Krentowski, Janusz R.; Knyziak, Piotr

2017-10-01

An analysis of reinforced concrete supporting structures of more than a dozen liquid gas tanks mounted on tower support structures located at different sites on Poland’s territory is presented. Stability testing of the degraded structures was carried out over a period of 30 years and pointed out significant defects that prevented safe operation of the tanks containing hazardous medium. Analysing complex stress states, as well as displacements of shell structure components, the authors developed a concept of strengthening the structures. Initial repair works, which had been carried out without proper supervision, failed to meet the mandatory requirements and were not compatible with the original design solutions. After several years of operation of the reinforced structures, their degradation states were assessed again. The next stage of repair works was carried out under the supervision of the authors together with authorized representatives of the investors.

Use of volunteers' information to support proactive inspection of hydraulic structures

Science.gov (United States)

Cortes Arevalo, Juliette; Sterlacchini, Simone; Bogaard, Thom; Frigerio, Simone; Junier, Sandra; Schenato, Luca; van den Giesen, Nick

2016-04-01

Proactive management is particularly important to deal with the increasing occurrence of hydro-meteorological hazards in mountain areas were threats are often caused by multiple and sudden onset hazards such as debris flows. Citizen volunteers can be involved in supporting technicians on inspecting the structures' functional status. Such collaborative effort between managing organizations and local volunteers becomes more important under limited resources. To consider volunteers' information in support of proactive inspection of hydraulic structures, we developed a methodology applicable in day-to-day risk management. At first, in collaboration with technicians-in-charge, a data collection approach was developed for first level or pre-screening visual inspections that can be performed by volunteers. Methods comprise of a data collection exercise, an inspection forms and a learning session based on existent procedures in the FVG region and neighbouring regions. To systematically evaluate the individual inspection reports, we designed a support method by means of a multi-criteria method with fuzzy terms. The method allows the technicians-in-charge to categorize the reports in one of three levels, each corresponding with a course of action. To facilitate the evaluation of inspection reports, we transformed the decision support method into a prototype Web-GIS application. The design process of the Web-GIS framework followed a user-centred approach. The conceptual design incorporates four modules for managing the inspection reports: 1) Registered users, 2) Inspection planning; 3) Available reports and 4) Evaluation of reports. The development of the prototype focused on the evaluation module and was implemented based on standard and interoperable open source tools. Finally, we organized a workshop with technicians in the study area to test the decision support method and get insights about the usefulness of the Web-GIS framework. Participants that took part of the

Completion of designing and manufacturing of the coil support structure of W7-X

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chauvin, Didier; Koppe, Torsten; Cardella, Antonio; Missal, Bernd; Pilopp, Dirk; Di Bartolo, Giovanni; Camin, Rocio; Gonzales, Ivan; Giordano, Luca; Langone, Stefano

2011-01-01

In February 2000, the project called coil support structure for the Wendelstein 7-X fusion machine was started. Since October 2009 the full production of this big (80 tons) and complex component is now completed and delivered at IPP Greifswald. The W7-X coil system consists of 20 planar and 50 non-planar coils. They are supported by a pentagonal 10 m diameter, 2.5 m high called coil support structure (CSS). The CSS is divided into five modules and each module consists of two equal half modules around the radial axis. Currently, the five modules were successfully assembled with the coils meeting the tight manufacturing tolerances. Designing, structural calculation, raw material procurement, welding and soldering technologies, milling, drilling, accurate machining, helium cooling pipe forming, laser metrology, ultra sonic cleaning and vacuum test are some of the key points used all along this successful manufacturing process. The lessons learned in the large scale production of this difficult kind of support structure will be presented as relevant experience for the realization of similar systems for future fusion devices, such as ITER.

Structural support system for a superconducting magnet coil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meuser, R.B.

1977-01-01

The purpose of the ESCAR (Experimental Superconducting Accelerator Ring) project, now under way at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, is to gather data and experience in the design and operation of a relatively small synchrotron employing superconducting magnets. Such data are essential to ensure that the design of future large accelerators may proceed in a knowledgeable and responsible manner. One of the many engineering problems associated with a superconducting magnet is the design of the coil suspension system. The coil, maintained at the temperature of liquid helium, must be held rigidly by a structure that does not conduct too much heat into the liquid helium system. The suspension system used on the ESCAR magnets is described. Topics covered include the coil support system requirements, ESCAR magnet support system, and operating experience

Supportive Accountability: A Model for Providing Human Support to Enhance Adherence to eHealth Interventions

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

The effectiveness of and adherence to eHealth interventions is enhanced by human support. However, human support has largely not been manualized and has usually not been guided by clear models. The objective of this paper is to develop a clear theoretical model, based on relevant empirical literature, that can guide research into human support components of eHealth interventions. A review of the literature revealed little relevant information from clinical sciences. Applicable literature was drawn primarily from organizational psychology, motivation theory, and computer-mediated communication (CMC) research. We have developed a model, referred to as “Supportive Accountability.” We argue that human support increases adherence through accountability to a coach who is seen as trustworthy, benevolent, and having expertise. Accountability should involve clear, process-oriented expectations that the patient is involved in determining. Reciprocity in the relationship, through which the patient derives clear benefits, should be explicit. The effect of accountability may be moderated by patient motivation. The more intrinsically motivated patients are, the less support they likely require. The process of support is also mediated by the communications medium (eg, telephone, instant messaging, email). Different communications media each have their own potential benefits and disadvantages. We discuss the specific components of accountability, motivation, and CMC medium in detail. The proposed model is a first step toward understanding how human support enhances adherence to eHealth interventions. Each component of the proposed model is a testable hypothesis. As we develop viable human support models, these should be manualized to facilitate dissemination. PMID:21393123

An innovative bio-engineering retaining structure for supporting unstable soil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gianluca Bella

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The paper presents a new prefabricated bio-engineering structure for the support of unstable soil. This prefabricated structure is made of a steel frame which is completely filled with soil and a face made of tree trunks among which scions or autochthonous bushes are planted. Due to the difficulties in interpreting the complex interaction between soil and structure during the installation and lifetime, an in situ test was carried out in order to evaluate the state of stress in the steel frame and to understand the global behavior of the structure under service loads. On the basis of the obtained results, a procedure for checking the structure safety was proposed and discussed. An easy design method was developed during the research. Moreover, the use of this type of prefabricated structure shows several advantages, such as good performances in terms of stabilizing effects, and easy assembly and transport.

Strength Analysis of a Large-Size Supporting Structure for an Offshore Wind Turbine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Niklas Karol

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The offshore wind power industry is the branch of electric energy production from renewable sources which is most intensively developed in EU countries. At present, there is a tendency to install larger-power wind turbines at larger distances from the seashore, on relatively deep waters. Consequently, technological solutions for new supporting structures intended for deeper water regions are undergoing rapid development now. Various design types are proposed and analysed, starting from gravitational supports (GBS, through monopiles and 3D frame structures (jackets, tripods, and ending with floating and submerged supports anchored to the seabed by flexible connectors, including TLP type solutions.

Prototype of a diagnostic decision support tool for structural damage in masonry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Vent, I.A.E.

2011-01-01

This prototype of a diagnostic decision support tool for structural damage in traditional masonry is the result of a PhD research project. The research project has aimed to improve and facilitate the diagnostic process by offering support in the initial phase in which hypotheses are generated. The

Development of an online information and support resource for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients considering surgery: perspectives of health care providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Macculloch, Radha; Nyhof-Young, Joyce; Nicholas, David; Donaldson, Sandra; Wright, James G

2010-06-29

Adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis who are considering spinal surgery face a major decision that requires access to in-depth information and support. Unfortunately, most online resources provide incomplete and inconsistent information and minimal social support. The aim of this study was to develop an online information and support resource for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients considering spinal surgery. Prior to website development, a user-based needs assessment was conducted. The needs assessment involved a total of six focus groups with three stakeholder groups: (1) post-operative AIS patients or surgical candidates (10-18 years) (n = 11), (2) their parents (n = 6) and (3) health care providers (n = 11). This paper reports on the findings from focus groups with health care providers. Focus group methodology was used to invite a range of perspectives and stimulate discussion. During audio-recorded focus groups, an emergent table of website content was presented to participants for assessment of relevance, viability and comprehensiveness in targeting global domains of need. Specifically, effective presentation of content, desired aspects of information and support, and discussions about the value of peer support and the role of health professionals were addressed. Focus group transcripts were then subject to content analysis through a constant comparative review and analysis. Two focus groups were held with health care providers, consisting of 5 and 6 members respectively. Clinicians provided their perceptions of the information and support needs of surgical patients and their families and how this information and support should be delivered using internet technology. Health care providers proposed four key suggestions to consider in the development of this online resource: (1) create the website with the target audience in mind; (2) clearly state the purpose of the website and organize website content to support the user; (3) offer a

Effect of adding support structures for overhanging part on fatigue strength in selective laser melting.

Science.gov (United States)

Kajima, Yuka; Takaichi, Atsushi; Nakamoto, Takayuki; Kimura, Takahiro; Kittikundecha, Nuttaphon; Tsutsumi, Yusuke; Nomura, Naoyuki; Kawasaki, Akira; Takahashi, Hidekazu; Hanawa, Takao; Wakabayashi, Noriyuki

2018-02-01

Selective laser melting (SLM) technology was recently introduced to fabricate dental prostheses. However, the fatigue strength of clasps in removable partial dentures prepared by SLM still requires improvement. In this study, we attempted to improve the fatigue strength of clasps by adding support structures for overhanging parts, which can generally be manufactured at an angle to be self-supporting. The results show that the fatigue strength of the supported specimens was more than twice that of unsupported specimens. Electron back-scattered diffraction analysis revealed that the supported specimens exhibited lower kernel average misorientation values than the unsupported specimens, which suggested that the support structure reduced the residual strain during the SLM process and helped to prevent micro-cracks led by thermal distortion. In addition, the supported specimens cooled more rapidly, thereby forming a finer grain size compared to that of the unsupported specimens, which contributed to improving the fatigue strength. The results of this study suggest that the fatigue strength of overhanging parts can be improved by intentionally adding support structures. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Structural Aging Program approach to providing an improved basis for aging management of safety-related concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naus, D.J.; Oland, C.B.; Ellingwood, B.

1993-01-01

The Structural Aging (SAG) Program is being conducted at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC). The SAG Program is addressing the aging management of safety-related concrete structures in nuclear power plants for the purpose of providing improved technical bases for their continued service. The program is organized into four tasks: Program Management, Materials Property Data Base, Structural Component Assessment/Repair Technologies, and Quantitative Methodology for Continued Service Determinations. Objectives and a summary of recent accomplishments under each of these tasks are presented

Using mHealth for HIV/TB Treatment Support in Lesotho: Enhancing Patient-Provider Communication in the START Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hirsch-Moverman, Yael; Daftary, Amrita; Yuengling, Katharine A; Saito, Suzue; Ntoane, Moeketsi; Frederix, Koen; Maama, Llang B; Howard, Andrea A

2017-01-01

mHealth is a promising means of supporting adherence to treatment. The Start TB patients on ART and Retain on Treatment (START) study included real-time adherence support using short-text messaging service (SMS) text messaging and trained village health workers (VHWs). We describe the use and acceptability of mHealth by patients with HIV/tuberculosis and health care providers. Patients and treatment supporters received automated, coded medication and appointment reminders at their preferred time and frequency, using their own phones, and $3.70 in monthly airtime. Facility-based VHWs were trained to log patient information and text message preferences into a mobile application and were given a password-protected mobile phone and airtime to communicate with community-based VHWs. The use of mHealth tools was analyzed from process data over the study course. Acceptability was evaluated during monthly follow-up interviews with all participants and during qualitative interviews with a subset of 30 patients and 30 health care providers at intervention sites. Use and acceptability were contextualized by monthly adherence data. From April 2013 to August 2015, the automated SMS system successfully delivered 39,528 messages to 835 individuals, including 633 patients and 202 treatment supporters. Uptake of the SMS intervention was high, with 92.1% of 713 eligible patients choosing to receive SMS messages. Patient and provider interviews yielded insight into barriers and facilitators to mHealth utilization. The intervention improved the quality of health communication between patients, treatment supporters, and providers. HIV-related stigma and technical challenges were identified as potential barriers. The mHealth intervention for HIV/tuberculosis treatment support in Lesotho was found to be a low-tech, user-friendly intervention, which was acceptable to patients and health care providers.

Support Net for Frontline Providers

Science.gov (United States)

2016-03-01

learning style , as well as treatment readiness (Proudfoot et al., 2011). Several channels of delivery include audio, video, email correspondence and...Provided Resources (1) o “Self assessment, resources were good.” Coaching (2) o “During this coaching period, I had a death of a parent , I did find the...Secondary Traumatic Stress Scale. Res Soc Work Pract. 2004; 14(1):27–35. 21. Pyevich CM, Newman E, Daleiden E. The relationship among cognitive

Dynamic structural disorder in supported nanoscale catalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rehr, J. J.; Vila, F. D.

2014-01-01

We investigate the origin and physical effects of “dynamic structural disorder” (DSD) in supported nano-scale catalysts. DSD refers to the intrinsic fluctuating, inhomogeneous structure of such nano-scale systems. In contrast to bulk materials, nano-scale systems exhibit substantial fluctuations in structure, charge, temperature, and other quantities, as well as large surface effects. The DSD is driven largely by the stochastic librational motion of the center of mass and fluxional bonding at the nanoparticle surface due to thermal coupling with the substrate. Our approach for calculating and understanding DSD is based on a combination of real-time density functional theory/molecular dynamics simulations, transient coupled-oscillator models, and statistical mechanics. This approach treats thermal and dynamic effects over multiple time-scales, and includes bond-stretching and -bending vibrations, and transient tethering to the substrate at longer ps time-scales. Potential effects on the catalytic properties of these clusters are briefly explored. Model calculations of molecule-cluster interactions and molecular dissociation reaction paths are presented in which the reactant molecules are adsorbed on the surface of dynamically sampled clusters. This model suggests that DSD can affect both the prefactors and distribution of energy barriers in reaction rates, and thus can significantly affect catalytic activity at the nano-scale

Dynamic structural disorder in supported nanoscale catalysts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rehr, J. J.; Vila, F. D. [Department of Physics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195 (United States)

2014-04-07

We investigate the origin and physical effects of “dynamic structural disorder” (DSD) in supported nano-scale catalysts. DSD refers to the intrinsic fluctuating, inhomogeneous structure of such nano-scale systems. In contrast to bulk materials, nano-scale systems exhibit substantial fluctuations in structure, charge, temperature, and other quantities, as well as large surface effects. The DSD is driven largely by the stochastic librational motion of the center of mass and fluxional bonding at the nanoparticle surface due to thermal coupling with the substrate. Our approach for calculating and understanding DSD is based on a combination of real-time density functional theory/molecular dynamics simulations, transient coupled-oscillator models, and statistical mechanics. This approach treats thermal and dynamic effects over multiple time-scales, and includes bond-stretching and -bending vibrations, and transient tethering to the substrate at longer ps time-scales. Potential effects on the catalytic properties of these clusters are briefly explored. Model calculations of molecule-cluster interactions and molecular dissociation reaction paths are presented in which the reactant molecules are adsorbed on the surface of dynamically sampled clusters. This model suggests that DSD can affect both the prefactors and distribution of energy barriers in reaction rates, and thus can significantly affect catalytic activity at the nano-scale.

Kinematic characteristics of a sprinting technique and morphofunctional structures of its providing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. A. Druz

2017-02-01

2Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz     Abstract Introduction The overall performance of a coach and the efficiency of performances of sportsmen are defined completely by the depth of understanding of regularities which are the cornerstone of the mechanisms, which provide the performance of competitive exercises. The most comprehensive investigations of these questions in track and field athletics are devoted to studying of sprint that significantly promoted the improvement of the process of a coach (Yefremenko, 2013 -2015; Shesterova, Yanhao, 2014-2016. However, the uniform generalization in the received scientific results isn't reached. It considerably reduces the overall performance of a coach. The optimization of the training process and the efficiency of performance of a sportsman are defined by the depth of knowledge of the interdependent relations of kinematic and dynamic characteristics of the performed physical actions and their connections with the morphofunctional educations, which provide their implementation. At the same time the final result depends on the motive endowments of a sportsman, the level of preparedness and the current functional state. The purpose of the research. To present the uniform system of the interdependent relations of the biomechanical and physiological regularities which provide the fastest movement of the general center of body weight GCBW of a sportsman when passing by him the established distance of run and to establish the structure of creation of an optimum algorithm of the training process taking into account individual physical development of a sportsman on the basis of provisions of the theory of training. The achievement of the purpose defined the need of the solution of the following tasks: 1. To carry out the analysis of literature and to systematize scientific achievements on the considered problem. 2. To select the fundamental laws of mechanics which define kinematic and dynamic characteristics of movement

CSBB-ConeExclusion, adapting structure based solution virtual screening to libraries on solid support.

Science.gov (United States)

Shave, Steven; Auer, Manfred

2013-12-23

Combinatorial chemical libraries produced on solid support offer fast and cost-effective access to a large number of unique compounds. If such libraries are screened directly on-bead, the speed at which chemical space can be explored by chemists is much greater than that addressable using solution based synthesis and screening methods. Solution based screening has a large supporting body of software such as structure-based virtual screening tools which enable the prediction of protein-ligand complexes. Use of these techniques to predict the protein bound complexes of compounds synthesized on solid support neglects to take into account the conjugation site on the small molecule ligand. This may invalidate predicted binding modes, the linker may be clashing with protein atoms. We present CSBB-ConeExclusion, a methodology and computer program which provides a measure of the applicability of solution dockings to solid support. Output is given in the form of statistics for each docking pose, a unique 2D visualization method which can be used to determine applicability at a glance, and automatically generated PyMol scripts allowing visualization of protein atom incursion into a defined exclusion volume. CSBB-ConeExclusion is then exemplarically used to determine the optimum attachment point for a purine library targeting cyclin-dependent kinase 2 CDK2.

Fatigue assessment of central support structure coil jacket of 4.5 MJ SMES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akhter, Javed; Bhunia, Uttam; Mondal, Bidhan Chandra; Nandi, Chinmay; Pal, Gautam; Saha, Subimal

2013-01-01

The Superconducting coil of 4.5 SMES will be of sector-toroidal type with 8 sectors. The maximum coil current will be 1200 Amperes. During its life time the SMES will be subjected to several cycles of charging and discharging. Thus the structural assessment of coil central support structure and the Liquid Helium Jacket, which comprises of the stress analysis and the fatigue life assessment, is a critical part of the design. In this paper fatigue life assessment of the 4.5 MJ SMES coil central support structure and the Liquid Helium Jacket together with the related stress analysis is presented. Coupled electromagnetic and Structural analysis using the commercial finite element analysis package ANSYS is performed. Considering the cyclic symmetry of the coil assembly, only 1/8th of the assembly is modelled. (author)

Factors Predicting Oncology Care Providers' Behavioral Intention to Adopt Clinical Decision Support Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Wolfenden, Andrew

2012-01-01

The purpose of this quantitative correlation study was to examine the predictors of user behavioral intention on the decision of oncology care providers to adopt or reject the clinical decision support system. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) formed the foundation of the research model and survey instrument. The…

Structure of the Hantavirus Nucleoprotein Provides Insights into the Mechanism of RNA Encapsidation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Olal

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Hantaviruses are etiological agents of life-threatening hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome and hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome. The nucleoprotein (N of hantavirus is essential for viral transcription and replication, thus representing an attractive target for therapeutic intervention. We have determined the crystal structure of hantavirus N to 3.2 Å resolution. The structure reveals a two-lobed, mostly α-helical structure that is distantly related to that of orthobunyavirus Ns. A basic RNA binding pocket is located at the intersection between the two lobes. We provide evidence that oligomerization is mediated by amino- and C-terminal arms that bind to the adjacent monomers. Based on these findings, we suggest a model for the oligomeric ribonucleoprotein (RNP complex. Our structure provides mechanistic insights into RNA encapsidation in the genus Hantavirus and constitutes a template for drug discovery efforts aimed at combating hantavirus infections.

Graphite oxidation and structural strength of graphite support column in VHTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Byung Ha; No, Hee Cheno; Kim, Eung Soo; Oh, Chang H.

2009-01-01

The air-ingress event by a large pipe break is an important accident considered in design of very high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (VHTR). Core-collapse prediction is a main safety issue. Structural failure model are technically required. The objective of this study is to develop structural failure model for the supporting graphite material in the lower plenum of the GT-MHR (gas-turbine-modular high temperature reactor). Graphite support column is important for VHTR structural integrity. Graphite support columns are under the axial load. Critical strength of graphite column is related to slenderness ratio and bulk density. Through compression tests for fresh and oxidized graphite columns we show that compressive strength of IG-110 was 79.46 MPa. And, the buckling strength of IG-110 column was expressed by the empirical formula: σ 0 =σ straight-line - C L/r, σ straight-line =91.31 MPa, C=1.01. The results of uniform and non-uniform oxidation tests show that the strength degradation of oxidized graphite column is expressed in the following non-dimensional form: σ/σ 0 =exp(-kd), k=0.111. Also, from the results of the uniform oxidation test with a complicated-shape column, we found out that the above non-dimensional equation obtained from the uniform oxidation test is applicable to a uniform oxidation case with a complicated-shape column. (author)

Tethered and Polymer Supported Bilayer Lipid Membranes: Structure and Function

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jakob Andersson

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Solid supported bilayer lipid membranes are model systems to mimic natural cell membranes in order to understand structural and functional properties of such systems. The use of a model system allows for the use of a wide variety of analytical tools including atomic force microscopy, impedance spectroscopy, neutron reflectometry, and surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. Among the large number of different types of model membranes polymer-supported and tethered lipid bilayers have been shown to be versatile and useful systems. Both systems consist of a lipid bilayer, which is de-coupled from an underlying support by a spacer cushion. Both systems will be reviewed, with an emphasis on the effect that the spacer moiety has on the bilayer properties.

Improving support for parents of children with hearing loss: provider training on use of targeted communication strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Muñoz, Karen; Nelson, Lauri; Blaiser, Kristina; Price, Tanner; Twohig, Michael

2015-02-01

When proper protocols are followed, children who are identified with a permanent hearing loss early in life have opportunities to develop language on par with their typical hearing peers. Young children with hearing loss are dependent on their parents to manage intervention during early years critical to their development, and parents' ability to effectively integrate recommendations in daily life is foundational for intervention success. Audiologists and early intervention professionals not only need to provide current evidence-based services, but also must address parents' emotional and learning needs related to their child's hearing loss. This study explored practice patterns related to education and support provided to parents of children with hearing loss and the influence of an in-service training on provider attitudes. This study used a prepost design with a self-report questionnaire to identify practice patterns related to communication skills and support used by providers when working with parents of children with hearing loss. A total of 45 participants (21 professionals and 24 graduate students) currently working with children completed the pretraining questionnaire, and 29 participants (13 professionals and 16 graduate students) completed the postquestionnaire. Data were collected using an online questionnaire before the training and 1 mo after training. Descriptive analyses were done to identify trends, and paired-samples t-tests were used to determine changes pretraining to posttraining. Findings revealed that professionals most frequently teach skills to mothers (91%) and infrequently teach skills to fathers (19%) and other caregivers (10%). Professionals reported frequently collaborating with other intervention providers (76%) and infrequently collaborating with primary care physicians (19%). One-third of the professionals reported addressing symptoms of depression and anxiety as an interfering factor with the ability to implement management

Australian experience of providing for fish passage at small instream structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lewis, B. [Forest Hill, Victoria (Australia)

2006-07-01

Various instream structures have been constructed in Australia as a result of increasing agricultural activities. However, even small structures such as culverts and stream gauging stations can restrict essential fish movements and result in the extinction of local fish species. This paper discussed methods of modifying and designing new structures to ensure adequate fish passage. It was suggested that instream structures can provide for fish passage through the provision of bridges, or through the use of low profile structures for small weirs. Recommendations for site-specific instream structures included an assessment of fish species, topography, flow characteristics and cost effectiveness. Solutions for reducing the impact of small instream barriers to fish movement were also discussed. Provision for fish passage is an important consideration for planners and designers of dams. Legislation is now in place to ensure a planning and approval process prior to the commencement of construction and operation. It was concluded that significant works are now being undertaken to restore fish migration pathways caused by barriers that restrict fish movement. However, monitoring is needed to ensure that designs operate effectively. 17 refs., 3 figs.

Australian experience of providing for fish passage at small instream structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewis, B.

2006-01-01

Various instream structures have been constructed in Australia as a result of increasing agricultural activities. However, even small structures such as culverts and stream gauging stations can restrict essential fish movements and result in the extinction of local fish species. This paper discussed methods of modifying and designing new structures to ensure adequate fish passage. It was suggested that instream structures can provide for fish passage through the provision of bridges, or through the use of low profile structures for small weirs. Recommendations for site-specific instream structures included an assessment of fish species, topography, flow characteristics and cost effectiveness. Solutions for reducing the impact of small instream barriers to fish movement were also discussed. Provision for fish passage is an important consideration for planners and designers of dams. Legislation is now in place to ensure a planning and approval process prior to the commencement of construction and operation. It was concluded that significant works are now being undertaken to restore fish migration pathways caused by barriers that restrict fish movement. However, monitoring is needed to ensure that designs operate effectively. 17 refs., 3 figs

Supporting Aboriginal Women to Quit Smoking: Antenatal and Postnatal Care Providers' Confidence, Attitudes, and Practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Tzelepis, Flora; Daly, Justine; Dowe, Sarah; Bourke, Alex; Gillham, Karen; Freund, Megan

2017-05-01

Tobacco use during pregnancy is substantially higher among Aboriginal women compared to non-Aboriginal women in Australia. However, no studies have investigated the amount or type of smoking cessation care that staff from Aboriginal antenatal and postnatal services provide to clients who smoke or staff confidence to do so. This study examined Aboriginal antenatal and postnatal staff confidence, perceived role and delivery of smoking cessation care to Aboriginal women and characteristics associated with provision of such care. Staff from 11 Aboriginal Maternal and Infant Health Services and eight Aboriginal Child and Family Health services in the Hunter New England Local Health District in Australia completed a cross-sectional self-reported survey (n = 67, response rate = 97.1%). Most staff reported they assessed clients' smoking status most or all of the time (92.2%). However, only a minority reported they offered a quitline referral (42.2%), provided follow-up support (28.6%) or provided nicotine replacement therapy (4.7%) to most or all clients who smoked. Few staff felt confident in motivating clients to quit smoking (19.7%) and advising clients about using nicotine replacement therapy (15.6%). Staff confident with talking to clients about how smoking affected their health had significantly higher odds of offering a quitline referral [OR = 4.9 (1.7-14.5)] and quitting assistance [OR = 3.9 (1.3-11.6)] to clients who smoke. Antenatal and postnatal staff delivery of smoking cessation care to pregnant Aboriginal women or mothers with young Aboriginal children could be improved. Programs that support Aboriginal antenatal and postnatal providers to deliver smoking cessation care to clients are needed. Aboriginal antenatal and postnatal service staff have multiple opportunities to assist Aboriginal women to quit smoking during pregnancy and postpartum. However, staff confidence and practices of offering various forms of smoking cessation support to pregnant Aboriginal

Seismic reliability assessment of RC structures including soil–structure interaction using wavelet weighted least squares support vector machine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khatibinia, Mohsen; Javad Fadaee, Mohammad; Salajegheh, Javad; Salajegheh, Eysa

2013-01-01

An efficient metamodeling framework in conjunction with the Monte-Carlo Simulation (MCS) is introduced to reduce the computational cost in seismic reliability assessment of existing RC structures. In order to achieve this purpose, the metamodel is designed by combining weighted least squares support vector machine (WLS-SVM) and a wavelet kernel function, called wavelet weighted least squares support vector machine (WWLS-SVM). In this study, the seismic reliability assessment of existing RC structures with consideration of soil–structure interaction (SSI) effects is investigated in accordance with Performance-Based Design (PBD). This study aims to incorporate the acceptable performance levels of PBD into reliability theory for comparing the obtained annual probability of non-performance with the target values for each performance level. The MCS method as the most reliable method is utilized to estimate the annual probability of failure associated with a given performance level in this study. In WWLS-SVM-based MCS, the structural seismic responses are accurately predicted by WWLS-SVM for reducing the computational cost. To show the efficiency and robustness of the proposed metamodel, two RC structures are studied. Numerical results demonstrate the efficiency and computational advantages of the proposed metamodel for the seismic reliability assessment of structures. Furthermore, the consideration of the SSI effects in the seismic reliability assessment of existing RC structures is compared to the fixed base model. It shows which SSI has the significant influence on the seismic reliability assessment of structures.

Structured clinical documentation in the electronic medical record to improve quality and to support practice-based research in epilepsy.

Science.gov (United States)

Narayanan, Jaishree; Dobrin, Sofia; Choi, Janet; Rubin, Susan; Pham, Anna; Patel, Vimal; Frigerio, Roberta; Maurer, Darryck; Gupta, Payal; Link, Lourdes; Walters, Shaun; Wang, Chi; Ji, Yuan; Maraganore, Demetrius M

2017-01-01

Using the electronic medical record (EMR) to capture structured clinical data at the point of care would be a practical way to support quality improvement and practice-based research in epilepsy. We describe our stepwise process for building structured clinical documentation support tools in the EMR that define best practices in epilepsy, and we describe how we incorporated these toolkits into our clinical workflow. These tools write notes and capture hundreds of fields of data including several score tests: Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 items, Neurological Disorders Depression Inventory for Epilepsy, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Quality of Life in Epilepsy-10 items, Montreal Cognitive Assessment/Short Test of Mental Status, and Medical Research Council Prognostic Index. The tools summarize brain imaging, blood laboratory, and electroencephalography results, and document neuromodulation treatments. The tools provide Best Practices Advisories and other clinical decision support when appropriate. The tools prompt enrollment in a DNA biobanking study. We have thus far enrolled 231 patients for initial visits and are starting our first annual follow-up visits and provide a brief description of our cohort. We are sharing these EMR tools and captured data with other epilepsy clinics as part of a Neurology Practice Based Research Network, and are using the tools to conduct pragmatic trials using subgroup-based adaptive designs. © 2016 The Authors. Epilepsia published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International League Against Epilepsy.

Oracle support provides a range of new tutorials

CERN Multimedia

2012-01-01

The IT DB is pleased to announce a new series of Oracle tutorials, with the proposed schedule. Note that these tutorials will take place in the Filtration Plant (Building 222) and that no registration is required.   4 June (Monday) 09:00 Oracle Architecture, Przemyslaw Adam Radowiecki The objective is to go through Oracle database physical and logical structures, highlighting the consequences of some of Oracle's internal design choices for developers of database applications. The presentation defines Oracle-related basic terms and illustrates them based on the database architecture. The following topics will be discussed: • Database with its physical and logical structures (tablespace, segment, extent, block, database user, schema, user's quota) • Single instance (significant memory structures: buffer cache, shared pool) • Real Application Cluster (RAC) • Connecting to the database (TNS, database service) • SQL statement processing (h...

Cost and Operational Effectiveness Analysis of Aiternative Force Structures for Fulfillment of the United States Marine Corps Operational Support Airlift and Search and Rescue Missions

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Chase, Eric

2000-01-01

This thesis provides a preliminary cost and operational effectiveness analysis of alternative force structures for the United States Marine Corps operational support airlift and search and rescue missions...

Structural analysis of Wendelstein 7-X magnet weight supports

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egorov, Konstantin; Bykov, Victor; Schauer, Felix; van Eeten, Paul

2009-01-01

The Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) optimized stellarator is presently under construction at the Max-Planck-Institut fuer Plasmaphysik in Greifswald. The goal of W7-X is to verify that the advanced stellarator magnetic confinement concept is a viable option for a fusion reactor. The W7-X coil system consisting of 70 superconducting coils of seven different types is supported by a massive central support structure (CSS), and thermally protected by the cryostat. The magnet system's weight is borne by supports (cryo-legs) which are bolted to the cold CSS. They reach down through the cryostat wall to the warm machine base which means that a small thermal conductivity is important to keep thermal losses at an acceptable level. Therefore, the design of the cryo-legs incorporates glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) tubes which are shrink-fitted into stainless steel flanges at the ends. In order to ensure free thermal shrinkage of the magnet system and to reduce stresses in the cryo-legs, sliding and rotating bearings are used as interfaces to the machine base. Tie rods between the machine base and the warm ends of the cryo-legs prevent toroidal movements of the magnet system with respect to the torus axis. Nevertheless, significant deformation of the CSS during operation results in tilting of the cryo-legs in such a way that toroidal movements of the whole magnet system take place. The number of cryo-legs and their stiffness are chosen such that the toroidal movement is kept within an acceptable range. All these restrictions, as well as requirements concerning simplicity and ease of assembly, make the cryo-leg design and structural analysis quite a complex and challenging task. The paper presents an overview of structural analyses of the W7-X magnet system with cryo-legs, local analyses of a cryo-leg under design loads, and FE simulation of the cryo-leg mechanical test.

The gender gap in student engagement: The role of teachers' autonomy support, structure, and involvement.

Science.gov (United States)

Lietaert, Sofie; Roorda, Debora; Laevers, Ferre; Verschueren, Karine; De Fraine, Bieke

2015-12-01

The gender gap in education in favour of girls is a widely known phenomenon. Boys generally have higher dropout rates, obtain lower grades, and show lower engagement. Insight into factors related to these academic outcomes could help to address the gender gap. This study investigated, for Dutch language classes, (1) how boys and girls differ in behavioural engagement, (2) which teacher support dimensions (autonomy support, structure, involvement) may explain gender differences in engagement (mediation hypothesis), and (3) whether and which of these teacher support dimensions matter more for boys' as opposed to girls' engagement (moderation or differential effects hypothesis). A total of 385 Grade 7 students and their 15 language teachers participated in this study. Teacher support was assessed through student reports. Student engagement was measured using student, teacher, and observer reports. By means of structural equation modelling, the mediating role of the teacher support dimensions for gender differences in behavioural engagement was tested. The potential differential role of the teacher support dimensions for boys' and girls' engagement was investigated through multigroup analysis. Boys were less engaged than girls and reported lower support from their teacher. Autonomy support and involvement partially mediated the relationship between gender and behavioural engagement. Autonomy support was demonstrated to be a protective factor for boys' engagement but not for girls'. Structure and involvement contributed equally to engagement for both sexes. Although involvement and autonomy support partly explained the gender gap in engagement (mediation hypothesis), more support was found for differential effects of autonomy support on boys' versus girls' engagement (differential effects hypothesis). © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

Synthetic Light-Curable Polymeric Materials Provide a Supportive Niche for Dental Pulp Stem Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Vining, Kyle H; Scherba, Jacob C; Bever, Alaina M; Alexander, Morgan R; Celiz, Adam D; Mooney, David J

2018-01-01

Dental disease annually affects billions of patients, and while regenerative dentistry aims to heal dental tissue after injury, existing polymeric restorative materials, or fillings, do not directly participate in the healing process in a bioinstructive manner. There is a need for restorative materials that can support native functions of dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs), which are capable of regenerating dentin. A polymer microarray formed from commercially available monomers to rapidly identify materials that support DPSC adhesion is used. Based on these findings, thiol-ene chemistry is employed to achieve rapid light-curing and minimize residual monomer of the lead materials. Several triacrylate bulk polymers support DPSC adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation in vitro, and exhibit stiffness and tensile strength similar to existing dental materials. Conversely, materials composed of a trimethacrylate monomer or bisphenol A glycidyl methacrylate, which is a monomer standard in dental materials, do not support stem cell adhesion and negatively impact matrix and signaling pathways. Furthermore, thiol-ene polymerized triacrylates are used as permanent filling materials at the dentin-pulp interface in direct contact with irreversibly injured pulp tissue. These novel triacrylate-based biomaterials have potential to enable novel regenerative dental therapies in the clinic by both restoring teeth and providing a supportive niche for DPSCs. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Monte Carlo simulation - a powerful tool to support experimental activities in structure reliability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yuritzinn, T.; Chapuliot, S.; Eid, M.; Masson, R.; Dahl, A.; Moinereau, D.

2003-01-01

Monte-Carlo Simulation (MCS) can have different uses in supporting structure reliability investigations and assessments. In this paper we focus our interest on the use of MCS as a numerical tool to support the fitting of the experimental data related to toughness experiments. (authors)

The PTSD Practitioner Registry: An Innovative Tracking, Dissemination, and Support Tool for Providers in Military and Nonmilitary Settings

Science.gov (United States)

2016-10-01

Military and Nonmilitary Settings PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Raymond C. Rosen, PhD CONTRACTING ORGANIZATION: New Englad Research Instituites , Inc...Partner organizations may have provided financial or in-kind support, supplied facilities or equipment, collaborated in the research, exchanged...location list country) Partner’s contribution to the project (identify one or more)  Financial support;  In-kind support (e.g., partner makes

The structure of occupational health nurses' support for return-to-work to workers with depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Hatanaka, Junko

2016-07-29

The present study aimed to explore the structure of occupational health nurses' support for return-to-work to workers with depression. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 occupational health nurses who support workers returning to work. Data were analyzed using the Modified Grounded Theory Approach. The qualitatively analyzed data was grouped into 9 categories. The support for return-to-work was divided into 3 periods: (1) the first priority for recovery, (2) preparation for return-to-work, and (3) adaptation to work. There were indirect supports to workers such as "environmental arrangement for medical treatment," "connection," and "support form parties concerned about workers," and direct supports such as "readiness for medical treatment," "overcoming social and psychological problems," and "working life independence. " Direct support was facilitated by "construction of the relationship. " The occupational health nurses' philosophy was to support "profitable return-to-work for both the worker and the employer. " These processes were "support of confidence recovery process " to regain confidence lost through absence from work because of depression and to accomplish a smooth return-to-work. There were problems in each period corresponding to the return-to-work conditions, and occupational health nurses supported the employees in overcoming each problem. Moreover, it was said that cooperation with the parties concerned in the office would greatly influence the success or failure in the return-to-work support, and it was thought that direct supports and indirect supports to employees with respect to adjustment with the parties concerned in the office were necessary. The structure of occupational health nurses' supports was to support the confidence recovery process of workers by indirect and direct support at each period of return-to-work.

Burnout and stress factors in special education teachers who provide extra professional support

OpenAIRE

Pogačnik Janežič, Olga

2015-01-01

In the thesis, we discuss the work of special education teachers, who provide extra professional support to children in need. Limitations and weaknesses of their work are also reviewed. Many factors, including changes in the general system of education, parents’ high expectations, unpleasant classroom circumstances, high amount of work tasks and employment uncertainty are just a few of the factors that lead to higher amounts of work-related stress and burnout syndrome. The purpose of the thes...

TFTR Inner Support Structure final assembly and installation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rocco, R.E.; Brown, G.; Carglia, G.; Heitzenroeder, P.; Koenig, F.; Mookerjee, S.; Raugh, J.

1983-01-01

The Inner Support Structure (ISS) of the TFTR provides a specific level of restraint to the net centering force and overturning moment produced by the Toroidal Field (TF) coils and to the vertical forces produced by the Inner Poloidal Field (PF) coils. This is accomplished consistent with the need for four radial dielectric breaks running the entire length of the ISS to prevent eddy current loops. A brief description of the major components, method of manufacture and material selection of the ISS and PF coils is presented. Particular attention is given to the integration of the PF coils and the ISS components into the total assembly and the installation of strain gauges and crack monitors on the ISS. The requirements of no gaps at the interfaces of the ISS teeth at all three horizontal planes is discussed. The problem encountered with achieving the no gap requirement and the successful resolution of this problem, including its impact on installation of the ISS, is also discussed. The installation of the ISS, including setting in position, preloading with TF coil clips, and final tensioning of the tension bars is discussed. A brief description of the lower and upper lead stem splicing operation is presented. Subsequent to the final assembly, electrical tests were performed prior to and after installation on the TFTR machine. An overview of the tests and their results is presented

Decision support system of e-book provider selection for library using Simple Additive Weighting

Science.gov (United States)

Ciptayani, P. I.; Dewi, K. C.

2018-01-01

Each library has its own criteria and differences in the importance of each criterion in choosing an e-book provider for them. The large number of providers and the different importance levels of each criterion make the problem of determining the e-book provider to be complex and take a considerable time in decision making. The aim of this study was to implement Decision support system (DSS) to assist the library in selecting the best e-book provider based on their preferences. The way of DSS works is by comparing the importance of each criterion and the condition of each alternative decision. SAW is one of DSS method that is quite simple, fast and widely used. This study used 9 criteria and 18 provider to demonstrate how SAW work in this study. With the DSS, then the decision-making time can be shortened and the calculation results can be more accurate than manual calculations.

Web-Based Self-Service Systems for Managed IT Support: Service Provider Perspectives of Stakeholder-Based Issues

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Vanessa A.; Lichtenstein, Sharman; Smith, Ross

This chapter explores the provision of after-sales information technology (IT) support services using Web-based self-service systems (WSSs) in a business-to-business (B2B) context. A recent study conducted at six large multi-national IT support organisations revealed a number of critical success factors (CSFs) and stakeholder-based issues. To better identify and understand these important enablers and barriers, we explain how WSSs should be considered within a complex network of service providers, business partners and customer firms. The CSFs and stakeholder-based issues are discussed. The chapter highlights that for more successful service provision using WSSs, IT service providers should collaborate more effectively with enterprise customers and business partners and should better integrate their WSSs.

Pregnancy outcomes in Ghana : Relavance of clinical decision making support tools for frontline providers of care

OpenAIRE

Amoakoh-Coleman, M.

2016-01-01

Ghana’s slow progress towards attaining millennium development goal 5 has been associated with gaps in quality of care, particularly quality of clinical decision making for clients. This thesis reviews the relevance and effect of clinical decision making support tools on pregnancy outcomes. Relevance of three clinical decision making support tools available to frontline providers of care in the Greater Accra region is discussed. These are routine maternal health service delivery data populati...

Investigation of training and support needs in rural and remote disability and mainstream service providers: implications for an online training model.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnsson, Genevieve; Kerslake, Rachel; Crook, Sarah; Cribb, Corinne

2017-12-01

Objectives It is known that there are difficulties in recruiting and retaining practitioners in rural and remote communities and that access to support and professional development can be key in breaking this cycle. Technology provides a possible solution not only for increasing access to these opportunities, but also in building community capacity to support children with autism. The aim of the present study was to investigate the current learning and support needs within rural and remote professionals prior to setting up a model of support. Methods An online survey was used to gather information from service providers in rural and remote communities on their demographics, current skills and confidence in working with clients on the autism spectrum, current supervision and professional development, identified learning and support needs, and the availability and uptake of technology for accessing professional development. Results Respondents reported below average levels of perceived confidence and skills when working with children with autism, most notably children with challenging behaviour. Half the respondents do not currently attend supervision sessions, with only 15% receiving regular supervision (fortnightly or more often), and 66% of respondents had travelled more than 3h to access professional development workshops. The majority of participants had access to technology and over half had already used this for online training. Conclusion Overall, service providers in rural and remote areas are generally not currently meeting their needs in terms of frequency of supervision and professional development. The present needs analysis identifies key areas for learning, the ideal frequency of support and the acceptability of using technology to deliver this support. This information will guide future researchers in the development of an evidence-based model that will be accessible and meaningful to its participants. What is known about the topic? It is known that

The Cost of Providing Comprehensive HIV Treatment in PEPFAR-Supported Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Menzies, Nicolas A; Berruti, Andres A; Berzon, Richard; Filler, Scott; Ferris, Robert; Ellerbrock, Tedd V; Blandford, John M

2011-01-01

PEPFAR, national governments, and other stakeholders are investing unprecedented resources to provide HIV treatment in developing countries. This study reports empirical data on costs and cost trends in a large sample of HIV treatment sites. In 2006–2007, we conducted cost analyses at 43 PEPFAR-supported outpatient clinics providing free comprehensive HIV treatment in Botswana, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Uganda, and Vietnam. We collected data on HIV treatment costs over consecutive 6-month periods from scale-up of dedicated HIV treatment services at each site. The study included all patients receiving HIV treatment and care at study sites (62,512 ART and 44,394 pre-ART patients). Outcomes were costs per-patient and total program costs, subdivided by major cost categories. Median annual economic costs were $202 (2009 USD) for pre-ART patients and $880 for ART patients. Excluding ARVs, per-patient ART costs were $298. Care for newly initiated ART patients cost 15–20% more than for established patients. Per-patient costs dropped rapidly as sites matured, with per-patient ART costs dropping 46.8% between first and second 6-month periods after the beginning of scale-up, and an additional 29.5% the following year. PEPFAR provided 79.4% of funding for service delivery, and national governments provided 15.2%. Treatment costs vary widely between sites, and high early costs drop rapidly as sites mature. Treatment costs vary between countries and respond to changes in ARV regimen costs and the package of services. While cost reductions may allow near-term program growth, programs need to weigh the trade-off between improving services for current patients and expanding coverage to new patients. PMID:21412127

Developing and supporting coordinators of structured mentoring schemes in South Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Penny Abbott

2010-10-01

Research purpose: The aim of this research is to discover what the characteristics of coordinators of structured mentoring schemes in South Africa are, what is required of such coordinators and how they feel about their role, with a view to improving development and support for them. Motivation for the study: The limited amount of information about role requirements for coordinators which is available in the literature is not based on empirical research. This study aims to supply the empirical basis for improved development and support for coordinators. Research design and method: A purposive sample of 25 schemes was identified and both quantitative and qualitative data, obtained through questionnaires and interviews, were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Main findings: Functions of coordinators tend to be similar across different types of mentoring schemes. A passion for mentoring is important, as the role involves many frustrations. There is little formalised development and support for coordinators. Practical/managerial implications: The study clarifies the functions of the coordinator, offers a job description and profile and makes suggestions on how to improve the development of the coordinator’s skills. Contribution/value-add: An understanding of what is required from a coordinator, how the necessary knowledge and skills can be developed and how the coordinator can be supported,adds value to an organisation setting up or reviewing its structured mentoring schemes.

New protein structures provide an updated understanding of phenylketonuria.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaffe, Eileen K

2017-08-01

Phenylketonuria (PKU) and less severe hyperphenylalaninemia (HPA) constitute the most common inborn error of amino acid metabolism, and is most often caused by defects in phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) function resulting in accumulation of Phe to neurotoxic levels. Despite the success of dietary intervention in preventing permanent neurological damage, individuals living with PKU clamor for additional non-dietary therapies. The bulk of disease-associated mutations are PAH missense variants, which occur throughout the entire 452 amino acid human PAH protein. While some disease-associated mutations affect protein structure (e.g. truncations) and others encode catalytically dead variants, most have been viewed as defective in protein folding/stability. Here we refine this view to address how PKU-associated missense variants can perturb the equilibrium among alternate native PAH structures (resting-state PAH and activated PAH), thus shifting the tipping point of this equilibrium to a neurotoxic Phe concentration. This refined view of PKU introduces opportunities for the design or discovery of therapeutic pharmacological chaperones that can help restore the tipping point to healthy Phe levels and how such a therapeutic might work with or without the inhibitory pharmacological chaperone BH 4 . Dysregulation of an equilibrium of architecturally distinct native PAH structures departs from the concept of "misfolding", provides an updated understanding of PKU, and presents an enhanced foundation for understanding genotype/phenotype relationships. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Nuclear reactor construction with bottom supported reactor vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharbaugh, J.E.

1987-01-01

This patent describes an improved liquid metal nuclear reactor construction comprising: (a) a nuclear reactor core having a bottom platform support structure; (b) a reactor vessel for holding a large pool of low pressure liquid metal coolant and housing the core; (c) a containment structure surrounding the reactor vessel and having a sidewall spaced outwardly from the reactor vessel side wall and having a base mat spaced below the reactor vessel bottom end wall; (d) a central small diameter post anchored to the containment structure base mat and extending upwardly to the reactor vessel to axially fix the bottom end wall of the reactor vessel and provide a center column support for the lower end of the reactor core; (e) annular support structure disposed in the reactor vessel on the bottom end wall and extending about the lower end of the core; (f) structural support means disposed between the containment structure base mat and bottom end of the reactor vessel wall and cooperating for supporting the reactor vessel at its bottom end wall on the containment structure base mat to allow the reactor vessel to expand radially but substantially prevent any lateral motions that might be imposed by the occurrence of a seismic event; (g) a bed of insulating material disposed between the containment structure base mat and the bottom end wall of the reactor vessel and uniformly supporting the reactor vessel at its bottom end wall; freely expand radially from the central post as it heats up while providing continuous support thereof; (h) a deck supported upon the wall of the containment vessel above the top open end of the reactor vessel; and (i) extendible and retractable coupling means extending between the deck and the top open end of the reactor vessel and flexibly and sealably interconnecting the reactor vessel at its top end to the deck

A Reference Architecture for Providing Tools as a Service to Support Global Software Development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Chauhan, Aufeef

2014-01-01

-computing paradigm for addressing above-mentioned issues by providing a framework to select appropriate tools as well as associated services and reference architecture of the cloud-enabled middleware platform that allows on demand provisioning of software engineering Tools as a Service (TaaS) with focus......Global Software Development (GSD) teams encounter challenges that are associated with distribution of software development activities across multiple geographic regions. The limited support for performing collaborative development and engineering activities and lack of sufficient support......-based solutions. The restricted ability of the organizations to have desired alignment of tools with software engineering and development processes results in administrative and managerial overhead that incur increased development cost and poor product quality. Moreover, stakeholders involved in the projects have...

QUIN: Providing Integrated Analysis Support to Crime Investigators

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smit, S.; Vecht, B. van der; Wermeskerken, F.J.P. van; Streefkerk, J.W.

2016-01-01

Crime investigators heavily rely on their large knowledge of criminal behavior. When investigating a new case, applying this knowledge can lead to cognitive overload and tunnel vision. Some support systems are developed to search through historical data and knowledge more easily, but still require

Regression analysis of pulsed eddy current signals for inspection of steam generator tube support structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buck, J.; Underhill, P.R.; Mokros, S.G.; Morelli, J.; Krause, T.W.; Babbar, V.K.; Lepine, B.

2015-01-01

Nuclear steam generator (SG) support structure degradation and fouling can result in damage to SG tubes and loss of SG efficiency. Conventional eddy current technology is extensively used to detect cracks, frets at supports and other flaws, but has limited capabilities in the presence of multiple degradation modes or fouling. Pulsed eddy current (PEC) combined with principal components analysis (PCA) and multiple linear regression models was examined for the inspection of support structure degradation and SG tube off-centering with the goal of extending results to include additional degradation modes. (author)

Printability Study of Bioprinted Tubular Structures Using Liquid Hydrogel Precursors in a Support Bath

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Houzhu Ding

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Microextrusion-based bioprinting within a support bath material is an emerging additive manufacturing paradigm for complex three-dimensional (3D tissue construct fabrication. Although a support bath medium enables arbitrary in-process geometries to be printed, a significant challenge lies in preserving the shape fidelity upon the extraction of the support bath material. Based on the bioprinting in a support bath paradigm, this paper advances quantitative analyses to systematically determine the printability of cell-laden liquid hydrogel precursors towards filament-based tissue constructs. First, a yield stress nanoclay material is judiciously selected as the support bath medium owing to its insensitivity to temperature and ionic variations that are considered in the context of the current gelatin-alginate bio-ink material formulation. Furthermore, phenomenological observations for the rheology-mediated print outcomes enable the compositions for the bio-ink material (10% gelatin, 3% alginate, in tandem with the support bath medium (4% nanoclay, 0.5% CaCl2, to be identified. To systematically evaluate the performance outcomes for bioprinting within a support bath, this paper advances an experimental parametric study to optimize the 3D structural shape fidelity by varying parameters such as the layer height, extrusion flowrate, printing temperature, and printhead speed, towards fabricating complex 3D structures with the stabilization of the desired shape outcome. Specifically, it is found that the layer height and printhead speed are determinant parameters for the extent of successive layer fusion. Moreover, maintenance of an optimal bath temperature is identified as a key parameter for establishing the printability for the hydrogel bio-ink. Studying this effect is enabled by the custom design of a PID temperature control system with integration with the bioprinter for real-time precision control of the support bath temperature. In order to qualify

Nuclear education, training and support

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vityazev, Vsevolod; Ushakov Artem

2016-01-01

The structure and key elements of the ROSATOM education and training system are presented. Educational and training services and technical support are provided during the NPP lifetime, including nuclear Infrastructure, nuclear power plant personnel training, equipment and post-warranty spare parts, nuclear power plant operation support, maintenance and repair, modernization and lifetime extension

Organizational Structures and Processes to Support and Sustain Effective Technical Assistance in a State-Wide Multi-Tiered System of Support Initiative

Science.gov (United States)

Morrison, Julie Q.; Russell, Christine; Dyer, Stephanie; Metcalf, Terri; Rahschulte, Rebecca L.

2014-01-01

Despite the national proliferation of technical assistance as a driver for school reform and as a model for embedded and sustained professional development, very little is known about the organizational structures and processes needed to support technical assistance. The purpose of this paper is to describe a structured needs assessment process…

Structure of sulfamidase provides insight into the molecular pathology of mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sidhu, Navdeep S.; Schreiber, Kathrin; Pröpper, Kevin; Becker, Stefan; Usón, Isabel; Sheldrick, George M.; Gärtner, Jutta; Krätzner, Ralph; Steinfeld, Robert

2014-01-01

Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that typically manifests itself in childhood and is caused by mutations in the gene for the lysosomal enzyme sulfamidase. The first structure of this enzyme is presented, which provides insight into the molecular basis of disease-causing mutations, and the enzymatic mechanism is proposed. Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (Sanfilippo A syndrome), a fatal childhood-onset neurodegenerative disease with mild facial, visceral and skeletal abnormalities, is caused by an inherited deficiency of the enzyme N-sulfoglucosamine sulfohydrolase (SGSH; sulfamidase). More than 100 mutations in the SGSH gene have been found to reduce or eliminate its enzymatic activity. However, the molecular understanding of the effect of these mutations has been confined by a lack of structural data for this enzyme. Here, the crystal structure of glycosylated SGSH is presented at 2 Å resolution. Despite the low sequence identity between this unique N-sulfatase and the group of O-sulfatases, they share a similar overall fold and active-site architecture, including a catalytic formylglycine, a divalent metal-binding site and a sulfate-binding site. However, a highly conserved lysine in O-sulfatases is replaced in SGSH by an arginine (Arg282) that is positioned to bind the N-linked sulfate substrate. The structure also provides insight into the diverse effects of pathogenic mutations on SGSH function in mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA and convincing evidence for the molecular consequences of many missense mutations. Further, the molecular characterization of SGSH mutations will lay the groundwork for the development of structure-based drug design for this devastating neurodegenerative disorder

Structure of sulfamidase provides insight into the molecular pathology of mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sidhu, Navdeep S. [University of Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen (Germany); University of Göttingen, Tammannstrasse 4, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Schreiber, Kathrin [University of Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen (Germany); Pröpper, Kevin [University of Göttingen, Tammannstrasse 4, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Becker, Stefan [Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Usón, Isabel [Instituto de Biologia Molecular de Barcelona (IBMB–CSIC), Barcelona Science Park, Baldiri Reixach 15, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Institucio Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avancats (ICREA), (Spain); Sheldrick, George M. [University of Göttingen, Tammannstrasse 4, 37077 Göttingen (Germany); Gärtner, Jutta; Krätzner, Ralph, E-mail: rkraetz@gwdg.de; Steinfeld, Robert, E-mail: rkraetz@gwdg.de [University of Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, 37075 Göttingen (Germany)

2014-05-01

Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIA is a fatal neurodegenerative disease that typically manifests itself in childhood and is caused by mutations in the gene for the lysosomal enzyme sulfamidase. The first structure of this enzyme is presented, which provides insight into the molecular basis of disease-causing mutations, and the enzymatic mechanism is proposed. Mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (Sanfilippo A syndrome), a fatal childhood-onset neurodegenerative disease with mild facial, visceral and skeletal abnormalities, is caused by an inherited deficiency of the enzyme N-sulfoglucosamine sulfohydrolase (SGSH; sulfamidase). More than 100 mutations in the SGSH gene have been found to reduce or eliminate its enzymatic activity. However, the molecular understanding of the effect of these mutations has been confined by a lack of structural data for this enzyme. Here, the crystal structure of glycosylated SGSH is presented at 2 Å resolution. Despite the low sequence identity between this unique N-sulfatase and the group of O-sulfatases, they share a similar overall fold and active-site architecture, including a catalytic formylglycine, a divalent metal-binding site and a sulfate-binding site. However, a highly conserved lysine in O-sulfatases is replaced in SGSH by an arginine (Arg282) that is positioned to bind the N-linked sulfate substrate. The structure also provides insight into the diverse effects of pathogenic mutations on SGSH function in mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA and convincing evidence for the molecular consequences of many missense mutations. Further, the molecular characterization of SGSH mutations will lay the groundwork for the development of structure-based drug design for this devastating neurodegenerative disorder.

Structural analysis of vacuum vessel and blanket support system for International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitamura, Kazunori; Koizumi, Kouichi; Takatsu, Hideyuki; Tada, Eisuke; Shimane, Hideo.

1996-11-01

Structural analyses of vacuum vessel and blanket support system have been performed to examine their integrated structural behavior under the design loads and to assess their structural feasibility, with two kinds of three-dimensional (3-D) FEM models; a detailed model with 18deg sector region to investigate the detailed mechanical behaviors of the blanket and vessel components under the several symmetric loads, and a 180deg torus model with relatively coarser meshes to assess the structural responses under the asymmetric VDE load. The analytical results obtained by both models were also compared for the several symmetric loads to check the equivalent mechanical stiffness of the 180deg torus model. As the results, most of the vessel and blanket components have sufficient mechanical integrities with the stress level below the allowable limit of the materials, while the lower parts of inboard/outboard back plate need to be reinforced by increasing the thickness and/or mounting a toroidal ring support at the lower edge of the back plate. Two types of eigenvalue analyses were also conducted with the 180deg torus model to investigate natural frequencies of the vessel torus support system and to assess the mechanical integrity of the elastic stability under the asymmetric VDE load. Analytical results show that the mechanical stiffness of the vessel gravity support should be higher in the view point of a seismic response, and that those of the blanket support structures should also be increased for the buckling strength against the VDE vertical force. (author)

Dual linear structured support vector machine tracking method via scale correlation filter

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Weisheng; Chen, Yanquan; Xiao, Bin; Feng, Chen

2018-01-01

Adaptive tracking-by-detection methods based on structured support vector machine (SVM) performed well on recent visual tracking benchmarks. However, these methods did not adopt an effective strategy of object scale estimation, which limits the overall tracking performance. We present a tracking method based on a dual linear structured support vector machine (DLSSVM) with a discriminative scale correlation filter. The collaborative tracker comprised of a DLSSVM model and a scale correlation filter obtains good results in tracking target position and scale estimation. The fast Fourier transform is applied for detection. Extensive experiments show that our tracking approach outperforms many popular top-ranking trackers. On a benchmark including 100 challenging video sequences, the average precision of the proposed method is 82.8%.

3D printing PLA and silicone elastomer structures with sugar solution support material

Science.gov (United States)

Hamidi, Armita; Jain, Shrenik; Tadesse, Yonas

2017-04-01

3D printing technology has been used for rapid prototyping since 1980's and is still developing in a way that can be used for customized products with complex design and miniature features. Among all the available 3D printing techniques, Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) is one of the most widely used technologies because of its capability to build different structures by employing various materials. However, complexity of parts made by FDM is greatly limited by restriction of using support materials. Support materials are often used in FDM for several complex geometries such as fully suspended shapes, overhanging surfaces and hollow features. This paper describes an approach to 3D print a structure using silicone elastomer and polylactide fiber (PLA) by employing a novel support material that is soluble in water. This support material is melted sugar which can easily be prepared at a low cost. Sugar is a carbohydrate, which is found naturally in plants such as sugarcane and sugar beets; therefore, it is completely organic and eco-friendly. As another advantage, the time for removing this material from the part is considerably less than other commercially available support materials and it can be removed easily by warm water without leaving any trace. Experiments were done using an inexpensive desktop 3D printer to fabricate complex structures for use in soft robots. The results envision that further development of this system would contribute to a method of fabrication of complex parts with lower cost yet high quality.

Dimensional structure of the demand control support questionnaire: a Brazilian context.

Science.gov (United States)

Hökerberg, Yara Hahr Marques; Aguiar, Odaleia Barbosa; Reichenheim, Michael; Faerstein, Eduardo; Valente, Joaquim Gonçalves; Fonseca, Maria de Jesus; Passos, Sonia Regina Lambert

2010-04-01

According to Karasek, job strain results from an interaction between high demands and low decision latitude. To reassess the dimensional structure and evaluate the internal consistency of demand control support questionnaire (DCSQ), a shortened version of job content questionnaire that was not sufficiently evaluated in validation studies. The study investigated 825 workers who completed the DCSQ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; to 399 workers, the questionnaire was self-administered at a hospital (2004-2005), and 426 workers were interviewed at nine restaurants (2006-2007). Confirmatory factor analysis using structural equation models was used to test theoretical structure of dimensionality. Internal consistency was evaluated by composite reliability and convergent validity by average variance extracted. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the instrument in three dimensions: demands, skill discretion and decision authority. The best fit model was achieved by removing social support at work and the item repetitive work (skill discretion). A cross-loading from learning new things on demands and an error measurement correlation between work fast and work intense were confirmed. Composite reliability was acceptable for all dimensions, except for demands (0.58), which also showed inadequate average variance extracted (0.32). This final model was confirmed in separate analyses according to work setting, but the loadings of demands were lower for restaurant workers. Our results indicated that skill discretion and decision authority formed two distinct dimensions. Additionally, the item repetitive work should be removed, as well as one of the items work fast or work intense (demands). Future research is still required to confirm these findings.

Data structures supporting multi-region adaptive isogeometric analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Perduta, Anna; Putanowicz, Roman

2018-01-01

Since the first paper published in 2005 Isogeometric Analysis (IGA) has gained strong interest and found applications in many engineering problems. Despite the advancement of the method, there are still far fewer software implementations comparing to Finite Element Method. The paper presents an approach to the development of data structures that can support multi-region IGA with local mesh refinement (patch-based) and possible application in IGA-FEM models. The purpose of this paper is to share original design concepts, that authors have created while developing an IGA package, which other researchers may find beneficial for their own simulation codes.

Wind Turbine Providing Grid Support

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2011-01-01

changing the operation of the wind turbine to a more efficient working point.; When the rotational speed of the rotor reaches a minimum value, the wind turbine enters a recovery period to re-accelerate the rotor to the nominal rotational speed while further contributing to the stability of the electrical......A variable speed wind turbine is arranged to provide additional electrical power to counteract non-periodic disturbances in an electrical grid. A controller monitors events indicating a need to increase the electrical output power from the wind turbine to the electrical grid. The controller...... is arranged to control the wind turbine as follows: after an indicating event has been detected, the wind turbine enters an overproduction period in which the electrical output power is increased, wherein the additional electrical output power is taken from kinetic energy stored in the rotor and without...

Structural Design and Monitoring Analysis of Foundation Pit Support in Yiwu Huishang Tiandi

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chunsu

2017-08-01

Huishang Tiandi deep foundation pit in Yiwu is a two-story basement,which is located in the downtown area and adjacent to the city center main traffic trunk. The surrounding environment is too com-plex to slope. The excavation depth is large, the formation is weak and complex, and the groundwater level is high.In order to ensure the safety of the foundation wall and the surrounding environment, the deformation of the foundation pit support is strictly controlled, and the deformation and internal force of the foundation supporting structure and the surrounding building are monitored.The deformation law of the foundation pit is obtained through the analysis of the horizontal displacement, the deformation rate of the supporting struc-ture, the surrounding environment of the foundation pit and the internal force of the anchor cable. The relia-bility and rationality of the design of foundation pit support are verified. It is of reference value for the de-sign and construction of other deep foundation pit engineering in Yiwu area.

Integrated model for providing tactical emergency medicine support (TEMS): analysis of 120 tactical situations.

Science.gov (United States)

Vainionpää, T; Peräjoki, K; Hiltunen, T; Porthan, K; Taskinen, A; Boyd, J; Kuisma, M

2012-02-01

Various models for organising tactical emergency medicine support (TEMS) in law enforcement operations exist. In Helsinki, TEMS is organised as an integral part of emergency medical service (EMS) and applied in hostage, siege, bomb threat and crowd control situations and in other tactical situations after police request. Our aim was to analyse TEMS operations, patient profile, and the level of on-site care provided. We conducted a retrospective cohort study of TEMS operations in Helsinki from 2004 to 2009. Data were retrieved from EMS, hospital and dispatching centre files and from TEMS reports. One hundred twenty TEMS operations were analysed. Median time from dispatching to arrival on scene was 10 min [Interquartile Range (IQR) 7-14]. Median duration of operations was 41 min (IQR 19-63). Standby was the only activity in 72 operations, four patients were dead on arrival, 16 requests were called off en route and patient examination or care was needed in 28 operations. Twenty-eight patients (records retrieved) were alive on arrival and were classified as trauma (n = 12) or medical (n = 16). Of traumas, two sustained a gunshot wound, one sustained a penetrating abdominal wound, three sustained medium severity injuries and nine sustained minor injuries. There was neither on-scene nor in-hospital mortality among patients who were alive on arrival. The level of on-site care performed was basic life support in all cases. The results showed that TEMS integrated to daily EMS services including safe zone working only was a feasible, rapid and efficient way to provide medical support to law enforcement operations. © 2011 The Authors Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica © 2011 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation.

The ARSQ: the athletes' received support questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Freeman, Paul; Coffee, Pete; Moll, Tjerk; Rees, Tim; Sammy, Nadine

2014-04-01

To address calls for context-specific measurement of social support, this article reports the development of the Athletes' Received Support Questionnaire (ARSQ) and demonstrates initial evidence for its validity. Across four studies there was support for a four-dimensional structure reflecting emotional, esteem, informational, and tangible received support. There was also support for unidimensional and higher-order models. Further, Study 3 provided some support for convergent validity, with significant correlations between the corresponding dimensions of the ARSQ and the Inventory of Socially Supportive Behaviors. Study 4 provided evidence for the nomological validity of the ARSQ. Emotional and esteem support significantly predicted self-confidence and positive affect, and tangible support significantly moderated the relationship between stress and negative affect. Collectively, these results provide initial evidence for the validity of the ARSQ, and offer researchers flexibility to adopt either a multidimensional or aggregated approach to measuring received support.

Extended X-ray absorption fine structure and X-ray diffraction studies on supported Ni catalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aldea, N.; Marginean, P.; Yaning, Xie; Tiandou, Hu; Tao, Liu; Wu, Zhongua; ZhenYa, Dai

1999-01-01

In the first part of this paper, we present a study based on EXAFS spectroscopy. This method can yield structural information about the local environment around a specific atomic constituent in the amorphous materials, the location and chemical state of any catalytic atom on any support or point defect structures, in alloys and composites. EXAFS is a specific technique of the scattering of X-ray on materials. The present study is aimed toward elucidation of the local structure of Ni atoms and their interaction with oxide support. The second goal of the paper consists in X-ray diffraction on the same samples. X-ray diffraction method that is capable to determine average particle size, microstrains, probability of faults as well as particle size distribution function of supported Ni catalysts is presented. The method is based on the Fourier analysis of a single X-Ray diffraction profile. The results obtained on supported nickel catalysts, which are used in H/D isotopic exchange reactions are reported. The global structure is obtained with a new fitting method based on the Generalised Fermi Function facilities for approximation and Fourier transform of the experimental X-Ray line profiles. Both types of measurements were performed on Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facilities (BSRF). (authors)

Design optimization of tailor-rolled blank thin-walled structures based on ɛ-support vector regression technique and genetic algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Libin; Xiao, Ning-cong; Li, Guangyao; Cheng, Aiguo; Chen, Tao

2017-07-01

Tailor-rolled blank thin-walled (TRB-TH) structures have become important vehicle components owing to their advantages of light weight and crashworthiness. The purpose of this article is to provide an efficient lightweight design for improving the energy-absorbing capability of TRB-TH structures under dynamic loading. A finite element (FE) model for TRB-TH structures is established and validated by performing a dynamic axial crash test. Different material properties for individual parts with different thicknesses are considered in the FE model. Then, a multi-objective crashworthiness design of the TRB-TH structure is constructed based on the ɛ-support vector regression (ɛ-SVR) technique and non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm-II. The key parameters (C, ɛ and σ) are optimized to further improve the predictive accuracy of ɛ-SVR under limited sample points. Finally, the technique for order preference by similarity to the ideal solution method is used to rank the solutions in Pareto-optimal frontiers and find the best compromise optima. The results demonstrate that the light weight and crashworthiness performance of the optimized TRB-TH structures are superior to their uniform thickness counterparts. The proposed approach provides useful guidance for designing TRB-TH energy absorbers for vehicle bodies.

Aseismatic supporting structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ogasawara, Hideo; Tachi, Yasuo

1988-01-01

As one of the large subjects for putting FBRs to practical use, the increase of the economical efficiency is pointed out, and for this purpose, the reduction of the construction cost by the simplification of system and the rationalization of equipment structures becomes an important target of development. The operational condition of FBR cooling system is high temperature above 500 deg C at core exit, and low pressure below 6 kg-cm 2 g. Consequently, the effect of earthquake load in the structural strength design is relatively large, accordingly the reduction of earthquake load is effective from the viewpoint of structural rationalization. Hitachi Ltd. considered that earthquake isolation is an effective means to reduce earthquake response, and has examined the effect and feasibility of introducing earthquake isolation into FBR plants for three years from 1984. In this study, the mechanical characteristics and endurance of the system suitable to the earthquake isolation of FBRs were examined, the effect of reducing earthquake response by earthquake isolation was grasped, and the effect of plant rationalization brought about by the reduction of earthquake input was examined. The summary of these studies is shown. (Kako, I.)

Implementing Information and Communication Technology to Support Community Aged Care Service Integration: Lessons from an Australian Aged Care Provider.

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Heather E; Georgiou, Andrew; Tariq, Amina; Prgomet, Mirela; Warland, Andrew; Armour, Pauline; Westbrook, Johanna I

2017-04-10

There is limited evidence of the benefits of information and communication technology (ICT) to support integrated aged care services. We undertook a case study to describe carelink+, a centralised client service management ICT system implemented by a large aged and community care service provider, Uniting. We sought to explicate the care-related information exchange processes associated with carelink+ and identify lessons for organisations attempting to use ICT to support service integration. Our case study included seventeen interviews and eleven observation sessions with a purposive sample of staff within the organisation. Inductive analysis was used to develop a model of ICT-supported information exchange. Management staff described the integrated care model designed to underpin carelink+. Frontline staff described complex information exchange processes supporting coordination of client services. Mismatches between the data quality and the functions carelink+ was designed to support necessitated the evolution of new work processes associated with the system. There is value in explicitly modelling the work processes that emerge as a consequence of ICT. Continuous evaluation of the match between ICT and work processes will help aged care organisations to achieve higher levels of ICT maturity that support their efforts to provide integrated care to clients.

The effectiveness of an Autonomy-Supportive Teaching Structure in Physical Education. [Eficacia de la estructura de enseñanza con soporte de autonomía en educación física].

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

How Yew Meng

2016-01-01

Full Text Available PE teachers’ motivational styles have a substantial impact on students’ engagement in learning and can influence children to adopt physically active lifestyles. The Self-Determination Theory (SDT seeks to explain human motivation and behaviour. Central to SDT, three basic psychological needs must be supported (the needs for autonomy, competency and relatedness to enhance intrinsic motivation. Autonomy-support refers to the subjective experience of autonomy. Structure is important in PE as it creates the conditions whereby effective learning can take place. The current study examined the effects of a ten-week, school-based, autonomy-supportive structure (ASTS-PE teacher training intervention in PE, on students’ PE outcomes. Psychological needs satisfaction, perceived autonomy-support, relative autonomy index (RAI, engagement and objective moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA levels in PE were measured. The study consists of two treatment (autonomy-supportive structure and autonomy-support only and one control group. The results indicate that students in the autonomy-supportive structure group show better overall outcomes compared to the other two groups. The findings in this study provide strong evidence that both autonomy-support and structure are needed to maximise effectiveness in PE lessons. We further suggest practical ways in which teachers could implement an autonomy-supportive structure in their lessons.

A study to ascertain the effect of structured student tutorial support on student stress, self-esteem and coping.

Science.gov (United States)

Gammon, John; Morgan-Samuel, Heulwen

2005-05-01

The overall aim of this intervention study was to investigate, and measure quantitatively, the psychological effects of structured student tutorial support, on undergraduate students' level of stress, self-esteem and cognitive coping. A quantitative research approach was adopted using a quasi-experimental design (post-test only, non-equivalent control group design) in order to ascertain whether there were any significant differences between the experimental conditions (n=25) and a control group (n=25). The independent variable was structured student tutorial support and the dependent variables were student stress, self-esteem and cognitive coping. A total of 50 subjects were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group. Quantitative data were collected using: the Student Nurse Stress Index (Jones, M.C., Johnston, D.W., 1997a. The derivation of a 22 item Student Nurse Stress Index, using exploratory, confirmatory and multi-sample confirmatory factor analytic techniques. In: Paper Presented at the Annual Nursing Research Conference, 18-20th April, University of Wales, Swansea; Jones, M. C. Johnston, D.W., 1999. Derivation of a brief Student Nurse Stress Index. Work and Stress 13(2), 162-181), the Self Esteem Scale (Rosenberg, M., 1965. Society and the Adolesent Self Image. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ) and a Linear Analogue Coping Scale (Gammon, J., 1998. Analysis of the stressful effects of hospitalisation and source isolation on coping and psychological constructs. International Journal of Nursing Practice 4(2), 84-97). The methods of data analysis were the application of the t-test and descriptive statistics. The results indicated a significantly lower level of stress in the experimental group (t=-3.85, p=0.001) and a significantly higher self esteem (t=4.11, p=0.001). Results also suggested that students who were provided with structured tutorial support perceived they coped more effectively with their studies (t=4.65, p=0.001). The

Design and analysis of the vacuum vessel supports and limiting structure on EAST 4.6 GHz LHCD system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Bo; Wu Jiefeng; Zhu Wenhua; Liu Liang

2013-01-01

Presently, a remote steering antenna is building for 4.6 GHz lower hybrid wave system on EAST, which needs 100 mm movable distance and very strong basis as well as absolutely reliable limiting stroke. For reliable structure strength better than any section bar, this paper presents 3 kinds of different high-strength welding holder and support, which are named as support frame, fixed foundation, limiting stroke. All of them are made of 316L stainless steel. Three types of welding structures are employed designed as frame structure, plug-welding structure and portal strengthened square steel welding component. Result computed by ANSYS shows that structure strengthen of 3 supports is stable and firmly reliable. (authors)

Pipe support for use in a nuclear system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pollono, L.P.; Mello, R.M.

1976-01-01

Description is given of a vertical pipe support system. It comprises a tubular pipe support structure having the same inside diameter and the same wall thickness as the pipe, the pipe support structure having a generally triangularly shaped extension formed integral with and extending circumferentially around its outward side, the bottom side of this extension generally forming a ledge; an annular load-bearing insulation formed adjacent to the extension; means for clamping the load-bearing insulation to extension; and means for providing constant vertical support to means for clamping [fr

Effects of supporting structures on dynamic response of nuclear power plant equipment and piping systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stoykovich, M.

1982-01-01

This paper presents the evaluation of the effects of supporting structures in dynamic analysis of equipment or piping systems, which involves formulations for determining reduced stiffness and mass matrices associated with the number of degrees of freedom corresponding to the support nodal points of a finite element model. Also, evaluation of a composite damping matrix associated with different damping properties of supporting structures, equipment, and piping systems is considered. Determination of spring constants, effective masses and mass moments of inertia, and damping values as fractions of critical damping on the basis of the theory of rigid bases on the surfaces of an elastic halfspace is demonstrated

Optimization of offshore wind turbine support structures using analytical gradient-based method

OpenAIRE

Chew, Kok Hon; Tai, Kang; Ng, E.Y.K.; Muskulus, Michael

2015-01-01

Design optimization of the offshore wind turbine support structure is an expensive task; due to the highly-constrained, non-convex and non-linear nature of the design problem. This report presents an analytical gradient-based method to solve this problem in an efficient and effective way. The design sensitivities of the objective and constraint functions are evaluated analytically while the optimization of the structure is performed, subject to sizing, eigenfrequency, extreme load an...

Restoration solution of increased vibrations of the fan plant's support structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Varju Đerđ

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a restoration solution of increased vibration of the fan plant's support structure. Based on vibrodiagnostic tests and dynamic analysis, a technical solution of the problem is given with additional steel bracing. There is particular emphasis on the diagnosis and forming of a dynamic model.

A Java Chemical Structure Editor Supporting the Modular Chemical Descriptor Language (MCDL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrei A. Gakh

2006-03-01

Full Text Available A compact Modular Chemical Descriptor Language (MCDL chemical structure editor (Java applet is described. The small size (approximately 200 KB of the applet allows its use to display and edit chemical structures in various Internet applications. The editor supports the MCDL format, in which structures are presented in compact canonical form and is capable of restoring bond orders as well as of managing atom and bond drawing overlap. A small database of cage and large cyclic fragment is used for optimal representation of difficult-to-draw molecules. The improved algorithm of the structure diagram generation can be used for other chemical notations that lack atomic coordinates (SMILES, InChI.

Pattern-based Automatic Translation of Structured Power System Data to Functional Models for Decision Support Applications

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heussen, Kai; Weckesser, Johannes Tilman Gabriel; Kullmann, Daniel

2013-01-01

Improved information and insight for decision support in operations and design are central promises of a smart grid. Well-structured information about the composition of power systems is increasingly becoming available in the domain, e.g. due to standard information models (e.g. CIM or IEC61850......) or otherwise structured databases. More measurements and data do not automatically improve decisions, but there is an opportunity to capitalize on this information for decision support. With suitable reasoning strategies data can be contextualized and decision-relevant events can be promoted and identified....... This paper presents an approach to link available structured power system data directly to a functional representation suitable for diagnostic reasoning. The translation method is applied to test cases also illustrating decision support....

Should Sabbath Prohibitions Be Overridden to Provide Emotional Support to a Sick Relative?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chaya Greenberger

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Background There is a consensus among the halachic authorities that life-saving actions override Sabbath prohibitions. They are painstaking in securing that the sanctity of the Sabbath is maintained but that not a single life be lost. Objective This manuscript examines if and when a relative’s presence at the bedside of a seriously ill individual is potentially life-saving against the backdrop of the scientific literature. It specifically addresses the permissibility of traveling in a motorized vehicle, generally prohibited on the Sabbath, to be with one’s relative in hospital for the provision of emotional support. Methods Discourse of the halachic issues in the context of the scientific literature. Results Stress, mental or physical, has been determined as a potentially life-threatening condition in many disease entities. The literature attests to both the patient’s and the professionals’ perception of the curative potential of the presence of loved ones by advocating for the patient and relieving stress in the hospital experience. Emotional support from a loved one is perceived by some patients as vital to survival. There is halachic consensus that a patient’s perception of the emotional need for a relative’s presence is sufficient to permit overriding rabbinic prohibitions. Torah prohibitions, which may be overridden for medical needs, may be overridden for emotional support, providing a health professional or family member attests to the fulfilment of this specific need as diminishing the danger to the patient’s life. In certain cases, the latter contingency is unnecessary. Conclusions Emotional support has an impact on the patient’s health status; the degree to which its impact is strong enough to save life is still being studied. As more data from scientific studies emerge, they may be relevant to sharpening the halachic rulings with respect to the issue at hand.

Tank 241C106 structural evaluation in support of Project W320 retrieval

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wallace, D.A.

1994-10-01

Tank 241C106 structural evaluation to support W320. It includes ACI code input and riser evaluations. This work uses the in situ conditions established by Julyk to develop a three-dimensional model of the tank. Non-axisymmetric loads associated with retrieval activities are applied to assess their influence on structural integrity of the tank. This study addresses loads associated with normal opertion and credible accident scenarios. The concrete structure of tank C106 is classified as a Safety Class I non-reactor structure in accordance with the definition given in SDC 4.1. The operating specifications document (OSD) limits applicable to tank C106 include a live load limit for the C Tank Farm of 100 tons. For the technical basis of this limit, the OSD references SD-RE-TI-012, which qualifies the 100 tons as that distributed over a 10-ft radius. However, there is no specification for a uniform live load that would accompany natural hazard phenomena such as snow or ash fall. There is no specific guidance on crane loads applied at the surface outside the tank radius. Further, there is no record of any seismic analysis of tanks in the C Tank Farm. The analysis documented in this report evaluates nonseismic conditions that include a concentrated live load, a uniform live load, and a crane load, in addition to the in situ loads. The model documented in this study also is used to provide the nonseismic stress contribution to the seismic load combination documented by Wallace

Validation of spectral methods for the seismic analysis of multi-supported structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viola, B.

1999-01-01

There are many methodologies for the seismic analysis of buildings. When a seism occurs, structures such piping systems in nuclear power plants are subjected to motions that may be different at each support point. Therefore it is necessary to develop methods that take into account the multi-supported effect. In a first time, a bibliography analysis on the different methods that exist has been carried out. The aim was to find a particular method applicable to the study of piping systems. The second step of this work consisted in developing a program that may be used to test and make comparisons on different selected methods. So spectral methods have the advantage to give an estimation of the maximum values for strain in the structure, in reduced calculation time. The time history analysis is used as the reference for the tests. (author)

Asymmetric actuating structure generates negligible influence on the supporting base for high performance scanning probe microscopies

Science.gov (United States)

Yi Yan, Gang; Bin Liu, Yong; Hua Feng, Zhi

2014-02-01

An asymmetric actuating structure generating negligible influence on the supporting base for high performance scanning probe microscopies is proposed in this paper. The actuator structure consists of two piezostacks, one is used for actuating while the other is for counterbalancing. In contrast with balanced structure, the two piezostacks are installed at the same side of the supporting base. The effectiveness of the structure is proved by some experiments with the actuators fixed to the free end of a cantilever. Experimental results show that almost all of the vibration modes of the cantilever are suppressed effectively at a wide frequency range of 90 Hz-10 kHz.

Residents’ Support Intentions and Behaviors Regarding Urban Trees Programs: A Structural Equation Modeling-Multi Group Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zheng Zhao

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Urban trees are more about people than trees. Urban trees programs need public support and engagement, from the intentions to support to implement actions in supporting the programs. Built upon the theory of planned behavior and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM, this study uses Beijing as a case study to investigate how subjective norm (cognition of urban trees, attitude (benefits residents’ believe urban trees can provide, and perceived behavioral control (the believed ability of what residents can do affect intention and its transformation into implemented of supporting action. A total of 800 residents were interviewed in 2016 and asked about their opinion of neighborhood trees, park trees, and historical trees, and analyzed, respectively. The results show that subjective norm has a significant positive effect on intentions pertaining to historical and neighborhood trees. Attitudes influence intentions, but its overall influence is much lower than that of the subjective norm, indicating that residents are more likely to be influenced by external factors. The perceived behavioral control has the strongest effect among the three, suggesting the importance of public participation in strengthening intention. The transformation from intention to behavior seems relatively small, especially regarding neighborhood trees, suggesting that perceptions and participation need to be strengthened.

Atomic structure of graphene supported heterogeneous model catalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Franz, Dirk

2017-04-01

Graphene on Ir(111) forms a moire structure with well defined nucleation centres. Therefore it can be utilized to create hexagonal metal cluster lattices with outstanding structural quality. At diffraction experiments these 2D surface lattices cause a coherent superposition of the moire cell structure factor, so that the measured signal intensity scales with the square of coherently scattering unit cells. This artificial signal enhancement enables the opportunity for X-ray diffraction to determine the atomic structure of small nano-objects, which are hardly accessible with any experimental technique. The uniform environment of every metal cluster makes the described metal cluster lattices on graphene/Ir(111) an attractive model system for the investigation of catalytic, magnetic and quantum size properties of ultra-small nano-objects. In this context the use of x-rays provides a maximum of flexibility concerning the possible sample environments (vacuum, selected gases, liquids, sample temperature) and allows in-situ/operando measurements. In the framework of the present thesis the structure of different metal clusters grown by physical vapor deposition in an UHV environment and after gas exposure have been investigated. On the one hand the obtained results will explore many aspects of the atomic structure of these small metal clusters and on the other hand the presented results will proof the capabilities of the described technique (SXRD on cluster lattices). For iridium, platinum, iridium/palladium and platinum/rhodium the growth on graphene/Ir(111) of epitaxial, crystalline clusters with an ordered hexagonal lattice arrangement has been confirmed using SXRD. The clusters nucleate at the hcp sites of the moire cell and bind via rehybridization of the carbon atoms (sp"2 → sp"3) to the Ir(111) substrate. This causes small displacements of the substrate atoms, which is revealed by the diffraction experiments. All metal clusters exhibit a fcc structure, whereupon

Atomic structure of graphene supported heterogeneous model catalysts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Franz, Dirk

2017-04-15

Graphene on Ir(111) forms a moire structure with well defined nucleation centres. Therefore it can be utilized to create hexagonal metal cluster lattices with outstanding structural quality. At diffraction experiments these 2D surface lattices cause a coherent superposition of the moire cell structure factor, so that the measured signal intensity scales with the square of coherently scattering unit cells. This artificial signal enhancement enables the opportunity for X-ray diffraction to determine the atomic structure of small nano-objects, which are hardly accessible with any experimental technique. The uniform environment of every metal cluster makes the described metal cluster lattices on graphene/Ir(111) an attractive model system for the investigation of catalytic, magnetic and quantum size properties of ultra-small nano-objects. In this context the use of x-rays provides a maximum of flexibility concerning the possible sample environments (vacuum, selected gases, liquids, sample temperature) and allows in-situ/operando measurements. In the framework of the present thesis the structure of different metal clusters grown by physical vapor deposition in an UHV environment and after gas exposure have been investigated. On the one hand the obtained results will explore many aspects of the atomic structure of these small metal clusters and on the other hand the presented results will proof the capabilities of the described technique (SXRD on cluster lattices). For iridium, platinum, iridium/palladium and platinum/rhodium the growth on graphene/Ir(111) of epitaxial, crystalline clusters with an ordered hexagonal lattice arrangement has been confirmed using SXRD. The clusters nucleate at the hcp sites of the moire cell and bind via rehybridization of the carbon atoms (sp{sup 2} → sp{sup 3}) to the Ir(111) substrate. This causes small displacements of the substrate atoms, which is revealed by the diffraction experiments. All metal clusters exhibit a fcc structure

Using support vector machines to improve elemental ion identification in macromolecular crystal structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morshed, Nader [University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Echols, Nathaniel, E-mail: nechols@lbl.gov [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Adams, Paul D., E-mail: nechols@lbl.gov [Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)

2015-05-01

A method to automatically identify possible elemental ions in X-ray crystal structures has been extended to use support vector machine (SVM) classifiers trained on selected structures in the PDB, with significantly improved sensitivity over manually encoded heuristics. In the process of macromolecular model building, crystallographers must examine electron density for isolated atoms and differentiate sites containing structured solvent molecules from those containing elemental ions. This task requires specific knowledge of metal-binding chemistry and scattering properties and is prone to error. A method has previously been described to identify ions based on manually chosen criteria for a number of elements. Here, the use of support vector machines (SVMs) to automatically classify isolated atoms as either solvent or one of various ions is described. Two data sets of protein crystal structures, one containing manually curated structures deposited with anomalous diffraction data and another with automatically filtered, high-resolution structures, were constructed. On the manually curated data set, an SVM classifier was able to distinguish calcium from manganese, zinc, iron and nickel, as well as all five of these ions from water molecules, with a high degree of accuracy. Additionally, SVMs trained on the automatically curated set of high-resolution structures were able to successfully classify most common elemental ions in an independent validation test set. This method is readily extensible to other elemental ions and can also be used in conjunction with previous methods based on a priori expectations of the chemical environment and X-ray scattering.

Effect of foundation flexibility on the vibrational stability of the National Ignition Facility optical system support structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McCallen, D.

1997-01-01

Alignment requirements for the National Ignition Facility (NIF) optical components will require a number of support structures which minimize the system displacements and deformations. The stringent design requirements for this facility will result in a system in which vibrations due to ambient environmental loads (e.g. foundation motion due to typical traffic loads, microseisms or nearby equipment) will have a significant, and perhaps predominant, influence on the design of the supporting structures. When considering the total deformations and displacements of the structural systems, the contribution of the foundation to the overall system flexibility must be addressed. Classical fixed-base structural analyses, which are predicated on an assumption of an infinitely rigid foundation system, neglect the influence of foundation flexibility and for the vibration regime in which the NIF structures reside, may result in significant underestimation of the system ambient vibration displacements. In the work described herein, parametric studies were performed in order to understand the potential contributions of soil-structure- interaction (SSI) to optical system displacements. Time domain finite element analyses were employed to quantify the effect of wave scattering by the mat foundation and the effects of inertial SSI due to the rocking of the massive shear wall support structures. A simplified procedure is recommended for accounting for SSI effects in the design of the special equipment structures. The simplified approach consists of applying a scale factor to displacements obtained from fixed base analyses to approximately account for the effects of soil-structure interaction and variable support input motion

Implementing Information and Communication Technology to Support Community Aged Care Service Integration: Lessons from an Australian Aged Care Provider

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heather E Douglas

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: There is limited evidence of the benefits of information and communication technology (ICT to support integrated aged care services. Objectives: We undertook a case study to describe carelink+, a centralised client service management ICT system implemented by a large aged and community care service provider, Uniting. We sought to explicate the care-related information exchange processes associated with carelink+ and identify lessons for organisations attempting to use ICT to support service integration. Methods: Our case study included seventeen interviews and eleven observation sessions with a purposive sample of staff within the organisation. Inductive analysis was used to develop a model of ICT-supported information exchange. Results: Management staff described the integrated care model designed to underpin carelink+. Frontline staff described complex information exchange processes supporting coordination of client services. Mismatches between the data quality and the functions carelink+ was designed to support necessitated the evolution of new work processes associated with the system. Conclusions: There is value in explicitly modelling the work processes that emerge as a consequence of ICT. Continuous evaluation of the match between ICT and work processes will help aged care organisations to achieve higher levels of ICT maturity that support their efforts to provide integrated care to clients.

Implementing Information and Communication Technology to Support Community Aged Care Service Integration: Lessons from an Australian Aged Care Provider

Science.gov (United States)

Georgiou, Andrew; Tariq, Amina; Prgomet, Mirela; Warland, Andrew; Armour, Pauline; Westbrook, Johanna I

2017-01-01

Introduction: There is limited evidence of the benefits of information and communication technology (ICT) to support integrated aged care services. Objectives: We undertook a case study to describe carelink+, a centralised client service management ICT system implemented by a large aged and community care service provider, Uniting. We sought to explicate the care-related information exchange processes associated with carelink+ and identify lessons for organisations attempting to use ICT to support service integration. Methods: Our case study included seventeen interviews and eleven observation sessions with a purposive sample of staff within the organisation. Inductive analysis was used to develop a model of ICT-supported information exchange. Results: Management staff described the integrated care model designed to underpin carelink+. Frontline staff described complex information exchange processes supporting coordination of client services. Mismatches between the data quality and the functions carelink+ was designed to support necessitated the evolution of new work processes associated with the system. Conclusions: There is value in explicitly modelling the work processes that emerge as a consequence of ICT. Continuous evaluation of the match between ICT and work processes will help aged care organisations to achieve higher levels of ICT maturity that support their efforts to provide integrated care to clients. PMID:29042851

The provider perception inventory: psychometrics of a scale designed to measure provider stigma about HIV, substance abuse, and MSM behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Windsor, Liliane C; Benoit, Ellen; Ream, Geoffrey L; Forenza, Brad

2013-01-01

Nongay identified men who have sex with men and women (NGI MSMW) and who use alcohol and other drugs are a vulnerable, understudied, and undertreated population. Little is known about the stigma faced by this population or about the way that health service providers view and serve these stigmatized clients. The provider perception inventory (PPI) is a 39-item scale that measures health services providers' stigma about HIV/AIDS, substance use, and MSM behavior. The PPI is unique in that it was developed to include service provider stigma targeted at NGI MSMW individuals. PPI was developed through a mixed methods approach. Items were developed based on existing measures and findings from focus groups with 18 HIV and substance abuse treatment providers. Exploratory factor analysis using data from 212 health service providers yielded a two dimensional scale: (1) individual attitudes (19 items) and (2) agency environment (11 items). Structural equation modeling analysis supported the scale's predictive validity (N=190 sufficiently complete cases). Overall findings indicate initial support for the psychometrics of the PPI as a measure of service provider stigma pertaining to the intersection of HIV/AIDS, substance use, and MSM behavior. Limitations and implications to future research are discussed.

Comparing consumer-directed and agency models for providing supportive services at home.

Science.gov (United States)

Benjamin, A E; Matthias, R; Franke, T M

2000-04-01

To examine the service experiences and outcomes of low-income Medicaid beneficiaries with disabilities under two different models for organizing home-based personal assistance services: agency-directed and consumer-directed. A survey of a random sample of 1,095 clients, age 18 and over, who receive services in California's In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program funded primarily by Medicaid. Other data were obtained from the California Management and Payrolling System (CMIPS). The sample was stratified by service model (agency-directed or consumer-directed), client age (over or under age 65), and severity. Data were collected on client demographics, condition/functional status, and supportive service experience. Outcome measures were developed in three areas: safety, unmet need, and service satisfaction. Factor analysis was used to reduce multiple outcome measures to nine dimensions. Multiple regression analysis was used to assess the effect of service model on each outcome dimension, taking into account the client-provider relationship, client demographics, and case mix. Recipients of IHSS services as of mid-1996 were interviewed by telephone. The survey was conducted in late 1996 and early 1997. On various outcomes, recipients in the consumer-directed model report more positive outcomes than those in the agency model, or they report no difference. Statistically significant differences emerge on recipient safety, unmet needs, and service satisfaction. A family member present as a paid provider is also associated with more positive reported outcomes within the consumer-directed model, but model differences persist even when this is taken into account. Although both models have strengths and weaknesses, from a recipient perspective the consumer-directed model is associated with more positive outcomes. Although health professionals have expressed concerns about the capacity of consumer direction to assure quality, particularly with respect to safety, meeting unmet

Regulatory/Scientific Supports for Micro-, Small-, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) With Medicinal Products Provided by the PMDA and EMA.

Science.gov (United States)

Kondo, Hideyuki; Shibatsuji, Masayoshi; Yasuda, Naoyuki

2018-01-01

Micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have been considered as key players who can bring innovative medicinal products and/or technologies into the field. However, they may need much regulatory/scientific supports to provide their products, technologies, or services to the market in a timely way. Both the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), regulatory authorities for medicinal products in Japan and the EU, respectively, have prepared supportive measures for SMEs from the early phase of product/technology development to the postmarketing phase. With respect to supports for SMEs, both agencies have provided similar SME-specific supportive activities, including routine administrative assistance, consultations about product development strategy from an early phase, as well as specific regulatory/scientific issues and fee incentives. In addition, there is a system to register SME status in the EU, which can be a tool for regulators to know how much potential SME-driven activities have and with whom they should communicate to provide necessary supports. Furthermore, as new technologies and novel products from SMEs are not limited to the region where they are developed, close communication about these topics between the PMDA and the EMA will contribute to advancing patients' access to necessary medicinal products.

Providing nutritional support to patients with thoracic cancer: findings of a dedicated rehabilitation service.

Science.gov (United States)

Percival, Cheryl; Hussain, Asmah; Zadora-Chrzastowska, Sonja; White, Gillian; Maddocks, Matthew; Wilcock, Andrew

2013-05-01

National guidelines recommend screening patients with thoracic cancer to identify those requiring nutritional support. To help quantify this area of need, the associated workload and explore its impact, we report findings from a dedicated rehabilitation service. Patients were screened soon after diagnosis to determine the prevalence of malnutrition, and various aspects compared between malnourished and not malnourished groups. A nutritional care plan was instigated and all contacts recorded, together with follow-up body weight. Of 243 patients seen, 35% were malnourished which was associated with a palliative treatment intent (P group received oral nutritional supplements, but also experienced problems tolerating them. Over one month, neither the pattern nor magnitude of the change in weight differed between malnourished and not malnourished groups. Overall, weight was stable, increased or decreased in 52 (27%), 80 (42%) and 59 (31%) respectively, with no difference in overall survival (P = 0.16). Our data provides a pragmatic insight into the implications of following national guidance on nutritional screening and support in this patient group. Nutritional support failed to prevent weight loss in some patients, and did not appear to impact on survival; new assessments and treatments for cachexia are required. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Providing for organizational memory in computer supported meetings

OpenAIRE

Schwabe, Gerhard

1994-01-01

Meeting memory features are poorly integrated into current group support systems (GSS). In this article, I discuss how to introduce meeting memory functionality into a GSS. The article first introduces the benefits of effective meetings and organizational memory to an organization. Then, the following challenges to design are discussed: How to store semantically rich output, how to build up the meeting memory with a minimum of additional effort, how to integrate meeting memory into organizati...

Midwives' perceptions of organisational structures and processes influencing their ability to provide caseload care to socially disadvantaged and vulnerable women.

Science.gov (United States)

Menke, Jane; Fenwick, Jennifer; Gamble, Jenny; Brittain, Hazel; Creedy, Debra K

2014-10-01

This study examined midwives' perceptions of organisational structures and processes of care when working in a caseload model (Midwifery Group Practice MGP) for socially disadvantaged and vulnerable childbearing women. This study used Donabedian's theoretical framework for evaluating the quality of health care provision. Of the 17 eligible midwives, 15 participated in focus group discussions and two others provided written comments. Thematic analysis was guided by three headings; clinical outcomes, processes of care and organisational structure. Midwives believed they provided an excellent service to socially disadvantaged and vulnerable childbearing women. Midwives gained satisfaction from working in partnership with women, working across their full scope of practice, and making a difference to the women. However the midwives perceived the MGP was situated within an organisation that was hostile to the caseload model of care. Midwives felt frustrated and distressed by a lack of organisational support for the model and a culture of blame dominated by medicine. A lack of material resources and no identified office space created feelings akin to 'homelessness'. Together these challenges threatened the cohesiveness of the MGP and undermined midwives' ability to advocate for women and keep birth normal. If access to caseload midwifery care for women with diverse backgrounds and circumstances is to be enhanced, then mechanisms need to be implemented to ensure organisational structures and processes are developed to sustain midwives in the provision of 'best practice' maternity care. Women accessing midwifery caseload care have excellent maternal and newborn outcomes. However there remains limited understanding of the impact of organisational structures and processes of care on clinical outcomes. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mothers' and health visitors' perceptions of the support provided to mothers who have experienced domestic violence: A systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Eynon, Julia; Carrier, Judith; Rees, Sally; Cartwright, Annie

2012-01-01

Domestic violence has been described as a public health epidemic, with victims of domestic violence encountered in all health care settings. Within the United Kingdom the role of the health visitor (specialist community public health nurse) is to promote health in the whole community; every family with a child under five years has a named health visitor. Preparation for the health visitor role is unique to the United Kingdom. Health visitors are particularly well placed to identify and support mothers who are experiencing domestic violence. The objective of this review was to synthesise the best available evidence relating to support provided by UK health visitors for mothers who have experienced domestic violence, from both the mothers and the health visitors' perspectives. The participants of interest were mothers who have experienced domestic violence and health visitors who offer support to those mothers.The self reported experiences of health visitor support provided to mothers who have experienced domestic violence, from the perspective of both the mothers and the health visitors providing the support.This review considered studies that focus on qualitative data including, but not limited to, designs such as ethnography, phenomenology, grounded theory, action research and feminist research. Studies published up to April 2011 were included in the review. The search was restricted to English language studies. The databases searched were: Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, EMBASE, British Nursing Index and Archive, ASSIA and TRIP. Studies were assessed for methodological quality using the standardised critical appraisal instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Data were extracted using standardised data extraction tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Data synthesis used the Joanna Briggs Institute approach for meta-synthesis by meta-aggregation. Findings were synthesised into categories, which were aggregated into synthesised findings. Four

Contact-Free Support Structures for Part Overhangs in Powder-Bed Metal Additive Manufacturing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kenneth Cooper

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the feasibility of a novel concept, contact-free support structures, for part overhangs in powder-bed metal additive manufacturing. The intent is to develop alternative support designs that require no or little post-processing, and yet, maintain effectiveness in minimizing overhang distortions. The idea is to build, simultaneously during part fabrications, a heat sink (called “heat support”, underneath an overhang to alter adverse thermal behaviors. Thermomechanical modeling and simulations using finite element analysis were applied to numerically research the heat support effect on overhang distortions. Experimentally, a powder-bed electron beam additive manufacturing system was utilized to fabricate heat support designs and examine their functions. The results prove the concept and demonstrate the effectiveness of contact-free heat supports. Moreover, the method was tested with different heat support parameters and applied to various overhang geometries. It is concluded that the heat support proposed has the potential to be implemented in industrial applications.

Multi-gene analysis provides a well-supported phylogeny of Rosales.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Shu-dong; Soltis, Douglas E; Yang, Yang; Li, De-zhu; Yi, Ting-shuang

2011-07-01

Despite many attempts to resolve evolutionary relationships among the major clades of Rosales, some nodes have been extremely problematic and have remained unresolved. In this study, we use two nuclear and 10 plastid loci to infer phylogenetic relationships among all nine families of Rosales. Rosales were strongly supported as monophyletic; within Rosales all family relationships are well-supported with Rosaceae sister to all other members of the order. Remaining Rosales can be divided into two subclades: (1) Ulmaceae are sister to Cannabaceae plus (Urticaceae+Moraceae); (2) Rhamnaceae are sister to Elaeagnaceae plus (Barbeyaceae+Dirachmaceae). One noteworthy result is that we recover the first strong support for a sister relationship between the enigmatic Dirachmaceae and Barbeyaceae. These two small families have distinct morphologies and potential synapomorphies remain unclear. Future studies should try to identify nonDNA synapomorphies uniting Barbeyaceae with Dirachmaceae. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effective Method for Determining Environmental Loads on Supporting Structures for Offshore Wind Turbines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dymarski Paweł

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a description of an effective method for determining loads due to waves and current acting on the supporting structures of the offshore wind turbines. This method is dedicated to the structures consisting of the cylindrical or conical elements as well as (truncates pyramids of polygon with a large number of sides (8 or more. The presented computational method is based on the Morison equation, which was originally developed only for cylindrically shaped structures. The new algorithm shown here uses the coefficients of inertia and drag forces that were calculated for non-cylindrical shapes. The analysed structure consists of segments which are truncated pyramids on the basis of a hex decagon. The inertia coefficients, CM, and drag coefficients, CD, were determined using RANSE-CFD calculations. The CFD simulations were performed for a specific range of variation of the period, and for a certain range of amplitudes of the velocity. In addition, the analysis of influence of the surface roughness on the inertia and drag coefficients was performed. In the next step, the computations of sea wave, current and wind load on supporting structure for the fifty-year storm were carried out. The simulations were performed in the time domain and as a result the function of forces distribution along the construction elements was obtained. The most unfavourable distribution of forces will be used, to analyse the strength of the structure, as the design load.

Instructional Support and Implementation Structure during Elementary Teachers' Science Education Simulation Use

Science.gov (United States)

Gonczi, Amanda L.; Chiu, Jennifer L.; Maeng, Jennifer L.; Bell, Randy L.

2016-01-01

This investigation sought to identify patterns in elementary science teachers' computer simulation use, particularly implementation structures and instructional supports commonly employed by teachers. Data included video-recorded science lessons of 96 elementary teachers who used computer simulations in one or more science lessons. Results…

A systematic mapping review of effective interventions for communicating with, supporting and providing information to parents of preterm infants.

Science.gov (United States)

Brett, Jo; Staniszewska, Sophie; Newburn, Mary; Jones, Nicola; Taylor, Lesley

2011-06-02

Background and objective The birth of a preterm infant can be an overwhelming experience of guilt, fear and helplessness for parents. Provision of interventions to support and engage parents in the care of their infant may improve outcomes for both the parents and the infant. The objective of this systematic review is to identify and map out effective interventions for communication with, supporting and providing information for parents of preterm infants. Design Systematic searches were conducted in the electronic databases Medline, Embase, PsychINFO, the Cochrane library, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Midwives Information and Resource Service, Health Management Information Consortium, and Health Management and Information Service. Hand-searching of reference lists and journals was conducted. Studies were included if they provided parent-reported outcomes of interventions relating to information, communication and/or support for parents of preterm infants prior to the birth, during care at the neonatal intensive care unit and after going home with their preterm infant. Titles and abstracts were read for relevance, and papers judged to meet inclusion criteria were included. Papers were data-extracted, their quality was assessed, and a narrative summary was conducted in line with the York Centre for Reviews and Dissemination guidelines. Studies reviewed Of the 72 papers identified, 19 papers were randomised controlled trials, 16 were cohort or quasi-experimental studies, and 37 were non-intervention studies. Results Interventions for supporting, communicating with, and providing information to parents that have had a premature infant are reported. Parents report feeling supported through individualised developmental and behavioural care programmes, through being taught behavioural assessment scales, and through breastfeeding, kangaroo-care and baby-massage programmes. Parents also felt supported through organised support groups and

In situ X-ray absorption fine structure studies on the structure of nickel phosphide catalyst supported on K-USY

CERN Document Server

Kawai, T; Suzuki, S

2003-01-01

Local structure around Ni in a nickel phosphide catalyst supported on K-USY was investigated by an situ X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) method during the reduction process of the catalyst and the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) reaction of thiophene. In the passivated sample, Ni phosphide was partially oxidized but after the reduction, 1.1 nm diameter Ni sub 2 P particles were formed with Ni-P and Ni-Ni distances at 0.218 and 0.261 nm, respectively, corresponding to those of bulk Ni sub 2 P. In situ XAFS cleary revealed that the Ni sub 2 P structure was stable under reaction conditions and was an active structure for the HDS process.

Beyond Mentoring: Social Support Structures for Young Australian Carpentry Apprentices. Research Report

Science.gov (United States)

Buchanan, John; Raffaele, Catherine; Glozier, Nick; Kanagaratnam, Aran

2016-01-01

This research focused on how apprenticeships, at their best, provide extensive social support for young people. It draws on, and contributes to, debates about workforce (and especially vocational) development in contemporary Australia. It also contributes to the growing literature on social support and health, especially the role that work could…

Structures of parasite calreticulins provide insights into their flexibility and dual carbohydrate/peptide-binding properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreau, Christophe; Cioci, Gianluca; Iannello, Marina; Laffly, Emmanuelle; Chouquet, Anne; Ferreira, Arturo; Thielens, Nicole M; Gaboriaud, Christine

2016-11-01

Calreticulin (CRT) is a multifaceted protein, initially discovered as an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) chaperone protein, that is essential in calcium metabolism. Various implications in cancer, early development and immunology have been discovered more recently for CRT, as well as its role as a dominant 'eat-me' prophagocytic signal. Intriguingly, cell-surface exposure/secretion of CRT is among the infective strategies used by parasites such as Trypanosoma cruzi , Entamoeba histolytica , Taenia solium , Leishmania donovani and Schistosoma mansoni . Because of the inherent flexibility of CRTs, their analysis by X-ray crystallography requires the design of recombinant constructs suitable for crystallization, and thus only the structures of two very similar mammalian CRT lectin domains are known. With the X-ray structures of two distant parasite CRTs, insights into species structural determinants that might be harnessed to fight against the parasites without affecting the functions of the host CRT are now provided. Moreover, although the hypothesis that CRT can exhibit both open and closed conformations has been proposed in relation to its chaperone function, only the open conformation has so far been observed in crystal structures. The first evidence is now provided of a complex conformational transition with the junction reoriented towards P-domain closure. SAXS experiments also provided additional information about the flexibility of T. cruzi CRT in solution, thus complementing crystallographic data on the open conformation. Finally, regarding the conserved lectin-domain structure and chaperone function, evidence is provided of its dual carbohydrate/protein specificity and a new scheme is proposed to interpret such unusual substrate-binding properties. These fascinating features are fully consistent with previous experimental observations, as discussed considering the broad spectrum of CRT sequence conservations and differences.

Development of in-service inspection system for core support graphite structures in the high temperature engineering test reactor (HTTR)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sumita, Junya; Hanawa, Satoshi; Kikuchi, Takayuki; Ishihara, Masahiro [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan). Oarai Research Establishment

2003-03-01

Visual inspection of core support graphite structures using TV camera as in-service inspection and measurement of material characteristics using surveillance test specimens are planned in the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) to confirm structural integrity of the core support graphite structures. For the visual inspection, in-service inspection system developed from September 1996 to June 1998, and pre-service inspection using the system was carried out. As the result of the pre-service inspection, it was validated that high quality of visual inspection with TV camera can be carried out, and also structural integrity of the core support graphite structures at the initial stage of the HTTR operation was confirmed. (author)

Support given to lecturers when providing mobile centric services in teaching and learning: a policy analysis perspective

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Chipangura, B

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The objective of this study is to examine the status of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) policies in supporting lecturers when providing mobile centric services to students. The research was undertaken as a single case study within the Open...

Mechanical Qualification of the Support Structure for MQXF, the Nb$_{3}$Sn Low-Beta; Quadrupole for the High Luminosity LHC

CERN Document Server

Juchno, M; Anerella, M; Bajas, H; Bajko, M; Bourcey, N; Cheng, D W; Felice, H; Ferracin, P; Grosclaude, P; Guinchard, M; Perez, J C; Prin, H; Schmalzle

2016-01-01

Within the scope of the High Luminosity LHC project, the collaboration between CERN and U.S. LARP is developing new low-β quadrupoles using the Nb$_{3}$Sn superconducting technology for the upgrade of the LHC interaction regions. The magnet support structure of the first short model was designed and two units were fabricated and tested at CERN and at LBNL. The structure provides the preload to the collars-coils subassembly by an arrangement of outer aluminum shells pre-tensioned with water-pressurized bladders. For the mechanical qualification of the structure and the assembly procedure, superconducting coils were replaced with solid aluminum “dummy coils”, the structure was preloaded at room temperature, and then cooled-down to 77 K. Mechanical behavior of the magnet structure was monitored with the use of strain gauges installed on the aluminum shells, the dummy coils and the axial preload system. This paper reports on the outcome of the assembly and the cool-down tests with dummy coils, which were per...

Three-dimensional structure of Au nanoparticles supported on amorphous silica and carbon substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruma, A; Li, Z Y

2012-01-01

Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (STEM) has been employed to study the three-dimensional structure of gold (Au) nanoparticles deposited by means of thermal evaporation in high vacuum on amorphous silica (a-SiO 2 ) and amorphous carbon (a-C) supports. By performing quantitative analysis on the evolution of the high angle annular dark field (HAADF) images, we studied the influence of the nature and the temperature of support on the growth mode of gold nanoparticles.

Risk and uncertainty in the structure of management decision support

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valeca, Serban Constantin

2002-01-01

The monograph is structured into five chapters addressing the following subject matters: 1 - The risk descriptor implied by the power systems with nuclear injection; 1.1 - Concepts and operators for describing the nuclear power risk; 1.2 - Risk approach in a holistic conception; 2 - Modelling the risk in the frame of re-engineering concept; 2.1 - Defining and interpreting the power re-engineering; 2.2 - Managerial re-engineering of power production systems; 3 - Informatics system of managing the power objectives with nuclear injection; 3.1 - Informatics systems for risk at the level of CANDU - 600 nuclear plant; 3.2. - Expert function structure applicable to the management of power objectives with nuclear injection; 4 - Assisting support in the operation of nuclear facilities; 4.1 - Assisting support system for nuclear plant operation; 4.2 - Program products for dedicated drivers; 5 - The management decision activities at the level of power systems with nuclear injection; 5.1 - Preliminaries in making power decision; 5.2 - Applications of decision models of sustainable power systems with nuclear injection; 5.3 - Re-engineering of power decision in the frame of maximal utility theory. The successful application of re-engineering concept is based on knowledge and managing capacity of design leadership and its ability of dealing the error generating sources. The main stages of implementing successfully the re-engineering are: - Replacing the pollution processes instead of adjusting measures; - Raising the designer responsibility by radical innovation of processes' architecture; - Re-designing the processes by basic changes at the level of the management functions and structures; - Raising the personnel professionalism by motivation as optimal way of improving the workers mentalities; - Accurate definition of objectives in the frame of re-engineering program; - Application of re-engineering in industrial units starting from the management level; - Selecting as general

Communications tools in research projects to support Semi and Non Structured Information

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Astrid Jaime

2005-06-01

Full Text Available Innovation and thus the production of knowledge becomes a factor of competitiveness. In this context quality management could be complemented by knowledge management to aim the improvement of knowledge production by research activities process. To this end, after describing knowledge and informa-tion typologies in engineering activities, a knowledge man-agement system is proposed. The goal is to support: (1 Semi-Structured Information (e.g. reports, etc. thanks to the BASIC-Lab tool functions, which are based on attributing points of view and annotations to documents and document zones, and (2 Non-Structured Information (such as mail, dialogues, etc., thanks to MICA-Graph approach which intends to support ex-change of technical messages that concerns common resolution of research problems within project teams and to capitalise relevant knowledge. For the both approaches, prototype tools have been developed and evaluated, primarily to feed back with manufacturing knowledge in the EADS industrial envi-ronment.

Structure and composition of single Pt–Ru electrocatalyst nanoparticles supported on multiwall carbon nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paraguay-Delgado, Francisco; Malac, Marek; Alonso-Nuñez, Gabriel

2014-01-01

Individual Pt-Ru nanoparticles (NPs) supported on multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) synthesized by microemulsion method were characterized by nano beam diffraction (NBD) and high resolution imaging in transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Comparing the TEM images and NBD to simulations provided insight into particle composition, structure and morphology in three dimensions. In particular, the NBD allowed us to detect various components of the individual NPs that would be difficult to observe otherwise. We find that the NPs contain four different components: Pt–RuO 2 , Pt–Ru, RuO 2 and metallic Pt. Often an individual NP is composed of more than one component. The most frequently encountered external morphology is close to a spherical shape and ∼3.7 nm in diameter. The collective properties of NPs’ assemblies were studied by thermogravimetry, differential thermal analysis and x-ray diffraction. The results allowed us to gain some insight into the relation of the NPs’ structure and composition with their catalytic performance, and revealed the presence of components not detectable by bulk methods. The electrocatalytic properties were evaluated by CO stripping, methanol oxidation and oxygen reduction. Bulk characterization methods miss many properties and structures present in the sample due to low volume fraction and due to overlap of reflections. Single NPs should be analyzed to obtain reliable indication of sample composition. (paper)

Providing support for day-to-day monitoring of shoreline cleanup operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lamarche, A.; Tarpley, J.

1997-01-01

Experiences gained during the 'Cape Mohican' incident in October 1996, in San Francisco Bay, were recounted and proposed as a potential example of day-to-day monitoring, evaluation and reporting of shoreline cleanup effort. During this cleanup a set of communications procedures, progress reports and maps were developed which should be equally useful in other similar situations. The cartographic representations were specially highlighted as they focused on ways to provide a clear picture of the short term modifications in oiling conditions of the affected shoreline. The most important lesson learned from this oil spill was the importance of having personnel and equipment sufficiently matched to the task in order to evaluate oil conditions, produce cleanup recommendations, execute and communicate the status of the cleanup effort as fast, and as efficiently and effectively as possible. It was clearly demonstrated that unless the decision process is streamlined and supported with the best, most up-to-date information, the efforts of the cleanup team would be seriously undermined. 8 refs., 2 tabs., 6 figs

Working at the intersection of context, culture, and technology: Provider perspectives on antimicrobial stewardship in the emergency department using electronic health record clinical decision support.

Science.gov (United States)

Chung, Phillip; Scandlyn, Jean; Dayan, Peter S; Mistry, Rakesh D

2017-11-01

Antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs) have not been fully developed for the emergency department (ED), in part the result of the barriers characteristic of this setting. Electronic health record-based clinical decision support (EHR CDS) represents a promising strategy to implement ASPs in the ED. We aimed to determine the cultural beliefs and structural barriers and facilitators to implementation of antimicrobial stewardship in the pediatric ED using EHR CDS. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with hospital and ED leadership, attending ED physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and residents at a single health system in Colorado. We reviewed and coded the data using constant comparative analysis and framework analysis until a final set of themes emerged. Two dominant perceptions shaped providers' perspectives on ASPs in the ED and EHR CDS: (1) maintaining workflow efficiency and (2) constrained decision-making autonomy. Clinicians identified structural barriers to ASPs, such as pace of the ED, and various beliefs that shaped patterns of practice, including accommodating the prescribing decisions of other providers and managing parental expectations. Recommendations to enhance uptake focused on designing a simple yet flexible user interface, providing clinicians with performance data, and on-boarding clinicians to enhance buy-in. Developing a successful ED-based ASP using EHR CDS should attend to technologic needs, the institutional context, and the cultural beliefs of practice associated with providers' antibiotic prescribing. Copyright © 2017 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Preliminary design of offshore wind turbine support structures : The importance of proper mode shape estimation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van der Male, P.

2013-01-01

Offshore wind turbines are highly exposed to timevarying loads. For support structures, estimation of the fatigue damage during the lifetime of the structure is an essential design aspect. This already applies for the preliminary design stage. In determining the dynamic amplification in the

PREFER: a European service providing forest fire management support products

Science.gov (United States)

Eftychidis, George; Laneve, Giovanni; Ferrucci, Fabrizio; Sebastian Lopez, Ana; Lourenco, Louciano; Clandillon, Stephen; Tampellini, Lucia; Hirn, Barbara; Diagourtas, Dimitris; Leventakis, George

2015-06-01

PREFER is a Copernicus project of the EC-FP7 program which aims developing spatial information products that may support fire prevention and burned areas restoration decisions and establish a relevant web-based regional service for making these products available to fire management stakeholders. The service focuses to the Mediterranean region, where fire risk is high and damages from wildfires are quite important, and develop its products for pilot areas located in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France and Greece. PREFER aims to allow fire managers to have access to online resources, which shall facilitate fire prevention measures, fire hazard and risk assessment, estimation of fire impact and damages caused by wildfire as well as support monitoring of post-fire regeneration and vegetation recovery. It makes use of a variety of products delivered by space borne sensors and develop seasonal and daily products using multi-payload, multi-scale and multi-temporal analysis of EO data. The PREFER Service portfolio consists of two main suite of products. The first refers to mapping products for supporting decisions concerning the Preparedness/Prevention Phase (ISP Service). The service delivers Fuel, Hazard and Fire risk maps for this purpose. Furthermore the PREFER portfolio includes Post-fire vegetation recovery, burn scar maps, damage severity and 3D fire damage assessment products in order to support relative assessments required in context of the Recovery/Reconstruction Phase (ISR Service) of fire management.

Modeling of Local BEAM Structure for Evaluation of MMOD Impacts to Support Development of a Health Monitoring System

Science.gov (United States)

Lyle, Karen H.; Vassilakos, Gregory J.

2015-01-01

This report summarizes initial modeling of the local response of the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) to micrometeorite and orbital debris (MMOD) impacts using a structural, non-linear, transient dynamic finite element code. Complementary test results for a local BEAM structure are presented for both hammer and projectile impacts. Review of these data provided guidance for the transient dynamic model development. The local model is intended to support predictions using the global BEAM model, described in a companion report. Two types of local models were developed. One mimics the simplified Soft-Goods (fabric envelop) part of the BEAM NASTRAN model delivered by the project. The second investigates through-the-thickness modeling challenges for MMOD-type impacts. Both the testing and the analysis summaries contain lessons learned and areas for future efforts.

System support software for TSTA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Claborn, G.W.; Mann, L.W.; Nielson, C.W.

1987-01-01

The software at the Tritium Systems Test Assembly (TSTA) is logically broken into two parts, the system support software and the subsystem software. The purpose of the system support software is to isolate the subsystem software from the physical hardware. In this sense the system support software forms the kernel of the software at TSTA. The kernel software performs several functions. It gathers data from CAMAC modules and makes that data available for subsystem processes. It services requests to send commands to CAMAC modules. It provides a system of logging functions and provides for a system-wide global program state that allows highly structured interaction between subsystem processes. The kernel's most visible function is to provide the Man-Machine Interface (MMI). The MMI allows the operators a window into the physical hardware and subsystem process state. Finally the kernel provides a data archiving and compression function that allows archival data to be accessed and plotted. Such kernel software as developed and implemented at TSTA is described

The Schwartz Center Rounds: evaluation of an interdisciplinary approach to enhancing patient-centered communication, teamwork, and provider support.

Science.gov (United States)

Lown, Beth A; Manning, Colleen F

2010-06-01

To assess the impact of Schwartz Center Rounds, an interdisciplinary forum where attendees discuss psychosocial and emotional aspects of patient care. The authors investigated changes in attendees' self-reported behaviors and beliefs about patient care, sense of teamwork, stress, and personal support. In 2006-2007, researchers conducted retrospective surveys of attendees at six sites offering Schwartz Center Rounds ("the Rounds") for > or =3 years and prospective surveys of attendees at 10 new Rounds sites that have held > or =7 Rounds. Most of the retrospective survey respondents indicated that attending Rounds enhanced their likelihood of attending to psychosocial and emotional aspects of care and enhanced their beliefs about the importance of empathy. Respondents reported better teamwork, including heightened appreciation of the roles and contributions of colleagues. There were significant decreases in perceived stress (P teamwork (both: P communication, teamwork, and provider support. The impact on measured outcomes increased with the number of Rounds attended. The Rounds represent an effective strategy for providing support to health care professionals and for enhancing relationships among them and with their patients.

Empirical Analysis of Social Support Provided via Social Media

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Medeiros, L.; Bosse, T.

2016-01-01

Social media are an effective means for people to share everyday problems with their peers. Although this often leads to empathic responses which help alleviate the experienced stress, such peer support is not always available. As an alternative solution for such situations, this paper explores the

Conceptual Design of a Floating Support Structure and Mooring System for a Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Berthelsen, Petter Andreas; Fylling, Ivar; Vita, Luca

2012-01-01

This paper deals with the conceptual design of a floating support structure and mooring system for a 5MW vertical axis offshore wind turbine. The work is carried out as part of the DeepWind project, where the main objective is to investigate the feasibility of a floating vertical axis offshore wind...... turbine. The DeepWind concept consists of a Darrieus rotor mounted on a spar buoy support structure. The conceptual design is carried out in an iterative process, involving the different subcomponents. The present work is part of the first design iteration and the objective is to find a feasible floating...... support structure and mooring system for the DeepWind concept. The conceptual design is formulated as an optimization problem: Starting with an initial configuration, the optimization procedure tries to find a cheaper solution while satisfying a set of design requirements. This approach utilizes available...

Structures of parasite calreticulins provide insights into their flexibility and dual carbohydrate/peptide-binding properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christophe Moreau

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Calreticulin (CRT is a multifaceted protein, initially discovered as an endoplasmic reticulum (ER chaperone protein, that is essential in calcium metabolism. Various implications in cancer, early development and immunology have been discovered more recently for CRT, as well as its role as a dominant `eat-me' prophagocytic signal. Intriguingly, cell-surface exposure/secretion of CRT is among the infective strategies used by parasites such as Trypanosoma cruzi, Entamoeba histolytica, Taenia solium, Leishmania donovani and Schistosoma mansoni. Because of the inherent flexibility of CRTs, their analysis by X-ray crystallography requires the design of recombinant constructs suitable for crystallization, and thus only the structures of two very similar mammalian CRT lectin domains are known. With the X-ray structures of two distant parasite CRTs, insights into species structural determinants that might be harnessed to fight against the parasites without affecting the functions of the host CRT are now provided. Moreover, although the hypothesis that CRT can exhibit both open and closed conformations has been proposed in relation to its chaperone function, only the open conformation has so far been observed in crystal structures. The first evidence is now provided of a complex conformational transition with the junction reoriented towards P-domain closure. SAXS experiments also provided additional information about the flexibility of T. cruzi CRT in solution, thus complementing crystallographic data on the open conformation. Finally, regarding the conserved lectin-domain structure and chaperone function, evidence is provided of its dual carbohydrate/protein specificity and a new scheme is proposed to interpret such unusual substrate-binding properties. These fascinating features are fully consistent with previous experimental observations, as discussed considering the broad spectrum of CRT sequence conservations and differences.

Social support in the practices of informal providers: The case of patent and proprietary medicine vendors in Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Sieverding, Maia; Liu, Jenny; Beyeler, Naomi

2015-10-01

The social and institutional environments in which informal healthcare providers operate shape their health and business practices, particularly in contexts where regulatory enforcement is weak. In this study, we adopt a social capital perspective to understanding the social networks on which proprietary and patent medicine vendors (PPMVs) in Nigeria rely for support in the operation of their shops. Data are drawn from 70 in-depth interviews with PPMVs in three states, including interviews with local leaders of the PPMV professional association. We find that PPMVs primarily relied on more senior colleagues and formal healthcare professionals for informational support, including information about new medicines and advice on how to treat specific cases of illness. For instrumental support, including finance, start-up assistance, and intervention with regulatory agencies, PPMVs relied on extended family, the PPMVs with whom they apprenticed, and the leaders of their professional association. PPMVs' networks also provided continual reinforcement of what constitutes good PPMV practice through admonishments to follow scope of practice limitations. These informal reminders, as well as monitoring activities conducted by the professional association, served to reinforce PPMVs' concern with avoiding negative customer health outcomes, which were perceived to be detrimental to their business reputations. That PPMVs' networks both encouraged practices to reduce the likelihood of poor health outcomes, and provided advice regarding customers' health conditions, highlights the potential impact of informal providers' access to different forms of social capital on their delivery of health services, as well as their success as microenterprises. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Probabilistic Calibration of Fatigue Design Factors for Offshore Wind Turbine Support Structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ramirez, José Rangel; Sørensen, John Dalsgaard

2010-01-01

for the considered offshore wind turbines in such a way that the specific uncertainties for the fatigue life are accounted in a rational manner. Similar approaches have been used for offshore oil & gas sub-structures, but the required reliability level for offshore wind turbines is generally lower and the fatigue......This paper describes a reliability-based approach to determine fatigue design factors (FDF) for offshore wind turbine support structures made of steel. The FDF values are calibrated to a specific reliability level and linked to a specific inspection and maintenance (I&M) strategy used...

Stable isotopes provide insight into population structure and segregation in eastern North Atlantic sperm whales

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Borrell, Asunción; Velásquez Vacca, Adriana; Pinela, Ana M.

2013-01-01

In pelagic species inhabiting large oceans, genetic differentiation tends to be mild and populations devoid of structure. However, large cetaceans have provided many examples of structuring. Here we investigate whether the sperm whale, a pelagic species with large population sizes and reputedly......, use of habitat and/or migratory destinations are dissimilar between whales from the two regions and suggest that the North Atlantic population of sperm whales is more structured than traditionally accepted....

Reducing support loss in micromechanical ring resonators using phononic band-gap structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hsu, Feng-Chia; Huang, Tsun-Che; Wang, Chin-Hung; Chang, Pin [Industrial Technology Research Institute-South, Tainan 709, Taiwan (China); Hsu, Jin-Chen, E-mail: fengchiahsu@itri.org.t, E-mail: hsujc@yuntech.edu.t [Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Douliou, Yunlin 64002, Taiwan (China)

2011-09-21

In micromechanical resonators, energy loss via supports into the substrates may lead to a low quality factor. To eliminate the support loss, in this paper a phononic band-gap structure is employed. We demonstrate a design of phononic-crystal (PC) strips used to support extensional wine-glass mode ring resonators to increase the quality factor. The PC strips are introduced to stop elastic-wave propagation by the band-gap and deaf-band effects. Analyses of resonant characteristics of the ring resonators and the dispersion relations, eigenmodes, and transmission properties of the PC strips are presented. With the proposed resonator architecture, the finite-element simulations show that the leaky power is effectively reduced and the stored energy inside the resonators is enhanced simultaneously as the operating frequencies of the resonators are within the band gap or deaf bands. Realization of a high quality factor micromechanical ring resonator with minimized support loss is expected.

Reducing support loss in micromechanical ring resonators using phononic band-gap structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hsu, Feng-Chia; Huang, Tsun-Che; Wang, Chin-Hung; Chang, Pin; Hsu, Jin-Chen

2011-01-01

In micromechanical resonators, energy loss via supports into the substrates may lead to a low quality factor. To eliminate the support loss, in this paper a phononic band-gap structure is employed. We demonstrate a design of phononic-crystal (PC) strips used to support extensional wine-glass mode ring resonators to increase the quality factor. The PC strips are introduced to stop elastic-wave propagation by the band-gap and deaf-band effects. Analyses of resonant characteristics of the ring resonators and the dispersion relations, eigenmodes, and transmission properties of the PC strips are presented. With the proposed resonator architecture, the finite-element simulations show that the leaky power is effectively reduced and the stored energy inside the resonators is enhanced simultaneously as the operating frequencies of the resonators are within the band gap or deaf bands. Realization of a high quality factor micromechanical ring resonator with minimized support loss is expected.

Support schemes and ownership structures - The policy context for fuel cell based micro-combined heat and power

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ropenus, S.; Thorsten Schroeder, S.; Costa, A.; Obe, E.

2010-05-15

In recent years, fuel cell based micro-combined heat and power has received increasing attention due to its potential contribution to energy savings, efficiency gains, customer proximity and flexibility in operation and capacity size. The FC4Home project assesses technical and economic aspects of the ongoing fuel cell based micro-combined heat and power (mCHP) demonstration projects by addressing the socio-economic and systems analyses perspectives of a large-scale promotion scheme of fuel cells. This document constitutes the deliverable of Work Package 1 of the FC4Home project and provides an introduction to the policy context for mCHP. Section 1 describes the rationale for the promotion of mCHP by explaining its potential contribution to European energy policy goals. Section 2 addresses the policy context at the supranational European level by outlining relevant EU Directives on support schemes for promoting combined heat and power and energy from renewable sources. These Directives are to be implemented at the national level by the Member States. Section 3 conceptually presents the spectrum of national support schemes, ranging from investment support to market-based operational support. The choice of support scheme simultaneously affects risk and technological development, which is the focus of Section 4. Subsequent to this conceptual overview, Section 5 takes a glance at the national application of support schemes for mCHP in practice, notably in the three country cases of the FC4Home project, Denmark, France and Portugal. Another crucial aspect for the diffusion of the mCHP technology is possible ownership structures. These may range from full consumer ownership to ownership by utilities and energy service companies, which is discussed in Section 6. Finally, a conclusion (Section 7) wraps up previous findings and provides a short 'preview' of the quantitative analyses in subsequent Work Packages by giving some food for thought on the way. (author)

Need support in students with visual impairments : Comparing teacher and student perspectives.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Haakma, Ineke; Janssen, Marleen; Minnaert, Alexander

2018-01-01

According to Self-Determination Theory, need-supportive teaching positively influences students’ engagement to learn. Need-supportive teaching involves teachers providing students with structure, autonomy support, and involvement. It enables teachers to support students’ psychological needs to feel

Leukemia Support Groups: How Are They Doing?

Science.gov (United States)

Moss

1997-10-01

BACKGROUND: Support groups help their participants to cope with the emotional and practical impact of their illnesses. METHODS: The effectiveness of the Leukemia Society of America support groups in enhancing the quality of life for their participants is reviewed. The groundwork, purpose, and structure of such groups, as well as alternate sources of support, are presented. Evaluation and future directions for oncology groupwork are discussed. RESULTS: Support groups complement the therapies provided by clinical practitioners and scientists by addressing the additional needs of cancer patients over the course of illness and survival. CONCLUSIONS: New concepts and methods that address the needs of specific age-groups and incorporate the newly generated data on cancer treatments will further enhance the benefits provided by support groups.

Providing Students with Interdisciplinary Support to Improve Their Organic Chemistry Posters

Science.gov (United States)

Widanski, Bozena; Thompson, Jo Ann; Foran-Mulcahy, Katie; Abafo, Amy

2016-01-01

A two-semester-long interdisciplinary support effort to improve student posters in organic chemistry lab is described. In the first semester, students' literature search report is supported by a workshop conducted by an Instruction Librarian. During the subsequent semester, a second workshop is presented by the Instruction Librarian, an English…

Structural and Biochemical Characterization of Spa47 Provides Mechanistic Insight into Type III Secretion System ATPase Activation and Shigella Virulence Regulation*

Science.gov (United States)

Burgess, Jamie L.; Burgess, R. Alan; Morales, Yalemi; Bouvang, Jenna M.; Johnson, Sean J.; Dickenson, Nicholas E.

2016-01-01

Like many Gram-negative pathogens, Shigella rely on a complex type III secretion system (T3SS) to inject effector proteins into host cells, take over host functions, and ultimately establish infection. Despite these critical roles, the energetics and regulatory mechanisms controlling the T3SS and pathogen virulence remain largely unclear. In this study, we present a series of high resolution crystal structures of Spa47 and use the structures to model an activated Spa47 oligomer, finding that ATP hydrolysis may be supported by specific side chain contributions from adjacent protomers within the complex. Follow-up mutagenesis experiments targeting the predicted active site residues validate the oligomeric model and determined that each of the tested residues are essential for Spa47 ATPase activity, although they are not directly responsible for stable oligomer formation. Although N-terminal domain truncation was necessary for crystal formation, it resulted in strictly monomeric Spa47 that is unable to hydrolyze ATP, despite maintaining the canonical ATPase core structure and active site residues. Coupled with studies of ATPase inactive full-length Spa47 point mutants, we find that Spa47 oligomerization and ATP hydrolysis are needed for complete T3SS apparatus formation, a proper translocator secretion profile, and Shigella virulence. This work represents the first structure-function characterization of Spa47, uniquely complementing the multitude of included Shigella T3SS phenotype assays and providing a more complete understanding of T3SS ATPase-mediated pathogen virulence. Additionally, these findings provide a strong platform for follow-up studies evaluating regulation of Spa47 oligomerization in vivo as a much needed means of treating and perhaps preventing shigellosis. PMID:27770024

Reframing cooperation: Challenges in overcoming tensions between professional services and volunteer organizations providing parenting support in immigrant communities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ponzoni, E.

2015-01-01

Volunteer organizations can potentially partner with mainstream professional services to provide better parenting support to immigrant parents. This qualitative study of cooperation between professional agencies and volunteer organizations known as migrant volunteer and community organizations

TRUSSELATOR - On-Orbit Fabrication of High Performance Support Structures for Solar Arrays, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Trusselator technology will enable on-orbit fabrication of support structures for high-power solar arrays and large antennas, achieving order-of-magnitude...

Relationships between structure and activity of carbon as a multifunctional support for electrocatalysts.

Science.gov (United States)

Stevanović, Sanja I; Panić, Vladimir V; Dekanski, Aleksandar B; Tripković, Amalija V; Jovanović, Vladislava M

2012-07-14

We report on new insights into the relationships between structure and activity of glassy carbon (GC), as a model material for electrocatalyst support, during its anodization in acid solution. Our investigation strongly confirms the role of CFGs in promotion of Pt activity by the "spill-over" effect related to CO(ads) for methanol electrooxidation (MEO) on a carbon-supported Pt catalyst. Combined analysis of voltammetric and impedance behaviour as well as changes in GC surface morphology induced by intensification of anodizing conditions reveal an intrinsic influence of the carbon functionalization and the structure of a graphene oxide (GO) layer on the electrical and electrocatalytic properties of activated GC. Although GO continuously grows during anodization, it structurally changes from being a graphite inter-layer within graphite ribbons toward a continuous GO surface layer that deteriorates the native structure of GC. As a consequence of the increased distance between GO-spaced graphite layers, the GC conductivity decreases until the case of profound GO exfoliation under drastic anodizing conditions. This exposes the native, yet abundantly functionalized, GC texture. While GC capacitance continuously increases with intensification of anodizing conditions, the surface nano-roughness and GO resistance reach the highest values at modest anodizing conditions, and then decrease upon drastic anodization due to the onset of GO exfoliation. We found for the first time that the activity of a GC-supported Pt catalyst in MEO, as one of the promising half-reactions in polymer electrolyte fuel cells, strictly follows the changes in GC nano-roughness and GO-induced GC resistance. The highest GC/Pt MEO activity is reached when optimal distance between graphite layers and optimal degree of GC functionalization bring the highest amount of CFGs into intimate contact with the Pt surface. This confirms the promoting role of CFGs in MEO catalysis.

Human acid sphingomyelinase structures provide insight to molecular basis of Niemann–Pick disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhou, Yan-Feng; Metcalf, Matthew C.; Garman, Scott C.; Edmunds, Tim; Qiu, Huawei; Wei, Ronnie R. (Sanofi Aventis); (UMASS, Amherst)

2016-10-26

Acid sphingomyelinase (ASM) hydrolyzes sphingomyelin to ceramide and phosphocholine, essential components of myelin in neurons. Genetic alterations in ASM lead to ASM deficiency (ASMD) and have been linked to Niemann–Pick disease types A and B. Olipudase alfa, a recombinant form of human ASM, is being developed as enzyme replacement therapy to treat the non-neurological manifestations of ASMD. Here we present the human ASM holoenzyme and product bound structures encompassing all of the functional domains. The catalytic domain has a metallophosphatase fold, and two zinc ions and one reaction product phosphocholine are identified in a histidine-rich active site. The structures reveal the underlying catalytic mechanism, in which two zinc ions activate a water molecule for nucleophilic attack of the phosphodiester bond. Docking of sphingomyelin provides a model that allows insight into the selectivity of the enzyme and how the ASM domains collaborate to complete hydrolysis. Mapping of known mutations provides a basic understanding on correlations between enzyme dysfunction and phenotypes observed in ASMD patients.

Maternal Structure and Autonomy Support in Conversations about the Past: Contributions to Children's Autobiographical Memory

Science.gov (United States)

Cleveland, Emily Sutcliffe; Reese, Elaine

2005-01-01

The authors examined the contributions of maternal structure and autonomy support to children's collaborative and independent reminiscing. Fifty mother-child dyads discussed past experiences when the children were 40 and 65 months old. Children also discussed past events with an experimenter at each age. Maternal structure and autonomy support…

Tuning the Electronic Structure of Titanium Oxide Support to Enhance the Electrochemical Activity of Platinum Nanoparticles

KAUST Repository

Shi, Feifei; Baker, L. Robert; Hervier, Antoine; Somorjai, Gabor A.; Komvopoulos, Kyriakos

2013-01-01

on pristine TiO2 support were achieved by tuning the electronic structure of the titanium oxide support of Pt nanoparticle catalysts. This was accomplished by adding oxygen vacancies or doping with fluorine. Experimental trends are interpreted in the context

Stress analysis of LOFT containment vessel attachments for the mainsteam and feedwater piping support structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finicle, D.P.

1977-01-01

The LOFT Containment Vessel attachments for the Mainsteam and Feedwater Piping Support Structures have been analyzed for operating and faulted loading conditions. This report contains the analysis of the connections to the containment vessel for the most current design and loading. Also contained in this report is the analysis of the piping supports

Providing Data Management Support to NASA Airborne Field Studies through Streamlined Usability Design

Science.gov (United States)

Beach, A. L., III; Northup, E. A.; Early, A. B.; Chen, G.

2016-12-01

Airborne field studies are an effective way to gain a detailed understanding of atmospheric processes for scientific research on climate change and air quality relevant issues. One major function of airborne project data management is to maintain seamless data access within the science team. This allows individual instrument principal investigators (PIs) to process and validate their own data, which requires analysis of data sets from other PIs (or instruments). The project's web platform streamlines data ingest, distribution processes, and data format validation. In May 2016, the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) developed a new data management capability to help support the Korea U.S.-Air Quality (KORUS-AQ) science team. This effort is aimed at providing direct NASA Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC) support to an airborne field study. Working closely with the science team, the ASDC developed a scalable architecture that allows investigators to easily upload and distribute their data and documentation within a secure collaborative environment. The user interface leverages modern design elements to intuitively guide the PI through each step of the data management process. In addition, the new framework creates an abstraction layer between how the data files are stored and how the data itself is organized(i.e. grouping files by PI). This approach makes it easy for PIs to simply transfer their data to one directory, while the system itself can automatically group/sort data as needed. Moreover, the platform is "server agnostic" to a certain degree, making deployment and customization more straightforward as hardware needs change. This flexible design will improve development efficiency and can be leveraged for future field campaigns. This presentation will examine the KORUS-AQ data portal as a scalable solution that applies consistent and intuitive usability design practices to support ingest and management of airborne

Perspectives on Providing And Receiving Preventive Health Care From Primary Care Providers and Their Patients With Mental Illnesses.

Science.gov (United States)

Stumbo, Scott P; Yarborough, Bobbi Jo H; Yarborough, Micah T; Green, Carla A

2018-01-01

Individuals with mental illnesses have higher morbidity rates and reduced life expectancy compared to the general population. Understanding how patients and providers perceive the need for prevention, as well as the barriers and beliefs that may contribute to insufficient care, are important for improving service delivery tailored to this population. Cross-sectional; mixed methods. An integrated health system and a network of federally qualified health centers and safety net clinics. Interviews (n = 30) and surveys (n = 249) with primary care providers. Interviews (n = 158) and surveys (n = 160) with patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar, anxiety, or major depressive disorders. Semi-structured interviews and surveys. Thematic analysis for qualitative data; frequencies for quantitative data. More than half (n = 131, 53%) of clinicians believed patients with mental illnesses care less about preventive care than the general population, yet 88% (n = 139) of patients reported interest in improving health. Most providers (n = 216, 88%) lacked confidence that patients with mental illnesses would follow preventive recommendations; 82% (n = 129) of patients reported they would try to change lifestyles if their doctor recommended. Clinicians explained that their perception of patients' chaotic lives and lack of interest in preventive care contributed to their fatalistic attitudes on care delivery to this population. Clinicians and patients agreed on substantial need for additional support for behavior changes. Clinicians reported providing informational support by keeping messages simple; patients reported a desire for more detailed information on reasons to complete preventive care. Patients also detailed the need for assistive and tangible support to manage behavioral health changes. Our results suggest a few clinical changes could help patients complete preventive care recommendations and improve health behaviors: improving clinician-patient collaboration on

The Student Perception of University Support and Structure Scale: Development and Validation

Science.gov (United States)

Wintre, Maxine G.; Gates, Shawn K. E.; Pancer, W. Mark; Pratt, Michael S.; Polivy, Janet; Birnie-Lefcovitch, S.; Adams, Gerald

2009-01-01

A new scale, the Student Perception of University Support and Structure Scale (SPUSS), was developed for research on the transition to university. The scale was based on concepts derived from Baumrind's (1971) theory of parenting styles. Data were obtained from two separate cohorts of freshmen (n=759 and 397) attending six Canadian universities of…

Inelastic response of PCRV structure model with star-type support under horizontal loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, T.; Yamaguchi, T.; Takeda, T.

1978-01-01

The report presents the test results of scaled models for prestressed concrete reactor vessel (PCRV) structure with star-shaped support under horizontal loads. A scale factor of 1 / 70 to a proto-type PCRV structure for large HTGR is used for both static and dynamic loading test models, while a 1 / 15 scaled model is used for static loading tests. The static behaviors such as a load-deflection envelope of the 1 / 70 model are predicted well by an inelastic analysis in consideration with appearance of concrete cracks and reinforcing bar yielding. It is also ascertained by the test results of the 1 / 15 model under static alternative loads that the same analysis procedure can be applicable to the evaluation of the elastic and inelastic behaviors of PCRV structure with support. Based on the static loading test results of both scaled models, a tri-linearized load-deflection envelope and an equivalent linearized mathematical model for hysteresis loop are assumed in a dynamic analysis. A dynamic response analysis of the 1 / 70 model subjected to earthquake-like base motion is conducted by the similar manner above-mentioned and the calculated results show a good correlation with the test results

Structural analysis of the Upper Internals Structure for the Clinch River Breeder Reactor Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houtman, J.L.

1979-01-01

The Upper Internals Structure (UIS) of the Clinch River Breeder Reactor Plant (CRBRP) provides control of core outlet flow to prevent severe thermal transients from occuring at the reactor vessel and primary heat transport outlet piping, provides instrumentation to monitor core performance, provides support for the control rod drivelines, and provides secondary holddown of the core. All of the structural analysis aspects of assuring the UIS is structurally adequate are presented including simplified and rigorous inelastic analysis methods, elevated temperature criteria, environmental effects on material properties, design techniques, and manufacturing constraints

Design of Offshore Wind Turbine Support Structures: Selected topics in the field of geotechnical engineering

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bakmar, Christian LeBlanc

.D. thesis was to enable low-cost and low-risk support structures to be designed in order to improve the economic feasibility of future offshore wind farms. The research work was divided in the following four selected research topics in the field of geotechnical engineering, relating to the monopile......Breaking the dependence on fossil fuels offers many opportunities for strengthened competitiveness, technological development and progress. Offshore wind power is a domestic, sustainable and largely untapped energy resource that provides an alternative to fossil fuels, reduces carbon emissions......, and decreases the economic and supply risks associated with reliance on imported fuels. Today, the modern offshore wind turbine offers competitive production prices for renewable energy and is therefore a key technology in achieving the energy and climate goals of the future. The overall aim of this Ph...

The Chemical Composition and Structure of Supported Sulfated Zirconia with Regulated Size Nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kanazhevskiy, V. V.; Shmachkova, V. P.; Kotsarenko, N. S.; Kochubey, D. I.; Vedrine, J. C.

2007-01-01

A set of model skeletal isomerization catalysts - sulfated zirconia nanoparticles of controlled thickness anchored on different supports - was prepared using colloidal solutions of Zr salt on titania as support. The nanoparticles of zirconia (1-5 nm) are epitaxially connected to the support surface, with S/Zr ratio equals to 1.3-1.5. It was shown by EXAFS that nanoparticles of non-stoichiometric zirconium sulfate Zr(SO4)1+x, where x<0.5, are formed on the support surface. Its structure looks like half-period shifted counterdirected chains built-up by zirconium atoms linked by triangle pyramids of sulfate groups. Considering catalytic data of skeletal n-butane isomerisation at 150 deg. C, one can suggest that these species behave as the active component of sulfated zirconia. They are formed in subsurface layers as zirconium hydroxide undergoes sulfation followed by thermal treatment

SupportNet for Frontline Behavioral Health Providers

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-01

such as self-efficacy, more in individualistic cultures (typically Western countries) than in collectivistic cultures (typically Eastern European...were invariant across the 2 studies, which indicated that the STSE Scale may be a culturally unbiased instrument. Keywords: secondary traumatic...the STSE Scale among workers providing services to traumatized civilian population within a different cultural context (in Poland). Extending the

Influence of the supporting die structures on the fracture strength of all-ceramic materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Yucel, Munir Tolga; Yondem, Isa; Aykent, Filiz; Eraslan, Oğuz

2012-08-01

This study investigated the influence of the elastic modulus of supporting dies on the fracture strengths of all-ceramic materials used in dental crowns. Four different types of supporting die materials (dentin, epoxy resin, brass, and stainless steel) (24 per group) were prepared using a milling machine to simulate a mandibular molar all-ceramic core preparation. A total number of 96 zirconia cores were fabricated using a CAD/CAM system. The specimens were divided into two groups. In the first group, cores were cemented to substructures using a dual-cure resin cement. In the second group, cores were not cemented to the supporting dies. The specimens were loaded using a universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min until fracture occurred. Data were statistically analyzed using two-way analysis of variance and Tukey HSD tests (α = 0.05). The geometric models of cores and supporting die materials were developed using finite element method to obtain the stress distribution of the forces. Cemented groups showed statistically higher fracture strength values than non-cemented groups. While ceramic cores on stainless steel dies showed the highest fracture strength values, ceramic cores on dentin dies showed the lowest fracture strength values among the groups. The elastic modulus of the supporting die structure is a significant factor in determining the fracture resistance of all-ceramic crowns. Using supporting die structures that have a low elastic modulus may be suitable for fracture strength tests, in order to accurately reflect clinical conditions.

A Context-Aware Ubiquitous Learning Approach for Providing Instant Learning Support in Personal Computer Assembly Activities

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Ching-Kun; Hwang, Gwo-Jen

2014-01-01

Personal computer assembly courses have been recognized as being essential in helping students understand computer structure as well as the functionality of each computer component. In this study, a context-aware ubiquitous learning approach is proposed for providing instant assistance to individual students in the learning activity of a…

Forecast of hourly global horizontal irradiance based on structured Kernel Support Vector Machine: A case study of Tibet area in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang, He; Dong, Yao

2017-01-01

Highlights: • The structured variable selection in Kernel SVM is implemented using two ways. • The two-way interaction model is considered to enforce Heredity Principle. • SVMIC is used to select the kernel parameter in proposed approaches. • Simple and fast computations algorithms are derived. - Abstract: Various applications of forecasting effective global horizontal irradiance play increasingly vital role in grid-connected photovoltaic installations, but suffer from forecasting inaccuracy and prohibitively expensive computational cost. Although Support Vector Machine (SVM) is one of the most powerful forecasting approaches, it does not provide an interpretable model. This motivates penalized variable selection methods to be introduced to SVM to select important variables. However, in some forecasting problems, there are some underlying logic or hierarchical structure such as heredity principle among the variables. Penalized Kernel SVM approaches do not take heredity principles into consideration when enforcing sparsity. This paper investigates structural variable selection in Kernel SVM based approach which pursues heredity principle and sparsity simultaneously. To achieve heredity principle, both optimization and procedure based structural variable selection approaches are studied in the Kernel SVM. Computationally, we derive fast and simple-to-implement algorithms to perform structural variable selection and solar irradiance forecasting. Furthermore, Support Vector Machines Information Criterion is utilized to select the kernel parameters to guarantee the model consistency. Real data experiments directly reveal that our proposed KSVM-SVS based approach following heredity principle delivers superior performances in terms of forecasting accuracy comparing with other competitors.

Stable preparations of tyrosine hydroxylase provide the solution structure of the full-length enzyme

Science.gov (United States)

Bezem, Maria T.; Baumann, Anne; Skjærven, Lars; Meyer, Romain; Kursula, Petri; Martinez, Aurora; Flydal, Marte I.

2016-01-01

Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) catalyzes the rate-limiting step in the biosynthesis of catecholamine neurotransmitters. TH is a highly complex enzyme at mechanistic, structural, and regulatory levels, and the preparation of kinetically and conformationally stable enzyme for structural characterization has been challenging. Here, we report on improved protocols for purification of recombinant human TH isoform 1 (TH1), which provide large amounts of pure, stable, active TH1 with an intact N-terminus. TH1 purified through fusion with a His-tagged maltose-binding protein on amylose resin was representative of the iron-bound functional enzyme, showing high activity and stabilization by the natural feedback inhibitor dopamine. TH1 purified through fusion with a His-tagged ZZ domain on TALON is remarkably stable, as it was partially inhibited by resin-derived cobalt. This more stable enzyme preparation provided high-quality small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) data and reliable structural models of full-length tetrameric TH1. The SAXS-derived model reveals an elongated conformation (Dmax = 20 nm) for TH1, different arrangement of the catalytic domains compared with the crystal structure of truncated forms, and an N-terminal region with an unstructured tail that hosts the phosphorylation sites and a separated Ala-rich helical motif that may have a role in regulation of TH by interacting with binding partners. PMID:27462005

A risk-based model for maintenance decision support of civil structures using RAMS

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Viana Da Rocha, T. C.; Stipanovic, I.; Hartmann, A.; Bakker, J.

2017-01-01

As a cornerstone of transportation asset management, risk-based approaches have been used to support maintenance decisions of civil structures. However, ambiguous and subjective risk criteria and inconsistency on the use of risk-based approaches can lead to a fuzzy understanding of the risks

Supporting Families to Support Students

Science.gov (United States)

Kelly, John; Rossen, Eric; Cowan, Katherine C.

2018-01-01

Collaboration between students' families and the school is an essential component to promoting student mental and behavioral health. Many schools structure their mental health services using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports that offers three different tiers of support from universal supports to personalized help for students with serious…

Review. Supporting problem structuring with computer-based tools in participatory forest planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hujala, T.; Khadka, C.; Wolfslehner, B.; Vacik, H.

2013-09-01

Aim of study: This review presents the state-of-art of using computerized techniques for problem structuring (PS) in participatory forest planning. Frequency and modes of using different computerized tool types and their contribution for planning processes as well as critical observations are described, followed by recommendations on how to better integrate PS with the use of forest decision support systems. Area of study: The reviewed research cases are from Asia, Europe, North-America, Africa and Australia. Material and methods: Via Scopus search and screening of abstracts, 32 research articles from years 2002-2011 were selected for review. Explicit and implicit evidence of using computerized tools for PS was recorded and assessed with content-driven qualitative analysis. Main results: GIS and forest-specific simulation tools were the most prevalent software types whereas cognitive modelling software and spreadsheet and calculation tools were less frequently used, followed by multi-criteria and interactive tools. The typical use type was to provide outputs of simulation–optimization or spatial analysis to negotiation situations or to compile summaries or illustrations afterwards; using software during group negotiation to foster interaction was observed only in a few cases. Research highlights: Expertise in both decision support systems and group learning is needed to better integrate PS and computerized decision analysis. From the knowledge management perspective, it is recommended to consider how the results of PS —e.g. conceptual models— could be stored into a problem perception database, and how PS and decision making could be streamlined by retrievals from such systems. (Author)

The Orbital Angular Momentum Modes Supporting Fibers Based on the Photonic Crystal Fiber Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hu Zhang

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The orbital angular momentum (OAM of light can be another physical dimension that we exploit to make multiplexing in the spatial domain. The design of the OAM mode supporting fiber attracts many attentions in the field of the space division multiplexing (SDM system. This paper reviews the recent progresses in photonic crystal fiber (PCF supporting OAM modes, and summarizes why a PCF structure can be used to support stable OAM transmission modes. The emphasis is on the circular PCFs, which possess many excellent features of transmission performance, such as good-quality OAM modes, enough separation of the effective indices, low confinement loss, flat dispersion, a large effective area, and a low nonlinear coefficient. We also compare the transmission properties between the circular PCF and the ring core fiber, as well as the properties between the OAM EDFA based on circular PCF and the OAM EDFA based on the ring core fiber. At last, the challenges and prospects of OAM fibers based on the PCF structure are also discussed.

Structure of active IspH enzyme from escherichia coli provides mechanistic insights into substrate reduction

KAUST Repository

Gräwert, Tobias

2009-07-20

The terminal step of the non-mevalonate pathway of terpene biosynthesis is catalyzed by IspH (see scheme). In the crystal structure of IspH from E. coli, a bound inorganic diphosphate ligand occupies the position of the diphosphate residue of the substrate. Together with mutation studies and theoretical calculations, these data support a mechanism which is analogous to the Birch reduction of allylic alcohols. © 2009 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.

Self-Supporting Nanoclay as Internal Scaffold Material for Direct Printing of Soft Hydrogel Composite Structures in Air.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Yifei; Liu, Chengcheng; Chai, Wenxuan; Compaan, Ashley; Huang, Yong

2017-05-24

Three dimensional (3D) bioprinting technology enables the freeform fabrication of complex constructs from various hydrogels and is receiving increasing attention in tissue engineering. The objective of this study is to develop a novel self-supporting direct hydrogel printing approach to extrude complex 3D hydrogel composite structures in air without the help of a support bath. Laponite, a member of the smectite mineral family, is investigated to serve as an internal scaffold material for the direct printing of hydrogel composite structures in air. In the proposed printing approach, due to its yield-stress property, Laponite nanoclay can be easily extruded through a nozzle as a liquid and self-supported after extrusion as a solid. Its unique crystal structure with positive and negative charges enables it to be mixed with many chemically and physically cross-linked hydrogels, which makes it an ideal internal scaffold material for the fabrication of various hydrogel structures. By mixing Laponite nanoclay with various hydrogel precursors, the hydrogel composites retain their self-supporting capacity and can be printed into 3D structures directly in air and retain their shapes before cross-linking. Then, the whole structures are solidified in situ by applying suitable cross-linking stimuli. The addition of Laponite nanoclay can effectively improve the mechanical and biological properties of hydrogel composites. Specifically, the addition of Laponite nanoclay results in a significant increase in the Young's modulus of each hydrogel-Laponite composite: 1.9-fold increase for the poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA)-Laponite composite, 7.4-fold increase for the alginate-Laponite composite, and 3.3-fold increase for the gelatin-Laponite composite.

Structural and Biochemical Characterization of Spa47 Provides Mechanistic Insight into Type III Secretion System ATPase Activation and Shigella Virulence Regulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Burgess, Jamie L; Burgess, R Alan; Morales, Yalemi; Bouvang, Jenna M; Johnson, Sean J; Dickenson, Nicholas E

2016-12-09

Like many Gram-negative pathogens, Shigella rely on a complex type III secretion system (T3SS) to inject effector proteins into host cells, take over host functions, and ultimately establish infection. Despite these critical roles, the energetics and regulatory mechanisms controlling the T3SS and pathogen virulence remain largely unclear. In this study, we present a series of high resolution crystal structures of Spa47 and use the structures to model an activated Spa47 oligomer, finding that ATP hydrolysis may be supported by specific side chain contributions from adjacent protomers within the complex. Follow-up mutagenesis experiments targeting the predicted active site residues validate the oligomeric model and determined that each of the tested residues are essential for Spa47 ATPase activity, although they are not directly responsible for stable oligomer formation. Although N-terminal domain truncation was necessary for crystal formation, it resulted in strictly monomeric Spa47 that is unable to hydrolyze ATP, despite maintaining the canonical ATPase core structure and active site residues. Coupled with studies of ATPase inactive full-length Spa47 point mutants, we find that Spa47 oligomerization and ATP hydrolysis are needed for complete T3SS apparatus formation, a proper translocator secretion profile, and Shigella virulence. This work represents the first structure-function characterization of Spa47, uniquely complementing the multitude of included Shigella T3SS phenotype assays and providing a more complete understanding of T3SS ATPase-mediated pathogen virulence. Additionally, these findings provide a strong platform for follow-up studies evaluating regulation of Spa47 oligomerization in vivo as a much needed means of treating and perhaps preventing shigellosis. © 2016 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

A Support Database System for Integrated System Health Management (ISHM)

Science.gov (United States)

Schmalzel, John; Figueroa, Jorge F.; Turowski, Mark; Morris, John

2007-01-01

The development, deployment, operation and maintenance of Integrated Systems Health Management (ISHM) applications require the storage and processing of tremendous amounts of low-level data. This data must be shared in a secure and cost-effective manner between developers, and processed within several heterogeneous architectures. Modern database technology allows this data to be organized efficiently, while ensuring the integrity and security of the data. The extensibility and interoperability of the current database technologies also allows for the creation of an associated support database system. A support database system provides additional capabilities by building applications on top of the database structure. These applications can then be used to support the various technologies in an ISHM architecture. This presentation and paper propose a detailed structure and application description for a support database system, called the Health Assessment Database System (HADS). The HADS provides a shared context for organizing and distributing data as well as a definition of the applications that provide the required data-driven support to ISHM. This approach provides another powerful tool for ISHM developers, while also enabling novel functionality. This functionality includes: automated firmware updating and deployment, algorithm development assistance and electronic datasheet generation. The architecture for the HADS has been developed as part of the ISHM toolset at Stennis Space Center for rocket engine testing. A detailed implementation has begun for the Methane Thruster Testbed Project (MTTP) in order to assist in developing health assessment and anomaly detection algorithms for ISHM. The structure of this implementation is shown in Figure 1. The database structure consists of three primary components: the system hierarchy model, the historical data archive and the firmware codebase. The system hierarchy model replicates the physical relationships between

Biomimetic Membrane Arrays on Cast Hydrogel Supports

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Roerdink-Lander, Monique; Ibragimova, Sania; Rein Hansen, Christian

2011-01-01

, provides mechanical support but at the cost of small molecule transport through the membrane−support sandwich. To stabilize biomimetic membranes while allowing transport through a membrane−support sandwich, we have investigated the feasibility of using an ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE......)/hydrogel sandwich as the support. The sandwich is realized as a perforated surface-treated ETFE film onto which a hydrogel composite support structure is cast. We report a simple method to prepare arrays of lipid bilayer membranes with low intrinsic electrical conductance on the highly permeable, self......-supporting ETFE/hydrogel sandwiches. We demonstrate how the ETFE/hydrogel sandwich support promotes rapid self-thinning of lipid bilayers suitable for hosting membrane-spanning proteins....

Structure dynamics with regard to non-linear support behavior; Dynamische Strukturberechnung unter Beruecksichtigung nichtlinearen Lagerverhaltens

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Driessen, W. [Technischer Ueberwachungs-Verein Nord e.V., Hamburg (Germany)

2000-07-01

Because of modifications to a feed-water line of a power plant structural calculations of the pipework were performed. As a result of a linear (modal) analysis very high restraint forces on the supports were calculated. In order to reduce conservatisms in the calculation the model was optimized with regard to the support stiffnesses and nonlinear behavior of slide bearings, guides and shock absorbers were taken into account. The main result of the non-linear analysis, which was performed by methods of direct-integration, was that nonlinearity yields evident differences in structural frequencies and in energy dissipation (damping) in comparison to the linear analysis. The high restraint forces on the supports became smaller for most of the supports but at some points the forces of the non-linear analysis were even higher. So the conservatism of the linear analysis is not fully valid for the whole structure. The relevance of the non-linear effects in dynamic piping calculations is shown by comparing the calculation result with measurements which were performed on structures in the plant. (orig.) [German] Im Rahmen der Aenderung der Speisewasserleitung einer Kraftwerksanlage wurde die Struktur neu berechnet. Die Analysen mit einem linearen Modell (modal), das ueblicherweise verwendet wird, ergaben hohe Lasten an Halterungen. Zum Abbau von Konservativitaeten wurde eine realistischere Modellierung durch die Beruecksichtigung des nichtlinearen Verhaltens der in der Anlage befindlichen Gleitlager, Fuehrungen und Stossbremsen in der Berechnung vorgenommen. Die Untersuchungen haben ergeben, dass durch die Nichtlinearitaet das Frequenzverhalten der Struktur und die Dissipation von Energie durch Reibvorgaenge wesentlich beeinflusst werden. Des Weiteren ist festzustellen, dass aus linearen Analysen nicht uneingeschraenkt konservative Ergebnisse gewonnen werden. Die Relevanz der Beruecksichtigung des nichtlinearen Lagerverhaltens bei einer dynamischen Strukturberechnung wird

Dense-body aggregates as plastic structures supporting tension in smooth muscle cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jie; Herrera, Ana M; Paré, Peter D; Seow, Chun Y

2010-11-01

The wall of hollow organs of vertebrates is a unique structure able to generate active tension and maintain a nearly constant passive stiffness over a large volume range. These properties are predominantly attributable to the smooth muscle cells that line the organ wall. Although smooth muscle is known to possess plasticity (i.e., the ability to adapt to large changes in cell length through structural remodeling of contractile apparatus and cytoskeleton), the detailed structural basis for the plasticity is largely unknown. Dense bodies, one of the most prominent structures in smooth muscle cells, have been regarded as the anchoring sites for actin filaments, similar to the Z-disks in striated muscle. Here, we show that the dense bodies and intermediate filaments formed cable-like structures inside airway smooth muscle cells and were able to adjust the cable length according to cell length and tension. Stretching the muscle cell bundle in the relaxed state caused the cables to straighten, indicating that these intracellular structures were connected to the extracellular matrix and could support passive tension. These plastic structures may be responsible for the ability of smooth muscle to maintain a nearly constant tensile stiffness over a large length range. The finding suggests that the structural plasticity of hollow organs may originate from the dense-body cables within the smooth muscle cells.

Parentification and Grandparents’ Support from the Perspective of Grandchildren from Families of Various Structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Napora Elżbieta

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to determine the strength of the relationship between a retrospective evaluation of the experienced social support given by grandparents and the material status of the family with the quality of life of the grown-up grandchildren in families of different structures. The formulated expectations have been verified with the Social Support Scale (SSS, Student’s Life Satisfaction Scale (SLSS and an individual personal survey. The obtained results show that in families of single mothers, the emotional and informative support offered by grandparents was a significant factor improving the quality of the life of the grandchildren. In a complete family, however, the significant forms of support from grandparents were esteem support and its other forms, except for informative support. Moreover, the material wealth of the original family was shown to be an important predictor of the evaluation of the quality of life of the grandchildren; it was judged more negatively by adolescent children of single mothers.

Help at 3:00 AM! Providing 24/7 Timely Support to Online Students via a Virtual Assistant

Science.gov (United States)

Vu, Phu; Fredrickson, Scott; Meyer, Richard

2016-01-01

With a dearth of research on human-robot interaction in education and relatively high non-completion rates of online students, this study was conducted to determine the feasibility of using a virtual assistant (VA) to respond to questions and concerns of students and provide 24/7 online course content support. During a 16 week-long academic…

Structural studies of planctomycete Gemmata obscuriglobus support cell compartmentalisation in a bacterium.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evgeny Sagulenko

Full Text Available Members of phylum Planctomycetes have been proposed to possess atypical cell organisation for the Bacteria, having a structure of sectioned cells consistent with internal compartments surrounded by membranes. Here via electron tomography we confirm the presence of compartments in the planctomycete Gemmata obscuriglobus cells. Resulting 3-D models for the most prominent structures, nuclear body and riboplasm, demonstrate their entirely membrane - enclosed nature. Immunogold localization of the FtsK protein also supports the internal organisation of G.obscuriglobus cells and their unique mechanism of cell division. We discuss how these new data expand our knowledge on bacterial cell biology and suggest evolutionary consequences of the findings.

Numerical Study on the Seismic Performance of a Steel–Concrete Hybrid Supporting Structure in Thermal Power Plants

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bo Wang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the numerical investigation on the seismic performance of a steel–concrete hybrid structure consisting of reinforced concrete (RC tubular columns and steel braced truss with A-shaped steel frames, which is a novel supporting structural system to house air-cooled condensers (ACC in large-capacity thermal power plants (TPPs. First, the finite element (FE modeling approach for this hybrid structure using the software ABAQUS was validated by a range of pseudo-dynamic tests (PDTs performed on a 1/8-scaled sub-structure. The failure process, lateral displacement responses, changing rules of dynamic characteristic parameters and lateral stiffness with increase of peak ground acceleration (PGA were presented here. Then, nonlinear time-history analysis of the prototype structure was carried out. The dynamic characteristics, base shear force, lateral deformation capacity, stiffness deterioration and damage characteristics were investigated. Despite the structural complexity and irregularity, both experimental and numerical results indicate that the overall seismic performance of this steel–concrete hybrid supporting structure meets the seismic design requirements with respect to the high-intensity earthquakes.

Heat exchanger with layers of helical tubes provided with improved tube supports

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carnoy, M.; Mathieu, B.; Renaux, C.

1986-01-01

The present heat exchanger comprises coaxial layers of helically wound tubes; these tubes are supported by support plates, each comprising a row of perforations through which the tubes of a same layer pass. Truncated sleeves are in compression around the tubes within the perforations and mounted on the support plates. Pins fix the plates of different layers together against transverse movement but allowing radial movement. The present invention finds an application with nuclear reactor steam generators [fr

The Impact of the Support System’s Kinematic Structure on Selected Kinematic and Dynamic Quantities of an Experimental Crane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trąbka Arkadiusz

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a comparative analysis of two kinematic structures of the support system (with supports with bilateral and unilateral constraints, which were used in an experimental model of a crane. The computational model was developed by using the ADAMS software. The impact of the kinematic structure of the support system on selected kinematic and dynamic values that were recorded during the slewing motion was analysed. It was found, among other things, that an increased number of degrees of freedom of the support system leads to multiple distortions of time characteristics of kinematic and dynamic quantities.

The vibrational behaviour of the generator support structure for Koeberg nuclear power station at high frequencies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, D.E.

1988-06-01

The vibrational behaviour of the generator support structure at Koeberg nuclear power station at frequencies primarily in the region of 80 Hz to 110 Hz was examined. The effect of soil-structure interaction and the change in stiffness of the foundation soil was investigated. Vibration tests were performed on the generator support structure and the results were compared with a theoretical finite element analysis of the structure. By varying the soil-cement foundation stiffness it was possible to demonstrate the change in dynamic behaviour of the structure in the higher frequency band 80 Hz to 110 Hz. Comment has been made on the design code DIN 4024 in view of the findings of this thesis. It was concluded that the empirical rules regarding the inclusion of the foundation in an analysis specified by the code do not cover all cases and greater cognisance of the effect of the foundation stiffness on the vibration behaviour of such machine foundations is necessary. Obvious machine frequencies higher than the operational frequencies should be analysed where it is considered necessary. 24 refs., 25 tabs., 83 figs

3D Bearing Capacity of Structured Cells Supported on Cohesive Soil: Simplified Analysis Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martínez-Galván Sergio Antonio

2013-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper a simplified analysis method to compute the bearing capacity of structured cell foundations subjected to vertical loading and supported in soft cohesive soil is proposed. A structured cell is comprised by a top concrete slab structurally connected to concrete external walls that enclose the natural soil. Contrary to a box foundation it does not include a bottom slab and hence, the soil within the walls becomes an important component of the structured cell. This simplified method considers the three-dimensional geometry of the cell, the undrained shear strength of cohesive soils and the existence of structural continuity between the top concrete slab and the surrounding walls, along the walls themselves and the walls structural joints. The method was developed from results of numerical-parametric analyses, from which it was found that structured cells fail according to a punching-type mechanism.

Interfacial charge distributions in carbon-supported palladium catalysts

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rao, Radhika G.; Blume, Raoul; Hansen, Thomas Willum

2017-01-01

Controlling the charge transfer between a semiconducting catalyst carrier and the supported transition metal active phase represents an elite strategy for fine turning the electronic structure of the catalytic centers, hence their activity and selectivity. These phenomena have been theoretically...... and experimentally elucidated for oxide supports but remain poorly understood for carbons due to their complex nanoscale structure. Here, we combine advanced spectroscopy and microscopy on model Pd/C samples to decouple the electronic and surface chemistry effects on catalytic performance. Our investigations reveal...... treatments can be used to tune the interfacial charge distribution, hereby providing a strategy to rationally design carbon-supported catalysts.Control over charge transfer in carbon-supported metal nanoparticles is essential for designing new catalysts. Here, the authors show that thermal treatments...