Influence of thermal environment on sows around farrowing and during the lactation period

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmkvist, Jens; Pedersen, Lene Juul; Sund Kammersgaard, Trine

2012-01-01

Our objective was to investigate the effects of floor heating duration (HEAT: 35°C for 12 or 48 h) after birth of first piglet (BFP) under different room temperatures (ROOM: 15, 20, 25°C) on sows during farrowing and lactation. The study included 8 to 11 repetitions for each combination of ROOM...... for the HEAT =48 h treatment 13 to 48 h after BFP (P piglets (82 to 95%) were born on the heated solid floor, regardless of room temperature (P = 0.46). Sows spent approximately twice as much time standing/walking at 15°C during 13 to 48 h after BFP, at HEAT = 12 h only (ROOM and HEAT...

Determining the relative importance of figures in journal articles to find representative images

Science.gov (United States)

Müller, Henning; Foncubierta-Rodríguez, Antonio; Lin, Chang; Eggel, Ivan

2013-03-01

When physicians are searching for articles in the medical literature, images of the articles can help determining relevance of the article content for a specific information need. The visual image representation can be an advantage in effectiveness (quality of found articles) and also in efficiency (speed of determining relevance or irrelevance) as many articles can likely be excluded much quicker by looking at a few representative images. In domains such as medical information retrieval, allowing to determine relevance quickly and accurately is an important criterion. This becomes even more important when small interfaces are used as it is frequently the case on mobile phones and tablets to access scientific data whenever information needs arise. In scientific articles many figures are used and particularly in the biomedical literature only a subset may be relevant for determining the relevance of a specific article to an information need. In many cases clinical images can be seen as more important for visual appearance than graphs or histograms that require looking at the context for interpretation. To get a clearer idea of image relevance in articles, a user test with a physician was performed who classified images of biomedical research articles into categories of importance that can subsequently be used to evaluate algorithms that automatically select images as representative examples. The manual sorting of images of 50 journal articles of BioMedCentral with each containing more than 8 figures by importance also allows to derive several rules that determine how to choose images and how to develop algorithms for choosing the most representative images of specific texts. This article describes the user tests and can be a first important step to evaluate automatic tools to select representative images for representing articles and potentially also images in other contexts, for example when representing patient records or other medical concepts when selecting

Evaluating automatic attentional capture by self-relevant information.

Science.gov (United States)

Ocampo, Brenda; Kahan, Todd A

2016-01-01

Our everyday decisions and memories are inadvertently influenced by self-relevant information. For example, we are faster and more accurate at making perceptual judgments about stimuli associated with ourselves, such as our own face or name, as compared with familiar non-self-relevant stimuli. Humphreys and Sui propose a "self-attention network" to account for these effects, wherein self-relevant stimuli automatically capture our attention and subsequently enhance the perceptual processing of self-relevant information. We propose that the masked priming paradigm and continuous flash suppression represent two ways to experimentally examine these controversial claims.

On the mechanism of non-radiative decay of blue fluorescent protein chromophore: New insight from the excited-state molecular dynamics simulations and potential energy calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Li; Liu, Jian-Yong; Zhou, Pan-Wang

2017-11-01

A detailed theoretical investigation based on the ab initio on-the-fly surface hopping dynamics simulations and potential energy surfaces calculations has been performed to unveil the mechanism of the photoinduced non-adiabatic relaxation process of the isolated blue fluorescent protein (BFP) chromophore in gas phase. The data analysis presents that the dominant reaction coordinate of the BFP chromophore is driven by a rotation motion around the CC double bridging bond, which is in remarkable difference with a previous result which supports a Hula-Twist rotation pattern. Such behavior is consistent with the double bond rotation pattern of the GFP neutral chromophore. In addition, the dynamics simulations give an estimated decay time of 1.1 ps for the S1 state, which is agrees well with the experimental values measured in proteins. The present work offers a straightforward understanding for the decay mechanism of the BFP chromophore and suggestions of the photochemical properties of analogous protein chromophores. We hope the current work would be helpful for further exploration of the BFP photochemical and photophysical properties in various environments, and can provide guidance and prediction for rational design of the fluorescent proteins catering for different demands.

Enhancing policy innovation by redesigning representative democracy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Eva

2016-01-01

Policy innovation is a key aspect of public innovation, which has been largely overlooked. Political leadership, competition and collaboration are key drivers of policy innovation. It is a barrier in traditional models of representative democracy that they provide weak conditions for collaboration....... Two Danish case studies indicate that collaboration between politicians and relevant and affected stakeholders can promote policy innovation, but also that a redesign of representative democracy is needed in order to establish a productive combination of political leadership, competition...... and collaboration in political life....

The CNCSN-2: One, two-and three-dimensional coupled neutral and charged particle discrete ordinates code system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Voloschenko, A. M.; Gukov, S. V.; Russkov, A. A.; Gurevich, M. I.; Shkarovsky, D. A.; Kryuchkov, V. P.; Sumaneev, O. V.; Dubinin, A. A.

2009-01-01

KATRIN, KASKAD-Sand ROZ-6 codes solve the multigroup transport equation for neutrons, photons and charged particles in 3D. BOT3P-5., ConDat can be used as preprocessor. ARVES-2.5, a cross-section preprocessor (the package of utilities for operating with the cross section file in FMAC-M format) is included. Auxiliary codes MIXERM, CEPXS-BFP, CEPXS-BFP, SADCO-2.4 and CNCSN-2 are used

Facilitating long-term changes in student approaches to learning science.

Science.gov (United States)

Buchwitz, Brian J; Beyer, Catharine H; Peterson, Jon E; Pitre, Emile; Lalic, Nevena; Sampson, Paul D; Wakimoto, Barbara T

2012-01-01

Undergraduates entering science curricula differ greatly in individual starting points and learning needs. The fast pace, high enrollment, and high stakes of introductory science courses, however, limit students' opportunities to self-assess and modify learning strategies. The University of Washington's Biology Fellows Program (BFP) intervenes through a 20-session, premajors course that introduces students to the rigor expected of bioscience majors and assists their development as science learners. This study uses quantitative and qualitative approaches to assess whether the 2007-2009 BFP achieved its desired short- and long-term impacts on student learning. Adjusting for differences in students' high school grade point average and Scholastic Aptitude Test scores, we found that participation in the BFP was associated with higher grades in two subsequent gateway biology courses, across multiple quarters and instructors. Two to 4 yr after participating in the program, students attributed changes in how they approached learning science to BFP participation. They reported having learned to "think like a scientist" and to value active-learning strategies and learning communities. In addition, they reported having developed a sense of belonging in bioscience communities. The achievement of long-term impacts for a short-term instructional investment suggests a practical means to prepare diverse students for the rigors of science curricula.

Bio-composites composed of a solid free-form fabricated polycaprolactone and alginate-releasing bone morphogenic protein and bone formation peptide for bone tissue regeneration.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, MinSung; Jung, Won-Kyo; Kim, GeunHyung

2013-11-01

Biomedical scaffolds should be designed with highly porous three-dimensional (3D) structures that have mechanical properties similar to the replaced tissue, biocompatible properties, and biodegradability. Here, we propose a new composite composed of solid free-form fabricated polycaprolactone (PCL), bone morphogenic protein (BMP-2) or bone formation peptide (BFP-1), and alginate for bone tissue regeneration. In this study, PCL was used as a mechanical supporting component to enhance the mechanical properties of the final biocomposite and alginate was used as the deterring material to control the release of BMP-2 and BFP-1. A release test revealed that alginate can act as a good release control material. The in vitro biocompatibilities of the composites were examined using osteoblast-like cells (MG63) and the alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and calcium deposition were assessed. The in vitro test results revealed that PCL/BFP-1/Alginate had significantly higher ALP activity and calcium deposition than the PCL/BMP-2/Alginate composite. Based on these findings, release-controlled BFP-1 could be a good growth factor for enhancement of bone tissue growth and the simple-alginate coating method will be a useful tool for fabrication of highly functional biomaterials through release-control supplementation.

Child morbidity and mortality associated with alternative policy responses to the economic crisis in Brazil: A nationwide microsimulation study

Science.gov (United States)

Paes-Sousa, Romulo; Ocké-Reis, Carlos Octávio; Millett, Christopher

2018-01-01

Background Since 2015, a major economic crisis in Brazil has led to increasing poverty and the implementation of long-term fiscal austerity measures that will substantially reduce expenditure on social welfare programmes as a percentage of the country’s GDP over the next 20 years. The Bolsa Família Programme (BFP)—one of the largest conditional cash transfer programmes in the world—and the nationwide primary healthcare strategy (Estratégia Saúde da Família [ESF]) are affected by fiscal austerity, despite being among the policy interventions with the strongest estimated impact on child mortality in the country. We investigated how reduced coverage of the BFP and ESF—compared to an alternative scenario where the level of social protection under these programmes is maintained—may affect the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) and socioeconomic inequalities in child health in the country until 2030, the end date of the Sustainable Development Goals. Methods and findings We developed and validated a microsimulation model, creating a synthetic cohort of all 5,507 Brazilian municipalities for the period 2017–2030. This model was based on the longitudinal dataset and effect estimates from a previously published study that evaluated the effects of poverty, the BFP, and the ESF on child health. We forecast the economic crisis and the effect of reductions in BFP and ESF coverage due to current fiscal austerity on the U5MR, and compared this scenario with a scenario where these programmes maintain the levels of social protection by increasing or decreasing with the size of Brazil’s vulnerable populations (policy response scenarios). We used fixed effects multivariate regression models including BFP and ESF coverage and accounting for secular trends, demographic and socioeconomic changes, and programme duration effects. With the maintenance of the levels of social protection provided by the BFP and ESF, in the most likely economic crisis scenario the U5MR is

Child morbidity and mortality associated with alternative policy responses to the economic crisis in Brazil: A nationwide microsimulation study.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasella, Davide; Basu, Sanjay; Hone, Thomas; Paes-Sousa, Romulo; Ocké-Reis, Carlos Octávio; Millett, Christopher

2018-05-01

Since 2015, a major economic crisis in Brazil has led to increasing poverty and the implementation of long-term fiscal austerity measures that will substantially reduce expenditure on social welfare programmes as a percentage of the country's GDP over the next 20 years. The Bolsa Família Programme (BFP)-one of the largest conditional cash transfer programmes in the world-and the nationwide primary healthcare strategy (Estratégia Saúde da Família [ESF]) are affected by fiscal austerity, despite being among the policy interventions with the strongest estimated impact on child mortality in the country. We investigated how reduced coverage of the BFP and ESF-compared to an alternative scenario where the level of social protection under these programmes is maintained-may affect the under-five mortality rate (U5MR) and socioeconomic inequalities in child health in the country until 2030, the end date of the Sustainable Development Goals. We developed and validated a microsimulation model, creating a synthetic cohort of all 5,507 Brazilian municipalities for the period 2017-2030. This model was based on the longitudinal dataset and effect estimates from a previously published study that evaluated the effects of poverty, the BFP, and the ESF on child health. We forecast the economic crisis and the effect of reductions in BFP and ESF coverage due to current fiscal austerity on the U5MR, and compared this scenario with a scenario where these programmes maintain the levels of social protection by increasing or decreasing with the size of Brazil's vulnerable populations (policy response scenarios). We used fixed effects multivariate regression models including BFP and ESF coverage and accounting for secular trends, demographic and socioeconomic changes, and programme duration effects. With the maintenance of the levels of social protection provided by the BFP and ESF, in the most likely economic crisis scenario the U5MR is expected to be 8.57% (95% CI: 6.88%-10.24%) lower

Risk factors for musculoskeletal injuries among Greek Army officer cadets undergoing Basic Combat Training.

Science.gov (United States)

Havenetidis, Konstantinos; Paxinos, Thrasivoulos

2011-10-01

Predictors of work-related injuries were assessed using data from a group of Greek Army officer cadets. Cadets (n = 253) were monitored by physicians for musculoskeletal injuries resulting through a 7-week Basic Combat Training (BCT) period. Potential predictors of musculoskeletal injuries (Cadets' entry number, body mass index [BMI], body fat percentage [BFP], gender, age, sport experience, and nationality) were modeled via univariate and multivariate logistic regressions. Using odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval (CI), it was shown that older age (OR = 0.73; 95% CI = 0.56-0.96), female gender (OR = 0.13; 95% CI = 0.02-0.81), high BFP (OR = 1.21; 95% CI = 1.07-1.37), and Greek nationality (OR = 0.22; 95% CI = 0.07-0.69) were all associated with musculoskeletal injuries. These factors, except for gender, were also related to overuse injuries. During BCT, adiposity expressed as BFP and not as BMI can predict the magnitude and type (acute-overuse) of musculoskeletal injuries in Greek cadets.

Monochloramine Cometabolism by Nitrifying Biofilm Relevant ...

Science.gov (United States)

Recently, biological monochloramine removal (i.e., cometabolism) by a pure culture ammonia–oxidizing bacteria, Nitrosomonas europaea, and a nitrifying mixed–culture have been shown to increase monochloramine demand. Although important, these previous suspended culture batch kinetic experiments were not representative of drinking water distribution systems where bacteria grow predominantly as biofilm attached to pipe walls or sediments and physiological differences may exist between suspension and biofilm growth. Therefore, the current research was an important next step in extending the previous results to investigate monochloramine cometabolism by biofilm grown in annular reactors under drinking water relevant conditions. Estimated monochloramine cometabolism kinetics were similar to those of ammonia metabolism, and monochloramine cometabolism was a significant loss mechanism (25–40% of the observed monochloramine loss). These results demonstrated that monochloramine cometabolism occurred in drinking water relevant nitrifying biofilm; thus, cometabolism may be a significant contribution to monochloramine loss during nitrification episodes in distribution systems. Investigate whether or not nitrifying biofilm can biologically transform monochloramine under drinking water relevant conditions.

Why relevance theory is relevant for lexicography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bothma, Theo; Tarp, Sven

2014-01-01

This article starts by providing a brief summary of relevance theory in information science in relation to the function theory of lexicography, explaining the different types of relevance, viz. objective system relevance and the subjective types of relevance, i.e. topical, cognitive, situational...... that is very important for lexicography as well as for information science, viz. functional relevance. Since all lexicographic work is ultimately aimed at satisfying users’ information needs, the article then discusses why the lexicographer should take note of all these types of relevance when planning a new...... dictionary project, identifying new tasks and responsibilities of the modern lexicographer. The article furthermore discusses how relevance theory impacts on teaching dictionary culture and reference skills. By integrating insights from lexicography and information science, the article contributes to new...

Abdominal Obesity and their association with Total Body: Fat Distribution and Composition. Case of Algerian Teenager Male high school students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammed Zerf

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Purpose: Our aim attempted to esteem the impact of abdominal fat on body fat distribution or composition related to total body fat as recommended weight loss among High School Students. Material: For the proposed, 100 male students from the Algerian high school Education Sector's mandate Sidi Bel Abbes, participate in the present study. Their average age 16±1.52 years, distributed into homogeneous groups, according to their body fat percent categories. Examined by saving tests (Body Fat Percentage (BFP - Abdominal circumference (WC - Body mass index (BMI. Results: Based on the test data and the analysis statistics applied, we confirm: a Abdominal obesity is excess body gain correlate with total fat BMI. It highly affected body composition reported as additional fat for overweight in compare with acceptable according to Ideal BFP categories. b Abdominal obesity is an amount deep fat correlates to total BFP. It higher influenced the distribution of total body fat reported as additional excess fat among overweight category compared to the acceptable group. c Waist circumference (WC is the leading marker of abdominal fat deposits located in the central region of the body. While the combination of body mass index (BMI and waist circumference (WC, reflects the combined effects of body build (fat or fatness in individuals at higher risk of excessive body fat. Conclusions: founded on the differences acquired by the research team. We highlight that abdominal obesity is strongly connected to larger WC relate to total body gain located as excess inordinate fatness BMI or fat distribution BFP among our overall sample. Evidence, which guides us to recommend our adolescent students to intensification their hours of sports practice, in order to avoid the consequences of abdominal obesity gain. Announced in the present study as excess abdominal adiposity more metabolically active. Requiring the control of body weight loss (BFP or BMI strongly correlates to

Effects of order and sequence of resistance and endurance training on body fat in elementary school-aged girls

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana R. Alves

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to analyse the effects of order and sequence of concurrent resistance and endurance training on body fat percentage (BFP in a large sample of elementary school-aged girls. One hundred and twenty-six healthy girls, aged 10-11 years (10.95 ± 0.48 years, were randomly assigned to six groups to perform different training protocols per week for 8 weeks: Resistance-only (R, Endurance-only (E, Concurrent Distinct Endurance-Resistance (CDER, Concurrent Parallel Endurance-Resistance (CPER, Concurrent Parallel Resistance-Endurance (CPRE, and a Control group (C. In R and E, the subjects performed single sessions of resistance or endurance exercises, respectively (two days per week. In CDER, resistance-endurance training was performed on different days each week (four days per week. CPER and CPRE performed single-session combined endurance-resistance training or combined resistance-endurance training, respectively, each week (two days per week. After an 8-week training period, BFP decreased in all experimental groups (CPER: 13.3%, p0.05; and CDER: 5.6%, p>0.05. However, a significant difference was found in CPER and CPRE when compared to CDER, E, and R, indicating that training sequence may influence BFP. All programmes were effective, but CPER and CPRE obtained better results for BFP than CDER, E, or R. The effects of concurrent resistance and endurance training on body fat percentage can be mediated by order and sequence of exercise. These results provide insight into optimization of school-based fat loss exercise programmes in childhood.

Alpha power gates relevant information during working memory updating.

Science.gov (United States)

Manza, Peter; Hau, Chui Luen Vera; Leung, Hoi-Chung

2014-04-23

Human working memory (WM) is inherently limited, so we must filter out irrelevant information in our environment or our mind while retaining limited important relevant contents. Previous work suggests that neural oscillations in the alpha band (8-14 Hz) play an important role in inhibiting incoming distracting information during attention and selective encoding tasks. However, whether alpha power is involved in inhibiting no-longer-relevant content or in representing relevant WM content is still debated. To clarify this issue, we manipulated the amount of relevant/irrelevant information using a task requiring spatial WM updating while measuring neural oscillatory activity via EEG and localized current sources across the scalp using a surface Laplacian transform. An initial memory set of two, four, or six spatial locations was to be memorized over a delay until an updating cue was presented indicating that only one or three locations remained relevant for a subsequent recognition test. Alpha amplitude varied with memory maintenance and updating demands among a cluster of left frontocentral electrodes. Greater postcue alpha power was associated with the high relevant load conditions (six and four dots cued to reduce to three relevant) relative to the lower load conditions (four and two dots reduced to one). Across subjects, this difference in alpha power was correlated with condition differences in performance accuracy. In contrast, no significant effects of irrelevant load were observed. These findings demonstrate that, during WM updating, alpha power reflects maintenance of relevant memory contents rather than suppression of no-longer-relevant memory traces.

Computations Underlying Social Hierarchy Learning: Distinct Neural Mechanisms for Updating and Representing Self-Relevant Information.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumaran, Dharshan; Banino, Andrea; Blundell, Charles; Hassabis, Demis; Dayan, Peter

2016-12-07

Knowledge about social hierarchies organizes human behavior, yet we understand little about the underlying computations. Here we show that a Bayesian inference scheme, which tracks the power of individuals, better captures behavioral and neural data compared with a reinforcement learning model inspired by rating systems used in games such as chess. We provide evidence that the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) selectively mediates the updating of knowledge about one's own hierarchy, as opposed to that of another individual, a process that underpinned successful performance and involved functional interactions with the amygdala and hippocampus. In contrast, we observed domain-general coding of rank in the amygdala and hippocampus, even when the task did not require it. Our findings reveal the computations underlying a core aspect of social cognition and provide new evidence that self-relevant information may indeed be afforded a unique representational status in the brain. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Modelling mean transit time of stream base flow during tropical cyclone rainstorm in a steep relief forested catchment

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jun-Yi; Huang, -Chuan, Jr.

2017-04-01

Mean transit time (MTT) is one of the of fundamental catchment descriptors to advance understanding on hydrological, ecological, and biogeochemical processes and improve water resources management. However, there were few documented the base flow partitioning (BFP) and mean transit time within a mountainous catchment in typhoon alley. We used a unique data set of 18O isotope and conductivity composition of rainfall (136 mm to 778 mm) and streamflow water samples collected for 14 tropical cyclone events (during 2011 to 2015) in a steep relief forested catchment (Pinglin, in northern Taiwan). A lumped hydrological model, HBV, considering dispersion model transit time distribution was used to estimate total flow, base flow, and MTT of stream base flow. Linear regression between MTT and hydrometric (precipitation intensity and antecedent precipitation index) variables were used to explore controls on MTT variation. Results revealed that both the simulation performance of total flow and base flow were satisfactory, and the Nash-Sutcliffe model efficiency coefficient of total flow and base flow was 0.848 and 0.732, respectively. The event magnitude increased with the decrease of estimated MTTs. Meanwhile, the estimated MTTs varied 4-21 days with the increase of BFP between 63-92%. The negative correlation between event magnitude and MTT and BFP showed the forcing controls the MTT and BFP. Besides, a negative relationship between MTT and the antecedent precipitation index was also found. In other words, wetter antecedent moisture content more rapidly active the fast flow paths. This approach is well suited for constraining process-based modeling in a range of high precipitation intensity and steep relief forested environments.

Body adiposity is associated with risk of high blood pressure in Portuguese schoolchildren.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, Paulo Rogério Melo; Pereira, Rosangela Alves; Gama, Augusta; Carvalhal, Isabel Mourão; Nogueira, Helena; Rosado-Marques, Vitor; Padez, Cristina

2018-04-20

The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of high blood pressure (HBP) and its association with anthropometric indicators of adiposity in Portuguese schoolchildren. In this cross-sectional study, a nationally representative sample of 6-9-year-old children was analyzed. Weight and height (used to calculate body mass index [BMI]), blood pressure (BP), waist circumference (WC) and skinfold thickness (used to estimate body fat percentage [BFP]) were measured using standard techniques. BP was classified as high-normal BP or hypertension for values between the 90th and 95th percentiles or above the 95th percentile, respectively. A body adiposity index was calculated with principal component analysis using BMI, WC and BFP. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to estimate the strength of the association between anthropometric indicators and HBP. The prevalence of high-normal BP and hypertension was 4.5% and 3.7%, respectively. BP was positively correlated with all anthropometric indicators (p<0.01 for all). HBP was significantly more prevalent in females than in males and was positively associated with higher values of the assessed anthropometric indicators of adiposity, especially among females. Increased body fat predicted HBP. The use of anthropometric indicators may thus be useful in screening for HBP among Portuguese schoolchildren. Copyright © 2018 Sociedade Portuguesa de Cardiologia. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Captive wild birds as reservoirs of enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) and Shiga-toxin producing E. coli (STEC).

Science.gov (United States)

Sanches, Lilian Aparecida; Gomes, Marcelo da Silva; Teixeira, Rodrigo Hidalgo Friciello; Cunha, Marcos Paulo Vieira; Oliveira, Maria Gabriela Xavier de; Vieira, Mônica Aparecida Midolli; Gomes, Tânia Aparecida Tardelli; Knobl, Terezinha

Psittacine birds have been identified as reservoirs of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli, a subset of pathogens associated with mortality of children in tropical countries. The role of other orders of birds as source of infection is unclear. The aim of this study was to perform the molecular diagnosis of infection with diarrheagenic E. coli in 10 different orders of captive wild birds in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. Fecal samples were analyzed from 516 birds belonging to 10 orders: Accipitriformes, Anseriformes, Columbiformes, Falconiformes, Galliformes, Passeriformes, Pelecaniformes, Piciformes, Psittaciformes and Strigiformes. After isolation, 401 E. coli strains were subjected to multiplex PCR system with amplification of genes eae and bfp (EPEC), stx1 and stx2 for STEC. The results of these tests revealed 23/401 (5.74%) positive strains for eae gene, 16/401 positive strains for the bfp gene (3.99%) and 3/401 positive for stx2 gene (0.75%) distributed among the orders of Psittaciformes, Strigiformes and Columbiformes. None of strains were positive for stx1 gene. These data reveal the infection by STEC, typical and atypical EPEC in captive birds. The frequency of these pathotypes is low and restricted to few orders, but the data suggest the potential public health risk that these birds represent as reservoirs of diarrheagenic E. coli. Copyright © 2017 Sociedade Brasileira de Microbiologia. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli: foe or innocent bystander?

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Jia; Torres, Alfredo G.

2015-01-01

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) remain one the most important pathogens infecting children and they are one of the main causes of persistent diarrhea worldwide. Historically, typical EPEC (tEPEC), defined as those isolates with the attaching and effacement (A/E) genotype (eae+), which possess bfpA+ and lack the stx- genes are found strongly associated with diarrheal cases. However, occurrence of atypical EPEC (aEPEC; eae+ bfpA- stx-) in diarrheal and asymptomatic hosts has made investigators question the role of these pathogens in human disease. Current epidemiological data is helping answering the question whether EPEC is mainly a foe or an innocent bystander during infection. PMID:25726041

Representing AIDS in Comics.

Science.gov (United States)

Czerwiec, M K

2018-02-01

Matthew P. McAllister wrote: "Comic books can and have contributed positively to the discourse about AIDS: images that encourage true education, understanding and compassion can help cope with a biomedical condition which has more than a biomedical relevance" [1]. With this in mind, I combined a 23-narrator oral history and my personal memoir about an inpatient Chicago AIDS hospital unit in my book, Taking Turns: Stories from HIV/AIDS Care Unit 371. In doing so, I built upon the existing rich history of HIV/AIDS in comics, which this article will briefly describe. Although not a comprehensive review of the intersection of AIDS and comics, the book is a tour through influences that proved useful to me. In addition, in making my book, I faced a distinct ethical issue with regard to representing patient experiences with HIV/AIDS, and I describe here how I addressed it. © 2018 American Medical Association. All Rights Reserved.

A Statistical and Spectral Model for Representing Noisy Sounds with Short-Time Sinusoids

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Myriam Desainte-Catherine

2005-07-01

Full Text Available We propose an original model for noise analysis, transformation, and synthesis: the CNSS model. Noisy sounds are represented with short-time sinusoids whose frequencies and phases are random variables. This spectral and statistical model represents information about the spectral density of frequencies. This perceptually relevant property is modeled by three mathematical parameters that define the distribution of the frequencies. This model also represents the spectral envelope. The mathematical parameters are defined and the analysis algorithms to extract these parameters from sounds are introduced. Then algorithms for generating sounds from the parameters of the model are presented. Applications of this model include tools for composers, psychoacoustic experiments, and pedagogy.

Representativeness of environmental impact assessment methods regarding Life Cycle Inventories.

Science.gov (United States)

Esnouf, Antoine; Latrille, Éric; Steyer, Jean-Philippe; Helias, Arnaud

2018-04-15

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) characterises all the exchanges between human driven activities and the environment, thus representing a powerful approach for tackling the environmental impact of a production system. However, LCA practitioners must still choose the appropriate Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) method to use and are expected to justify this choice: impacts should be relevant facing the concerns of the study and misrepresentations should be avoided. This work aids practitioners in evaluating the adequacy between the assessed environmental issues and studied production system. Based on a geometrical standpoint of LCA framework, Life Cycle Inventories (LCIs) and LCIA methods were localized in the vector space spanned by elementary flows. A proximity measurement, the Representativeness Index (RI), is proposed to explore the relationship between those datasets (LCIs and LCIA methods) through an angular distance. RIs highlight LCIA methods that measure issues for which the LCI can be particularly harmful. A high RI indicates a close proximity between a LCI and a LCIA method, and highlights a better representation of the elementary flows by the LCIA method. To illustrate the benefits of the proposed approach, representativeness of LCIA methods regarding four electricity mix production LCIs from the ecoinvent database are presented. RIs for 18 LCIA methods (accounting for a total of 232 impact categories) were calculated on these LCIs and the relevance of the methods are discussed. RIs prove to be a criterion for distinguishing the different LCIA methods and could thus be employed by practitioners for deeper interpretations of LCIA results. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Task relevance modulates the cortical representation of feature conjunctions in the target template.

Science.gov (United States)

Reeder, Reshanne R; Hanke, Michael; Pollmann, Stefan

2017-07-03

Little is known about the cortical regions involved in representing task-related content in preparation for visual task performance. Here we used representational similarity analysis (RSA) to investigate the BOLD response pattern similarity between task relevant and task irrelevant feature dimensions during conjunction viewing and target template maintenance prior to visual search. Subjects were cued to search for a spatial frequency (SF) or orientation of a Gabor grating and we measured BOLD signal during cue and delay periods before the onset of a search display. RSA of delay period activity revealed that widespread regions in frontal, posterior parietal, and occipitotemporal cortices showed general representational differences between task relevant and task irrelevant dimensions (e.g., orientation vs. SF). In contrast, RSA of cue period activity revealed sensory-related representational differences between cue images (regardless of task) at the occipital pole and additionally in the frontal pole. Our data show that task and sensory information are represented differently during viewing and during target template maintenance, and that task relevance modulates the representation of visual information across the cortex.

The task-relevant attribute representation can mediate the Simon effect.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dandan Tang

Full Text Available Researchers have previously suggested a working memory (WM account of spatial codes, and based on this suggestion, the present study carries out three experiments to investigate how the task-relevant attribute representation (verbal or visual in the typical Simon task affects the Simon effect. Experiment 1 compared the Simon effect between the between- and within-category color conditions, which required subjects to discriminate between red and blue stimuli (presumed to be represented by verbal WM codes because it was easy and fast to name the colors verbally and to discriminate between two similar green stimuli (presumed to be represented by visual WM codes because it was hard and time-consuming to name the colors verbally, respectively. The results revealed a reliable Simon effect that only occurs in the between-category condition. Experiment 2 assessed the Simon effect by requiring subjects to discriminate between two different isosceles trapezoids (within-category shapes and to discriminate isosceles trapezoid from rectangle (between-category shapes, and the results replicated and expanded the findings of Experiment 1. In Experiment 3, subjects were required to perform both tasks from Experiment 1. Wherein, in Experiment 3A, the between-category task preceded the within-category task; in Experiment 3B, the task order was opposite. The results showed the reliable Simon effect when subjects represented the task-relevant stimulus attributes by verbal WM encoding. In addition, the response times (RTs distribution analysis for both the between- and within-category conditions of Experiments 3A and 3B showed decreased Simon effect with the RTs lengthened. Altogether, although the present results are consistent with the temporal coding account, we put forth that the Simon effect also depends on the verbal WM representation of task-relevant stimulus attribute.

Baseline Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy as a predictor of outcome in children with urinary tract infection

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yun, J. G.; An, Y. S.; Lee, M. H.; Cho, C. W.; Yun, S. N.; Pai, G. S [Ajou University Medical Center, Suwon (Korea, Republic of)

2004-07-01

Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy is useful in detecting urinary tract obstruction in patients with urinary tract infection (UTI). We evaluated the prognostic significance of baseline Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy in children with UTI. Among children, who underwent both baseline/follow-up Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphies and baseline Tc-99m DTP A scintigraphy for evaluation of UTI, 32 patients with unilateral cortical defects on baseline Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy were included in the study. The outcome of cortical defects was evaluated on follow-up Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy by visual analysis. ROIs were drawn on the Tc-99m DPTA scintigraphy for calculation of ipsilateral to contralateral kidney ratio (ICR) at blood flow phase (< 60s, BFP) and cortical uptake phase (1-5 min, CUP). Median follow-up period of Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy was 3.2 months (1.4 - 14 months). There were 24 patients with healing cortical defects and 8 with cortical scarring. Average ICRs of patients with healing defects were 1.11 {+-} 0.18 (0.44 - 1.57) at BFP and 0.97 {+-} 0.21 (0.31 - 1.28) at CUP, while those of patients with cortical scarring were 0.97 {+-} 0.47 (0.21 - 0.89) at BFP and 0.75 {+-} 0.49 (0.19 - 1.65) at CUP. ICR more than 0.9 was determined as a good prognostic indicator. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of ICR was 83.3%, 100%, 100% and 66.7% at BFP, and 79.0%, 62.5%, 86.4% and 50.0% at CUP. Ipsilateral to contralateral kidney ratio on baseline Tc-99m DPTA renal scintigraphy, especially at blood flow phase, is helpful in predicting outcome of children with UTI.

Baseline Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy as a predictor of outcome in children with urinary tract infection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yun, J. G.; An, Y. S.; Lee, M. H.; Cho, C. W.; Yun, S. N.; Pai, G. S

2004-01-01

Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy is useful in detecting urinary tract obstruction in patients with urinary tract infection (UTI). We evaluated the prognostic significance of baseline Tc-99m DTPA renal scintigraphy in children with UTI. Among children, who underwent both baseline/follow-up Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphies and baseline Tc-99m DTP A scintigraphy for evaluation of UTI, 32 patients with unilateral cortical defects on baseline Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy were included in the study. The outcome of cortical defects was evaluated on follow-up Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy by visual analysis. ROIs were drawn on the Tc-99m DPTA scintigraphy for calculation of ipsilateral to contralateral kidney ratio (ICR) at blood flow phase (< 60s, BFP) and cortical uptake phase (1-5 min, CUP). Median follow-up period of Tc-99m DMSA scintigraphy was 3.2 months (1.4 - 14 months). There were 24 patients with healing cortical defects and 8 with cortical scarring. Average ICRs of patients with healing defects were 1.11 ± 0.18 (0.44 - 1.57) at BFP and 0.97 ± 0.21 (0.31 - 1.28) at CUP, while those of patients with cortical scarring were 0.97 ± 0.47 (0.21 - 0.89) at BFP and 0.75 ± 0.49 (0.19 - 1.65) at CUP. ICR more than 0.9 was determined as a good prognostic indicator. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of ICR was 83.3%, 100%, 100% and 66.7% at BFP, and 79.0%, 62.5%, 86.4% and 50.0% at CUP. Ipsilateral to contralateral kidney ratio on baseline Tc-99m DPTA renal scintigraphy, especially at blood flow phase, is helpful in predicting outcome of children with UTI

Allergenic relevance of nonspecific lipid transfer proteins 2: Identification and characterization of Api g 6 from celery tuber as representative of a novel IgE-binding protein family.

Science.gov (United States)

Vejvar, Eva; Himly, Martin; Briza, Peter; Eichhorn, Stephanie; Ebner, Christof; Hemmer, Wolfgang; Ferreira, Fatima; Gadermaier, Gabriele

2013-11-01

Apium graveolens represents a relevant food allergen source linked with severe systemic reactions. We sought to identify an IgE-binding nonspecific lipid transfer protein (nsLTP) in celery tuber. A low molecular weight protein exclusively present in celery tuber was purified and designated Api g 6. The entire protein sequence was obtained by MS and classified as member of the nsLTP2 family. Api g 6 is monomeric in solution with a molecular mass of 6936 Da. The alpha-helical disulfide bond-stabilized structure confers tremendous thermal stability (Tm > 90°C) and high resistance to gastrointestinal digestion. Endolysosomal degradation demonstrated low susceptibility and the presence of a dominant peptide cluster at the C-terminus. Thirty-eight percent of A. graveolens allergic patients demonstrated IgE reactivity to purified natural Api g 6 in ELISA and heat treatment did only partially reduce its allergenic activity. No correlation in IgE binding and limited cross-reactivity was observed with Api g 2 and Art v 3, nsLTP1 from celery stalks and mugwort pollen. Api g 6, a novel nsLTP2 from celery tuber represents the first well-characterized allergen in this protein family. Despite similar structural and physicochemical features as nsLTP1, immunological properties of Api g 6 are distinct which warrants its inclusion in molecule-based diagnosis of A. graveolens allergy. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Quality control of baby food products on the basis of results obtained using the instrumental neutron-activation analysis technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mukhammedov, S.; Khaydarov, A.; Pardaev, O.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to use the instrumental neutron-activation analysis (INAA) to determine the elemental composition of some kind of imported baby food products (BFP) and to compare the results with the permissible contents. The nuclear reactor WWR-SM of INP has been used to develop INAA to study the mineral composition of some children's food products. The concentration of 26 trace elements, including Mg, Ca, Fe, Zn, etc. was found. The comparison of the results with regulation contents and the daily data on food needs have shown that the investigated group of BFP does not meet the requirements for all trace and macro elements composition. (authors)

Deep learning relevance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lioma, Christina; Larsen, Birger; Petersen, Casper

2016-01-01

train a Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) on existing relevant information to that query. We then use the RNN to "deep learn" a single, synthetic, and we assume, relevant document for that query. We design a crowdsourcing experiment to assess how relevant the "deep learned" document is, compared...... to existing relevant documents. Users are shown a query and four wordclouds (of three existing relevant documents and our deep learned synthetic document). The synthetic document is ranked on average most relevant of all....

Juvenile Toxicology: Relevance and Challenges for Toxicologists and Pathologists

Science.gov (United States)

Remick, Amera K.; Catlin, Natasha R.; Quist, Erin M.; Steinbach, Thomas J.; Dixon, Darlene

2015-01-01

The Society of Toxicologic Pathology (STP) Education Committee and the STP Reproductive Special Interest Group held a North Carolina regional meeting entitled, “Juvenile Toxicology: Relevance and Challenges for Toxicologists and Pathologists” on March 13, 2015, at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences/National Toxicology Program in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. The purpose of this regional meeting was to familiarize attendees with the topic of juvenile toxicity testing and discuss its relevance to clinical pediatric medicine, regulatory perspectives, challenges of appropriate study design confronted by toxicologists, and challenges of histopathologic examination and interpretation of juvenile tissues faced by pathologists. The 1-day meeting was a success with over 60 attendees representing industry, government, research organizations, and academia. PMID:26220944

Maternal Eating and Physical Activity Strategies and their Relation with Children's Nutritional Status

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yolanda Flores-Peña

2014-04-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: to describe the maternal eating and physical activity strategies (monitoring, discipline, control, limits and reinforcement [MEES]; to determine the relation between MEES and the child's nutritional status [body mass index (BMI and body fat percentage (BFP]; to verify whether the MEES differ according to the child's nutritional status.METHOD: participants were 558 mothers and children (3 to 11 years of age who studied at public schools. The Parental Strategies for Eating and Activity Scale (PEAS was applied and the child's weight, height and BFP were measured. For analysis purposes, descriptive statistics were obtained, using multiple linear regression and the Kruskal-Wallis test.RESULTS: the highest mean score was found for reinforcement (62.72 and the lowest for control (50.07. Discipline, control and limits explained 12% of the BMI, while discipline and control explained 6% of the BFP. Greater control is found for obese children (χ2=38.36, p=0.001 and greater reinforcement for underweight children (χ2=7.19, p<0.05.CONCLUSIONS: the mothers exert greater control (pressure to eat over obese children and greater recognition (congratulating due to healthy eating in underweight children. Modifications in parental strategies are recommended with a view to strengthening healthy eating and physical activity habits.

Body Fat Percentage Prediction Using Intelligent Hybrid Approaches

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Yuehjen E. Shao

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Excess of body fat often leads to obesity. Obesity is typically associated with serious medical diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Accordingly, knowing the body fat is an extremely important issue since it affects everyone’s health. Although there are several ways to measure the body fat percentage (BFP, the accurate methods are often associated with hassle and/or high costs. Traditional single-stage approaches may use certain body measurements or explanatory variables to predict the BFP. Diverging from existing approaches, this study proposes new intelligent hybrid approaches to obtain fewer explanatory variables, and the proposed forecasting models are able to effectively predict the BFP. The proposed hybrid models consist of multiple regression (MR, artificial neural network (ANN, multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS, and support vector regression (SVR techniques. The first stage of the modeling includes the use of MR and MARS to obtain fewer but more important sets of explanatory variables. In the second stage, the remaining important variables are served as inputs for the other forecasting methods. A real dataset was used to demonstrate the development of the proposed hybrid models. The prediction results revealed that the proposed hybrid schemes outperformed the typical, single-stage forecasting models.

INVESTIGATION OF REPRESENTATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF LUKIŠKIŲ SQUARE IN VILNIUS

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Gintautas TIŠKUS

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Representative squares are sites where ideological monuments or monuments are built, or squares to important state or municipal buildings. Representation square is a mark or sign system that is intended to provide some relevant information. This information may include events or actors that are important and desirable to commemorate, ideological - political motives that want to be given exclusive importance. In determining the structure of the area’s representative area, causal relationships with the represented object are identified. The original key information is the name. Subsequently, the type of object represented – an event or personality, a connection to the square, the importance of the mark on the square (dominant, noticeable or invisible, and the interaction between the label and the environment are determined. After examining the structure of the square of the square and writing the values in the matrix, we can determine the representation level of the square. In the representation square we can name the square, for which the context of the environment and the level of representational marks for the purpose of the square have a decisive or significant influence.

Measuring Teacher Dispositions: Identifying Workplace Personality Traits Most Relevant to Teaching Professionals

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, Yuankun; Pagnani, Alexander; Thomas, Matt; Abellan-Pagnani, Luisa; Brown, Terrell; Buchanan, Dawna Lisa

2017-01-01

What personality traits represent dispositions most relevant to teaching professionals? Could an instrument reflecting work personality traits for a wide variety of professions provide a valid assessment of dispositions for teacher candidates? This study analyzed the internal structure of a state mandated dispositions assessment that was adapted…

There’s an App for That? Highlighting the Difficulty in Finding Clinically Relevant Smartphone Applications

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Warren Wiechmann, MD, MBA

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The use of personal mobile devices in the medical field has grown quickly, and a large proportion of physicians use their mobile devices as an immediate resource for clinical decisionmaking, prescription information and other medical information. The iTunes App Store (Apple, Inc. contains approximately 20,000 apps in its “Medical” category, providing a robust repository of resources for clinicians; however, this represents only 2% of the entire App Store. The App Store does not have strict criteria for identifying content specific to practicing physicians, making the identification of clinically relevant content difficult. The objective of this study is to quantify the characteristics of existing medical applications in the iTunes App Store that could be used by emergency physicians, residents, or medical students. Methods: We found applications related to emergency medicine (EM by searching the iTunes App Store for 21 terms representing core content areas of EM, such as “emergency medicine,” “critical care,” “orthopedics,” and “procedures.” Two physicians independently reviewed descriptions of these applications in the App Store and categorized each as the following: Clinically Relevant, Book/ Published Source, Non-English, Study Tools, or Not Relevant. A third physician reviewer resolved disagreements about categorization. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Results: We found a total of 7,699 apps from the 21 search terms, of which 17.8% were clinical, 9.6% were based on a book or published source, 1.6% were non-English, 0.7% were clinically relevant patient education resources, and 4.8% were study tools. Most significantly, 64.9% were considered not relevant to medical professionals. Clinically relevant apps make up approximately 6.9% of the App Store’s “Medical” Category and 0.1% of the overall App Store. Conclusion: Clinically relevant apps represent only a small percentage (6.9% of the total App

The forces of change: defining the relevance of soil to the ecosystem ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Eight (8) villages around the Zugurma sector were chosen based on their location and relevance to the Park and these were Shaffini, Tungan Maikade, Kulho, Mazakuka, Faje, Mule, Fatiko and Kizhi. Representative soil samples were obtained randomly from the villages in the dry season (October 2002 and January 2003) ...

Assessing the relevance of ecotoxicological studies for regulatory decision making.

Science.gov (United States)

Rudén, Christina; Adams, Julie; Ågerstrand, Marlene; Brock, Theo Cm; Poulsen, Veronique; Schlekat, Christian E; Wheeler, James R; Henry, Tala R

2017-07-01

Regulatory policies in many parts of the world recognize either the utility of or the mandate that all available studies be considered in environmental or ecological hazard and risk assessment (ERA) of chemicals, including studies from the peer-reviewed literature. Consequently, a vast array of different studies and data types need to be considered. The first steps in the evaluation process involve determining whether the study is relevant to the ERA and sufficiently reliable. Relevance evaluation is typically performed using existing guidance but involves application of "expert judgment" by risk assessors. In the present paper, we review published guidance for relevance evaluation and, on the basis of the practical experience within the group of authors, we identify additional aspects and further develop already proposed aspects that should be considered when conducting a relevance assessment for ecotoxicological studies. From a regulatory point of view, the overarching key aspect of relevance concerns the ability to directly or indirectly use the study in ERA with the purpose of addressing specific protection goals and ultimately regulatory decision making. Because ERA schemes are based on the appropriate linking of exposure and effect estimates, important features of ecotoxicological studies relate to exposure relevance and biological relevance. Exposure relevance addresses the representativeness of the test substance, environmental exposure media, and exposure regime. Biological relevance deals with the environmental significance of the test organism and the endpoints selected, the ecological realism of the test conditions simulated in the study, as well as a mechanistic link of treatment-related effects for endpoints to the protection goal identified in the ERA. In addition, uncertainties associated with relevance should be considered in the assessment. A systematic and transparent assessment of relevance is needed for regulatory decision making. The relevance

Study of plasma orexin-A level in COPD patients during acute exacerbation

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Magdy M. Omar

2017-10-01

Conclusion: Patients with COPD during acute exacerbation had higher values of plasma orexin-A when compared with normal subjects and plasma orexin-A correlated positively with BMI and BFP in these patients.

Variation of body fat percentage with special reference to diet modification in patients with chronic kidney disease: A longitudinal study

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Neha Srivastava

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Visceral adiposity causes hypertension, hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia. This study was conducted to evaluate whether a correlation exists between body fat percentage (BFP of chronic kidney disease (CKD patients and their dietary intake. In this hospital-based, quasi-experimental study, 135 incident cases of CKD were included, of whom 76 completed the study. The patients included were aged 18 years and above and had a body mass index (BMI between 18 and 25 kg/m [2] , had CKD of any etiology and serum creatinine of up to 5 mg/dL. Patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, active hepatitis B or C, malignancy, previous kidney transplantation, current participation in any trial, diabetes mellitus and those who were on dia-lysis were excluded. The study patients were put on a diet of 25-30 kcal/kg/day, with 60% of the calories coming from carbohydrates and 20% each from protein and fat. Assessment was made at baseline (BL and at 12 months (TM for anthropometric parameters, skin-fold thickness, nutri-tional parameters, serum albumin and dietary intake (3-day dietary record and clinical charac-teristics. No significant change was seen in BFP, waist circumference (WC and BMI at BS and at TM. There was significant improvement in serum albumin (P <0.05 and e-GFR (P <0.01 while CRP was elevated both at BL and TM. The dietary intake was within the prescribed limit, with significant improvement in energy intake between BS and TM (P <0.05. The intake of delta dietary protein and fat positively correlated with delta e-GFR (P <0.001. There was a significant association between change in BFP and change in BMI (P <0.005. During follow-up, there was no significant change in biochemical parameters and BFP as well as stage of CKD of the study patients. This study supports the fact that dietary counseling is an important part of treatment in patients with CKD.

Reference materials and representative test materials: the nanotechnology case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roebben, G.; Rasmussen, K.; Kestens, V.; Linsinger, T. P. J.; Rauscher, H.; Emons, H.; Stamm, H.

2013-01-01

An increasing number of chemical, physical and biological tests are performed on manufactured nanomaterials for scientific and regulatory purposes. Existing test guidelines and measurement methods are not always directly applicable to or relevant for nanomaterials. Therefore, it is necessary to verify the use of the existing methods with nanomaterials, thereby identifying where modifications are needed, and where new methods need to be developed and validated. Efforts for verification, development and validation of methods as well as quality assurance of (routine) test results significantly benefit from the availability of suitable test and reference materials. This paper provides an overview of the existing types of reference materials and introduces a new class of test materials for which the term ‘representative test material’ is proposed. The three generic concepts of certified reference material, reference material(non-certified) and representative test material constitute a comprehensive system of benchmarks that can be used by all measurement and testing communities, regardless of their specific discipline. This paper illustrates this system with examples from the field of nanomaterials, including reference materials and representative test materials developed at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, in particular at the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM), and at the Institute for Health and Consumer Protection (IHCP).

THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE IN THE VALUE RELEVANCE LITERATURE

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Mihaela Alina ROBU

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In the last decades, numerous studies have covered the relationship between stock price or stock return and financial information. These studies represent the "value-relevance" literature. Knowledge of this area of interest, through literature and the main ideas, yields scientific progress. The aim of the study is to achieve a qualitative and a quantitative analysis regarding the level of knowledge in the value relevance literature, in an international context. To achieve this aim, a number of 53 scientific articles published between 2001 and 2013 were selected, from the first two journals related to the number of citations in the rankings compiled by Google Scholar, Accounting and Taxation category. Qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis (factorial analysis of multiple correspondences as statistical method were used. The results reflect the importance of existing problems in the financial markets. The studies are focused on solving these problems, to support the investors.

The anatomy of the squizzel The role of operational definitions in representing uncertainty

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cooke, Roger

2004-01-01

An anecdotal introduction of the role of operational definitions in representing uncertainty is followed by a brief history of operational definitions, with particular attention to the foundations of probability and the fuzzy representations of uncertainty. A short summary of experience at the TU Delft points to relevant open questions. These in turn are illustrated by a recent application to NO x emissions in The Netherlands

Extracellular vesicles: fundamentals and clinical relevance

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Wael Nassar

2015-01-01

Full Text Available All types of cells of eukaryotic organisms produce and release small nanovesicles into their extracellular environment. Early studies have described these vesicles as ′garbage bags′ only to remove obsolete cellular molecules. Valadi and colleagues, in 2007, were the first to discover the capability of circulating extracellular vesicles (EVs to horizontally transfer functioning gene information between cells. These extracellular vesicles express components responsible for angiogenesis promotion, stromal remodeling, chemoresistance, genetic exchange, and signaling pathway activation through growth factor/receptor transfer. EVs represent an important mode of intercellular communication by serving as vehicles for transfer between cells of membrane and cytosolic proteins, lipids, signaling proteins, and RNAs. They contribute to physiology and pathology, and they have a myriad of potential clinical applications in health and disease. Moreover, vesicles can pass the blood-brain barrier and may perhaps even be considered as naturally occurring liposomes. These cell-derived EVs not only represent a central mediator of the disease microenvironment, but their presence in the peripheral circulation may serve as a surrogate for disease biopsies, enabling real-time diagnosis and disease monitoring. In this review, we′ll be addressing the characteristics of different types of extracellular EVs, as well as their clinical relevance and potential as diagnostic markers, and also define therapeutic options.

Does body fat percentage predict post-exercise heart rate response in non-obese children and adolescents?

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Jezdimirovic, Tatjana; Stajer, Valdemar; Semeredi, Sasa; Calleja-Gonzalez, Julio; Ostojic, Sergej M

2017-05-24

A correlation between adiposity and post-exercise autonomic regulation has been established in overweight and obese children. However, little information exists about this link in non-obese youth. The main purpose of this cross-sectional study was to describe the relationship between body fat percentage (BFP) and heart rate recovery after exercise [post-exercise heart rate (PEHR)], a marker of autonomic regulation, in normal-weight children and adolescents. We evaluated the body composition of 183 children and adolescents (age 15.0±2.3 years; 132 boys and 51 girls) who performed a maximal graded exercise test on a treadmill, with the heart rate monitored during and immediately after exercise. A strong positive trend was observed in the association between BFP and PEHR (r=0.14; p=0.06). Hierarchical multiple regression revealed that our model explained 18.3% of the variance in PEHR (p=0.00), yet BFP accounted for only 0.9% of the variability in PEHR (p=0.16). The evaluation of the contribution of each independent variable revealed that only two variables made a unique statistically significant contribution to our model (pfatness seems to poorly predict PEHR in our sample of non-obese children and adolescents, while non-modifiable variables (age and gender) were demonstrated as strong predictors of heart rate recovery. The low amount of body fat reported in non-obese young participants was perhaps too small to cause disturbances in autonomic nervous system regulation.

Effects of a conditional cash transfer programme on child nutrition in Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Paes-Sousa, Rômulo; Miazaki, Édina Shisue

2011-01-01

Abstract Objective To examine the association between Brazil’s Bolsa Familia programme (BFP), which is the world's largest conditional cash transfer programme, and the anthropometric indicators of nutritional status in children. Methods Using the opportunity provided by vaccination campaigns, the Brazilian government promotes Health and Nutrition Days to estimate the prevalence of anthropometric deficits in children. Data collected in 2005–2006 for 22 375 impoverished children under 5 years of age were employed to estimate nutritional outcomes among recipients of Bolsa Família. All variables under study, namely child birth weight, lack of birth certificate, educational level and gender of family head, access to piped water and electricity, height for age, weight for age and weight for height, were converted into binary variables for regression analysis. Findings Children from families exposed to the BFP were 26% more likely to have normal height for age than those from non-exposed families; this difference also applied to weight for age. No statistically significant deficit in weight for height was found. Stratification by age group revealed 19% and 41% higher odds of having normal height for age at 12–35 and 36–59 months of age, respectively, in children receiving Bolsa Familia, and no difference at 0–11 months of age. Conclusion The BFP can lead to better nutritional outcomes in children 12 to 59 months of age. Longitudinal studies are needed to confirm these findings. PMID:21734763

Identification of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli in children with acute diarrheic syndrome from Sucre State, Venezuela.

Science.gov (United States)

Michelli, Elvia; Millán, Adriana; Rodulfo, Hectorina; Michelli, Mirian; Luiggi, Jesús; Carreño, Numirin; De Donato, Marcos

2016-03-28

Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli is an important causative agent of acute diarrheic syndrome.  To identify clonal groups of enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), in 485 children with acute diarrhea aged 0 to 10 years attending health care centers in Arismendi, Benítez and Sucre municipalities, Sucre state, Venezuela, from March to December, 2011.  After obtaining the informed consent, stool samples were collected. Escherichia coli was identified using standard coproculture methods and serology with polyvalent and monovalent antisera. DNA was isolated, and eae (intimin) and bfpA (bundlin) genes were amplified through two multiplex polymerase chain reactions (PCR).  The presence of bacterial infection was determined in 39.6% of coprocultures. The prevalence of E. coli was 54.7%; 82.9% of these isolates were positive by serology for the evaluated serogroups and serotypes, which were mostly identified in children between 0 and 2 years (37.9%); 48.6% of E. coli strains amplified the eae gene; of these, 58.8% were classified as typical EPEC (eae+ y bfp+). EPEC II was the most common serogroup (38.7%), with predominance of typical EPEC (60%). In positive strains for eae gene, the β intimin allele was the most frequently identified (74.5%). Only four strains with O157:H7 serotype were identified, which showed no PCR amplification of the eae and bfpA genes.  This study showed the importance of molecular tests to identify diarrheagenic E. coli strains causing clinical conditions of varying severity.

Desempenho na Gestão Pública do Programa Bolsa Família sob a Perspectiva de Análise do Índice de Gestão Descentralizada (IGD

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Ambrozina de Abreu Pereira Silva

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study aimed at verifying performance in the public management of Brazil's Bolsa Família Program (BFP - a conditional cash transfer program - and also at identifying factors associated with efficiency and quality in the program¿s management in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. As a reference for this study, the Decentralized Management Index (DMI acts as a financial incentive for a suitable local management of the program. A theoretical framework was developed based on the enactment and decentralization of public policies. Descriptive statistics were used as a basis to measure the local management of the BFP and the Pearson product-moment correlation procedure was used to identify factors associated with efficiency and quality in the program¿s management. The results show that some towns have very low performance on the DMI since they were not able to reach the minimum level for the provision of resources, which illustrates flaws in the program¿s management. Besides the factors adopted for developing the DMI, town size and the number of beneficiaries seem to influence the BFP quality and efficiency. Moreover, information monitoring and conditionality accompaniment mechanisms need clear improvement to ensure the population access to basic rights, such as education and healthcare, thus fulfilling with the objectives of the PBF: to reduce poverty among generations and to provide families with support to meet the fundamental rights they are entitled.

THE VALUE RELEVANCE OF INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTING STANDARD IMPLEMENTATION AND AUDIT QUALITY

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Hanifa Zulhaimi

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The implementation of international accounting standards in Indonesia has significantly affected financial reporting. It increases information relevance for the investors because a fair value comprehensively represents assets and liabilities of an entity as of the balance sheet date. However, this triggers polemics over the value relevance of International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS. This can be seen from stock price decline. This study aims to find out the effect of net income and other comprehensive income on stock price and to observe the effect of other comprehensive income moderated by audit quality. Furthermore this study also aims to find out the effect of  the subjectivity of OCI components. Using a sample of 79 companies, the writer analyzes 2014 financial statements derived from Indonesia Stock Exchange. Based on the result, the predetermined hypotheses are unable to prove. Net income is the only variable that affects stock return. Thus it can be concluded that net income has a value relevance for the investors in making economic decisions.

User perspectives on relevance criteria

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Maglaughlin, Kelly L.; Sonnenwald, Diane H.

2002-01-01

, partially relevant, or not relevant to their information need; and explained their decisions in an interview. Analysis revealed 29 criteria, discussed positively and negatively, that were used by the participants when selecting passages that contributed or detracted from a document's relevance......This study investigates the use of criteria to assess relevant, partially relevant, and not-relevant documents. Study participants identified passages within 20 document representations that they used to make relevance judgments; judged each document representation as a whole to be relevant...... matter, thought catalyst), full text (e.g., audience, novelty, type, possible content, utility), journal/publisher (e.g., novelty, main focus, perceived quality), and personal (e.g., competition, time requirements). Results further indicate that multiple criteria are used when making relevant, partially...

Performance Evaluation of Moment Connections of Moment Resisting Frames Against Progressive Collapse

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M. Mahmoudi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available When a primary structural element fails due to sudden load such as explosion, the building undergoes progressive collapse. The method for design of moment connections during progressive collapse is different to seismic design of moment connections. Because in this case, the axial force on the connections makes it behave differently. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the performance of a variety of moment connections in preventing progressive collapse in steel moment frames. To achieve this goal, three prequalified moment connections (BSEEP, BFP and WUP-W were designed according seismic codes. These moment connections were analyzed numerically using ABAQUS software for progressive collapse. The results show that the BFP connection (bolted flange plate has capacity much more than other connections because of the use of plates at the junction of beam-column.

Role of calibration, validation, and relevance in multi-level uncertainty integration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Chenzhao; Mahadevan, Sankaran

2016-01-01

Calibration of model parameters is an essential step in predicting the response of a complicated system, but the lack of data at the system level makes it impossible to conduct this quantification directly. In such a situation, system model parameters are estimated using tests at lower levels of complexity which share the same model parameters with the system. For such a multi-level problem, this paper proposes a methodology to quantify the uncertainty in the system level prediction by integrating calibration, validation and sensitivity analysis at different levels. The proposed approach considers the validity of the models used for parameter estimation at lower levels, as well as the relevance at the lower level to the prediction at the system level. The model validity is evaluated using a model reliability metric, and models with multivariate output are considered. The relevance is quantified by comparing Sobol indices at the lower level and system level, thus measuring the extent to which a lower level test represents the characteristics of the system so that the calibration results can be reliably used in the system level. Finally the results of calibration, validation and relevance analysis are integrated in a roll-up method to predict the system output. - Highlights: • Relevance analysis to quantify the closeness of two models. • Stochastic model reliability metric to integrate multiple validation experiments. • Extend the model reliability metric to deal with multivariate output. • Roll-up formula to integrate calibration, validation, and relevance.

14 CFR 1274.906 - Designation of New Technology Representative and Patent Representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Designation of New Technology... Conditions § 1274.906 Designation of New Technology Representative and Patent Representative. Designation of New Technology Representative and Patent Representative July 2002 (a) For purposes of administration...

Transport of Fluorescently Labeled Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles in Saturated Granular Media at Environmentally Relevant Concentrations of Surfactants

Science.gov (United States)

Little is known about the mobility of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) in granular media at environmentally relevant concentration of surfactant, which represents a critical knowledge gap in employing ENPs for in-situ remediation of contaminated groundwater. In this study, transpo...

GAPTrap: A Simple Expression System for Pluripotent Stem Cells and Their Derivatives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tim Kao

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The ability to reliably express fluorescent reporters or other genes of interest is important for using human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs as a platform for investigating cell fates and gene function. We describe a simple expression system, designated GAPTrap (GT, in which reporter genes, including GFP, mCherry, mTagBFP2, luc2, Gluc, and lacZ are inserted into the GAPDH locus in hPSCs. Independent clones harboring variations of the GT vectors expressed remarkably consistent levels of the reporter gene. Differentiation experiments showed that reporter expression was reliably maintained in hematopoietic cells, cardiac mesoderm, definitive endoderm, and ventral midbrain dopaminergic neurons. Similarly, analysis of teratomas derived from GT-lacZ hPSCs showed that β-galactosidase expression was maintained in a spectrum of cell types representing derivatives of the three germ layers. Thus, the GAPTrap vectors represent a robust and straightforward tagging system that enables indelible labeling of PSCs and their differentiated derivatives.

Semantic Data Integration and Knowledge Management to Represent Biological Network Associations.

Science.gov (United States)

Losko, Sascha; Heumann, Klaus

2017-01-01

The vast quantities of information generated by academic and industrial research groups are reflected in a rapidly growing body of scientific literature and exponentially expanding resources of formalized data, including experimental data, originating from a multitude of "-omics" platforms, phenotype information, and clinical data. For bioinformatics, the challenge remains to structure this information so that scientists can identify relevant information, to integrate this information as specific "knowledge bases," and to formalize this knowledge across multiple scientific domains to facilitate hypothesis generation and validation. Here we report on progress made in building a generic knowledge management environment capable of representing and mining both explicit and implicit knowledge and, thus, generating new knowledge. Risk management in drug discovery and clinical research is used as a typical example to illustrate this approach. In this chapter we introduce techniques and concepts (such as ontologies, semantic objects, typed relationships, contexts, graphs, and information layers) that are used to represent complex biomedical networks. The BioXM™ Knowledge Management Environment is used as an example to demonstrate how a domain such as oncology is represented and how this representation is utilized for research.

The personality profile of a successful sales representative in the liquor industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. C. D. Augustyn

1988-05-01

Full Text Available From a study of the relevant literature it is clear that in general characteristics of sales representatives, and their personality profile in particular, have not been clearly identified. The objective of this study was to seek clarification of this issue. Two instruments were used in the investigation; namely, the South African Personality Questionnaire and the Thurstone Temperament Schedule. These instruments were administered to 45 sales representatives in the liquor industry and it was established that successful and less successful sales representatives could be statistically differentiated in terms of personality profile. Opsomming Uit die relevante literatuur blyk dit duidelik dat die kenmerke van die verkoopsverteenwoordiger in die algemeen en sypersoonlikheidsprofiel in die besonder nie duidelik ornlyn is nie. Die doelwit van hierdie studie was om groter duidelikheid in die verband te verkry. Twee instrumente is in die ondersoek gebruik nl. die Suid-Afrikaanse Persoonlikheidsvraelys en die Thurstone Temperament Schedule. Hierdie instrumente is geadministreer aan 'n steekproefvan 45 verkoopsverteenwoordigers in die drankbedryf en daar is bevind dat suksesvolle en minder suksesvolle verkoopsverteenwoordigers statisties gedifferensieer kan word in terme van hul persoonlikheidsprofiele.

Parsimonious relevance models

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meij, E.; Weerkamp, W.; Balog, K.; de Rijke, M.; Myang, S.-H.; Oard, D.W.; Sebastiani, F.; Chua, T.-S.; Leong, M.-K.

2008-01-01

We describe a method for applying parsimonious language models to re-estimate the term probabilities assigned by relevance models. We apply our method to six topic sets from test collections in five different genres. Our parsimonious relevance models (i) improve retrieval effectiveness in terms of

Identifying optimal models to represent biochemical systems.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mochamad Apri

Full Text Available Biochemical systems involving a high number of components with intricate interactions often lead to complex models containing a large number of parameters. Although a large model could describe in detail the mechanisms that underlie the system, its very large size may hinder us in understanding the key elements of the system. Also in terms of parameter identification, large models are often problematic. Therefore, a reduced model may be preferred to represent the system. Yet, in order to efficaciously replace the large model, the reduced model should have the same ability as the large model to produce reliable predictions for a broad set of testable experimental conditions. We present a novel method to extract an "optimal" reduced model from a large model to represent biochemical systems by combining a reduction method and a model discrimination method. The former assures that the reduced model contains only those components that are important to produce the dynamics observed in given experiments, whereas the latter ensures that the reduced model gives a good prediction for any feasible experimental conditions that are relevant to answer questions at hand. These two techniques are applied iteratively. The method reveals the biological core of a model mathematically, indicating the processes that are likely to be responsible for certain behavior. We demonstrate the algorithm on two realistic model examples. We show that in both cases the core is substantially smaller than the full model.

Closure of oroantral communication with buccal fat pad after removing bilateral failed zygomatic implants: A case report and 6-month follow-up.

Science.gov (United States)

Peñarrocha-Oltra, David; Alonso-González, Rocio; Pellicer-Chover, Hilario; Aloy-Prósper, Amparo; Peñarrocha-Diago, María

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to assess the use of buccal fat pad (BFP) technique as an option to close oroantral communications (OAC) after removing failed zygomatic implants in a patient with a severely resorbed maxilla, and to determine the degree of patient satisfaction. A 64-year-old woman presented recurrent sinusitis and permanent oroantral communication caused by bilateral failed zygomatic implants, 3 years after prosthetic loading. Zygomatic implants were removed previous antibiotic treatment and the BFP flap technique was used to treat the OAC and maxillary defect. The degree of patient satisfaction after treatment was assessed through a visual analogue scale (VAS). At 6-months follow-up, patient showed complete healing and good function and the results in terms of phonetics, aesthetics and chewing were highly rated by the patient. Key words:Bichat fat pad, buccal fat pad, zygomatic implants, oroantral communication.

BFPTool: a software tool for analysis of Biomembrane Force Probe experiments.

Science.gov (United States)

Šmít, Daniel; Fouquet, Coralie; Doulazmi, Mohamed; Pincet, Frédéric; Trembleau, Alain; Zapotocky, Martin

2017-01-01

The Biomembrane Force Probe is an approachable experimental technique commonly used for single-molecule force spectroscopy and experiments on biological interfaces. The technique operates in the range of forces from 0.1 pN to 1000 pN. Experiments are typically repeated many times, conditions are often not optimal, the captured video can be unstable and lose focus; this makes efficient analysis challenging, while out-of-the-box non-proprietary solutions are not freely available. This dedicated tool was developed to integrate and simplify the image processing and analysis of videomicroscopy recordings from BFP experiments. A novel processing feature, allowing the tracking of the pipette, was incorporated to address a limitation of preceding methods. Emphasis was placed on versatility and comprehensible user interface implemented in a graphical form. An integrated analytical tool was implemented to provide a faster, simpler and more convenient way to process and analyse BFP experiments.

14 CFR 1260.58 - Designation of new technology representative and patent representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 5 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Designation of new technology... of new technology representative and patent representative. Designation of New Technology... of this grant entitled “New Technology,” the following named representatives are hereby designated by...

Recent activities of the Seismology Division Early Career Representative(s)

Science.gov (United States)

Agius, Matthew; Van Noten, Koen; Ermert, Laura; Mai, P. Martin; Krawczyk, CharLotte

2016-04-01

The European Geosciences Union is a bottom-up-organisation, in which its members are represented by their respective scientific divisions, committees and council. In recent years, EGU has embarked on a mission to reach out for its numerous 'younger' members by giving awards to outstanding young scientists and the setting up of Early Career Scientists (ECS) representatives. The division representative's role is to engage in discussions that concern students and early career scientists. Several meetings between all the division representatives are held throughout the year to discuss ideas and Union-wide issues. One important impact ECS representatives have had on EGU is the increased number of short courses and workshops run by ECS during the annual General Assembly. Another important contribution of ECS representatives was redefining 'Young Scientist' to 'Early Career Scientist', which avoids discrimination due to age. Since 2014, the Seismology Division has its own ECS representative. In an effort to more effectively reach out for young seismologists, a blog and a social media page dedicated to seismology have been set up online. With this dedicated blog, we'd like to give more depth to the average browsing experience by enabling young researchers to explore various seismology topics in one place while making the field more exciting and accessible to the broader community. These pages are used to promote the latest research especially of young seismologists and to share interesting seismo-news. Over the months the pages proved to be popular, with hundreds of views every week and an increased number of followers. An online survey was conducted to learn more about the activities and needs of early career seismologists. We present the results from this survey, and the work that has been carried out over the last two years, including detail of what has been achieved so far, and what we would like the ECS representation for Seismology to achieve. Young seismologists are

Assessment of insulin sensitivity/resistance and their relations with leptin concentrations and anthropometric measures in a pregnant population with and without gestational diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Yilmaz, Ozgur; Kucuk, Mert; Ilgin, Aydin; Dagdelen, Muride

2010-01-01

Fifty-six pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and 42 normal glucose tolerant (NGT) pregnant women between 26 and 36 gestational weeks were included in the study prospectively. The body fat percentage (BFP) was calculated using the Siri formula from skinfold thickness (SFT) measurements. Both groups were comparable for gestational age, height, weight, and body mass index (P>.05). Insulin resistance assessed by homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) method was significantly higher in GDM patients compared to their NGT weight-matched control group. In contrast, the insulin sensitivity calculated from quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI-IS) equation was significantly lower in GDM group. Calculated lean body mass was found to be similar in between both groups. Body fat percentage derived from SFT parameters was significantly higher in women with GDM. Women with GDM had significantly higher levels of serum insulin and leptin concentrations when compared with the NGT group. All SFT measurements were higher in GDM group when compared to those in NGT women. We did not find any correlation between leptin levels and insulin resistance; we found negative correlation between leptin levels and insulin sensitivity. Thus, we observed that leptin may contribute development of GDM by decreasing insulin sensitivity but not increasing insulin resistance. Also, we observed that the BFP estimated by the Siri formula from SFT measurements correlated significantly with HOMA-IR and QUICKI-IS and leptin concentrations in pregnant women. We suggest that by simply evaluating SFT, we may hold a view about BFP and leptin concentrations and insulin sensitivity in pregnant women.

Playable stories: Making programming and 3D role-playing game design personally and socially relevant

Science.gov (United States)

Ingram-Goble, Adam

This is an exploratory design study of a novel system for learning programming and 3D role-playing game design as tools for social change. This study was conducted at two sites. Participants in the study were ages 9-14 and worked for up to 15 hours with the platform to learn how to program and design video games with personally or socially relevant narratives. This first study was successful in that students learned to program a narrative game, and they viewed the social problem framing for the practices as an interesting aspect of the experience. The second study provided illustrative examples of how providing less general structure up-front, afforded players the opportunity to produce the necessary structures as needed for their particular design, and therefore had a richer understanding of what those structures represented. This study demonstrates that not only were participants able to use computational thinking skills such as Boolean and conditional logic, planning, modeling, abstraction, and encapsulation, they were able to bridge these skills to social domains they cared about. In particular, participants created stories about socially relevant topics without to explicit pushes by the instructors. The findings also suggest that the rapid uptake, and successful creation of personally and socially relevant narratives may have been facilitated by close alignment between the conceptual tools represented in the platform, and the domain of 3D role-playing games.

Suppression of no-longer relevant information in Working Memory: An alpha-power related mechanism?

Science.gov (United States)

Poch, Claudia; Valdivia, María; Capilla, Almudena; Hinojosa, José Antonio; Campo, Pablo

2018-03-27

Selective attention can enhance Working Memory (WM) performance by selecting relevant information, while preventing distracting items from encoding or from further maintenance. Alpha oscillatory modulations are a correlate of visuospatial attention. Specifically, an enhancement of alpha power is observed in the ipsilateral posterior cortex to the locus of attention, along with a suppression in the contralateral hemisphere. An influential model proposes that the alpha enhancement is functionally related to the suppression of information. However, whether ipsilateral alpha power represents a mechanism through which no longer relevant WM representations are inhibited has yet not been explored. Here we examined whether the amount of distractors to be suppressed during WM maintenance is functionally related to alpha power lateralized activity. We measure EEG activity while participants (N = 36) performed a retro-cue task in which the WM load was varied across the relevant/irrelevant post-cue hemifield. We found that alpha activity was lateralized respect to the locus of attention, but did not track post-cue irrelevant load. Additionally, non-lateralized alpha activity increased with post-cue relevant load. We propose that alpha lateralization associated to retro-cuing might be related to a general orienting mechanism toward relevant representation. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A systematic review of childhood maltreatment assessments in population-representative surveys since 1990.

Science.gov (United States)

Hovdestad, Wendy; Campeau, Aimée; Potter, Dawn; Tonmyr, Lil

2015-01-01

Population-representative surveys that assess childhood maltreatment and health are a valuable resource to explore the implications of child maltreatment for population health. Systematic identification and evaluation of such surveys is needed to facilitate optimal use of their data and to inform future research. To inform researchers of the existence and nature of population-representative surveys relevant to understanding links between childhood maltreatment and health; to evaluate the assessment of childhood maltreatment in this body of work. We included surveys that: 1) were representative of the non-institutionalized population of any size nation or of any geopolitical region ≥ 10 million people; 2) included a broad age range (≥ 40 years); 3) measured health; 4) assessed childhood maltreatment retrospectively; and 5) were conducted since 1990. We used Internet and database searching (including CINAHL, Embase, ERIC, Global Health, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Scopus, Social Policy and Practice: January 1990 to March 2014), expert consultation, and other means to identify surveys and associated documentation. Translations of non-English survey content were verified by fluent readers of survey languages. We developed checklists to abstract and evaluate childhood maltreatment content. Fifty-four surveys from 39 countries met inclusion criteria. Sample sizes ranged from 1,287-51,945 and response rates from 15%-96%. Thirteen surveys assessed neglect, 15 emotional abuse; 18 exposure to family violence; 26 physical abuse; 48 sexual abuse. Fourteen surveys assessed more than three types; six of these were conducted since 2010. In nine surveys childhood maltreatment assessments were detailed (+10 items for at least one type of maltreatment). Seven surveys' assessments had known reliability and/or validity. Data from 54 surveys can be used to explore the population health relevance of child maltreatment. Assessment of childhood maltreatment is not comprehensive but there is

Tumor PDT-associated immune response: relevance of sphingolipids

Science.gov (United States)

Korbelik, Mladen; Merchant, Soroush; Separovic, Duska M.

2010-02-01

Sphingolipids have become recognized as essential effector molecules in signal transduction with involvement in various aspects of cell function and death, immune response and cancer treatment response. Major representatives of sphingolipids family, ceramide, sphingosine and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), have attracted interest in their relevance to tumor response to photodynamic therapy (PDT) because of their roles as enhancers of apoptosis, mediators of cell growth and vasculogenesis, and regulators of immune response. Our recent in vivo studies with mouse tumor models have confirmed that PDT treatment has a pronounced impact on sphingolipid profile in the targeted tumor and that significant advances in therapeutic gain with PDT can be attained by combining this modality with adjuvant treatment with ceramide analog LCL29.

Anthropomorphic Networks as Representatives of Global Consciousness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergii Yahodzinskyi

2018-02-01

Full Text Available There has been analyzed a phenomenon of global consciousness, and its cultural and historical, civilizational dimensions have been substantiated. There has been demonstrated that the concept of planetary consciousness, global thinking, noosphere was described for the first time in the philosophy of cosmism. However, in modern conditions ideas of representatives of the naturalistic philosophical direction of cosmism have not lost their heuristic potential. They can be reconsidered in a new fashion within the context of emerging anthropomorphic (human dimension networks. There has been proved that global consciousness is a component of the social and cultural potential of global information networks defining vectors to prospects of humanity progress in the 21st century. Relying on methodology of the structural and functional analysis, the author arrives at a conclusion about global networks obtaining the status of representatives of global consciousness. This is the area of networks where all relevant information is concentrated – from statistical data to scientific and technical information. Access to these data is limited by human abilities and is realized in the form of discrete requests with using heuristic algorithms of information procession. A suggestion is introduced considering the fact that modern society being a self-organized system seeks to gain stable condition. Anthropomorphic networks are means of decreasing social entropy, which is growing as a result of any kind of human intervention into social processes. Thus, for the first time a human is challenged by their intellect, ability to create, discover and control.

Clinically relevant potential drug-drug interactions among outpatients: A nationwide database study.

Science.gov (United States)

Jazbar, Janja; Locatelli, Igor; Horvat, Nejc; Kos, Mitja

2018-06-01

Adverse drug events due to drug-drug interactions (DDIs) represent a considerable public health burden, also in Slovenia. A better understanding of the most frequently occurring potential DDIs may enable safer pharmacotherapy and minimize drug-related problems. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and predictors of potential DDIs among outpatients in Slovenia. An analysis of potential DDIs was performed using health claims data on prescription drugs from a nationwide database. The Lexi-Interact Module was used as the reference source of interactions. The influence of patient-specific predictors on the risk of potential clinically relevant DDIs was evaluated using logistic regression model. The study population included 1,179,803 outpatients who received 15,811,979 prescriptions. The total number of potential DDI cases identified was 3,974,994, of which 15.6% were potentially clinically relevant. Altogether, 9.3% (N = 191,213) of the total population in Slovenia is exposed to clinically relevant potential DDIs, and the proportion is higher among women and the elderly. After adjustment for cofactors, higher number of medications and older age are associated with higher odds of clinically relevant potential DDIs. The burden of DDIs is highest with drug combinations that increase risk of bleeding, enhance CNS depression or anticholinergic effects or cause cardiovascular complications. The current study revealed that 1 in 10 individuals in the total Slovenian population is exposed to clinically relevant potential DDIs yearly. Taking into account the literature based conservative estimate that approximately 1% of potential DDIs result in negative health outcomes, roughly 1800 individuals in Slovenia experience an adverse health outcome each year as a result of clinically relevant potential interactions alone. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Contextualizing the global relevance of local land change observations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Magliocca, N R; Ellis, E C; Oates, T; Schmill, M

2014-01-01

To understand global changes in the Earth system, scientists must generalize globally from observations made locally and regionally. In land change science (LCS), local field-based observations are costly and time consuming, and generally obtained by researchers working at disparate local and regional case-study sites chosen for different reasons. As a result, global synthesis efforts in LCS tend to be based on non-statistical inferences subject to geographic biases stemming from data limitations and fragmentation. Thus, a fundamental challenge is the production of generalized knowledge that links evidence of the causes and consequences of local land change to global patterns and vice versa. The GLOBE system was designed to meet this challenge. GLOBE aims to transform global change science by enabling new scientific workflows based on statistically robust, globally relevant integration of local and regional observations using an online social-computational and geovisualization system. Consistent with the goals of Digital Earth, GLOBE has the capability to assess the global relevance of local case-study findings within the context of over 50 global biophysical, land-use, climate, and socio-economic datasets. We demonstrate the implementation of one such assessment – a representativeness analysis – with a recently published meta-study of changes in swidden agriculture in tropical forests. The analysis provides a standardized indicator to judge the global representativeness of the trends reported in the meta-study, and a geovisualization is presented that highlights areas for which sampling efforts can be reduced and those in need of further study. GLOBE will enable researchers and institutions to rapidly share, compare, and synthesize local and regional studies within the global context, as well as contributing to the larger goal of creating a Digital Earth

A curated database of cyanobacterial strains relevant for modern taxonomy and phylogenetic studies

OpenAIRE

Ramos, Vitor; Morais, Jo?o; Vasconcelos, Vitor M.

2017-01-01

The dataset herein described lays the groundwork for an online database of relevant cyanobacterial strains, named CyanoType (http://lege.ciimar.up.pt/cyanotype). It is a database that includes categorized cyanobacterial strains useful for taxonomic, phylogenetic or genomic purposes, with associated information obtained by means of a literature-based curation. The dataset lists 371 strains and represents the first version of the database (CyanoType v.1). Information for each strain includes st...

48 CFR 1852.227-72 - Designation of new technology representative and patent representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... CONTRACT CLAUSES Texts of Provisions and Clauses 1852.227-72 Designation of new technology representative... of New Technology Representative and Patent Representative (JUL 1997) (a) For purposes of administration of the clause of this contract entitled “New Technology” or “Patent Rights—Retention by the...

Making Deferred Taxes Relevant

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwer, Arjan; Naarding, Ewout

2018-01-01

We analyse the conceptual problems in current accounting for deferred taxes and provide solutions derived from the literature in order to make International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) deferred tax numbers value-relevant. In our view, the empirical results concerning the value relevance of

THE ROLE OF THE EMPLOYEES’ REPRESENTATIVES IN THE LIGHT OF THE NEW ROMANIAN SOCIAL DIALOGUE LAW

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

IULIA BADOI

2012-05-01

Full Text Available In the environment of constant social and legislative changes, the field of labor law, as part of the private law domain, is always a subject of debates. The year 2011 is a relevant benchmark for the major modifications brought to the field of labor law in Romania. The amendments of the labor law significant acts had as role to find efficient means of dialogue between the social partners. The legislative provisions represent only a premise for a successful social dialogue. In fact, the key of communication between the social partners is the negotiation. The employees’ representatives, as social partners, may represent the employees’ interests within a unit, in the absence of a union. In the light of the new Social Dialogue Law the employees’ representatives may also participate in negotiations even in the presence of a union organization. There is no doubt that the new Social Dialogue law and Labor Code inserted new concepts meant to facilitate the labor relationships and social dialogue. It’s only to be seen in which way these new regulations will affect the labor relationships.

Polymerization shrinkage kinetics and shrinkage-stress in dental resin-composites.

Science.gov (United States)

Al Sunbul, Hanan; Silikas, Nick; Watts, David C

2016-08-01

To investigate a set of resin-composites and the effect of their composition on polymerization shrinkage strain and strain kinetics, shrinkage stress and the apparent elastic modulus. Eighteen commercially available resin-composites were investigated. Three specimens (n=3) were made per material and light-cured with an LED unit (1200mW/cm(2)) for 20s. The bonded-disk method was used to measure the shrinkage strain and Bioman shrinkage stress instrument was used to measure shrinkage stress. The shrinkage strain kinetics at 23°C was monitored for 60min. Maximum strain and stress was evaluated at 60min. The shrinkage strain rate was calculated using numerical differentiation. The shrinkage strain values ranged from 1.83 (0.09) % for Tetric Evoceram (TEC) to 4.68 (0.04) % for Beautifil flow plus (BFP). The shrinkage strain rate ranged from 0.11 (0.01%s(-1)) for Gaenial posterior (GA-P) to 0.59 (0.07) %s(-1) for BFP. Shrinkage stress values ranged from 3.94 (0.40)MPa for TET to 10.45 (0.41)MPa for BFP. The apparent elastic modulus ranged from 153.56 (18.7)MPa for Ever X posterior (EVX) to 277.34 (25.5) MPa for Grandio SO heavy flow (GSO). The nature of the monomer system determines the amount of the bulk contraction that occurs during polymerization and the resultant stress. Higher values of shrinkage strain and stress were demonstrated by the investigated flowable materials. The bulk-fill materials showed comparable result when compared to the traditional resin-composites. Copyright © 2016 The Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Representing time

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luca Poncellini

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The analysis of natural phenomena applied to architectural planning and design is facing the most fascinating and elusive of the four dimensions through which man attempts to define life within the universe: time. We all know what time is, said St. Augustine, but nobody knows how to describe it. Within architectural projects and representations, time rarely appears in explicit form. This paper presents the results of a research conducted by students of NABA and of the Polytechnic of Milan with the purpose of representing time considered as a key element within architectural projects. Student investigated new approaches and methodologies to represent time using the two-dimensional support of a sheet of paper.

Place-based social contact and mixing: a typology of generic meeting places of relevance for infectious disease transmission.

Science.gov (United States)

Strömgren, M; Holm, E; Dahlström, Ö; Ekberg, J; Eriksson, H; Spreco, A; Timpka, T

2017-09-01

This study aims to develop a typology of generic meeting places based on social contact and mixing of relevance for infectious disease transmission. Data were collected by means of a contact diary survey conducted on a representative sample of the Swedish population. The typology is derived from a cluster analysis accounting for four dimensions associated with transmission risk: visit propensity and its characteristics in terms of duration, number of other persons present and likelihood of physical contact. In the analysis, we also study demographic, socio-economic and geographical differences in the propensity of visiting meeting places. The typology identifies the family venue, the fixed activity site, the family vehicle, the trading plaza and the social network hub as generic meeting places. The meeting place typology represents a spatially explicit account of social contact and mixing relevant to infectious disease modelling, where the social context of the outbreak can be highlighted in light of the actual infectious disease.

Thermographic analysis of the effect of composite type, layering method, and curing light on the temperature rise of photo-cured composites in tooth cavities.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Min-Jung; Kim, Ryan Jin-Young; Ferracane, Jack; Lee, In-Bog

2017-10-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate temperature rise in the composite and dentin of a class I cavity in extracted human molars under different restoration conditions, including the use of different composite types, layering methods, and curing lights. Open occlusal cavities were prepared on 28 extracted human molars. A conventional (Filtek Z250) and a bulk-fill (Filtek Bulk Fill Posterior; BFP) composite were used to restore the preparations. BFP was incrementally layered or bulk-filled. Bulk-filled BFP was cured with two different lights, the Elipar S10 and the BeLite. Each layer was illuminated for 20s, while thermograms of the specimens were recorded for 100s using an infrared thermal camera. Temperature changes on the composite and dentin surfaces were obtained at points of interest (POI) pertaining to successive incremental distances of 0.75mm from the top of the cavity to the pulp. The polymerization kinetics of each composite was determined using photo-differential scanning calorimetry. The greatest temperature rise was observed 0.75mm apical from the top of the cavity. All groups showed over 6°C maximum temperature rise (ΔT max ) at the pulpal side of the dentin. Upon curing, Z250 reached ΔT=5°C faster than BFP; however, ΔT max of the two composites were comparable at any POI. Bulk filling showed greater ΔT max than incremental filling at 0.75mm apical from the top and in the middle of the cavity. The Elipar S10 light generated faster temperature changes in the curing composite at all recorded positions throughout the depth of the cavity and greater ΔT max in all POIs compared to BeLite. Real-time thermographic analysis demonstrated that the composite type and layering method did not influence the temperature rise at the pulpal side of dentin during composite restoration of an occlusal preparation in a tooth. The amount and initial rate of temperature increase was most affected by the radiant exposure of the light curing unit. Within the

The clinical relevance of assessing advanced glycation endproducts accumulation in diabetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hillebrands Jan-Luuk

2008-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of morbidity and mortality associated with diabetes. There is increasing evidence that advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs play a pivotal role in atherosclerosis, in particular in diabetes. AGE accumulation is a measure of cumulative metabolic and oxidative stress, and may so represent the "metabolic memory". Furthermore, increased AGE accumulation is closely related to the development of cardiovascular complications in diabetes. This review article will focus on the clinical relevance of measuring AGE accumulation in diabetic patients by focusing on AGE formation, AGEs as predictors of long-term complications, and interventions against AGEs.

Circular job-related spatial mobility in Germany:Comparative analyses of two representative surveys on the forms, prevalence and relevance in the context of partnership and family development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heiko Rüger

2012-01-01

In this regard, the present article aims at achieving three essential objectives. First, we will introduce a common indicator for circular job mobility patterns found in the two surveys. On the basis of this common indicator, we will comparatively analyse the prevalence of different mobility forms and their composition according to key socio-demographic characteristics. In addition, we will use multivariate analyses to illustrate the relevance of job mobility for partnership and family development. Results suggest mobility patterns to be an important individual context factor when explaining processes relevant to partnerships and family. In particular, women who exhibit some degree of job mobility are less often married and rarely have children.

The relevance of "non-relevant metabolites" from plant protection products (PPPs) for drinking water: the German view.

Science.gov (United States)

Dieter, Hermann H

2010-03-01

"Non-relevant metabolites" are those degradation products of plant protection products (PPPs), which are devoid of the targeted toxicities of the PPP and devoid of genotoxicity. Most often, "non-relevant metabolites" have a high affinity to the aquatic environment, are very mobile within this environment, and, usually, are also persistent. Therefore, from the point of drinking water hygiene, they must be characterized as "relevant for drinking water" like many other hydrophilic/polar environmental contaminants of different origins. "Non-relevant metabolites" may therefore penetrate to water sources used for abstraction of drinking water and may thus ultimately be present in drinking water. The presence of "non-relevant metabolites" and similar trace compounds in the water cycle may endanger drinking water quality on a long-term scale. During oxidative drinking water treatment, "non-relevant metabolites" may also serve as the starting material for toxicologically relevant transformation products similar to processes observed by drinking water disinfection with chlorine. This hypothesis was recently confirmed by the detection of the formation of N-nitroso-dimethylamine from ozone and dimethylsulfamide, a "non-relevant metabolite" of the fungicide tolylfluanide. In order to keep drinking water preferably free of "non-relevant metabolites", the German drinking water advisory board of the Federal Ministry of Health supports limiting their penetration into raw and drinking water to the functionally (agriculturally) unavoidable extent. On this background, the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA) recently has recommended two health related indication values (HRIV) to assess "non-relevant metabolites" from the view of drinking water hygiene. Considering the sometimes incomplete toxicological data base for some "non-relevant metabolites", HRIV also have the role of health related precautionary values. Depending on the completeness and quality of the toxicological

Picturing and modelling catchments by representative hillslopes

Science.gov (United States)

Loritz, Ralf; Hassler, Sibylle; Jackisch, Conrad; Zehe, Erwin

2016-04-01

Hydrological modelling studies often start with a qualitative sketch of the hydrological processes of a catchment. These so-called perceptual models are often pictured as hillslopes and are generalizations displaying only the dominant and relevant processes of a catchment or hillslope. The problem with these models is that they are prone to become too much predetermined by the designer's background and experience. Moreover it is difficult to know if that picture is correct and contains enough complexity to represent the system under study. Nevertheless, because of their qualitative form, perceptual models are easy to understand and can be an excellent tool for multidisciplinary exchange between researchers with different backgrounds, helping to identify the dominant structures and processes in a catchment. In our study we explore whether a perceptual model built upon an intensive field campaign may serve as a blueprint for setting up representative hillslopes in a hydrological model to reproduce the functioning of two distinctly different catchments. We use a physically-based 2D hillslope model which has proven capable to be driven by measured soil-hydrological parameters. A key asset of our approach is that the model structure itself remains a picture of the perceptual model, which is benchmarked against a) geo-physical images of the subsurface and b) observed dynamics of discharge, distributed state variables and fluxes (soil moisture, matric potential and sap flow). Within this approach we are able to set up two behavioral model structures which allow the simulation of the most important hydrological fluxes and state variables in good accordance with available observations within the 19.4 km2 large Colpach catchment and the 4.5 km2 large Wollefsbach catchment in Luxembourg without the necessity of calibration. This corroborates, contrary to the widespread opinion, that a) lower mesoscale catchments may be modelled by representative hillslopes and b) physically

The Limits to Relevance

Science.gov (United States)

Averill, M.; Briggle, A.

2006-12-01

Science policy and knowledge production lately have taken a pragmatic turn. Funding agencies increasingly are requiring scientists to explain the relevance of their work to society. This stems in part from mounting critiques of the "linear model" of knowledge production in which scientists operating according to their own interests or disciplinary standards are presumed to automatically produce knowledge that is of relevance outside of their narrow communities. Many contend that funded scientific research should be linked more directly to societal goals, which implies a shift in the kind of research that will be funded. While both authors support the concept of useful science, we question the exact meaning of "relevance" and the wisdom of allowing it to control research agendas. We hope to contribute to the conversation by thinking more critically about the meaning and limits of the term "relevance" and the trade-offs implicit in a narrow utilitarian approach. The paper will consider which interests tend to be privileged by an emphasis on relevance and address issues such as whose goals ought to be pursued and why, and who gets to decide. We will consider how relevance, narrowly construed, may actually limit the ultimate utility of scientific research. The paper also will reflect on the worthiness of research goals themselves and their relationship to a broader view of what it means to be human and to live in society. Just as there is more to being human than the pragmatic demands of daily life, there is more at issue with knowledge production than finding the most efficient ways to satisfy consumer preferences or fix near-term policy problems. We will conclude by calling for a balanced approach to funding research that addresses society's most pressing needs but also supports innovative research with less immediately apparent application.

Quantitative software-reliability analysis of computer codes relevant to nuclear safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mueller, C.J.

1981-12-01

This report presents the results of the first year of an ongoing research program to determine the probability of failure characteristics of computer codes relevant to nuclear safety. An introduction to both qualitative and quantitative aspects of nuclear software is given. A mathematical framework is presented which will enable the a priori prediction of the probability of failure characteristics of a code given the proper specification of its properties. The framework consists of four parts: (1) a classification system for software errors and code failures; (2) probabilistic modeling for selected reliability characteristics; (3) multivariate regression analyses to establish predictive relationships among reliability characteristics and generic code property and development parameters; and (4) the associated information base. Preliminary data of the type needed to support the modeling and the predictions of this program are described. Illustrations of the use of the modeling are given but the results so obtained, as well as all results of code failure probabilities presented herein, are based on data which at this point are preliminary, incomplete, and possibly non-representative of codes relevant to nuclear safety

Nostalgia's place among self-relevant emotions.

Science.gov (United States)

van Tilburg, Wijnand A P; Wildschut, Tim; Sedikides, Constantine

2017-07-24

How is nostalgia positioned among self-relevant emotions? We tested, in six studies, which self-relevant emotions are perceived as most similar versus least similar to nostalgia, and what underlies these similarities/differences. We used multidimensional scaling to chart the perceived similarities/differences among self-relevant emotions, resulting in two-dimensional models. The results were revealing. Nostalgia is positioned among self-relevant emotions characterised by positive valence, an approach orientation, and low arousal. Nostalgia most resembles pride and self-compassion, and least resembles embarrassment and shame. Our research pioneered the integration of nostalgia among self-relevant emotions.

Interaction of dermatologically relevant nanoparticles with skin cells and skin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Annika Vogt

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The investigation of nanoparticle interactions with tissues is complex. High levels of standardization, ideally testing of different material types in the same biological model, and combinations of sensitive imaging and detection methods are required. Here, we present our studies on nanoparticle interactions with skin, skin cells, and biological media. Silica, titanium dioxide and silver particles were chosen as representative examples for different types of skin exposure to nanomaterials, e.g., unintended environmental exposure (silica versus intended exposure through application of sunscreen (titanium dioxide or antiseptics (silver. Because each particle type exhibits specific physicochemical properties, we were able to apply different combinations of methods to examine skin penetration and cellular uptake, including optical microscopy, electron microscopy, X-ray microscopy on cells and tissue sections, flow cytometry of isolated skin cells as well as Raman microscopy on whole tissue blocks. In order to assess the biological relevance of such findings, cell viability and free radical production were monitored on cells and in whole tissue samples. The combination of technologies and the joint discussion of results enabled us to look at nanoparticle–skin interactions and the biological relevance of our findings from different angles.

Recent Advances in Dengue: Relevance to Puerto Rico

Science.gov (United States)

Noyd, David H.; Sharp, Tyler M.

2015-01-01

Dengue represents an increasingly important public health challenge in Puerto Rico, with recent epidemics in 2007, 2010, and 2012–2013. Although recent advances in dengue vaccine development offer hope for primary prevention, the role of health professionals in the diagnosis and management of dengue patients is paramount. Case definitions for dengue, dengue with warning signs, and severe dengue provide a framework to guide clinical decision-making. Furthermore, the differentiation between dengue and other acute febrile illnesses, such as leptospirosis and chikungunya, is necessary for the appropriate diagnosis and management of cases. An understanding of dengue epidemiology and surveillance in Puerto Rico provides context for clinicians in epidemic and non-epidemic periods. This review aims to improve health professionals’ ability to diagnose dengue, and as highlight the relevance of recent advances in dengue prevention and management in Puerto Rico. PMID:26061055

Relevance theory: pragmatics and cognition.

Science.gov (United States)

Wearing, Catherine J

2015-01-01

Relevance Theory is a cognitively oriented theory of pragmatics, i.e., a theory of language use. It builds on the seminal work of H.P. Grice(1) to develop a pragmatic theory which is at once philosophically sensitive and empirically plausible (in both psychological and evolutionary terms). This entry reviews the central commitments and chief contributions of Relevance Theory, including its Gricean commitment to the centrality of intention-reading and inference in communication; the cognitively grounded notion of relevance which provides the mechanism for explaining pragmatic interpretation as an intention-driven, inferential process; and several key applications of the theory (lexical pragmatics, metaphor and irony, procedural meaning). Relevance Theory is an important contribution to our understanding of the pragmatics of communication. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Demographic history and biologically relevant genetic variation of Native Mexicans inferred from whole-genome sequencing

OpenAIRE

Romero-Hidalgo, Sandra; Ochoa-Leyva, Adrián; Garcíarrubio, Alejandro; Acuña-Alonzo, Victor; Antúnez-Argüelles, Erika; Balcazar-Quintero, Martha; Barquera-Lozano, Rodrigo; Carnevale, Alessandra; Cornejo-Granados, Fernanda; Fernández-López, Juan Carlos; García-Herrera, Rodrigo; García-Ortíz, Humberto; Granados-Silvestre, Ángeles; Granados, Julio; Guerrero-Romero, Fernando

2017-01-01

Understanding the genetic structure of Native American populations is important to clarify their diversity, demographic history, and to identify genetic factors relevant for biomedical traits. Here, we show a demographic history reconstruction from 12 Native American whole genomes belonging to six distinct ethnic groups representing the three main described genetic clusters of Mexico (Northern, Southern, and Maya). Effective population size estimates of all Native American groups remained bel...

Relevant Subspace Clustering

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Müller, Emmanuel; Assent, Ira; Günnemann, Stephan

2009-01-01

Subspace clustering aims at detecting clusters in any subspace projection of a high dimensional space. As the number of possible subspace projections is exponential in the number of dimensions, the result is often tremendously large. Recent approaches fail to reduce results to relevant subspace...... clusters. Their results are typically highly redundant, i.e. many clusters are detected multiple times in several projections. In this work, we propose a novel model for relevant subspace clustering (RESCU). We present a global optimization which detects the most interesting non-redundant subspace clusters...... achieves top clustering quality while competing approaches show greatly varying performance....

Estimating the relevance of world disturbances to explain savings, interference and long-term motor adaptation effects.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Max Berniker

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Recent studies suggest that motor adaptation is the result of multiple, perhaps linear processes each with distinct time scales. While these models are consistent with some motor phenomena, they can neither explain the relatively fast re-adaptation after a long washout period, nor savings on a subsequent day. Here we examined if these effects can be explained if we assume that the CNS stores and retrieves movement parameters based on their possible relevance. We formalize this idea with a model that infers not only the sources of potential motor errors, but also their relevance to the current motor circumstances. In our model adaptation is the process of re-estimating parameters that represent the body and the world. The likelihood of a world parameter being relevant is then based on the mismatch between an observed movement and that predicted when not compensating for the estimated world disturbance. As such, adapting to large motor errors in a laboratory setting should alert subjects that disturbances are being imposed on them, even after motor performance has returned to baseline. Estimates of this external disturbance should be relevant both now and in future laboratory settings. Estimated properties of our bodies on the other hand should always be relevant. Our model demonstrates savings, interference, spontaneous rebound and differences between adaptation to sudden and gradual disturbances. We suggest that many issues concerning savings and interference can be understood when adaptation is conditioned on the relevance of parameters.

Profiles of Dialogue for Relevance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Douglas Walton

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper uses argument diagrams, argumentation schemes, and some tools from formal argumentation systems developed in artificial intelligence to build a graph-theoretic model of relevance shown to be applicable (with some extensions as a practical method for helping a third party judge issues of relevance or irrelevance of an argument in real examples. Examples used to illustrate how the method works are drawn from disputes about relevance in natural language discourse, including a criminal trial and a parliamentary debate.

Science and the struggle for relevance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hessels, L.K.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/304832863

2010-01-01

This thesis deals with struggles for relevance of university researchers, their efforts to make their work correspond with ruling standards of relevance and to influence these standards. Its general research question is: How to understand changes in the struggle for relevance of Dutch academic

Representing Development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Representing Development presents the different social representations that have formed the idea of development in Western thinking over the past three centuries. Offering an acute perspective on the current state of developmental science and providing constructive insights into future pathways, ...

Distinct spatial distribution of microglia and macrophages following mesenchymal stem cell implantation in mouse brain.

Science.gov (United States)

Le Blon, Debbie; Hoornaert, Chloé; Daans, Jasmijn; Santermans, Eva; Hens, Niel; Goossens, Herman; Berneman, Zwi; Ponsaerts, Peter

2014-09-01

Although implantation of cellular material in the central nervous system (CNS) is a key direction in CNS regenerative medicine, this approach is currently limited by the occurrence of strong endogenous immune cell responses. In a model of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) grafting in the CNS of immune-competent mice, we previously described that MSC grafts become highly surrounded and invaded by Iba1(+) myeloid cells (microglia and/or macrophages). Here, following grafting of blue fluorescent protein (BFP)-expressing MSC in the CNS of CX3CR1(+/-) and CX3CR1(-/-) mice, our results indicate: (1) that the observed inflammatory response is independent of the fractalkine signalling axis, and (2) that a significant spatial distribution of Iba1(+) inflammatory cells occurs, in which Iba1(+) CX3CR1(+) myeloid cells mainly surround the MSC graft and Iba1(+) CX3CR1(-) myeloid cells mainly invade the graft at 10 days post transplantation. Although Iba1(+) CX3CR1(+) myeloid cells are considered to be of resident microglial origin, Iba1(+) CX3CR1(-) myeloid cells are most likely of peripheral monocyte/macrophage origin. In order to confirm the latter, we performed MSC-BFP grafting experiments in the CNS of eGFP(+) bone marrow chimeric C57BL/6 mice. Analysis of MSC-BFP grafts in the CNS of these mice confirmed our observation that peripheral monocytes/macrophages invade the MSC graft and that resident microglia surround the MSC graft site. Furthermore, analysis of major histocompatibility complex class II (MHCII) expression revealed that mainly macrophages, but not microglia, express this M1 pro-inflammatory marker in the context of MSC grafting in the CNS. These results again highlight the complexity of cell implantation immunology in the CNS.

Influence of the Bolsa Família program on nutritional status and food frequency of schoolchildren

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ariene Silva do Carmo

2016-07-01

Conclusion: The study found increased consumption of soft drinks among BFP participants. The high rate of overweight and poor eating habits denote the need to develop actions to promote healthy eating, especially for the beneficiaries of the Bolsa Família program, to promote improvements in nutritional status and prevent chronic diseases throughout life.

Culturally Relevant Cyberbullying Prevention

OpenAIRE

Phillips, Gregory John

2017-01-01

In this action research study, I, along with a student intervention committee of 14 members, developed a cyberbullying intervention for a large urban high school on the west coast. This high school contained a predominantly African American student population. I aimed to discover culturally relevant cyberbullying prevention strategies for African American students. The intervention committee selected video safety messages featuring African American actors as the most culturally relevant cyber...

Representing dispositions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Röhl Johannes

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Dispositions and tendencies feature significantly in the biomedical domain and therefore in representations of knowledge of that domain. They are not only important for specific applications like an infectious disease ontology, but also as part of a general strategy for modelling knowledge about molecular interactions. But the task of representing dispositions in some formal ontological systems is fraught with several problems, which are partly due to the fact that Description Logics can only deal well with binary relations. The paper will discuss some of the results of the philosophical debate about dispositions, in order to see whether the formal relations needed to represent dispositions can be broken down to binary relations. Finally, we will discuss problems arising from the possibility of the absence of realizations, of multi-track or multi-trigger dispositions and offer suggestions on how to deal with them.

A curated database of cyanobacterial strains relevant for modern taxonomy and phylogenetic studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramos, Vitor; Morais, João; Vasconcelos, Vitor M

2017-04-25

The dataset herein described lays the groundwork for an online database of relevant cyanobacterial strains, named CyanoType (http://lege.ciimar.up.pt/cyanotype). It is a database that includes categorized cyanobacterial strains useful for taxonomic, phylogenetic or genomic purposes, with associated information obtained by means of a literature-based curation. The dataset lists 371 strains and represents the first version of the database (CyanoType v.1). Information for each strain includes strain synonymy and/or co-identity, strain categorization, habitat, accession numbers for molecular data, taxonomy and nomenclature notes according to three different classification schemes, hierarchical automatic classification, phylogenetic placement according to a selection of relevant studies (including this), and important bibliographic references. The database will be updated periodically, namely by adding new strains meeting the criteria for inclusion and by revising and adding up-to-date metadata for strains already listed. A global 16S rDNA-based phylogeny is provided in order to assist users when choosing the appropriate strains for their studies.

Feature relevance assessment for the semantic interpretation of 3D point cloud data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Weinmann

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The automatic analysis of large 3D point clouds represents a crucial task in photogrammetry, remote sensing and computer vision. In this paper, we propose a new methodology for the semantic interpretation of such point clouds which involves feature relevance assessment in order to reduce both processing time and memory consumption. Given a standard benchmark dataset with 1.3 million 3D points, we first extract a set of 21 geometric 3D and 2D features. Subsequently, we apply a classifier-independent ranking procedure which involves a general relevance metric in order to derive compact and robust subsets of versatile features which are generally applicable for a large variety of subsequent tasks. This metric is based on 7 different feature selection strategies and thus addresses different intrinsic properties of the given data. For the example of semantically interpreting 3D point cloud data, we demonstrate the great potential of smaller subsets consisting of only the most relevant features with 4 different state-of-the-art classifiers. The results reveal that, instead of including as many features as possible in order to compensate for lack of knowledge, a crucial task such as scene interpretation can be carried out with only few versatile features and even improved accuracy.

40 CFR 60.4112 - Changing Hg designated representative and alternate Hg designated representative; changes in...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Changing Hg designated representative and alternate Hg designated representative; changes in owners and operators. 60.4112 Section 60.4112... Generating Units Hg Designated Representative for Hg Budget Sources § 60.4112 Changing Hg designated...

Evolutionary relevance facilitates visual information processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, Russell E; Calvillo, Dusti P

2013-11-03

Visual search of the environment is a fundamental human behavior that perceptual load affects powerfully. Previously investigated means for overcoming the inhibitions of high perceptual load, however, generalize poorly to real-world human behavior. We hypothesized that humans would process evolutionarily relevant stimuli more efficiently than evolutionarily novel stimuli, and evolutionary relevance would mitigate the repercussions of high perceptual load during visual search. Animacy is a significant component to evolutionary relevance of visual stimuli because perceiving animate entities is time-sensitive in ways that pose significant evolutionary consequences. Participants completing a visual search task located evolutionarily relevant and animate objects fastest and with the least impact of high perceptual load. Evolutionarily novel and inanimate objects were located slowest and with the highest impact of perceptual load. Evolutionary relevance may importantly affect everyday visual information processing.

Transesophageal NOTES--a critical analysis of relevant problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Grund, Karl E; Lehmann, Thorsten G

2010-10-01

The transesophageal access route has not become a principal topic in the discussion about NOTES up to now. Analyzing the problems in this new field of surgery, however, the transesophageal route shows high relevance. Here, all possibilities, limitations, and problems of NOTES become obvious. This paper contains a critical analysis of the literature published to date (nine full papers, five abstracts). Nearly all publications represent experimental studies in living pigs. In most cases a submucosal tunnel technique is performed as access route to mediastinum, pleural cavity, and heart. Interventions and operations include simple mediastinoscopies as well as epicardial operations after exposition of the heart. For access and manipulation, conventional flexible endoscopes and instruments are used. Clips, T-bars, or a combination of both achieve the closure. Some studies rely on spontaneous closure of the incision without any suturing or approximation. In such experimental settings, the following results are presented: Access is achieved in 90% of cases, the aim of the operation is met in 92%, technical success in closure is achieved in 90%, healing of incision assessed as good in two of five studies, satisfactory in three of five studies. Mortality, ranging from 6 to 25%, and complication rates were (surprisingly) high. It has to be stressed that analyzing these papers published to date, no adequate attention is paid to basic facts and problems of general and thoracic surgery (e.g. different forms, prevention, diagnosis and therapy of pneumothorax or differentiated forms of ventilation). Relevant differences in the anatomy and physiology of the esophagus and mediastinum between humans and pigs should additionally be taken into account to choose optimal experimental parameters when transferring results to human settings. Moreover, requirements regarding sterility and hygiene in a structure like the mediastinum, which is at high risk from the point of view of infection

Populism and Support for Protectionism: The Relevance of Opposition to Trade Openness for Leftist and Rightist Populist Voting in The Netherlands

NARCIS (Netherlands)

J. van der Waal (Jeroen); W. de Koster (Willem)

2017-01-01

textabstractLeftist and rightist populist parties in Western Europe both oppose trade openness. Is support for economic protectionism also relevant for their electorates? We assess this in the Netherlands, where both types of populist parties have seats in parliament. Analyses of representative

Dating of a representative pottery sample from the basin of Sayula, Jalisco in Mexico using the thermoluminescence method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mercado U, H. [CINVESTAV, Unidad Monterrey, Nuevo Leon (Mexico); Schaaf, P.; Ramirez, A. [Instituto de Geofisica, UNAM, 04510 Mexico D.F. (Mexico); Gonzalez, P.R. [ININ, 52750 Ocoyoacac, Estado de Mexico (Mexico); Brunet, J. [CUCSH, Universidad de Guadalajara, Jalisco (Mexico)

2006-07-01

In this work is presented a study of dating of the representative pottery sample from the west of Mexico, in a predominantly saline region. The study is carried out with the thermoluminescence method and the fine grain technique. The archaeological region was begun to study from 1990. This work also presents an historical and geographical context of the region and its relevance in the western culture of Mexico. (Author)

Dating of a representative pottery sample from the basin of Sayula, Jalisco in Mexico using the thermoluminescence method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mercado U, H.; Schaaf, P.; Ramirez, A.; Gonzalez, P.R.; Brunet, J.

2006-01-01

In this work is presented a study of dating of the representative pottery sample from the west of Mexico, in a predominantly saline region. The study is carried out with the thermoluminescence method and the fine grain technique. The archaeological region was begun to study from 1990. This work also presents an historical and geographical context of the region and its relevance in the western culture of Mexico. (Author)

Models with Men and Women: Representing Gender in Dynamic Modeling of Social Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Palmer, Erika; Wilson, Benedicte

2018-04-01

Dynamic engineering models have yet to be evaluated in the context of feminist engineering ethics. Decision-making concerning gender in dynamic modeling design is a gender and ethical issue that is important to address regardless of the system in which the dynamic modeling is applied. There are many dynamic modeling tools that operationally include the female population, however, there is an important distinction between females and women; it is the difference between biological sex and the social construct of gender, which is fluid and changes over time and geography. The ethical oversight in failing to represent or misrepresenting gender in model design when it is relevant to the model purpose can have implications for model validity and policy model development. This paper highlights this gender issue in the context of feminist engineering ethics using a dynamic population model. Women are often represented in this type of model only in their biological capacity, while lacking their gender identity. This illustrative example also highlights how language, including the naming of variables and communication with decision-makers, plays a role in this gender issue.

Association splitting of the sexual orientation-OCD-relevant semantic network.

Science.gov (United States)

Ching, Terence H W; Williams, Monnica T

2018-05-01

There is little research on treating symptoms of sexual orientation-obsessive-compulsive disorder (SO-OCD). Semantic networks represent a new cognitive approach for understanding cognitive mechanisms of SO-OCD. Specifically, we tested whether the self-help cognitive technique of association splitting (AS) developed from this approach would be efficacious in reducing SO-OCD symptoms and thought suppression. One hundred and twenty heterosexual undergraduates (82 females, 38 males) were randomly assigned to either the AS or waitlist control group. At baseline and four weeks later, participants completed items assessing SO-OCD symptoms, measures of sexual obsessions and thought suppression, and an association task in which they generated associations to different cue words. Generated associations were coded based on SO-OCD relevance and emotional valence. Results indicated reductions in SO-OCD-relevant associations across levels of emotional valence and SO-OCD-irrelevant negative associations, and increases in SO-OCD-irrelevant positive and neutral associations, only in the AS group. Furthermore, there were reductions in SO-OCD symptoms, sexual obsessions, and thought suppression only in the AS group. Importantly, these findings were obtained with overall large effect sizes. AS appears to be an efficacious self-help technique in reducing SO-OCD symptoms, sexual obsessions, and thought suppression. Clinical implications, limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Evolutionary Relevance Facilitates Visual Information Processing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Russell E. Jackson

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Visual search of the environment is a fundamental human behavior that perceptual load affects powerfully. Previously investigated means for overcoming the inhibitions of high perceptual load, however, generalize poorly to real-world human behavior. We hypothesized that humans would process evolutionarily relevant stimuli more efficiently than evolutionarily novel stimuli, and evolutionary relevance would mitigate the repercussions of high perceptual load during visual search. Animacy is a significant component to evolutionary relevance of visual stimuli because perceiving animate entities is time-sensitive in ways that pose significant evolutionary consequences. Participants completing a visual search task located evolutionarily relevant and animate objects fastest and with the least impact of high perceptual load. Evolutionarily novel and inanimate objects were located slowest and with the highest impact of perceptual load. Evolutionary relevance may importantly affect everyday visual information processing.

Relevance of biotic pathways to the long-term regulation of nuclear waste disposal: Phase 2, Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McKenzie, D.H.; Cadwell, L.L.; Kennedy, W.E. Jr.; Prohammer, L.A.; Simmons, M.A.

1986-11-01

The results reported here establish the relevance and propose a method for including biotic transport in the assessment and licensing process for commercial low-level waste disposal sites. Earlier work identified the biotic transport mechanisms and process scenarios linking biotic transport with dose to man, and developed models for assessment of impacts. Model modification and improvement efforts in enhancing the ability to represent soil erosion and soil transport within the trench cover. Two alternative hypotheses on plant root uptake were incorporated into the model to represent transport of radionuclides by roots that penetrate the buried waste. Enhancements were also made to the scenario for future site intruder activities. Representation of waste package decomposition in the model was confirmed as the best available alternative. Results from sensitivity analyses indicate that additional information is needed to evaluate the alternative hypotheses for plant root uptake of buried wastes. Site-specific evaluations of the contribution from biotic transport to the potential dose to man establish the relevance in the assessment process. The BIOPORT/MAXI1 computer software package is proposed for dose assessments of commercial low-level waste disposal sites

Relevance of biotic pathways to the long-term regulation of nuclear waste disposal: Phase 2, Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McKenzie, D.H.; Cadwell, L.L.; Kennedy, W.E. Jr.; Prohammer, L.A.; Simmons, M.A.

1986-11-01

The results reported here establish the relevance and propose a method for including biotic transport in the assessment and licensing process for commercial low-level waste disposal sites. Earlier work identified the biotic transport mechanisms and process scenarios linking biotic transport with dose to man, and developed models for assessment of impacts. Model modification and improvement efforts in enhancing the ability to represent soil erosion and soil transport within the trench cover. Two alternative hypotheses on plant root uptake were incorporated into the model to represent transport of radionuclides by roots that penetrate the buried waste. Enhancements were also made to the scenario for future site intruder activities. Representation of waste package decomposition in the model was confirmed as the best available alternative. Results from sensitivity analyses indicate that additional information is needed to evaluate the alternative hypotheses for plant root uptake of buried wastes. Site-specific evaluations of the contribution from biotic transport to the potential dose to man establish the relevance in the assessment process. The BIOPORT/MAXI1 computer software package is proposed for dose assessments of commercial low-level waste disposal sites.

Region-Based Image Retrieval Using an Object Ontology and Relevance Feedback

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kompatsiaris Ioannis

2004-01-01

Full Text Available An image retrieval methodology suited for search in large collections of heterogeneous images is presented. The proposed approach employs a fully unsupervised segmentation algorithm to divide images into regions and endow the indexing and retrieval system with content-based functionalities. Low-level descriptors for the color, position, size, and shape of each region are subsequently extracted. These arithmetic descriptors are automatically associated with appropriate qualitative intermediate-level descriptors, which form a simple vocabulary termed object ontology. The object ontology is used to allow the qualitative definition of the high-level concepts the user queries for (semantic objects, each represented by a keyword and their relations in a human-centered fashion. When querying for a specific semantic object (or objects, the intermediate-level descriptor values associated with both the semantic object and all image regions in the collection are initially compared, resulting in the rejection of most image regions as irrelevant. Following that, a relevance feedback mechanism, based on support vector machines and using the low-level descriptors, is invoked to rank the remaining potentially relevant image regions and produce the final query results. Experimental results and comparisons demonstrate, in practice, the effectiveness of our approach.

Using novel descriptor accounting for ligand-receptor interactions to define and visually explore biologically relevant chemical space.

Science.gov (United States)

Rabal, Obdulia; Oyarzabal, Julen

2012-05-25

The definition and pragmatic implementation of biologically relevant chemical space is critical in addressing navigation strategies in the overlapping regions where chemistry and therapeutically relevant targets reside and, therefore, also key to performing an efficient drug discovery project. Here, we describe the development and implementation of a simple and robust method for representing biologically relevant chemical space as a general reference according to current knowledge, independently of any reference space, and analyzing chemical structures accordingly. Underlying our method is the generation of a novel descriptor (LiRIf) that converts structural information into a one-dimensional string accounting for the plausible ligand-receptor interactions as well as for topological information. Capitalizing on ligand-receptor interactions as a descriptor enables the clustering, profiling, and comparison of libraries of compounds from a chemical biology and medicinal chemistry perspective. In addition, as a case study, R-groups analysis is performed to identify the most populated ligand-receptor interactions according to different target families (GPCR, kinases, etc.), as well as to evaluate the coverage of biologically relevant chemical space by structures annotated in different databases (ChEMBL, Glida, etc.).

Fiat versus Representative Money under Debate, or How Right Keynes Was Once (!

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liviu C. ANDREI

2011-05-01

Full Text Available The applied economics understands the concept of money nearly exclusively through the quantitative theory, which certainly remains one of the greatest theories in this topic area. On the other hand, the history of money – be it old or contemporary -- finds two other “nonquantitative” theories as more relevant in the respect that they are able to “cover” this history – these are representative and fiat money. Then, there comes the interesting point: this history “covered”, meaning a full explaining of facts would be made by the two theories and images of the same money just “together”—which is impossible in basic good sense terms, as money (as anything else cannot be real and fictitious value in the same time.

EXTRACELLULAR VESICLES: CLASSIFICATION, FUNCTIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. V. Oberemko

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This review presents a generalized definition of vesicles as bilayer extracellular organelles of all celular forms of life: not only eu-, but also prokaryotic. The structure and composition of extracellular vesicles, history of research, nomenclature, their impact on life processes in health and disease are discussed. Moreover, vesicles may be useful as clinical instruments for biomarkers, and they are promising as biotechnological drug. However, many questions in this area are still unresolved and need to be addressed in the future. The most interesting from the point of view of practical health care represents a direction to study the effect of exosomes and microvesicles in the development and progression of a particular disease, the possibility of adjusting the pathological process by means of extracellular vesicles of a particular type, acting as an active ingredient. Relevant is the further elucidation of the role and importance of exosomes to the surrounding cells, tissues and organs at the molecular level, the prospects for the use of non-cellular vesicles as biomarkers of disease.

RELEVANCE OF ECONOMIC INSTRUMENTS USED IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SORINA-GEANINA MĂRGĂRIT (STĂNESCU

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The interaction between environmental, economic and social factors influences the ecological balance and generates the change of living conditions and those of socio-economic development. One of the essential conditions for building a sustainable economic development is the identification and implementation of active or voluntary instruments to influence economic and social activity towards ensuring their sustainability. In this paper, we intend to introduce the tools used in the process of sustainable development, which have a key role in adopting an environmentally responsible behavior. The results of this study are represented by the drafting of the advantages and disadvantages of using these economic and financial instruments. The purpose of this paper is to present the evolution of costs for environmental protection and the relevance of instruments used at the national level in environmental protection.

National critical incident reporting systems relevant to anaesthesia: a European survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Reed, S; Arnal, D; Frank, O; Gomez-Arnau, J I; Hansen, J; Lester, O; Mikkelsen, K L; Rhaiem, T; Rosenberg, P H; St Pierre, M; Schleppers, A; Staender, S; Smith, A F

2014-03-01

Critical incident reporting is a key tool in the promotion of patient safety in anaesthesia. We surveyed representatives of national incident reporting systems in six European countries, inviting information on scope and organization, and intelligence on factors determining success and failure. Some systems are government-run and nationally conceived; others started out as small, specialty-focused initiatives, which have since acquired a national reach. However, both national co-ordination and specialty enthusiasts seem to be necessary for an optimally functioning system. The role of reporting culture, definitional issues, and dissemination is discussed. We make recommendations for others intending to start new systems and speculate on the prospects for sharing patient safety lessons relevant to anaesthesia at European level.

Macroscale hydrologic modeling of ecologically relevant flow metrics

Science.gov (United States)

Wenger, Seth J.; Luce, Charles H.; Hamlet, Alan F.; Isaak, Daniel J.; Neville, Helen M.

2010-09-01

Stream hydrology strongly affects the structure of aquatic communities. Changes to air temperature and precipitation driven by increased greenhouse gas concentrations are shifting timing and volume of streamflows potentially affecting these communities. The variable infiltration capacity (VIC) macroscale hydrologic model has been employed at regional scales to describe and forecast hydrologic changes but has been calibrated and applied mainly to large rivers. An important question is how well VIC runoff simulations serve to answer questions about hydrologic changes in smaller streams, which are important habitat for many fish species. To answer this question, we aggregated gridded VIC outputs within the drainage basins of 55 streamflow gages in the Pacific Northwest United States and compared modeled hydrographs and summary metrics to observations. For most streams, several ecologically relevant aspects of the hydrologic regime were accurately modeled, including center of flow timing, mean annual and summer flows and frequency of winter floods. Frequencies of high and low flows in the summer were not well predicted, however. Predictions were worse for sites with strong groundwater influence, and some sites showed errors that may result from limitations in the forcing climate data. Higher resolution (1/16th degree) modeling provided small improvements over lower resolution (1/8th degree). Despite some limitations, the VIC model appears capable of representing several ecologically relevant hydrologic characteristics in streams, making it a useful tool for understanding the effects of hydrology in delimiting species distributions and predicting the potential effects of climate shifts on aquatic organisms.

Evaluation of water-hammer experience in nuclear power plants. Technical findings relevant to Unresolved Safety Issue A-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Serkiz, A.W.

1983-05-01

This report summarizes key technical findings relevant to the Unresolved Safety Issue A-1, Water Hammer. These findings were derived from studies of reported water hammer occurrences and underlying causes and provide key insights into means to minimize or eliminate further water hammer occurrences. It should also be noted that this report does not represent a substitute for current rules and regulations

Evaluation of water hammer occurrence in nuclear power plants: technical findings relevant to unresolved safety issue A-1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-03-01

This report, which includes responses to public comments, summarizes key technical findings relevant to the Unresolved Safety Issue A-1, Water Hammer. These findings were derived from studies of reported water hammer occurrences and underlying causes and provide key insights into means to minimize or eliminate further water hammer occurrences. This report does not represent a substitute for current rules and regulations

Safety analysis methodology with assessment of the impact of the prediction errors of relevant parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Galia, A.V.

2011-01-01

The best estimate plus uncertainty approach (BEAU) requires the use of extensive resources and therefore it is usually applied for cases in which the available safety margin obtained with a conservative methodology can be questioned. Outside the BEAU methodology, there is not a clear approach on how to deal with the issue of considering the uncertainties resulting from prediction errors in the safety analyses performed for licensing submissions. However, the regulatory document RD-310 mentions that the analysis method shall account for uncertainties in the analysis data and models. A possible approach is presented, that is simple and reasonable, representing just the author's views, to take into account the impact of prediction errors and other uncertainties when performing safety analysis in line with regulatory requirements. The approach proposes taking into account the prediction error of relevant parameters. Relevant parameters would be those plant parameters that are surveyed and are used to initiate the action of a mitigating system or those that are representative of the most challenging phenomena for the integrity of a fission barrier. Examples of the application of the methodology are presented involving a comparison between the results with the new approach and a best estimate calculation during the blowdown phase for two small breaks in a generic CANDU 6 station. The calculations are performed with the CATHENA computer code. (author)

Representing vision and blindness.

Science.gov (United States)

Ray, Patrick L; Cox, Alexander P; Jensen, Mark; Allen, Travis; Duncan, William; Diehl, Alexander D

2016-01-01

There have been relatively few attempts to represent vision or blindness ontologically. This is unsurprising as the related phenomena of sight and blindness are difficult to represent ontologically for a variety of reasons. Blindness has escaped ontological capture at least in part because: blindness or the employment of the term 'blindness' seems to vary from context to context, blindness can present in a myriad of types and degrees, and there is no precedent for representing complex phenomena such as blindness. We explore current attempts to represent vision or blindness, and show how these attempts fail at representing subtypes of blindness (viz., color blindness, flash blindness, and inattentional blindness). We examine the results found through a review of current attempts and identify where they have failed. By analyzing our test cases of different types of blindness along with the strengths and weaknesses of previous attempts, we have identified the general features of blindness and vision. We propose an ontological solution to represent vision and blindness, which capitalizes on resources afforded to one who utilizes the Basic Formal Ontology as an upper-level ontology. The solution we propose here involves specifying the trigger conditions of a disposition as well as the processes that realize that disposition. Once these are specified we can characterize vision as a function that is realized by certain (in this case) biological processes under a range of triggering conditions. When the range of conditions under which the processes can be realized are reduced beyond a certain threshold, we are able to say that blindness is present. We characterize vision as a function that is realized as a seeing process and blindness as a reduction in the conditions under which the sight function is realized. This solution is desirable because it leverages current features of a major upper-level ontology, accurately captures the phenomenon of blindness, and can be

Is parenting style a predictor of suicide attempts in a representative sample of adolescents?

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts are serious but not rare conditions in adolescents. However, there are several research and practical suicide-prevention initiatives that discuss the possibility of preventing serious self-harm. Profound knowledge about risk and protective factors is therefore necessary. The aim of this study is a) to clarify the role of parenting behavior and parenting styles in adolescents’ suicide attempts and b) to identify other statistically significant and clinically relevant risk and protective factors for suicide attempts in a representative sample of German adolescents. Methods In the years 2007/2008, a representative written survey of N = 44,610 students in the 9th grade of different school types in Germany was conducted. In this survey, the lifetime prevalence of suicide attempts was investigated as well as potential predictors including parenting behavior. A three-step statistical analysis was carried out: I) As basic model, the association between parenting and suicide attempts was explored via binary logistic regression controlled for age and sex. II) The predictive values of 13 additional potential risk/protective factors were analyzed with single binary logistic regression analyses for each predictor alone. Non-significant predictors were excluded in Step III. III) In a multivariate binary logistic regression analysis, all significant predictor variables from Step II and the parenting styles were included after testing for multicollinearity. Results Three parental variables showed a relevant association with suicide attempts in adolescents – (all protective): mother’s warmth and father’s warmth in childhood and mother’s control in adolescence (Step I). In the full model (Step III), Authoritative parenting (protective: OR: .79) and Rejecting-Neglecting parenting (risk: OR: 1.63) were identified as significant predictors (p < .001) for suicidal attempts. Seven further variables were interpreted to be

The Development of Relevance in Information Retrieval

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mu-hsuan Huang

1997-12-01

Full Text Available This article attempts to investigate the notion of relevance in information retrieval. It discusses various definitions for relevance from historical viewpoints and the characteristics of relevance judgments. Also, it introduces empirical results of important related researches.[Article content in Chinese

Aspect-based Relevance Learning for Image Retrieval

NARCIS (Netherlands)

M.J. Huiskes (Mark)

2005-01-01

htmlabstractWe analyze the special structure of the relevance feedback learning problem, focusing particularly on the effects of image selection by partial relevance on the clustering behavior of feedback examples. We propose a scheme, aspect-based relevance learning, which guarantees that feedback

Comparison of two matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation-time of flight mass spectrometry methods for the identification of clinically relevant anaerobic bacteria

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Veloo, A. C. M.; Knoester, M.; Degener, J. E.; Kuijper, E. J.

2011-01-01

Two commercially available MALDI-TOF MS systems, Bruker MS and Shimadzu MS, were compared for the identification of clinically relevant anaerobic bacteria. A selection of 79 clinical isolates, representing 19 different genera, were tested and compared with identification obtained by 16S rRNA gene

Biomarkers for AAA: Encouraging steps but clinical relevance still to be delivered.

Science.gov (United States)

Htun, Nay Min; Peter, Karlheinz

2014-10-01

Potential biomarkers have been investigated using proteomic studies in a variety of diseases. Some biomarkers have central roles in both diagnosis and monitoring of various disorders in clinical medicine, such as troponins, brain natriuretic peptide, and C-reactive protein. Although several biomarkers have been suggested in human abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), reliable markers have been lacking. In this issue, Moxon et al. [Proteomics Clin Appl. 2014, 8, 762-772] undertook a broad and systematic proteomic approach toward identification of biomarkers in a commonly used AAA mouse model (AAA created by angiotensin-II infusion). In this mouse model, apolipoprotein C1 and matrix metalloproteinase-9 were identified as novel biomarkers of stable AAA. This finding represents an important step forward, toward a clinically relevant role of biomarkers in AAA. This also encourages for further studies toward the identification of biomarkers (or their combinations) that can predict AAA progression and rupture, which would represent a major progress in AAA management and would establish an AAA biomarker as a much anticipated clinical tool. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Linking electricity and water models to assess electricity choices at water-relevant scales

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sattler, S; Rogers, J; Macknick, J; Lopez, A; Yates, D; Flores-Lopez, F

2012-01-01

Hydrology/water management and electricity generation projections have been modeled separately, but there has been little effort in intentionally and explicitly linking the two sides of the water–energy nexus. This paper describes a platform for assessing power plant cooling water withdrawals and consumption under different electricity pathways at geographic and time scales appropriate for both electricity and hydrology/water management. This platform uses estimates of regional electricity generation by the Regional Energy Deployment System (ReEDS) as input to a hydrologic and water management model—the Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) system. In WEAP, this electricity use represents thermoelectric cooling water withdrawals and consumption within the broader, regional water resource context. Here we describe linking the electricity and water models, including translating electricity generation results from ReEDS-relevant geographies to the water-relevant geographies of WEAP. The result of this analysis is water use by the electric sector at the regional watershed level, which is used to examine the water resource implications of these electricity pathways. (letter)

Financial Indicators of Performance Measurement: Reality, Relevance and Distortion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Flavius-Andrei Guinea

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The main criticism brought to managers and to managerial accounting systems was the lack of emphasis on the return of the use of invested capital and the excessive focus on the efficiency of production processes. This fact forced the transition to a new view on the way of establishing the strategic objectives measured by financial indicators. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate, through case studies, the relevance and possibilities of manipulation of a series of indicators used for assessing performance: return on investment, residual profit, economic added value, commercial profitability. The relativity and the criticized appraisal of performance only through the means of profit were thought to be solved by implementing other indicators that would link several ingredients of profitability. The conclusions highlight that the remedy promoted by the new sets of financial indicators imposes a considerable cost, represented by the temptation of information distortion.

Astrophysical relevance of γ transition energies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rauscher, Thomas

2008-01-01

The relevant γ energy range is explicitly identified where additional γ strength must be located to have an impact on astrophysically relevant reactions. It is shown that folding the energy dependences of the transmission coefficients and the level density leads to maximal contributions for γ energies of 2≤E γ ≤4 unless quantum selection rules allow isolated states to contribute. Under this condition, electric dipole transitions dominate. These findings allow us to more accurately judge the relevance of modifications of the γ strength for astrophysics

The Personal Relevance of the Social Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

VanSickle, Ronald L.

1990-01-01

Conceptualizes a personal-relevance framework derived from Ronald L. VanSickle's five areas of life integrated with four general motivating goals from Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Richard and Patricia Schmuck's social motivation theory. Illustrates ways to apply the personal relevance framework to make social studies more relevant to…

Assessing dose of the representative person for the purpose of radiation protection of the public. ICRP publication 101. Approved by the Commission in September 2005.

Science.gov (United States)

2006-01-01

The Commission intended that its revised recommendations should be based on a simple, but widely applicable, system of protection that would clarify its objectives and provide a basis for the more formal systems needed by operating managers and regulators. The recommendations would establish quantified constraints, or limits, on individual dose from specified sources. These dose constraints apply to actual or representative people who encounter occupational, medical, and public exposures. This report updates the previous guidance for estimating dose to the public. Dose to the public cannot be measured directly and, in some cases, it cannot be measured at all. Therefore, for the purpose of protection of the public, it is necessary to characterise an individual, either hypothetical or specific, whose dose can be used for determining compliance with the relevant dose constraint. This individual is defined as the 'representative person'. The Commission's goal of protection of the public is achieved if the relevant dose constraint for this individual for a single source is met and radiological protection is optimised. This report explains the process of estimating annual dose and recognises that a number of different methods are available for this purpose. These methods range from deterministic calculations to more complex probabilistic techniques. In addition, a mixture of these techniques may be applied. In selecting characteristics of the representative person, three important concepts should be borne in mind: reasonableness, sustainability, and homogeneity. Each concept is explained and examples are provided to illustrate their roles. Doses to the public are prospective (may occur in the future) or retrospective (occurred in the past). Prospective doses are for hypothetical individuals who may or may not exist in the future, while retrospective doses are generally calculated for specific individuals. The Commission recognises that the level of detail afforded by its

Representing Color Ensembles.

Science.gov (United States)

Chetverikov, Andrey; Campana, Gianluca; Kristjánsson, Árni

2017-10-01

Colors are rarely uniform, yet little is known about how people represent color distributions. We introduce a new method for studying color ensembles based on intertrial learning in visual search. Participants looked for an oddly colored diamond among diamonds with colors taken from either uniform or Gaussian color distributions. On test trials, the targets had various distances in feature space from the mean of the preceding distractor color distribution. Targets on test trials therefore served as probes into probabilistic representations of distractor colors. Test-trial response times revealed a striking similarity between the physical distribution of colors and their internal representations. The results demonstrate that the visual system represents color ensembles in a more detailed way than previously thought, coding not only mean and variance but, most surprisingly, the actual shape (uniform or Gaussian) of the distribution of colors in the environment.

National inventory of Global Change relevant research in Norway; Nasjonal kartlegging av global change-relevant forskning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-05-01

The Norwegian Global Change Committee has made an inventory of global change research (GCR) projects funded by the Research Council of Norway (RCN) in 2001. In lack of a rigid definition, GCR was defined as research that can be considered relevant to the science agenda of the four major international global change programmes DIVERSITAS, IGBP, IHDP and WCRP. Relevance was judged based on the objectives stated for each of the international programmes and their core projects. It was not attempted to check whether the projects had any kind of link to the programmes they were considered relevant for. The grants provided by the RCN in 2001 to GCR as defined above amounts to about 77 mill. NOK. Based on a recent survey on climate change research it is reasonable to estimate that the RCN finances between 30 and 40 % of all GCR in Norway. Accordingly, the total value of Norwegian research relevant to the four international global change programmes in 2001 can be estimated to 192 - 254 mill. NOK.

Rationalising prescribing: Evidence, marketing and practice-relevant knowledge.

Science.gov (United States)

Wadmann, Sarah; Bang, Lia E

2015-06-01

Initiatives in the name of 'rational pharmacotherapy' have been launched to alter what is seen as 'inappropriate' prescribing practices of physicians. Based on observations and interviews with 20 general practitioners (GPs) in 2009-2011, we explored how attempts to rationalise prescribing interact with chronic care management in Denmark. We demonstrate how attempts to rationalise prescribing by informing GPs about drug effects, adverse effects and price do not satisfy GPs' knowledge needs. We argue that, for GPs, 'rational' prescribing cannot be understood in separation from the processes that enable patients to use medication. Therefore, GPs do much more to obtain knowledge about medications than seek advice on 'rational pharmacotherapy'. For instance, GPs also seek opportunities to acquaint themselves with the material objects of medication and medical devices. We conceptualise the knowledge needs of GPs as a need for practice-relevant knowledge and argue that industry sales representatives are granted opportunity to access general practice because they understand this need of GPs. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Environmentally relevant approaches to assess nanoparticles ecotoxicity: A review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bour, Agathe; Mouchet, Florence; Silvestre, Jérôme; Gauthier, Laury [Université de Toulouse (France); UPS, INP (France); EcoLab (Laboratoire d’écologie fonctionnelle et environnement) (France); ENSAT, Avenue de l’Agrobiopôle, F-31326 Castanet-Tolosan (France); CNRS (France); EcoLab (Laboratoire d’écologie fonctionnelle et environnement), F-31326 Castanet-Tolosan (France); Pinelli, Eric, E-mail: pinelli@ensat.fr [Université de Toulouse (France); UPS, INP (France); EcoLab (Laboratoire d’écologie fonctionnelle et environnement) (France); ENSAT, Avenue de l’Agrobiopôle, F-31326 Castanet-Tolosan (France); CNRS (France); EcoLab (Laboratoire d’écologie fonctionnelle et environnement), F-31326 Castanet-Tolosan (France)

2015-02-11

Highlights: • Integrated ecotoxicity of NPs from organism to community level is reviewed. • Trophic chains allow determining the implication of trophic route in NP toxicity. • The use of microcosms and mesocosms allows studies at larger scale. • Data concerning NP fate and effects in environmental conditions are lacking. - Abstract: Despite the increasing production and use of nanoparticles (NPs), there is a lack of knowledge about their environmental fate and ecotoxicity. Studies in environmentally relevant conditions are necessary to better assess these parameters, but such studies are rather rare. The present work represents first time that studies on engineered NPs using environmentally relevant exposure methods have been reviewed. These exposure methods differ from standardized protocols and can be classified into three groups: experimental trophic chains that allow study of the trophic route, multi-species exposures under laboratory conditions that allow for complex but controlled exposure and outdoor exposures that are more similar to environmentally realistic conditions. The majority of studies of micro- or mesocosms have focused on NP partitioning and bioaccumulation. The other major parameter that has been studied is NP ecotoxicity, which has been assessed in single species, in single species via the trophic route, and at the community level. The induction of biochemical defense systems, immunomodulation, effects on growth and reproduction, behavioral alterations and mortality have been used as indicators of major toxicity, depending on the species studied. The major effects of NPs on both microbial and algal communities include modifications of community compositions and diversities, decreased biomass and changes in community activities.

Environmentally relevant approaches to assess nanoparticles ecotoxicity: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bour, Agathe; Mouchet, Florence; Silvestre, Jérôme; Gauthier, Laury; Pinelli, Eric

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Integrated ecotoxicity of NPs from organism to community level is reviewed. • Trophic chains allow determining the implication of trophic route in NP toxicity. • The use of microcosms and mesocosms allows studies at larger scale. • Data concerning NP fate and effects in environmental conditions are lacking. - Abstract: Despite the increasing production and use of nanoparticles (NPs), there is a lack of knowledge about their environmental fate and ecotoxicity. Studies in environmentally relevant conditions are necessary to better assess these parameters, but such studies are rather rare. The present work represents first time that studies on engineered NPs using environmentally relevant exposure methods have been reviewed. These exposure methods differ from standardized protocols and can be classified into three groups: experimental trophic chains that allow study of the trophic route, multi-species exposures under laboratory conditions that allow for complex but controlled exposure and outdoor exposures that are more similar to environmentally realistic conditions. The majority of studies of micro- or mesocosms have focused on NP partitioning and bioaccumulation. The other major parameter that has been studied is NP ecotoxicity, which has been assessed in single species, in single species via the trophic route, and at the community level. The induction of biochemical defense systems, immunomodulation, effects on growth and reproduction, behavioral alterations and mortality have been used as indicators of major toxicity, depending on the species studied. The major effects of NPs on both microbial and algal communities include modifications of community compositions and diversities, decreased biomass and changes in community activities

Inoculating Relevance Feedback Against Poison Pills

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dehghani, Mostafa; Azarbonyad, Hosein; Kamps, Jaap; Hiemstra, Djoerd; Marx, Maarten

2016-01-01

Relevance Feedback is a common approach for enriching queries, given a set of explicitly or implicitly judged documents to improve the performance of the retrieval. Although it has been shown that on average, the overall performance of retrieval will be improved after relevance feedback, for some

Autonomia e relevância dos regimes The autonomy and relevance of regimes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gustavo Seignemartin de Carvalho

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Teorias institucionalistas na disciplina de relações internacionais usualmente definem regimes como um conjunto de normas e regras formais ou informais que permitem a convergência de expectativas ou a padronização do comportamento de seus participantes em uma determinada área de interesses com o objetivo de resolver problemas de coordenação que tenderiam a resultados não pareto-eficientes. Como estas definições baseadas meramente na "eficiência" dos regimes não parecem suficientes para explicar sua efetividade, o presente artigo propõe uma definição diferente para regimes: a de arranjos políticos que permitem a redistribuição dos ganhos da cooperação pelos participantes em uma determinada área de interesses em um contexto de interdependência. Regimes possuiriam efetividade pela sua autonomia e relevância, ou seja, por possuírem existência objetiva autônoma da de seus participantes e por influenciarem seu comportamento e expectativas de maneiras que não podem ser reduzidas à ação individual de nenhum deles. O artigo inicia-se com uma breve discussão sobre as dificuldades terminológicas associadas ao estudo de regimes e a definição dos conceitos de autonomia e relevância. Em seguida, classifica os diversos autores participantes do debate em duas perspectivas distintas, uma que nega (não-autonomistas e outra que atribui (autonomistas aos regimes autonomia e relevância, e faz uma breve análise dos autores e tradições mais significativos para o debate, aprofundando-se nos autonomistas e nos argumentos que reforçam a hipótese aqui apresentada. Ao final, o artigo propõe uma decomposição analítica dos regimes nos quatro elementos principais que lhes propiciam autonomia e relevância: normatividade, atores, especificidade da área de interesses e interdependência complexa com o contexto.Regimes are defined by institutionalist theories in the discipline of International Relations as formal or informal sets

Clinical relevance in anesthesia journals

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauritsen, Jakob; Møller, Ann M

2006-01-01

The purpose of this review is to present the latest knowledge and research on the definition and distribution of clinically relevant articles in anesthesia journals. It will also discuss the importance of the chosen methodology and outcome of articles.......The purpose of this review is to present the latest knowledge and research on the definition and distribution of clinically relevant articles in anesthesia journals. It will also discuss the importance of the chosen methodology and outcome of articles....

Causal and Epistemic Relevance in Appeals to Authority

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastiano Lommi

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Appeals to authority have a long tradition in the history of argumentation theory. During the Middle Age they were considered legitimate and sound arguments, but after Locke’s treatment in the Essay Concerning Human Understanding their legitimacy has come under question. Traditionally, arguments from authority were considered informal arguments, but since the important work of Charles Hamblin (Hamblin, 1970 many attempts to provide a form for them have been done. The most convincing of them is the presumptive form developed by Douglas Walton and John Woods (Woods, Walton, 1974 that aims at taking into account the relevant contextual aspects in assessing the provisional validity of an appeal to authority. The soundness of an appeal depends on its meeting the adequacy conditions set to scrutinize all the relevant questions. I want to claim that this approach is compatible with the analysis of arguments in terms of relevance advanced by David Hitchcock (Hitchcock, 1992. He claims that relevance is a triadic relation between two items and a context. The first item is relevant to the second one in a given context. Different types of relevance relation exist, namely causal relevance and epistemic relevance. “Something is [causally] relevant to an outcome in a given situation if it helps to cause that outcome in the situation” (Hitchcock, 1992, p. 253, whereas it is epistemically relevant when it helps to achieve an epistemic goal in a given situation. I claim that we can adapt this conception to Walton and Krabbe’s theory of dialogue type (Walton, Krabbe, 1995, seeing the items of a relevance relation as the argument and its consequence and the context as the type of dialogue in which these arguments are advanced. According to this perspective, an argument from authority that meets the adequacy conditions has to be considered legitimate because it is an epistemically relevant relation. Therefore, my conclusion is that an analysis of appeals to

Making academic research more relevant: A few suggestions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abinash Panda

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Academic research in the domain of management scholarship, though steeped in scientific and methodological rigour, is generally found to be of little relevance to practice. The authors of this paper have revisited the rigour-relevance debate in light of recent developments and with special reference to the management research scenario in India. The central thesis of the argument is that the gulf between rigour and relevance needs to be bridged to make academic research more relevant to business organizations and practitioners. They have offered some suggestions to enhance the relevance of academic research to practice.

A Compositional Relevance Model for Adaptive Information Retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Mathe, Nathalie; Chen, James; Lu, Henry, Jr. (Technical Monitor)

1994-01-01

There is a growing need for rapid and effective access to information in large electronic documentation systems. Access can be facilitated if information relevant in the current problem solving context can be automatically supplied to the user. This includes information relevant to particular user profiles, tasks being performed, and problems being solved. However most of this knowledge on contextual relevance is not found within the contents of documents, and current hypermedia tools do not provide any easy mechanism to let users add this knowledge to their documents. We propose a compositional relevance network to automatically acquire the context in which previous information was found relevant. The model records information on the relevance of references based on user feedback for specific queries and contexts. It also generalizes such information to derive relevant references for similar queries and contexts. This model lets users filter information by context of relevance, build personalized views of documents over time, and share their views with other users. It also applies to any type of multimedia information. Compared to other approaches, it is less costly and doesn't require any a priori statistical computation, nor an extended training period. It is currently being implemented into the Computer Integrated Documentation system which enables integration of various technical documents in a hypertext framework.

Inferring relevance in a changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert C Wilson

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Reinforcement learning models of human and animal learning usually concentrate on how we learn the relationship between different stimuli or actions and rewards. However, in real world situations stimuli are ill-defined. On the one hand, our immediate environment is extremely multi-dimensional. On the other hand, in every decision-making scenario only a few aspects of the environment are relevant for obtaining reward, while most are irrelevant. Thus a key question is how do we learn these relevant dimensions, that is, how do we learn what to learn about? We investigated this process of representation learning experimentally, using a task in which one stimulus dimension was relevant for determining reward at each point in time. As in real life situations, in our task the relevant dimension can change without warning, adding ever-present uncertainty engendered by a constantly changing environment. We show that human performance on this task is better described by a suboptimal strategy based on selective attention and serial hypothesis testing rather than a normative strategy based on probabilistic inference. From this, we conjecture that the problem of inferring relevance in general scenarios is too computationally demanding for the brain to solve optimally. As a result the brain utilizes approximations, employing these even in simplified scenarios in which optimal representation learning is tractable, such as the one in our experiment.

A protocol for classifying ecologically relevant marine zones, a statistical approach

Science.gov (United States)

Verfaillie, Els; Degraer, Steven; Schelfaut, Kristien; Willems, Wouter; Van Lancker, Vera

2009-06-01

Mapping ecologically relevant zones in the marine environment has become increasingly important. Biological data are however often scarce and alternatives are being sought in optimal classifications of abiotic variables. The concept of 'marine landscapes' is based on a hierarchical classification of geological, hydrographic and other physical data. This approach is however subject to many assumptions and subjective decisions. An objective protocol for zonation is being proposed here where abiotic variables are subjected to a statistical approach, using principal components analysis (PCA) and a cluster analysis. The optimal number of clusters (or zones) is being defined using the Calinski-Harabasz criterion. The methodology has been applied on datasets of the Belgian part of the North Sea (BPNS), a shallow sandy shelf environment with a sandbank-swale topography. The BPNS was classified into 8 zones that represent well the natural variability of the seafloor. The internal cluster consistency was validated with a split-run procedure, with more than 99% correspondence between the validation and the original dataset. The ecological relevance of 6 out of the 8 zones was demonstrated, using indicator species analysis. The proposed protocol, as exemplified for the BPNS, can easily be applied to other areas and provides a strong knowledge basis for environmental protection and management of the marine environment. A SWOT-analysis, showing the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the protocol was performed.

Representing causal knowledge in environmental policy interventions: Advantages and opportunities for qualitative influence diagram applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Carriger, John F; Dyson, Brian E; Benson, William H

2018-05-01

This article develops and explores a methodology for using qualitative influence diagrams in environmental policy and management to support decision-making efforts that minimize risk and increase resiliency. Influence diagrams are representations of the conditional aspects of a problem domain. Their graphical properties are useful for structuring causal knowledge relevant to policy interventions and can be used to enhance inference and inclusivity of multiple viewpoints. Qualitative components of influence diagrams are beneficial tools for identifying and examining the interactions among the critical variables in complex policy development and implementation. Policy interventions on social-environmental systems can be intuitively diagrammed for representing knowledge of critical relationships among economic, environmental, and social attributes. Examples relevant to coastal resiliency issues in the US Gulf Coast region are developed to illustrate model structures for developing qualitative influence diagrams useful for clarifying important policy intervention issues and enhancing transparency in decision making. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2018;14:381-394. Published 2018. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. Published 2018. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

The policy relevance of global environmental change research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yarnal, Brent

1996-01-01

Many scientists are striving to identify and promote the policy implications of their global change research. Much basic research on global environmental change cannot advance policy directly, but new projects can determine the relevance of their research to decision makers and build policy-relevant products into the work. Similarly, many ongoing projects can alter or add to the present science design to make the research policy relevant. Thus, this paper shows scientists working on global change how to make their research policy relevant. It demonstrates how research on physical global change relates to human dimensions studies and integrated assessments. It also presents an example of how policy relevance can be fit retroactively into a global change project (in this case, SRBEX-the Susquehanna River Basin Experiment) and how that addition can enhance the project's status and science. The paper concludes that policy relevance is desirable from social and scientific perspectives

Does relevance matter in academic policy research?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dredge, Dianne

2015-01-01

A reflection on whether relevance matters in tourism policy research. A debate among tourism scholars.......A reflection on whether relevance matters in tourism policy research. A debate among tourism scholars....

Heat transfer education : Keeping it relevant and vibrant.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Khounsary, A. M.

1998-08-14

The motivation for a fresh look at heat transfer education, both in content and in methodology, is generated by a number of trends in engineering practice. These include the increasing demand for engineers with interdisciplinary skills, rapid integration of technology, emergence of computerized and interactive problem-solving tools, shortening time of concept-to-market, availability of new technologies, and an increasing number of new or redesigned products and processes in which heat transfer plays a part. Examination of heat transfer education in this context can be aided by considering the changes, both qualitatively and quantitatively, in the student, educator, and researcher populations, employment opportunities, in the needs of corporations, government, industry, and universities, and in the relevant technical problems and issues of the day. Such an overview provides the necessary background for charting a response to the difficult question of how to maintain excellence and continuity in heat transfer education in the face of rapid, widespread, and complex changes. The present paper addresses how to make heat transfer education more relevant and stimulating. This paper represents a written summary of a 1996 panel discussion at the 1996 International Mechanical Engineering Conference and Exhibition (IMECE) of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in Atlanta, Georgia, on ''Heat Transfer Education: Keeping it Relevant and Vibrant,'' with significant expansion and amplification by the authors and the panelists in the 1997-98 period. The consensus of the participants is that the steps necessary to ensure the desired outcome in heat transfer education should include: (1) a better understanding of the interaction between the student, course content, and market needs; (2) an appreciation of the need in multidisciplinary industrial environments for engineers trained with a broad background: (3) a revision of the introductory heat

Simulating mixed-phase Arctic stratus clouds: sensitivity to ice initiation mechanisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. McFarquhar

2009-07-01

of ice phase initiation due to freezing of supercooled water in both saturated and subsaturated (w.r.t. water environments is as important as primary ice crystal origination from water vapor. We also find that the BFP is a process mainly responsible for the rates of glaciation of simulated clouds. These glaciation rates cannot be adequately represented by a water-ice saturation adjustment scheme that only depends on temperature and liquid and solid hydrometeors' contents as is widely used in bulk microphysics schemes and are better represented by processes that also account for supersaturation changes as the hydrometeors grow.

Simulating mixed-phase Arctic stratus clouds: sensitivity to ice initiation mechanisms

Science.gov (United States)

Sednev, I.; Menon, S.; McFarquhar, G.

2009-07-01

due to freezing of supercooled water in both saturated and subsaturated (w.r.t. water) environments is as important as primary ice crystal origination from water vapor. We also find that the BFP is a process mainly responsible for the rates of glaciation of simulated clouds. These glaciation rates cannot be adequately represented by a water-ice saturation adjustment scheme that only depends on temperature and liquid and solid hydrometeors' contents as is widely used in bulk microphysics schemes and are better represented by processes that also account for supersaturation changes as the hydrometeors grow.

OSMOSE experiment representativity studies.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aliberti, G.; Klann, R.; Nuclear Engineering Division

2007-10-10

The OSMOSE program aims at improving the neutronic predictions of advanced nuclear fuels through measurements in the MINERVE facility at the CEA-Cadarache (France) on samples containing the following separated actinides: Th-232, U-233, U-234, U-235, U-236, U-238, Np-237, Pu-238, Pu-239, Pu-240, Pu-241, Pu-242, Am-241, Am-243, Cm-244 and Cm-245. The goal of the experimental measurements is to produce a database of reactivity-worth measurements in different neutron spectra for the separated heavy nuclides. This database can then be used as a benchmark for integral reactivity-worth measurements to verify and validate reactor analysis codes and integral cross-section values for the isotopes tested. In particular, the OSMOSE experimental program will produce very accurate sample reactivity-worth measurements for a series of actinides in various spectra, from very thermalized to very fast. The objective of the analytical program is to make use of the experimental data to establish deficiencies in the basic nuclear data libraries, identify their origins, and provide guidelines for nuclear data improvements in coordination with international programs. To achieve the proposed goals, seven different neutron spectra can be created in the MINERVE facility: UO2 dissolved in water (representative of over-moderated LWR systems), UO2 matrix in water (representative of LWRs), a mixed oxide fuel matrix, two thermal spectra containing large epithermal components (representative of under-moderated reactors), a moderated fast spectrum (representative of fast reactors which have some slowing down in moderators such as lead-bismuth or sodium), and a very hard spectrum (representative of fast reactors with little moderation from reactor coolant). The different spectra are achieved by changing the experimental lattice within the MINERVE reactor. The experimental lattice is the replaceable central part of MINERVE, which establishes the spectrum at the sample location. This configuration

Do Public Involvement Activities in Biomedical Research and Innovation Recruit Representatively? A Systematic Qualitative Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Lander, Jonas; Hainz, Tobias; Hirschberg, Irene; Bossert, Sabine; Strech, Daniel

2016-01-01

Public involvement activities (PIAs) may contribute to the governance of ethically challenging biomedical research and innovation by informing, consulting with and engaging the public in developments and decision-making processes. For PIAs to capture a population's preferences (e.g. on issues in whole genome sequencing, biobanks or genome editing), a central methodological requirement is to involve a sufficiently representative subgroup of the general public. While the existing literature focusses on theoretical and normative aspects of 'representation', this study assesses empirically how such considerations are implemented in practice. It evaluates how PIA reports describe representation objectives, the recruitment process and levels of representation achieved. PIA reports were included from a systematic literature search if they directly reported a PIA conducted in a relevant discipline such as genomics, biobanks, biotechnology or others. PIA reports were analyzed with thematic text analysis. The text analysis was guided by an assessment matrix based on PIA-specific guidelines and frameworks. We included 46 relevant reports, most focusing on issues in genomics. 27 reports (59%) explicitly described representation objectives, though mostly without adjusting eligibility criteria and recruiting methods to the specific objective. 11 reports (24%) explicitly reported to have achieved the intended representation; the rest either reported failure or were silent on this issue. Representation of study samples in PIAs in biomedical research and innovation is currently not reported systematically. Improved reporting on representation would not only improve the validity and value of PIAs, but could also contribute to PIA results being used more often in relevant policy and decision-making processes. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Representing Uncertainty by Probability and Possibility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

of uncertain parameters. Monte Carlo simulation is readily used for practical calculations. However, an alternative approach is offered by possibility theory making use of possibility distributions such as intervals and fuzzy intervals. This approach is well suited to represent lack of knowledge or imprecision......Uncertain parameters in modeling are usually represented by probability distributions reflecting either the objective uncertainty of the parameters or the subjective belief held by the model builder. This approach is particularly suited for representing the statistical nature or variance...

Reflections on relevance: Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics in 2004.

Science.gov (United States)

Balon, Richard

2005-01-01

Relevance of an article is a highly desirable yet hardly predictable quality at the time of its publication. Article relevance is frequently measured by the impact factor of the journal where the article is published. Furthermore, impact factor, citation index and citation analysis are used as a measure of research progress and scientific wealth of a nation. The wisdom and significance of this approach to relevance is debatable and thus discussed here. In 2004, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics published a variety of articles which, in the author's view, are clinically relevant. Several selected clinically relevant issues reviewed in this article include: the conceptualization of fibromyalgia as a stress disorder; the psychosocial impact and psychosocial interventions in cancer; the impact of alexithymia on patient care; the possible relationship between depression and nutrition (namely intake of folate and pyridoxal phosphate); the significance of hypercoagulability in panic-like anxiety; the questionable value of single isomer drugs, and the relevance and adequacy of clinimetrics versus psychometrics in clinical research. The reviewed issues seem to be relevant to clinical practice, research or both, but also to our critical thinking, and the critical review of the developments in psychiatry and psychology. Copyright 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel.

46 CFR 560.5 - Receipt of relevant information.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Receipt of relevant information. 560.5 Section 560.5... FOREIGN PORTS § 560.5 Receipt of relevant information. (a) In making its decision on matters arising under... submissions should be supported by affidavits of fact and memorandum of law. Relevant information may include...

Relevance in the science classroom: A multidimensional analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Hartwell, Matthew F.

While perceived relevance is considered a fundamental component of adaptive learning, the experience of relevance and its conceptual definition have not been well described. The mixed-methods research presented in this dissertation aimed to clarify the conceptual meaning of relevance by focusing on its phenomenological experience from the students' perspective. Following a critical literature review, I propose an identity-based model of perceived relevance that includes three components: a contextual target, an identity target, and a connection type, or lens. An empirical investigation of this model that consisted of two general phases was implemented in four 9th grade-biology classrooms. Participants in Phase 1 (N = 118) completed a series of four open-ended writing activities focused on eliciting perceived personal connections to academic content. Exploratory qualitative content analysis of a 25% random sample of the student responses was used to identify the main meaning-units of the proposed model as well as different dimensions of student relevance perceptions. These meaning-units and dimensions provided the basis for the construction of a conceptual mapping sentence capturing students' perceived relevance, which was then applied in a confirmatory analysis to all other student responses. Participants in Phase 2 (N = 139) completed a closed survey designed based on the mapping sentence to assess their perceived relevance of a biology unit. The survey also included scales assessing other domain-level motivational processes. Exploratory factor analysis and non-metric multidimensional scaling indicated a coherent conceptual structure, which included a primary interpretive relevance dimension. Comparison of the conceptual structure across various groups (randomly-split sample, gender, academic level, domain-general motivational profiles) provided support for its ubiquity and insight into variation in the experience of perceived relevance among students of different

Relevant Scatterers Characterization in SAR Images

Science.gov (United States)

Chaabouni, Houda; Datcu, Mihai

2006-11-01

Recognizing scenes in a single look meter resolution Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images, requires the capability to identify relevant signal signatures in condition of variable image acquisition geometry, arbitrary objects poses and configurations. Among the methods to detect relevant scatterers in SAR images, we can mention the internal coherence. The SAR spectrum splitted in azimuth generates a series of images which preserve high coherence only for particular object scattering. The detection of relevant scatterers can be done by correlation study or Independent Component Analysis (ICA) methods. The present article deals with the state of the art for SAR internal correlation analysis and proposes further extensions using elements of inference based on information theory applied to complex valued signals. The set of azimuth looks images is analyzed using mutual information measures and an equivalent channel capacity is derived. The localization of the "target" requires analysis in a small image window, thus resulting in imprecise estimation of the second order statistics of the signal. For a better precision, a Hausdorff measure is introduced. The method is applied to detect and characterize relevant objects in urban areas.

Does relevance matter in academic policy research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dredge, Dianne

2015-01-01

A reflection on whether relevance matters in tourism policy research, and if so, to whom/what should it matter......A reflection on whether relevance matters in tourism policy research, and if so, to whom/what should it matter...

The foundation of the concept of relevance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hjørland, Birger

2010-01-01

that what was regarded as the most fundamental view by Saracevic in 1975 has not since been considered (with very few exceptions). Other views, which are based on less fruitful assumptions, have dominated the discourse on relevance in information retrieval and information science. Many authors have...... reexamined the concept of relevance in information science, but have neglected the subject knowledge view, hence basic theoretical assumptions seem not to have been properly addressed. It is as urgent now as it was in 1975 seriously to consider “the subject knowledge view” of relevance (which may also...... be termed “the epistemological view”). The concept of relevance, like other basic concepts, is influenced by overall approaches to information science, such as the cognitive view and the domain-analytic view. There is today a trend toward a social paradigm for information science. This paper offers...

Has Financial Statement Information become Less Relevant?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thinggaard, Frank; Damkier, Jesper

This paper presents insights into the question of whether accounting information based on the EU’s Accounting Directives has become less value-relevant to investors over time. The study is based on a research design first used by Francis and Schipper (1999), where value-relevance is measured......? The sample is based on non-financial companies listed on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange in the period 1984-2002. Our analyses show that all the applied accounting measures are value-relevant as investment strategies based on the information earn positive market-adjusted returns in our sample period....... The results provide some indication of a decline in the value-relevance of earnings information in the 1984-2001 period, and mixed, but not statistically reliable, evidence for accounting measures where book value information and asset values are also extracted from financial statements. The results seem...

An Atlas of Peroxiredoxins Created Using an Active Site Profile-Based Approach to Functionally Relevant Clustering of Proteins.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angela F Harper

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Peroxiredoxins (Prxs or Prdxs are a large protein superfamily of antioxidant enzymes that rapidly detoxify damaging peroxides and/or affect signal transduction and, thus, have roles in proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. Prx superfamily members are widespread across phylogeny and multiple methods have been developed to classify them. Here we present an updated atlas of the Prx superfamily identified using a novel method called MISST (Multi-level Iterative Sequence Searching Technique. MISST is an iterative search process developed to be both agglomerative, to add sequences containing similar functional site features, and divisive, to split groups when functional site features suggest distinct functionally-relevant clusters. Superfamily members need not be identified initially-MISST begins with a minimal representative set of known structures and searches GenBank iteratively. Further, the method's novelty lies in the manner in which isofunctional groups are selected; rather than use a single or shifting threshold to identify clusters, the groups are deemed isofunctional when they pass a self-identification criterion, such that the group identifies itself and nothing else in a search of GenBank. The method was preliminarily validated on the Prxs, as the Prxs presented challenges of both agglomeration and division. For example, previous sequence analysis clustered the Prx functional families Prx1 and Prx6 into one group. Subsequent expert analysis clearly identified Prx6 as a distinct functionally relevant group. The MISST process distinguishes these two closely related, though functionally distinct, families. Through MISST search iterations, over 38,000 Prx sequences were identified, which the method divided into six isofunctional clusters, consistent with previous expert analysis. The results represent the most complete computational functional analysis of proteins comprising the Prx superfamily. The feasibility of this novel method is

Sampling of suspended particulate matter using particle traps in the Rhône River: Relevance and representativeness for the monitoring of contaminants.

Science.gov (United States)

Masson, M; Angot, H; Le Bescond, C; Launay, M; Dabrin, A; Miège, C; Le Coz, J; Coquery, M

2018-05-10

Monitoring hydrophobic contaminants in surface freshwaters requires measuring contaminant concentrations in the particulate fraction (sediment or suspended particulate matter, SPM) of the water column. Particle traps (PTs) have been recently developed to sample SPM as cost-efficient, easy to operate and time-integrative tools. But the representativeness of SPM collected with PTs is not fully understood, notably in terms of grain size distribution and particulate organic carbon (POC) content, which could both skew particulate contaminant concentrations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the representativeness of SPM characteristics (i.e. grain size distribution and POC content) and associated contaminants (i.e. polychlorinated biphenyls, PCBs; mercury, Hg) in samples collected in a large river using PTs for differing hydrological conditions. Samples collected using PTs (n = 74) were compared with samples collected during the same time period by continuous flow centrifugation (CFC). The grain size distribution of PT samples shifted with increasing water discharge: the proportion of very fine silts (2-6 μm) decreased while that of coarse silts (27-74 μm) increased. Regardless of water discharge, POC contents were different likely due to integration by PT of high POC-content phytoplankton blooms or low POC-content flood events. Differences in PCBs and Hg concentrations were usually within the range of analytical uncertainties and could not be related to grain size or POC content shifts. Occasional Hg-enriched inputs may have led to higher Hg concentrations in a few PT samples (n = 4) which highlights the time-integrative capacity of the PTs. The differences of annual Hg and PCB fluxes calculated either from PT samples or CFC samples were generally below 20%. Despite some inherent limitations (e.g. grain size distribution bias), our findings suggest that PT sampling is a valuable technique to assess reliable spatial and temporal trends of particulate

Relevant cost information for order acceptance decisions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wouters, M.J.F.

1997-01-01

Some economic considerations for order acceptance decisions are discussed. The relevant economic considerations for order acceptance are widely discussed in the literature: only those costs are relevant which would be avoidable by not accepting the order incremental costs plus opportunity costs .

Relevance Feedback in Content Based Image Retrieval: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manesh B. Kokare

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper provides an overview of the technical achievements in the research area of relevance feedback (RF in content-based image retrieval (CBIR. Relevance feedback is a powerful technique in CBIR systems, in order to improve the performance of CBIR effectively. It is an open research area to the researcher to reduce the semantic gap between low-level features and high level concepts. The paper covers the current state of art of the research in relevance feedback in CBIR, various relevance feedback techniques and issues in relevance feedback are discussed in detail.

Is parenting style a predictor of suicide attempts in a representative sample of adolescents?

Science.gov (United States)

Donath, Carolin; Graessel, Elmar; Baier, Dirk; Bleich, Stefan; Hillemacher, Thomas

2014-04-26

Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts are serious but not rare conditions in adolescents. However, there are several research and practical suicide-prevention initiatives that discuss the possibility of preventing serious self-harm. Profound knowledge about risk and protective factors is therefore necessary. The aim of this study is a) to clarify the role of parenting behavior and parenting styles in adolescents' suicide attempts and b) to identify other statistically significant and clinically relevant risk and protective factors for suicide attempts in a representative sample of German adolescents. In the years 2007/2008, a representative written survey of N = 44,610 students in the 9th grade of different school types in Germany was conducted. In this survey, the lifetime prevalence of suicide attempts was investigated as well as potential predictors including parenting behavior. A three-step statistical analysis was carried out: I) As basic model, the association between parenting and suicide attempts was explored via binary logistic regression controlled for age and sex. II) The predictive values of 13 additional potential risk/protective factors were analyzed with single binary logistic regression analyses for each predictor alone. Non-significant predictors were excluded in Step III. III) In a multivariate binary logistic regression analysis, all significant predictor variables from Step II and the parenting styles were included after testing for multicollinearity. Three parental variables showed a relevant association with suicide attempts in adolescents - (all protective): mother's warmth and father's warmth in childhood and mother's control in adolescence (Step I). In the full model (Step III), Authoritative parenting (protective: OR: .79) and Rejecting-Neglecting parenting (risk: OR: 1.63) were identified as significant predictors (p parental separation events. Parenting style does matter. While children of Authoritative parents profit, children of

40 CFR 72.22 - Alternate designated representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... designated representative is selected shall include a procedure for the owners and operators of the source and affected units at the source to authorize the alternate designated representative to act in lieu...) In the event of a conflict, any action taken by the designated representative shall take precedence...

Representative Sampling for reliable data analysis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Lars; Esbensen, Kim Harry

2005-01-01

regime in order to secure the necessary reliability of: samples (which must be representative, from the primary sampling onwards), analysis (which will not mean anything outside the miniscule analytical volume without representativity ruling all mass reductions involved, also in the laboratory) and data...

OAS :: Authorities : Permanent Representatives to the OAS

Science.gov (United States)

Rights Actions against Corruption C Children Civil Registry Civil Society Contact Us Culture Cyber Representative of Belize Diego Pary Rodríguez Bolivia Diego Pary Rodríguez Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Bolivia José Luiz Machado Brazil José Luiz Machado e Costa Ambassador, Permanent Representative

List of Accredited Representatives

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Veterans Affairs — VA accreditation is for the sole purpose of providing representation services to claimants before VA and does not imply that a representative is qualified to provide...

Why eicosanoids could represent a new class of tocolytics on uterine activity in pregnant women.

Science.gov (United States)

Corriveau, Stéphanie; Berthiaume, Maryse; Rousseau, Eric; Pasquier, Jean-Charles

2009-10-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of exogenous eicosanoids on spontaneous uterine contractile activity. Eight uterine biopsies were performed from women who were undergoing elective cesarean delivery. Tension measurements were performed in vitro on myometrial strips. Contractile activities were quantified by the calculation of the area under the curve. The effects of eicosanoids and specific enzyme inhibitors were assessed. Fractions from various uterine tissues were analyzed by Western blot. Data demonstrate the presence, in some tested tissues, of cytochrome P-450 epoxygenase and soluble epoxide hydrolase, which respectively produce and degrade epoxyeicosatrienoic acid regioisomers. Inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase with 12-(3-adamantan-1-yl-ureido)-dodecanoic acid or omega-hydroxylase with N-methylsulfonyl-12,12-dibromododec-11-enamide resulted in a tocolytic effect; N-methylsulfonyl-6-[2-propargyloxyphenyl] hexanamide, which is an epoxygenase inhibitor, had no effect. Exogenous epoxyeicosatrienoic acids displayed significant tocolytic effects on spontaneous contractile activities. Epoxy- and hydroxyeicosanoids represent new bioactive, arachidonic acid by-products with in vitro tocolytic activities. These findings suggest that cytochrome P-450 isozymes may represent relevant pharmacologic targets under physiopathologic conditions.

Linking attentional processes and conceptual problem solving: visual cues facilitate the automaticity of extracting relevant information from diagrams.

Science.gov (United States)

Rouinfar, Amy; Agra, Elise; Larson, Adam M; Rebello, N Sanjay; Loschky, Lester C

2014-01-01

This study investigated links between visual attention processes and conceptual problem solving. This was done by overlaying visual cues on conceptual physics problem diagrams to direct participants' attention to relevant areas to facilitate problem solving. Participants (N = 80) individually worked through four problem sets, each containing a diagram, while their eye movements were recorded. Each diagram contained regions that were relevant to solving the problem correctly and separate regions related to common incorrect responses. Problem sets contained an initial problem, six isomorphic training problems, and a transfer problem. The cued condition saw visual cues overlaid on the training problems. Participants' verbal responses were used to determine their accuracy. This study produced two major findings. First, short duration visual cues which draw attention to solution-relevant information and aid in the organizing and integrating of it, facilitate both immediate problem solving and generalization of that ability to new problems. Thus, visual cues can facilitate re-representing a problem and overcoming impasse, enabling a correct solution. Importantly, these cueing effects on problem solving did not involve the solvers' attention necessarily embodying the solution to the problem, but were instead caused by solvers attending to and integrating relevant information in the problems into a solution path. Second, this study demonstrates that when such cues are used across multiple problems, solvers can automatize the extraction of problem-relevant information extraction. These results suggest that low-level attentional selection processes provide a necessary gateway for relevant information to be used in problem solving, but are generally not sufficient for correct problem solving. Instead, factors that lead a solver to an impasse and to organize and integrate problem information also greatly facilitate arriving at correct solutions.

Use of Okadaic Acid to Identify Relevant Phosphoepitopes in Pathology: A Focus on Neurodegeneration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jesús Avila

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Protein phosphorylation is involved in the regulation of a wide variety of physiological processes and is the result of a balance between protein kinase and phosphatase activities. Biologically active marine derived compounds have been shown to represent an interesting source of novel compounds that could modify that balance. Among them, the marine toxin and tumor promoter, okadaic acid (OA, has been shown as an inhibitor of two of the main cytosolic, broad-specificity protein phosphatases, PP1 and PP2A, thus providing an excellent cell-permeable probe for examining the role of protein phosphorylation, and PP1 and PP2A in particular, in any physiological or pathological process. In the present work, we review the use of okadaic acid to identify specific phosphoepitopes mainly in proteins relevant for neurodegeneration. We will specifically highlight those cases of highly dynamic phosphorylation-dephosphorylation events and the ability of OA to block the high turnover phosphorylation, thus allowing the detection of modified residues that could be otherwise difficult to identify. Finally, its effect on tau hyperhosphorylation and its relevance in neurodegenerative pathologies such as Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia will be discussed.

A Peep into the Uncertainty-Complexity-Relevance Modeling Trilemma through Global Sensitivity and Uncertainty Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Munoz-Carpena, R.; Muller, S. J.; Chu, M.; Kiker, G. A.; Perz, S. G.

2014-12-01

Model Model complexity resulting from the need to integrate environmental system components cannot be understated. In particular, additional emphasis is urgently needed on rational approaches to guide decision making through uncertainties surrounding the integrated system across decision-relevant scales. However, in spite of the difficulties that the consideration of modeling uncertainty represent for the decision process, it should not be avoided or the value and science behind the models will be undermined. These two issues; i.e., the need for coupled models that can answer the pertinent questions and the need for models that do so with sufficient certainty, are the key indicators of a model's relevance. Model relevance is inextricably linked with model complexity. Although model complexity has advanced greatly in recent years there has been little work to rigorously characterize the threshold of relevance in integrated and complex models. Formally assessing the relevance of the model in the face of increasing complexity would be valuable because there is growing unease among developers and users of complex models about the cumulative effects of various sources of uncertainty on model outputs. In particular, this issue has prompted doubt over whether the considerable effort going into further elaborating complex models will in fact yield the expected payback. New approaches have been proposed recently to evaluate the uncertainty-complexity-relevance modeling trilemma (Muller, Muñoz-Carpena and Kiker, 2011) by incorporating state-of-the-art global sensitivity and uncertainty analysis (GSA/UA) in every step of the model development so as to quantify not only the uncertainty introduced by the addition of new environmental components, but the effect that these new components have over existing components (interactions, non-linear responses). Outputs from the analysis can also be used to quantify system resilience (stability, alternative states, thresholds or tipping

Using small XML elements to support relevance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

G. Ramirez Camps (Georgina); T.H.W. Westerveld (Thijs); A.P. de Vries (Arjen)

2006-01-01

htmlabstractSmall XML elements are often estimated relevant by the retrieval model but they are not desirable retrieval units. This paper presents a generic model that exploits the information obtained from small elements. We identify relationships between small and relevant elements and use this

Exploiting the Semantic Web to Represent Information from On-line Collaborative Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jordi Conesa

2012-08-01

Full Text Available In this paper we propose a framework for modeling, representing populating and enriching information from online collaborative sessions within Web forums. The main piece of the framework is an ontology called Collaborative Session Conceptual Schema (CS that allows for specifying collaborative sessions. The paper describes the information this ontology needs to know, the alignment of the ontology with the ontologies of relevant specifications, how the ontology can be automatically populated from the data existent in forums, and how to model such data about what is happening during the collaboration by using a dialogue-based model. This model is based on primitive exchange moves found in any forum posts, which are then categorized at different description levels with the aim to effectively collect and classify the type and intention of the forum posts. An experiment has been conducted to assess the validity and usefulness of the presented approach. The research reported in this paper is currently undertaken within a FP7 European project called ALICE.

ADO: a disease ontology representing the domain knowledge specific to Alzheimer's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Malhotra, Ashutosh; Younesi, Erfan; Gündel, Michaela; Müller, Bernd; Heneka, Michael T; Hofmann-Apitius, Martin

2014-03-01

Biomedical ontologies offer the capability to structure and represent domain-specific knowledge semantically. Disease-specific ontologies can facilitate knowledge exchange across multiple disciplines, and ontology-driven mining approaches can generate great value for modeling disease mechanisms. However, in the case of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, there is a lack of formal representation of the relevant knowledge domain. Alzheimer's disease ontology (ADO) is constructed in accordance to the ontology building life cycle. The Protégé OWL editor was used as a tool for building ADO in Ontology Web Language format. ADO was developed with the purpose of containing information relevant to four main biological views-preclinical, clinical, etiological, and molecular/cellular mechanisms-and was enriched by adding synonyms and references. Validation of the lexicalized ontology by means of named entity recognition-based methods showed a satisfactory performance (F score = 72%). In addition to structural and functional evaluation, a clinical expert in the field performed a manual evaluation and curation of ADO. Through integration of ADO into an information retrieval environment, we show that the ontology supports semantic search in scientific text. The usefulness of ADO is authenticated by dedicated use case scenarios. Development of ADO as an open ADO is a first attempt to organize information related to Alzheimer's disease in a formalized, structured manner. We demonstrate that ADO is able to capture both established and scattered knowledge existing in scientific text. Copyright © 2014 The Alzheimer's Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Clinically relevant incidental cardiovascular findings in CT examinations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Voigt, P.; Fahnert, J.; Kahn, T.; Surov, A.; Schramm, D.; Bach, A.G.

2017-01-01

Incidental cardiovascular findings are a frequent phenomenon in computed tomography (CT) examinations. As the result of a dedicated PubMed search this article gives a systemic overview of the current literature on the most important incidental cardiovascular findings, their prevalence and clinical relevance. The majority of incidental cardiovascular findings are of only low clinical relevance; however, highly relevant incidental findings, such as aortic aneurysms, thromboses and thromboembolic events can also occasionally be found, especially in oncology patients. The scans from every CT examination should also be investigated for incidental findings as they can be of decisive importance for the further clinical management of patients, depending on their clinical relevance. (orig.) [de

Dietary Acid Load and Potassium Intake Associate with Blood Pressure and Hypertension Prevalence in a Representative Sample of the German Adult Population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danika Krupp

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Diets rich in fruits and vegetables, like the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH-diet, are usually characterized by high potassium intake and reduced dietary acid load, and have been shown to reduce blood pressure (BP. However, the relevance of potential renal acid load (PRAL for BP has not been compared with the relevance to BP of urinary biomarker (K-urine- and dietary food frequency questionnaire (K-FFQ-based estimates of potassium intake in a general adult population sample. For 6788 participants (aged 18–79 years of the representative German Health-Interview and Examination Survey for Adults (DEGS1, associations of PRAL, K-urine, and K-FFQ with BP and hypertension prevalence were cross-sectionally examined in multivariable linear and logistic regression models. PRAL was significantly associated with higher systolic BP (p = 0.0002 and higher hypertension prevalence (Odds ratio [OR] high vs. low PRAL = 1.45, p = 0.0004 in models adjusted for age, sex, body mass index (BMI, estimated sodium intake, kidney function, relevant medication, and further important covariates. Higher estimates of K-FFQ and K-urine were related to lower systolic BP (p = 0.04 and p < 0.0001 and lower hypertension prevalence (OR = 0.82, p = 0.04 and OR = 0.77, p = 0.02 as well as a lower diastolic BP (p = 0.03 and p = 0.0003. Our results show, for the first time in a comparative analysis of a large representative population sample, significant relationships of BP and hypertension prevalence with questionnaire- and biomarker-based estimates of potassium intake and with an estimate of dietary acid load.

Shippingport: A relevant decommissioning project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Crimi, F.P.

1988-01-01

Because of Shippingport's low electrical power rating (72 MWe), there has been some misunderstanding on the relevancy of the Shippingport Station Decommissioning Project (SSDP) to a modern 1175 MWe commercial pressurized water reactor (PWR) power station. This paper provides a comparison of the major components of the reactor plant of the 72 MWe Shippingport Atomic Power Station and an 1175 MWe nuclear plant and the relevancy of the Shippingport decommissioning as a demonstration project for the nuclear industry. For the purpose of this comparison, Portland General Electric Company's 1175 MWe Trojan Nuclear Plant at Rainier, Oregon, has been used as the reference nuclear power plant. 2 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab

Clinical Relevance of Adipokines

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Matthias Blüher

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The incidence of obesity has increased dramatically during recent decades. Obesity increases the risk for metabolic and cardiovascular diseases and may therefore contribute to premature death. With increasing fat mass, secretion of adipose tissue derived bioactive molecules (adipokines changes towards a pro-inflammatory, diabetogenic and atherogenic pattern. Adipokines are involved in the regulation of appetite and satiety, energy expenditure, activity, endothelial function, hemostasis, blood pressure, insulin sensitivity, energy metabolism in insulin sensitive tissues, adipogenesis, fat distribution and insulin secretion in pancreatic β-cells. Therefore, adipokines are clinically relevant as biomarkers for fat distribution, adipose tissue function, liver fat content, insulin sensitivity, chronic inflammation and have the potential for future pharmacological treatment strategies for obesity and its related diseases. This review focuses on the clinical relevance of selected adipokines as markers or predictors of obesity related diseases and as potential therapeutic tools or targets in metabolic and cardiovascular diseases.

The impact of positive, negative and topical relevance feedback

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kaptein, Rianne; Kamps, Jaap; Hiemstra, Djoerd

2008-01-01

This document contains a description of experiments for the 2008 Relevance Feedback track. We experiment with different amounts of feedback, including negative relevance feedback. Feedback is implemented using massive weighted query expansion. Parsimonious query expansion using only relevant

Examining Hip-Hop as Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jung; Pulido, Isaura

2015-01-01

Culturally relevant pedagogy is a framework that conceptualizes the process of student learning as contingent upon educators' deep understanding of students' cultural backgrounds to co-construct knowledge and develop academic skills. Concurrently, there are a growing number of studies that explore hip-hop as a culturally relevant curriculum for…

Verification of Representative Sampling in RI waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahn, Hong Joo; Song, Byung Cheul; Sohn, Se Cheul; Song, Kyu Seok; Jee, Kwang Yong; Choi, Kwang Seop

2009-01-01

For evaluating the radionuclide inventories for RI wastes, representative sampling is one of the most important parts in the process of radiochemical assay. Sampling to characterized RI waste conditions typically has been based on judgment or convenience sampling of individual or groups. However, it is difficult to get a sample representatively among the numerous drums. In addition, RI waste drums might be classified into heterogeneous wastes because they have a content of cotton, glass, vinyl, gloves, etc. In order to get the representative samples, the sample to be analyzed must be collected from selected every drum. Considering the expense and time of analysis, however, the number of sample has to be minimized. In this study, RI waste drums were classified by the various conditions of the half-life, surface dose, acceptance date, waste form, generator, etc. A sample for radiochemical assay was obtained through mixing samples of each drum. The sample has to be prepared for radiochemical assay and although the sample should be reasonably uniform, it is rare that a completely homogeneous material is received. Every sample is shredded by a 1 ∼ 2 cm 2 diameter and a representative aliquot taken for the required analysis. For verification of representative sampling, classified every group is tested for evaluation of 'selection of representative drum in a group' and 'representative sampling in a drum'

Towards a clinically relevant lentiviral transduction protocol for primary human CD34 hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells.

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Michelle Millington

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Hematopoietic stem cells (HSC, in particular mobilized peripheral blood stem cells, represent an attractive target for cell and gene therapy. Efficient gene delivery into these target cells without compromising self-renewal and multi-potency is crucial for the success of gene therapy. We investigated factors involved in the ex vivo transduction of CD34(+ HSCs in order to develop a clinically relevant transduction protocol for gene delivery. Specifically sought was a protocol that allows for efficient transduction with minimal ex vivo manipulation without serum or other reagents of animal origin.Using commercially available G-CSF mobilized peripheral blood (PB CD34(+ cells as the most clinically relevant target, we systematically examined factors including the use of serum, cytokine combinations, pre-stimulation time, multiplicity of infection (MOI, transduction duration and the use of spinoculation and/or retronectin. A self-inactivating lentiviral vector (SIN-LV carrying enhanced green fluorescent protein (GFP was used as the gene delivery vehicle. HSCs were monitored for transduction efficiency, surface marker expression and cellular function. We were able to demonstrate that efficient gene transduction can be achieved with minimal ex vivo manipulation while maintaining the cellular function of transduced HSCs without serum or other reagents of animal origin.This study helps to better define factors relevant towards developing a standard clinical protocol for the delivery of SIN-LV into CD34(+ cells.

Representative process sampling - in practice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Esbensen, Kim; Friis-Pedersen, Hans Henrik; Julius, Lars Petersen

2007-01-01

Didactic data sets representing a range of real-world processes are used to illustrate "how to do" representative process sampling and process characterisation. The selected process data lead to diverse variogram expressions with different systematics (no range vs. important ranges; trends and....../or periodicity; different nugget effects and process variations ranging from less than one lag to full variogram lag). Variogram data analysis leads to a fundamental decomposition into 0-D sampling vs. 1-D process variances, based on the three principal variogram parameters: range, sill and nugget effect...

The Human Glioblastoma Cell Culture Resource: Validated Cell Models Representing All Molecular Subtypes

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Yuan Xie

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Glioblastoma (GBM is the most frequent and malignant form of primary brain tumor. GBM is essentially incurable and its resistance to therapy is attributed to a subpopulation of cells called glioma stem cells (GSCs. To meet the present shortage of relevant GBM cell (GC lines we developed a library of annotated and validated cell lines derived from surgical samples of GBM patients, maintained under conditions to preserve GSC characteristics. This collection, which we call the Human Glioblastoma Cell Culture (HGCC resource, consists of a biobank of 48 GC lines and an associated database containing high-resolution molecular data. We demonstrate that the HGCC lines are tumorigenic, harbor genomic lesions characteristic of GBMs, and represent all four transcriptional subtypes. The HGCC panel provides an open resource for in vitro and in vivo modeling of a large part of GBM diversity useful to both basic and translational GBM research.

Signal Enhancement as Minimization of Relevant Information Loss

OpenAIRE

Geiger, Bernhard C.; Kubin, Gernot

2012-01-01

We introduce the notion of relevant information loss for the purpose of casting the signal enhancement problem in information-theoretic terms. We show that many algorithms from machine learning can be reformulated using relevant information loss, which allows their application to the aforementioned problem. As a particular example we analyze principle component analysis for dimensionality reduction, discuss its optimality, and show that the relevant information loss can indeed vanish if the r...

Analysis of the Relevance of Information Content of the Value Added Statement in the Brazilian Capital Markets

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Márcio André Veras Machado

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The usefulness of financial statements depends, fundamentally, on the degree of relevance of the information they disclose to users. Thus, studies that measure the relevance of accounting information to the users of financial statements are of some importance. One line of research within this subject is in ascertaining the relevance and importance of accounting information for the capital markets: if a particular item of accounting information is minimally reflected in the price of a share, it is because this information has relevance, at least at a certain level of significance, for investors and analysts of the capital markets. This present study aims to analyze the relevance, in the Brazilian capital markets, of the information content of the Value Added Statement (or VAS - referred to in Brazil as the Demonstração do Valor Adicionado, or DVA. It analyzed the ratio between stock price and Wealth created per share (WCPS, using linear regressions, for the period 2005-2011, for non-financial listed companies included in Melhores & Maiores ('Biggest & Best', an annual listing published by Exame Magazine in Brazil. As a secondary objective, this article seeks to establish whether WCPS represents a better indication of a company's result than Net profit per share (in this study, referred to as NPPS. The empirical evidence that was found supports the concept that the VAS has relevant information content, because it shows a capacity to explain a variation in the share price of the companies studied. Additionally, the relationship between WCPS and the stock price was shown to be significant, even after the inclusion of the control variables Stockholders' equity per share (which we abbreviate in this study to SEPS and NPPS. Finally, the evidence found indicates that the market reacts more to WCPS (Wealth created per share than to NPPS. Thus, the results obtained give some indication that, for the Brazilian capital markets, WCPS may be a better proxy

Translation as secondary communication. The relevance theory ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ernst-August Gutt started one of the greatest translation debates of the past ten years when he suggested that relevance theory holds the key to providing a unified account of translation. The bulk of the debate has been between practitioners of functional equivalence and advocates of a relevance theoretic approach to ...

The "local economy" effect of social transfers : an empirical assessment of the impactof th Bolsa Familia program on local productive structure and economic growth

OpenAIRE

Rougier, E.; Combarnous, F.; Fauré, Yves-André

2018-01-01

Social transfers impact local economic growth through local demand multiplier and local productive structures. Using original data on productive structures, growth determinants and Bolsa Familia conditional transfers (BFP) for the 184 municipalities of the Brazilian state of Ceará during 2003–10, we show that the positive impact of the transfers on local growth is in fact conditional on the direction of local economic structure transformation. Indeed, transfers did spur light manufactur...

Measurement of sexual health in the U.S.: an inventory of nationally representative surveys and surveillance systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Ivankovich, Megan B; Leichliter, Jami S; Douglas, John M

2013-01-01

To identify opportunities within nationally representative surveys and surveillance systems to measure indicators of sexual health, we reviewed and inventoried existing data systems that include variables relevant to sexual health. We searched for U.S. nationally representative surveys and surveillance systems that provided individual-level sexual health data. We assessed the methods of each data system and catalogued them by their measurement of the following domains of sexual health: knowledge, communication, attitudes, service access and utilization, sexual behaviors, relationships, and adverse health outcomes. We identified 18 U.S.-focused, nationally representative data systems: six assessing the general population, seven focused on special populations, and five addressing health outcomes. While these data systems provide a rich repository of information from which to assess national measures of sexual health, they present several limitations. Most importantly, apart from data on service utilization, routinely gathered, national data are currently focused primarily on negative aspects of sexual health (e.g., risk behaviors and adverse health outcomes) rather than more positive attributes (e.g., healthy communication and attitudes, and relationship quality). Nationally representative data systems provide opportunities to measure a broad array of domains of sexual health. However, current measurement gaps indicate the need to modify existing surveys, where feasible and appropriate, and develop new tools to include additional indicators that address positive domains of sexual health of the U.S. population across the life span. Such data can inform the development of effective policy actions, services, prevention programs, and resource allocation to advance sexual health.

The Relevant Physical Trace in Criminal Investigation

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Durdica Hazard

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A criminal investigation requires the forensic scientist to search and to interpret vestiges of a criminal act that happened in the past. The forensic scientist is one of the many stakeholders who take part in the information quest within the criminal justice system. She reads the investigation scene in search of physical traces that should enable her to tell the story of the offense/crime that allegedly occurred. The challenge for any investigator is to detect and recognize relevant physical traces in order to provide clues for investigation and intelligence purposes, and that will constitute sound and relevant evidence for the court. This article shows how important it is to consider the relevancy of physical traces from the beginning of the investigation and what might influence the evaluation process. The exchange and management of information between the investigation stakeholders are important. Relevancy is a dimension that needs to be understood from the standpoints of law enforcement personnel and forensic scientists with the aim of strengthening investigation and ultimately the overall judicial process.

Software Helps Retrieve Information Relevant to the User

Science.gov (United States)

Mathe, Natalie; Chen, James

2003-01-01

The Adaptive Indexing and Retrieval Agent (ARNIE) is a code library, designed to be used by an application program, that assists human users in retrieving desired information in a hypertext setting. Using ARNIE, the program implements a computational model for interactively learning what information each human user considers relevant in context. The model, called a "relevance network," incrementally adapts retrieved information to users individual profiles on the basis of feedback from the users regarding specific queries. The model also generalizes such knowledge for subsequent derivation of relevant references for similar queries and profiles, thereby, assisting users in filtering information by relevance. ARNIE thus enables users to categorize and share information of interest in various contexts. ARNIE encodes the relevance and structure of information in a neural network dynamically configured with a genetic algorithm. ARNIE maintains an internal database, wherein it saves associations, and from which it returns associated items in response to a query. A C++ compiler for a platform on which ARNIE will be utilized is necessary for creating the ARNIE library but is not necessary for the execution of the software.

Neutrophil programming dynamics and its disease relevance.

Science.gov (United States)

Ran, Taojing; Geng, Shuo; Li, Liwu

2017-11-01

Neutrophils are traditionally considered as first responders to infection and provide antimicrobial host defense. However, recent advances indicate that neutrophils are also critically involved in the modulation of host immune environments by dynamically adopting distinct functional states. Functionally diverse neutrophil subsets are increasingly recognized as critical components mediating host pathophysiology. Despite its emerging significance, molecular mechanisms as well as functional relevance of dynamically programmed neutrophils remain to be better defined. The increasing complexity of neutrophil functions may require integrative studies that address programming dynamics of neutrophils and their pathophysiological relevance. This review aims to provide an update on the emerging topics of neutrophil programming dynamics as well as their functional relevance in diseases.

49 CFR 556.9 - Public inspection of relevant information.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 49 Transportation 6 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Public inspection of relevant information. 556.9... NONCOMPLIANCE § 556.9 Public inspection of relevant information. Information relevant to a petition under this... Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590. Copies of available information may be obtained in...

Android Smartphone Relevance to Military Weather Applications

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-01

lithium -ion battery that may be replaced by the user (unlike Apple iPod Touch devices), thus spare batteries can be carried. If there is only sporadic...Android Smartphone Relevance to Military Weather Applications by David Sauter ARL-TR-5793 October 2011...Android Smartphone Relevance to Military Weather Applications David Sauter Computational and Information Sciences Directorate, ARL

Information Needs/Relevance

OpenAIRE

Wildemuth, Barbara M.

2009-01-01

A user's interaction with a DL is often initiated as the result of the user experiencing an information need of some kind. Aspects of that experience and how it might affect the user's interactions with the DL are discussed in this module. In addition, users continuously make decisions about and evaluations of the materials retrieved from a DL, relative to their information needs. Relevance judgments, and their relationship to the user's information needs, are discussed in this module. Draft

On relevant boundary perturbations of unitary minimal models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recknagel, A.; Roggenkamp, D.; Schomerus, V.

2000-01-01

We consider unitary Virasoro minimal models on the disk with Cardy boundary conditions and discuss deformations by certain relevant boundary operators, analogous to tachyon condensation in string theory. Concentrating on the least relevant boundary field, we can perform a perturbative analysis of renormalization group fixed points. We find that the systems always flow towards stable fixed points which admit no further (non-trivial) relevant perturbations. The new conformal boundary conditions are in general given by superpositions of 'pure' Cardy boundary conditions

Towards operations on Tore Supra of an ITER relevant inspection robot and associated processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gargiulo, L.; Cordier, J.J.; Friconneau, J.P.; Grisolia, C.; Palmer, J.D.; Perrot, Y.; Samaille, F.

2007-01-01

The aim of the project is to demonstrate on Tore Supra the reliability of a multi-purpose in-vessel remote handling inspection system using a long reach, limited payload carrier. The robot prototype is fully representative of the deployment carrier system that could be required on ITER. The demonstration on Tore Supra will help in the understanding of operation issues that could occur in the tokamak vacuum vessel equipped of actively cooled components. The viewing process that is currently under development will allow close inspection of the Tore Supra plasma facing components that are representative of the ITER divertor targets in terms of confined environment and identification of possible tiles failure of CFC carbon tiles. One of the other potential inspection processes that is foreseen to be tested using the AIA carrier in Tore Supra is the laser ablation system of the CFC armour. It could be fully relevant for the ITER wall detritiation issues. Such process can be simulated on Tore Supra through the deuterium inventory under long-time plasma discharges. The in situ leakage localisation of a damaged plasma facing component is also one of the major ITER maintenance challenges that could use remote handling inspection tools

Towards operations on Tore Supra of an ITER relevant inspection robot and associated processes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gargiulo, L. [Association Euratom-CEA, DSM/Departement de Recherche sur la Fusion Controlee, CEA/Cadarache, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France)], E-mail: laurent.gargiulo@cea.fr; Cordier, J.J. [Association Euratom-CEA, DSM/Departement de Recherche sur la Fusion Controlee, CEA/Cadarache, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); Friconneau, J.P. [CEA-LIST Robotics and Interactive Systems Unit, BP6 F-92265 Fontenay aux Roses Cedex (France); Grisolia, C. [Association Euratom-CEA, DSM/Departement de Recherche sur la Fusion Controlee, CEA/Cadarache, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France); Palmer, J.D. [EFDA CSU, Max-Planck-Institut fuer Plasma Physik Boltzmannstr. 2, D-85748 Garching (Germany); Perrot, Y. [CEA-LIST Robotics and Interactive Systems Unit, BP6 F-92265 Fontenay aux Roses Cedex (France); Samaille, F. [Association Euratom-CEA, DSM/Departement de Recherche sur la Fusion Controlee, CEA/Cadarache, F-13108 Saint Paul Lez Durance Cedex (France)

2007-10-15

The aim of the project is to demonstrate on Tore Supra the reliability of a multi-purpose in-vessel remote handling inspection system using a long reach, limited payload carrier. The robot prototype is fully representative of the deployment carrier system that could be required on ITER. The demonstration on Tore Supra will help in the understanding of operation issues that could occur in the tokamak vacuum vessel equipped of actively cooled components. The viewing process that is currently under development will allow close inspection of the Tore Supra plasma facing components that are representative of the ITER divertor targets in terms of confined environment and identification of possible tiles failure of CFC carbon tiles. One of the other potential inspection processes that is foreseen to be tested using the AIA carrier in Tore Supra is the laser ablation system of the CFC armour. It could be fully relevant for the ITER wall detritiation issues. Such process can be simulated on Tore Supra through the deuterium inventory under long-time plasma discharges. The in situ leakage localisation of a damaged plasma facing component is also one of the major ITER maintenance challenges that could use remote handling inspection tools.

The Relevance of Causal Social Construction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marques Teresa

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Social constructionist claims are surprising and interesting when they entail that presumably natural kinds are in fact socially constructed. The claims are interesting because of their theoretical and political importance. Authors like Díaz-León argue that constitutive social construction is more relevant for achieving social justice than causal social construction. This paper challenges this claim. Assuming there are socially salient groups that are discriminated against, the paper presents a dilemma: if there were no constitutively constructed social kinds, the causes of the discrimination of existing social groups would have to be addressed, and understanding causal social construction would be relevant to achieve social justice. On the other hand, not all possible constitutively socially constructed kinds are actual social kinds. If an existing social group is constitutively constructed as a social kind K, the fact that it actually exists as a K has social causes. Again, causal social construction is relevant. The paper argues that (i for any actual social kind X, if X is constitutively socially constructed as K, then it is also causally socially constructed; and (ii causal social construction is at least as relevant as constitutive social construction for concerns of social justice. For illustration, I draw upon two phenomena that are presumed to contribute towards the discrimination of women: (i the poor performance effects of stereotype threat, and (ii the silencing effects of gendered language use.

Relevant Factors for Establishing Inter-firm Cooperation Networks in Rio Grande do Sul

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Renato Verschoore

2008-10-01

Full Text Available The cooperation among firms in a network form has been stressed as an alternative organizational configuration in response to recent economic transformation. The increased number of initiatives and the empirical research scarcity on the network formation in Brazil motivated the present study. The main objective of this paper is to comprehend the factors which effect the establishment of network cooperation in the Southern Brazilian context. In order to achieve this objective a quantitative research was carried out with 443 enterprise representatives, associated to 120 cooperation networks. The empirical data were collected by the researchers in 2005 and statistically processed through a conjoint analysis. The results confirmed the theoretical propositions built by the researchers,appointing the relevance of factors, such as learning and innovation, increased scale and market power, and access to solutions.

Looking for a relevant potential evapotranspiration model at the watershed scale

Science.gov (United States)

Oudin, L.; Hervieu, F.; Michel, C.; Perrin, C.; Anctil, F.; Andréassian, V.

2003-04-01

In this paper, we try to identify the most relevant approach to calculate Potential Evapotranspiration (PET) for use in a daily watershed model, to try to bring an answer to the following question: "how can we use commonly available atmospheric parameters to represent the evaporative demand at the catchment scale?". Hydrologists generally see the Penman model as the ideal model regarding to its good adequacy with lysimeter measurements and its physically-based formulation. However, in real-world engineering situations, where meteorological stations are scarce, hydrologists are often constrained to use other PET formulae with less data requirements or/and long-term average of PET values (the rationale being that PET is an inherently conservative variable). We chose to test 28 commonly used PET models coupled with 4 different daily watershed models. For each test, we compare both PET input options: actual data and long-term average data. The comparison is made in terms of streamflow simulation efficiency, over a large sample of 308 watersheds. The watersheds are located in France, Australia and the United States of America and represent varied climates. Strikingly, we find no systematic improvements of the watershed model efficiencies when using actual PET series instead of long-term averages. This suggests either that watershed models may not conveniently use the climatic information contained in PET values or that formulae are only awkward indicators of the real PET which watershed models need.

Does visual working memory represent the predicted locations of future target objects? An event-related brain potential study.

Science.gov (United States)

Grubert, Anna; Eimer, Martin

2015-11-11

During the maintenance of task-relevant objects in visual working memory, the contralateral delay activity (CDA) is elicited over the hemisphere opposite to the visual field where these objects are presented. The presence of this lateralised CDA component demonstrates the existence of position-dependent object representations in working memory. We employed a change detection task to investigate whether the represented object locations in visual working memory are shifted in preparation for the known location of upcoming comparison stimuli. On each trial, bilateral memory displays were followed after a delay period by bilateral test displays. Participants had to encode and maintain three visual objects on one side of the memory display, and to judge whether they were identical or different to three objects in the test display. Task-relevant memory and test stimuli were located in the same visual hemifield in the no-shift task, and on opposite sides in the horizontal shift task. CDA components of similar size were triggered contralateral to the memorized objects in both tasks. The absence of a polarity reversal of the CDA in the horizontal shift task demonstrated that there was no preparatory shift of memorized object location towards the side of the upcoming comparison stimuli. These results suggest that visual working memory represents the locations of visual objects during encoding, and that the matching of memorized and test objects at different locations is based on a comparison process that can bridge spatial translations between these objects. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Prediction and Attention. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Is Information Still Relevant?

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Lia

2013-01-01

Introduction: The term "information" in information science does not share the characteristics of those of a nomenclature: it does not bear a generally accepted definition and it does not serve as the bases and assumptions for research studies. As the data deluge has arrived, is the concept of information still relevant for information…

Analysis of Evolutionarily Independent Protein-RNA Complexes Yields a Criterion to Evaluate the Relevance of Prebiotic Scenarios.

Science.gov (United States)

Blanco, Celia; Bayas, Marco; Yan, Fu; Chen, Irene A

2018-02-19

A central difficulty facing study of the origin of life on Earth is evaluating the relevance of different proposed prebiotic scenarios. Perhaps the most established feature of the origin of life was the progression through an RNA World, a prebiotic stage dominated by functional RNA. We use the appearance of proteins in the RNA World to understand the prebiotic milieu and develop a criterion to evaluate proposed synthetic scenarios. Current consensus suggests that the earliest amino acids of the genetic code were anionic or small hydrophobic or polar amino acids. However, the ability to interact with the RNA World would have been a crucial feature of early proteins. To determine which amino acids would be important for the RNA World, we analyze non-biological protein-aptamer complexes in which the RNA or DNA is the result of in vitro evolution. This approach avoids confounding effects of biological context and evolutionary history. We use bioinformatic analysis and molecular dynamics simulations to characterize these complexes. We find that positively charged and aromatic amino acids are over-represented whereas small hydrophobic amino acids are under-represented. Binding enthalpy is found to be primarily electrostatic, with positively charged amino acids contributing cooperatively to binding enthalpy. Arginine dominates all modes of interaction at the interface. These results suggest that proposed prebiotic syntheses must be compatible with cationic amino acids, particularly arginine or a biophysically similar amino acid, in order to be relevant to the invention of protein by the RNA World. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Short-range contacts govern the performance of industry-relevant battery cathodes

Science.gov (United States)

Morelly, Samantha L.; Alvarez, Nicolas J.; Tang, Maureen H.

2018-05-01

Fundamental understanding of how processing affects composite battery electrode structure and performance is still lacking, especially for industry-relevant electrodes with low fractions of inactive material. This work combines rheology, electronic conductivity measurements, and battery rate capability tests to prove that short-range electronic contacts are more important to cathode rate capability than either ion transport or long-range electronic conductivity. LiNi0.33Mn0.33Co0.33O2, carbon black, and polyvinylidene difluoride in 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone represent a typical commercial electrode with films. Improvements in battery rate capability at constant electrode porosity do not correlate to electronic conductivity, but rather show an optimum fraction of free carbon. Simple comparison of rate capability in electrodes with increased total carbon loading (3 wt%) shows improvement for all fractions of free carbon. These results clearly indicate that ion transport cannot be limiting and highlight the critical importance of short-range electronic contacts for controlling battery performance.

Modelling low energy electron and positron tracks in biologically relevant media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blanco, F.; Munoz, A.; Almeida, D.; Ferreira da Silva, F.; Limao-Vieira, P.; Fuss, M.C.; Sanz, A.G.; Garcia, G.

2013-01-01

This colloquium describes an approach to incorporate into radiation damage models the effect of low and intermediate energy (0-100 eV) electrons and positrons, slowing down in biologically relevant materials (water and representative biomolecules). The core of the modelling procedure is a C++ computing programme named 'Low Energy Particle Track Simulation (LEPTS)', which is compatible with available general purpose Monte Carlo packages. Input parameters are carefully selected from theoretical and experimental cross section data and energy loss distribution functions. Data sources used for this purpose are reviewed showing examples of electron and positron cross section and energy loss data for interactions with different media of increasing complexity: atoms, molecules, clusters and condense matter. Finally, we show how such a model can be used to develop an effective dosimetric tool at the molecular level (i.e. nanodosimetry). Recent experimental developments to study the fragmentation induced in biologically material by charge transfer from neutrals and negative ions are also included. (authors)

Clinical relevance of retrieval cues for attenuating context renewal of fear.

Science.gov (United States)

Culver, Najwa C; Stoyanova, Milena; Craske, Michelle G

2011-03-01

The present studies investigated if retrieval cues (reminder objects) can attenuate context renewal of fear. In Study 1, 32 participants completed exposure in one of two contexts; 1-week follow-up testing occurred in a novel or the same context. Results indicated significant renewal of fear for those tested in a novel context. In Study 2, 40 participants completed exposure in one of these contexts; half were presented with cues. One week later, all were tested in a novel context with or without cues. Results indicated weak attenuation of context renewal for participants re-presented with cues. In Study 3, 18 participants completed exposure in one of two maximally distinct contexts; all with cues. One week later, participants were tested in a novel context with or without cues. Results indicated no group differences. These findings suggest that clinical relevance of this set of cues for attenuating context renewal may be limited. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Bringing Relevance to Elearning--A Gender Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Wallace, Ann; Panteli, Niki

2018-01-01

In this paper, we discuss the importance of relevance in the provision of eLearning for the pursuit of higher education (HE). In particular, we argue how the extant literature focuses on quality and security in the design of eLearning platforms, but pays scant attention to how relevant the platform and the programme contents are to the needs of…

Revolutionary land use change in the 21st century: Is (rangeland) science relevant?

Science.gov (United States)

Herrick, J.E.; Brown, J.R.; Bestelmeyer, B.T.; Andrews, S.S.; Baldi, G.; Davies, J.; Duniway, M.; Havstad, K.M.; Karl, J.W.; Karlen, D.L.; Peters, Debra P.C.; Quinton, J.N.; Riginos, C.; Shaver, P.L.; Steinaker, D.; Twomlow, S.

2012-01-01

Rapidly increasing demand for food, fiber, and fuel together with new technologies and the mobility of global capital are driving revolutionary changes in land use throughout the world. Efforts to increase land productivity include conversion of millions of hectares of rangelands to crop production, including many marginal lands with low resistance and resilience to degradation. Sustaining the productivity of these lands requires careful land use planning and innovative management systems. Historically, this responsibility has been left to agronomists and others with expertise in crop production. In this article, we argue that the revolutionary land use changes necessary to support national and global food security potentially make rangeland science more relevant now than ever. Maintaining and increasing relevance will require a revolutionary change in range science from a discipline that focuses on a particular land use or land cover to one that addresses the challenge of managing all lands that, at one time, were considered to be marginal for crop production. We propose four strategies to increase the relevance of rangeland science to global land management: 1) expand our awareness and understanding of local to global economic, social, and technological trends in order to anticipate and identify drivers and patterns of conversion; 2) emphasize empirical studies and modeling that anticipate the biophysical (ecosystem services) and societal consequences of large-scale changes in land cover and use; 3) significantly increase communication and collaboration with the disciplines and sectors of society currently responsible for managing the new land uses; and 4) develop and adopt a dynamic and flexible resilience-based land classification system and data-supported conceptual models (e.g., state-and-transition models) that represent all lands, regardless of use and the consequences of land conversion to various uses instead of changes in state or condition that are

Experiments with positive, negative and topical relevance feedback

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kaptein, R.; Kamps, J.; Li, R.; Hiemstra, D.

2008-01-01

This document contains a description of experiments for the 2008 Relevance Feedback track. We experiment with different amounts of feedback, including negative relevance feedback. Feedback is implemented using massive weighted query expansion. Parsimonious query expansion using Dirichlet smoothing

Application to Representative Structures. Other Representative Structures: Mutsu-Ogawara, Niigata East and West

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, John Dalsgaard; Burcharth, Hans F.

1999-01-01

Reliability analyses are performed for three Japanese vertical wall breakwaters in this chapter. Only the geotechnical failure modes described in chapter 3 are investigated. For none of the breakwaters detailed data are available for the wave climate and for the soil conditions. Therefore represe...

Relevance between the degree of industrial competition and fair value information: Study on the listed companies in China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xuemin Zhuang

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Purpose: The purpose of this article is to study whether there exists natural relationship between fair value and corporate external market. A series of special phenomenon in the application of fair value arouses our research interests, which present evidences on how competition affects the correlation of fair value information. Design/methodology/approach: this thesis chooses fair value changes gains and losses and calculate the ratio of DFVPSit as the alternative variable of the fair value. In order to effectively inspect the mutual influence between the degree of industry competition and the value relevance of fair value, and reduce the impact of multi-collinearity, we built a regression model on the hypothesis, which supposes that if other conditions are the same, the fair value information has greater value relevance if the degree of the industry competition is greater. To test the hypothesis, we use the comparison of the DFVPSit coefficient absolute value to judge the value relevance of fair value information, and the greater the absolute value is, the higher relevance between the changes in fair value per share profits and losses with the stock prices. Findings: The higher the degree of competition in the industry is, the more fair value information relevance is. Also, there are evidences representing that fair value information often presents negative correlation with the stock price. Originality/value: The main contribution of the article is to show that not only need we make the formulation and implementation of the high quality of fair value accounting standards to suit for both the national conditions and international practice, but also need we further to improve the company's external governance mechanism to promote fair value’s information correlation.

40 CFR 60.4111 - Alternate Hg designated representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Alternate Hg designated representative... Times for Coal-Fired Electric Steam Generating Units Hg Designated Representative for Hg Budget Sources § 60.4111 Alternate Hg designated representative. (a) A certificate of representation under § 60.4113...

How Body Orientation Affects Concepts of Space, Time and Valence: Functional Relevance of Integrating Sensorimotor Experiences during Word Processing.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Lachmair

Full Text Available The aim of the present study was to test the functional relevance of the spatial concepts UP or DOWN for words that use these concepts either literally (space or metaphorically (time, valence. A functional relevance would imply a symmetrical relationship between the spatial concepts and words related to these concepts, showing that processing words activate the related spatial concepts on one hand, but also that an activation of the concepts will ease the retrieval of a related word on the other. For the latter, the rotation angle of participant's body position was manipulated either to an upright or a head-down tilted body position to activate the related spatial concept. Afterwards participants produced in a within-subject design previously memorized words of the concepts space, time and valence according to the pace of a metronome. All words were related either to the spatial concept UP or DOWN. The results including Bayesian analyses show (1 a significant interaction between body position and words using the concepts UP and DOWN literally, (2 a marginal significant interaction between body position and temporal words and (3 no effect between body position and valence words. However, post-hoc analyses suggest no difference between experiments. Thus, the authors concluded that integrating sensorimotor experiences is indeed of functional relevance for all three concepts of space, time and valence. However, the strength of this functional relevance depends on how close words are linked to mental concepts representing vertical space.

Comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty: relevant radionuclides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geer, L.E. de

2001-01-01

With the first version of the IDC software all known radionuclides, less the natural ones and one 'naturalised' man-made one, caused a spectrum measured in the IMS network to be characterised as interesting from a CTBT point of view. But this is really not true for the majority of nuclides, so a change has been made to let only nuclides from a limited set of so called CTBT relevant nuclides have an impact on the characterization scheme. In the present paper the concept of CTBT relevance is analysed and a set of 96 relevant nuclides are defined. Out of these 51 are fission products and 41 are neutron activation products. There are also 4 nuclides which are residues from the nuclear fuel itself or added tracers. (orig.) [de

Marble wastes and pig slurry improve the environmental and plant-relevant properties of mine tailings.

Science.gov (United States)

Kabas, S; Faz, A; Acosta, J A; Arocena, J M; Zornoza, R; Martínez-Martínez, S; Carmona, D M

2014-02-01

Poor soil fertility is often the biggest challenge to the establishment of vegetation in mine wastes deposits. We conducted field trials in the El Gorguel and El Lirio sites in SE Spain, two representative tailing ponds of similar properties except for pH, to understand the environmental and plant-relevant benefits of marble waste (MW) and pig slurry (PS) applications to mine tailings. Low pH (5.4) tailings (El Lirio) exhibit reduction of up to fourfold in bio-availability of metals as shown by the DTPA-Zn, Pb, water-soluble Zn, Pb and up to 3× for water-soluble Cd. Tailings in El Gorguel have high pH (7.4) and did not exhibit significant trends in the reductions of water-extractable Zn, Pb, Cd and Cu. Improvements to the edaphic (plant-relevant) properties of tailings after the amendments are not as sensitive to pH compared to the environmental characteristics. The two sites had increases in aggregate stability, organic matter (total N and organic C) although total N is higher in the El Gorguel (up to 212 μg N kg(-1)) than the El Lirio (up to 26 μg N kg(-1)). However, cation exchange capacities are similar in both sites at 15.2 cmol(+) kg(-1). We conclude that the characteristics, especially pH, of tailing materials significantly influence the fate of metals but not improvements to plant-relevant properties such as cation exchange capacity and aggregate stability 1 year after the application of MW and PS amendments.

Self-relevant beauty evaluation: Evidence from an event-related potentials study.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Fanchang; Zhang, Yan; Tian, Yuan; Fan, Cuiying; Zhou, Zongkui

2015-03-01

This study examines the electrophysiological correlates of beauty evaluation when participants performed the self-reference task. About 13 (7 men, 6 women) undergraduates participated in the experiment using event-related potentials. Results showed that the response to self-relevant information was faster compared to other-relevant information and no significant differences for self-relevant relative to mother-relevant information were observed. Both physical and interior beauty words for self-relevant information showed an enhanced late positive component as compared to other-relevant information. Physical beauty for self-relevant information yielded a larger late positive component in contrast to mother-relevant information but not for interior beauty. This study indicates that beauty is specific to the person who judges it though an individual and one's mother may hold similar views of interior beauty.

Relevance of few-nucleon problems to nuclear power

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Divatia, A.S.

1976-01-01

It is well known that the study of few-nucleon problems did not specifically start because they were relevant to nuclear power. However, as the need for power has become more urgent and the systems which may generate nuclear power in the future are likely to be highly complex, it has become necessary to examine the question of relevance of few-nucleon problems to nuclear power. The nuclear data needs for nuclear power have been studied exhaustively by many groups all over the world and The International Atomic Energy Agency, operating through the International Nuclear Data Committee and their Nuclear Data section, have compiled and evaluated these nuclear data needs. It is therefore possible to draw upon the various studies and compilations of the IAEA for examining the question of relevance. The relevant nuclear data needs for fission reactors, fusion reactors and nuclear safeguards programmes are examined. (Auth.)

The Relevance of the Organic Tradition in Architecture in the Digital Age

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jaeger, Thomas Arvid; Carter, Adrian Stanley

2017-01-01

The paper will propose that as the digital technology evolves, enabling us to increasingly emulate the forms of nature within our built environment, as we see in the parametric design, it will be ever more important to understand the origins of nature and organic growth in form and concept...... of the factors, behind and involved in, creating his version of “new organic architecture” in the fifties - in order to make it possible to compare this with later studies of “digital organic” architecture of the 21. Cent. The relevance of going back to Mumford’s criticism of the consequences...... - and what this means for our perception of architecture. The Digital Age has been introducing a new wave of sculptural, organic curved architecture – often placed as iconic landmarks in the city. These buildings represent a new kind of aesthetics in contrast to the rectangular Euclidian rationalistic...

22 CFR 23.4 - Representative value in exchange.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Representative value in exchange. 23.4 Section 23.4 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE FEES AND FUNDS FINANCE AND ACCOUNTING § 23.4 Representative value in exchange. Representative value in exchange for the collection of a fee means foreign...

Rocchio-based relevance feedback in video event retrieval

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pingen, G.L.J.; de Boer, M.H.T.; Aly, Robin; Amsaleg, Laurent; Guðmundsson, Gylfi Þór; Gurrin, Cathal; Jónsson, Björn Þór; Satoh, Shin’ichi

This paper investigates methods for user and pseudo relevance feedback in video event retrieval. Existing feedback methods achieve strong performance but adjust the ranking based on few individual examples. We propose a relevance feedback algorithm (ARF) derived from the Rocchio method, which is a

Back to the basics: Identifying and addressing underlying challenges in achieving high quality and relevant health statistics for indigenous populations in Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Smylie, Janet; Firestone, Michelle

Canada is known internationally for excellence in both the quality and public policy relevance of its health and social statistics. There is a double standard however with respect to the relevance and quality of statistics for Indigenous populations in Canada. Indigenous specific health and social statistics gathering is informed by unique ethical, rights-based, policy and practice imperatives regarding the need for Indigenous participation and leadership in Indigenous data processes throughout the spectrum of indicator development, data collection, management, analysis and use. We demonstrate how current Indigenous data quality challenges including misclassification errors and non-response bias systematically contribute to a significant underestimate of inequities in health determinants, health status, and health care access between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada. The major quality challenge underlying these errors and biases is the lack of Indigenous specific identifiers that are consistent and relevant in major health and social data sources. The recent removal of an Indigenous identity question from the Canadian census has resulted in further deterioration of an already suboptimal system. A revision of core health data sources to include relevant, consistent, and inclusive Indigenous self-identification is urgently required. These changes need to be carried out in partnership with Indigenous peoples and their representative and governing organizations.

20 CFR 266.7 - Accountability of a representative payee.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Accountability of a representative payee. 266.7 Section 266.7 Employees' Benefits RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD REGULATIONS UNDER THE RAILROAD RETIREMENT ACT REPRESENTATIVE PAYMENT § 266.7 Accountability of a representative payee. (a) A representative...

Burnout in Customer Service Representatives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tariq Jalees

2008-09-01

Full Text Available The purpose and aim of this research was to (1 identify the factors that contributes towards job burnout in sales service representative (2 What are the relationships of these factors (3 To empirically test the relationships of the determinants relating to burnout in customer service representatives. Based on literature survey six different variables related to burnout were identified. The variables were (1 Emotional exhaustion.(2 Reduced personal accomplishment.(3 Job induced tension.(4 Job satisfaction.(5 Workload (6 Job satisfaction.Each of the variables contained 3 sub-variables. Five different hypotheses were developed and tested through techniques such as Z-test, F-test and regression analysis. The questionnaire administered for the study contained 15 questions including personal data. The subject was Moblink company customers sales service representative in Karachi.The valid sample size was 98 drawn through multi-cluster technique. Techniques such as measure of dispersion and measure of central tendencies were used for analyzing the data. Regression, Z-test, and F-test were used for testing the developed hypothesis.According to the respondents’ opinions, the reduced personal accomplishment had a high rating with a mean of 3.75 and job induced tension has the lowest mean of 3.58. The standard deviation of respondents’ opinions was highest for dimension depersonalization and least for dimension work load. This indicates that there is a high polarization of the respondents’ opinions on the dimension depersonalization moral and least on the dimension work load.The Skew nesses for all the dimensions were in negative except the determinants emotional exhaustion and workload. This indicates that the majority of respondents’ opinions on all the dimensions were below the mean except in the case of emotional exhaustion and workload.Five hypotheses were developed and tested:a The hypothesis relating to low level of burnout in customers

An ERP Study on Self-Relevant Object Recognition

Science.gov (United States)

Miyakoshi, Makoto; Nomura, Michio; Ohira, Hideki

2007-01-01

We performed an event-related potential study to investigate the self-relevance effect in object recognition. Three stimulus categories were prepared: SELF (participant's own objects), FAMILIAR (disposable and public objects, defined as objects with less-self-relevant familiarity), and UNFAMILIAR (others' objects). The participants' task was to…

Bonneville Purchasing Instructions. Appendix 14A, Contracting Officer`s Technical Representatives` Guide for Services Contracts.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

United States. Bonneville Power Administration.

1993-07-01

This guide outlines the duties of BPA personnel designated as Contracting Officers Technical Representatives (COTRs). The BPA Administrator gives contracting officers (COs) in BPA responsibility and authority for awarding and administering contracts. COs are authorized to designate other BPA employees to act as their representatives for purposes of contract administration, from the time of contract award until final receipt and acceptance of the contracted services. COTRs are the individuals primarily relied upon to perform technical contract administration functions. Similar functions for supply and construction contracts are performed by engineering representatives, construction inspectors, and inspectors. Although this Guide is written primarily with the COTR in mind, the concept and operation of teamwork is essential throughout the entire process of contract administration. The CO administers the contract during performance, but rarely has expertise in all of the relevant technical areas. Therefore, CO decisions rely on input from a team. The COTR is an indispensable member of that team. The instructions in this Guide are designed to facilitate this essential CO-COTR cooperation. COTR duties are usually additional to those required of the COTR in his or her assigned line organization. The COTR is still accountable to the line supervisor for performance of regularly-assigned duties. These duties are to be reflected appropriately in performance appraisals and job descriptions. For contract administration duties, however, the COTR reports directly to, and is accountable only to, the CO. The COTR`s supervisor must allow sufficient time to ensure that the COTR can adequately monitor the contract for technical compliance. This Guide is designed for COTRs who are performing service contract (including intergovernmental contract) administration functions as an adjunct to their normal technical duties.

Relevant closure: a new form of defeasible reasoning for description logics

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Casini, G

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Relevant Closure and Minimal Relevant Closure. As the names suggest, both rely on defining a version of relevance. Our formalisation of relevance in this context is based on the notion of a justification (a minimal subset of sentences implying a given...

Fundamentals for the safety-relevant design of rotational shiftplans in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Preuss, W.; Herbert, K.W.; Reinartz, G.; Saniter, R.

1984-01-01

The investigation was concerned with the influence of rotational shiftwork on operator performance, particularly in the nuclear power industry. In an analysis of the literature, the fundamental chronobiological knowledge was reviewed. Work physiological criteria for the design of shiftplans were assembled and their relevance to this industry was assessed. In addition, interviews were held with representatives from nuclear power utilities in the Federal Republic of Germany and also in Switzerland and the Netherlands. Characteristics of the shiftplans in current use were recorded and the basic operating principles of the shift systems were ascertained. The alternative designs were discussed and assessed from the point of view of operator performance and their significance to safety. The results of the analysis of the literature and of the interviews with the utilities are presented in two separate volumes of the report. (orig.) [de

Estimating alcohol content of traditional brew in Western Kenya using culturally relevant methods: the case for cost over volume.

Science.gov (United States)

Papas, Rebecca K; Sidle, John E; Wamalwa, Emmanuel S; Okumu, Thomas O; Bryant, Kendall L; Goulet, Joseph L; Maisto, Stephen A; Braithwaite, R Scott; Justice, Amy C

2010-08-01

Traditional homemade brew is believed to represent the highest proportion of alcohol use in sub-Saharan Africa. In Eldoret, Kenya, two types of brew are common: chang'aa, spirits, and busaa, maize beer. Local residents refer to the amount of brew consumed by the amount of money spent, suggesting a culturally relevant estimation method. The purposes of this study were to analyze ethanol content of chang'aa and busaa; and to compare two methods of alcohol estimation: use by cost, and use by volume, the latter the current international standard. Laboratory results showed mean ethanol content was 34% (SD = 14%) for chang'aa and 4% (SD = 1%) for busaa. Standard drink unit equivalents for chang'aa and busaa, respectively, were 2 and 1.3 (US) and 3.5 and 2.3 (Great Britain). Using a computational approach, both methods demonstrated comparable results. We conclude that cost estimation of alcohol content is more culturally relevant and does not differ in accuracy from the international standard.

Nanoparticle dispersion in environmentally relevant culture media: a TiO2 case study and considerations for a general approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horst, Allison M.; Ji, Zhaoxia; Holden, Patricia A.

2012-01-01

Nanoparticle exposure in toxicity studies requires that nanoparticles are bioavailable by remaining highly dispersed in culture media. However, reported dispersion approaches are variable, mostly study-specific, and not transferable owing to their empirical basis. Furthermore, many published approaches employ proteinaceous dispersants in rich laboratory media, both of which represent end members in environmental scenarios. Here, a systematic approach was developed to disperse initially agglomerated TiO 2 nanoparticles (Aeroxide® TiO 2 P25, Evonik, NJ; primary particle size range 6.4–73.8 nm) in oligotrophic culture medium for environmentally relevant bacterial toxicity studies. Based on understanding particle–particle interactions in aqueous media and maintaining environmental relevance, the approach involves (1) quantifying the relationship between pH and zeta potential to determine the point of zero charge of select nanoparticles in water; (2) nominating, then testing and selecting, environmentally relevant stabilizing agents; and (3) dispersing via “condition and capture” whereby stock dry powder nanoparticles are sonicated in pre-conditioned (with base, or acid, plus stabilizing agent) water, then diluted into culture media. The “condition and capture” principle is transferable to other nanoparticle and media chemistries: simultaneously, mechanically and electrostatically, nanoparticles can be dispersed with surrounding stabilizers that coat and sterically hinder reagglomeration in the culture medium.

The value relevance of environmental emissions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melinda Lydia Nelwan

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This study examines whether environmental performance has value relevance by investigating the relations between environmental emissions and stock prices for the U.S. public companies. The previous studies argued that the conjectured relations between accounting performance measures and environmental performance do not have a strong theoretical basis, and the modeling of relations between market per-formance measures and environmental performance do not adequately consider the relevance of accounting performance to market value. Therefore, this study examines whether publicly reported environmental emissions provide incremental information to accounting earnings in pricing companies stocks. It is done among the complete set of industries covered by Toxics Release Inventory (TRI reporting for the period 2007 to 2010. Using Ohlson model but modified to include different types of emis-sions, it is found that ground emissions (underground injection and land emissions are value relevant but other emission types (air and water and transferred-out emis-sions appear to not provide incremental information in the valuation model. The result in this study raise concerns that different types of emissions are assessed differently by the market, confirming that studies should not aggregate such measures.

Students' perceptions of the relevance of mathematics in engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Flegg, Jennifer; Mallet, Dann; Lupton, Mandy

2012-09-01

In this article, we report on the findings of an exploratory study into the experience of students as they learn first year engineering mathematics. Here we define engineering as the application of mathematics and sciences to the building and design of projects for the use of society [M. Kirschenman and B. Brenner, Education for Civil Engineering: A Profession of Practice, Leader. Manag. Eng. 10 (2010), p. 54]. Qualitative and quantitative data on students' views of the relevance of their mathematics study to their engineering studies and future careers in engineering was collected. The students described using a range of mathematics techniques (mathematics skills developed, mathematics concepts applied to engineering and skills developed relevant for engineering) for various usages (as a subject of study, a tool for other subjects or a tool for real world problems). We found a number of themes relating to the design of engineering mathematics curriculum emerged from the data. These included the relevance of mathematics within different engineering majors, the relevance of mathematics to future studies, the relevance of learning mathematical rigour and the effectiveness of problem-solving tasks in conveying the relevance of mathematics more effectively than other forms of assessment. We make recommendations for the design of engineering mathematics curriculum based on our findings.

[Relevant public health enteropathogens].

Science.gov (United States)

Riveros, Maribel; Ochoa, Theresa J

2015-01-01

Diarrhea remains the third leading cause of death in children under five years, despite recent advances in the management and prevention of this disease. It is caused by multiple pathogens, however, the prevalence of each varies by age group, geographical area and the scenario where cases (community vs hospital) are recorded. The most relevant pathogens in public health are those associated with the highest burden of disease, severity, complications and mortality. In our country, norovirus, Campylobacter and diarrheagenic E. coli are the most prevalent pathogens at the community level in children. In this paper we review the local epidemiology and potential areas of development in five selected pathogens: rotavirus, norovirus, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), Shigella and Salmonella. Of these, rotavirus is the most important in the pediatric population and the main agent responsible for child mortality from diarrhea. The introduction of rotavirus vaccination in Peru will have a significant impact on disease burden and mortality from diarrhea. However, surveillance studies are needed to determine the impact of vaccination and changes in the epidemiology of diarrhea in Peru following the introduction of new vaccines, as well as antibiotic resistance surveillance of clinical relevant bacteria.

Modern, PC based, high resolution portable EDXRF analyzer offers laboratory performance for field, in-situ analysis of environmental contaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Piorek, Stanislaw

1994-01-01

The introduction of a new, high resolution, portable probe that has improved the sensitivity of the conventional field portable X-ray fluorescence (FPXRF) by up to an order of magnitude had been reported earlier [S. Piorek and J.R. Pasmore, Proc. 2nd Int. Symp. on Field Screening Methods for Hazardous Wastes and Toxic Chemicals, Las Vegas, 1991, p. 737]. A high resolution Si(Li) detector probe operates connected to a multichannel X-ray analyzer (2048 channels) which is housed in a portable, battery powered industrial computer. An improved energy resolution of the detector allows the implementation of more sophisticated data treatment methods to convert the measured intensities into mass concentrations of the analytes. A backscatter with a fundamental parameters approach (BFP) is one of the best methods, specifically for metallic contaminants in soil. A program has been written based on the BFP method for use with the new probe. The new software/probe combination enables one to quickly assess levels of contaminants on the site without the need of analyzed samples for instrument calibration. The performance of the EDXRF system in application to analysis of metals in contaminated soil is discussed in this paper. Also discussed is the extension of this method in the analysis of other types of environmental samples such as air particulates collected on filter paper. ((orig.))

Peptide-laden mesoporous silica nanoparticles with promoted bioactivity and osteo-differentiation ability for bone tissue engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Zuyuan; Deng, Yi; Zhang, Ranran; Wang, Mengke; Bai, Yanjie; Zhao, Qiang; Lyu, Yalin; Wei, Jie; Wei, Shicheng

2015-07-01

Combination of mesoporous silica materials and bioactive factors is a promising niche-mimetic solution as a hybrid bone substitution for bone tissue engineering. In this work, we have synthesized biocompatible silica-based nanoparticles with abundant mesoporous structure, and incorporated bone-forming peptide (BFP) derived from bone morphogenetic protein-7 (BMP-7) into the mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) to obtain a slow-release system for osteogenic factor delivery. The chemical characterization demonstrates that the small osteogenic peptide is encapsulated in the mesoporous successfully, and the nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms suggest that the peptide encapsulation has no influence on mesoporous structure of MSNs. In the cell experiment, the peptide-laden MSNs (p-MSNs) show higher MG-63 cell proliferation, spreading and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity than the bare MSNs, indicating good in vitro cytocompatibility. Simultaneously, the osteogenesis-related proteins expression and calcium mineral deposition disclose enhanced osteo-differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) under the stimulation of the p-MSNs, confirming that BFP released from MSNs could significantly promote the osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs, especially at 500μg/mL of p-MSNs concentration. The peptide-modified MSNs with better bioactivity and osteogenic differentiation make it a potential candidate as bioactive material for bone repairing, bone regeneration, and bio-implant coating applications. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Value-Relevance of Biological Assets under IFRS

OpenAIRE

Rute Gonçalves; Patrícia Lopes

2015-01-01

Using 389 firm-year observations of listed firms worldwide in 27 countries that adopted International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) until 2010, for the period 2011-2013, the purpose of this paper is to examine the value-relevance of fair value accounting of biological assets. In order to operationalize it as the book value’s ability to explain market equity value, this study adjusts the Ohlson model. The results support that recognized biological assets are value-relevant. After includ...

Dramatic lives and relevant becomings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henriksen, Ann-Karina; Miller, Jody

2012-01-01

of marginality into positions of relevance. The analysis builds on empirical data from Copenhagen, Denmark, gained through ethnographic fieldwork with the participation of 20 female informants aged 13–22. The theoretical contribution proposes viewing conflicts as multi-linear, multi-causal and non...

The Improved Relevance Voxel Machine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ganz, Melanie; Sabuncu, Mert; Van Leemput, Koen

The concept of sparse Bayesian learning has received much attention in the machine learning literature as a means of achieving parsimonious representations of features used in regression and classification. It is an important family of algorithms for sparse signal recovery and compressed sensing....... Hence in its current form it is reminiscent of a greedy forward feature selection algorithm. In this report, we aim to solve the problems of the original RVoxM algorithm in the spirit of [7] (FastRVM).We call the new algorithm Improved Relevance Voxel Machine (IRVoxM). Our contributions...... and enables basis selection from overcomplete dictionaries. One of the trailblazers of Bayesian learning is MacKay who already worked on the topic in his PhD thesis in 1992 [1]. Later on Tipping and Bishop developed the concept of sparse Bayesian learning [2, 3] and Tipping published the Relevance Vector...

Application of recombinant antigen 5 allergens from seven allergy-relevant Hymenoptera species in diagnostics.

Science.gov (United States)

Schiener, M; Eberlein, B; Moreno-Aguilar, C; Pietsch, G; Serrano, P; McIntyre, M; Schwarze, L; Russkamp, D; Biedermann, T; Spillner, E; Darsow, U; Ollert, M; Schmidt-Weber, C B; Blank, S

2017-01-01

Hymenoptera stings can cause severe anaphylaxis in untreated venom-allergic patients. A correct diagnosis regarding the relevant species for immunotherapy is often hampered by clinically irrelevant cross-reactivity. In vespid venom allergy, cross-reactivity between venoms of different species can be a diagnostic challenge. To address immunological IgE cross-reactivity on molecular level, seven recombinant antigens 5 of the most important Vespoidea groups were assessed by different diagnostic setups. The antigens 5 of yellow jackets, hornets, European and American paper wasps, fire ants, white-faced hornets, and Polybia wasps were recombinantly produced in insect cells, immunologically and structurally characterized, and their sIgE reactivity assessed by ImmunoCAP, ELISA, cross-inhibition, and basophil activation test (BAT) in patients with yellow jacket or Polistes venom allergy of two European geographical areas. All recombinant allergens were correctly folded and structural models and patient reactivity profiles suggested the presence of conserved and unique B-cell epitopes. All antigens 5 showed extensive cross-reactivity in sIgE analyses, inhibition assays, and BAT. This cross-reactivity was more pronounced in ImmunoCAP measurements with venom extracts than in sIgE analyses with recombinant antigens 5. Dose-response curves with the allergens in BAT allowed a differentiated individual dissection of relevant sensitization. Due to extensive cross-reactivity in various diagnostic settings, antigens 5 are inappropriate markers for differential sIgE diagnostics in vespid venom allergy. However, the newly available antigens 5 from further vespid species and the combination of recombinant allergen-based sIgE measurements with BAT represents a practicable way to diagnose clinically relevant sensitization in vespid venom allergy. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Continued Relevance of Reception Analysis in the Age of Social Media

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mathieu, David

2015-01-01

Far from being a remnant of the past, reception analysis must continue to set the question of meaning as a central issue in media studies, an issue that appears to be missing from current understandings of social media in which audiences are often reduced to a single reality or simply ignored...... as empirical reality. This paper argues for the continued relevance of reception analysis, inspite of the mismatch of the label, and develops this argument by applying one of its most fundamental insights, namely its investigation of the relationship between media and audience —or between text and context......—, to the study of social media audiences. In particular, the paper suggests three ways to look at the text-context relationship on Facebook with reference to its use during the “student crisis” in Quebec, Canada in 2012. It suggests three nexuses that represent as many sites of circulation of meaning in society...

Regularization in Matrix Relevance Learning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schneider, Petra; Bunte, Kerstin; Stiekema, Han; Hammer, Barbara; Villmann, Thomas; Biehl, Michael

A In this paper, we present a regularization technique to extend recently proposed matrix learning schemes in learning vector quantization (LVQ). These learning algorithms extend the concept of adaptive distance measures in LVQ to the use of relevance matrices. In general, metric learning can

Prognostic relevance of motor talent predictors in early adolescence: A group- and individual-based evaluation considering different levels of achievement in youth football.

Science.gov (United States)

Höner, Oliver; Votteler, Andreas

2016-12-01

In the debate about the usefulness of motor diagnostics in the talent identification process, the prognostic validity for tests conducted in early adolescence is of critical interest. Using a group- and individual-based statistical approach, this prospective cohort study evaluated a nationwide assessment of speed abilities and technical skills regarding its relevance for future achievement levels. The sample consisted of 22,843 U12-players belonging to the top 4% in German football. The U12-results in five tests served as predictors for players' selection levels in U16-U19 (youth national team, regional association, youth academy, not selected). Group-mean differences proved the prognostic relevance for all predictors. Low individual selection probabilities demonstrated limited predictive values, while excellent test results proved their particular prognostic relevance. Players scoring percentile ranks (PRs) ≥ 99 had a 12 times higher chance to become youth national team players than players scoring PR talents) but also led to lower sensitivity (loss of talents). Extending the current research, these different approaches revealed the ambiguity of the diagnostics' prognostic relevance, representing both the usefulness and several pitfalls of nationwide diagnostics. Therefore, the present diagnostics can support but not substitute for coaches' subjective decisions for talent identification, and multidisciplinary designs are required.

Registration Appointment and Services for Representatives Management Information

Data.gov (United States)

Social Security Administration — A new internet/intranet application that collects all representative information and establishes the relationship between the claimant and the representative. Allow...

Support Vector Machines: Relevance Feedback and Information Retrieval.

Science.gov (United States)

Drucker, Harris; Shahrary, Behzad; Gibbon, David C.

2002-01-01

Compares support vector machines (SVMs) to Rocchio, Ide regular and Ide dec-hi algorithms in information retrieval (IR) of text documents using relevancy feedback. If the preliminary search is so poor that one has to search through many documents to find at least one relevant document, then SVM is preferred. Includes nine tables. (Contains 24…

Social modulation of cognition: Lessons from rhesus macaques relevant to education.

Science.gov (United States)

Monfardini, Elisabetta; Reynaud, Amélie J; Prado, Jérôme; Meunier, Martine

2017-11-01

Any animal, human or non-human, lives in a world where there are others like itself. Individuals' behaviors are thus inevitably influenced by others, and cognition is no exception. Long acknowledged in psychology, social modulations of cognition have been neglected in cognitive neuroscience. Yet, infusing this classic topic in psychology with brain science methodologies could yield valuable educational insights. In recent studies, we used a non-human primate model, the rhesus macaque, to identify social influences representing ancient biases rooted in evolution, and neuroimaging to shed light on underlying mechanisms. The behavioral and neural data garnered in humans and macaques are summarized, with a focus on two findings relevant to human education. First, peers' mistakes stand out as exceptional professors and seem to have devoted areas and neurons in the primates' brain. Second, peers' mere presence suffices to enhance performance in well-learned tasks, possibly by boosting activity in the brain network involved in the task at hand. These findings could be translated into concrete pedagogical interventions in the classroom. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of clinically relevant implantable pressure sensors: perspectives and challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Clausen, Ingelin; Glott, Thomas

2014-09-22

This review describes different aspects to consider when developing implantable pressure sensor systems. Measurement of pressure is in general highly important in clinical practice and medical research. Due to the small size, light weight and low energy consumption Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology represents new possibilities for monitoring of physiological parameters inside the human body. Development of clinical relevant sensors requires close collaboration between technological experts and medical clinicians.  Site of operation, size restrictions, patient safety, and required measurement range and resolution, are only some conditions that must be taken into account. An implantable device has to operate under very hostile conditions. Long-term in vivo pressure measurements are particularly demanding because the pressure sensitive part of the sensor must be in direct or indirect physical contact with the medium for which we want to detect the pressure. New sensor packaging concepts are demanded and must be developed through combined effort between scientists in MEMS technology, material science, and biology. Before launching a new medical device on the market, clinical studies must be performed. Regulatory documents and international standards set the premises for how such studies shall be conducted and reported.

Diversity and representativeness: two key factors

CERN Multimedia

Staff Association

2013-01-01

In the past few weeks many of you have filled out the questionnaire for preparing the upcoming Five-yearly review. Similarly, Staff Association members have elected their delegates to the Staff Council for the coming two years. Once again we would like to thank all those who have taken the time and effort to make their voice heard on these two occasions. Elections to the Staff Council Below we publish the new Staff Council with its forty delegates who will represent in 2014 and 2015 all CERN staff in the discussions with Management and Member States in the various bodies and committees. Therefore it is important that the Staff Council represents as far as possible the diversity of the CERN population. By construction, the election process with its electoral colleges and two-step voting procedure guarantees that all Departments, even the small ones, and the various staff categories are correctly represented. Figure 1 shows the participation rate in the elections. The average rate is just above 52 %, with ...

Standards, documents of relevance and directives in individual monitoring: is European individual monitoring in compliance with standards?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fantuzzi, E.

2005-01-01

Full text: Individual monitoring services in Europe do not comply with the same legal or approval requirements. Anyway, a degree of harmonization existing in individual monitoring practices in Europe has been achieved mainly thank to documents as standards or international recommendations, which with a different weight, represent invaluable vehicles of condensed information transfer. However, implementation of standards is not straightforward and harmonization is not directly a consequence. Somehow, 'harmony' is needed also in standards: IEC and ISO standards on performance requirements for dosemeters sometimes have different approaches (i.e. performance criteria). If used for approval, passing one will not necessarily mean passing all. Moreover, standards do not all refer to reliability, and therefore being in compliance with standards does not itself assure that dose results are reliable. This might apply only to ISO/IEC17025 'quality' standard, which represents the best available tool for the quality of laboratory work and somehow include all technical and management requirements. When accredited according to ISO/IEC17025, an Individual Monitoring Service (IMS) fulfils standards. Standards are not the only reference documents for an IMS. EURADOS working group on 'Harmonization of Individual Monitoring in Europe', who has been active in the years 2001-2004, suggested a classification of publication on individual monitoring, distinguishing between standards and documents of relevance, which can be both national and international. A standard, unlike a textbook or technical publication, does not cover the experience and opinion of one or few individuals only, but the consensus of the entire scientific and technical community concerned. Most of the standards applicable to individual monitoring are published by IEC or ISO, or both together. However, it has to be kept in mind that ISO and IEC standards, for example, are meant for manufactures and industry, which do not

NetNorM: Capturing cancer-relevant information in somatic exome mutation data with gene networks for cancer stratification and prognosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Le Morvan, Marine; Zinovyev, Andrei; Vert, Jean-Philippe

2017-06-01

Genome-wide somatic mutation profiles of tumours can now be assessed efficiently and promise to move precision medicine forward. Statistical analysis of mutation profiles is however challenging due to the low frequency of most mutations, the varying mutation rates across tumours, and the presence of a majority of passenger events that hide the contribution of driver events. Here we propose a method, NetNorM, to represent whole-exome somatic mutation data in a form that enhances cancer-relevant information using a gene network as background knowledge. We evaluate its relevance for two tasks: survival prediction and unsupervised patient stratification. Using data from 8 cancer types from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), we show that it improves over the raw binary mutation data and network diffusion for these two tasks. In doing so, we also provide a thorough assessment of somatic mutations prognostic power which has been overlooked by previous studies because of the sparse and binary nature of mutations.

Representative Sinusoids for Hepatic Four-Scale Pharmacokinetics Simulations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lars Ole Schwen

Full Text Available The mammalian liver plays a key role for metabolism and detoxification of xenobiotics in the body. The corresponding biochemical processes are typically subject to spatial variations at different length scales. Zonal enzyme expression along sinusoids leads to zonated metabolization already in the healthy state. Pathological states of the liver may involve liver cells affected in a zonated manner or heterogeneously across the whole organ. This spatial heterogeneity, however, cannot be described by most computational models which usually consider the liver as a homogeneous, well-stirred organ. The goal of this article is to present a methodology to extend whole-body pharmacokinetics models by a detailed liver model, combining different modeling approaches from the literature. This approach results in an integrated four-scale model, from single cells via sinusoids and the organ to the whole organism, capable of mechanistically representing metabolization inhomogeneity in livers at different spatial scales. Moreover, the model shows circulatory mixing effects due to a delayed recirculation through the surrounding organism. To show that this approach is generally applicable for different physiological processes, we show three applications as proofs of concept, covering a range of species, compounds, and diseased states: clearance of midazolam in steatotic human livers, clearance of caffeine in mouse livers regenerating from necrosis, and a parameter study on the impact of different cell entities on insulin uptake in mouse livers. The examples illustrate how variations only discernible at the local scale influence substance distribution in the plasma at the whole-body level. In particular, our results show that simultaneously considering variations at all relevant spatial scales may be necessary to understand their impact on observations at the organism scale.

The Relevance of Hyperbaric Oxygen to Combat Medicine

Science.gov (United States)

2001-06-01

and Hyperbaric Conditions [les Questions medicales a caractere oprationel liees aux conditions hypobares ou hyperbares ] To order the complete...UNCLASSIFIED Defense Technical Information Center Compilation Part Notice ADPO 11081 TITLE: The Relevance of Hyperbaric Oxygen to Combat Medicine...following component part numbers comprise the compilation report: ADPO11059 thru ADP011100 UNCLASSIFIED 25-1 The Relevance of Hyperbaric Oxygen to

The Value Relevance of IFRS: The Case of Turkey

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmet Turel

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Accounting standards that are mostly compatible with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS are required for consolidatedfinancial statements of all Turkish listed firms starting from 2005 fiscal year end. Before that, financial reporting in Turkey was closely related to taxreporting. Until 2003, all Turkish listed firms were preparing their financial statements in accordance with the local standards issued by the CapitalMarket Board of Turkey. In this study, I examine the relative and incremental value relevance of earnings and the book value of equity under CapitalMarket Board (CMB Accounting Standards (2001-2002 and under IFRS (2005-2006 for Turkish listed firms. I compare these two periods toinvestigate whether the mandatory adoption of IFRS increase relevance of earnings and book value of equity which are accepted as proxies ofaccounting quality. I find evidence that the value relevance of earnings and book value of equity has increased significantly after adopting IFRS. Inaddition, I find that the incremental value relevance of earnings increased between the CMB accounting standards period and the IFRS period.However, the incremental value relevance of book value of equity degreased in the same period.

Reconstruction of the 3D representative volume element from the generalized two-point correlation function

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Staraselski, Y; Brahme, A; Inal, K; Mishra, R K

2015-01-01

This paper presents the first application of three-dimensional (3D) cross-correlation microstructure reconstruction implemented for a representative volume element (RVE) to facilitate the microstructure engineering of materials. This has been accomplished by developing a new methodology for reconstructing 3D microstructure using experimental two-dimensional electron backscatter diffraction data. The proposed methodology is based on the analytical representation of the generalized form of the two-point correlation function—the distance-disorientation function (DDF). Microstructure reconstruction is accomplished by extending the simulated annealing techniques to perform three term reconstruction with a minimization of the DDF. The new 3D microstructure reconstruction algorithm is employed to determine the 3D RVE containing all of the relevant microstructure information for accurately computing the mechanical response of solids, especially when local microstructural variations influence the global response of the material as in the case of fracture initiation. (paper)

The temporal-relevance temporal-uncertainty model of prospective duration judgment.

Science.gov (United States)

Zakay, Dan

2015-12-15

A model aimed at explaining prospective duration judgments in real life settings (as well as in the laboratory) is presented. The model is based on the assumption that situational meaning is continuously being extracted by humans' perceptual and cognitive information processing systems. Time is one of the important dimensions of situational meaning. Based on the situational meaning, a value for Temporal Relevance is set. Temporal Relevance reflects the importance of temporal aspects for enabling adaptive behavior in a specific moment in time. When Temporal Relevance is above a certain threshold a prospective duration judgment process is evoked automatically. In addition, a search for relevant temporal information is taking place and its outcomes determine the level of Temporal Uncertainty which reflects the degree of knowledge one has regarding temporal aspects of the task to be performed. The levels of Temporal Relevance and Temporal Uncertainty determine the amount of attentional resources allocated for timing by the executive system. The merit of the model is in connecting timing processes with the ongoing general information processing stream. The model rests on findings in various domains which indicate that cognitive-relevance and self-relevance are powerful determinants of resource allocation policy. The feasibility of the model is demonstrated by analyzing various temporal phenomena. Suggestions for further empirical validation of the model are presented. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Popularity and Relevance of Science Education and Scientific Literacy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Graeber, Wolfgang; Blonder, Ron; Bolte, Claus

2008-01-01

A consortium of researchers from 8 European nations has successfully applied to the EU commission for funding the PARSEL (Popularity and Relevance in Science Education for Scientific Literacy) project, which aims at raising the popularity and relevance of science teaching and enhancing students...... of a range of personal and social skills (including cognitive skills associated with investigatory scientific problem solving and socio-scientific decision making) and clarify the relevancy of science education for the 21st century. This symposium will introduce and discuss the project PARSEL ideas within...

Marketing norm perception among medical representatives in Indian pharmaceutical industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Nagashekhara, Molugulu; Agil, Syed Omar Syed; Ramasamy, Ravindran

2012-03-01

Study of marketing norm perception among medical representatives is an under-portrayed component that deserves further perusal in the pharmaceutical industry. The purpose of this study is to find out the perception of marketing norms among medical representatives. The research design is quantitative and cross sectional study with medical representatives as unit of analysis. Data is collected from medical representatives (n=300) using a simple random and cluster sampling using a structured questionnaire. Results indicate that there is no difference in the perception of marketing norms among male and female medical representatives. But there is a difference in opinion among domestic and multinational company's medical representatives. Educational back ground of medical representatives also shows the difference in opinion among medical representatives. Degree holders and multinational company medical representatives have high perception of marketing norms compare to their counterparts. The researchers strongly believe that mandatory training on marketing norms is beneficial in decision making process during the dilemmas in the sales field.

Representative Democracy in Australian Local Government

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Colin Hearfield

2009-01-01

Full Text Available In an assessment of representative democracy in Australian local government, this paper considers long-run changes in forms of political representation, methods of vote counting, franchise arrangements, numbers of local government bodies and elected representatives, as well as the thorny question of constitutional recognition. This discussion is set against the background of ongoing tensions between the drive for economic efficiency and the maintenance of political legitimacy, along with more deep-seated divisions emerging from the legal relationship between local and state governments and the resultant problems inherent in local government autonomy versus state intervention.

Intracranial Aneurysms of Neuro-Ophthalmologic Relevance.

Science.gov (United States)

Micieli, Jonathan A; Newman, Nancy J; Barrow, Daniel L; Biousse, Valérie

2017-12-01

Intracranial saccular aneurysms are acquired lesions that often present with neuro-ophthalmologic symptoms and signs. Recent advances in neurosurgical techniques, endovascular treatments, and neurocritical care have improved the optimal management of symptomatic unruptured aneurysms, but whether the chosen treatment has an impact on neuro-ophthalmologic outcomes remains debated. A review of the literature focused on neuro-ophthalmic manifestations and treatment of intracranial aneurysms with specific relevance to neuro-ophthalmologic outcomes was conducted using Ovid MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. Cavernous sinus aneurysms were not included in this review. Surgical clipping vs endovascular coiling for aneurysms causing third nerve palsies was compared in 13 retrospective studies representing 447 patients. Complete recovery was achieved in 78% of surgical patients compared with 44% of patients treated with endovascular coiling. However, the complication rate, hospital costs, and days spent in intensive care were reported as higher in surgically treated patients. Retrospective reviews of surgical clipping and endovascular coiling for all ocular motor nerve palsies (third, fourth, or sixth cranial nerves) revealed similar results of complete resolution in 76% and 49%, respectively. Improvement in visual deficits related to aneurysmal compression of the anterior visual pathways was also better among patients treated with clipping than with coiling. The time to treatment from onset of visual symptoms was a predictive factor of visual recovery in several studies. Few reports have specifically assessed the improvement of visual deficits after treatment with flow diverters. Decisions regarding the choice of therapy for intracranial aneurysms causing neuro-ophthalmologic signs ideally should be made at high-volume centers with access to both surgical and endovascular treatments. The status of the patient, location of the aneurysm, and experience of the treating physicians

Testing the idea of privileged awareness of self-relevant information.

Science.gov (United States)

Stein, Timo; Siebold, Alisha; van Zoest, Wieske

2016-03-01

Self-relevant information is prioritized in processing. Some have suggested the mechanism driving this advantage is akin to the automatic prioritization of physically salient stimuli in information processing (Humphreys & Sui, 2015). Here we investigate whether self-relevant information is prioritized for awareness under continuous flash suppression (CFS), as has been found for physical salience. Gabor patches with different orientations were first associated with the labels You or Other. Participants were more accurate in matching the self-relevant association, replicating previous findings of self-prioritization. However, breakthrough into awareness from CFS did not differ between self- and other-associated Gabors. These findings demonstrate that self-relevant information has no privileged access to awareness. Rather than modulating the initial visual processes that precede and lead to awareness, the advantage of self-relevant information may better be characterized as prioritization at later processing stages. (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Mycobacterium biofilms: factors involved in development, dispersal, and therapeutic strategies against biofilm-relevant pathogens.

Science.gov (United States)

Xiang, Xiaohong; Deng, Wanyan; Liu, Minqiang; Xie, Jianping

2014-01-01

Many bacteria can develop biofilm (BF), a multicellular structure largely combining bacteria and their extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). The formation of biofilm results in an alternative existence in which microbes ensure their survival in adverse environments. Biofilm-relevant infections are more persistent, resistant to most antibiotics, and more recalcitrant to host immunity. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, can develop biofilm, though whether M. tuberculosis can form biofilm within tuberculosis patients has yet to be determined. Here, we summarize the factors involved in the development and dispersal of mycobacterial biofilms, as well as underlying regulatory factors and inhibitors against biofilm to deepen our understanding of their development and to elucidate potential novel modes of action for future antibiotics. Key factors in biofilm formation identified as drug targets represent a novel and promising avenue for developing better antibiotics.

Practical Relevance of Experiments in Comprehensibility of Requirements Specifications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Condori-Fernandez, Nelly; Daneva, Maia; Sikkel, Nicolaas; Herrmann, Andrea

2011-01-01

Recently, the Requirements Engineering (RE) community has become increasingly aware of the importance of carrying out industry-relevant research. Researchers and practitioners should be able to evaluate the relevance of their empirical research to increase the likely adoption of RE methods in

Silk-polypyrrole biocompatible actuator performance under biologically relevant conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Hagler, Jo'elen; Peterson, Ben; Murphy, Amanda; Leger, Janelle

Biocompatible actuators that are capable of controlled movement and can function under biologically relevant conditions are of significant interest in biomedical fields. Previously, we have demonstrated that a composite material of silk biopolymer and the conducting polymer polypyrrole (PPy) can be formed into a bilayer device that can bend under applied voltage. Further, these silk-PPy composites can generate forces comparable to human muscle (>0.1 MPa) making them ideal candidates for interfacing with biological tissues. Here silk-PPy composite films are tested for performance under biologically relevant conditions including exposure to a complex protein serum and biologically relevant temperatures. Free-end bending actuation performance, current response, force generation and, mass degradation were investigated . Preliminary results show that when exposed to proteins and biologically relevant temperatures, these silk-PPy composites show minimal degradation and are able to generate forces and conduct currents comparable to devices tested under standard conditions. NSF.

Elections for staff representatives – Join, commit and vote!

CERN Multimedia

Staff Association

2015-01-01

The Staff Council is a statutory body representing collectively in the area of employment conditions all CERN staff members (MPE and MPA), as well as the pensioners, former Cernois. The Staff Council is the supreme representative body of the CERN staff and pensioners, which defines the main lines of the policy of the Staff Association. The Staff Council is composed of staff representatives (45 seats to represent staff members, and 5 for representing fellows and associate members), as well as delegates for pensioners (seven positions), designated by GAC-EPA. Every two years, the Council is renewed through elections. Concerning the 45 delegates representing staff members, all departments have a least two seats allocated, one in career paths AA to D and one in career paths E to H. This guarantees a fair distribution of seats among the various organizational units and career paths. The table below, shows the exact number of delegates per department and career paths. Staff members or fellows who want to participa...

Hygroscopic properties of oxalic acid and atmospherically relevant oxalates

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Qingxin; He, Hong; Liu, Chang

2013-04-01

Oxalic acid and oxalates represent an important fraction of atmospheric organic aerosols, however, little knowledge about the hygroscopic behavior of these particles is known. In this study, the hygroscopic behavior of oxalic acid and atmospherically relevant oxalates (H2C2O4, (NH4)2C2O4, CaC2O4, and FeC2O4) were studied by Raman spectrometry and vapor sorption analyzer. Under ambient relative humidity (RH) of 10-90%, oxalic acid and these oxalates hardly deliquesce and exhibit low hygroscopicity, however, transformation between anhydrous and hydrated particles was observed during the humidifying and dehumidifying processes. During the water adsorption process, conversion of anhydrous H2C2O4, (NH4)2C2O4, CaC2O4, and FeC2O4 to their hydrated particles (i.e., H2C2O4·2H2O, (NH4)2C2O4·H2O, CaC2O4·H2O, and FeC2O4·2H2O) occurred at about 20% RH, 55% RH, 10% RH, and 75% RH, respectively. Uptake of water on hydrated Ca-oxalate and Fe-oxalate particles can be described by a multilayer adsorption isotherm. During the dehumidifying process, dehydration of H2C2O4·2H2O and (NH4)2C2O4·H2O occurred at 5% RH while CaC2O4·H2O and FeC2O4·2H2O did not undergo dehydration. These results implied that hydrated particles represent the most stable state of oxalic acid and oxalates in the atmosphere. In addition, the assignments of Raman shift bands in the range of 1610-1650 cm-1 were discussed according to the hygroscopic behavior measurement results.

The relevance of segments reports – measurement methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomasz Zimnicki

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The segment report is one of the areas of financial statements, and it obliges a company to provide infor-mation about the economic situation in each of its activity areas. The article evaluates the change of segment reporting standards from IAS14R to IFRS8 in the context of feature relevance. It presents the construction of a measure which allows the relevance of segment disclosures to be determined. The created measure was used to study periodical reports published by companies listed on the main market of the Warsaw Stock Exchange from three reporting periods – 2008, 2009 and 2013. Based on the re-search results, it was found that the change of segment reporting standards from IAS14R to IFRS8 in the context of relevance was legitimate.

Contact efflorescence as a pathway for crystallization of atmospherically relevant particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Ryan D; Lance, Sara; Gordon, Joshua A; Ushijima, Shuichi B; Tolbert, Margaret A

2015-12-29

Inadequate knowledge of the phase state of atmospheric particles represents a source of uncertainty in global climate and air quality models. Hygroscopic aqueous inorganic particles are often assumed to remain liquid throughout their atmospheric lifetime or only (re)crystallize at low relative humidity (RH) due to the kinetic limitations of efflorescence (salt crystal nucleation and growth from an aqueous solution). Here we present experimental observations of a previously unexplored heterogeneous nucleation pathway that we have termed "contact efflorescence," which describes efflorescence initiated by an externally located solid particle coming into contact with the surface of a metastable aqueous microdroplet. This study demonstrates that upon a single collision, contact efflorescence is a pathway for crystallization of atmospherically relevant aqueous particles at high ambient RH (≤80%). Soluble inorganic crystalline particles were used as contact nuclei to induce efflorescence of aqueous ammonium sulfate [(NH4)2SO4], sodium chloride (NaCl), and ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), with efflorescence being observed in several cases close to their deliquescence RH values (80%, 75%, and 62%, respectively). To our knowledge, these observations represent the highest reported efflorescence RH values for microdroplets of these salts. These results are particularly important for considering the phase state of NH4NO3, where the contact efflorescence RH (∼20-60%) is in stark contrast to the observation that NH4NO3 microdroplets do not homogeneously effloresce, even when exposed to extremely arid conditions (<1% RH). Considering the occurrence of particle collisions in the atmosphere (i.e., coagulation), these observations of contact efflorescence challenge many assumptions made about the phase state of inorganic aerosol.

A longitudinal analysis of arterial dopler parameters in growth restricted fetuses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miković Željko

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Doppler parameters enable noninvasive and direct detection of placental insufficiency and brain sparing effect, which occurs as an adaptive mechanism to chronic hypoxemia. It is of great interest if further changes of Doppler parameters, which occur after the detection of the first pathologic value, can anticipate a moment of fetal distress. We investigated growth-restricted fetuses with the brain sparing effect in the time interval between the detection of blood flow redistribution until the distress. The aim of our study was to evaluate longitudinally Doppler parameters in umbilical (Aum, medial cerebral (MCA, renal (AR and femoral (AF artery and find: 1 if there are significant changes in their value; 2 the character and time interval of these changes; and 3 if they differ from changes in biophysical profile (BFP. MATERIALS AND METHODS Prospective clinical study evaluated 35 pregnancies with fetal growth restriction. Fetuses were selected for the study if: 1 there were pathologic cerebral/umbilical (C/U ratio, 2 at least four Doppler examinations in 3-4 days interval were performed and 3 prepartal fetal distress, defined as silent fetal heart rate pattern with spontaneous and late decelerations, was present. In 28 neonates after delivery umbilical artery gas and acid-base status was determined. Blood flow velocity waveforms were evaluated in Aum MCA, AR, and AF. Arterial blood flow was estimated by pulsatility index (Pi, while in Aum we also used: present end-diastolic velocity (PEDV absent end-diastolic velocity (AEDV and reverse end-diastolic velocity (REDV. All of the fetuses were monitored by cardiotocogram (CTG once to twice a day and by BFP twice a week. Elective Cesarean section was done in the presence of distress, except if severe immaturity or extreme malnutrition occurred. RESULTS Etiological factors of placental insufficiency were: 1 hypertensive syndrome (n=26, 2 chronic renal disease (n=3, 3 primary antiphospholipid syndrome (n

Perceptual and categorical decision making: goal-relevant representation of two domains at different levels of abstraction.

Science.gov (United States)

Shankar, Swetha; Kayser, Andrew S

2017-06-01

decision information varies in multiple domains at different levels of abstraction. Behavioral and modeling results suggest that categorical (more abstract) information is weighted more strongly than perceptual (more concrete) information but that perceptual and categorical domains interact to influence decisions. Frontoparietal brain activity during categorization flexibly represents decision-relevant features and highlights significant dissociations in frontal and parietal activity during decision making. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Independent effects of relevance and arousal on deductive reasoning.

Science.gov (United States)

Caparos, Serge; Blanchette, Isabelle

2017-08-01

Emotional content can have either a deleterious or a beneficial impact on logicality. Using standard deductive-reasoning tasks, we tested the hypothesis that the interplay of two factors - personal relevance and arousal - determines the nature of the effect of emotional content on logicality. Arousal was assessed using measures of skin conductance. Personal relevance was manipulated by asking participants to reason about semantic contents linked to an emotional event that they had experienced or not. Findings showed that (1) personal relevance exerts a positive effect on logicality while arousal exerts a negative effect, and that (2) these effects are independent of each other.

Using semantics for representing experimental protocols.

Science.gov (United States)

Giraldo, Olga; García, Alexander; López, Federico; Corcho, Oscar

2017-11-13

An experimental protocol is a sequence of tasks and operations executed to perform experimental research in biological and biomedical areas, e.g. biology, genetics, immunology, neurosciences, virology. Protocols often include references to equipment, reagents, descriptions of critical steps, troubleshooting and tips, as well as any other information that researchers deem important for facilitating the reusability of the protocol. Although experimental protocols are central to reproducibility, the descriptions are often cursory. There is the need for a unified framework with respect to the syntactic structure and the semantics for representing experimental protocols. In this paper we present "SMART Protocols ontology", an ontology for representing experimental protocols. Our ontology represents the protocol as a workflow with domain specific knowledge embedded within a document. We also present the S ample I nstrument R eagent O bjective (SIRO) model, which represents the minimal common information shared across experimental protocols. SIRO was conceived in the same realm as the Patient Intervention Comparison Outcome (PICO) model that supports search, retrieval and classification purposes in evidence based medicine. We evaluate our approach against a set of competency questions modeled as SPARQL queries and processed against a set of published and unpublished protocols modeled with the SP Ontology and the SIRO model. Our approach makes it possible to answer queries such as Which protocols use tumor tissue as a sample. Improving reporting structures for experimental protocols requires collective efforts from authors, peer reviewers, editors and funding bodies. The SP Ontology is a contribution towards this goal. We build upon previous experiences and bringing together the view of researchers managing protocols in their laboratory work. Website: https://smartprotocols.github.io/ .

Relevance of positive patch-test reactions to fragrance mix.

Science.gov (United States)

Devos, Steven A; Constandt, Lieve; Tupker, Ron A; Noz, Kathy C; Lucker, Georges P H; Bruynzeel, Derk P; Schuttelaar, Marie-Louise A; Kruyswijk, Mente R J; van Zuuren, Esther J; Vink, Jaqueline; Coenraads, Pieter-Jan; Kiemeney, Lambertus A L M; van der Valk, Pieter G M

2008-01-01

Fragrances are an important cause of allergic contact dermatitis. We presume that the traditional fragrance mix (FM) detects 70 to 80% of fragrance-allergic patients. FM has an irritant potential. Weak positive reactions may have a greater chance of being irrelevant than strong reactions. To improve the appraisal of FM patch-test reactions, we studied the relevance of reactions of different strength. We also studied the predictive value of the following on the relevance of the initial FM patch-test results: patch-test results of a repeated FM test; results of patch tests with balsam of Peru, colophony, and ingredients of the mix; and (history of) atopic dermatitis. One hundred thirty-eight patients who had doubtful positive (?+) or positive (+ to +++) reactions were included in the study. We determined relevance by history taking, location and course of the dermatitis, and additional patch testing. Patients were retested with FM and with each ingredient separately. The relevance of reactions to FM increases with the strength of the reactions. Predictors of relevance are the results of retesting with FM, the results of tests with the ingredients, and a history and/or present symptoms of atopic dermatitis. Retesting with FM and its ingredients may add to the benefit of patch testing.

Does representative wind information exist?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wieringa, J.

1996-01-01

Representativity requirements are discussed for various wind data users. It is shown that most applications can be dealt with by using data from wind stations when these are made to conform with WMO specifications. Methods to achieve this WMO normalization are reviewed, giving minimum specifications

Yucca Mountain Climate Technical Support Representative

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharpe, Saxon E

2007-01-01

The primary objective of Project Activity ORD-FY04-012, 'Yucca Mountain Climate Technical Support Representative', was to provide the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) with expertise on past, present, and future climate scenarios and to support the technical elements of the Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) climate program. The Climate Technical Support Representative was to explain, defend, and interpret the YMP climate program to the various audiences during Site Recommendation and License Application. This technical support representative was to support DOE management in the preparation and review of documents, and to participate in comment response for the Final Environmental Impact Statement, the Site Recommendation Hearings, the NRC Sufficiency Comments, and other forums as designated by DOE management. Because the activity was terminated 12 months early and experience a 27% reduction in budget, it was not possible to complete all components of the tasks as originally envisioned. Activities not completed include the qualification of climate datasets and the production of a qualified technical report. The following final report is an unqualified summary of the activities that were completed given the reduced time and funding

Crisis Relocation Workshops for Transportation Industry Representatives

Science.gov (United States)

1979-12-01

executive, two National Guard members, one Air Force transporta- _a ,tion representative, two Red Cross representatives, one school bus z coordinators...manaaers, local transitCD operator, and miiltary busingA authorityA Local Governa-ient 2 Fire chief, assistantI Air Force 3 Liaison Support D CPA :z...to attend the workshop. Majur trans- portation problems anticipated during crisis relocation include: 1. Transportation of carless residents; 2. The

Representing uncertainty on model analysis plots

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trevor I. Smith

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Model analysis provides a mechanism for representing student learning as measured by standard multiple-choice surveys. The model plot contains information regarding both how likely students in a particular class are to choose the correct answer and how likely they are to choose an answer consistent with a well-documented conceptual model. Unfortunately, Bao’s original presentation of the model plot did not include a way to represent uncertainty in these measurements. I present details of a method to add error bars to model plots by expanding the work of Sommer and Lindell. I also provide a template for generating model plots with error bars.

Improving the relevance and efficiency of human exposure assessments within the process of regulatory risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Money, Chris

2018-01-24

The process for undertaking exposure assessments varies dependent on its purpose. But for exposure assessments to be relevant and accurate, they are reliant on access to reliable information on key exposure determinants. Acquiring such information is seldom straightforward and can take significant time and resources. This articles examines how the application of tiered and targeted approaches to information acquisition, within the context of European human health risk assessments, can not only lead to improvements in the efficiency and effectiveness of the process but also in the confidence of stakeholders in its outputs. The article explores how the benefits might be further improved through the coordination of such activities, as well as those areas that represent barriers to wider international harmonisation.

HOW TO REPRESENT THE GENETIC CODE?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N.S. Santos-Magalhães

2004-05-01

Full Text Available The advent of molecular genetic comprises a true revolution of far-reaching consequences for human-kind, which evolved into a specialized branch of the modern-day Biochemistry. The analysis of specicgenomic information are gaining wide-ranging interest because of their signicance to the early diag-nosis of disease, and the discovery of modern drugs. In order to take advantage of a wide assortmentof signal processing (SP algorithms, the primary step of modern genomic SP involves convertingsymbolic-DNA sequences into complex-valued signals. How to represent the genetic code? Despitebeing extensively known, the DNA mapping into proteins is one of the relevant discoveries of genetics.The genetic code (GC is revisited in this work, addressing other descriptions for it, which can beworthy for genomic SP. Three original representations are discussed. The inner-to-outer map buildson the unbalanced role of nucleotides of a codon. A two-dimensional-Gray genetic representationis oered as a structured map that can help interpreting DNA spectrograms or scalograms. Theseare among the powerful visual tools for genome analysis, which depends on the choice of the geneticmapping. Finally, the world-chart for the GC is investigated. Evoking the cyclic structure of thegenetic mapping, it can be folded joining the left-right borders, and the top-bottom frontiers. As aresult, the GC can be drawn on the surface of a sphere resembling a world-map. Eight parallels oflatitude are required (four in each hemisphere as well as four meridians of longitude associated tofour corresponding anti-meridians. The tropic circles have 11.25o, 33.75o, 56.25o, and 78.5o (Northand South. Starting from an arbitrary Greenwich meridian, the meridians of longitude can be plottedat 22.5o, 67.5o, 112.5o, and 157.5o (East and West. Each triplet is assigned to a single point on thesurface that we named Nirenberg-Kohamas Earth. Despite being valuable, usual representations forthe GC can be

Identity theory and personality theory: mutual relevance.

Science.gov (United States)

Stryker, Sheldon

2007-12-01

Some personality psychologists have found a structural symbolic interactionist frame and identity theory relevant to their work. This frame and theory, developed in sociology, are first reviewed. Emphasized in the review are a multiple identity conception of self, identities as internalized expectations derived from roles embedded in organized networks of social interaction, and a view of social structures as facilitators in bringing people into networks or constraints in keeping them out, subsequently, attention turns to a discussion of the mutual relevance of structural symbolic interactionism/identity theory and personality theory, looking to extensions of the current literature on these topics.

Relevant energy scale of color confinement from lattice QCD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Arata; Suganuma, Hideo

2009-01-01

We propose a new lattice framework to extract the relevant gluonic energy scale of QCD phenomena which is based on a 'cut' on link variables in momentum space. This framework is expected to be broadly applicable to all lattice QCD calculations. Using this framework, we quantitatively determine the relevant energy scale of color confinement, through the analyses of the quark-antiquark potential and meson masses. The relevant energy scale of color confinement is found to be below 1.5 GeV in the Landau gauge. In fact, the string tension is almost unchanged even after cutting off the high-momentum gluon component above 1.5 GeV. When the relevant low-energy region is cut, the quark-antiquark potential is approximately reduced to a Coulomb-like potential, and each meson becomes a quasifree quark pair. As an analytical model calculation, we also investigate the dependence of the Richardson potential on the cut, and find the consistent behavior with the lattice result.

Task-relevant information is prioritized in spatiotemporal contextual cueing.

Science.gov (United States)

Higuchi, Yoko; Ueda, Yoshiyuki; Ogawa, Hirokazu; Saiki, Jun

2016-11-01

Implicit learning of visual contexts facilitates search performance-a phenomenon known as contextual cueing; however, little is known about contextual cueing under situations in which multidimensional regularities exist simultaneously. In everyday vision, different information, such as object identity and location, appears simultaneously and interacts with each other. We tested the hypothesis that, in contextual cueing, when multiple regularities are present, the regularities that are most relevant to our behavioral goals would be prioritized. Previous studies of contextual cueing have commonly used the visual search paradigm. However, this paradigm is not suitable for directing participants' attention to a particular regularity. Therefore, we developed a new paradigm, the "spatiotemporal contextual cueing paradigm," and manipulated task-relevant and task-irrelevant regularities. In four experiments, we demonstrated that task-relevant regularities were more responsible for search facilitation than task-irrelevant regularities. This finding suggests our visual behavior is focused on regularities that are relevant to our current goal.

An affordable proxy of representative national survey on radon concentration in dwellings: Design, organisation and preliminary evaluation of representativeness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Antignani, Sara; Carelli, Vinicio; Cordedda, Carlo; Zonno, Fedele; Ampollini, Marco; Carpentieri, Carmela; Venoso, Gennaro; Bochicchio, Francesco

2013-01-01

Representative national surveys in dwellings are important to unbiasedly evaluate the exposure of the general population to radon. In Italy, a representative national survey was conducted from 1989 to 1996, which involved about 5600 dwellings in 232 towns. Later on, some Regions carried out more detailed surveys, but a new national survey in dwellings is necessary in order to obtain a more thorough estimate of radon concentration distribution over the Italian territory. The need to make this survey in an affordable way led to implement a new approach based on the collaboration between the Istituto Superiore di Sanità and a national company with workplaces and employees' homes throughout the country. The intent is to carry out a proxy of a population representative survey by measuring radon concentration in the homes of a random sample of the company employees. The realisation of this survey was affordable, thanks to the availability of corporate e-mail for each employee, intranet service, and company internal mail service. A dedicated web procedure and e-questionnaires allowed to automatically manage the contact with employees and to collect their data, which were both cost- and time-saving. Using this e-mail contact approach, 53% of contacted employees consented to participate in the survey. Radon concentration passive measuring devices were distributed to about 7000 dwellings, using about 14000 CR-39 detectors (two measured rooms per dwelling). In order to reduce costs, the devices were exposed for 12 months instead of two consecutive 6-month periods (as with the former national survey). A first checking of the actual representativeness of the sample was done by comparing characteristics of dwellings and occupants in the sample with corresponding data from the latest National Census. This was accomplished thanks to the fact that the questions in the survey questionnaire were tailored to the categories adopted for the Census questionnaire. A preliminary

Using the Relevance Vector Machine Model Combined with Local Phase Quantization to Predict Protein-Protein Interactions from Protein Sequences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ji-Yong An

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We propose a novel computational method known as RVM-LPQ that combines the Relevance Vector Machine (RVM model and Local Phase Quantization (LPQ to predict PPIs from protein sequences. The main improvements are the results of representing protein sequences using the LPQ feature representation on a Position Specific Scoring Matrix (PSSM, reducing the influence of noise using a Principal Component Analysis (PCA, and using a Relevance Vector Machine (RVM based classifier. We perform 5-fold cross-validation experiments on Yeast and Human datasets, and we achieve very high accuracies of 92.65% and 97.62%, respectively, which is significantly better than previous works. To further evaluate the proposed method, we compare it with the state-of-the-art support vector machine (SVM classifier on the Yeast dataset. The experimental results demonstrate that our RVM-LPQ method is obviously better than the SVM-based method. The promising experimental results show the efficiency and simplicity of the proposed method, which can be an automatic decision support tool for future proteomics research.

High School Students' Perception of University Students as STEM Representatives

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poulsen, Eva Lykkegaard

’ potential identities. It shows that the students preferred STEM representatives resembled themselves in some aspects (primarily social and health aspects) and fit their perceptions of a typical person working in STEM in other aspects (knowledge seeking, hard-working etc.). At least two different...... studies, it is important to introduce high school students to good STEM representatives to make possible the development of potential STEM identities. A potential identity within a specific subject area relies on at least a situation bound relation-ship to the subject area or the person representing it....... Some representatives transmit infor-mation and are thereby definers, whereas other representatives illustrates as personal examples and are thereby models. This study focuses on high school students’ views on STEM representatives and the impact these representatives have on the high school students...

Judgments of and by Representativeness

Science.gov (United States)

1981-05-15

p. 4i). This hy- pothesis was studied in several contexts, including intuitive statisti- cal judgments and the prediction of professional choice (Kahneman... professional choice . Here, X is representative of M either because it is frequently associated with M (e.g., high fever commonly accompanies pneumonia

WIPP facility representative program plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

This plan describes the Department of Energy (DOE), Carlsbad Area Office (CAO) facility representative (FR) program at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). It provides the following information: (1) FR and support organization authorities and responsibilities; (2) FR program requirements; and (3) FR training and qualification requirements

IMPULSIVIDAD Y FACETAS DE LA PERSONALIDAD: RELACIÓN ENTRE INSTRUMENTOS DE MEDIDA

OpenAIRE

Rueda, Fabián J. M.; Pinto, Lariana Paula; Ávila-Batista, Ana Cristina

2016-01-01

El objetivo fue relacionar la impulsividad con rasgos de personalidad, estudiando evidencia de validez convergente-discriminante para la Bateria Fatorial de Personalidade (BFP) y para la Escala de Avaliação da Impulsividade (EsAvI). Participaron 178 de la policía militar del estado de Minas Gerais, Brasil. En los resultados se recurrió al análisis de regresión stepwise, por el cual fueron identificados modelos predictores constituidos por facetas de los cinco factores de la personalidad, dest...

Relevance of useful visual words in object retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Siyuan; Luo, Yupin

2013-07-01

The most popular methods in object retrieval are almost based on bag-of-words(BOW) which is both effective and efficient. In this paper we present a method use the relations between words of the vocabulary to improve the retrieval performance based on the BOW framework. In basic BOW retrieval framework, only a few words of the vocabulary is useful for retrieval, which are spatial consistent in images. We introduce a method to useful select useful words and build a relevance between these words. We combine useful relevance with basic BOW framework and query expansion as well. The useful relevance is able to discover latent related words which is not exist in the query image, so that we can get a more accurate vector model for retrieval. Combined with query expansion method, the retrieval performance are better and fewer time cost.

A comparison of the value relevance of interim and annual financial statements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mbalenhle Zulu

2017-03-01

Aim: It explores whether the value relevance of interim financial statements is higher than the value relevance of annual financial statements. Finally, it investigates whether accounting information published in interim and annual financial statements has incremental value relevance. Setting: Data for the period from 1999 to 2012 were collected from a sample of non-financial companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Method: The Ohlson model to investigate the value relevance of accounting information was used for the study. Results: The results show that interim book value of equity is value relevant while interim earnings are not. Interim financial statements appear to have higher value relevance than annual financial statements. The value relevance of interim and annual accounting information has remained fairly constant over the sample period. Incremental comparisons provide evidence that additional book value of equity and earnings that accrue to a company between interim and annual reporting dates are value relevant. Conclusion: The study was conducted over a long sample period (1999–2012, in an era when a technology-driven economy and more timely reporting media could have had an effect on the value relevance of published accounting information. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate and compare the value relevance of published interim and annual financial statements.

The Relevance Of Research And Development (R&D) Programmes ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The purpose of this study was to assess the relevance of Research and Development (R&D) programmes of Nigerian universities in national development. Data was collected form 432 senior academic staff of five selected universities in Nigeria. Indicators of relevance such as quality, results, dissemination, utilization and ...

More Realistic Face Model Surface Improves Relevance of Pediatric In-Vitro Aerosol Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Amirav, Israel; Halamish, Asaf; Gorenberg, Miguel; Omar, Hamza; Newhouse, Michael T

2015-01-01

Various hard face models are commonly used to evaluate the efficiency of aerosol face masks. Softer more realistic "face" surface materials, like skin, deform upon mask application and should provide more relevant in-vitro tests. Studies that simultaneously take into consideration many of the factors characteristic of the in vivo face are lacking. These include airways, various application forces, comparison of various devices, comparison with a hard-surface model and use of a more representative model face based on large numbers of actual faces. To compare mask to "face" seal and aerosol delivery of two pediatric masks using a soft vs. a hard, appropriately representative, pediatric face model under various applied forces. Two identical face models and upper airways replicas were constructed, the only difference being the suppleness and compressibility of the surface layer of the "face." Integrity of the seal and aerosol delivery of two different masks [AeroChamber (AC) and SootherMask (SM)] were compared using a breath simulator, filter collection and realistic applied forces. The soft "face" significantly increased the delivery efficiency and the sealing characteristics of both masks. Aerosol delivery with the soft "face" was significantly greater for the SM compared to the AC (pmasks was observed with the hard "face." The material and pliability of the model "face" surface has a significant influence on both the seal and delivery efficiency of face masks. This finding should be taken into account during in-vitro aerosol studies.

Marc Treib: Representing Landscape Architecture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Braae, Ellen Marie

2008-01-01

The editor of Representing Landscape Architecture, Marc Treib, argues that there is good reason to evaluate the standard practices of representation that landscape architects have been using for so long. In the rush to the promised land of computer design these practices are now in danger of being...

OAS :: Member States : Permanent Representatives

Science.gov (United States)

Rights Actions against Corruption C Children Civil Registry Civil Society Contact Us Culture Cyber Barbados Belize Bolivia Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Costa Rica Cuba 1 Dominica (Commonwealth of) Dominican Gutierez Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Belize Diego Pary Rodríguez Bolivia Diego Pary Rodríguez

Activity in neurons of a putative protocerebral circuit representing information about a ten component plant odour blend in Heliothis virescens.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bjarte Bye Løfaldli

2012-09-01

Full Text Available The olfactory pathway in the insect brain is anatomically well described from the antennal lobe to the mushroom bodies and the lateral protocerebrum in several species. Less is known about the further connections of the olfactory network in protocerebrum and how information about relevant plant odorants and mixtures are represented in this network, resulting in output information mediated by descending neurons. In the present study we have recorded intracellularly followed by dye injections from neurons in the lateral- and superior protocerebrum of the moth, Heliothis virescens. As relevant stimuli, we have used selected primary plant odorants and mixtures of them. The results provide the morphology and physiological responses of neurons involved in a putative circuit connecting the mushroom body lobes, the superior and the lateral protocerebrum, as well as input to superior and lateral protocerebrum by one multiglomerular antennal lobe neuron and output from the lateral protocerebrum by one descending neuron. All neurons responded to one particular mixture of ten primary plant odorants, some of them also to single odorants of the mixture. Altogether, the physiological data indicate integration in protocerebral neurons of information from several of the receptor neuron types functionally described in this species.

Effects of Coherence and Relevance on Shallow and Deep Text Processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Lehman, Stephen; Schraw, Gregory

2002-01-01

Examines the effects of coherence and relevance on shallow and deeper text processing, testing the hypothesis that enhancing the relevance of text segments compensates for breaks in local and global coherence. Results reveal that breaks in local coherence had no effect on any outcome measures, whereas relevance enhanced deeper processing.…

Valerian: No Evidence for Clinically Relevant Interactions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olaf Kelber

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In recent popular publications as well as in widely used information websites directed to cancer patients, valerian is claimed to have a potential of adverse interactions with anticancer drugs. This questions its use as a safe replacement for, for example, benzodiazepines. A review on the interaction potential of preparations from valerian root (Valeriana officinalis L. root was therefore conducted. A data base search and search in a clinical drug interaction data base were conducted. Thereafter, a systematic assessment of publications was performed. Seven in vitro studies on six CYP 450 isoenzymes, on p-glycoprotein, and on two UGT isoenzymes were identified. However, the methodological assessment of these studies did not support their suitability for the prediction of clinically relevant interactions. In addition, clinical studies on various valerian preparations did not reveal any relevant interaction potential concerning CYP 1A2, 2D6, 2E1, and 3A4. Available animal and human pharmacodynamic studies did not verify any interaction potential. The interaction potential of valerian preparations therefore seems to be low and thereby without clinical relevance. We conclude that there is no specific evidence questioning their safety, also in cancer patients.

Supporting pre-service science teachers in developing culturally relevant pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Krajeski, Stephen

This study employed a case study methodology to investigate a near-authentic intervention program designed to support the development of culturally relevant pedagogy and its impact on pre-service science teachers' notions of culturally relevant pedagogy. The unit of analysis for this study was the discourse of pre-service science teachers enrolled in a second semester science methods course, which was the site of the intervention program. Data for this study was collected from videos of classroom observations, audio recordings of personal interviews, and artifacts created by the pre-service science teachers during the class. To determine how effective science teacher certification programs are at supporting the development of culturally relevant pedagogy without an immersion aspect, two research questions were investigated: 1) How do pre-service science teachers view and design pedagogy while participating in an intervention designed to support the development of culturally relevant pedagogy? 2) How do pre-service science teachers view the importance of culturally relevant pedagogy for supporting student learning? How do their practices in the field change these initial views?

What proportion of people who try one cigarette become daily smokers? A meta analysis of representative surveys.

Science.gov (United States)

Birge, Max; Duffy, Stephen; Miler, Joanna Astrid; Hajek, Peter

2017-11-04

The 'conversion rate' from initial experimentation to daily smoking is a potentially important metric of smoking behavior, but estimates of it based on current representative data are lacking. The Global Health Data Exchange was searched for representative surveys conducted in English speaking, developed countries after year 2000 that included questions about ever trying a cigarette and ever smoking daily. The initial search identified 2776 surveys that were further screened for language, location, year, sample size, survey structure and representativeness. 44 surveys that passed the screening process were accessed and their codebooks were examined to see whether the two questions of interest were included. Eight datasets allowed extraction or estimation of relevant information. Survey quality was assessed with regards to response rates, sampling methods and data collection procedures. PRISMA guidelines were followed, with explicit rules for approaching derived variables and skip patterns. Proportions were pooled using random effects meta-analysis. The eight surveys used representative samples of the general adult population. Response rates varied from 45% to 88%. Survey methods were on par with the best practice in this field. Altogether 216,314 respondents were included of whom 60.3% (95%CI 51.3-69.3) ever tried a cigarette. Among those, 68.9% (95% CI 60.9-76.9%) progressed to daily smoking. Over two thirds of people who try one cigarette become, at least temporarily, daily smokers. The finding provides strong support for the current efforts to reduce cigarette experimentation among adolescents. The transition from trying the first cigarette through occasional to daily smoking usually implies that a recreational activity is turning into a compulsive need that has to be satisfied virtually continuously. The 'conversion rate' from initial experimentation to daily smoking is thus a potentially important metric of smoking behavior, but estimates of it based on

Constructing Contracts: Making Discrete Mathematics Relevant to Beginning Programmers

Science.gov (United States)

Gegg-Harrison, Timothy S.

2005-01-01

Although computer scientists understand the importance of discrete mathematics to the foundations of their field, computer science (CS) students do not always see the relevance. Thus, it is important to find a way to show students its relevance. The concept of program correctness is generally taught as an activity independent of the programming…

37 CFR 10.84 - Representing a client zealously.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 37 Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Representing a client... Office Code of Professional Responsibility § 10.84 Representing a client zealously. (a) A practitioner shall not intentionally: (1) Fail to seek the lawful objectives of a client through reasonably available...

Representing Young Children with Disabilities in Classroom Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Favazza, Paddy C.; LaRoe, Joyce; Phillipsen, Leslie; Kumar, Poonam

2000-01-01

The "Inventory of Disability Representation" was administered to 92 teachers representing kindergarten, community child care, or preschool settings. Low scores across settings indicated that classrooms typically do not have materials that represent or depict children with diverse abilities. Reasons cited by teachers are noted as are benefits…

Officers, Boards, Committees, and Representatives of the American Psychological Association, 2007

Science.gov (United States)

American Psychologist, 2007

2007-01-01

The Council of Representatives is composed of the Board of Directors, the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS) representative, division representatives, and state, provincial, and territorial association representatives. Then representatives for the current year, with terms of office, are listed in this article.

Design manufacturing and thermo-mechanical testing of a relevant size mono block divertor prototype

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cardella, A.; Vieider, G.; Di Pietro, E.; Orsini, A.; Febvre, M.; Guerreschi, U.; Reheis, N.; Bruno, L.

1994-01-01

Following a technological development of joining techniques between carbon fibre composite tiles and metallic tubes, and the manufacturing and testing of small size actively cooled mock-ups, a relevant size divertor prototype has been designed, manufactured and tested. The prototype consisted of a series of metallic tubes surrounded by CFC tiles, cooling collectors and a supporting system representative of a divertor dump plate for high power reactors. The tubes have been preliminary tested at the CEA 200 kW electron beam facility with uniform fluxes up to 5 MW/m 2 to select the best five tubes, which together with a sixth non tested tube have been then assembled to form the prototype. This has been tested at the JET high power neutral beam injector test facility. After screening tests the prototype has been subjected to thermal cycling at more than 15 MW/m 2 . (author) 12 refs.; 4 figs

Determination of representative CANDU feeder dimensions for engineering simulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, S.; Muzumdar, A.

1996-01-01

This paper describes a logic for selection of representative channel groups and a methodology for determination of representative CANDU feeder dimensions and the pressure drops between inlet/outlet header and fuel channel in the primary loop. A code, MEDOC, was developed based on this logic and methodology and helps perform a calculation of representative feeder dimensions for a selected channel group on the basis of feeder geometry data (fluid volume, mass flow rate, loss factor) and given property data (pressure, quality, density) at inlet/outlet header. The representative feeder dimensions calculated based on this methodology will be useful for the engineering simulator for the CANDU type reactor. (author)

Fast multi-output relevance vector regression

OpenAIRE

Ha, Youngmin

2017-01-01

This paper aims to decrease the time complexity of multi-output relevance vector regression from O(VM^3) to O(V^3+M^3), where V is the number of output dimensions, M is the number of basis functions, and V

Bootstrapping Visual Categorization with Relevant Negatives

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Li, X.; Snoek, C.G.M.; Worring, M.; Koelma, D.; Smeulders, A.W.M.

Learning classifiers for many visual concepts are important for image categorization and retrieval. As a classifier tends to misclassify negative examples which are visually similar to positive ones, inclusion of such misclassified and thus relevant negatives should be stressed during learning.

Value Relevance of Investment Properties: Evidence from the Brazilian Capital Market

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ketlyn Alves Gonçalves

2017-04-01

Full Text Available This study investigates the relevance to the capital market of the assets recognized as investment properties of companies listed on the BM&F BOVESPA, in the period from 2011 to 2014. The research conducted was based on the Ohlson model (1995 and panel analysis was carried out using linear regression with POLS and Fixed and Random Effects estimators. Two hypothesis were made: (i that Earning and Equity generate accounting information relevant to investors; and (2 that Earning, Equity and Investment Property generate accounting information relevant to investors, assuming that investment properties have incremental effect on the relevance of this information relative only to earning and to equity. Both hypotheses were rejected, so it is concluded that Investment Property assets are not of value relevance in the determination of share price and do not influence the decision making of users of accounting information. The study adds to the limited literature on the value relevance of Investment Property, permitting a better understanding of the impact of accounting disclosures used by companies on their market value.

Attentional Capture and Inhibition of Saccades after Irrelevant and Relevant Cues

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heinz-Werner Priess

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Attentional capture is usually stronger for task-relevant than irrelevant stimuli, whereas irrelevant stimuli can trigger equal or even stronger amounts of inhibition than relevant stimuli. Capture and inhibition, however, are typically assessed in separate trials, leaving it open whether or not inhibition of irrelevant stimuli is a consequence of preceding attentional capture by the same stimuli or whether inhibition is the only response to these stimuli. Here, we tested the relationship between capture and inhibition in a setup allowing for estimates of the capture and inhibition based on the very same trials. We recorded saccadic inhibition after relevant and irrelevant stimuli. At the same time, we recorded the N2pc, an event-related potential, reflecting initial capture of attention. We found attentional capture not only for, relevant but importantly also for irrelevant stimuli, although the N2pc was stronger for relevant than irrelevant stimuli. In addition, inhibition of saccades was the same for relevant and irrelevant stimuli. We conclude with a discussion of the mechanisms that are responsible for these effects.

Value Relevance of Accounting Information in the United Arab Emirates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jamal Barzegari Khanagha

2011-01-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the value relevance of accounting information in per and post-periods of International Financial Reporting Standards implementation using the regression and portfolio approaches for sample of the UAE companies. The results obtained from a combination of regression and portfolio approaches, show accounting information is value relevant in UAE stock market. A comparison of the results for the periods before and after adoption, based on both regression and portfolio approaches, shows a decline in value relevance of accounting information after the reform in accounting standards. It could be interpreted to mean that following to IFRS in UAE didn’t improve value relevancy of accounting information. However, results based on and portfolio approach shows that cash flows’ incremental information content increased for the post-IFRS period.

Assessing the scientific relevance of a single publication over time

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Philipp A. Bloching

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Quantitatively assessing the scientific relevance of a research paper is challenging for two reasons. Firstly, scientific relevance may change over time, and secondly, it is unclear how to evaluate a recently published paper. The temporally averaged paper-specific impact factor is defined as the yearly average of citations to the paper until now including bonus citations equal to the journal impact factor in the publication year. This new measure subsequently allows relevance rankings and annual updates of all (i.e. both recent and older scientific papers of a department, or even a whole scientific field, on a more objective basis. It can also be used to assess both the average and overall time-dependent scientific relevance of researchers in a specific department or scientific field.

Using geometric algebra to represent curvature in shell theory with applications to Starling resistors.

Science.gov (United States)

Gregory, A L; Agarwal, A; Lasenby, J

2017-11-01

We present a novel application of rotors in geometric algebra to represent the change of curvature tensor that is used in shell theory as part of the constitutive law. We introduce a new decomposition of the change of curvature tensor, which has explicit terms for changes of curvature due to initial curvature combined with strain, and changes in rotation over the surface. We use this decomposition to perform a scaling analysis of the relative importance of bending and stretching in flexible tubes undergoing self-excited oscillations. These oscillations have relevance to the lung, in which it is believed that they are responsible for wheezing. The new analysis is necessitated by the fact that the working fluid is air, compared to water in most previous work. We use stereographic imaging to empirically measure the relative importance of bending and stretching energy in observed self-excited oscillations. This enables us to validate our scaling analysis. We show that bending energy is dominated by stretching energy, and the scaling analysis makes clear that this will remain true for tubes in the airways of the lung.

Sexual Violence Experienced in the Sport Context by a Representative Sample of Quebec Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Parent, Sylvie; Lavoie, Francine; Thibodeau, Marie-Ève; Hébert, Martine; Blais, Martin

2016-01-01

This is the first study to report the prevalence of sexual violence perpetrated by a sport coach within a representative sample of the general population of adolescents aged between 14 and 17 years (N = 6 450). The questionnaire administered in high schools includes self-reported measures on a variety of dimensions relevant to the study of victimization, including sexual abuse, sexual contacts perceived as consensual, sexual harassment and involvement in an organized sport context. Descriptive and chi-square analyses were performed. The results show that 0.5% of adolescents experienced sexual abuse involving a coach. When considering all adolescents who experienced sexual abuse in their lifetime (10.2%), it appears that 5.3% of them were victims of sexual abuse by a coach. Participants also reported experiencing sexual harassment from a coach (0.4%) and consensual sexual contacts (1.2%) with a coach in the 12 months preceeding the study. Questions are raised on the overrepresentation of boys in situations of sexual victimization experiences in an organized sport context. PMID:25873593

27 CFR 71.31 - Attorneys and other representatives.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... representatives. 71.31 Section 71.31 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND TRADE... applicant may be represented by an attorney, certified public accountant, or other person enrolled to practice before the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau under 31 CFR part 8—Practice before the...

Calls to Teen Line: Representative Concerns of Adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Boehm, Kathryn E.; Schondel, Connie K.; Ivoska, William J.; Marlowe, Alison L.; Manke-Mitchell, Laurie

1998-01-01

Study examines whether the concerns of teenagers calling a peer listening service are representative of the concerns of teenagers in the area served. Results indicate that students' biggest concerns involve family problems, peer relationships, self-esteem, and school problems. Concludes that calls to the teen line are representative. (Author/GCP)

Abdominal obesity vs general obesity for identifying arterial stiffness, subclinical atherosclerosis and wave reflection in healthy, diabetics and hypertensive

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Recio-Rodriguez Jose I

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Our aim was to analyze the relationship between abdominal obesity and general obesity, with subclinical atherosclerosis, arterial stiffness and wave reflection in healthy, diabetics and hypertensive subjects. Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study was made of 305 individuals (diabetics 32.8%, hypertensive subjects 37.0% and healthy individuals 30.2%. Measurements: Body mass index (BMI, waist circumference (WC, body fat percentage (BFP and waist/height ratio (WHtR. Arterial stiffness was assessed according to pulse wave velocity (PWV, intima-media thickness of the common carotid artery (C-IMT, augmentation index (central and peripheral, ankle-brachial index (ABI, and central and peripheral pulse pressure. Results WC and WHtR showed a positive correlation to PWV and C-IMT in the studied groups. After adjusting for age, gender, high sensitivity c-reactive protein, serum glucose and the presence of diabetes, hypertension, smoking, dyslipidemia, antidiabetic drugs, lipid-lowering drugs, and atherosclerotic plaques, it was seen that for every 0.1 point increase in WHtR, and for every cm increase in WC, the PWV increased 0.041 and 0.029 m/sec, and C-IMT increased 0.001 mm and 0.001 mm, respectively. Conclusions The measures of abdominal obesity (WHtR and WC correlates better than BMI and BFP with arterial stiffness evaluated by PWV, and with subclinical atherosclerosis evaluated by C-IMT, independently of the presence of diabetes or hypertension. Trial Registration Clinical Trials.gov Identifier: NCT01325064

Lignin depolymerization and upgrading via fast pyrolysis and electrocatalysis for the production of liquid fuels and value-added products

Science.gov (United States)

Garedew, Mahlet

The production of liquid hydrocarbon fuels from biomass is needed to replace fossil fuels, which are decreasing in supply at an unsustainable rate. Renewable fuels also address the rising levels of greenhouse gases, an issue for which the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change implicated humanity in 2013. In response, the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) mandates the production of 21 billion gallons of advanced biofuels by 2022. Biomass fast pyrolysis (BFP) uses heat (400-600 °C) without oxygen to convert biomass to liquids fuel precursors offering an alternative to fossil fuels and a means to meet the EISA mandate. The major product, bio-oil, can be further upgraded to liquid hydrocarbon fuels, while biochar can serve as a solid fuel or soil amendment. The combustible gas co-product is typically burned for process heat. Though the most valuable of the pyrolysis products, the liquid bio-oil is highly oxygenated, corrosive, low in energy content and unstable during storage. As a means of improving bio-oil properties, electrocatalytic hydrogenation (ECH) is employed to reduce and deoxygenate reactive compounds. This work specifically focuses on lignin as a feed material for BFP. As lignin comprises up to 30% of the mass and 40% of the energy stored in biomass, it offers great potential for the production of liquid fuels and value-added products by utilizing fast pyrolysis as a conversion method coupled with electrocatalysis as an upgrading method.

Magnetically filtered Faraday probe for measuring the ion current density profile of a Hall thruster

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rovey, Joshua L.; Walker, Mitchell L.R.; Gallimore, Alec D.; Peterson, Peter Y.

2006-01-01

The ability of a magnetically filtered Faraday probe (MFFP) to obtain the ion current density profile of a Hall thruster is investigated. The MFFP is designed to eliminate the collection of low-energy, charge-exchange (CEX) ions by using a variable magnetic field as an ion filter. In this study, a MFFP, Faraday probe with a reduced acceptance angle (BFP), and nude Faraday probe are used to measure the ion current density profile of a 5 kW Hall thruster operating over the range of 300-500 V and 5-10 mg/s. The probes are evaluated on a xenon propellant Hall thruster in the University of Michigan Large Vacuum Test Facility at operating pressures within the range of 4.4x10 -4 Pa Xe (3.3x10 -6 Torr Xe) to 1.1x10 -3 Pa Xe (8.4x10 -6 Torr Xe) in order to study the ability of the Faraday probe designs to filter out CEX ions. Detailed examination of the results shows that the nude probe measures a greater ion current density profile than both the MFFP and BFP over the range of angular positions investigated for each operating condition. The differences between the current density profiles obtained by each probe are attributed to the ion filtering systems employed. Analysis of the results shows that the MFFP, operating at a +5 A solenoid current, provides the best agreement with flight-test data and across operating pressures

The relevance of memory sensitivity for psychological well-being in aging.

Science.gov (United States)

Toffalini, Enrico; Borella, Erika; Cornoldi, Cesare; De Beni, Rossana

2016-08-01

In the present study, we investigated the relationship between memory sensitivity, which describes a positive attitude to autobiographical memory and the presence of behaviors devoted to saving memories of the personal past, and psychological well-being; in particular, we tested whether their relationship would change across age groups. Three hundred eighteen participants, divided in four groups: young to middle-aged adults (20-55 years old), young-old adults (65-74 years old), old adults (75-84 years old), and old-old adults (85-97 years old), completed questionnaires on their memory sensitivity and psychological well-being. Memory sensitivity slightly decreased with age and had a positive relationship with psychological well-being that was critically moderated by age. Specifically, the relationship between memory sensitivity and psychological well-being became increasingly stronger as age increased. While memory sensitivity may have little or no particular relevance in the case of young to middle-aged adults, it has an increasingly important positive relationship with psychological well-being at later age. It is thus suggested that memory sensitivity represents a dimension that should be considered in the study and interventions on quality of life in the elderly population.

REFractions: The Representing Equivalent Fractions Game

Science.gov (United States)

Tucker, Stephen I.

2014-01-01

Stephen Tucker presents a fractions game that addresses a range of fraction concepts including equivalence and computation. The REFractions game also improves students' fluency with representing, comparing and adding fractions.

Representing distance, consuming distance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Larsen, Gunvor Riber

Title: Representing Distance, Consuming Distance Abstract: Distance is a condition for corporeal and virtual mobilities, for desired and actual travel, but yet it has received relatively little attention as a theoretical entity in its own right. Understandings of and assumptions about distance...... are being consumed in the contemporary society, in the same way as places, media, cultures and status are being consumed (Urry 1995, Featherstone 2007). An exploration of distance and its representations through contemporary consumption theory could expose what role distance plays in forming...

Representing culture in interstellar messages

Science.gov (United States)

Vakoch, Douglas A.

2008-09-01

As scholars involved with the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) have contemplated how we might portray humankind in any messages sent to civilizations beyond Earth, one of the challenges they face is adequately representing the diversity of human cultures. For example, in a 2003 workshop in Paris sponsored by the SETI Institute, the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) SETI Permanent Study Group, the International Society for the Arts, Sciences and Technology (ISAST), and the John Templeton Foundation, a varied group of artists, scientists, and scholars from the humanities considered how to encode notions of altruism in interstellar messages . Though the group represented 10 countries, most were from Europe and North America, leading to the group's recommendation that subsequent discussions on the topic should include more globally representative perspectives. As a result, the IAA Study Group on Interstellar Message Construction and the SETI Institute sponsored a follow-up workshop in Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA in February 2005. The Santa Fe workshop brought together scholars from a range of disciplines including anthropology, archaeology, chemistry, communication science, philosophy, and psychology. Participants included scholars familiar with interstellar message design as well as specialists in cross-cultural research who had participated in the Symposium on Altruism in Cross-cultural Perspective, held just prior to the workshop during the annual conference of the Society for Cross-cultural Research . The workshop included discussion of how cultural understandings of altruism can complement and critique the more biologically based models of altruism proposed for interstellar messages at the 2003 Paris workshop. This paper, written by the chair of both the Paris and Santa Fe workshops, will explore the challenges of communicating concepts of altruism that draw on both biological and cultural models.

Assessing Use of Cognitive Heuristic Representativeness in Clinical Reasoning

OpenAIRE

Payne, Velma L.; Crowley, Rebecca S.

2008-01-01

We performed a pilot study to investigate use of the cognitive heuristic Representativeness in clinical reasoning. We tested a set of tasks and assessments to determine whether subjects used the heuristics in reasoning, to obtain initial frequencies of heuristic use and related cognitive errors, and to collect cognitive process data using think-aloud techniques. The study investigates two aspects of the Representativeness heuristic - judging by perceived frequency and representativeness as ca...

Inferring feature relevances from metric learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schulz, Alexander; Mokbel, Bassam; Biehl, Michael

2015-01-01

Powerful metric learning algorithms have been proposed in the last years which do not only greatly enhance the accuracy of distance-based classifiers and nearest neighbor database retrieval, but which also enable the interpretability of these operations by assigning explicit relevance weights...

Representativeness elements of an hybrid reactor demonstrator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kerdraon, D.; Billebaud, A.; Brissot, R.; David, S.; Giorni, A.; Heuer, D.; Loiseaux, J.M.; Meplan, O.

2000-11-01

This document deals with the quantification of the minimum thermal power level for a demonstrator and the definition of the physical criteria which define the representative character of a demonstrator towards a power reactor. Solutions allowing to keep an acceptable flow in an industrial core, have also been studied. The document is divided in three parts: the representativeness elements, the considered solutions and the characterization of the neutrons flows at the interfaces and the dose rates at the outer surface of the vessel. (A.L.B.)

High School Students' Perception of University Students as STEM Representatives

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poulsen, Eva Lykkegaard

The Danish government has an ambition to recruit more high school students into STEM edu-cations (science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics). The students’ choice of further education is based on the people and jobs they have knowledge of. Therefore, to recruit more students into STEM....... Some representatives transmit infor-mation and are thereby definers, whereas other representatives illustrates as personal examples and are thereby models. This study focuses on high school students’ views on STEM representatives and the impact these representatives have on the high school students...... studies, it is important to introduce high school students to good STEM representatives to make possible the development of potential STEM identities. A potential identity within a specific subject area relies on at least a situation bound relation-ship to the subject area or the person representing it...

[Incidence and follow-up characteristics of neurologically relevant psychogenic symptoms].

Science.gov (United States)

Franz, M; Schellberg, D; Reister, G; Schepank, H

1993-06-01

The author reports on the prevalence and stability of the course of neurologically relevant psychogenic symptoms as well as their dependence on age and sex. Altogether 240 probands from the Mannheim Cohort Study on the epidemiology of psychogenic disorders were examined for psychogenic impairment over a 10-year period during three investigation periods. On the whole, seven neurologically relevant groups of symptoms (headache, lumbar and cervical vertebral complaints, non-systematic vertigo, functional hyperkinesia, functional paresis, sleep disturbances, concentration disturbances) differ clearly in frequency, characteristics of the course and clinical relevance.

PENGARUH UKURAN KAP DAN AUDITOR TENURE TERHADAP VALUE RELEVANCE DARI NILAI WAJAR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Taufik Hidayat

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This study examines the value relevance of fair value and whether the value relevance of fair value measured at quoted active market is higher than value measured at valuation techniques. We also examine whether the value relevance offair value with valuation techniques improves if auditor tenure is longer or financial statements are audited by a Big Four Firm. Hypothesis testing was conducted by a panel data based on model of Ohlson (1995. Using a sample of 147 companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2008-2011, resulting the general conclusion that fair value has value relevance, where the value relevance of fair value measured at quoted active market is higher than the valuation technique. Value relevance of fair value measured at valuation techniques will increase as auditor tenure increases or financial statements were audited by a Big Four Firm.

EOG feature relevance determination for microsleep detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Golz Martin

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Automatic relevance determination (ARD was applied to two-channel EOG recordings for microsleep event (MSE recognition. 10 s immediately before MSE and also before counterexamples of fatigued, but attentive driving were analysed. Two type of signal features were extracted: the maximum cross correlation (MaxCC and logarithmic power spectral densities (PSD averaged in spectral bands of 0.5 Hz width ranging between 0 and 8 Hz. Generalised learn-ing vector quantisation (GRLVQ was used as ARD method to show the potential of feature reduction. This is compared to support-vector machines (SVM, in which the feature reduction plays a much smaller role. Cross validation yielded mean normalised relevancies of PSD features in the range of 1.6 – 4.9 % and 1.9 – 10.4 % for horizontal and vertical EOG, respectively. MaxCC relevancies were 0.002 – 0.006 % and 0.002 – 0.06 %, respectively. This shows that PSD features of vertical EOG are indispensable, whereas MaxCC can be neglected. Mean classification accuracies were estimated at 86.6±b 1.3 % and 92.3±b 0.2 % for GRLVQ and SVM, respectively. GRLVQ permits objective feature reduction by inclusion of all processing stages, but is not as accurate as SVM.

EOG feature relevance determination for microsleep detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Golz Martin

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Automatic relevance determination (ARD was applied to two-channel EOG recordings for microsleep event (MSE recognition. 10 s immediately before MSE and also before counterexamples of fatigued, but attentive driving were analysed. Two type of signal features were extracted: the maximum cross correlation (MaxCC and logarithmic power spectral densities (PSD averaged in spectral bands of 0.5 Hz width ranging between 0 and 8 Hz. Generalised learn-ing vector quantisation (GRLVQ was used as ARD method to show the potential of feature reduction. This is compared to support-vector machines (SVM, in which the feature reduction plays a much smaller role. Cross validation yielded mean normalised relevancies of PSD features in the range of 1.6 - 4.9 % and 1.9 - 10.4 % for horizontal and vertical EOG, respectively. MaxCC relevancies were 0.002 - 0.006 % and 0.002 - 0.06 %, respectively. This shows that PSD features of vertical EOG are indispensable, whereas MaxCC can be neglected. Mean classification accuracies were estimated at 86.6±b 1.3 % and 92.3±b 0.2 % for GRLVQ and SVM, respec-tively. GRLVQ permits objective feature reduction by inclu-sion of all processing stages, but is not as accurate as SVM.

Attention bias towards personally relevant stimuli: the individual emotional Stroop task.

Science.gov (United States)

Wingenfeld, Katja; Bullig, Renate; Mensebach, Christoph; Hartje, Wolfgang; Driessen, Martin; Beblo, Thomas

2006-12-01

The emotional Stroop task is a widely used method for investigating attentional bias towards stimuli due to mood or affect. In general, standardized stimuli are used, which might not be appropriate when investigating individual contextual frameworks. It was investigated whether words chosen to be related to individuals' personal life events would produce more pronounced Stroop interference (as an indicator of attentional bias) than stimuli without any personal relevance. Twenty-six nonclinical subjects, 20 female and 6 male, participated in the study. Mean age was 36.1 yr. (SD = 18.1). All were recruited by means of local advertising. Stimulus material consisted of four word types: personal words related to negative life events with and without current personal relevance, and negative and neutral words without any personal relevance. Words were presented in three blocks. Analysis of variance showed main effects for word type and blocks, with slower reactions in the personally relevant conditions than in the negative, or neutral conditions, and in response to the first blocks as opposed to the last. These findings indicate that regardless of the word valence, personally relevant stimuli evoke more pronounced Stroop interference than do stimuli without personal relevance.

A Study of Novice Science Teachers' Conceptualizations of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Redman, Elizabeth Horst

This qualitative study examined new science teachers' conceptualization of culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP). The study followed six novice science teachers from their preservice teaching placements into their first jobs as instructors of record, observing in their classrooms and interviewing them about their use of CRP. The study sought to understand (1) how the participating teachers conceptualize CRP in science, and (2) what challenges the teachers faced in trying to implement CRP. Findings suggest that the teachers conceptualized CRP in ways that were consistent with Enyedy, Danish and Fields' (2011) interpretations of relevance: relevance of authentic purpose, relevance of content and/or context, and relevance of practices. The teachers, however, translated those interpretations of relevance into their conceptualizations and classroom practice in a variety of ways. While they encountered difficulties in conceptualizing and practicing CRP, they also made productive moves in their practice and evidenced positive elements in their conceptualizations of CRP. In order to address the challenges these teachers faced in implementing CRP, I suggest an approach to teacher preparation in CRP that builds upon the understandings and productive moves the teachers evidenced in this study.

Task-relevant perceptual features can define categories in visual memory too.

Science.gov (United States)

Antonelli, Karla B; Williams, Carrick C

2017-11-01

Although Konkle, Brady, Alvarez, and Oliva (2010, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 139(3), 558) claim that visual long-term memory (VLTM) is organized on underlying conceptual, not perceptual, information, visual memory results from visual search tasks are not well explained by this theory. We hypothesized that when viewing an object, any task-relevant visual information is critical to the organizational structure of VLTM. In two experiments, we examined the organization of VLTM by measuring the amount of retroactive interference created by objects possessing different combinations of task-relevant features. Based on task instructions, only the conceptual category was task relevant or both the conceptual category and a perceptual object feature were task relevant. Findings indicated that when made task relevant, perceptual object feature information, along with conceptual category information, could affect memory organization for objects in VLTM. However, when perceptual object feature information was task irrelevant, it did not contribute to memory organization; instead, memory defaulted to being organized around conceptual category information. These findings support the theory that a task-defined organizational structure is created in VLTM based on the relevance of particular object features and information.

A curated compendium of monocyte transcriptome datasets of relevance to human monocyte immunobiology research [version 2; referees: 2 approved

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Darawan Rinchai

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Systems-scale profiling approaches have become widely used in translational research settings. The resulting accumulation of large-scale datasets in public repositories represents a critical opportunity to promote insight and foster knowledge discovery. However, resources that can serve as an interface between biomedical researchers and such vast and heterogeneous dataset collections are needed in order to fulfill this potential. Recently, we have developed an interactive data browsing and visualization web application, the Gene Expression Browser (GXB. This tool can be used to overlay deep molecular phenotyping data with rich contextual information about analytes, samples and studies along with ancillary clinical or immunological profiling data. In this note, we describe a curated compendium of 93 public datasets generated in the context of human monocyte immunological studies, representing a total of 4,516 transcriptome profiles. Datasets were uploaded to an instance of GXB along with study description and sample annotations. Study samples were arranged in different groups. Ranked gene lists were generated based on relevant group comparisons. This resource is publicly available online at http://monocyte.gxbsidra.org/dm3/landing.gsp.

Fossil Fuel Industry Funding of Climate-Relevant Research at U.S. Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Franta, B.; Supran, G.

2017-12-01

Commercial producers of lead, tobacco, petroleum, and other products have funded extensive scholarly research in ways designed to confuse the public about the dangers of those products and thwart regulation [1-3]. For example, strategy documentation of the U.S. oil and gas industry from the late 1990s describes using selective support for scientists as a strategy for creating an atmosphere of debate and uncertainty, with the ultimate goal of delaying and defeating climate policies [4]. In this context, we systematically examine current funding from commercial fossil fuel interests of climate-relevant research - such as energy technology and climate policy research - in U.S. universities. We quantify such funding using charitable giving databases, university websites, and other publicly available records. We find that, especially among the most influential universities, climate-related research programs are frequently dominated by funding from fossil fuel interests. Moreover, these relationships sometimes afford funders privileges including formal control over research directions. This work represents an advance in mapping the presence of commercial fossil fuel interests in academia and may contribute to discussions of appropriate funding systems for climate-relevant research. 1. Markowitz, G. and D. Rosner, Lead Wars: The Politics of Science and the Fate of America's Children. 1st ed. 2013: University of California Press. 2. Brandt, A.M., Inventing Conflicts of Interest: A History of Tobacco Industry Tactics. American Journal of Public Health, 2012. 102(1): p. 63-71. 3. Oreskes, N. and E.M. Conway, Merchants of Doubt: How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming. 2011: Bloomsbury Press. 4. Walker, J., Global Climate Science Communications Action Plan. 1998. Workshop held at the headquarters of the American Petroleum Institute.

New Methods for Crafting Locally Decision-Relevant Scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Lempert, R. J.

2015-12-01

Scenarios can play an important role in helping decision makers to imagine future worlds, both good and bad, different than the one with which we are familiar and to take concrete steps now to address the risks generated by climate change. At their best, scenarios can effectively represent deep uncertainty; integrate over multiple domains; and enable parties with different expectation and values to expand the range of futures they consider, to see the world from different points of view, and to grapple seriously with the potential implications of surprising or inconvenient futures. These attributes of scenario processes can prove crucial in helping craft effective responses to climate change. But traditional scenario methods can also fail to overcome difficulties related to choosing, communicating, and using scenarios to identify, evaluate, and reach consensus on appropriate policies. Such challenges can limit scenario's impact in broad public discourse. This talk will demonstrate how new decision support approaches can employ new quantitative tools that allow scenarios to emerge from a process of deliberation with analysis among stakeholders, rather than serve as inputs to it, thereby increasing the impacts of scenarios on decision making. This talk will demonstrate these methods in the design of a decision support tool to help residents of low lying coastal cities grapple with the long-term risks of sea level rise. In particular, this talk will show how information from the IPCC SSP's can be combined with local information to provide a rich set of locally decision-relevant information.

Relevance of human anatomy in daily clinical practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Arráez-Aybar, Luis-Alfonso; Sánchez-Montesinos, Indalecio; Mirapeix, Rosa-M; Mompeo-Corredera, Blanca; Sañudo-Tejero, Jose-Ramón

2010-12-20

the aim of this study has been to evaluate the relevance of gross human anatomy in daily clinical practice and to compare it to that of other basic sciences (biochemistry, bioethics, cytohistology, microbiology, pharmacology, physiology, psychology). a total of 1250 questionnaires were distributed among 38 different medical speciality professionals. Answers were analyzed taking into account speciality (medical, surgery and others), professional status (training physician or staff member) and professional experience. the response rate was 42.9% (n=536). Gross human anatomy was considered the most relevant basic discipline for surgical specialists, while pharmacology and physiology were most relevant for medical specialists. Knowledge of anatomy was also considered fundamental for understanding neurological or musculoskeletal disorders. In undergraduate programmes, the most important focuses in teaching anatomy were radiological, topographical and functional anatomy followed by systematic anatomy. In daily medical practice anatomy was considered basic for physical examination, symptom interpretation and interpretation of radiological images. When professional status or professional experience was considered, small variations were shown and there were no significant differences related to gender or community. our results underline the relevance of basic sciences (gross anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology) in daily professional activity. Evidence-based studies such as ours, lend greater credibility and objectivity to the role of gross anatomy in the undergraduate training of health professionals and should help to establish a more appropriate curriculum for future professionals. 2010 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Climate Change and the Representative Agent

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Howarth, R.B. [Environmental Studies Program, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755 (United States)

2000-02-01

The artifice of an infinitely-lived representative agent is commonly invoked to balance the present costs and future benefits of climate stabilization policies. Since actual economies are populated by overlapping generations of finite-lived persons, this approach begs important questions of welfare aggregation. This paper compares the results of representative agent and overlapping generations models that are numerically calibrated based on standard assumptions regarding climate economy interactions. Under two social choice rules - Pareto efficiency and classical utilitarianism - the models generate closely similar simulation results. In the absence of policies to redistribute income between present and future generations, efficient rates of carbon dioxide emissions abatement rise from 15 to 20% between the years 2000 and 2105. Under classical utilitarianism, in contrast, optimal control rates rise from 48 to 79% this same period. 23 refs.

Statistics On Title II Direct Payments To Claimant Representatives

Data.gov (United States)

Social Security Administration — Every person has the right to be represented by an attorney or other representative while pursuing a claim or other rights. This dataset contains data around Title...

Infrared photothermal imaging of trace explosives on relevant substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Kendziora, Christopher A.; Furstenberg, Robert; Papantonakis, Michael; Nguyen, Viet; Borchert, James; Byers, Jeff; McGill, R. Andrew

2013-06-01

We are developing a technique for the stand-off detection of trace explosives on relevant substrate surfaces using photo-thermal infrared (IR) imaging spectroscopy (PT-IRIS). This approach leverages one or more compact IR quantum cascade lasers, tuned to strong absorption bands in the analytes and directed to illuminate an area on a surface of interest. An IR focal plane array is used to image the surface and detect small increases in thermal emission upon laser illumination. The PT-IRIS signal is processed as a hyperspectral image cube comprised of spatial, spectral and temporal dimensions as vectors within a detection algorithm. The ability to detect trace analytes on relevant substrates is critical for stand-off applications, but is complicated by the optical and thermal analyte/substrate interactions. This manuscript describes recent PT-IRIS experimental results and analysis for traces of RDX, TNT, ammonium nitrate (AN) and sucrose on relevant substrates (steel, polyethylene, glass and painted steel panels). We demonstrate that these analytes can be detected on these substrates at relevant surface mass loadings (10 μg/cm2 to 100 μg/cm2) even at the single pixel level.

Clustering Trajectories by Relevant Parts for Air Traffic Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Andrienko, Gennady; Andrienko, Natalia; Fuchs, Georg; Garcia, Jose Manuel Cordero

2018-01-01

Clustering of trajectories of moving objects by similarity is an important technique in movement analysis. Existing distance functions assess the similarity between trajectories based on properties of the trajectory points or segments. The properties may include the spatial positions, times, and thematic attributes. There may be a need to focus the analysis on certain parts of trajectories, i.e., points and segments that have particular properties. According to the analysis focus, the analyst may need to cluster trajectories by similarity of their relevant parts only. Throughout the analysis process, the focus may change, and different parts of trajectories may become relevant. We propose an analytical workflow in which interactive filtering tools are used to attach relevance flags to elements of trajectories, clustering is done using a distance function that ignores irrelevant elements, and the resulting clusters are summarized for further analysis. We demonstrate how this workflow can be useful for different analysis tasks in three case studies with real data from the domain of air traffic. We propose a suite of generic techniques and visualization guidelines to support movement data analysis by means of relevance-aware trajectory clustering.

Clinical relevance of findings in trials of CBT for depression

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lepping, P.; Whittington, R.; Sambhi, R.S.; Lane, S.; Poole, R.; Leucht, S.; Cuijpers, P.; McCabe, R.; Waheed, W.

2017-01-01

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is beneficial in depression. Symptom scores can be translated into Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale scores to indicate clinical relevance. We aimed to assess the clinical relevance of findings of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of CBT in depression. We

PSYCHOLOGICAL FEATURES OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE CHECHEN YOUTH PROFESSING ISLAM AND EXPERIENCING MYTHOLOGICAL FEARS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Razet Grimsoltanova

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The article described the study of the relevance of the role and place of religious contents among young people in the postconflict areas of the South of Russia, the rate of experiences of mythological fear had been explored with the help of the survey, as well as individual psychological characteristics of subjects had been studied by methods of  Eysenck, Schmieschek, J. Rotter and Taylor. Those representatives of the surveyed youth sample experiencing a high level of mythological fear could fall into the danger zone of initiation in the group of non-traditional religious sects, as well as come under extremists’ influence, since manip-ulation of consciousness and human behavior, depending on individual psychological characteristics and by using of mythological content, such as fear of possession by jinni, is most effective. The study was attended by representatives of Islam at the age of 19-21, divided by gender: 100 young men and 100 girls. The study was aimed at identifying indi-vidual personality characteristics of temperament, character accentuations, locus of control, the level of personal anxiety and the results of a content analysis of the survey done by the author of the article were identified in accordance with five scales. Results of the study revealed that about 80% of subjects experiencing a high level of mythological fears had the same peculiar correlation indices. In connection with the results of research, we had worked out and suggested a complex of psycho-pedagogical support consisting of four modules for the purpose of education, preventive and corrective activities with young people experiencing a high level of mythological fear (fear of possession by jinni.

[E-Cigarettes on Everyone's Lips - Current Representative Data on Use Among Adolescents and Adults].

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, Sven; Görig, Tatiana; Schilling, Laura; Diehl, Katharina

2017-11-01

Background  International data suggest an increase in e-cigarette use. However, there are still significant deficits in the reporting of its current prevalence. The present study reports representative data on e-cigarette use that make it possible to differentiate users both by the nicotine content of the e-cigarette liquids being used and by their smoking status. Methods and material  The underlying data are taken from the National Cancer Aid Monitoring (NCAM). In its first wave, 3000 persons aged between 14 and 45 were interviewed by telephone. Point estimates, confidence intervals and determinants of use will be presented. Results  Overall, 20 % of respondents had used an e-cigarette before, of which 80 % used liquids containing nicotine. Men, younger persons, persons with a migrant background and persons with a lower education level were more likely to have used an e-cigarette before than their respective reference groups. Half of all ever users of e-cigarettes also smoked tobacco cigarettes, while roughly one third had never used tobacco products before. Conclusions  For the first time, a representative study was conducted combining questions on the use of e-cigarettes with questions on smoking tobacco cigarettes and the nicotine content of the liquids being used. Target groups for future prevention measures are adolescents, as they had the highest prevalence of e-cigarette use, as well as non-smokers, since one third of e-cigarette users had never used a tobacco product before. Both groups also seem to be relevant target groups for which the introduction to e-cigarettes should be prevented. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES): Its Relevance

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-24

any analysis of AAFES’s relevance. This SRP reviews the statutes and regulations governing the organization, its evolution , its strategic missions...Finally, this project will offer recommendations and a concluding assessment of the relevancy of AAFES. Evolution of AAFES AAFES was launched in...well-kept lunch counter supplied with as great a variety of viands as circumstances permit, such as tea, coffee, cocoa , nonalcoholic drinks, soup, fish

DFS Associates: Simple ways to become a good manufacturer's representative

OpenAIRE

Sandra K. Pharre

2018-01-01

Being one of the trusted manufacturer’s representative firms for RF and microwave products and services, DFS Associates wanted to impart a few insights to consider in becoming a good manufacturer’s representative with this article. Firstly, you need to understand what it does if you’re interested on becoming one where it could be an individual or a small business that can represent a manufacturer’s products and services effectively to the marketplace. You can choose between representing one m...

20 CFR 404.1720 - Fee for a representative's services.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... DISABILITY INSURANCE (1950- ) Representation of Parties § 404.1720 Fee for a representative's services. (a... you or your representative from contacting us in person or in writing. (B) There was a death or...

[Relevance of Personality Factors for Successful Vocational Rehabilitation].

Science.gov (United States)

Arling, V; Slavchova, V; Knispel, J; Spijkers, W

2016-02-01

The Main purpose of vocational rehabilitation is occupational reintegration of clients into the job market who have lost their job or whose job is threatened because of a handicap or chronicl illness. With regard to existing evidence for the relevance of personality factors for work performance and job achievement, the present study investigated the influence of participants' personality factors on a successful reintegration after a retraining program in a vocational training center over 2 years. A central research objective was to identify prognostic personality factors for successful vocational integration. In this longitudinal study 15 vocational training centers participated at 3 time points of measurement (T1, T2 and T3). Data gathering was based on rehabilitants' self-reports (standardized questionnaires: SVF, BSW, SPR, CSES) about personality aspects. First data collection started at the beginning (T1) and a second survey was conducted at the end of the training 2 years later (T2). Based on the data at measurement points T1 and T2, 4 prognostic models were computed (binary logistic regression analysis) and evaluated, examining the differenzial influence of several scales and items on direct reintegration after completing the vocational retraining and reintegration status 6 months later (T3). As expected, different variables turned out to be relevant for occupational integration at the end of the training program and 6 months later. Correspondingly other variables appeared to be relevant for occupational reintegration at T1 and at T2. At the end of the vocational training program, approximately 24% of the participants had a job. With respect to direct reintegration, regression analysis revealed that vocational self-efficacy (R(2)=0,175) and self-evaluation were relevant (R(2)=0,383). Approximately 70% of the participants had gotten a job 6 months later. Several stress coping strategies (R(2)=0,170), estimation of the own reintegration prognosis and aspects

Stimulus fear-relevance and the vicarious learning pathway to childhood fears

OpenAIRE

Askew, C.; Dunne, G.; Ozdil, A.; Reynolds, G.; Field, A.P.

2013-01-01

Enhanced fear learning for fear-relevant stimuli has been demonstrated in procedures with adults in the laboratory. Three experiments investigated the effect of stimulus fear-relevance on vicarious fear learning in children (aged 6-11 years). Pictures of stimuli with different levels of fear-relevance (flowers, caterpillars, snakes, worms, and Australian marsupials) were presented alone or together with scared faces. In line with previous studies, children's fear beliefs and avoidance prefere...

20 CFR 416.1520 - Fee for a representative's services.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... AGED, BLIND, AND DISABLED Representation of Parties § 416.1520 Fee for a representative's services. (a... you or your representative from contacting us in person or in writing. (B) There was a death or...

Advancing the Relevance Criteria for Video Search and Visual Summarization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rudinac, S.

2013-01-01

To facilitate finding of relevant information in ever-growing multimedia collections, a number of multimedia information retrieval solutions have been proposed over the past years. The essential element of any such solution is the relevance criterion deployed to select or rank the items from a

Improving Industry-Relevant Nuclear-Knowledge Development through Special Partnerships

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cilliers, A.

2016-01-01

Full text: South African Network for Nuclear Education Science and Technology (SAN NEST) has the objective to develop the nuclear education system in South Africa to a point where suitably qualified and experienced nuclear personnel employed by nuclear science and technology programmes in South Africa are predominantly produced by the South African education system. This is done to strengthen the nuclear science and technology education programmes to better meet future demands in terms of quality, capacity and relevance. To ensure sustainable relevance, it is important to develop special partnerships with industry. This paper describes unique partnerships that were developed with nuclear industry partners. The success of these partnerships has ensured more industry partners to embrace the model which has proven to develop relevant knowledge, support research and provide innovative solutions for industry. (author

Campylobacter species in animal, food, and environmental sources, and relevant testing programs in Canada.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Hongsheng; Brooks, Brian W; Lowman, Ruff; Carrillo, Catherine D

2015-10-01

Campylobacter species, particularly thermophilic campylobacters, have emerged as a leading cause of human foodborne gastroenteritis worldwide, with Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, and Campylobacter lari responsible for the majority of human infections. Although most cases of campylobacteriosis are self-limiting, campylobacteriosis represents a significant public health burden. Human illness caused by infection with campylobacters has been reported across Canada since the early 1970s. Many studies have shown that dietary sources, including food, particularly raw poultry and other meat products, raw milk, and contaminated water, have contributed to outbreaks of campylobacteriosis in Canada. Campylobacter spp. have also been detected in a wide range of animal and environmental sources, including water, in Canada. The purpose of this article is to review (i) the prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in animals, food, and the environment, and (ii) the relevant testing programs in Canada with a focus on the potential links between campylobacters and human health in Canada.

Pragmatic inferences and self-relevant judgments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Puente-Diaz, Rogelio; Cavazos Arroyo, Judith; Brem, Alexander

2016-01-01

Three studies examined the influence of type of scale on self-relevant judgments and the moderating role of age, prevention, focus, and need for cogni- tion. Participants were randomly assigned to a bipolar or a unipolar scale condition in all three studies. Results from study 1 with a representa...

Manipulating Sensory and Phytochemical Profiles of Greenhouse Tomatoes Using Environmentally Relevant Doses of Ultraviolet Radiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Dzakovich, Michael P; Ferruzzi, Mario G; Mitchell, Cary A

2016-09-14

Fruits harvested from off-season, greenhouse-grown tomato plants have a poor reputation compared to their in-season, garden-grown counterparts. Presently, there is a gap in knowledge with regard to the role of UV-B radiation (280-315 nm) in determining greenhouse tomato quality. Knowing that UV-B is a powerful elicitor of secondary metabolism and not transmitted through greenhouse glass and some greenhouse plastics, we tested the hypothesis that supplemental UV-B radiation in the greenhouse will impart quality attributes typically associated with garden-grown tomatoes. Environmentally relevant doses of supplemental UV-B radiation did not strongly affect antioxidant compounds of fruits, although the flavonol quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (rutin) significantly increased in response to UV-B. Physicochemical metrics of fruit quality attributes and consumer sensory panels were used to determine if any such differences altered consumer perception of tomato quality. Supplemental UV-A radiation (315-400 nm) pre-harvest treatments enhanced sensory perception of aroma, acidity, and overall approval, suggesting a compelling opportunity to environmentally enhance the flavor of greenhouse-grown tomatoes. The expression of the genes COP1 and HY5 were indicative of adaptation to UV radiation, which explains the lack of marked effects reported in these studies. To our knowledge, these studies represent the first reported use of environmentally relevant doses of UV radiation throughout the reproductive portion of the tomato plant life cycle to positively enhance the sensory and chemical properties of fruits.

Summarizing Simulation Results using Causally-relevant States

Science.gov (United States)

Parikh, Nidhi; Marathe, Madhav; Swarup, Samarth

2016-01-01

As increasingly large-scale multiagent simulations are being implemented, new methods are becoming necessary to make sense of the results of these simulations. Even concisely summarizing the results of a given simulation run is a challenge. Here we pose this as the problem of simulation summarization: how to extract the causally-relevant descriptions of the trajectories of the agents in the simulation. We present a simple algorithm to compress agent trajectories through state space by identifying the state transitions which are relevant to determining the distribution of outcomes at the end of the simulation. We present a toy-example to illustrate the working of the algorithm, and then apply it to a complex simulation of a major disaster in an urban area. PMID:28042620

Stimulus fear-relevance and the vicarious learning pathway to childhood fears.

Science.gov (United States)

Askew, Chris; Dunne, Güler; Özdil, Zehra; Reynolds, Gemma; Field, Andy P

2013-10-01

Enhanced fear learning for fear-relevant stimuli has been demonstrated in procedures with adults in the laboratory. Three experiments investigated the effect of stimulus fear-relevance on vicarious fear learning in children (aged 6-11 years). Pictures of stimuli with different levels of fear-relevance (flowers, caterpillars, snakes, worms, and Australian marsupials) were presented alone or together with scared faces. In line with previous studies, children's fear beliefs and avoidance preferences increased for stimuli they had seen with scared faces. However, in contrast to evidence with adults, learning was mostly similar for all stimulus types irrespective of fear-relevance. The results support a proposal that stimulus preparedness is bypassed when children observationally learn threat-related information from adults.

Approaches for Establishing Clinically Relevant Dissolution Specifications for Immediate Release Solid Oral Dosage Forms.

Science.gov (United States)

Hermans, Andre; Abend, Andreas M; Kesisoglou, Filippos; Flanagan, Talia; Cohen, Michael J; Diaz, Dorys A; Mao, Y; Zhang, Limin; Webster, Gregory K; Lin, Yiqing; Hahn, David A; Coutant, Carrie A; Grady, Haiyan

2017-11-01

This manuscript represents the perspective of the Dissolution Analytical Working Group of the IQ Consortium. The intent of this manuscript is to highlight the challenges of, and to provide a recommendation on, the development of clinically relevant dissolution specifications (CRS) for immediate release (IR) solid oral dosage forms. A roadmap toward the development of CRS for IR products containing active ingredients with a non-narrow therapeutic window is discussed, within the context of mechanistic dissolution understanding, supported by in-human pharmacokinetic (PK) data. Two case studies present potential outcomes of following the CRS roadmap and setting dissolution specifications. These cases reveal some benefits and challenges of pursuing CRS with additional PK data, in light of current regulatory positions, including that of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who generally favor this approach, but with the understanding that both industry and regulatory agency perspectives are still evolving in this relatively new field. The CRS roadmap discussed in this manuscript also describes a way to develop clinically relevant dissolution specifications based primarily on dissolution data for batches used in pivotal clinical studies, acknowledging that not all IR product development efforts need to be supported by additional PK studies, albeit with the associated risk of potentially unnecessarily tight manufacturing controls. Recommendations are provided on what stages during the life cycle investment into in vivo studies may be valuable. Finally, the opportunities for CRS within the context of post-approval changes, Modeling and Simulation (M&S), and the application of biowaivers, are briefly discussed.

Services Subcontract Technical Representative (STR) handbook

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Houston, D.H.

1997-06-01

The purpose of this handbook is to provide guidance to Bechtel Hanford, Inc. Subcontract Representatives in their assignments. It is the intention of this handbook to ensure that subcontract work is performed in accordance with the subcontract documents

Physicians' perceptions of medical representative visits in Yemen: a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Areefi, Mahmoud Abdullah; Hassali, Mohamed Azmi; Ibrahim, Mohamed Izham b Mohamed

2013-08-20

The pharmaceutical industry invests heavily in promotion, and it uses a variety of promotional strategies to influence physicians' prescribing decisions. Within this context, medical representatives (MRs) are the key personnel employed in promoting their products. One significant consequence of the interactions between physicians and medical representatives is a conflict of interests which may contribute to the over prescribing of medications and thus negative effects on patients' health and economics. There is limited detailed information published on the reasons why physicians interact with pharmaceutical representatives. This study aims to qualitatively explore physicians' attitudes about interactions with medical representatives and their reasons for accepting the medical representatives' visits. In-depth interviews were used to gain a better understanding of physicians' perceptions of medical representative visits. A total of 32 physicians from both private and public hospitals were interviewed. The recordings of the interviews were transcribed verbatim and subject to thematic analysis using a framework analysis approach. The present qualitative study found that the majority of the physicians had positive interactions with medical representatives. The physicians' main reasons stated for allowing medical representatives' visits are the social contacts and mutual benefits they will gain from these representatives. They also emphasized that the meeting with representatives provides educational and scientific benefits. A few physicians stated that the main reasons behind refusing the meeting with medical representatives were lack of conviction about the product and obligation to prescribe medicine from the representative company. Most of the physicians believed that they were under marketing pressure to prescribe certain medicines. Although physicians are aware that the medical representatives could influence their prescribing decision, they welcome

Searches over graphs representing geospatial-temporal remote sensing data

Science.gov (United States)

Brost, Randolph; Perkins, David Nikolaus

2018-03-06

Various technologies pertaining to identifying objects of interest in remote sensing images by searching over geospatial-temporal graph representations are described herein. Graphs are constructed by representing objects in remote sensing images as nodes, and connecting nodes with undirected edges representing either distance or adjacency relationships between objects and directed edges representing changes in time. Geospatial-temporal graph searches are made computationally efficient by taking advantage of characteristics of geospatial-temporal data in remote sensing images through the application of various graph search techniques.

22 CFR 72.9 - Responsibility if legal representative is present.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Responsibility if legal representative is... Nationals § 72.9 Responsibility if legal representative is present. (a) A consular officer should not act as provisional conservator if the consular officer knows that a legal representative is present in the foreign...

The LAILAPS Search Engine: Relevance Ranking in Life Science Databases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lange Matthias

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Search engines and retrieval systems are popular tools at a life science desktop. The manual inspection of hundreds of database entries, that reflect a life science concept or fact, is a time intensive daily work. Hereby, not the number of query results matters, but the relevance does. In this paper, we present the LAILAPS search engine for life science databases. The concept is to combine a novel feature model for relevance ranking, a machine learning approach to model user relevance profiles, ranking improvement by user feedback tracking and an intuitive and slim web user interface, that estimates relevance rank by tracking user interactions. Queries are formulated as simple keyword lists and will be expanded by synonyms. Supporting a flexible text index and a simple data import format, LAILAPS can easily be used both as search engine for comprehensive integrated life science databases and for small in-house project databases.

Tag-Based Social Image Search: Toward Relevant and Diverse Results

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Kuiyuan; Wang, Meng; Hua, Xian-Sheng; Zhang, Hong-Jiang

Recent years have witnessed a great success of social media websites. Tag-based image search is an important approach to access the image content of interest on these websites. However, the existing ranking methods for tag-based image search frequently return results that are irrelevant or lack of diversity. This chapter presents a diverse relevance ranking scheme which simultaneously takes relevance and diversity into account by exploring the content of images and their associated tags. First, it estimates the relevance scores of images with respect to the query term based on both visual information of images and semantic information of associated tags. Then semantic similarities of social images are estimated based on their tags. Based on the relevance scores and the similarities, the ranking list is generated by a greedy ordering algorithm which optimizes Average Diverse Precision (ADP), a novel measure that is extended from the conventional Average Precision (AP). Comprehensive experiments and user studies demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach.

Point charges optimally placed to represent the multipole expansion of charge distributions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramu Anandakrishnan

Full Text Available We propose an approach for approximating electrostatic charge distributions with a small number of point charges to optimally represent the original charge distribution. By construction, the proposed optimal point charge approximation (OPCA retains many of the useful properties of point multipole expansion, including the same far-field asymptotic behavior of the approximate potential. A general framework for numerically computing OPCA, for any given number of approximating charges, is described. We then derive a 2-charge practical point charge approximation, PPCA, which approximates the 2-charge OPCA via closed form analytical expressions, and test the PPCA on a set of charge distributions relevant to biomolecular modeling. We measure the accuracy of the new approximations as the RMS error in the electrostatic potential relative to that produced by the original charge distribution, at a distance 2x the extent of the charge distribution--the mid-field. The error for the 2-charge PPCA is found to be on average 23% smaller than that of optimally placed point dipole approximation, and comparable to that of the point quadrupole approximation. The standard deviation in RMS error for the 2-charge PPCA is 53% lower than that of the optimal point dipole approximation, and comparable to that of the point quadrupole approximation. We also calculate the 3-charge OPCA for representing the gas phase quantum mechanical charge distribution of a water molecule. The electrostatic potential calculated by the 3-charge OPCA for water, in the mid-field (2.8 Å from the oxygen atom, is on average 33.3% more accurate than the potential due to the point multipole expansion up to the octupole order. Compared to a 3 point charge approximation in which the charges are placed on the atom centers, the 3-charge OPCA is seven times more accurate, by RMS error. The maximum error at the oxygen-Na distance (2.23 Å is half that of the point multipole expansion up to the octupole

The Relevance Aura of Bibliographic Records.

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Terrence A.

1997-01-01

Analyzes relevance assessments of topical descriptors for bibliographic records for two dimensions: (1) a vertical conceptual hierarchy of broad to narrow descriptors, and (2) a horizontal linkage of related terms. The data were analyzed for a semantic distance and semantic direction effect as postulated by the Semantic Distance Model. (Author/LRW)

Towards Representative Metallurgical Sampling and Gold Recovery Testwork Programmes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simon C. Dominy

2018-05-01

Full Text Available When developing a process flowsheet, the risks in achieving positive financial outcomes are minimised by ensuring representative metallurgical samples and high quality testwork. The quality and type of samples used are as important as the testwork itself. The key characteristic required of any set of samples is that they represent a given domain and quantify its variability. There are those who think that stating a sample(s is representative makes it representative without justification. There is a need to consider both (1 in-situ and (2 testwork sub-sample representativity. Early ore/waste characterisation and domain definition are required, so that sampling and testwork protocols can be designed to suit the style of mineralisation in question. The Theory of Sampling (TOS provides an insight into the causes and magnitude of errors that may occur during the sampling of particulate materials (e.g., broken rock and is wholly applicable to metallurgical sampling. Quality assurance/quality control (QAQC is critical throughout all programmes. Metallurgical sampling and testwork should be fully integrated into geometallurgical studies. Traditional metallurgical testwork is critical for plant design and is an inherent part of geometallurgy. In a geometallurgical study, multiple spatially distributed small-scale tests are used as proxies for process parameters. These will be validated against traditional testwork results. This paper focusses on sampling and testwork for gold recovery determination. It aims to provide the reader with the background to move towards the design, implementation and reporting of representative and fit-for-purpose sampling and testwork programmes. While the paper does not intend to provide a definitive commentary, it critically assesses the hard-rock sampling methods used and their optimal collection and preparation. The need for representative sampling and quality testwork to avoid financial and intangible losses is

Functional dyspepsia: Are psychosocial factors of relevance?

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Sandra Barry; Timothy G Dinan

2006-01-01

The pathogenesis of Functional Dyspepsia (FD) remains unclear, appears diverse and is thus inadequately understood. Akin to other functional gastrointestinal disorders, research has demonstrated an association between this common diagnosis and psychosocial factors and psychiatric morbidity. Conceptualising the relevance of these factors within the syndrome of FD requires application of the biopsychosocial model of disease.Using this paradigm, dysregulation of the reciprocal communication between the brain and the gut is central to symptom generation, interpretation and exacerbation.Appreciation and understanding of the neurobiological correlates of various psychological states is also relevant.The view that psychosocial factors exert their influence in FD predominantly through motivation of health care seeking also persists. This appears too one-dimensional an assertion in light of the evidence available supporting a more intrinsic aetiological link. Evolving understanding of pathogenic mechanisms and the heterogeneous nature of the syndrome will facilitate effective management.Co-morbid psychiatric illness warrants treatment with conventional therapies. Acknowledging the relevance of psychosocial variables in FD, the degree of which is subject to variation, has implications for assessment and management. Available evidence suggests psychological therapies may benefit FD patients particularly those with chronic symptoms. The rationale for use of psychotropic medications in FD is apparent but the evidence base to support the use of antidepressant pharmacotherapy is to date limited.

On Reading Comprehension Teaching for English Majors under Relevance Theory

Science.gov (United States)

He, Ping

2018-01-01

Relevance Theory from the perspective of cognitive psychology argues that human communication is an ostensive-inferential process, and emphasizes the function of the optimal relevance for communication. In this sense, reading comprehension could be considered as a kind of communication in which the writer manifests his/her communication intention…

50 CFR 424.13 - Sources of information and relevant data.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Sources of information and relevant data... Sources of information and relevant data. When considering any revision of the lists, the Secretary shall..., administrative reports, maps or other graphic materials, information received from experts on the subject, and...

Representing Boolean Functions by Decision Trees

KAUST Repository

Chikalov, Igor

2011-01-01

A Boolean or discrete function can be represented by a decision tree. A compact form of decision tree named binary decision diagram or branching program is widely known in logic design [2, 40]. This representation is equivalent to other forms

Web-Scale Discovery Services Retrieve Relevant Results in Health Sciences Topics Including MEDLINE Content

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Margaret Stovold

2017-06-01

Full Text Available A Review of: Hanneke, R., & O’Brien, K. K. (2016. Comparison of three web-scale discovery services for health sciences research. Journal of the Medical Library Association, 104(2, 109-117. http://dx.doi.org/10.3163/1536-5050.104.2.004 Abstract Objective – To compare the results of health sciences search queries in three web-scale discovery (WSD services for relevance, duplicate detection, and retrieval of MEDLINE content. Design – Comparative evaluation and bibliometric study. Setting – Six university libraries in the United States of America. Subjects – Three commercial WSD services: Primo, Summon, and EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS. Methods – The authors collected data at six universities, including their own. They tested each of the three WSDs at two data collection sites. However, since one of the sites was using a legacy version of Summon that was due to be upgraded, data collected for Summon at this site were considered obsolete and excluded from the analysis. The authors generated three questions for each of six major health disciplines, then designed simple keyword searches to mimic typical student search behaviours. They captured the first 20 results from each query run at each test site, to represent the first “page” of results, giving a total of 2,086 total search results. These were independently assessed for relevance to the topic. Authors resolved disagreements by discussion, and calculated a kappa inter-observer score. They retained duplicate records within the results so that the duplicate detection by the WSDs could be compared. They assessed MEDLINE coverage by the WSDs in several ways. Using precise strategies to generate a relevant set of articles, they conducted one search from each of the six disciplines in PubMed so that they could compare retrieval of MEDLINE content. These results were cross-checked against the first 20 results from the corresponding query in the WSDs. To aid investigation of overall

Euthanasia and surgeons: an overview of the Victorian Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 and its relevance to surgical practice in Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

Beardsley, Christian; Brown, Kilian; Sandroussi, Charbel

2018-05-14

Surgeons play a significant role in the treatment of patients with many types of cancer, including the management of advanced and recurrent disease after long periods of apparent remission. The recently introduced Victorian Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) Act represents a shift in paradigm in Australian medical practice. To be eligible for VAD, the new legislation requires patient assessment by a physician with at least 5 years post-fellowship experience and relevant expertise in the patient's condition. Given many specialist surgeons' experience in managing advanced and often incurable malignancy, it is likely that many will receive referrals for assessment for VAD. It is foreseeable that other states and territories in Australia will follow suit with similar legislation. It is imperative that surgeons receiving referrals to assess patients seeking access to VAD are familiar with the legislation and assessment process. This article summarizes the current regulation of VAD in Australia, including the patient application and assessment process, briefly reviews world-wide assisted dying practices and discusses the relevance to surgeons practicing in Australia. © 2018 Royal Australasian College of Surgeons.

Endocrine actions of vitamin D in skin: Relevance for photocarcinogenesis of non-melanoma skin cancer, and beyond.

Science.gov (United States)

Reichrath, Jörg; Saternus, Roman; Vogt, Thomas

2017-09-15

The skin represents a pivotal organ for the human body's vitamin D endocrine system, being both the site of ultraviolet (UV)-B-induced vitamin D synthesis and a target tissue for the pluripotent effects of 1,25(OH) 2 D 3 and other biologically active vitamin D metabolites. As many other steroid hormones, 1,25(OH) 2 D 3 exerts its effects via two independent signal transduction pathways: the classical genomic and the non-genomic pathway. While non-genomic effects of 1,25(OH) 2 D 3 are in part exerted via effects on intracellular calcium, genomic effects are mediated by the vitamin D receptor (VDR). Recent findings convincingly support the concept of a new function of the VDR as a tumor suppressor in skin, with key components of the vitamin D endocrine system, including VDR, CYP24A1, CYP27A1, and CYP27B1 being strongly expressed in non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). It has now been shown that anti-tumor effects of VDR, that include some of its ligand-induced growth-regulatory effects, are at least in part mediated by interacting in a highly coordinated manner with the p53 family (p53/p63/p73) in response to a large number of alterations in cell homeostasis, including UV-induced DNA damage, a hallmark for skin photocarcinogenesis. Considering the relevance of the vitamin D endocrine system for carcinogenesis of skin cancer, it is not surprising that low 25(OH)D serum concentrations and genetic variants (SNPs) of the vitamin D endocrine system have been identified as potential risk factors for occurrence and prognosis of skin malignancies. In conclusion, an increasing body of evidence now convincingly supports the concept that the vitamin D endocrine system is of relevance for photocarcinogenesis and progression of NMSC and that its pharmacologic modulation by vitamin D, 1,25(OH) 2 D 3, and analogs represents a promising new strategy for prevention and/or treatment of these malignancies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Relevant test set using feature selection algorithm for early detection ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The objective of feature selection is to find the most relevant features for classification. Thus, the dimensionality of the information will be reduced and may improve classification's accuracy. This paper proposed a minimum set of relevant questions that can be used for early detection of dyslexia. In this research, we ...

Strong imploding shock, the representative curve

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mishkin, E.A.; Alejaldre, C.

1981-01-01

The representative curve of the ideal gas behind the front of a spherically, or cylindrically, symmetric strong imploding shock is shown to pass through the point where the reduced pressure is maximum, P(xisub(m)) = Psub(m)sub(a)sub(x). (orig.)

Adjustment Following Disability: Representative Case Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinemann, Allen W.; Shontz, Franklin C.

1984-01-01

Examined adjustment following physical disability using the representative case method with two persons with quadriplegia. Results highlighted the importance of previously established coping styles as well as the role of the environment in adjustment. Willingness to mourn aided in later growth. (JAC)

A User-Centered Approach to Adaptive Hypertext Based on an Information Relevance Model

Science.gov (United States)

Mathe, Nathalie; Chen, James

1994-01-01

Rapid and effective to information in large electronic documentation systems can be facilitated if information relevant in an individual user's content can be automatically supplied to this user. However most of this knowledge on contextual relevance is not found within the contents of documents, it is rather established incrementally by users during information access. We propose a new model for interactively learning contextual relevance during information retrieval, and incrementally adapting retrieved information to individual user profiles. The model, called a relevance network, records the relevance of references based on user feedback for specific queries and user profiles. It also generalizes such knowledge to later derive relevant references for similar queries and profiles. The relevance network lets users filter information by context of relevance. Compared to other approaches, it does not require any prior knowledge nor training. More importantly, our approach to adaptivity is user-centered. It facilitates acceptance and understanding by users by giving them shared control over the adaptation without disturbing their primary task. Users easily control when to adapt and when to use the adapted system. Lastly, the model is independent of the particular application used to access information, and supports sharing of adaptations among users.

Exploring Educational Quality and Relevance through Integrating ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Exploring Educational Quality and Relevance through Integrating Environmental and Social Issues in Science Education. ... However, the new contextualised concept of learning and teaching was applied only to one of them. A post-test was ...

Quantitative radiomic profiling of glioblastoma represents transcriptomic expression.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Doo-Sik; Kim, Junhyung; Ryu, Gyuha; You, Hye-Jin; Sung, Joon Kyung; Han, Yong Hee; Shin, Hye-Mi; Lee, In-Hee; Kim, Sung-Tae; Park, Chul-Kee; Choi, Seung Hong; Choi, Jeong Won; Seol, Ho Jun; Lee, Jung-Il; Nam, Do-Hyun

2018-01-19

Quantitative imaging biomarkers have increasingly emerged in the field of research utilizing available imaging modalities. We aimed to identify good surrogate radiomic features that can represent genetic changes of tumors, thereby establishing noninvasive means for predicting treatment outcome. From May 2012 to June 2014, we retrospectively identified 65 patients with treatment-naïve glioblastoma with available clinical information from the Samsung Medical Center data registry. Preoperative MR imaging data were obtained for all 65 patients with primary glioblastoma. A total of 82 imaging features including first-order statistics, volume, and size features, were semi-automatically extracted from structural and physiologic images such as apparent diffusion coefficient and perfusion images. Using commercially available software, NordicICE, we performed quantitative imaging analysis and collected the dataset composed of radiophenotypic parameters. Unsupervised clustering methods revealed that the radiophenotypic dataset was composed of three clusters. Each cluster represented a distinct molecular classification of glioblastoma; classical type, proneural and neural types, and mesenchymal type. These clusters also reflected differential clinical outcomes. We found that extracted imaging signatures does not represent copy number variation and somatic mutation. Quantitative radiomic features provide a potential evidence to predict molecular phenotype and treatment outcome. Radiomic profiles represents transcriptomic phenotypes more well.

Making Learning Personally Meaningful: A New Framework for Relevance Research

Science.gov (United States)

Priniski, Stacy J.; Hecht, Cameron A.; Harackiewicz, Judith M.

2018-01-01

Personal relevance goes by many names in the motivation literature, stemming from a number of theoretical frameworks. Currently these lines of research are being conducted in parallel with little synthesis across them, perhaps because there is no unifying definition of the relevance construct within which this research can be situated. In this…

40 CFR 60.4114 - Objections concerning Hg designated representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Objections concerning Hg designated... Times for Coal-Fired Electric Steam Generating Units Hg Designated Representative for Hg Budget Sources § 60.4114 Objections concerning Hg designated representative. (a) Once a complete certificate of...

Other relevant papers in physical oceanography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nyffeler, F.

1989-01-01

During the past few years, significant progress has occurred in the field of physical oceanography partly as a consequence of developing cooperation and international participation in well-coordinated ocean research programmes. Although these programs were not designed specifically to address CRESP problems, many have proved to be directly relevant to CRESP objectives. For example, MODE, POLYMODE, and Tourbillon were intensive site-specific experiments that included studies of dispersion processes throughout the water column. NOAMP and GME were also site specific, involved the entire water column, and even stressed near-bottom and suspended-sediment processes. Others, (e.g., WOCE) are larger in scope and include extensive observations of the general circulation of entire ocean basins. As a whole, they contribute immensely to improving the data base for exchange and transport processes and thereby for the verification and validation of both regional-scale and general-circulation ocean models. That, in turn, is directly relevant to radiological assessments. Selected papers deriving from experiments such as these are discussed and referenced below

Selection of Representative Models for Decision Analysis Under Uncertainty

Science.gov (United States)

Meira, Luis A. A.; Coelho, Guilherme P.; Santos, Antonio Alberto S.; Schiozer, Denis J.

2016-03-01

The decision-making process in oil fields includes a step of risk analysis associated with the uncertainties present in the variables of the problem. Such uncertainties lead to hundreds, even thousands, of possible scenarios that are supposed to be analyzed so an effective production strategy can be selected. Given this high number of scenarios, a technique to reduce this set to a smaller, feasible subset of representative scenarios is imperative. The selected scenarios must be representative of the original set and also free of optimistic and pessimistic bias. This paper is devoted to propose an assisted methodology to identify representative models in oil fields. To do so, first a mathematical function was developed to model the representativeness of a subset of models with respect to the full set that characterizes the problem. Then, an optimization tool was implemented to identify the representative models of any problem, considering not only the cross-plots of the main output variables, but also the risk curves and the probability distribution of the attribute-levels of the problem. The proposed technique was applied to two benchmark cases and the results, evaluated by experts in the field, indicate that the obtained solutions are richer than those identified by previously adopted manual approaches. The program bytecode is available under request.

Retrieving top-k prestige-based relevant spatial web objects

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cao, Xin; Cong, Gao; Jensen, Christian S.

2010-01-01

The location-aware keyword query returns ranked objects that are near a query location and that have textual descriptions that match query keywords. This query occurs inherently in many types of mobile and traditional web services and applications, e.g., Yellow Pages and Maps services. Previous...... of prestige-based relevance to capture both the textual relevance of an object to a query and the effects of nearby objects. Based on this, a new type of query, the Location-aware top-k Prestige-based Text retrieval (LkPT) query, is proposed that retrieves the top-k spatial web objects ranked according...... to both prestige-based relevance and location proximity. We propose two algorithms that compute LkPT queries. Empirical studies with real-world spatial data demonstrate that LkPT queries are more effective in retrieving web objects than a previous approach that does not consider the effects of nearby...

Clinical relevance of findings in trials of CBT for depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Lepping, P; Whittington, R; Sambhi, R S; Lane, S; Poole, R; Leucht, S; Cuijpers, P; McCabe, R; Waheed, W

2017-09-01

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is beneficial in depression. Symptom scores can be translated into Clinical Global Impression (CGI) scale scores to indicate clinical relevance. We aimed to assess the clinical relevance of findings of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of CBT in depression. We identified RCTs of CBT that used the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD). HAMD scores were translated into Clinical Global Impression - Change scale (CGI-I) scores to measure clinical relevance. One hundred and seventy datasets from 82 studies were included. The mean percentage HAMD change for treatment arms was 53.66%, and 29.81% for control arms, a statistically significant difference. Combined active therapies showed the biggest improvement on CGI-I score, followed by CBT alone. All active treatments had better than expected HAMD percentage reduction and CGI-I scores. CBT has a clinically relevant effect in depression, with a notional CGI-I score of 2.2, indicating a significant clinical response. The non-specific or placebo effect of being in a psychotherapy trial was a 29% reduction of HAMD. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Relevant pH and lipase for in vitro models of gastric digestion.

Science.gov (United States)

Sams, Laura; Paume, Julie; Giallo, Jacqueline; Carrière, Frédéric

2016-01-01

The development of in vitro digestion models relies on the availability of in vivo data such as digestive enzyme levels and pH values recorded in the course of meal digestion. The variations of these parameters along the GI tract are important for designing dynamic digestion models but also static models for which the choice of representative conditions of the gastric and intestinal conditions is critical. Simulating gastric digestion with a static model and a single set of parameters is particularly challenging because the variations in pH and enzyme concentration occurring in the stomach are much broader than those occurring in the small intestine. A review of the literature on this topic reveals that most models of gastric digestion use very low pH values that are not representative of the fed conditions. This is illustrated here by showing the variations in gastric pH as a function of meal gastric emptying instead of time. This representation highlights those pH values that are the most relevant for testing meal digestion in the stomach. Gastric lipolysis is still largely ignored or is performed with microbial lipases. In vivo data on gastric lipase and lipolysis have however been collected in humans and dogs during test meals. The biochemical characterization of gastric lipase has shown that this enzyme is rather unique among lipases: (i) stability and activity in the pH range 2 to 7 with an optimum at pH 4-5.4; (ii) high tensioactivity that allows resistance to bile salts and penetration into phospholipid layers covering TAG droplets; (iii) sn-3 stereospecificity for TAG hydrolysis; and (iv) resistance to pepsin. Most of these properties have been known for more than two decades and should provide a rational basis for the replacement of gastric lipase by other lipases when gastric lipase is not available.

Prediction of Adsorption Equilibrium of VOCs onto Hyper-Cross-Linked Polymeric Resin at Environmentally Relevant Temperatures and Concentrations Using Inverse Gas Chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Lijuan; Ma, Jiakai; Shi, Qiuyi; Long, Chao

2017-01-03

Hyper-cross-linked polymeric resin (HPR) represents a class of predominantly microporous adsorbents and has good adsorption performance toward VOCs. However, adsorption equilibrium of VOCs onto HPR are limited. In this research, a novel method for predicting adsorption capacities of VOCs on HPR at environmentally relevant temperatures and concentrations using inverse gas chromatography data was proposed. Adsorption equilibrium of six VOCs (n-pentane, n-hexane, dichloromethane, acetone, benzene, 1, 2-dichloroethane) onto HPR in the temperature range of 403-443 K were measured by inverse gas chromatography (IGC). Adsorption capacities at environmentally relevant temperatures (293-328 K) and concentrations (P/P s = 0.1-0.7) were predicted using Dubinin-Radushkevich (DR) equation based on Polany's theory. Taking consideration of the swelling properties of HPR, the volume swelling ratio (r) was introduced and r·V micro was used instead of V micro determined by N 2 adsorption data at 77 K as the parameter q 0 (limiting micropore volume) of the DR equation. The results showed that the adsorption capacities of VOCs at environmentally relevant temperatures and concentrations can be predicted effectively using IGC data, the root-mean-square errors between the predicted and experimental data was below 9.63%. The results are meaningful because they allow accurate prediction of adsorption capacities of adsorbents more quickly and conveniently using IGC data.

The relevance of 7-day patch test reading.

Science.gov (United States)

Higgins, Eleanor; Collins, Paul

2013-01-01

Patch test readings are usually performed on day 2 (48 hours) and day 4 (96 hours). However, reports in the literature identify delayed allergy to metals, corticosteroids, antibiotics, some preservatives, acrylic and methacrylic monomers and p-phenylenediamine. The aim of our study was to identify the benefit of performing a day 7 (168 hours) reading to identify relevant late positive reactions. Two hundred three consecutive patients were patch tested to the British Society for Cutaneous Allergy standard series with additional test series selected according to clinical history and applied at the same time. Twenty-six patients (12.8%) had new positive reactions on day 7 (168 hours), with 28 relevant positive reactions to 21 allergens. These included mercury 0.5% (2/26); cobalt chloride 1% (2/26); colophony 20% (2/26); disperse blue mix 106/124 1% (2/26); preservatives (4/26) that included Methylchloroisothiazolinone/methylisothiazolinone, sodium metabisulfite, and diazolidinyl urea; fragrances (7/26); and gentamycin sulfate 20% (1/26). These results confirm findings in the literature and support the argument for performing a day 7 reading (168 hours) to identify relevant late positive reactions.

An Evaluation of Relevance of Computing Curricula to Industry Needs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ioana Chan Mow

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The research documented in this paper attempted to answer the question of how relevant the content of the Computing courses offered within programs of the Computing Department at the National University of Samoa (NUS were to meet the needs of industry and the workforce. The RINCCII study which was conducted in 2013 to 2014, surveyed 13 institutions and 19 graduates from the Computing programs. Findings from the survey indicated that the current course offerings within the Computing department are relevant to the needs of industry and the workplace. However there are aspects or topics which need inclusion or better coverage. The study also recommended regular surveys to gauge relevance of curricula to needs of industry.

Perceived Relevance of an Introductory Information Systems Course to Prospective Business Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irene Govender

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The study is designed to examine students’ perceptions of the introductory Information Systems (IS course. It was an exploratory study in which 67 students participated. A quantitative approach was followed making use of questionnaires for the collection of data. Using the theory of reasoned action as a framework, the study explores the factors that influence non-IS major students’ perceived relevance of the IS introductory course. The analysis of collected data included descriptive and inferential statistics. Using multiple regression analysis, the results suggest that overall, the independent variables, relevance of the content, previous IT knowledge, relevance for professional practice, IT preference in courses and peers’ influence may account for 72% of the explanatory power for the dependent variable, perceived relevance of the IS course. In addition, the results have shown some strong predictors (IT preference and peers’ influence that influence students’ perceived relevance of the IS course. Practical work was found to be a strong mediating variable toward positive perceptions of IS. The results of this study suggest that students do indeed perceive the introductory IS course to be relevant and match their professional needs, but more practical work would enhance their learning. Implications for theory and practice are discussed as a result of the behavioural intention to perceive the IS course to be relevant and eventually to recruit more IS students.

System for selecting relevant information for decision support.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalina, Jan; Seidl, Libor; Zvára, Karel; Grünfeldová, Hana; Slovák, Dalibor; Zvárová, Jana

2013-01-01

We implemented a prototype of a decision support system called SIR which has a form of a web-based classification service for diagnostic decision support. The system has the ability to select the most relevant variables and to learn a classification rule, which is guaranteed to be suitable also for high-dimensional measurements. The classification system can be useful for clinicians in primary care to support their decision-making tasks with relevant information extracted from any available clinical study. The implemented prototype was tested on a sample of patients in a cardiological study and performs an information extraction from a high-dimensional set containing both clinical and gene expression data.

Exposition concerning small windmills. List of relevant publications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aurvig, D.

1992-09-01

In connection with the publication of the report entitled ''Exposition Concerning Small Windmills'', it was decided that searching in databases should also be used in relation to the collection of relevant information, and that the results of these searches should be published in the form of a reading list. This is presented here. The subject areas covered are technology, research and development, marketing, developing countries and agricultural areas - all relevant to small windmills. Risoe Library, Roskilde, Denmark (Telephone no. (45) 42371212) will be helpful in acquiring any publication(s) referenced in the reading list. The report number J.No. 51171/92-0019 should also be quoted. (AB)

Selection of relevant dietary indicators for health.

Science.gov (United States)

Steingrímsdóttir, L; Ovesen, L; Moreiras, O; Jacob, S

2002-05-01

To define a set of dietary components that are relevant determinants for health in Europe. The selected components are intended to serve as nutrition indicators for health in the European Health Monitoring Programme and, as such, must be limited in number, relevant to health in Europe and practical for all involved countries with respect to data gathering and comparability of data. Major nutrition factors were determined by reviewing relevant epidemiological and clinical literature in nutrition and health as well as referring to reports from international expert groups, including the report from the project Nutrition and Diet for Healthy Lifestyles in Europe. The selection of factors was also based on the relative ease and cost involved for participating countries to obtain comparable and valid data. The selected factors include foods or food groups as well as individual nutrients. Biomarkers are suggested for selected nutrients that pose the greatest difficulty in obtaining valid and comparable data from dietary studies. The following list of diet indicators for health monitoring in Europe was agreed upon by the EFCOSUM group in 2001, in order of priority: vegetables, fruit, bread, fish, saturated fatty acids as percentage of energy (%E), total fat as %E, and ethanol in grams per day. Biomarkers were suggested for the following nutrients: folate, vitamin D, iron, iodine and sodium. Energy has to be assessed in order to calculate %E from total fat and saturated fatty acids.

Representing Boolean Functions by Decision Trees

KAUST Repository

Chikalov, Igor

2011-01-01

A Boolean or discrete function can be represented by a decision tree. A compact form of decision tree named binary decision diagram or branching program is widely known in logic design [2, 40]. This representation is equivalent to other forms, and in some cases it is more compact than values table or even the formula [44]. Representing a function in the form of decision tree allows applying graph algorithms for various transformations [10]. Decision trees and branching programs are used for effective hardware [15] and software [5] implementation of functions. For the implementation to be effective, the function representation should have minimal time and space complexity. The average depth of decision tree characterizes the expected computing time, and the number of nodes in branching program characterizes the number of functional elements required for implementation. Often these two criteria are incompatible, i.e. there is no solution that is optimal on both time and space complexity. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011.

Understanding a modern antique: challenges to representing Rastafari in the twenty-first century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John P. Homiak

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Drawing increasingly upon digital technologies and the internet to assert a sense of community even as they cultivate an austere biblical persona, adherents of Rastafari can be thought of as simultaneously modern and antique. Their claim to antiquity is grounded in a collectively professed African-Ethiopian identity that has not only resisted the ravages of enslavement, colonialism, and European cultural domination but is seen to transcend local differences of culture and language. Theirs is a way of life organized around theocratic principles that begin with a recognition of the divine in all peoples and as the basis of all human agency. Rastafari assert the universal relevance of these principles to the conditions of modernity even as they persistently claim social justice on behalf of all peoples of African descent exploited by colonialism and the prevailing global capitalist-imperialist system. Based on these general themes, the Rastafari movement has come to represent a large-scale cultural phenomenon that has long since burst the chains of its colonial containment in Jamaica. From the late 1960s onward it has spread throughout the Caribbean and the Central and South American rimland to the major metropoles of North America and Europe as well as to many sites on the African continent.

Do women on management board increase fair value relevance?

OpenAIRE

Velte, Patrick

2017-01-01

The purpose of this paper is the link between women on management board and the value relevance of fair value accounting according to IFRS 13. The empirical quantitative study covers a sample of German companies listed at the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange for the business years 2013-2015 (411 firm-year observations). Value relevance is measured by the modified Ohlson (1995) model and we separate fair value accounting in level 1, level 2 and level 3 fair values. Multiple regre...

Representative of the municipality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Castellnou Barcelo, J.

2007-01-01

Full text of publication follows. The decommissioning of the Vandellos-I nuclear power plant was a big challenge for the host community of Vandellos i l'Hospitalet de l'Infant and the close-by region. Closing down of the facility resulted in a rise of unemployment and a decrease of municipal income. The public was concerned with three issues: safety, transparency and information about the decommissioning, and economic future. Therefore, from the very beginning, municipal governments entered into negotiations with ENRESA on socio-economic benefits, including local employment in dismantling activities, and other types of financial and non-financial compensation. The ADE business association, i.e. a network of business organisations was created that guided the allotment of work to local firms. To satisfy public demand, local municipalities focused on the triad of safety, dialogue and local development, considered the three 'pillars of trust'. A Municipal Monitoring Commission was created, made up of representatives of affected municipalities, the regional government, the ADE business association, trade unions, the local university, the NPP management and ENRESA to monitor the dismantling process and regularly inform the local public. Items that were handled by this Commission included: - Work process monitoring. - Workers. - Materials Control. - Conventional and radioactive or contaminated waste management. - Emanation waste management (liquid and gas) - Safety (training and accidents). - Surveillance (radiological and environmental: dust, noise). - Effects. - Fulfillment of agreed conditions. A number of communication tools and channels were used, e.g., public information meetings, an information centre, the municipal magazine, the municipal radio station, and meetings with representatives of the local press. Particularly innovative was the idea to ask academics from the University of Tarragona to help with 'translating' technical information into language that could

Public health relevance of drug–nutrition interactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Péter, Szabolcs; Navis, Gerjan; Borst, de Martin H.; Schacky, von Clemens; Orten-Luiten, van Anne Claire B.; Zhernakova, Alexandra; Witkamp, Renger F.; Janse, André; Weber, Peter; Bakker, Stephan L.J.; Eggersdorfer, Manfred

2017-01-01

The public health relevance of drug–nutrition interactions is currently highly undervalued and overlooked. This is particularly the case for elderly persons where multi-morbidity and consequently polypharmacy is very common. Vitamins and other micronutrients have central functions in metabolism, and

Public health relevance of drug-nutrition interactions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Péter, Szabolcs; Navis, Gerjan; de Borst, Martin H; von Schacky, Clemens; van Orten-Luiten, Anne Claire B; Zhernakova, Alexandra; Witkamp, Renger F; Janse, André; Weber, Peter; Bakker, Stephan J L; Eggersdorfer, Manfred

The public health relevance of drug-nutrition interactions is currently highly undervalued and overlooked. This is particularly the case for elderly persons where multi-morbidity and consequently polypharmacy is very common. Vitamins and other micronutrients have central functions in metabolism, and

Does the mask govern the mind?: effects of arbitrary gender representation on quantitative task performance in avatar-represented virtual groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jong-Eun Roselyn; Nass, Clifford I; Bailenson, Jeremy N

2014-04-01

Virtual environments employing avatars for self-representation-including the opportunity to represent or misrepresent social categories-raise interesting and intriguing questions as to how one's avatar-based social category shapes social identity dynamics, particularly when stereotypes prevalent in the offline world apply to the social categories visually represented by avatars. The present experiment investigated how social category representation via avatars (i.e., graphical representations of people in computer-mediated environments) affects stereotype-relevant task performance. In particular, building on and extending the Proteus effect model, we explored whether and how stereotype lift (i.e., a performance boost caused by the awareness of a domain-specific negative stereotype associated with outgroup members) occurred in virtual group settings in which avatar-based gender representation was arbitrary. Female and male participants (N=120) were randomly assigned either a female avatar or a male avatar through a process masked as a random drawing. They were then placed in a numerical minority status with respect to virtual gender-as the only virtual female (male) in a computer-mediated triad with two opposite-gendered avatars-and performed a mental arithmetic task either competitively or cooperatively. The data revealed that participants who were arbitrarily represented by a male avatar and competed against two ostensible female avatars showed strongest performance compared to others on the arithmetic task. This pattern occurred regardless of participants' actual gender, pointing to a virtual stereotype lift effect. Additional mediation tests showed that task motivation partially mediated the effect. Theoretical and practical implications for social identity dynamics in avatar-based virtual environments are discussed.

Heterodox Autonomy Doctrine: realism and purposes, and its relevance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raúl Bernal-Meza

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The Autonomy Doctrine, elaborated by Juan Carlos Puig, is a realist point of view of International Relations. It is an analysis, from the periphery, about the structure of world power, and a roadmap (from a theoretical point of view for the longing process of autonomization-regarding hegemonic power-for a country whose ruling class would decide to overcome dependency. The elements its author took into account when analyzing its own context are explained in this text and, afterwards, are reflected over its relevance nowadays. For that purpose, it is necessary to answer certain questions, such as which are the concepts and categories that may explain its relevance, its applicability to regional integration and cooperation models and projects, and what would be the analytical method to compare reality versus ideas, among others. The methodological proposal to analyze the relevance of Puig's doctrine is to compare it to different visions of regionalism that are currently in effect in Latin America.

Other relevant biological papers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimizu, M.

1989-01-01

A considerable number of CRESP-relevant papers concerning deep-sea biology and radioecology have been published. It is the purpose of this study to call attention to them. They fall into three general categories. The first is papers of general interest. They are mentioned only briefly, and include text references to the global bibliography at the end of the volume. The second are papers that are not only mentioned and referenced, but for various reasons are described in abstract form. The last is a list of papers compiled by H.S.J. Roe specifically for this volume. They are listed in bibliographic form, and are also included in the global bibliography at the end of the volume

Gas reactor and associated nuclear experience in the UK relevant to high temperature reactor engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beech, D.J.; May, R.

2000-01-01

In the UK, the NNC played a leading role in the design and build of all of the UK's commercial magnox reactors and advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGRs). It was also involved in the DRAGON project and was responsible for producing designs for large scale HTRs and other gas reactor designs employing helium and carbon dioxide coolants. This paper addresses the gas reactor experience and its relevance to the current HTR designs under development which use helium as the coolant, through the consideration of a representative sample of the issues addressed in the UK by the NNC in support of the AGR and other reactor programmes. Modern HTR designs provide unique engineering challenges. The success of the AGR design, reflected in the extended lifetimes agreed upon by the licensing authorities at many stations, indicates that these challenges can be successfully overcome. The UK experience is unique and provides substantial support to future gas reactor and high temperature engineering studies. (authors)

Silica desiccant packets for storage and transport of Streptococcus pneumoniae and other clinically relevant species.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Casey L Pell

Full Text Available Bacterial isolates are often transported between laboratories for research and diagnostic purposes. Silica desiccant packets (SDPs, which are inexpensive and do not require freezing, were evaluated for storage and recovery of bacterial isolates. Conditions such as inoculum size, swab type and temperature of storage were investigated using ten Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates. The optimized protocol was then tested using 49 additional S. pneumoniae isolates representing 40 serogroups. Overall, S. pneumoniae growth was considered satisfactory (>100 colony forming units for 98/109 (89.9% and 20/20 (100% swabs after 14 days at room temperature or 28 days at 4° C, respectively. Storage in SDPs did not impact on the ability of S. pneumoniae isolates to be subsequently serotyped. When the survival of nine other clinically relevant bacterial species was tested, seven were viable after 28 days at room temperature, the exceptions being Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Haemophilus influenzae. SDPs are suitable for transport and short-term storage of bacterial species including S. pneumoniae.

Natural brain-information interfaces: Recommending information by relevance inferred from human brain signals

Science.gov (United States)

Eugster, Manuel J. A.; Ruotsalo, Tuukka; Spapé, Michiel M.; Barral, Oswald; Ravaja, Niklas; Jacucci, Giulio; Kaski, Samuel

2016-01-01

Finding relevant information from large document collections such as the World Wide Web is a common task in our daily lives. Estimation of a user’s interest or search intention is necessary to recommend and retrieve relevant information from these collections. We introduce a brain-information interface used for recommending information by relevance inferred directly from brain signals. In experiments, participants were asked to read Wikipedia documents about a selection of topics while their EEG was recorded. Based on the prediction of word relevance, the individual’s search intent was modeled and successfully used for retrieving new relevant documents from the whole English Wikipedia corpus. The results show that the users’ interests toward digital content can be modeled from the brain signals evoked by reading. The introduced brain-relevance paradigm enables the recommendation of information without any explicit user interaction and may be applied across diverse information-intensive applications. PMID:27929077

40 CFR 60.4110 - Authorization and Responsibilities of Hg designated representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Hg designated representative. 60.4110 Section 60.4110 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL... Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Coal-Fired Electric Steam Generating Units Hg Designated Representative for Hg Budget Sources § 60.4110 Authorization and Responsibilities of Hg designated representative...

The influence of self-relevant materials on working memory in dysphoric undergraduates.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Qin; Rahman, Shaoon; Lau, Becky; Sook Kim, Hyang; Deldin, Patricia

2015-10-30

Difficulties in updating working memory (WM) may underlie problems with regulating emotions that contribute to depression. To examine the ability of updating affective materials in WM, 33 dysphoric and 34 non-dysphoric participants were asked to evaluate the self-descriptiveness of emotional adjectives and provide answers to self-relevant questions. Within 3-7 days, they completed a two-back task with a series of self-irrelevant or self-relevant emotional words (they had generated previously) and four conditions (match-set, break-set, perseveration-set, and no-set). After the WM task, an unexpected recall task was administered; controls recalled more positive self-relevant words and intrusions while dysphoric participants recalled more negative self-relevant words and intrusions. In break-set trials of the two-back task, dysphoric individuals showed slower response to self-relevant words regardless of valence. In the match-set and perseveration-set trials, dysphoric participants showed delayed response to self-related negative words. Moreover, longer reaction times for self-relevant negative words were correlated with higher rumination and worse depression. The results suggest that dysphoric undergraduates are interfered more by and have a better memory of self-relevant negative stimuli in WM, which is closely correlated with rumination. This study is among the first to confirm the potential mechanism that could underwrite the involvement of self-schema in effectively regulating negative affect. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Microbiological water quality of Igapó Lake Londrina - PR and genotypic characterization of virulence factors associated with enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paulo Alfonso Schuroff

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This work aimed at the detection and quantification of Total Coliforms and Escherichia coli in Igapó Lake, in order to evaluate the quality of these waters as proper or unfit for recreation, in addition to the genotypic characterization of virulence factors associated with EPEC and STEC by PCR. The study area was the Igapó Lake I, II, III and IV. Samples were collected monthly from March 2011 to February 2012. The technique used for the detection and quantification of Total Coliforms and E. coli was the Colilert chromogenic substrate. In the technique of PCR, the eae and bfp genes were tested to characterize the typical EPEC pathotype; stx1, stx2, eae and hlyA the STEC pathotype and the samples that presented only the eae gene were characterized as atypical EPEC. According to CONAMA Resolution 357/2005, it has been observed that only Igapó Lake III was rated inappropriate for primary contact recreation, while for secondary contact recreation, all lakes were considered appropriate. Moreover, a strong relationship between rainfall and E. coli indices in Igapó Lake can be observed, which in dry months the quantity drastically decreases, while in rainy months the opposite relationship was observed. Of the 97 strains of E. coli isolated, two had the eae gene (atypical EPEC. None of the isolates contained genes stx1, stx2, bfp and hlyA. Thus, we hope to educate the population and public agencies of the importance of microbiological monitoring of recreational waters to prevent outbreaks of waterborne infections.

RNA-Seq analysis of isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in the global transcriptomes of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli prototype isolates

Science.gov (United States)

Hazen, Tracy H.; Daugherty, Sean C.; Shetty, Amol; Mahurkar, Anup A.; White, Owen; Kaper, James B.; Rasko, David A.

2015-01-01

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) are a leading cause of diarrheal illness among infants in developing countries. E. coli isolates classified as typical EPEC are identified by the presence of the locus of enterocyte effacement (LEE) and the bundle-forming pilus (BFP), and absence of the Shiga-toxin genes, while the atypical EPEC also encode LEE but do not encode BFP or Shiga-toxin. Comparative genomic analyses have demonstrated that EPEC isolates belong to diverse evolutionary lineages and possess lineage- and isolate-specific genomic content. To investigate whether this genomic diversity results in significant differences in global gene expression, we used an RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) approach to characterize the global transcriptomes of the prototype typical EPEC isolates E2348/69, B171, C581-05, and the prototype atypical EPEC isolate E110019. The global transcriptomes were characterized during laboratory growth in two different media and three different growth phases, as well as during adherence of the EPEC isolates to human cells using in vitro tissue culture assays. Comparison of the global transcriptomes during these conditions was used to identify isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in EPEC gene expression. These analyses resulted in the identification of genes that encode proteins involved in survival and metabolism that were coordinately expressed with virulence factors. These findings demonstrate there are isolate- and growth phase-specific differences in the global transcriptomes of EPEC prototype isolates, and highlight the utility of comparative transcriptomics for identifying additional factors that are directly or indirectly involved in EPEC pathogenesis. PMID:26124752

Variation of body fat percentage with special reference to diet modification in patients with chronic kidney disease: a longitudinal study.

Science.gov (United States)

Srivastava, Neha; Singh, Rana Gopal; Alok, Kumar; Singh, Shivendra

2014-07-01

Visceral adiposity causes hypertension, hyperglycemia and dyslipidemia. This study was conducted to evaluate whether a correlation exists between body fat percentage (BFP) of chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients and their dietary intake. In this hospital-based, quasi-experimental study, 135 incident cases of CKD were included, of whom 76 completed the study. The patients included were aged 18 years and above and had a body mass index (BMI) between 18 and 25 kg/m [2] , had CKD of any etiology and serum creatinine of up to 5 mg/dL. Patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, active hepatitis B or C, malignancy, previous kidney transplantation, current participation in any trial, diabetes mellitus and those who were on dia-lysis were excluded. The study patients were put on a diet of 25-30 kcal/kg/day, with 60% of the calories coming from carbohydrates and 20% each from protein and fat. Assessment was made at baseline (BL) and at 12 months (TM) for anthropometric parameters, skin-fold thickness, nutritional parameters, serum albumin and dietary intake (3-day dietary record) and clinical characteristics. No significant change was seen in BFP, waist circumference (WC) and BMI at BS and at TM. There was significant improvement in serum albumin (P intake was within the prescribed limit, with significant improvement in energy intake between BS and TM (P intake of delta dietary protein and fat positively correlated with delta e-GFR (P patients. This study supports the fact that dietary counseling is an important part of treatment in patients with CKD.

[Virulence markers of Escherichia coli O1 strains].

Science.gov (United States)

Makarova, M A; Kaftyreva, L A; Grigor'eva, N S; Kicha, E V; Lipatova, L A

2011-01-01

To detect virulence genes in clinical isolates of Escherichia coli O1 using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). One hundred and twenty strains of E.coli O1 strains isolated from faeces of patients with acute diarrhea (n = 45) and healthy persons (n = 75) were studied. PCR with primers for rfb and fliC genes, which control synthesis of O- and H- antigens respectively, was used. Fourteen virulence genes (pap, aaf, sfa, afa, eaeA, bfpA, ial, hly, cnf, stx1, stx2, lt, st, and aer) were detected by PCR primers. K1-antigen was determined by Pastorex Meningo B/E. coli O1 kit (Bio-Rad). rfb gene controlling O-antigen synthesis in serogroup O1 as well as fliC gene controlling synthesis of H7 and K1 antigens were detected in all strains. Thus all E. coli strains had antigenic structure O1:K1 :H-:F7. Virulence genes aafl, sfa, afa, eaeA, bfpA, ial, hly, cnf, stx1, stx2, lt, and st were not detected. All strains owned pap and aer genes regardless of the presence of acute diarrhea symptoms. It was shown that E. coli O1:KI:H-:F7 strains do not have virulence genes which are characteristic for diarrhea-causing Escherichia. In accordance with the presence of pap and aer genes they could be attributed to uropathogenic Escherichia (UPEC) or avian-pathogenic Escherichia (APEC). It is necessary to detect virulence factors in order to determine E. coli as a cause of intestinal infection.

Identifying public health competencies relevant to family medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Harvey, Bart J; Moloughney, Brent W; Iglar, Karl T

2011-10-01

Public health situations faced by family physicians and other primary care practitioners, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and more recently H1N1, have resulted in an increased interest to identify the public health competencies relevant to family medicine. At present there is no agreed-on set of public health competencies delineating the knowledge and skills that family physicians should possess to effectively face diverse public health challenges. Using a multi-staged, iterative process that included a detailed literature review, the authors developed a set of public health competencies relevant to primary care, identifying competencies relevant across four levels, from "post-MD" to "enhanced." Feedback from family medicine and public health educator-practitioners regarding the set of proposed "essential" competencies indicated the need for a more limited, feasible set of "priority" areas to be highlighted during residency training. This focused set of public health competencies has begun to guide relevant components of the University of Toronto's Family Medicine Residency Program curriculum, including academic half-days; clinical experiences, especially identifying "teachable moments" during patient encounters; resident academic projects; and elective public health agency placements. These competencies will also be used to guide the development of a family medicine-public health primer and faculty development sessions to support family medicine faculty facilitating residents to achieve these competencies. Once more fully implemented, an evaluation will be initiated to determine the degree to which these public health competencies are being achieved by family medicine graduates, especially whether they attained the knowledge, skills, and confidence necessary to effectively face diverse public health situations-from common to emergent. Copyright © 2011 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Testing the validity of a Cd soil quality standard in representative Mediterranean agricultural soils under an accumulator crop

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Recatala, L.; Sanchez, J.; Arbelo, C.; Sacristan, D.

2010-01-01

The validity of a quality standard for cadmium (Cd) in representative agricultural Mediterranean soils under an accumulator crop (Lactuca sativa L.) is evaluated in this work considering both its effect on the crop growth (biomass production) and the metal accumulation in the edible part of the plant. Four soils with different properties relevant to regulate the behaviour of heavy metals were selected from the Valencian Region, a representative area of the European Mediterranean Region. For all soils, the effective concentration of added Cd causing 50% inhibition (EC 50 ) on the biomass production was much higher than the minimum legal concentration used to declare soils as contaminated by cadmium, i.e. 100 times the baseline value for Cd, in Spain (Spanish Royal Decree 9/2005). As expected, Cd toxicity in the crop was higher in the soils having less carbonate content. On the other hand, for all soils, from the second dose on, which represents 10-times the baseline value for Cd, the metal content in crops exceeded the maximum level established for leaf crops by the European legislation (Regulation EC no. 466/2001). Soil salinity and coarse textures make the accumulation of Cd in the edible part of the plant easier. Therefore, the legal baseline soil cadmium content established by the Spanish legislation seems not valid neither from the point of view of the effect on the crop growth nor from the point of view of the metal accumulation in the edible part of the plant. In order to realistically declare contaminated soils by heavy metals, soil quality standards should be proposed taking into account the soil properties. Further research in other agricultural areas of the region would improve the basis for proposing adequate soil quality standards for heavy metals as highlighted by the European Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection.

Testing the validity of a Cd soil quality standard in representative Mediterranean agricultural soils under an accumulator crop

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Recatala, L., E-mail: luis.recatala@uv.es [Departamento de Planificacion Territorial, Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificacion-CIDE (CSIC-Universitat de Valencia-Generalitat Valenciana), Cami de la Marjal S/N, 46470 Albal (Valencia) (Spain); Sanchez, J. [Departamento de Planificacion Territorial, Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificacion-CIDE (CSIC-Universitat de Valencia-Generalitat Valenciana), Cami de la Marjal S/N, 46470 Albal (Valencia) (Spain); Arbelo, C. [Departamento de Edafologia y Geologia, Facultad de Biologia, Universidad de La Laguna, 38206 La Laguna (Tenerife), Islas Canarias (Spain); Sacristan, D. [Departamento de Planificacion Territorial, Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificacion-CIDE (CSIC-Universitat de Valencia-Generalitat Valenciana), Cami de la Marjal S/N, 46470 Albal (Valencia) (Spain)

2010-12-01

The validity of a quality standard for cadmium (Cd) in representative agricultural Mediterranean soils under an accumulator crop (Lactuca sativa L.) is evaluated in this work considering both its effect on the crop growth (biomass production) and the metal accumulation in the edible part of the plant. Four soils with different properties relevant to regulate the behaviour of heavy metals were selected from the Valencian Region, a representative area of the European Mediterranean Region. For all soils, the effective concentration of added Cd causing 50% inhibition (EC{sub 50}) on the biomass production was much higher than the minimum legal concentration used to declare soils as contaminated by cadmium, i.e. 100 times the baseline value for Cd, in Spain (Spanish Royal Decree 9/2005). As expected, Cd toxicity in the crop was higher in the soils having less carbonate content. On the other hand, for all soils, from the second dose on, which represents 10-times the baseline value for Cd, the metal content in crops exceeded the maximum level established for leaf crops by the European legislation (Regulation EC no. 466/2001). Soil salinity and coarse textures make the accumulation of Cd in the edible part of the plant easier. Therefore, the legal baseline soil cadmium content established by the Spanish legislation seems not valid neither from the point of view of the effect on the crop growth nor from the point of view of the metal accumulation in the edible part of the plant. In order to realistically declare contaminated soils by heavy metals, soil quality standards should be proposed taking into account the soil properties. Further research in other agricultural areas of the region would improve the basis for proposing adequate soil quality standards for heavy metals as highlighted by the European Thematic Strategy for Soil Protection.

Adaptation of Regional Representative Soil Project and Soil Judging for Cameroon

Science.gov (United States)

Che, Celestine Akuma

2013-01-01

Representative regional soils have agricultural, cultural, economic, environmental, and historical importance to Cameroon. Twenty seven regional representative soils have been identified in Cameroon. A set of laboratory exercises, assignments and exam questions have been developed utilizing the Regional Representative Soil Project (RRSP) that…

Prognostic relevance of PCI-related myocardial infarction

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Woudstra, Pier; Grundeken, Maik J.; van de Hoef, Tim P.; Wallentin, Lars; Fox, Keith A.; de Winter, Robbert J.; Damman, Peter

2013-01-01

Procedure-related myocardial infarction (pMI) is directly associated with a coronary revascularization procedure, such as percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or CABG surgery. In contrast to spontaneous myocardial infarction (MI), the prognostic relevance of pMI is the subject of ongoing debate.

On the representativeness of behavior observation samples in classrooms.

Science.gov (United States)

Tiger, Jeffrey H; Miller, Sarah J; Mevers, Joanna Lomas; Mintz, Joslyn Cynkus; Scheithauer, Mindy C; Alvarez, Jessica

2013-01-01

School consultants who rely on direct observation typically conduct observational samples (e.g., 1 30-min observation per day) with the hopes that the sample is representative of performance during the remainder of the day, but the representativeness of these samples is unclear. In the current study, we recorded the problem behavior of 3 referred students for 4 consecutive school days between 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. using duration recording in consecutive 10-min sessions. We then culled 10-min, 20-min, 30-min, and 60-min observations from the complete record and compared these observations to the true daily mean to assess their accuracy (i.e., how well individual observations represented the daily occurrence of target behaviors). The results indicated that when behavior occurred with low variability, the majority of brief observations were representative of the overall levels; however, when behavior occurred with greater variability, even 60-min observations did not accurately capture the true levels of behavior. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

Tomographic diagnosis and relevant aspects of otosclerosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gaiotti, Juliana Oggioni; Gomes, Natalia Delage; Costa, Ana Maria Doffemond; Villela, Caroline Laurita Batista Couto; Moreira, Wanderval; Diniz, Renata Lopes Furletti Caldeira

2013-01-01

A literature review and pictorial essay were developed to discuss the importance of knowing the main findings and locations of otosclerosis at multidetector computed tomography (MDCT). The authors performed a retrospective review of cases of otosclerosis diagnosed in their institution by means of high resolution multidetector computed tomography. Otosclerosis corresponds to otic capsule dysplasia characterized by metabolic derangement of its endochondral layer. Such condition constitutes a relevant cause of sensorineural hearing loss, affecting about 7% to 10% of the general population. The diagnosis is usually clinical, but imaging methods play a significant role in the anatomical detailing, differential diagnosis, surgical planning and evaluation of postoperative complications. Among such methods, the relevance of MDCT is highlighted. Radiologists should be familiar with the MDCT findings of otosclerosis, as well as with the temporal bone anatomy to assist in the appropriate clinical management of this disease. (author)

Tomographic diagnosis and relevant aspects of otosclerosis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gaiotti, Juliana Oggioni; Gomes, Natalia Delage; Costa, Ana Maria Doffemond; Villela, Caroline Laurita Batista Couto; Moreira, Wanderval; Diniz, Renata Lopes Furletti Caldeira, E-mail: jugaiotti@gmail.com [Hospital Mater Dei-Mater Imagem, Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil)

2013-09-15

A literature review and pictorial essay were developed to discuss the importance of knowing the main findings and locations of otosclerosis at multidetector computed tomography (MDCT). The authors performed a retrospective review of cases of otosclerosis diagnosed in their institution by means of high resolution multidetector computed tomography. Otosclerosis corresponds to otic capsule dysplasia characterized by metabolic derangement of its endochondral layer. Such condition constitutes a relevant cause of sensorineural hearing loss, affecting about 7% to 10% of the general population. The diagnosis is usually clinical, but imaging methods play a significant role in the anatomical detailing, differential diagnosis, surgical planning and evaluation of postoperative complications. Among such methods, the relevance of MDCT is highlighted. Radiologists should be familiar with the MDCT findings of otosclerosis, as well as with the temporal bone anatomy to assist in the appropriate clinical management of this disease. (author)

Representing Uncertainty on Model Analysis Plots

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Trevor I.

2016-01-01

Model analysis provides a mechanism for representing student learning as measured by standard multiple-choice surveys. The model plot contains information regarding both how likely students in a particular class are to choose the correct answer and how likely they are to choose an answer consistent with a well-documented conceptual model.…

28 CFR 104.4 - Personal Representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... addition, as provided in § 104.21(b)(5) of this part, the Special Master may publish a list of individuals... Special Master may, in his discretion, determine that the Personal Representative for purposes of... administrator of the decedent's estate. In the event no will exists, the Special Master may, in his discretion...

Data structures and apparatuses for representing knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Hohimer, Ryan E; Thomson, Judi R; Harvey, William J; Paulson, Patrick R; Whiting, Mark A; Tratz, Stephen C; Chappell, Alan R; Butner, Robert S

2014-02-18

Data structures and apparatuses to represent knowledge are disclosed. The processes can comprise labeling elements in a knowledge signature according to concepts in an ontology and populating the elements with confidence values. The data structures can comprise knowledge signatures stored on computer-readable media. The knowledge signatures comprise a matrix structure having elements labeled according to concepts in an ontology, wherein the value of the element represents a confidence that the concept is present in an information space. The apparatus can comprise a knowledge representation unit having at least one ontology stored on a computer-readable medium, at least one data-receiving device, and a processor configured to generate knowledge signatures by comparing datasets obtained by the data-receiving devices to the ontologies.

Opposing Subjective Temporal Experiences in Response to Unpredictable and Predictable Fear-Relevant Stimuli

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qian Cui

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Previous studies have found that the durations of fear-relevant stimuli were overestimated compared to those of neutral stimuli, even when the fear-relevant stimuli were only anticipated. The current study aimed to investigate the effect of the predictability of fear-relevant stimuli on sub-second temporal estimations. In Experiments 1a and 1b, a randomized design was employed to render the emotional valence of each trial unpredictable. In Experiments 2a and 2b, we incorporated a block design and a cueing paradigm, respectively, to render the emotional stimuli predictable. Compared with the neutral condition, the estimated blank interval was judged as being shorter under the unpredictable fear-relevant condition, while it was judged as being longer under the predictable fear-relevant condition. In other words, the unpredictable and predictable fear-relevant stimuli led to opposing temporal distortions. These results demonstrated that emotions modulate interval perception during different time processing stages.

19 CFR 146.2 - Port director as Board representative.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

...; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) FOREIGN TRADE ZONES General Provisions § 146.2 Port director as Board representative. The appropriate port director shall be in charge of the zone as the representative of the Board. [T.D. 86-16, 51 FR 5049, Feb. 11, 1986, as amended by T.D. 99-27, 64 FR 13676, Mar. 22, 1999] ...

Seeking kinetic pathways relevant to the structural evolution of metal nanoparticles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haldar, Paramita; Chatterjee, Abhijit

2015-01-01

Understanding the kinetic pathways that cause metal nanoparticles to structurally evolve over time is essential for predicting their shape and size distributions and catalytic properties. Consequently, we need detailed kinetic models that can provide such information. Most kinetic Monte Carlo models used for metal systems contain a fixed catalogue of atomic moves; the catalogue is largely constructed based on our physical understanding of the material. In some situations, it is possible that an incorrect picture of the overall dynamics is obtained when kinetic pathways that are relevant to the dynamics are missing from the catalogue. Hence, a computational framework that can systematically determine the relevant pathways is required. This work intends to fulfil this requirement. Examples involving an Ag nanoparticle are studied to illustrate how molecular dynamics (MD) calculations can be employed to find the relevant pathways in a system. Since pathways that are unlikely to be selected at short timescales can become relevant at longer times, the accuracy of the catalogue is maintained by continually seeking these pathways using MD. We discuss various aspects of our approach, namely, defining the relevance of atomic moves to the dynamics and determining when additional MD is required to ensure the desired accuracy, as well as physical insights into the Ag nanoparticle. (paper)

Development and Validation of a Scalable Next-Generation Sequencing System for Assessing Relevant Somatic Variants in Solid Tumors12

Science.gov (United States)

Hovelson, Daniel H.; McDaniel, Andrew S.; Cani, Andi K.; Johnson, Bryan; Rhodes, Kate; Williams, Paul D.; Bandla, Santhoshi; Bien, Geoffrey; Choppa, Paul; Hyland, Fiona; Gottimukkala, Rajesh; Liu, Guoying; Manivannan, Manimozhi; Schageman, Jeoffrey; Ballesteros-Villagrana, Efren; Grasso, Catherine S.; Quist, Michael J.; Yadati, Venkata; Amin, Anmol; Siddiqui, Javed; Betz, Bryan L.; Knudsen, Karen E.; Cooney, Kathleen A.; Feng, Felix Y.; Roh, Michael H.; Nelson, Peter S.; Liu, Chia-Jen; Beer, David G.; Wyngaard, Peter; Chinnaiyan, Arul M.; Sadis, Seth; Rhodes, Daniel R.; Tomlins, Scott A.

2015-01-01

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has enabled genome-wide personalized oncology efforts at centers and companies with the specialty expertise and infrastructure required to identify and prioritize actionable variants. Such approaches are not scalable, preventing widespread adoption. Likewise, most targeted NGS approaches fail to assess key relevant genomic alteration classes. To address these challenges, we predefined the catalog of relevant solid tumor somatic genome variants (gain-of-function or loss-of-function mutations, high-level copy number alterations, and gene fusions) through comprehensive bioinformatics analysis of >700,000 samples. To detect these variants, we developed the Oncomine Comprehensive Panel (OCP), an integrative NGS-based assay [compatible with 95% accuracy for KRAS, epidermal growth factor receptor, and BRAF mutation detection as well as for ALK and TMPRSS2:ERG gene fusions. Associating positive variants with potential targeted treatments demonstrated that 6% to 42% of profiled samples (depending on cancer type) harbored alterations beyond routine molecular testing that were associated with approved or guideline-referenced therapies. As a translational research tool, OCP identified adaptive CTNNB1 amplifications/mutations in treated prostate cancers. Through predefining somatic variants in solid tumors and compiling associated potential treatment strategies, OCP represents a simplified, broadly applicable targeted NGS system with the potential to advance precision oncology efforts. PMID:25925381

Humans choose representatives who enforce cooperation in social dilemmas through extortion

Science.gov (United States)

Milinski, Manfred; Hilbe, Christian; Semmann, Dirk; Sommerfeld, Ralf; Marotzke, Jochem

2016-03-01

Social dilemmas force players to balance between personal and collective gain. In many dilemmas, such as elected governments negotiating climate-change mitigation measures, the decisions are made not by individual players but by their representatives. However, the behaviour of representatives in social dilemmas has not been investigated experimentally. Here inspired by the negotiations for greenhouse-gas emissions reductions, we experimentally study a collective-risk social dilemma that involves representatives deciding on behalf of their fellow group members. Representatives can be re-elected or voted out after each consecutive collective-risk game. Selfish players are preferentially elected and are hence found most frequently in the `representatives' treatment. Across all treatments, we identify the selfish players as extortioners. As predicted by our mathematical model, their steadfast strategies enforce cooperation from fair players who finally compensate almost completely the deficit caused by the extortionate co-players. Everybody gains, but the extortionate representatives and their groups gain the most.

Qual a relevância das celebridades na publicidade?

OpenAIRE

Xara-Brasil, Maria Rita de Aguiar

2013-01-01

Esta dissertação tem por objectivo, estudar a relevância das celebridades em publicidade. A Publicidade tem um papel muito importante na sociedade em que vivemos. Desde sempre que foi um tema que me despertou muito interesse, assim como, as estratégias nela inseridas. A presença de celebridades em anúncios publicitários é uma prática muito comum para promover produtos e marcas. Com esta investigação tenho por objectivo perceber qual a relevância das celebridades em anúncios ...

Why ritual plant use has ethnopharmacological relevance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Quiroz, Diana; Sosef, Marc; Andel, Van Tinde

2016-01-01

Ethnopharmacological relevance Although ritual plant use is now recognised both for its socio-cultural importance and for its contribution to nature conservation, its potential pharmacological effects remain overlooked. Aim of the study Our objective was to see whether ritual plant use could have

The economic lot size and relevant costs

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Corbeij, M.H.; Jansen, R.A.; Grübström, R.W.; Hinterhuber, H.H.; Lundquist, J.

1993-01-01

In many accounting textbooks it is strongly argued that decisions should always be evaluated on relevant costs; that is variable costs and opportunity costs. Surprisingly, when it comes to Economic Order Quantities or Lot Sizes, some textbooks appear to be less straightforward. The question whether

The relevance of cosmopolitanism for moral education

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Merry, M.S.; de Ruyter, D.J.

2011-01-01

In this article we defend a moral conception of cosmopolitanism and its relevance for moral education. Our moral conception of cosmopolitanism presumes that persons possess an inherent dignity in the Kantian sense and therefore they should be recognised as ends-in-themselves. We argue that

Balancing relevance criteria through multi-objective optimization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Doorn, J.; Odijk, D.; Roijers, D.M.; de Rijke, M.

2016-01-01

Offline evaluation of information retrieval systems typically focuses on a single effectiveness measure that models the utility for a typical user. Such a measure usually combines a behavior-based rank discount with a notion of document utility that captures the single relevance criterion of

How Individual Scholars Can Reduce the Rigor-Relevance Gap in Management Research

OpenAIRE

Wolf, Joachim; Rosenberg, Timo

2012-01-01

This paper discusses a number of avenues management scholars could follow to reduce the existing gap between scientific rigor and practical relevance without relativizing the importance of the first goal dimension. Such changes are necessary because many management studies do not fully exploit the possibilities to increase their practical relevance while maintaining scientific rigor. We argue that this rigor-relevance gap is not only the consequence of the currently prevailing institutional c...

On the marginally relevant operator in z=2 Lifshitz holography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holsheimer, Kristian

2014-01-01

We study holographic renormalization and RG flow in a strongly-coupled Lifshitz-type theory in 2+1 dimensions with dynamical exponent z=2. The bottom-up gravity dual we use is 3+1 dimensional Einstein gravity coupled to a massive vector field. This model contains a marginally relevant operator around the Lifshitz fixed point. We show how holographic renormalization works in the presence of this marginally relevant operator without the need to introduce explicitly cutoff-dependent counterterms. A simple closed-form expression is found for the renormalized on-shell action. We also discuss how asymptotically Lifshitz geometries flow to AdS in the interior due to the marginally relevant operator. We study the behavior of the renormalized entanglement entropy and confirm that it decreases monotonically along the Lifshitz-to-AdS RG flow

Relevance of Trust Marks and CE Labels in German-Language Store Descriptions of Health Apps: Analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Albrecht, Urs-Vito; Hillebrand, Uta; von Jan, Ute

2018-04-25

In addition to mandatory CE marking ("CE" representing Conformité Européenne, with the CE marking being a symbol of free marketability in the European Economic Area) for medical devices, there are various seals, initiatives, action groups, etc, in the health app context. However, whether manufacturers use them to distinguish their apps and attach relevance to them is unclear. The objective was to take a snapshot of quality seals, regulatory marks, and other orientation aids available on the German app market and to determine whether manufacturers deem such labels relevant enough to apply them to their apps, namely as reflected by mentions in app description texts in a typical app store (ie, Apple's App Store). A full survey of the metadata of 103,046 apps from Apple's German App Store in the Medicine and Health & Fitness categories was carried out. For apps with German-language store descriptions (N=8767), these were automatically searched for the occurrence of relevant keywords and validated manually (N=41). In addition, the websites of various app seal providers were checked for assigned seals. Few manufacturers referenced seals in the descriptions (5/41), although this would have been expected more often based on the seals we were able to identify from the seal providers' Web pages, and there were 34 of 41 that mentioned CE status in the descriptions. Two apps referenced an app directory curated by experts; however, this is not an alternative to CE marks and seals of approval. Currently, quality seals seem to be irrelevant for manufacturers. In line with regulatory requirements, mentions of medical device status are more frequent; however, neither characteristic is effective for identifying high-quality apps. To improve this situation, a possibly legally obligatory, standardized reporting system should be implemented. ©Urs-Vito Albrecht, Uta Hillebrand, Ute von Jan. Originally published in JMIR Mhealth and Uhealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 25.04.2018.

Self-Relevance Constructions of Biology Concepts: Meaning-Making and Identity-Formation

Science.gov (United States)

Davidson, Yonaton Sahar

2018-01-01

Recent research supports the benefit of students' construction of relevance through writing about the connection of content to their life. However, most such research defines relevance narrowly as utility value--perceived instrumentality of the content to the student's career goals. Furthermore, the scope of phenomenological and conceptual…

An update in proton probe tomography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sakellariou, A.; Cholewa, M.; Saint, A.; Legge, G.L.F. [Melbourne Univ., Parkville, VIC (Australia). School of Physics; Howard, J. [Australian National Univ., Canberra, ACT (Australia). Research School of Physical Sciences

1996-12-31

The analysis of scanning transmission ion microscopy (STIM) tomography data is improved. The volumetric density information is obtained directly from an iterative convolution and back-projection (BFP) reconstruction method. The iterative method allows the effects of stopping-power to be incorporated easily. One draw back is that a priori constituency information is required for the iterative method to work However, this is of no concern because the iterative method was designed with PIXE tomography in mind. In this light, the a priori information will be obtained as the zeroth iteration of a PIXE tomography iterative reconstruction method. 4 refs., 1 tab., 4 figs.

An update in proton probe tomography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sakellariou, A; Cholewa, M; Saint, A; Legge, G L.F. [Melbourne Univ., Parkville, VIC (Australia). School of Physics; Howard, J [Australian National Univ., Canberra, ACT (Australia). Research School of Physical Sciences

1997-12-31

The analysis of scanning transmission ion microscopy (STIM) tomography data is improved. The volumetric density information is obtained directly from an iterative convolution and back-projection (BFP) reconstruction method. The iterative method allows the effects of stopping-power to be incorporated easily. One draw back is that a priori constituency information is required for the iterative method to work However, this is of no concern because the iterative method was designed with PIXE tomography in mind. In this light, the a priori information will be obtained as the zeroth iteration of a PIXE tomography iterative reconstruction method. 4 refs., 1 tab., 4 figs.

Request by the Resident Representative of Iraq

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

The attached clarification by a spokesman of the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs is being circulated for the information of Member States pursuant to a request made by the Resident Representative of Iraq

Semantic Representatives of the Concept

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena N. Tsay

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In the article concept as one of the principle notions of cognitive linguistics is investigated. Considering concept as culture phenomenon, having language realization and ethnocultural peculiarities, the description of the concept “happiness” is presented. Lexical and semantic paradigm of the concept of happiness correlates with a great number of lexical and semantic variants. In the work semantic representatives of the concept of happiness, covering supreme spiritual values are revealed and semantic interpretation of their functioning in the Biblical discourse is given.

Long-time data storage: relevant time scales

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Elwenspoek, Michael Curt

2011-01-01

Dynamic processes relevant for long-time storage of information about human kind are discussed, ranging from biological and geological processes to the lifecycle of stars and the expansion of the universe. Major results are that life will end ultimately and the remaining time that the earth is

Interpersonal communication: It's relevance to nursing practice ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper is aimed at highlighting how essential interpersonal communication is necessary for establishing rapport, understanding the needs of the patients and planning effective intervention for meeting holistic health care. To be continually relevant, Nurses have to improve on their communication skills to meet the ...

The Healing Power of Poison: Helpful Non-relevant Documents in Feedback

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dehghani, M.; Abnar, S.; Kamps, J.

2016-01-01

The use of feedback information is an effective approach to address the vocabulary gap between a user's query and the relevant documents. It has been shown that some relevant documents act like "poison pills," i.e. they hurt the performance of feedback systems despite the fact that they are

Relevance of Green Marketing on Environmental Degradation: An ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Relevance of Green Marketing on Environmental Degradation: An Empirical ... to others through product, process, packaging and advertising modification(s). ... thus appropriate strategies for effective application of green marketing are lacking.

The value relevance of direct cash flows under international financial reporting standards

OpenAIRE

Clacher, I; de Ricquebourg, AD; Hodgson, A

2013-01-01

This study examines if there has been a change in the value relevance of direct cash flow components since the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Australia. Our results show that for both industrial and extractive firms direct cash flow statements are value relevant under Australian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (AGAAP) and remain so after the adoption of IFRS. In addition, for industrial firms there is a significant increase in the value relevance of...

Relevant Market in Commercial Aviation of the European Union

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jakub Kociubiński

2011-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to provide a brief overview of the issue of definition of relevant market in civil aviation within the European Union. The liberalization of the market since the early 1990s has led to a rapid increase in the number of airlines operating in the EU. The increase in the competitiveness of the market has brought many positive changes for passengers, such as lower fares and a better network of connections. At the same time it has created a risk that the airlines, in order to gain a competitive edge, would infringe the rules of competition. This is especially important in the context of the phenomenon that is the development of the airline alliances, which could lead to an abuse of a dominant position. A clear definition of the relevant market is a first step in an assessment of whether such an abuse occurred. This paper focus on the elements that Internal Market regulator, the European Commission, takes into consideration when defining relevant market in the airline industry.

Underdevelopment in contemporary world:is structuralism still relevant?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ADEMIR PEDRO VILAÇA JUNIOR

Full Text Available ABSTRACT This paper intends to evaluate if the Latin American structuralist approach is still relevant to understand capital accumulation dynamics of peripheral countries and their insertion in the global value chains. It’s a theoretical paper that strives to improve the building blocks of structuralism with the incorporation of elements from different approaches to establish a nexus to understand capital accumulation dynamics in the periphery. Considering the relevance of technological accumulation, its impacts over the productive structure and over the international insertion, we strive to analyze factors that perpetuate income diversion in relation to the center. Under this perspective, we conclude that the particularities of peripheral economies changed their form of manifestation without effectively overcome the dependence relation.

Active Learning by Querying Informative and Representative Examples.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Sheng-Jun; Jin, Rong; Zhou, Zhi-Hua

2014-10-01

Active learning reduces the labeling cost by iteratively selecting the most valuable data to query their labels. It has attracted a lot of interests given the abundance of unlabeled data and the high cost of labeling. Most active learning approaches select either informative or representative unlabeled instances to query their labels, which could significantly limit their performance. Although several active learning algorithms were proposed to combine the two query selection criteria, they are usually ad hoc in finding unlabeled instances that are both informative and representative. We address this limitation by developing a principled approach, termed QUIRE, based on the min-max view of active learning. The proposed approach provides a systematic way for measuring and combining the informativeness and representativeness of an unlabeled instance. Further, by incorporating the correlation among labels, we extend the QUIRE approach to multi-label learning by actively querying instance-label pairs. Extensive experimental results show that the proposed QUIRE approach outperforms several state-of-the-art active learning approaches in both single-label and multi-label learning.

Representativeness of wind measurements in moderately complex terrain

Science.gov (United States)

van den Bossche, Michael; De Wekker, Stephan F. J.

2018-02-01

We investigated the representativeness of 10-m wind measurements in a 4 km × 2 km area of modest relief by comparing observations at a central site with those at four satellite sites located in the same area. Using a combination of established and new methods to quantify and visualize representativeness, we found significant differences in wind speed and direction between the four satellite sites and the central site. The representativeness of the central site wind measurements depended strongly on surface wind speed and direction, and atmospheric stability. Through closer inspection of the observations at one of the satellite sites, we concluded that terrain-forced flows combined with thermally driven downslope winds caused large biases in wind direction and speed. We used these biases to generate a basic model, showing that terrain-related differences in wind observations can to a large extent be predicted. Such a model is a cost-effective way to enhance an area's wind field determination and to improve the outcome of pollutant dispersion and weather forecasting models.

Coupling of Nuclear Waste Form Corrosion and Radionuclide Transports in Presence of Relevant Repository Sediments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wall, Nathalie A.; Neeway, James J.; Qafoku, Nikolla P.; Ryan, Joseph V.

2015-01-01

Assessments of waste form and disposal options start with the degradation of the waste forms and consequent mobilization of radionuclides. Long-term static tests, single-pass flow-through tests, and the pressurized unsaturated flow test are often employed to study the durability of potential waste forms and to help create models that predict their durability throughout the lifespan of the disposal site. These tests involve the corrosion of the material in the presence of various leachants, with different experimental designs yielding desired information about the behavior of the material. Though these tests have proved instrumental in elucidating various mechanisms responsible for material corrosion, the chemical environment to which the material is subject is often not representative of a potential radioactive waste repository where factors such as pH and leachant composition will be controlled by the near-field environment. Near-field materials include, but are not limited to, the original engineered barriers, their resulting corrosion products, backfill materials, and the natural host rock. For an accurate performance assessment of a nuclear waste repository, realistic waste corrosion experimental data ought to be modeled to allow for a better understanding of waste form corrosion mechanisms and the effect of immediate geochemical environment on these mechanisms. Additionally, the migration of radionuclides in the resulting chemical environment during and after waste form corrosion must be quantified and mechanisms responsible for migrations understood. The goal of this research was to understand the mechanisms responsible for waste form corrosion in the presence of relevant repository sediments to allow for accurate radionuclide migration quantifications. The rationale for this work is that a better understanding of waste form corrosion in relevant systems will enable increased reliance on waste form performance in repository environments and potentially

Coupling of Nuclear Waste Form Corrosion and Radionuclide Transports in Presence of Relevant Repository Sediments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wall, Nathalie A. [Washington State Univ., Pullman, WA (United States); Neeway, James J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Qafoku, Nikolla P. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Ryan, Joseph V. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2015-09-30

Assessments of waste form and disposal options start with the degradation of the waste forms and consequent mobilization of radionuclides. Long-term static tests, single-pass flow-through tests, and the pressurized unsaturated flow test are often employed to study the durability of potential waste forms and to help create models that predict their durability throughout the lifespan of the disposal site. These tests involve the corrosion of the material in the presence of various leachants, with different experimental designs yielding desired information about the behavior of the material. Though these tests have proved instrumental in elucidating various mechanisms responsible for material corrosion, the chemical environment to which the material is subject is often not representative of a potential radioactive waste repository where factors such as pH and leachant composition will be controlled by the near-field environment. Near-field materials include, but are not limited to, the original engineered barriers, their resulting corrosion products, backfill materials, and the natural host rock. For an accurate performance assessment of a nuclear waste repository, realistic waste corrosion experimental data ought to be modeled to allow for a better understanding of waste form corrosion mechanisms and the effect of immediate geochemical environment on these mechanisms. Additionally, the migration of radionuclides in the resulting chemical environment during and after waste form corrosion must be quantified and mechanisms responsible for migrations understood. The goal of this research was to understand the mechanisms responsible for waste form corrosion in the presence of relevant repository sediments to allow for accurate radionuclide migration quantifications. The rationale for this work is that a better understanding of waste form corrosion in relevant systems will enable increased reliance on waste form performance in repository environments and potentially

12 CFR 263.62 - Relevant considerations for assessment of civil penalty.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Relevant considerations for assessment of civil... Collection of Civil Money Penalties § 263.62 Relevant considerations for assessment of civil penalty. In... the penalty with respect to the financial resources and good faith of the person charged, the gravity...

Relevance as process: judgements in the context of scholarly research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Theresa D. Anderson

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. This paper discusses how exploring the research process in-depth and over time contributes to a fuller understanding of interactions with various representations of information. Method. A longitudinal ethnographic study explored decisions made by two informants involved in scholarly research. Relevance assessment and information seeking were observed as part of informants' own ongoing research projects. Fieldwork used methods of discovery that allowed informants to shape the exploration of the practices surrounding the evolving understandings of their topics. Analysis. Inductive analysis was carried out on the qualitative data collected over a two-year period of judgements observed on a document-by-document basis. The paper introduces broad categories that point to the variability and richness of the ways that informants used representations of information resources to make relevance judgements. Results. Relevance judgements appear to be drivers of the search and research processes informants moved through during the observations. Focusing on research goals rather than on retrieval tasks brings us to a fuller understanding of the relationship between ultimate research goals and the articulation of those goals in interactions with information systems. Conclusion. Relevance assessment is a process that unfolds in the doing of a search, the making of judgements and the using of texts and representations of information.

Relevant multi-setting tight Bell inequalities for qubits and qutrits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deng Dongling; Zhou Zisui; Chen Jingling

2009-01-01

In the celebrated paper [D. Collins, N. Gisin, J. Phys. A Math. Gen. 37 (2004) 1775], Collins and Gisin presented for the first time a three-setting Bell inequality (here we call it CG inequality for simplicity) which is relevant to the Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt (CHSH) inequality. Inspired by their brilliant ideas, we obtained some multi-setting tight Bell inequalities, which are relevant to the CHSH inequality and the CG inequality. Moreover, we generalized the method in the paper [J.L. Chen, D.L. Deng, Phys. Rev. A 79 (2009) 012115] to construct Bell inequality for qubits to higher dimensional system. Based on the generalized method, we present, for the first time, a three-setting tight Bell inequality for two qutrits, which is maximally violated by nonmaximally entangled states and relevant to the Collins-Gisin-Linden-Massar-Popescu inequality.

Lower hybrid current drive at ITER-relevant high plasma densities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cesario, R.; Amicucci, L.; Cardinali, A.; Castaldo, C.; Marinucci, M.; Panaccione, L.; Pericoli-Ridolfini, V.; Tuccillo, A. A.; Tudisco, O.; Calabro, G.

2009-01-01

Recent experiments indicated that a further non-inductive current, besides bootstrap, should be necessary for developing advanced scenario for ITER. The lower hybrid current drive (LHCD) should provide such tool, but its effectiveness was still not proved in operations with ITER-relevant density of the plasma column periphery. Progress of the LH deposition modelling is presented, performed considering the wave physics of the edge, and different ITER-relevant edge parameters. Operations with relatively high edge electron temperatures are expected to reduce the LH || spectral broadening and, consequently, enabling the LH power to propagate also in high density plasmas ( || is the wavenumber component aligned to the confinement magnetic field). New results of FTU experiments are presented, performed by following the aforementioned modeling: they indicate that, for the first time, the LHCD conditions are established by operating at ITER-relevant high edge densities.

Cross-curricular goals and raising the relevance of science education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Belova, Nadja; Dittmar, Johanna; Hansson, Lena

2017-01-01

‘Relevance’ is one of the most commonly used terms when it comes to reforms in science education. The term is used in manifold ways. It can be understood – among other things – as meeting an interest, fulfilling needs or contributing to intellectual development. Many components of relevant science...... education go beyond single contents and concepts; many challenges are tied to cross-curricular goals. Specifically, when it comes to the societal and vocational relevance of science education, many demands can only be met when we develop corresponding skills across disciplines and grade levels. This chapter...... focuses on a set of such cross-curricular goals from a chemistry education perspective, namely, education for sustainability, critical media literacy, innovation competence, vocational orientation and employability. It relates them to the idea of relevant chemistry and science education. Directions...

Ranking Music Data by Relevance and Importance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruxanda, Maria Magdalena; Nanopoulos, Alexandros; Jensen, Christian Søndergaard

2008-01-01

Due to the rapidly increasing availability of audio files on the Web, it is relevant to augment search engines with advanced audio search functionality. In this context, the ranking of the retrieved music is an important issue. This paper proposes a music ranking method capable of flexibly fusing...

Lack of parvalbumin in mice leads to behavioral deficits relevant to all human autism core symptoms and related neural morphofunctional abnormalities.

Science.gov (United States)

Wöhr, M; Orduz, D; Gregory, P; Moreno, H; Khan, U; Vörckel, K J; Wolfer, D P; Welzl, H; Gall, D; Schiffmann, S N; Schwaller, B

2015-03-10

Gene mutations and gene copy number variants are associated with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Affected gene products are often part of signaling networks implicated in synapse formation and/or function leading to alterations in the excitation/inhibition (E/I) balance. Although the network of parvalbumin (PV)-expressing interneurons has gained particular attention in ASD, little is known on PV's putative role with respect to ASD. Genetic mouse models represent powerful translational tools for studying the role of genetic and neurobiological factors underlying ASD. Here, we report that PV knockout mice (PV(-/-)) display behavioral phenotypes with relevance to all three core symptoms present in human ASD patients: abnormal reciprocal social interactions, impairments in communication and repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior. PV-depleted mice also showed several signs of ASD-associated comorbidities, such as reduced pain sensitivity and startle responses yet increased seizure susceptibility, whereas no evidence for behavioral phenotypes with relevance to anxiety, depression and schizophrenia was obtained. Reduced social interactions and communication were also observed in heterozygous (PV(+/-)) mice characterized by lower PV expression levels, indicating that merely a decrease in PV levels might be sufficient to elicit core ASD-like deficits. Structural magnetic resonance imaging measurements in PV(-/-) and PV(+/-) mice further revealed ASD-associated developmental neuroanatomical changes, including transient cortical hypertrophy and cerebellar hypoplasia. Electrophysiological experiments finally demonstrated that the E/I balance in these mice is altered by modification of both inhibitory and excitatory synaptic transmission. On the basis of the reported changes in PV expression patterns in several, mostly genetic rodent models of ASD, we propose that in these models downregulation of PV might represent one of the points of convergence, thus providing a

Cogito ergo video: Task-relevant information is involuntarily boosted into awareness.

Science.gov (United States)

Gayet, Surya; Brascamp, Jan W; Van der Stigchel, Stefan; Paffen, Chris L E

2015-01-01

Only part of the visual information that impinges on our retinae reaches visual awareness. In a series of three experiments, we investigated how the task relevance of incoming visual information affects its access to visual awareness. On each trial, participants were instructed to memorize one of two presented hues, drawn from different color categories (e.g., red and green), for later recall. During the retention interval, participants were presented with a differently colored grating in each eye such as to elicit binocular rivalry. A grating matched either the task-relevant (memorized) color category or the task-irrelevant (nonmemorized) color category. We found that the rivalrous stimulus that matched the task-relevant color category tended to dominate awareness over the rivalrous stimulus that matched the task-irrelevant color category. This effect of task relevance persisted when participants reported the orientation of the rivalrous stimuli, even though in this case color information was completely irrelevant for the task of reporting perceptual dominance during rivalry. When participants memorized the shape of a colored stimulus, however, its color category did not affect predominance of rivalrous stimuli during retention. Taken together, these results indicate that the selection of task-relevant information is under volitional control but that visual input that matches this information is boosted into awareness irrespective of whether this is useful for the observer.

Which domains of thyroid-related quality of life are most relevant?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Watt, Torquil; Hegedüs, Laszlo; Rasmussen, Ase Krogh

2007-01-01

To identify how thyroid diseases impact the patients' lives and to select the most relevant quality of life (QoL) issues for a thyroid-specific questionnaire.......To identify how thyroid diseases impact the patients' lives and to select the most relevant quality of life (QoL) issues for a thyroid-specific questionnaire....

Bootstrapping agency: How control-relevant information affects motivation.

Science.gov (United States)

Karsh, Noam; Eitam, Baruch; Mark, Ilya; Higgins, E Tory

2016-10-01

How does information about one's control over the environment (e.g., having an own-action effect) influence motivation? The control-based response selection framework was proposed to predict and explain such findings. Its key tenant is that control relevant information modulates both the frequency and speed of responses by determining whether a perceptual event is an outcome of one's actions or not. To test this framework empirically, the current study examines whether and how temporal and spatial contiguity/predictability-previously established as being important for one's sense of agency-modulate motivation from control. In 5 experiments, participants responded to a cue, potentially triggering a perceptual effect. Temporal (Experiments 1a-c) and spatial (Experiments 2a and b) contiguity/predictability between actions and their potential effects were experimentally manipulated. The influence of these control-relevant factors was measured, both indirectly (through their effect on explicit judgments of agency) and directly on response time and response frequency. The pattern of results was highly consistent with the control-based response selection framework in suggesting that control relevant information reliably modulates the impact of "having an effect" on different levels of action selection. We discuss the implications of this study for the notion of motivation from control and for the empirical work on the sense of agency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Evaluation of relevant information for optimal reflector modeling through data assimilation procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Argaud, J.P.; Bouriquet, B.; Clerc, T.; Lucet-Sanchez, F.; Poncot, A.

2015-01-01

The goal of this study is to look after the amount of information that is mandatory to get a relevant parameters optimisation by data assimilation for physical models in neutronic diffusion calculations, and to determine what is the best information to reach the optimum of accuracy at the cheapest cost. To evaluate the quality of the optimisation, we study the covariance matrix that represents the accuracy of the optimised parameter. This matrix is a classical output of the data assimilation procedure, and it is the main information about accuracy and sensitivity of the parameter optimal determination. We present some results collected in the field of neutronic simulation for PWR type reactor. We seek to optimise the reflector parameters that characterise the neutronic reflector surrounding the whole reactive core. On the basis of the configuration studies, it has been shown that with data assimilation we can determine a global strategy to optimise the quality of the result with respect to the amount of information provided. The consequence of this is a cost reduction in terms of measurement and/or computing time with respect to the basic approach. Another result is that using multi-campaign data rather data from a unique campaign significantly improves the efficiency of parameters optimisation

Enabling multi-level relevance feedback on PubMed by integrating rank learning into DBMS.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Hwanjo; Kim, Taehoon; Oh, Jinoh; Ko, Ilhwan; Kim, Sungchul; Han, Wook-Shin

2010-04-16

Finding relevant articles from PubMed is challenging because it is hard to express the user's specific intention in the given query interface, and a keyword query typically retrieves a large number of results. Researchers have applied machine learning techniques to find relevant articles by ranking the articles according to the learned relevance function. However, the process of learning and ranking is usually done offline without integrated with the keyword queries, and the users have to provide a large amount of training documents to get a reasonable learning accuracy. This paper proposes a novel multi-level relevance feedback system for PubMed, called RefMed, which supports both ad-hoc keyword queries and a multi-level relevance feedback in real time on PubMed. RefMed supports a multi-level relevance feedback by using the RankSVM as the learning method, and thus it achieves higher accuracy with less feedback. RefMed "tightly" integrates the RankSVM into RDBMS to support both keyword queries and the multi-level relevance feedback in real time; the tight coupling of the RankSVM and DBMS substantially improves the processing time. An efficient parameter selection method for the RankSVM is also proposed, which tunes the RankSVM parameter without performing validation. Thereby, RefMed achieves a high learning accuracy in real time without performing a validation process. RefMed is accessible at http://dm.postech.ac.kr/refmed. RefMed is the first multi-level relevance feedback system for PubMed, which achieves a high accuracy with less feedback. It effectively learns an accurate relevance function from the user's feedback and efficiently processes the function to return relevant articles in real time.

Interactions between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry generally and sales representatives specifically and their association with physicians' attitudes and prescribing habits: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Fickweiler, Freek; Fickweiler, Ward; Urbach, Ewout

2017-09-27

The objective of this review is to explore interactions between physicians and the pharmaceutical industry including sales representatives and their impact on physicians' attitude and prescribing habits. PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Google scholar electronic databases were searched from 1992 to August 2016 using free-text words and medical subject headings relevant to the topic. Studies included cross-sectional studies, cohort studies, randomised trials and survey designs. Studies with narrative reviews, case reports, opinion polls and letters to the editor were excluded from data synthesis. Two reviewers independently extracted the data. Data on study design, study year, country, participant characteristics, setting and number of participants were collected. Pharmaceutical industry and pharmaceutical sales representative (PSR) interactions influence physicians' attitudes and their prescribing behaviour and increase the number of formulary addition requests for the company's drug. Physician-pharmaceutical industry and its sales representative's interactions and acceptance of gifts from the company's PSRs have been found to affect physicians' prescribing behaviour and are likely to contribute to irrational prescribing of the company's drug. Therefore, intervention in the form of policy implementation and education about the implications of these interactions is needed. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Connectedness to nature and public (skin) health perspectives: results of a representative, population-based survey among Austrian residents.

Science.gov (United States)

Haluza, Daniela; Simic, Stana; Höltge, Jan; Cervinka, Renate; Moshammer, Hanns

2014-01-20

Connectedness to nature (CN) influences motivation to have contact with outdoor natural environments. Spending leisure time in natural environments is beneficial for human health and well-being. Besides these positive effects, health risks of open-air activities are mainly related to unprotected sun light exposure-associated acute and chronic skin hazards. Thus, we conducted a cross-sectional, representative telephone survey among Austrian residents to study the association of perceived CN level with sun-exposure knowledge, tanning habits, and sun protective behaviour. In total, 1,500 study subjects (50.5% females) participated in this questionnaire survey. Although knowledge about tanning and motives to tan were similar among genders, females performed more photoprotective measures and were more connected to nature (all p nature connectedness and skin health-relevant recreational habits of Austrian residents. The findings suggest to integrate hitherto neglected gender-specific Public (Skin) Health promotion when counselling on the manifold health advantages of outdoor activities.

Relevance of Corporate Governance in Nigerian Banks | Akinyomi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Relevance of Corporate Governance in Nigerian Banks. ... PROMOTING ACCESS TO AFRICAN RESEARCH ... Although corporate governance is of general interests to the Nigerian public, that of the banking industry is of particular interest ...

Net Income, Book Value and Cash Flows: The Value Relevance in Jordanian Economic Sectors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

DHIAA SHAMKI

2013-07-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the value relevance of financial statements variables namely net income, book value and cash flows simultaneously relative to Jordanian services and industrial firms for the period from 2000 to 2009. The main findings of this paper are three- dimensional. First, net income is value relevant, while book value and cash flows are irrelevant. Second, net income is more value relevant than book value and cash flows in both sectors. Third, this value relevance is greater in services sector than in industrial sector. The study shows that net income assist more in explaining market values in Jordanian services and industrial firms. Since research on the value relevance of these variables has neglected Jordan (and the Middle Eastern region, the study tries to fill this practical gap. The study is the first in Jordan that examines the value relevance of net income, book value and cash flows simultaneously and compares this value relevance according to Amman Stock Exchange sectors in one study in Jordan.

27 August 2013 - Signature of an Agreement between KTO Karatay University in Turkey represented by the Dean of Engineering Professor Ali Okatan, CERN represented by Director for Research and Computing Dr Sergio Bertolucci and ALICE Collaboration represented by ALICE Collaboration Spokesperson Dr Paolo Giubellino.

CERN Multimedia

Maximilien Brice

2013-01-01

27 August 2013 - Signature of an Agreement between KTO Karatay University in Turkey represented by the Dean of Engineering Professor Ali Okatan, CERN represented by Director for Research and Computing Dr Sergio Bertolucci and ALICE Collaboration represented by ALICE Collaboration Spokesperson Dr Paolo Giubellino.

Seeking Relevance: American Political Science and America

Science.gov (United States)

Maranto, Robert; Woessner, Matthew C.

2012-01-01

In this article, the authors talk about the relevance of American political science and America. Political science has enormous strengths in its highly talented practitioners and sophisticated methods. However, its disconnection from its host society, while not so severe as for fields like English and sociology, nonetheless poses an existential…

Bible Translation And Relevance Theory | Deist | Stellenbosch ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Stellenbosch Papers in Linguistics Plus. Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives · Journal Home > Vol 22 (1992) >. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads. Username, Password, Remember me, or Register. Bible Translation And Relevance Theory. F Deist ...

The appropriateness of using various Minkowskian metrics for representing cognitive configurations

OpenAIRE

G D Richardson

1981-01-01

Cognitive mapping has been a rapidly growing area of research concerned with how cognitive information about environments is represented, interpreted, and used. One area of research has been concerned with what geometry best represents cognitive spatial information. This paper further pursues this topic by examining which of three Minkowskian metrics (city-block, Euclidean, dominance) is most appropriate for representing cognitive configurations.

Representing climate change futures: a critique on the use of images for visual communication

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nicholson-Cole, Sophie A. [School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, (United Kingdom)

2005-05-15

How people perceive their role and the responsibilities of others in determining the outcomes of climate change is of great importance for policy-making, adaptation and climate change mitigation. However, for many people, climate change is a remote problem and not one of personal concern. Meaningful visualisations depicting climate change futures could help to bridge the gap between what may seem an abstract concept and everyday experience, making clearer its local and individual relevance. Computer aided visualisation has great potential as a means to interest and engage different groups in society. However, the way in which information is represented affects an individual's interpretation and uptake, and how they see their present choices affecting their future and that of others. The empirical content of this paper summarises the results of an exploratory qualitative study, consisting of 30 semi-structured interviews investigating people's visual conceptions and feelings about climate change. The emphasis of the inquiry is focussed on eliciting people's spontaneous visualisations of climate change and their feelings of involvement with the issue. The insights gained from the described empirical work set the scene for further research, which will employ the use of a range of images and visualisations for evaluation. (Author)

EXTRACTING SPATIOTEMPORAL OBJECTS FROM RASTER DATA TO REPRESENT PHYSICAL FEATURES AND ANALYZE RELATED PROCESSES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. A. Zollweg

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Numerous ground-based, airborne, and orbiting platforms provide remotely-sensed data of remarkable spatial resolution at short time intervals. However, this spatiotemporal data is most valuable if it can be processed into information, thereby creating meaning. We live in a world of objects: cars, buildings, farms, etc. On a stormy day, we don’t see millions of cubes of atmosphere; we see a thunderstorm ‘object’. Temporally, we don’t see the properties of those individual cubes changing, we see the thunderstorm as a whole evolving and moving. There is a need to represent the bulky, raw spatiotemporal data from remote sensors as a small number of relevant spatiotemporal objects, thereby matching the human brain’s perception of the world. This presentation reveals an efficient algorithm and system to extract the objects/features from raster-formatted remotely-sensed data. The system makes use of the Python object-oriented programming language, SciPy/NumPy for matrix manipulation and scientific computation, and export/import to the GeoJSON standard geographic object data format. The example presented will show how thunderstorms can be identified and characterized in a spatiotemporal continuum using a Python program to process raster data from NOAA’s High-Resolution Rapid Refresh v2 (HRRRv2 data stream.

Extracting Spatiotemporal Objects from Raster Data to Represent Physical Features and Analyze Related Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Zollweg, J. A.

2017-10-01

Numerous ground-based, airborne, and orbiting platforms provide remotely-sensed data of remarkable spatial resolution at short time intervals. However, this spatiotemporal data is most valuable if it can be processed into information, thereby creating meaning. We live in a world of objects: cars, buildings, farms, etc. On a stormy day, we don't see millions of cubes of atmosphere; we see a thunderstorm `object'. Temporally, we don't see the properties of those individual cubes changing, we see the thunderstorm as a whole evolving and moving. There is a need to represent the bulky, raw spatiotemporal data from remote sensors as a small number of relevant spatiotemporal objects, thereby matching the human brain's perception of the world. This presentation reveals an efficient algorithm and system to extract the objects/features from raster-formatted remotely-sensed data. The system makes use of the Python object-oriented programming language, SciPy/NumPy for matrix manipulation and scientific computation, and export/import to the GeoJSON standard geographic object data format. The example presented will show how thunderstorms can be identified and characterized in a spatiotemporal continuum using a Python program to process raster data from NOAA's High-Resolution Rapid Refresh v2 (HRRRv2) data stream.

Benchmark of coupling codes (ALOHA, TOPLHA and GRILL3D) with ITER-relevant Lower Hybrid antenna

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Milanesio, D.; Hillairet, J.; Panaccione, L.; Maggiora, R.; Artaud, J.F.; Bae, Y.S.; Barbera, A.M.A.; Belo, J.; Berger-By, G.; Bernard, J.M.; Cara, Ph.; Cardinali, A.; Castaldo, C.; Ceccuzzi, S.; Cesario, R.; Decker, J.; Delpech, L.; Ekedahl, A.; Garcia, J.; Garibaldi, P.

2011-01-01

In order to assist the design of the future ITER Lower Hybrid launcher, coupling codes ALOHA, from CEA/IRFM, TOPLHA, from Politecnico di Torino, and GRILL3D, developed by Dr. Mikhail Irzak (A.F. Ioffe Physico-Technical Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia) and operated by ENEA Frascati, have been compared with the updated (six modules with four active waveguides per module) Passive-Active Multi-junction (PAM) Lower Hybrid antennas. Both ALOHA and GRILL3D formulate the problem in terms of rectangular waveguides modes, while TOPLHA is based on boundary-value problem with the adoption of a triangular cell-mesh to represent the relevant waveguides surfaces. Several plasma profiles, with varying edge density and density increase, have been adopted to provide a complete description of the simulated launcher in terms of reflection coefficient, computed at the beginning of each LH module, and of power spectra. Good agreement can be observed among codes for all the simulated profiles.

The neural correlates of implicit self-relevant processing in low self-esteem: an ERP study.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Juan; Guan, Lili; Dedovic, Katarina; Qi, Mingming; Zhang, Qinglin

2012-08-30

Previous neuroimaging studies have shown that implicit and explicit processing of self-relevant (schematic) material elicit activity in many of the same brain regions. Electrophysiological studies on the neural processing of explicit self-relevant cues have generally supported the view that P300 is an index of attention to self-relevant stimuli; however, there has been no study to date investigating the temporal course of implicit self-relevant processing. The current study seeks to investigate the time course involved in implicit self-processing by comparing processing of self-relevant with non-self-relevant words while subjects are making a judgment about color of the words in an implicit attention task. Sixteen low self-esteem participants were examined using event-related potentials technology (ERP). We hypothesized that this implicit attention task would involve P2 component rather than the P300 component. Indeed, P2 component has been associated with perceptual analysis and attentional allocation and may be more likely to occur in unconscious conditions such as this task. Results showed that latency of P2 component, which indexes the time required for perceptual analysis, was more prolonged in processing self-relevant words compared to processing non-self-relevant words. Our results suggested that the judgment of the color of the word interfered with automatic processing of self-relevant information and resulted in less efficient processing of self-relevant word. Together with previous ERP studies examining processing of explicit self-relevant cues, these findings suggest that the explicit and the implicit processing of self-relevant information would not elicit the same ERP components. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.