WorldWideScience

Sample records for research tool version

  1. Conversion tool for the LWR transient analysis code RELAP5 from the CDC version to the FACOM version

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shinozawa, Naohisa; Fujisaki, Masahide; Makino, Mitsuhiro; Kondou, Kazuya; Ishiguro, Misako

    1987-01-01

    The LWR transient analysis code RELAP5 has been developed on the CDC-CYBER 176 at Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL), the RELAP5 code has been often updated in order to extend the analyzing model and correct the errors. At Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute the code has been converted from the CDC version to the FACOM version and the converted code has been used. The conversion is the task which consumes a lot of time, because the code is large and there is the difference between CDC's machines and FACOM's ones. In order to convert the RELAP5 code automatically, the software tool has been developed. By using this tools the efficiency for converting the RELAP5 code has been improved. Productivity of the conversion is increased about 2.0 to 2.6 times by the tools in comparison with in manual. The procedure of conversion by using the tools and the option parameters of each tool are described. (author)

  2. Regularization Tools Version 3.0 for Matlab 5.2

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Per Christian

    1999-01-01

    This communication describes Version 3.0 of Regularization Tools, a Matlab package for analysis and solution of discrete ill-posed problems.......This communication describes Version 3.0 of Regularization Tools, a Matlab package for analysis and solution of discrete ill-posed problems....

  3. SMART II : the spot market agent research tool version 2.0.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    North, M. J. N.

    2000-12-14

    Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) has worked closely with Western Area Power Administration (Western) over many years to develop a variety of electric power marketing and transmission system models that are being used for ongoing system planning and operation as well as analytic studies. Western markets and delivers reliable, cost-based electric power from 56 power plants to millions of consumers in 15 states. The Spot Market Agent Research Tool Version 2.0 (SMART II) is an investigative system that partially implements some important components of several existing ANL linear programming models, including some used by Western. SMART II does not implement a complete model of the Western utility system but it does include several salient features of this network for exploratory purposes. SMART II uses a Swarm agent-based framework. SMART II agents model bulk electric power transaction dynamics with recognition for marginal costs as well as transmission and generation constraints. SMART II uses a sparse graph of nodes and links to model the electric power spot market. The nodes represent power generators and consumers with distinct marginal decision curves and varying investment capital as well individual learning parameters. The links represent transmission lines with individual capacities taken from a range of central distribution, outlying distribution and feeder line types. The application of SMART II to electric power systems studies has produced useful results different from those often found using more traditional techniques. Use of the advanced features offered by the Swarm modeling environment simplified the creation of the SMART II model.

  4. Psychometric Properties of the Iranian Version of the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amir H. Pakpour, PhD

    2014-04-01

    Conclusion: The results provide evidence for good reliability and validity of the Iranian version of the PEDT. The questionnaire therefore represents a suitable tool for screening PE in Iranian men. Pakpour AH, Yekaninejad MS, Nikoobakht MR, Burri A, and Fridlund B. Psychometric properties of the Iranian version of the Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool. Sex Med 2014;2:31–40.

  5. STATE ACID RAIN RESEARCH AND SCREENING SYSTEM - VERSION 1.0 USER'S MANUAL

    Science.gov (United States)

    The report is a user's manual that describes Version 1.0 of EPA's STate Acid Rain Research and Screening System (STARRSS), developed to assist utility regulatory commissions in reviewing utility acid rain compliance plans. It is a screening tool that is based on scenario analysis...

  6. NETS - A NEURAL NETWORK DEVELOPMENT TOOL, VERSION 3.0 (MACINTOSH VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phillips, T. A.

    1994-01-01

    NETS, A Tool for the Development and Evaluation of Neural Networks, provides a simulation of Neural Network algorithms plus an environment for developing such algorithms. Neural Networks are a class of systems modeled after the human brain. Artificial Neural Networks are formed from hundreds or thousands of simulated neurons, connected to each other in a manner similar to brain neurons. Problems which involve pattern matching readily fit the class of problems which NETS is designed to solve. NETS uses the back propagation learning method for all of the networks which it creates. The nodes of a network are usually grouped together into clumps called layers. Generally, a network will have an input layer through which the various environment stimuli are presented to the network, and an output layer for determining the network's response. The number of nodes in these two layers is usually tied to some features of the problem being solved. Other layers, which form intermediate stops between the input and output layers, are called hidden layers. NETS allows the user to customize the patterns of connections between layers of a network. NETS also provides features for saving the weight values of a network during the learning process, which allows for more precise control over the learning process. NETS is an interpreter. Its method of execution is the familiar "read-evaluate-print" loop found in interpreted languages such as BASIC and LISP. The user is presented with a prompt which is the simulator's way of asking for input. After a command is issued, NETS will attempt to evaluate the command, which may produce more prompts requesting specific information or an error if the command is not understood. The typical process involved when using NETS consists of translating the problem into a format which uses input/output pairs, designing a network configuration for the problem, and finally training the network with input/output pairs until an acceptable error is reached. NETS

  7. APT - NASA ENHANCED VERSION OF AUTOMATICALLY PROGRAMMED TOOL SOFTWARE - STAND-ALONE VERSION

    Science.gov (United States)

    Premo, D. A.

    1994-01-01

    The APT code is one of the most widely used software tools for complex numerically controlled (N/C) machining. APT is an acronym for Automatically Programmed Tools and is used to denote both a language and the computer software that processes that language. Development of the APT language and software system was begun over twenty years ago as a U. S. government sponsored industry and university research effort. APT is a "problem oriented" language that was developed for the explicit purpose of aiding the N/C machine tools. Machine-tool instructions and geometry definitions are written in the APT language to constitute a "part program." The APT part program is processed by the APT software to produce a cutter location (CL) file. This CL file may then be processed by user supplied post processors to convert the CL data into a form suitable for a particular N/C machine tool. This June, 1989 offering of the APT system represents an adaptation, with enhancements, of the public domain version of APT IV/SSX8 to the DEC VAX-11/780 for use by the Engineering Services Division of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. Enhancements include the super pocket feature which allows concave and convex polygon shapes of up to 40 points including shapes that overlap, that leave islands of material within the pocket, and that have one or more arcs as part of the pocket boundary. Recent modifications to APT include a rework of the POCKET subroutine and correction of an error that prevented the use within a macro of a macro variable cutter move statement combined with macro variable double check surfaces. Former modifications included the expansion of array and buffer sizes to accommodate larger part programs, and the insertion of a few user friendly error messages. The APT system software on the DEC VAX-11/780 is organized into two separate programs: the load complex and the APT processor. The load complex handles the table initiation phase and is usually only run when changes to the

  8. NETS - A NEURAL NETWORK DEVELOPMENT TOOL, VERSION 3.0 (MACHINE INDEPENDENT VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baffes, P. T.

    1994-01-01

    NETS, A Tool for the Development and Evaluation of Neural Networks, provides a simulation of Neural Network algorithms plus an environment for developing such algorithms. Neural Networks are a class of systems modeled after the human brain. Artificial Neural Networks are formed from hundreds or thousands of simulated neurons, connected to each other in a manner similar to brain neurons. Problems which involve pattern matching readily fit the class of problems which NETS is designed to solve. NETS uses the back propagation learning method for all of the networks which it creates. The nodes of a network are usually grouped together into clumps called layers. Generally, a network will have an input layer through which the various environment stimuli are presented to the network, and an output layer for determining the network's response. The number of nodes in these two layers is usually tied to some features of the problem being solved. Other layers, which form intermediate stops between the input and output layers, are called hidden layers. NETS allows the user to customize the patterns of connections between layers of a network. NETS also provides features for saving the weight values of a network during the learning process, which allows for more precise control over the learning process. NETS is an interpreter. Its method of execution is the familiar "read-evaluate-print" loop found in interpreted languages such as BASIC and LISP. The user is presented with a prompt which is the simulator's way of asking for input. After a command is issued, NETS will attempt to evaluate the command, which may produce more prompts requesting specific information or an error if the command is not understood. The typical process involved when using NETS consists of translating the problem into a format which uses input/output pairs, designing a network configuration for the problem, and finally training the network with input/output pairs until an acceptable error is reached. NETS

  9. DAMT - DISTRIBUTED APPLICATION MONITOR TOOL (HP9000 VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keith, B.

    1994-01-01

    Typical network monitors measure status of host computers and data traffic among hosts. A monitor to collect statistics about individual processes must be unobtrusive and possess the ability to locate and monitor processes, locate and monitor circuits between processes, and report traffic back to the user through a single application program interface (API). DAMT, Distributed Application Monitor Tool, is a distributed application program that will collect network statistics and make them available to the user. This distributed application has one component (i.e., process) on each host the user wishes to monitor as well as a set of components at a centralized location. DAMT provides the first known implementation of a network monitor at the application layer of abstraction. Potential users only need to know the process names of the distributed application they wish to monitor. The tool locates the processes and the circuit between them, and reports any traffic between them at a user-defined rate. The tool operates without the cooperation of the processes it monitors. Application processes require no changes to be monitored by this tool. Neither does DAMT require the UNIX kernel to be recompiled. The tool obtains process and circuit information by accessing the operating system's existing process database. This database contains all information available about currently executing processes. Expanding the information monitored by the tool can be done by utilizing more information from the process database. Traffic on a circuit between processes is monitored by a low-level LAN analyzer that has access to the raw network data. The tool also provides features such as dynamic event reporting and virtual path routing. A reusable object approach was used in the design of DAMT. The tool has four main components; the Virtual Path Switcher, the Central Monitor Complex, the Remote Monitor, and the LAN Analyzer. All of DAMT's components are independent, asynchronously executing

  10. Darcy Tools version 3.4. Verification, validation and demonstration

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban

    2010-12-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. A number of novel methods and features form the present version of DarcyTools. In the verification studies, these methods are evaluated by comparisons with analytical solutions for idealized situations. The five verification groups (see Table 3-1 below), thus reflect the scope of DarcyTools. The present report will focus on the Verification, Validation and Demonstration of DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods and Equations, /Svensson et al. 2010/ (Hereafter denoted Report 1). - User's Guide, /Svensson and Ferry 2010/ (Hereafter denoted Report 2)

  11. Darcy Tools version 3.4. Verification, validation and demonstration

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Lyckeby (Sweden))

    2010-12-15

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. A number of novel methods and features form the present version of DarcyTools. In the verification studies, these methods are evaluated by comparisons with analytical solutions for idealized situations. The five verification groups (see Table 3-1 below), thus reflect the scope of DarcyTools. The present report will focus on the Verification, Validation and Demonstration of DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods and Equations, /Svensson et al. 2010/ (Hereafter denoted Report 1). - User's Guide, /Svensson and Ferry 2010/ (Hereafter denoted Report 2)

  12. Elaboration of reduced versions of Measurement tools: A practical Perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nekane Balluerka

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the present study is to show, from a practical perspective, the guidelines that may be followed to create a reduced version of a measurement tool. Therefore, it describes in detail the process of creating the reduced Basque version of the CDS scale (Children's Depression Scale; Lang and Tisher, 1978, which measures depression in children and adolescents. In a first study, the items that make up the reduced version of the CDS (CDS-R are selected from a set of analysis conducted on a sample of 886 children and adolescents who were administered the extensive version of the CDS adapted to the Basque language (Balluerka, Gorostiaga, and Haranburu, 2012. Subsequently, the CDS-R is validated on a sample of 2,165 participants. This second study examines the factorial structure, the internal consistency and the temporal stability of the instrument, as well as the relationship between its dimensions and gender, academic performance, emotional intelligence and attachment. Thus, evidence is obtained on the reliability and validity of the reduced version of the instrument, which guarantees suitable evaluation of the construct the instrument is intended to measure.

  13. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. Verification and validation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. A number of novel methods and features form the present version of DarcyTools. In the verification studies, these methods are evaluated by comparisons with analytical solutions for idealized situations. The five verification groups, thus reflect the main areas of recent developments. The present report will focus on the Verification and Validation of DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods, Equations and Demo Simulations. - User's Guide. The objective of this report is to compile all verification and validation studies that have been carried out so far. After some brief introductory sections, all cases will be reported in Appendix A (verification cases) and Appendix B (validation cases)

  14. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. Verification and validation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban [Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Norrkoeping (Sweden)

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. A number of novel methods and features form the present version of DarcyTools. In the verification studies, these methods are evaluated by comparisons with analytical solutions for idealized situations. The five verification groups, thus reflect the main areas of recent developments. The present report will focus on the Verification and Validation of DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods, Equations and Demo Simulations. - User's Guide. The objective of this report is to compile all verification and validation studies that have been carried out so far. After some brief introductory sections, all cases will be reported in Appendix A (verification cases) and Appendix B (validation cases)

  15. Validity and Reliability of Persian Version of Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool among Aged People

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    hadi hojati

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Background & Aim: It is crucial to identify aged patients in risk of falls in clinical settings. Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool (JHFRAT is one of most applied international instrument to assess elderly patients for the risk of falls. The aim of this study was to evaluate reliability and internal consistency of the JHFRAT. Methods & Materials: In this cross-sectional study for validity assessment of the tool, WHO’s standard protocol was applied for translation-back translation of the tool. Face and content validity of the tool was confirmed by ten person of expert faculty members for its applicability in clinical setting. In this pilot study, the inclusion criteria were being 60 or more years old, hospitalized in the last 8 hours prior to assessment and in proper cognitive condition assessed by MMSE. Subjects of the study were (n=70 elderly patients who were newly hospitalized in Shahroud Emam Hossein Hospital. Data were analyzed using SPSS software- version 16. Internal consistency of the tool was calculated by Cronbach’s alpha. Results: According to the results of the study Persian version of JHFRAT was a valid tool for application on clinical setting. The Persian version of the tool had Cronbach’s alpha equal to 0/733. Conclusion: Based on the findings of the current study, it can be concluded that Persian version of the JHFRAT is a valid and reliable tool to be applied for assessment of elderly senior citizens on admission in any clinical settings.

  16. Cross-cultural adaptation, reliability, and validity of the Persian version of the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hadadi, Mohammad; Ebrahimi Takamjani, Ismail; Ebrahim Mosavi, Mohammad; Aminian, Gholamreza; Fardipour, Shima; Abbasi, Faeze

    2017-08-01

    The purpose of the present study was to translate and to cross-culturally adapt the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT) into Persian language and to evaluate its psychometric properties. The International Quality of Life Assessment process was pursued to translate CAIT into Persian. Two groups of Persian-speaking individuals, 105 participants with a history of ankle sprain and 30 participants with no history of ankle sprain, were asked to fill out Persian version of CAIT (CAIT-P), Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM), and Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Data obtained from the first administration of CAIT were used to evaluate floor and ceiling effects, internal consistency, dimensionality, and criterion validity. To determine the test-retest reliability, 45 individuals re-filled CAIT 5-7 days after the first session. Cronbach's alpha was over the cutoff point of 0.70 for both ankles and in both groups. The intra-class correlation coefficient was high for right (0.95) and left (0.91) ankles. There was a strong correlation between each item and the total score of the CAIT-P. Although the CAIT-P had strong correlation with VAS, its correlation with both subscales of FAAM was moderate. The CAIT-P has good validity and reliability and it can be used by clinicians and researchers for identification and investigation of functional ankle instability. Implications for Rehabilitation Chronic ankle instability is one of the most common consequences of acute ankle sprain. Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool is an acceptable measure to determine functional ankle instability and its severity. The Persian version of Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool is a valid and reliable tool for clinical and research purpose in Persian-speaking individuals.

  17. "Research Tools": Tools for supporting research and publications

    OpenAIRE

    Ebrahim, Nader Ale

    2014-01-01

    Research Tools” can be defined as vehicles that broadly facilitate research and related activities. “Research Tools” enable researchers to collect, organize, analyze, visualize and publicized research outputs. Dr. Nader has collected over 700 tools that enable students to follow the correct path in research and to ultimately produce high-quality research outputs with more accuracy and efficiency. It is assembled as an interactive Web-based mind map, titled “Research Tools”, which is updated ...

  18. A Turkish Version of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool: Reliability and Validity Assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aktaş, Yeşim Yaman; Karabulut, Neziha

    2017-08-01

    The study aim was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool in critically ill patients. A repeated measures design was used for the study. A convenience sample of 66 patients who had undergone open-heart surgery in the cardiovascular surgery intensive care unit in Ordu, Turkey, was recruited for the study. The patients were evaluated by using the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool at rest, during a nociceptive procedure (suctioning), and 20 minutes after the procedure while they were conscious and intubated after surgery. The Turkish version of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool has shown statistically acceptable levels of validity and reliability. Inter-rater reliability was supported by moderate-to-high-weighted κ coefficients (weighted κ coefficient = 0.55 to 1.00). For concurrent validity, significant associations were found between the scores on the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool and the Behavioral Pain Scale scores. Discriminant validity was also supported by higher scores during suctioning (a nociceptive procedure) versus non-nociceptive procedures. The internal consistency of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool was 0.72 during a nociceptive procedure and 0.71 during a non-nociceptive procedure. The validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool was determined to be acceptable for pain assessment in critical care, especially for patients who cannot communicate verbally. Copyright © 2016 American Society of PeriAnesthesia Nurses. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Cross-cultural adaptation of an environmental health measurement instrument: Brazilian version of the health-care waste management • rapid assessment tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cozendey-Silva, Eliana Napoleão; da Silva, Cintia Ribeiro; Larentis, Ariane Leites; Wasserman, Julio Cesar; Rozemberg, Brani; Teixeira, Liliane Reis

    2016-09-05

    Periodic assessment is one of the recommendations for improving health-care waste management worldwide. This study aimed at translating and adapting the Health-Care Waste Management - Rapid Assessment Tool (HCWM-RAT), proposed by the World Health Organization, to a Brazilian Portuguese version, and resolving its cultural and legal issues. The work focused on the evaluation of the concepts, items and semantic equivalence between the original tool and the Brazilian Portuguese version. A cross-cultural adaptation methodology was used, including: initial translation to Brazilian Portuguese; back translation to English; syntheses of these translation versions; formation of an expert committee to achieve consensus about the preliminary version; and evaluation of the target audience's comprehension. Both the translated and the original versions' concepts, items and semantic equivalence are presented. The constructs in the original instrument were considered relevant and applicable to the Brazilian context. The Brazilian version of the tool has the potential to generate indicators, develop official database, feedback and subsidize political decisions at many geographical and organizational levels strengthening the Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) mechanism. Moreover, the cross-cultural translation expands the usefulness of the instrument to Portuguese-speaking countries in developing regions. The translated and original versions presented concept, item and semantic equivalence and can be applied to Brazil.

  20. FEAT - FAILURE ENVIRONMENT ANALYSIS TOOL (UNIX VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pack, G.

    1994-01-01

    The Failure Environment Analysis Tool, FEAT, enables people to see and better understand the effects of failures in a system. FEAT uses digraph models to determine what will happen to a system if a set of failure events occurs and to identify the possible causes of a selected set of failures. Failures can be user-selected from either engineering schematic or digraph model graphics, and the effects or potential causes of the failures will be color highlighted on the same schematic or model graphic. As a design tool, FEAT helps design reviewers understand exactly what redundancies have been built into a system and where weaknesses need to be protected or designed out. A properly developed digraph will reflect how a system functionally degrades as failures accumulate. FEAT is also useful in operations, where it can help identify causes of failures after they occur. Finally, FEAT is valuable both in conceptual development and as a training aid, since digraphs can identify weaknesses in scenarios as well as hardware. Digraphs models for use with FEAT are generally built with the Digraph Editor, a Macintosh-based application which is distributed with FEAT. The Digraph Editor was developed specifically with the needs of FEAT users in mind and offers several time-saving features. It includes an icon toolbox of components required in a digraph model and a menu of functions for manipulating these components. It also offers FEAT users a convenient way to attach a formatted textual description to each digraph node. FEAT needs these node descriptions in order to recognize nodes and propagate failures within the digraph. FEAT users store their node descriptions in modelling tables using any word processing or spreadsheet package capable of saving data to an ASCII text file. From within the Digraph Editor they can then interactively attach a properly formatted textual description to each node in a digraph. Once descriptions are attached to them, a selected set of nodes can be

  1. [The Confusion Assessment Method: Transcultural adaptation of a French version].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Antoine, V; Belmin, J; Blain, H; Bonin-Guillaume, S; Goldsmith, L; Guerin, O; Kergoat, M-J; Landais, P; Mahmoudi, R; Morais, J A; Rataboul, P; Saber, A; Sirvain, S; Wolfklein, G; de Wazieres, B

    2018-04-03

    The Confusion Assessment Method (CAM) is a validated key tool in clinical practice and research programs to diagnose delirium and assess its severity. There is no validated French version of the CAM training manual and coding guide (Inouye SK). The aim of this study was to establish a consensual French version of the CAM and its manual. Cross-cultural adaptation to achieve equivalence between the original version and a French adapted version of the CAM manual. A rigorous process was conducted including control of cultural adequacy of the tool's components, double forward and back translations, reconciliation, expert committee review (including bilingual translators with different nationalities, a linguist, highly qualified clinicians, methodologists) and pretesting. A consensual French version of the CAM was achieved. Implementation of the CAM French version in daily clinical practice will enable optimal diagnosis of delirium diagnosis and enhance communication between health professionals in French speaking countries. Validity and psychometric properties are being tested in a French multicenter cohort, opening up new perspectives for improved quality of care and research programs in French speaking countries. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  2. A new version of the ERICA tool to facilitate impact assessments of radioactivity on wild plants and animals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brown, J.E.; Alfonso, B.; Avila, R.; Beresford, N.A.; Copplestone, D.; Hosseini, A.

    2016-01-01

    A new version of the ERICA Tool (version 1.2) was released in November 2014; this constitutes the first major update of the Tool since release in 2007. The key features of the update are presented in this article. Of particular note are new transfer databases extracted from an international compilation of concentration ratios (CR_w_o_-_m_e_d_i_a) and the modification of ‘extrapolation’ approaches used to select transfer data in cases where information is not available. Bayesian updating approaches have been used in some cases to draw on relevant information that would otherwise have been excluded in the process of deriving CR_w_o_-_m_e_d_i_a statistics. All of these efforts have in turn led to the requirement to update Environmental Media Concentration Limits (EMCLs) used in Tier 1 assessments. Some of the significant changes with regard to EMCLs are highlighted. - Highlights: • The ERICA Tool for performing environmental risk assessment has been updated. • The new version is underpinned by an internationally supported transfer database. • The Tool provides coverage for many organism groups and radioisotopes. • New calculations were required to derive environmental media concentration limits. • Modified approaches to deriving missing transfer parameters are elaborated.

  3. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS ISSUES FOR RESEARCH TOOLS IN BIOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rekha Chaturvedi

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The research tools refer to the resources researchers need to use in experimental work. In Biotechnology, these can include cell lines, monoclonal antibodies, reagents, animal models, growth factors, combinatorial chemistry libraries, drug and drug targets, clones and cloning tools (such as PCR, method, laboratory equipment and machines, database and computer software. Research tools therefore serve as basis for upstream research to improve the present product or process. There are several challenges in the way of using patented research tools. IP issues with regard to research tools are important and may sometime pose hindrance for researchers. Hence in the case of patented research tools, IPR issues can compose a major hurdle for technology development. In majority instances research tools are permitted through MTAs for academic research and for imparting education. TRIPS provides a provision for exception to patent rights for experimental use of patented technology in scientific research and several countries including India have included this provision in their patent legislation. For commercially important work, licensing of research tools can be based on royalty or one time lump sum payment. Some patent owners of important high-end research tools for development of platform technology create problems in licensing which can impede research. Usually cost of a commercially available research tool is built up in its price.

  4. Cross-cultural adaptation of an environmental health measurement instrument: Brazilian version of the health-care waste management • rapid assessment tool

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eliana Napoleão Cozendey-Silva

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Periodic assessment is one of the recommendations for improving health-care waste management worldwide. This study aimed at translating and adapting the Health-Care Waste Management - Rapid Assessment Tool (HCWM-RAT, proposed by the World Health Organization, to a Brazilian Portuguese version, and resolving its cultural and legal issues. The work focused on the evaluation of the concepts, items and semantic equivalence between the original tool and the Brazilian Portuguese version. Methods A cross-cultural adaptation methodology was used, including: initial translation to Brazilian Portuguese; back translation to English; syntheses of these translation versions; formation of an expert committee to achieve consensus about the preliminary version; and evaluation of the target audience’s comprehension. Results Both the translated and the original versions’ concepts, items and semantic equivalence are presented. The constructs in the original instrument were considered relevant and applicable to the Brazilian context. The Brazilian version of the tool has the potential to generate indicators, develop official database, feedback and subsidize political decisions at many geographical and organizational levels strengthening the Monitoring and evaluation (M&E mechanism. Moreover, the cross-cultural translation expands the usefulness of the instrument to Portuguese-speaking countries in developing regions. Conclusion The translated and original versions presented concept, item and semantic equivalence and can be applied to Brazil

  5. Psychometric validation of the Chinese version of the Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool for older Chinese inpatients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Junhong; Wang, Min; Liu, Yu

    2016-10-01

    To culturally adapt and evaluate the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of the Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool among older inpatients in the mainland of China. Patient falls are an important safety consideration within hospitals among older inpatients. Nurses need specific risk assessment tools for older inpatients to reliably identify at-risk populations and guide interventions that highlight fixable risk factors for falls and consequent injuries. In China, a few tools have been developed to measure fall risk. However, they lack the solid psychometric development necessary to establish their validity and reliability, and they are not widely used for elderly inpatients. A cross-sectional study. A convenient sampling was used to recruit 201 older inpatients from two tertiary-level hospitals in Beijing and Xiamen, China. The Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool was translated using forward and backward translation procedures and was administered to these 201 older inpatients. Reliability of the tool was calculated by inter-rater reliability and Cronbach's alpha. Validity was analysed through content validity index and construct validity. The Inter-rater reliability of Chinese version of Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool was 97·14% agreement with Cohen's Kappa of 0·903. Cronbach's α was 0·703. Content of Validity Index was 0·833. Two factors represented intrinsic and extrinsic risk factors were explored that together explained 58·89% of the variance. This study provided evidence that Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool is an acceptable, valid and reliable tool to identify older inpatients at risk of falls and falls with injury. Further psychometric testing on criterion validity and evaluation of its advanced utility in geriatric clinical settings are warranted. The Chinese version of Johns Hopkins Fall Risk Assessment Tool may be useful for health care personnel to identify older Chinese inpatients at risk of falls and falls

  6. Validation of the Greek Version of the Fibromyalgia Rapid Screening Tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zis, Panagiotis; Brozou, Vassiliki; Stavropoulou, Evmorfia; Argyra, Erifilli; Siafaka, Ioanna; Kararizou, Evangelia; Bouhassira, Didier; Perrot, Serge; Zis, Vassileios; Vadalouca, Athina

    2017-09-01

    The Fibromyalgia Rapid Screening Tool (FiRST) is a brief, simple, and straightforward self-administered questionnaire that was developed by Perrot et al. for the detection of fibromyalgia syndrome in patients with diffuse chronic pain. The aim of our study was to develop and validate the Greek version of FiRST. The study was set up as a prospective observational study. The original French version of FiRST was adapted into Greek using forward and backward translation. Patients with chronic diffuse pain with a clinical diagnosis of fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis based on the criteria of the American College of Rheumatology were invited to participate to the study. Of the 101 patients who met our inclusion criteria, 42 were diagnosed with fibromyalgia and 59 with osteoarthritis. The 2 groups did not differ significantly regarding gender and pain characteristics (duration, intensity). Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.79. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed an area under the curve of 89% (95% confidence interval = 83 to 95%; SE: 0.032, P fibromyalgia in daily practice. © 2016 World Institute of Pain.

  7. Version 2 of the Protuberance Correlations for the Shuttle-Orbiter Boundary Layer Transition Tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    King, Rudolph A.; Kegerise, Michael A.; Berry, Scott A.

    2009-01-01

    Orbiter-specific transition data, acquired in four ground-based facilities (LaRC 20-Inch Mach 6 Air Tunnel, LaRC 31-Inch Mach 10 Air Tunnel, LaRC 20-Inch Mach 6 CF4 Tunnel, and CUBRC LENS-I Shock Tunnel) with three wind tunnel model scales (0.75, 0.90, and 1.8%) and from Orbiter historical flight data, have been analyzed to improve a pre-existing engineering tool for reentry transition prediction on the windward side of the Orbiter. Boundary layer transition (BLT) engineering correlations for transition induced by isolated protuberances are presented using a laminar Navier-Stokes (N-S) database to provide the relevant boundary-layer properties. It is demonstrated that the earlier version of the BLT correlation that had been developed using parameters derived from an engineering boundary-layer code has improved data collapse when developed with the N-S database. Of the new correlations examined, the proposed correlation 5, based on boundary-layer edge and wall properties, was found to provide the best overall correlation metrics when the entire database is employed. The second independent correlation (proposed correlation 7) selected is based on properties within the boundary layer at the protuberance height. The Aeroheating Panel selected a process to derive the recommended coefficients for Version 2 of the BLT Tool. The assumptions and limitations of the recommended protuberance BLT Tool V.2 are presented.

  8. Data Integration Tool: From Permafrost Data Translation Research Tool to A Robust Research Application

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilcox, H.; Schaefer, K. M.; Jafarov, E. E.; Strawhacker, C.; Pulsifer, P. L.; Thurmes, N.

    2016-12-01

    The United States National Science Foundation funded PermaData project led by the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) with a team from the Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost (GTN-P) aimed to improve permafrost data access and discovery. We developed a Data Integration Tool (DIT) to significantly speed up the time of manual processing needed to translate inconsistent, scattered historical permafrost data into files ready to ingest directly into the GTN-P. We leverage this data to support science research and policy decisions. DIT is a workflow manager that divides data preparation and analysis into a series of steps or operations called widgets. Each widget does a specific operation, such as read, multiply by a constant, sort, plot, and write data. DIT allows the user to select and order the widgets as desired to meet their specific needs. Originally it was written to capture a scientist's personal, iterative, data manipulation and quality control process of visually and programmatically iterating through inconsistent input data, examining it to find problems, adding operations to address the problems, and rerunning until the data could be translated into the GTN-P standard format. Iterative development of this tool led to a Fortran/Python hybrid then, with consideration of users, licensing, version control, packaging, and workflow, to a publically available, robust, usable application. Transitioning to Python allowed the use of open source frameworks for the workflow core and integration with a javascript graphical workflow interface. DIT is targeted to automatically handle 90% of the data processing for field scientists, modelers, and non-discipline scientists. It is available as an open source tool in GitHub packaged for a subset of Mac, Windows, and UNIX systems as a desktop application with a graphical workflow manager. DIT was used to completely translate one dataset (133 sites) that was successfully added to GTN-P, nearly translate three datasets

  9. VISIT-TS: A multimedia tool for population studies on tic disorders [version 2; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Jonathan Vachon

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Population-based assessment of Tourette syndrome (TS and other tic disorders produces a paradox. On one hand, ideally diagnosis of tic disorders requires expert observation. In fact, diagnostic criteria for TS explicitly require expert assessment of tics for a definite diagnosis. On the other hand, large-scale population surveys with expert assessment of every subject are impracticable. True, several published studies have successfully used expert assessment to find tic prevalence in a representative population (e.g. all students in a school district. However, extending these studies to larger populations is daunting. We created a multimedia tool to demonstrate tics to a lay audience, discuss their defining and common attributes, and address features that differentiate tics from other movements and vocalizations. A first version was modified to improve clarity and to include a more diverse group in terms of age and ethnicity. The result is a tool intended for epidemiological research. It may also provide additional benefits, such as more representative minority recruitment for other TS studies and increased community awareness of TS.

  10. CORE SIM: A multi-purpose neutronic tool for research and education

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Demaziere, Christophe

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → A highly flexible neutronic core simulator was developed. → The tool estimates the static neutron flux, the eigenmodes, and the neutron noise. → The tool was successfully validated via many benchmark cases. → The tool can be used for research and education. → The tool is freely available. - Abstract: This paper deals with the development, validation, and demonstration of an innovative neutronic tool. The novelty of the tool resides in its versatility, since many different systems can be investigated and different kinds of calculations can be performed. More precisely, both critical systems and subcritical systems with an external neutron source can be studied, and static and dynamic cases in the frequency domain (i.e. for stationary fluctuations) can be considered. In addition, the tool has the ability to determine the different eigenfunctions of any nuclear core. For each situation, the static neutron flux, the different eigenmodes and eigenvalues, the first-order neutron noise, and their adjoint functions are estimated, as well as the effective multiplication factor of the system. The main advantages of the tool, which is entirely MatLab based, lie with the robustness of the implemented numerical algorithms, its high portability between different computer platforms and operative systems, and finally its ease of use since no input deck writing is required. The present version of the tool, which is based on two-group diffusion theory, is mostly suited to investigate thermal systems. The definition of both the static and dynamic core configurations directly from the static macroscopic cross-sections and their fluctuations, respectively, makes the tool particularly well suited for research and education. Some of the many benchmark cases used to validate the tool are briefly reported. The static and dynamic capabilities of the tool are also demonstrated for the following configurations: a vibrating control rod, a perturbation traveling upwards

  11. Validation of Version 3.0 of the Breast Cancer Genetics Referral Screening Tool (B-RST™).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bellcross, Cecelia; Hermstad, April; Tallo, Christine; Stanislaw, Christine

    2018-05-08

    Despite increased awareness of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer among clinicians and the public, many BRCA1/2 mutation carriers remain unaware of their risk status. The Breast Cancer Genetics Referral Screening Tool (B-RST™) was created and validated to easily identify individuals at increased risk for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer for referral to cancer genetics services. The purpose of this study was to revise B-RST™ to maximize sensitivity against BRCA1/2 mutation status. We analyzed pedigrees of 277 individuals who had undergone BRCA1/2 testing to determine modifications to the B-RST™ 2.0 algorithm that would maximize sensitivity for mutations, while maintaining simplicity. We used McNemar's chi-square test to compare validation measures between the revised version (3.0) and the 2.0 version. Algorithmic changes made to B-RST™ 2.0 increased the sensitivity against BRCA1/2 mutation analysis from 71.1 to 94.0% (P 3.0 demonstrates high sensitivity for BRCA1/2 mutations, yet remains a simple and quick screening tool for at-risk individuals.

  12. Measuring attitudes towards interprofessional learning. Testing two German versions of the tool "Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale" on interprofessional students of health and nursing sciences and of human medicine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luderer, Christiane

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Objective: In order to verify the methodological quality of two versions of a tool for measuring attitudes towards interprofessional learning, we adapted – in terms of translation and scale form – the Heidelberg Version of - RIPLS , a methodologically controversial tool that had been translated into German, and compared both the original and new versions.Method: Three items were reworded and the scale form altered (from five to four levels, leading to the Halle Version that was validated by means of a cognitive pretest (=6. Both questionnaires were completed by students taking the interprofessional degree program in Health and Nursing Sciences (HNS and by students of Human Medicine. The test quality of both tools was examined by analyzing the main components and reliability using the scales allocation of the items as according to Parsell and Bligh .Results: The questionnaires were randomly assembled and distributed to 331 students. The response was =320 (HNS =109; Medicine =211. The Halle Version “RIPLS-HAL” of the questionnaire was completed by =166 and the Heidelberg Version “RIPLS-HDB” by =154. In the main component analysis the data could not depict the scale patterns of the original Australian tool. The reliability values of both the Heidelberg and Halle versions were only satisfactory for the “Teamwork and Collaboration” and “Professional Identity” scales.Conclusions: The German version of the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale has only limited suitability for recording the attitude towards interprofessional learning. The present versions can be regarded as an approach towards developing a more suitable tool.

  13. German translation of the Alberta context tool and two measures of research use: methods, challenges and lessons learned

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Understanding the relationship between organizational context and research utilization is key to reducing the research-practice gap in health care. This is particularly true in the residential long term care (LTC) setting where relatively little work has examined the influence of context on research implementation. Reliable, valid measures and tools are a prerequisite for studying organizational context and research utilization. Few such tools exist in German. We thus translated three such tools (the Alberta Context Tool and two measures of research use) into German for use in German residential LTC. We point out challenges and strategies for their solution unique to German residential LTC, and demonstrate how resolving specific challenges in the translation of the health care aide instrument version streamlined the translation process of versions for registered nurses, allied health providers, practice specialists, and managers. Methods Our translation methods were based on best practices and included two independent forward translations, reconciliation of the forward translations, expert panel discussions, two independent back translations, reconciliation of the back translations, back translation review, and cognitive debriefing. Results We categorized the challenges in this translation process into seven categories: (1) differing professional education of Canadian and German care providers, (2) risk that German translations would become grammatically complex, (3) wordings at risk of being misunderstood, (4) phrases/idioms non-existent in German, (5) lack of corresponding German words, (6) limited comprehensibility of corresponding German words, and (7) target persons’ unfamiliarity with activities detailed in survey items. Examples of each challenge are described with strategies that we used to manage the challenge. Conclusion Translating an existing instrument is complex and time-consuming, but a rigorous approach is necessary to obtain instrument

  14. Assessing Households Preparedness for Earthquakes: An Exploratory Study in the Development of a Valid and Reliable Persian-version Tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ardalan, Ali; Sohrabizadeh, Sanaz

    2016-02-25

    Iran is placed among countries suffering from the highest number of earthquake casualties. Household preparedness, as one component of risk reduction efforts, is often supported in quake-prone areas. In Iran, lack of a valid and reliable household preparedness tool was reported by previous disaster studies. This study is aimed to fill this gap by developing a valid and reliable tool for assessing household preparedness in the event of an earthquake.  This survey was conducted through three phases including literature review and focus group discussions with the participation of eight key informants, validity measurements and reliability measurements. Field investigation was completed with the participation of 450 households within three provinces of Iran. Content validity, construct validity, the use of factor analysis; internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, and test-retest reliability were carried out to develop the tool.  Based on the CVIs, ranging from 0.80 to 0.100, and exploratory factor analysis with factor loading of more than 0.5, all items were valid. The amount of Cronbach's alpha (0.7) and test-retest examination by Spearman correlations indicated that the scale was also reliable. The final instrument consisted of six categories and 18 questions including actions at the time of earthquakes, nonstructural safety, structural safety, hazard map, communications, drill, and safety skills.  Using a Persian-version tool that is adjusted to the socio-cultural determinants and native language may result in more trustful information on earthquake preparedness. It is suggested that disaster managers and researchers apply this tool in their future household preparedness projects. Further research is needed to make effective policies and plans for transforming preparedness knowledge into behavior.

  15. Research tools | IDRC - International Development Research Centre

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

    Through training materials and guides, we aim to build skills and knowledge to enhance the quality of development research. We also offer free access to our database of funded research projects, known as IDRIS+, and our digital library. Our research tools include. Guide to research databases at IDRC: How to access and ...

  16. Bringing your tools to CyVerse Discovery Environment using Docker [version 2; referees: 3 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Upendra Kumar Devisetty

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Docker has become a very popular container-based virtualization platform for software distribution that has revolutionized the way in which scientific software and software dependencies (software stacks can be packaged, distributed, and deployed. Docker makes the complex and time-consuming installation procedures needed for scientific software a one-time process. Because it enables platform-independent installation, versioning of software environments, and easy redeployment and reproducibility, Docker is an ideal candidate for the deployment of identical software stacks on different compute environments such as XSEDE and Amazon AWS. Cyverse's Discovery Environment also uses Docker for integrating its powerful, community-recommended software tools into CyVerse's production environment for public use. This paper will help users bring their tools into CyVerse DE which will not only allows users to integrate their tools with relative ease compared to the earlier method of tool deployment in DE but also help users to share their apps with collaborators and also release them for public use.

  17. Bringing your tools to CyVerse Discovery Environment using Docker [version 3; referees: 3 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Upendra Kumar Devisetty

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Docker has become a very popular container-based virtualization platform for software distribution that has revolutionized the way in which scientific software and software dependencies (software stacks can be packaged, distributed, and deployed. Docker makes the complex and time-consuming installation procedures needed for scientific software a one-time process. Because it enables platform-independent installation, versioning of software environments, and easy redeployment and reproducibility, Docker is an ideal candidate for the deployment of identical software stacks on different compute environments such as XSEDE and Amazon AWS. Cyverse's Discovery Environment also uses Docker for integrating its powerful, community-recommended software tools into CyVerse's production environment for public use. This paper will help users bring their tools into CyVerse DE which will not only allows users to integrate their tools with relative ease compared to the earlier method of tool deployment in DE but also help users to share their apps with collaborators and also release them for public use.

  18. Pain Assessment in Critically İll Adult Patients: Validity and Reliability Research of the Turkish Version of the Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Onur Gündoğan

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Objective: Critical-Care Pain Observation Tool (CPOT and the Behavioral Pain Scale (BPS are behavioral pain assessment scales for unconscious intensive care unit (ICU patients. The aim is to determine the validation and reliability of the CPOT in Turkish in mechanically ventilated adult ICU patients. Material and Method: This prospective observational cohort study included 50 mechanically ventilated mixed ICU patients who were unable to report pain. CPOT and BPS was translated into Turkish and language validity was performed by ten intensive care specialists. Pain was assessed in the course of painless and painful routine care procedures using the CPOT and the BPS by a resident and an intensivist concomitantly. Tests reliability, interrater reliability, and validity of the CPOT and the BPS were evaluated. Results: The mean age was 57.4 years and the mean APACHE II score was 18.7. A total of 100 assessments were recorded from 50 patients using CPOT and BPS. Scores of CPOT and BPS during the painful procedures were both significantly higher than painless procedures. The agreement between CPOT and BPS during painful and painless stimuli was ranged as; sensitivity 66.7%-90.3%; specificity 89.7%-97.9%; kappa value 0.712-0.892. The agreement between resident and intensivist during painful and painless stimuli was ranged from 97% to 100% and the kappa value was between 0.904 and 1.0. Conclusion: The Turkish version of the CPOT showed good correlation with the BPS. Interrater reliability between resident and intensivist was good. The study showed that the Turkish version of BPS and CPOT are reliable and valid tools to assess pain in daily clinical practice for intubated and unconscious ICU patients who are mechanically ventilated.

  19. A new version of the ERICA tool to facilitate impact assessments of radioactivity on wild plants and animals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, J E; Alfonso, B; Avila, R; Beresford, N A; Copplestone, D; Hosseini, A

    2016-03-01

    A new version of the ERICA Tool (version 1.2) was released in November 2014; this constitutes the first major update of the Tool since release in 2007. The key features of the update are presented in this article. Of particular note are new transfer databases extracted from an international compilation of concentration ratios (CRwo-media) and the modification of 'extrapolation' approaches used to select transfer data in cases where information is not available. Bayesian updating approaches have been used in some cases to draw on relevant information that would otherwise have been excluded in the process of deriving CRwo-media statistics. All of these efforts have in turn led to the requirement to update Environmental Media Concentration Limits (EMCLs) used in Tier 1 assessments. Some of the significant changes with regard to EMCLs are highlighted. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  20. User's Manual for BEST-Dairy: Benchmarking and Energy/water-Saving Tool (BEST) for the Dairy Processing Industry (Version 1.2)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu, T.; Ke, J.; Sathaye, J.

    2011-04-20

    This User's Manual summarizes the background information of the Benchmarking and Energy/water-Saving Tool (BEST) for the Dairy Processing Industry (Version 1.2, 2011), including'Read Me' portion of the tool, the sections of Introduction, and Instructions for the BEST-Dairy tool that is developed and distributed by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).

  1. Validity of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test: Youth Version-Research Edition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peters, Christine; Kranzler, John H.; Rossen, Eric

    2009-01-01

    This study examines the criterion-related validity evidence of scores on the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test: Youth Version-Research Version. The authors also investigate the relationship between scores on the MSCEIT-YV and chronological age. Results provide initial support for the construct validity of the MSCEIT-YV but also…

  2. A web-based tool to engage stakeholders in informing research planning for future decisions on emerging materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Powers, Christina M.; Grieger, Khara D.; Hendren, Christine Ogilvie; Meacham, Connie A.; Gurevich, Gerald; Lassiter, Meredith Gooding; Money, Eric S.; Lloyd, Jennifer M.; Beaulieu, Stephen M.

    2014-01-01

    Prioritizing and assessing risks associated with chemicals, industrial materials, or emerging technologies is a complex problem that benefits from the involvement of multiple stakeholder groups. For example, in the case of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), scientific uncertainties exist that hamper environmental, health, and safety (EHS) assessments. Therefore, alternative approaches to standard EHS assessment methods have gained increased attention. The objective of this paper is to describe the application of a web-based, interactive decision support tool developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) in a pilot study on ENMs. The piloted tool implements U.S. EPA's comprehensive environmental assessment (CEA) approach to prioritize research gaps. When pursued, such research priorities can result in data that subsequently improve the scientific robustness of risk assessments and inform future risk management decisions. Pilot results suggest that the tool was useful in facilitating multi-stakeholder prioritization of research gaps. Results also provide potential improvements for subsequent applications. The outcomes of future CEAWeb applications with larger stakeholder groups may inform the development of funding opportunities for emerging materials across the scientific community (e.g., National Science Foundation Science to Achieve Results [STAR] grants, National Institutes of Health Requests for Proposals). - Highlights: • A web-based, interactive decision support tool was piloted for emerging materials. • The tool (CEAWeb) was based on an established approach to prioritize research gaps. • CEAWeb facilitates multi-stakeholder prioritization of research gaps. • We provide recommendations for future versions and applications of CEAWeb

  3. Particle and heavy ion transport code system, PHITS, version 2.52

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Tatsuhiko; Matsuda, Norihiro; Hashimoto, Shintaro; Iwamoto, Yosuke; Noda, Shusaku; Ogawa, Tatsuhiko; Nakashima, Hiroshi; Fukahori, Tokio; Okumura, Keisuke; Kai, Tetsuya; Niita, Koji; Iwase, Hiroshi; Chiba, Satoshi; Furuta, Takuya; Sihver, Lembit

    2013-01-01

    An upgraded version of the Particle and Heavy Ion Transport code System, PHITS2.52, was developed and released to the public. The new version has been greatly improved from the previously released version, PHITS2.24, in terms of not only the code itself but also the contents of its package, such as the attached data libraries. In the new version, a higher accuracy of simulation was achieved by implementing several latest nuclear reaction models. The reliability of the simulation was improved by modifying both the algorithms for the electron-, positron-, and photon-transport simulations and the procedure for calculating the statistical uncertainties of the tally results. Estimation of the time evolution of radioactivity became feasible by incorporating the activation calculation program DCHAIN-SP into the new package. The efficiency of the simulation was also improved as a result of the implementation of shared-memory parallelization and the optimization of several time-consuming algorithms. Furthermore, a number of new user-support tools and functions that help users to intuitively and effectively perform PHITS simulations were developed and incorporated. Due to these improvements, PHITS is now a more powerful tool for particle transport simulation applicable to various research and development fields, such as nuclear technology, accelerator design, medical physics, and cosmic-ray research. (author)

  4. Linguistic Adaptation and Psychometric Properties of Tamil Version ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Background: Oral health has an impact on quality of life hence for research purpose validation of a Tamil version of General Oral Health Assessment Index would enable it to be used as a valuable tool among Tamil speaking population. Aim: In this study, we aimed to assess the psychometric properties of translated Tamil ...

  5. The premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT): linguistic validity of the Chinese version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Yan-Ping; Chen, Bin; Ping, Ping; Wang, Hong-Xiang; Hu, Kai; Zhang, Tao; Yang, Hao; Jin, Yan; Yang, Qi; Huang, Yi-Ran

    2014-09-01

    The premature ejaculation diagnostic tool (PEDT) was developed to standardize the diagnosis of PE and has been applied in many countries. However, a linguistic validation of the Chinese version of PEDT does not exist. This study aims to undertake the Chinese validation of the PEDT and to evaluate its association with self-estimated intravaginal ejaculatory latency time (IELT) and clinical expert diagnosis of PE. A Chinese version of PEDT was confirmed by andrologist and bilingual linguist. Participants were recruited among seven different communities of Shanghai from 2011 to 2012, and their information regarding self-reported PE, self-estimated IELT, expert diagnosis of PE, and PEDT scores were collected. Validity of the PEDT and its association with clinical expert diagnosis of PE and self-estimated IELT were analyzed. A total of 143 patients without PE (mean age 55.11 ± 7.65 years) and 100 men with PE (mean age 53.07 ± 8.08 years) were enrolled for validation. Of the patients in PE group, the number of men reporting self-estimated IELTs of ≤1, 1-2, and >2 minutes were 34 (34.0%), 22 (22.0%), and 44 (44.0%), respectively. The Cronbach's alpha score (α = 0.77) showed adequate internal consistency, and the test-retest correlation coefficients of each item (r ≥ 0.70, P IELT (ρ = -0.396, P IELT ≤1 minute). The Chinese version of PEDT is valid in screening the presence of PE among Chinese men. The PEDT showed an adequate negative correlation with self-estimated IELT and an excellent concordance with clinician diagnosis of PE. © 2014 International Society for Sexual Medicine.

  6. Bringing your tools to CyVerse Discovery Environment using Docker [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Upendra Kumar Devisetty

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Docker has become a very popular container-based virtualization platform for software distribution that has revolutionized the way in which scientific software and software dependencies (software stacks can be packaged, distributed, and deployed. Docker makes the complex and time-consuming installation procedures needed for scientific software a one-time process. Because it enables platform-independent installation, versioning of software environments, and easy redeployment and reproducibility, Docker is an ideal candidate for the deployment of identical software stacks on different compute environments such as XSEDE and Amazon AWS. CyVerse’s Discovery Environment also uses Docker for integrating its powerful, community-recommended software tools into CyVerse’s production environment for public use. This paper will help users bring their tools into CyVerse Discovery Environment (DE which will not only allows users to integrate their tools with relative ease compared to the earlier method of tool deployment in DE but will also help users to share their apps with collaborators and release them for public use.

  7. Development of a Chinese version of the Western Ontario Meniscal Evaluation Tool: cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, W W; Wang, W; Xu, W D

    2016-08-15

    The Western Ontario Meniscal Evaluation Tool (WOMET) is a questionnaire designed to evaluate the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of patients with meniscal pathology. Our study aims to culturally adapt and validate the WOMET into a Chinese version. We translated the WOMET into Chinese. Then, a total of 121 patients with meniscal pathology were invited to participate in this study. To assess the test-retest reliability, the Chinese version WOMET was completed twice at 7-day intervals by the participants. The construct validity was assessed using Pearson's correlation coefficient or Spearman's correlation to test for correlations among the Chinese version WOMET and the eight domains of Short Form-36 (SF-36), the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), and the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score. Responsiveness was tested by comparison of the preoperative and postoperative scores of the Chinese version WOMET. The test-retest reliability of the overall scale and different domains were all found to be excellent. The Cronbach's α was 0.90. The Chinese version WOMET correlated well with other questionnaires which suggested good construct validity. We observed no ceiling and floor effects of the Chinese version WOMET. We also found good responsiveness for the effect size, and the standardized response mean values were 0.86 and 1.11. The Chinese version of the WOMET appears to be reliable and valid in evaluating patients with meniscal pathology.

  8. Version VI of the ESTree db: an improved tool for peach transcriptome analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lazzari, Barbara; Caprera, Andrea; Vecchietti, Alberto; Merelli, Ivan; Barale, Francesca; Milanesi, Luciano; Stella, Alessandra; Pozzi, Carlo

    2008-01-01

    Background The ESTree database (db) is a collection of Prunus persica and Prunus dulcis EST sequences that in its current version encompasses 75,404 sequences from 3 almond and 19 peach libraries. Nine peach genotypes and four peach tissues are represented, from four fruit developmental stages. The aim of this work was to implement the already existing ESTree db by adding new sequences and analysis programs. Particular care was given to the implementation of the web interface, that allows querying each of the database features. Results A Perl modular pipeline is the backbone of sequence analysis in the ESTree db project. Outputs obtained during the pipeline steps are automatically arrayed into the fields of a MySQL database. Apart from standard clustering and annotation analyses, version VI of the ESTree db encompasses new tools for tandem repeat identification, annotation against genomic Rosaceae sequences, and positioning on the database of oligomer sequences that were used in a peach microarray study. Furthermore, known protein patterns and motifs were identified by comparison to PROSITE. Based on data retrieved from sequence annotation against the UniProtKB database, a script was prepared to track positions of homologous hits on the GO tree and build statistics on the ontologies distribution in GO functional categories. EST mapping data were also integrated in the database. The PHP-based web interface was upgraded and extended. The aim of the authors was to enable querying the database according to all the biological aspects that can be investigated from the analysis of data available in the ESTree db. This is achieved by allowing multiple searches on logical subsets of sequences that represent different biological situations or features. Conclusions The version VI of ESTree db offers a broad overview on peach gene expression. Sequence analyses results contained in the database, extensively linked to external related resources, represent a large amount of

  9. A web-based tool to engage stakeholders in informing research planning for future decisions on emerging materials

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Powers, Christina M., E-mail: powers.christina@epa.gov [National Center for Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711 (United States); Grieger, Khara D., E-mail: kgrieger@rti.org [RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Rd., Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (United States); Hendren, Christine Ogilvie, E-mail: chendren@duke.edu [Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708 (United States); Meacham, Connie A., E-mail: meacham.connie@epa.gov [National Center for Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711 (United States); Gurevich, Gerald, E-mail: gurevich.gerald@epa.gov [National Center for Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711 (United States); Lassiter, Meredith Gooding, E-mail: lassiter.meredith@epa.gov [National Center for Environmental Assessment, Office of Research and Development, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC 27711 (United States); Money, Eric S., E-mail: emoney@rti.org [RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Rd., Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (United States); Lloyd, Jennifer M., E-mail: jml@rti.org [RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Rd., Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (United States); Beaulieu, Stephen M., E-mail: steveb@rti.org [RTI International, 3040 Cornwallis Rd., Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (United States)

    2014-02-01

    Prioritizing and assessing risks associated with chemicals, industrial materials, or emerging technologies is a complex problem that benefits from the involvement of multiple stakeholder groups. For example, in the case of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), scientific uncertainties exist that hamper environmental, health, and safety (EHS) assessments. Therefore, alternative approaches to standard EHS assessment methods have gained increased attention. The objective of this paper is to describe the application of a web-based, interactive decision support tool developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) in a pilot study on ENMs. The piloted tool implements U.S. EPA's comprehensive environmental assessment (CEA) approach to prioritize research gaps. When pursued, such research priorities can result in data that subsequently improve the scientific robustness of risk assessments and inform future risk management decisions. Pilot results suggest that the tool was useful in facilitating multi-stakeholder prioritization of research gaps. Results also provide potential improvements for subsequent applications. The outcomes of future CEAWeb applications with larger stakeholder groups may inform the development of funding opportunities for emerging materials across the scientific community (e.g., National Science Foundation Science to Achieve Results [STAR] grants, National Institutes of Health Requests for Proposals). - Highlights: • A web-based, interactive decision support tool was piloted for emerging materials. • The tool (CEAWeb) was based on an established approach to prioritize research gaps. • CEAWeb facilitates multi-stakeholder prioritization of research gaps. • We provide recommendations for future versions and applications of CEAWeb.

  10. The Lagrangian particle dispersion model FLEXPART-WRF VERSION 3.1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brioude, J.; Arnold, D.; Stohl, A.; Cassiani, M.; Morton, Don; Seibert, P.; Angevine, W. M.; Evan, S.; Dingwell, A.; Fast, Jerome D.; Easter, Richard C.; Pisso, I.; Bukhart, J.; Wotawa, G.

    2013-11-01

    The Lagrangian particle dispersion model FLEXPART was originally designed for cal- culating long-range and mesoscale dispersion of air pollutants from point sources, such as after an accident in a nuclear power plant. In the meantime FLEXPART has evolved into a comprehensive tool for atmospheric transport modeling and analysis at different scales. This multiscale need from the modeler community has encouraged new developments in FLEXPART. In this document, we present a version that works with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) mesoscale meteoro- logical model. Simple procedures on how to run FLEXPART-WRF are presented along with special options and features that differ from its predecessor versions. In addition, test case data, the source code and visualization tools are provided to the reader as supplementary material.

  11. THE NASA AMES PAH IR SPECTROSCOPIC DATABASE VERSION 2.00: UPDATED CONTENT, WEB SITE, AND ON(OFF)LINE TOOLS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boersma, C.; Mattioda, A. L.; Allamandola, L. J. [NASA Ames Research Center, MS 245-6, Moffett Field, CA 94035 (United States); Bauschlicher, C. W. Jr.; Ricca, A. [NASA Ames Research Center, MS 230-3, Moffett Field, CA 94035 (United States); Cami, J.; Peeters, E.; De Armas, F. Sánchez; Saborido, G. Puerta [SETI Institute, 189 Bernardo Avenue 100, Mountain View, CA 94043 (United States); Hudgins, D. M., E-mail: Christiaan.Boersma@nasa.gov [NASA Headquarters, MS 3Y28, 300 E St. SW, Washington, DC 20546 (United States)

    2014-03-01

    A significantly updated version of the NASA Ames PAH IR Spectroscopic Database, the first major revision since its release in 2010, is presented. The current version, version 2.00, contains 700 computational and 75 experimental spectra compared, respectively, with 583 and 60 in the initial release. The spectra span the 2.5-4000 μm (4000-2.5 cm{sup -1}) range. New tools are available on the site that allow one to analyze spectra in the database and compare them with imported astronomical spectra as well as a suite of IDL object classes (a collection of programs utilizing IDL's object-oriented programming capabilities) that permit offline analysis called the AmesPAHdbIDLSuite. Most noteworthy among the additions are the extension of the computational spectroscopic database to include a number of significantly larger polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), the ability to visualize the molecular atomic motions corresponding to each vibrational mode, and a new tool that allows one to perform a non-negative least-squares fit of an imported astronomical spectrum with PAH spectra in the computational database. Finally, a methodology is described in the Appendix, and implemented using the AmesPAHdbIDLSuite, that allows the user to enforce charge balance during the fitting procedure.

  12. SALT 2010 Bilingual S/E Version: A Tool for Assessing the Language Production of Bilingual (Spanish/English) Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Jon F.; Iglesias, Aquiles; Rojas, Raul

    2010-01-01

    Assessing the language development of bilingual children can be a challenge--too often, children in the complex process of learning both Spanish and English are under- or over-diagnosed with language disorders. SLPs can change that with "SALT 2010 Bilingual S/E Version" for grades K-3, the first tool to comprehensively assess children's language…

  13. The virtual supermarket: an innovative research tool to study consumer food purchasing behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waterlander, Wilma E; Scarpa, Michael; Lentz, Daisy; Steenhuis, Ingrid H M

    2011-07-25

    Economic interventions in the food environment are expected to effectively promote healthier food choices. However, before introducing them on a large scale, it is important to gain insight into the effectiveness of economic interventions and peoples' genuine reactions to price changes. Nonetheless, because of complex implementation issues, studies on price interventions are virtually non-existent. This is especially true for experiments undertaken in a retail setting. We have developed a research tool to study the effects of retail price interventions in a virtual-reality setting: the Virtual Supermarket. This paper aims to inform researchers about the features and utilization of this new software application. The Virtual Supermarket is a Dutch-developed three-dimensional software application in which study participants can shop in a manner comparable to a real supermarket. The tool can be used to study several food pricing and labelling strategies. The application base can be used to build future extensions and could be translated into, for example, an English-language version. The Virtual Supermarket contains a front-end which is seen by the participants, and a back-end that enables researchers to easily manipulate research conditions. The application keeps track of time spent shopping, number of products purchased, shopping budget, total expenditures and answers on configurable questionnaires. All data is digitally stored and automatically sent to a web server. A pilot study among Dutch consumers (n = 66) revealed that the application accurately collected and stored all data. Results from participant feedback revealed that 83% of the respondents considered the Virtual Supermarket easy to understand and 79% found that their virtual grocery purchases resembled their regular groceries. The Virtual Supermarket is an innovative research tool with a great potential to assist in gaining insight into food purchasing behaviour. The application can be obtained via an URL

  14. The virtual supermarket: An innovative research tool to study consumer food purchasing behaviour

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steenhuis Ingrid HM

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Economic interventions in the food environment are expected to effectively promote healthier food choices. However, before introducing them on a large scale, it is important to gain insight into the effectiveness of economic interventions and peoples' genuine reactions to price changes. Nonetheless, because of complex implementation issues, studies on price interventions are virtually non-existent. This is especially true for experiments undertaken in a retail setting. We have developed a research tool to study the effects of retail price interventions in a virtual-reality setting: the Virtual Supermarket. This paper aims to inform researchers about the features and utilization of this new software application. Results The Virtual Supermarket is a Dutch-developed three-dimensional software application in which study participants can shop in a manner comparable to a real supermarket. The tool can be used to study several food pricing and labelling strategies. The application base can be used to build future extensions and could be translated into, for example, an English-language version. The Virtual Supermarket contains a front-end which is seen by the participants, and a back-end that enables researchers to easily manipulate research conditions. The application keeps track of time spent shopping, number of products purchased, shopping budget, total expenditures and answers on configurable questionnaires. All data is digitally stored and automatically sent to a web server. A pilot study among Dutch consumers (n = 66 revealed that the application accurately collected and stored all data. Results from participant feedback revealed that 83% of the respondents considered the Virtual Supermarket easy to understand and 79% found that their virtual grocery purchases resembled their regular groceries. Conclusions The Virtual Supermarket is an innovative research tool with a great potential to assist in gaining insight into food

  15. The virtual supermarket: An innovative research tool to study consumer food purchasing behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-01

    Background Economic interventions in the food environment are expected to effectively promote healthier food choices. However, before introducing them on a large scale, it is important to gain insight into the effectiveness of economic interventions and peoples' genuine reactions to price changes. Nonetheless, because of complex implementation issues, studies on price interventions are virtually non-existent. This is especially true for experiments undertaken in a retail setting. We have developed a research tool to study the effects of retail price interventions in a virtual-reality setting: the Virtual Supermarket. This paper aims to inform researchers about the features and utilization of this new software application. Results The Virtual Supermarket is a Dutch-developed three-dimensional software application in which study participants can shop in a manner comparable to a real supermarket. The tool can be used to study several food pricing and labelling strategies. The application base can be used to build future extensions and could be translated into, for example, an English-language version. The Virtual Supermarket contains a front-end which is seen by the participants, and a back-end that enables researchers to easily manipulate research conditions. The application keeps track of time spent shopping, number of products purchased, shopping budget, total expenditures and answers on configurable questionnaires. All data is digitally stored and automatically sent to a web server. A pilot study among Dutch consumers (n = 66) revealed that the application accurately collected and stored all data. Results from participant feedback revealed that 83% of the respondents considered the Virtual Supermarket easy to understand and 79% found that their virtual grocery purchases resembled their regular groceries. Conclusions The Virtual Supermarket is an innovative research tool with a great potential to assist in gaining insight into food purchasing behaviour. The

  16. Assessing the impact of user-centered research on a clinical trial eHealth tool via counterbalanced research design.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atkinson, Nancy L; Massett, Holly A; Mylks, Christy; McCormack, Lauren A; Kish-Doto, Julia; Hesse, Bradford W; Wang, Min Qi

    2011-01-01

    Informatics applications have the potential to improve participation in clinical trials, but their design must be based on user-centered research. This research used a fully counterbalanced experimental design to investigate the effect of changes made to the original version of a website, http://BreastCancerTrials.org/, and confirm that the revised version addressed and reinforced patients' needs and expectations. Participants included women who had received a breast cancer diagnosis within the last 5 years (N=77). They were randomized into two groups: one group used and reviewed the original version first followed by the redesigned version, and the other group used and reviewed them in reverse order. The study used both quantitative and qualitative measures. During use, participants' click paths and general reactions were observed. After use, participants were asked to answer survey items and open-ended questions to indicate their reactions and which version they preferred and met their needs and expectations better. Overall, the revised version of the site was preferred and perceived to be clearer, easier to navigate, more trustworthy and credible, and more private and safe overall. However, users who viewed the original version last had similar attitudes toward both versions. By applying research findings to the redesign of a website for clinical trial searching, it was possible to re-engineer the interface to better support patients' decisions to participate in clinical trials. The mechanisms of action in this case appeared to revolve around creating an environment that supported a sense of personal control and decisional autonomy.

  17. Judging the Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Assessment Tools to Guide Future Tool Development: The use of Clinimetrics as Opposed to Psychometrics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Westgate, Philip M; Gomez-Pomar, Enrique

    2017-01-01

    In the face of the current Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) epidemic, there is considerable variability in the assessment and management of infants with NAS. In this manuscript, we particularly focus on NAS assessment, with special attention given to the popular Finnegan Neonatal Abstinence Score (FNAS). A major instigator of the problem of variable practices is that multiple modified versions of the FNAS exist and continue to be proposed, including shortened versions. Furthermore, the validity of such assessment tools has been questioned, and as a result, the need for better tools has been suggested. The ultimate purpose of this manuscript, therefore, is to increase researchers' and clinicians' understanding on how to judge the usefulness of NAS assessment tools in order to guide future tool development and to reduce variable practices. In short, we suggest that judgment of NAS assessment tools should be made on a clinimetrics viewpoint as opposed to psychometrically. We provide examples, address multiple issues that must be considered, and discuss future tool development. Furthermore, we urge researchers and clinicians to come together, utilizing their knowledge and experience, to assess the utility and practicality of existing assessment tools and to determine if one or more new or modified tools are needed with the goal of increased agreement on the assessment of NAS in practice.

  18. Forum Theater’s potential as a Research Tool

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrea Calsamiglia Madurga

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available We present a theoretical and epistemological reflection on Forum Theater’s potential as a Research Tool. Our presence on social action and research has led us to a double reflection on qualitative research’s limitations on the affect studies and the Forum Theater’s potential as a research tool to tackle research about affects. After some specific experiences in action research (qualitative research on romantic love and gender violence, and the creation process of the Forum Theater “Is it a joke?”, we explore Forum Theatre’s possibilities as a research tool in the feminist epistemology framework.

  19. Moving research tools into practice: the successes and challenges in promoting uptake of classification tools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cunningham, Barbara Jane; Hidecker, Mary Jo Cooley; Thomas-Stonell, Nancy; Rosenbaum, Peter

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we present our experiences - both successes and challenges - in implementing evidence-based classification tools into clinical practice. We also make recommendations for others wanting to promote the uptake and application of new research-based assessment tools. We first describe classification systems and the benefits of using them in both research and practice. We then present a theoretical framework from Implementation Science to report strategies we have used to implement two research-based classification tools into practice. We also illustrate some of the challenges we have encountered by reporting results from an online survey investigating 58 Speech-language Pathologists' knowledge and use of the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS), a new tool to classify children's functional communication skills. We offer recommendations for researchers wanting to promote the uptake of new tools in clinical practice. Specifically, we identify structural, organizational, innovation, practitioner, and patient-related factors that we recommend researchers address in the design of implementation interventions. Roles and responsibilities of both researchers and clinicians in making implementations science a success are presented. Implications for rehabilitation Promoting uptake of new and evidence-based tools into clinical practice is challenging. Implementation science can help researchers to close the knowledge-to-practice gap. Using concrete examples, we discuss our experiences in implementing evidence-based classification tools into practice within a theoretical framework. Recommendations are provided for researchers wanting to implement new tools in clinical practice. Implications for researchers and clinicians are presented.

  20. CLIPS - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM (MACINTOSH VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Culbert, C.

    1994-01-01

    The C Language Integrated Production System, CLIPS, is a shell for developing expert systems. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. The primary design goals for CLIPS are portability, efficiency, and functionality. For these reasons, the program is written in C. CLIPS meets or outperforms most micro- and minicomputer based artificial intelligence tools. CLIPS is a forward chaining rule-based language. The program contains an inference engine and a language syntax that provide a framework for the construction of an expert system. It also includes tools for debugging an application. CLIPS is based on the Rete algorithm, which enables very efficient pattern matching. The collection of conditions and actions to be taken if the conditions are met is constructed into a rule network. As facts are asserted either prior to or during a session, CLIPS pattern-matches the number of fields. Wildcards and variables are supported for both single and multiple fields. CLIPS syntax allows the inclusion of externally defined functions (outside functions which are written in a language other than CLIPS). CLIPS itself can be embedded in a program such that the expert system is available as a simple subroutine call. Advanced features found in CLIPS version 4.3 include an integrated microEMACS editor, the ability to generate C source code from a CLIPS rule base to produce a dedicated executable, binary load and save capabilities for CLIPS rule bases, and the utility program CRSV (Cross-Reference, Style, and Verification) designed to facilitate the development and maintenance of large rule bases. Five machine versions are available. Each machine version includes the source and the executable for that machine. The UNIX version includes the source and binaries for IBM RS/6000, Sun3 series, and Sun4 series computers. The UNIX, DEC VAX, and DEC RISC Workstation versions are line oriented. The PC version and the Macintosh

  1. Assessment of multi-version NPP I and C systems safety. Metric-based approach, technique and tool

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kharchenko, Vyacheslav; Volkovoy, Andrey; Bakhmach, Eugenii; Siora, Alexander; Duzhyi, Vyacheslav

    2011-01-01

    The challenges related to problem of assessment of actual diversity level and evaluation of diversity-oriented NPP I and C systems safety are analyzed. There are risks of inaccurate assessment and problems of insufficient decreasing probability of CCFs. CCF probability of safety-critical systems may be essentially decreased due to application of several different types of diversity (multi-diversity). Different diversity types of FPGA-based NPP I and C systems, general approach and stages of diversity and safety assessment as a whole are described. Objectives of the report are: (a) analysis of the challenges caused by use of diversity approach in NPP I and C systems in context of FPGA and other modern technologies application; (b) development of multi-version NPP I and C systems assessment technique and tool based on check-list and metric-oriented approach; (c) case-study of the technique: assessment of multi-version FPGA-based NPP I and C developed by use of Radiy TM Platform. (author)

  2. Market research companies and new product development tools

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nijssen, E.J.; Frambach, R.T.

    1998-01-01

    This research investigates (1) the share of new product development (NPD) research services in market research (MR) companies’ turnover, (2) MR companies’ awareness and use of NPD tools and the modifications made to these NPD tools, and (3) MR company managers’ perceptions of the influence of client

  3. Market research companies and new product development tools

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nijssen, Edwin J.; Frambach, Ruud T.

    1998-01-01

    This research investigates (1) the share of new product development (NPD) research services in market research (MR) companies' turnover, (2) MR companies' awareness and use of NPD tools and the modifications made to these NPD tools, and (3) MR company managers' perceptions of the influence of client

  4. ASCI visualization tool evaluation, Version 2.0

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kegelmeyer, P. [ed.] [Sandia National Labs., Livermore, CA (United States). Center for Computational Engineering

    1997-04-01

    The charter of the ASCI Visualization Common Tools subgroup was to investigate and evaluate 3D scientific visualization tools. As part of that effort, a Tri-Lab evaluation effort was launched in February of 1996. The first step was to agree on a thoroughly documented list of 32 features against which all tool candidates would be evaluated. These evaluation criteria were both gleaned from a user survey and determined from informed extrapolation into the future, particularly as concerns the 3D nature and extremely large size of ASCI data sets. The second step was to winnow a field of 41 candidate tools down to 11. The selection principle was to be as inclusive as practical, retaining every tool that seemed to hold any promise of fulfilling all of ASCI`s visualization needs. These 11 tools were then closely investigated by volunteer evaluators distributed across LANL, LLNL, and SNL. This report contains the results of those evaluations, as well as a discussion of the evaluation philosophy and criteria.

  5. Lowering the Barrier to Reproducible Research by Publishing Provenance from Common Analytical Tools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, M. B.; Slaughter, P.; Walker, L.; Jones, C. S.; Missier, P.; Ludäscher, B.; Cao, Y.; McPhillips, T.; Schildhauer, M.

    2015-12-01

    Scientific provenance describes the authenticity, origin, and processing history of research products and promotes scientific transparency by detailing the steps in computational workflows that produce derived products. These products include papers, findings, input data, software products to perform computations, and derived data and visualizations. The geosciences community values this type of information, and, at least theoretically, strives to base conclusions on computationally replicable findings. In practice, capturing detailed provenance is laborious and thus has been a low priority; beyond a lab notebook describing methods and results, few researchers capture and preserve detailed records of scientific provenance. We have built tools for capturing and publishing provenance that integrate into analytical environments that are in widespread use by geoscientists (R and Matlab). These tools lower the barrier to provenance generation by automating capture of critical information as researchers prepare data for analysis, develop, test, and execute models, and create visualizations. The 'recordr' library in R and the `matlab-dataone` library in Matlab provide shared functions to capture provenance with minimal changes to normal working procedures. Researchers can capture both scripted and interactive sessions, tag and manage these executions as they iterate over analyses, and then prune and publish provenance metadata and derived products to the DataONE federation of archival repositories. Provenance traces conform to the ProvONE model extension of W3C PROV, enabling interoperability across tools and languages. The capture system supports fine-grained versioning of science products and provenance traces. By assigning global identifiers such as DOIs, reseachers can cite the computational processes used to reach findings. And, finally, DataONE has built a web portal to search, browse, and clearly display provenance relationships between input data, the software

  6. Cross-cultural Adaptation, Reliability, and Validity of the Yoruba Version of the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mbada, Chidozie Emmanuel; Idowu, Opeyemi Ayodiipo; Ogunjimi, Olawale Richard; Ayanniyi, Olusola; Orimolade, Elkanah Ayodele; Oladiran, Ajibola Babatunde; Johnson, Olubusola Esther; Akinsulore, Adesanmi; Oni, Temitope Olawale

    2017-04-01

    A translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and psychometric analysis. The aim of this study was to translate, cross-culturally adapt, and validate the Yoruba version of the RMDQ. The Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ) is a valid outcome tool for low back pain (LBP) in clinical and research settings. There seems to be no valid and reliable version of the RMDQ in the Nigerian languages. Following the Guillemin criteria, the English version of the RMDQ was forward and back translated. Two Yoruba translated versions of the RMDQ were assessed for clarity, common language usage, and conceptual equivalence. Consequently, a harmonized Yoruba version was produced and was pilot-tested among 20 patients with nonspecific long-term LBP (NSLBP) for cognitive debriefing. The final version of the Yoruba RMDQ was tested for its construct validity and re-retest reliability among 120 and 87 patients with NSLBP, respectively. Pearson product moment correlation coefficient (r) of 0.82 was obtained for reliability of the Yoruba version of the RMDQ. The test-retest reliability of the Yoruba RMDQ yielded Cronbach alpha 0.932, while the intraclass correlation (ICC) ranged between 0.896 and 0.956. The analysis of the global scores of both the English and Yoruba versions of the RMDQ yielded ICC value of between 0.995 (95% confidence interval 0.996-0.997), with the item-by-item Kappa agreement ranging between 0.824 and 1.000. The external validity of RMDQ using Quadruple Visual Analogue Scale was r = -0.596 (P = 0.001). The Yoruba version of the RMDQ had no floor/ceiling effects, as no patient achieved either of the maximum or the minimum possible scores. The Yoruba version of the RMDQ has excellent reliability and validity and may be an appropriate outcome tool for clinical and research purposes among Yoruba-speaking patients with LBP. 3.

  7. CROSS-CULTURAL ADAPTATION AND VALIDATION OF THE KOREAN VERSION OF THE CUMBERLAND ANKLE INSTABILITY TOOL.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ko, Jupil; Rosen, Adam B; Brown, Cathleen N

    2015-12-01

    The Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT) is a valid and reliable patient reported outcome used to assess the presence and severity of chronic ankle instability (CAI). The CAIT has been cross-culturally adapted into other languages for use in non-English speaking populations. However, there are no valid questionnaires to assess CAI in individuals who speak Korean. The purpose of this study was to translate, cross-culturally adapt, and validate the CAIT, for use in a Korean-speaking population with CAI. Cross-cultural reliability study. The CAIT was cross-culturally adapted into Korean according to accepted guidelines and renamed the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool-Korean (CAIT-K). Twenty-three participants (12 males, 11 females) who were bilingual in English and Korean were recruited and completed the original and adapted versions to assess agreement between versions. An additional 168 national level Korean athletes (106 male, 62 females; age = 20.3 ± 1.1 yrs), who participated in ≥ 90 minutes of physical activity per week, completed the final version of the CAIT-K twice within 14 days. Their completed questionnaires were assessed for internal consistency, test-retest reliability, criterion validity, and construct validity. For bilingual participants, intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC2,1) between the CAIT and the CAIT-K for test-retest reliability were 0.95 (SEM=1.83) and 0.96 (SEM=1.50) in right and left limbs, respectively. The Cronbach's alpha coefficients were 0.92 and 0.90 for the CAIT-K in right and left limbs, respectively. For native Korean speakers, the CAIT-K had high internal consistency (Cronbach's α=0.89) and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC2,1 = 0.94, SEM=1.72), correlation with the physical component score (rho=0.70, p = 0.001) of the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36), and the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin score was 0.87. The original CAIT was translated, cross-culturally adapted, and validated from English to Korean

  8. The Chinese version of monitoring and evaluation system strengthening tool for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) capacity building: Development and evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Ran; Chen, Ren; Zhang, Bing; Ma, Ying; Qin, Xia; Hu, Zhi

    2015-08-01

    Monitoring and evaluation (M&E) for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) capacity building has become a significant step for HIV prevention and control. The M&E system strengthening tool published by the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) was intended to be the most authoritative assessment tool internationally. Facing the fact that the M&E system in China did not function at an optimum level, we considered taking the international standards for reference. By linguistic validating and different stages' discussions and revisions, we came up with the Chinese version of the capacity diagnosis tool with at least 12 components and tested its validity and reliability. The tool turned out to have a sufficiently linguistic validation and proved to be a scientific and feasible instrument which was suitable for China's national conditions.

  9. ESMO-Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale version 1.1

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cherny, N. I.; Dafni, U.; Bogaerts, J.; Latino, N. J.; Pentheroudakis, G.; Douillard, J. -Y.; Tabernero, J.; Zielinski, C.; Piccart, M. J.; de Vries, E. G. E.

    2017-01-01

    Background: The ESMO Magnitude of Clinical Benefit Scale (ESMO-MCBS) version 1.0 (v1.0) was published in May 2015 and was the first version of a validated and reproducible tool to assess the magnitude of clinical benefit from new cancer therapies. The ESMO-MCBS was designed to be a dynamic tool with

  10. Software tool for portal dosimetry research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vial, P; Hunt, P; Greer, P B; Oliver, L; Baldock, C

    2008-09-01

    This paper describes a software tool developed for research into the use of an electronic portal imaging device (EPID) to verify dose for intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) beams. A portal dose image prediction (PDIP) model that predicts the EPID response to IMRT beams has been implemented into a commercially available treatment planning system (TPS). The software tool described in this work was developed to modify the TPS PDIP model by incorporating correction factors into the predicted EPID image to account for the difference in EPID response to open beam radiation and multileaf collimator (MLC) transmitted radiation. The processes performed by the software tool include; i) read the MLC file and the PDIP from the TPS, ii) calculate the fraction of beam-on time that each point in the IMRT beam is shielded by MLC leaves, iii) interpolate correction factors from look-up tables, iv) create a corrected PDIP image from the product of the original PDIP and the correction factors and write the corrected image to file, v) display, analyse, and export various image datasets. The software tool was developed using the Microsoft Visual Studio.NET framework with the C# compiler. The operation of the software tool was validated. This software provided useful tools for EPID dosimetry research, and it is being utilised and further developed in ongoing EPID dosimetry and IMRT dosimetry projects.

  11. RASCAL Version 2.0 workbook

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Athey, G.F.; McKenna, T.J.

    1993-05-01

    The Radiological Assessment System for Consequence Analysis, Version 2.0 (RASCAL 2.0) has been developed for use by the NRC personnel who respond to radiological emergencies. This workbook is intended to complement the RASCAL 2.0 User's Guide (NUREG/CR-5247, Vol. 1). The workbook contains exercises designed to familiarize the user with the computer based tools of RASCAL through hands-on problem solving. The workbook is composed of four major sections. The first part is a RASCAL familiarization exercise to acquaint the user with the operation of the forms, menus, on-line help, and documentation. The latter three parts contain exercises in using the three tools of RASCAL Version 2.0: DECAY, FM-DOSE, and ST-DOSE. Each section of exercises is followed by discussion on how the tools could be used to solve the problem

  12. CLIPS - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM (IBM PC VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, G.

    1994-01-01

    The C Language Integrated Production System, CLIPS, is a shell for developing expert systems. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. The primary design goals for CLIPS are portability, efficiency, and functionality. For these reasons, the program is written in C. CLIPS meets or outperforms most micro- and minicomputer based artificial intelligence tools. CLIPS is a forward chaining rule-based language. The program contains an inference engine and a language syntax that provide a framework for the construction of an expert system. It also includes tools for debugging an application. CLIPS is based on the Rete algorithm, which enables very efficient pattern matching. The collection of conditions and actions to be taken if the conditions are met is constructed into a rule network. As facts are asserted either prior to or during a session, CLIPS pattern-matches the number of fields. Wildcards and variables are supported for both single and multiple fields. CLIPS syntax allows the inclusion of externally defined functions (outside functions which are written in a language other than CLIPS). CLIPS itself can be embedded in a program such that the expert system is available as a simple subroutine call. Advanced features found in CLIPS version 4.3 include an integrated microEMACS editor, the ability to generate C source code from a CLIPS rule base to produce a dedicated executable, binary load and save capabilities for CLIPS rule bases, and the utility program CRSV (Cross-Reference, Style, and Verification) designed to facilitate the development and maintenance of large rule bases. Five machine versions are available. Each machine version includes the source and the executable for that machine. The UNIX version includes the source and binaries for IBM RS/6000, Sun3 series, and Sun4 series computers. The UNIX, DEC VAX, and DEC RISC Workstation versions are line oriented. The PC version and the Macintosh

  13. Spec Tool; an online education and research resource

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maman, S.; Shenfeld, A.; Isaacson, S.; Blumberg, D. G.

    2016-06-01

    Education and public outreach (EPO) activities related to remote sensing, space, planetary and geo-physics sciences have been developed widely in the Earth and Planetary Image Facility (EPIF) at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel. These programs aim to motivate the learning of geo-scientific and technologic disciplines. For over the past decade, the facility hosts research and outreach activities for researchers, local community, school pupils, students and educators. As software and data are neither available nor affordable, the EPIF Spec tool was created as a web-based resource to assist in initial spectral analysis as a need for researchers and students. The tool is used both in the academic courses and in the outreach education programs and enables a better understanding of the theoretical data of spectroscopy and Imaging Spectroscopy in a 'hands-on' activity. This tool is available online and provides spectra visualization tools and basic analysis algorithms including Spectral plotting, Spectral angle mapping and Linear Unmixing. The tool enables to visualize spectral signatures from the USGS spectral library and additional spectra collected in the EPIF such as of dunes in southern Israel and from Turkmenistan. For researchers and educators, the tool allows loading collected samples locally for further analysis.

  14. Citation Index: an indispensable information retrieval tool for research and evaluation

    OpenAIRE

    Kademani, B. S.; Vijai Kumar, *

    2002-01-01

    This paper highlights the information explosion, the need for bibliographic control, the need for information retrieval tools. Explains the emergence of Citation Index, concept of citation indexing, reasons for citing, its structure (print and electronic versions of Science citation Index and Social Science Citation Index ), and application of citation index. It also discusses the search effectiveness, factors taken into consideration for coverage of journals in citation indexes, Journal Cita...

  15. Cross-cultural adaptation, reliability, and validation of the Korean version of the identification functional ankle instability (IdFAI).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ko, Jupil; Rosen, Adam B; Brown, Cathleen N

    2017-09-12

    To cross-culturally adapt the Identification Functional Ankle Instability for use with Korean-speaking participants. The English version of the IdFAI was cross-culturally adapted into Korean based on the guidelines. The psychometric properties in the Korean version of the IdFAI were measured for test-retest reliability, internal consistency, criterion-related validity, discriminative validity, and measurement error 181 native Korean-speakers. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC 2,1 ) between the English and Korean versions of the IdFAI for test-retest reliability was 0.98 (standard error of measurement = 1.41). The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.89 for the Korean versions of IdFAI. The Korean versions of the IdFAI had a strong correlation with the SF-36 (r s  = -0.69, p 10 was the optimal cutoff score to distinguish between the group memberships. The minimally detectable change of the Korean versions of the IdFAI score was 3.91. The Korean versions of the IdFAI have shown to be an excellent, reliable, and valid instrument. The Korean versions of the IdFAI can be utilized to assess the presence of Chronic Ankle Instability by researchers and clinicians working among Korean-speaking populations. Implications for rehabilitation The high recurrence rate of sprains may result into Chronic Ankle Instability (CAI). The Identification of Functional Ankle Instability Tool (IdFAI) has been validated and recommended to identify patients with Chronic Ankle Instability (CAI). The Korean version of the Identification of Functional Ankle Instability Tool (IdFAI) may be also recommend to researchers and clinicians for assessing the presence of Chronic Ankle Instability (CAI) in Korean-speaking population.

  16. Design of Scalable and Effective Earth Science Collaboration Tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maskey, M.; Ramachandran, R.; Kuo, K. S.; Lynnes, C.; Niamsuwan, N.; Chidambaram, C.

    2014-12-01

    Collaborative research is growing rapidly. Many tools including IDEs are now beginning to incorporate new collaborative features. Software engineering research has shown the effectiveness of collaborative programming and analysis. In particular, drastic reduction in software development time resulting in reduced cost has been highlighted. Recently, we have witnessed the rise of applications that allow users to share their content. Most of these applications scale such collaboration using cloud technologies. Earth science research needs to adopt collaboration technologies to reduce redundancy, cut cost, expand knowledgebase, and scale research experiments. To address these needs, we developed the Earth science collaboration workbench (CWB). CWB provides researchers with various collaboration features by augmenting their existing analysis tools to minimize learning curve. During the development of the CWB, we understood that Earth science collaboration tasks are varied and we concluded that it is not possible to design a tool that serves all collaboration purposes. We adopted a mix of synchronous and asynchronous sharing methods that can be used to perform collaboration across time and location dimensions. We have used cloud technology for scaling the collaboration. Cloud has been highly utilized and valuable tool for Earth science researchers. Among other usages, cloud is used for sharing research results, Earth science data, and virtual machine images; allowing CWB to create and maintain research environments and networks to enhance collaboration between researchers. Furthermore, collaborative versioning tool, Git, is integrated into CWB for versioning of science artifacts. In this paper, we present our experience in designing and implementing the CWB. We will also discuss the integration of collaborative code development use cases for data search and discovery using NASA DAAC and simulation of satellite observations using NASA Earth Observing System Simulation

  17. Open environments to support systems engineering tool integration: A study using the Portable Common Tool Environment (PCTE)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eckhardt, Dave E., Jr.; Jipping, Michael J.; Wild, Chris J.; Zeil, Steven J.; Roberts, Cathy C.

    1993-01-01

    A study of computer engineering tool integration using the Portable Common Tool Environment (PCTE) Public Interface Standard is presented. Over a 10-week time frame, three existing software products were encapsulated to work in the Emeraude environment, an implementation of the PCTE version 1.5 standard. The software products used were a computer-aided software engineering (CASE) design tool, a software reuse tool, and a computer architecture design and analysis tool. The tool set was then demonstrated to work in a coordinated design process in the Emeraude environment. The project and the features of PCTE used are described, experience with the use of Emeraude environment over the project time frame is summarized, and several related areas for future research are summarized.

  18. Evaluating research impact: the development of a ‘RESEARCH for IMPACT’ TOOL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Komla Tsey

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: This paper describes the development of a ‘Research for Impact’ Tool against a background of concerns about the over-researching of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s issues without demonstrable benefits.Material and Methods: A combination of literature reviews, workshops with researchers and reflections by project team members and partners using participatory snowball techniques.Results: Assessing research impact is difficult, akin to so-called ‘wicked problem’, but not impossible. Heuristic and collaborative approach to research that takes in the expectations of research users, those being researched and the funders of research offers a pragmatic solution to evaluating research impact. The proposed ‘Research for Impact’ Tool is based on the understanding that the value of research is to create evidence and/or products to support smarter decisions so as to improve the human condition.Research is of limited value unless the evidence produced is used to inform smarter decisions. A practical way of approaching research impact is therefore to start with the decisions confronting decision makers whether they are government policymakers, professional practitioners or households and the extent to which the research supports smarter decisions and the knock-on consequences of such smart decisions. Embedded at each step in the impact planning, monitoring and evaluation process is the need for Indigenous leadership and participation, capacity enhancement and collaborative partnerships and participatory learning by doing approaches across partners.Discussion: The tool is designed in the context of Indigenous research but the basic idea that the way to assess research impact is to start upfront by defining the users’ of research and their information needs, the decisions confronting them and the extent to which research informs smarter decisions is equally applicable to research in other settings, both applied and

  19. Evidence of Reliability for Persian Version of the “Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT” in Iranian Athletes with lateral Ankle Sprain

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mitra Haji-Maghsoudi

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the reliability of persian version of the “Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool (CAIT” in Iranian athletes with lateral ankle sprain. Matterials & Methods: The present study is a methodological and non-experimental study. After forward and backward translation of CAIT, 46 athletes were selected with convenient nonprobably sampling from Physical Education Faculty of Tehran university and Taekwondo Club. Questionnaire was given to participants who experienced at least one lateral ankle sprain based on doctor’s diagnosis. In the second phase (one week later the questionnaire was distributed among the participants again to test the reliability of the measured between the two tests. After collecting the data, the test-retest reliability of  Persian version of the questionnaire was evaluated by calculating the intraclass correlation coefficient, standard error of measurement, smallest detectable change and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients were calculated to assess the internal consistency of the questionnaire’s items. Results Cronbach’s alpha was 0.64, which is close to acceptable level of internal consistency (0.7-0.95. Factor analysis showed that questionnaires’ items can be classified  in 4 categories with maximum of 72% variance cover. The test-retest correlation coefficient ICC for the total score of CAIT was 0.95 (P>100.0, indicating excellent reproducibility of the Persian version of the questionnaire. The standard error of measurement (SEM was 1 and the smallest acceptable change (SDC was 2.76 with 95% confidence. Conclusion: The results show that the Persian version of the CAIT can be used in athletes with functional ankle instability as a reliable tool to detect instability and assess changes caused by therapeutic interventions.

  20. Some tooling for manufacturing research reactor fuel plates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knight, R.W.

    1999-01-01

    This paper will discuss some of the tooling necessary to manufacture aluminum-based research reactor fuel plates. Most of this tooling is intended for use in a high-production facility. Some of the tools shown have manufactured more than 150,000 pieces. The only maintenance has been sharpening. With careful design, tools can be made to accommodate the manufacture of several different fuel elements, thus, reducing tooling costs and maintaining tools that the operators are trained to use. An important feature is to design the tools using materials with good lasting quality. Good tools can increase return on investment. (author)

  1. Some Tooling for Manufacturing Research Reactor Fuel Plates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knight, R.W.

    1999-01-01

    This paper will discuss some of the tooling necessary to manufacture aluminum-based research reactor fuel plates. Most of this tooling is intended for use in a high-production facility. Some of the tools shown have manufactured more than 150,000 pieces. The only maintenance has been sharpening. With careful design, tools can be made to accommodate the manufacture of several different fuel elements, thus, reducing tooling costs and maintaining tools that the operators are trained to use. An important feature is to design the tools using materials with good lasting quality. Good tools can increase return on investment

  2. Translation and validation of the Malay version of the Stroke Knowledge Test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sowtali, Siti Noorkhairina; Yusoff, Dariah Mohd; Harith, Sakinah; Mohamed, Monniaty

    2016-04-01

    To date, there is a lack of published studies on assessment tools to evaluate the effectiveness of stroke education programs. This study developed and validated the Malay language version of the Stroke Knowledge Test research instrument. This study involved translation, validity, and reliability phases. The instrument underwent backward and forward translation of the English version into the Malay language. Nine experts reviewed the content for consistency, clarity, difficulty, and suitability for inclusion. Perceived usefulness and utilization were obtained from experts' opinions. Later, face validity assessment was conducted with 10 stroke patients to determine appropriateness of sentences and grammar used. A pilot study was conducted with 41 stroke patients to determine the item analysis and reliability of the translated instrument using the Kuder Richardson 20 or Cronbach's alpha. The final Malay version Stroke Knowledge Test included 20 items with good content coverage, acceptable item properties, and positive expert review ratings. Psychometric investigations suggest that Malay version Stroke Knowledge Test had moderate reliability with Kuder Richardson 20 or Cronbach's alpha of 0.58. Improvement is required for Stroke Knowledge Test items with unacceptable difficulty indices. Overall, the average rating of perceived usefulness and perceived utility of the instruments were both 72.7%, suggesting that reviewers were likely to use the instruments in their facilities. Malay version Stroke Knowledge Test was a valid and reliable tool to assess educational needs and to evaluate stroke knowledge among participants of group-based stroke education programs in Malaysia.

  3. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. User's guide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban; Ferry, Michel

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind.The User's Guide for DarcyTools V2.1 is intended to assist new users of DarcyTools. The Guide is far from complete and it has not been the ambition to write a manual that answers all questions a user may have. The objectives of the Guide can be stated as follows: - Give an overview of the code structure and how DarcyTools is used. - Get familiar with the 'Compact Input File', which is the main way to specify input data. - Get familiar with the 'Fortran Input File', which is the more advanced way to specify input data

  4. Aligning Web-Based Tools to the Research Process Cycle: A Resource for Collaborative Research Projects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Price, Geoffrey P.; Wright, Vivian H.

    2012-01-01

    Using John Creswell's Research Process Cycle as a framework, this article describes various web-based collaborative technologies useful for enhancing the organization and efficiency of educational research. Visualization tools (Cacoo) assist researchers in identifying a research problem. Resource storage tools (Delicious, Mendeley, EasyBib)…

  5. MCNP Version 6.2 Release Notes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Werner, Christopher John [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Bull, Jeffrey S. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Solomon, C. J. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Brown, Forrest B. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); McKinney, Gregg Walter [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Rising, Michael Evan [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Dixon, David A. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Martz, Roger Lee [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Hughes, Henry G. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Cox, Lawrence James [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Zukaitis, Anthony J. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Armstrong, J. C. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Forster, Robert Arthur [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Casswell, Laura [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

    2018-02-05

    Monte Carlo N-Particle or MCNP® is a general-purpose Monte Carlo radiation-transport code designed to track many particle types over broad ranges of energies. This MCNP Version 6.2 follows the MCNP6.1.1 beta version and has been released in order to provide the radiation transport community with the latest feature developments and bug fixes for MCNP. Since the last release of MCNP major work has been conducted to improve the code base, add features, and provide tools to facilitate ease of use of MCNP version 6.2 as well as the analysis of results. These release notes serve as a general guide for the new/improved physics, source, data, tallies, unstructured mesh, code enhancements and tools. For more detailed information on each of the topics, please refer to the appropriate references or the user manual which can be found at http://mcnp.lanl.gov. This release of MCNP version 6.2 contains 39 new features in addition to 172 bug fixes and code enhancements. There are still some 33 known issues the user should familiarize themselves with (see Appendix).

  6. Are Shorter Versions of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) Doable? A Critical Review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindenmayer, Jean-Pierre

    2017-12-01

    The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) is a well-established assessment tool for measuring symptom severity in schizophrenia. Researchers and clinicians have been interested in the development of a short version of the PANSS that could reduce the burden of its administration for patients and raters. The author presents a comprehensive overview of existing brief PANSS measures, including their strengths and limitations, and discusses some possible next steps. There are two available scales that offer a reduced number of original PANSS items: PANSS-14 and PANSS-19; and two shorter versions that include six items: Brief PANSS and PANSS-6. The PANSS-6 has been tested quite extensively in established trials and appears to demonstrate high sensitivity to change and an established cut off definition for remission. Prospective testing in new antipsychotic treatment trials is still required for these shorter versions of PANSS. In addition, they need to be supplemented with interview guides, as well as provide conversion formulas to translate total scores from the short PANSS versions to the PANSS-30. Both short versions of the PANSS are essentially designed to evaluate response to antipsychotic treatment. Future PANSS scale development needs to address specific measurement of treatment-responsive positive symptoms by including treatment-sensitive items, as well as illness-phase specific PANSS tools.

  7. Darcy Tools version 3.4. User's Guide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban; Ferry, Michel

    2010-12-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is developed by a collaborative effort by SKB (The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company ), MFRDC (Michel Ferry RandD Consulting) and CFE AB (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB). It builds upon earlier development of groundwater models, carried out by CFE during the last twenty years. In the earlier work the CFD code PHOENICS (Spalding 1981) was used as an equation solver. DarcyTools is based on a solver called MIGAL (Ferry 2002). It has however been carefully evaluated that the two solvers produce very similar solutions and the earlier work is thus still valid as a background for DarcyTools. The present report will focus on the software that constitutes DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods and Equations. (Svensson et al. 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 1). - Verification, Validation and Demonstration (Svensson 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 2). Two basic approaches in groundwater modelling can be identified; in one we define grid cell conductivities (sometimes called the continuum porous-medium (CPM) approach, i.e. Jackson et al. 2000), in the other we calculate the flow through the fracture network directly (DFN approach). Both approaches have their merits and drawbacks, which however will not be discussed here (for a discussion, see Sahimi 1995). In DarcyTools the two approaches are combined, meaning that we first generate a fracture network and then represent the network as grid cell properties. Further background information is given in the two reports mentioned

  8. Darcy Tools version 3.4. User's Guide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban [Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Lyckeby (Sweden); Ferry, Michel [MFRDC, Orvault (France)

    2010-12-15

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is developed by a collaborative effort by SKB (The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company ), MFRDC (Michel Ferry RandD Consulting) and CFE AB (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB). It builds upon earlier development of groundwater models, carried out by CFE during the last twenty years. In the earlier work the CFD code PHOENICS (Spalding 1981) was used as an equation solver. DarcyTools is based on a solver called MIGAL (Ferry 2002). It has however been carefully evaluated that the two solvers produce very similar solutions and the earlier work is thus still valid as a background for DarcyTools. The present report will focus on the software that constitutes DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods and Equations. (Svensson et al. 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 1). - Verification, Validation and Demonstration (Svensson 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 2). Two basic approaches in groundwater modelling can be identified; in one we define grid cell conductivities (sometimes called the continuum porous-medium (CPM) approach, i.e. Jackson et al. 2000), in the other we calculate the flow through the fracture network directly (DFN approach). Both approaches have their merits and drawbacks, which however will not be discussed here (for a discussion, see Sahimi 1995). In DarcyTools the two approaches are combined, meaning that we first generate a fracture network and then represent the network as grid cell properties. Further background information is given in the two reports mentioned

  9. Graph and model transformation tools for model migration : empirical results from the transformation tool contest

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rose, L.M.; Herrmannsdoerfer, M.; Mazanek, S.; Van Gorp, P.M.E.; Buchwald, S.; Horn, T.; Kalnina, E.; Koch, A.; Lano, K.; Schätz, B.; Wimmer, M.

    2014-01-01

    We describe the results of the Transformation Tool Contest 2010 workshop, in which nine graph and model transformation tools were compared for specifying model migration. The model migration problem—migration of UML activity diagrams from version 1.4 to version 2.2—is non-trivial and practically

  10. Comparison between RELAP5 versions for a two-phase natural circulation analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Braz Filho, Francisco A.; Ribeiro, Guilherme B.; Sabundjian, Gaianê; Caldeira, Alexandre D., E-mail: fbraz@ieav.cta.br, E-mail: gbribeiro@ieav.cta.br, E-mail: alexdc@ieav.cta.br, E-mail: gdjian@ipen.br [Instituto de Estudos Avançados (IEAv), São José dos Campos, SP (Brazil). Div. de Energia Nuclear; Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

    2017-11-01

    RELAP5 is one of the most used numerical tools to predict thermal-hydraulic and neutronic phenomena in nuclear reactors. RELAP5-3D is the latest version of this software family, but RELAP5-mod3 is still widely used in Brazilian research institutes and it is also used as benchmark for several nuclear applications. Among these applications, the use of passive heat transfer mechanisms, such as natural circulation, has drawn attention of several studies, especially after the Fukushima-Daiichi accident. Considering this aforementioned aspect, this study proposes a comparison of RELAP5-3D and RELAP5-mod3 versions, focusing on a two-phase natural circulation loop. For comparison purposes, an experimental data set is part of the analysis. Results showed that during the single-phase regime, the temperature difference between versions is negligible. However, when the two-phase flow regime takes place, different wavelengths and amplitudes of flow instabilities were obtained for each version. When compared to the experimental data set, the RELAP5-3D version provided the best prediction results. (author)

  11. Cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Brazilian-Portuguese version of the Duke Anticoagulation Satisfaction Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelegrino, Flávia M; Dantas, Rosana A S; Corbi, Inaiara S A; da Silva Carvalho, Ariana R; Schmidt, André; Pazin Filho, Antônio

    2012-09-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate the internal reliability and validity of the Brazilian-Portuguese version of Duke Anticoagulation Satisfaction Scale (DASS) among cardiovascular patients. Oral anticoagulation is widely used to prevent and treat thromboembolic events in several conditions, especially in cardiovascular diseases; however, this therapy can induce dissatisfaction and reduce the quality of life. Methodological and cross-sectional research design. The cultural adaptation of the DASS included the translation and back-translation, discussions with healthcare professionals and patients to ensure conceptual equivalence, semantic evaluation and instrument pretest. The Brazilian-Portuguese version of the DASS was tested among subjects followed in a university hospital anticoagulation outpatient clinic. The psychometric properties were assessed by construct validity (convergent, known groups and dimensionality) and internal consistency/reliability (Cronbach's alpha). A total of 180 subjects under oral anticoagulation formed the baseline validation population. DASS total score and SF-36 domain correlations were moderate for General health (r=-0.47, pDASS score and most of the subscales, except Limitation (r=-0.375, pscale, and it ranged from 0.76 (hassles and burdens)-0.46 (psychological impact) among the domains, confirming the internal consistency reliability. The Brazilian-Portuguese version of the DASS has shown levels of reliability and validity comparable with the original English version. Healthcare practitioners and researchers need internationally validated measurement tools to compare outcomes of interventions in clinical management and research tools in oral anticoagulation therapy. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  12. Script Towards Research 2.0: The Influence of Digital and Online Tools in Academic Research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriela Grosseck

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The new Internet technologies have infiltrated in a stunning way the academic environment, both at individual and at institutional level. Therefore, more and more teachers have started educational blogs, librarians are active on Twitter, other educational actors curate web content, students post on Instagram or Flickr, and university departments have Facebook pages and/or YouTube accounts etc. Today, the use of web technology has become “a legitimate activity in many areas of higher education” (Waycott, 2010 and a considerable shift to digital academic research has gradually occurred. Teachers are encouraging students to take up digital tools for research and writing, thus revealing new ways of using information and communication technologies for academic purposes and not just for socializing. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of integrating diverse digital, Web 2.0 tools and resources and OERs/MOOCs in research and in the construction of students’ academic texts. We aim to stress the increasing influence of digital and online tools in academic research and writing. Teachers, specialists, and students alike are affected by this process. In order to show how, we explore the following issues: What is Research 2.0? Which digital/online tools have we used to assist our students? What are the challenges for academic research using digital / web 2.0 tools? And how do digital tools shape academic research?

  13. A PART OF RESEARCH METHODOLOGY COURSE: Introduction to the Research Tools

    OpenAIRE

    Ebrahim, Nader Ale

    2016-01-01

    Research Tools” can be defined as vehicles that broadly facilitate research and related activities. “Research Tools” enable researchers to collect, organize, analyze, visualize and publicized research  outputs. Dr. Nader has collected over 800 tools that enable students to follow the correct path in research and to ultimately produce high-quality research outputs with more accuracy and efficiency. It is assembled as an interactive Web-based mind map, titled “Research Tools”, which is updated...

  14. Applied regression analysis a research tool

    CERN Document Server

    Pantula, Sastry; Dickey, David

    1998-01-01

    Least squares estimation, when used appropriately, is a powerful research tool. A deeper understanding of the regression concepts is essential for achieving optimal benefits from a least squares analysis. This book builds on the fundamentals of statistical methods and provides appropriate concepts that will allow a scientist to use least squares as an effective research tool. Applied Regression Analysis is aimed at the scientist who wishes to gain a working knowledge of regression analysis. The basic purpose of this book is to develop an understanding of least squares and related statistical methods without becoming excessively mathematical. It is the outgrowth of more than 30 years of consulting experience with scientists and many years of teaching an applied regression course to graduate students. Applied Regression Analysis serves as an excellent text for a service course on regression for non-statisticians and as a reference for researchers. It also provides a bridge between a two-semester introduction to...

  15. search.bioPreprint: a discovery tool for cutting edge, preprint biomedical research articles [version 2; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carrie L. Iwema

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available The time it takes for a completed manuscript to be published traditionally can be extremely lengthy. Article publication delay, which occurs in part due to constraints associated with peer review, can prevent the timely dissemination of critical and actionable data associated with new information on rare diseases or developing health concerns such as Zika virus. Preprint servers are open access online repositories housing preprint research articles that enable authors (1 to make their research immediately and freely available and (2 to receive commentary and peer review prior to journal submission. There is a growing movement of preprint advocates aiming to change the current journal publication and peer review system, proposing that preprints catalyze biomedical discovery, support career advancement, and improve scientific communication. While the number of articles submitted to and hosted by preprint servers are gradually increasing, there has been no simple way to identify biomedical research published in a preprint format, as they are not typically indexed and are only discoverable by directly searching the specific preprint server websites. To address this issue, we created a search engine that quickly compiles preprints from disparate host repositories and provides a one-stop search solution. Additionally, we developed a web application that bolsters the discovery of preprints by enabling each and every word or phrase appearing on any web site to be integrated with articles from preprint servers. This tool, search.bioPreprint, is publicly available at http://www.hsls.pitt.edu/resources/preprint.

  16. Reliability and validity of an adapted Arabic version of the Scoliosis Research Society-22r Questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haidar, Rachid K; Kassak, Kassem; Masrouha, Karim; Ibrahim, Kamal; Mhaidli, Hani

    2015-09-01

    Cross-sectional validation and reliability assessment study of Arabic version of Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22r) Questionnaire. To develop and validate the Arabic version of the SRS-22r questionnaire. The diagnosis and treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis may influence patient quality of life. SRS-22r is an internationally validated questionnaire used to assess function/activity, pain, self-image, and mental health of patients with scoliosis. It has been translated into several languages but not into Arabic language. Therefore, a valid health-related quality-of-life outcome questionnaire for patients with spinal deformity is still lacking in Arabic language. The English version of SRS-22r questionnaire was translated, back-translated, and culturally adapted to Arabic language. Then, 81 patients with idiopathic adolescent scoliosis were allocated randomly into either the reliability testing group (group 1) or the validity testing group (group 2). Group 1 patients completed Arabic version of SRS-22r questionnaire twice with 1-week interval in-between. Cronbach α and intraclass correlation coefficient were measured to determine internal consistency and temporal reliability. Group 2 patients completed the Arabic version of SRS-22r questionnaire and the previously validated Arabic version of 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (Short Form-36) questionnaire concurrently, and Pearson correlation coefficient was obtained to assess validity. Content analysis, internal consistency reliability, test/retest reproducibility (intraclass correlation coefficient range: 0.82-0.90), and test of concurrent validity showed satisfactory results. Function/activity and satisfaction with management domains had a lower Cronbach α (0.58 and 0.44, respectively, vs. 0.71-0.85 range for others). Self-image/appearance and satisfaction with management had a lower correlation with domains of the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey. An Arabic version of the SRS-22r questionnaire has

  17. CLIPS - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM (IBM PC VERSION WITH CLIPSITS)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, , .

    1994-01-01

    The C Language Integrated Production System, CLIPS, is a shell for developing expert systems. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. The primary design goals for CLIPS are portability, efficiency, and functionality. For these reasons, the program is written in C. CLIPS meets or outperforms most micro- and minicomputer based artificial intelligence tools. CLIPS is a forward chaining rule-based language. The program contains an inference engine and a language syntax that provide a framework for the construction of an expert system. It also includes tools for debugging an application. CLIPS is based on the Rete algorithm, which enables very efficient pattern matching. The collection of conditions and actions to be taken if the conditions are met is constructed into a rule network. As facts are asserted either prior to or during a session, CLIPS pattern-matches the number of fields. Wildcards and variables are supported for both single and multiple fields. CLIPS syntax allows the inclusion of externally defined functions (outside functions which are written in a language other than CLIPS). CLIPS itself can be embedded in a program such that the expert system is available as a simple subroutine call. Advanced features found in CLIPS version 4.3 include an integrated microEMACS editor, the ability to generate C source code from a CLIPS rule base to produce a dedicated executable, binary load and save capabilities for CLIPS rule bases, and the utility program CRSV (Cross-Reference, Style, and Verification) designed to facilitate the development and maintenance of large rule bases. Five machine versions are available. Each machine version includes the source and the executable for that machine. The UNIX version includes the source and binaries for IBM RS/6000, Sun3 series, and Sun4 series computers. The UNIX, DEC VAX, and DEC RISC Workstation versions are line oriented. The PC version and the Macintosh

  18. The Unified Extensional Versioning Model

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Asklund, U.; Bendix, Lars Gotfred; Christensen, H. B.

    1999-01-01

    Versioning of components in a system is a well-researched field where various adequate techniques have already been established. In this paper, we look at how versioning can be extended to cover also the structural aspects of a system. There exist two basic techniques for versioning - intentional...

  19. Judging the Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Assessment Tools to Guide Future Tool Development: The use of Clinimetrics as Opposed to Psychometrics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip M. Westgate

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available In the face of the current Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS epidemic, there is considerable variability in the assessment and management of infants with NAS. In this manuscript, we particularly focus on NAS assessment, with special attention given to the popular Finnegan Neonatal Abstinence Score (FNAS. A major instigator of the problem of variable practices is that multiple modified versions of the FNAS exist and continue to be proposed, including shortened versions. Furthermore, the validity of such assessment tools has been questioned, and as a result, the need for better tools has been suggested. The ultimate purpose of this manuscript, therefore, is to increase researchers’ and clinicians’ understanding on how to judge the usefulness of NAS assessment tools in order to guide future tool development and to reduce variable practices. In short, we suggest that judgment of NAS assessment tools should be made on a clinimetrics viewpoint as opposed to psychometrically. We provide examples, address multiple issues that must be considered, and discuss future tool development. Furthermore, we urge researchers and clinicians to come together, utilizing their knowledge and experience, to assess the utility and practicality of existing assessment tools and to determine if one or more new or modified tools are needed with the goal of increased agreement on the assessment of NAS in practice.

  20. Using smartphones in survey research: a multifunctional tool

    OpenAIRE

    Nathalie Sonck; Henk Fernee

    2013-01-01

    Smartphones and apps offer an innovative means of collecting data from the public. The Netherlands Institute for Social Research | SCP has been engaged in one of the first experiments involving the use of a smartphone app to collect time use data recorded by means of an electronic diary. Is it feasible to use smartphones as a data collection tool for social research? What are the effects on data quality? Can we also incorporate reality mining tools in the smartphone app to replace traditional...

  1. mizuRoute version 1: A river network routing tool for a continental domain water resources applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mizukami, Naoki; Clark, Martyn P.; Sampson, Kevin; Nijssen, Bart; Mao, Yixin; McMillan, Hilary; Viger, Roland; Markstrom, Steven; Hay, Lauren E.; Woods, Ross; Arnold, Jeffrey R.; Brekke, Levi D.

    2016-01-01

    This paper describes the first version of a stand-alone runoff routing tool, mizuRoute. The mizuRoute tool post-processes runoff outputs from any distributed hydrologic model or land surface model to produce spatially distributed streamflow at various spatial scales from headwater basins to continental-wide river systems. The tool can utilize both traditional grid-based river network and vector-based river network data. Both types of river network include river segment lines and the associated drainage basin polygons, but the vector-based river network can represent finer-scale river lines than the grid-based network. Streamflow estimates at any desired location in the river network can be easily extracted from the output of mizuRoute. The routing process is simulated as two separate steps. First, hillslope routing is performed with a gamma-distribution-based unit-hydrograph to transport runoff from a hillslope to a catchment outlet. The second step is river channel routing, which is performed with one of two routing scheme options: (1) a kinematic wave tracking (KWT) routing procedure; and (2) an impulse response function – unit-hydrograph (IRF-UH) routing procedure. The mizuRoute tool also includes scripts (python, NetCDF operators) to pre-process spatial river network data. This paper demonstrates mizuRoute's capabilities to produce spatially distributed streamflow simulations based on river networks from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Geospatial Fabric (GF) data set in which over 54 000 river segments and their contributing areas are mapped across the contiguous United States (CONUS). A brief analysis of model parameter sensitivity is also provided. The mizuRoute tool can assist model-based water resources assessments including studies of the impacts of climate change on streamflow.

  2. Using bio.tools to generate and annotate workbench tool descriptions [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kenzo-Hugo Hillion

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Workbench and workflow systems such as Galaxy, Taverna, Chipster, or Common Workflow Language (CWL-based frameworks, facilitate the access to bioinformatics tools in a user-friendly, scalable and reproducible way. Still, the integration of tools in such environments remains a cumbersome, time consuming and error-prone process. A major consequence is the incomplete or outdated description of tools that are often missing important information, including parameters and metadata such as publication or links to documentation. ToolDog (Tool DescriptiOn Generator facilitates the integration of tools - which have been registered in the ELIXIR tools registry (https://bio.tools - into workbench environments by generating tool description templates. ToolDog includes two modules. The first module analyses the source code of the bioinformatics software with language-specific plugins, and generates a skeleton for a Galaxy XML or CWL tool description. The second module is dedicated to the enrichment of the generated tool description, using metadata provided by bio.tools. This last module can also be used on its own to complete or correct existing tool descriptions with missing metadata.

  3. Data Collection and Management with ENSITE HUB: ENSITE HUB Version 1.0

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-08-01

    ER D C/ CE RL S R- 17 -1 4 Engineer Site Identification for the Tactical Environment (ENSITE) Data Collection and Management with ENSITE...and Management with ENSITE HUB ENSITE HUB Version 1.0 Juliana M. Wilhoit, Natalie R. Myers, and George W. Calfas Construction Engineering Research...and standardized manner. With such a tool, CB planners (as well as designers, operators, and manag - ers) can rapidly assess possible current and

  4. ELIPGRID-PC: Upgraded version

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Davidson, J.R.

    1995-12-01

    Evaluating the need for and the effectiveness of remedial cleanup at waste sites often includes finding average contaminant concentrations and identifying pockets of contamination called hot spots. The standard tool for calculating the probability of detecting pockets of contamination called hot spots has been the ELIPGRID code of singer and Wickman. The ELIPGRID-PC program has recently made this algorithm available for an IBM reg-sign personal computer (PC) or compatible. A new version of ELIPGRID-PC, incorporating Monte Carlo test results and simple graphics, is herein described. Various examples of how to use the program for both single and multiple hot spot cases are given. The code for an American National Standards Institute C version of the ELIPGRID algorithm is provided, and limitations and further work are noted. This version of ELIPGRID-PC reliably meets the goal of moving Singer's ELIPGRID algorithm to the PC

  5. Development of a data capture tool for researching tech entrepreneurship

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Andersen, Jakob Axel Bejbro; Howard, Thomas J.; McAloone, Tim C.

    2014-01-01

    . This paper elucidates the requirements for such tools by drawing on knowledge of the entrepreneurial phenomenon and by building on the existing research tools used in design research. On this basis, the development of a capture method for tech startup processes is described and its potential discussed....

  6. UQTk version 2.0 user manual

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Debusschere, Bert J. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States); Sargsyan, Khachik [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States); Safta, Cosmin [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-CA), Livermore, CA (United States)

    2013-10-01

    The UQ Toolkit (UQTk) is a collection of libraries and tools for the quantification of uncertainty in numerical model predictions. Version 2.0 ffers intrusive and non-intrusive methods for propagating input uncertainties through computational models, tools for sensitivity analysis, methods for sparse surrogate construction, and Bayesian inference tools for inferring parameters from experimental data. This manual discusses the download and installation process for UQTk, provides pointers to the UQ methods used in the toolkit, and describes some of the examples provided with the toolkit.

  7. [Psychometric validation in Spanish of the Brazilian short version of the Primary Care Assessment Tools-users questionnaire for the evaluation of the orientation of health systems towards primary care].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vázquez Peña, Fernando; Harzheim, Erno; Terrasa, Sergio; Berra, Silvina

    2017-02-01

    To validate the Brazilian short version of the PCAT for adult patients in Spanish. Analysis of secondary data from studies made to validate the extended version of the PCAT questionnaire. City of Córdoba, Argentina. Primary health care. The sample consisted of 46% of parents, whose children were enrolled in secondary education in three institutes in the city of Cordoba, and the remaining 54% were adult users of the National University of Cordoba Health Insurance. Pearson's correlation coefficient comparing the extended and short versions. Goodness-of-fit indices in confirmatory factor analysis, composite reliability, average variance extracted, and Cronbach's alpha values, in order to assess the construct validity and the reliability of the short version. The values of Pearson's correlation coefficient between this short version and the long version were high .818 (Pmedia extracted: .3306, since 3 variables had weak factorials loads. The Cronbach's alpha was acceptable (.85). The short version of the PCAT-users developed in Brazil showed an acceptable psychometric performance in Spanish as a quick assessment tool, in a comparative study with the extended version. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  8. A Visualization Tool for Integrating Research Results at an Underground Mine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boltz, S.; Macdonald, B. D.; Orr, T.; Johnson, W.; Benton, D. J.

    2016-12-01

    Researchers with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health are conducting research at a deep, underground metal mine in Idaho to develop improvements in ground control technologies that reduce the effects of dynamic loading on mine workings, thereby decreasing the risk to miners. This research is multifaceted and includes: photogrammetry, microseismic monitoring, geotechnical instrumentation, and numerical modeling. When managing research involving such a wide range of data, understanding how the data relate to each other and to the mining activity quickly becomes a daunting task. In an effort to combine this diverse research data into a single, easy-to-use system, a three-dimensional visualization tool was developed. The tool was created using the Unity3d video gaming engine and includes the mine development entries, production stopes, important geologic structures, and user-input research data. The tool provides the user with a first-person, interactive experience where they are able to walk through the mine as well as navigate the rock mass surrounding the mine to view and interpret the imported data in the context of the mine and as a function of time. The tool was developed using data from a single mine; however, it is intended to be a generic tool that can be easily extended to other mines. For example, a similar visualization tool is being developed for an underground coal mine in Colorado. The ultimate goal is for NIOSH researchers and mine personnel to be able to use the visualization tool to identify trends that may not otherwise be apparent when viewing the data separately. This presentation highlights the features and capabilities of the mine visualization tool and explains how it may be used to more effectively interpret data and reduce the risk of ground fall hazards to underground miners.

  9. Narratives and Activity Theory as Reflective Tools in Action Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stuart, Kaz

    2012-01-01

    Narratives and activity theory are useful as socially constructed data collection tools that allow a researcher access to the social, cultural and historical meanings that research participants place on events in their lives. This case study shows how these tools were used to promote reflection within a cultural-historical activity theoretically…

  10. Validation of a new assessment tool for qualitative research articles

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schou, Lone; Høstrup, Helle; Lyngsø, Elin

    2012-01-01

    schou l., høstrup h., lyngsø e.e., larsen s. & poulsen i. (2011) Validation of a new assessment tool for qualitative research articles. Journal of Advanced Nursing00(0), 000-000. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2648.2011.05898.x ABSTRACT: Aim.  This paper presents the development and validation of a new...... assessment tool for qualitative research articles, which could assess trustworthiness of qualitative research articles as defined by Guba and at the same time aid clinicians in their assessment. Background.  There are more than 100 sets of proposals for quality criteria for qualitative research. However, we...... is the Danish acronym for Appraisal of Qualitative Studies. Phase 1 was to develop the tool based on a literature review and on consultation with qualitative researchers. Phase 2 was an inter-rater reliability test in which 40 health professionals participated. Phase 3 was an inter-rater reliability test among...

  11. Serious Games are a Serious Tool for Team Research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael D. Coovert

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Serious games are an attractive tool for education and training, but their utility is even broader. We argue serious games provide a unique opportunity for research as well, particularly in areas where multiple players (groups or teams are involved. In our paper we provide background in several substantive areas. First, we outline major constructs and challenges found in team research. Secondly, we discuss serious games, providing an overview and description of their role in education, training, and research. Thirdly, we describe necessary characteristics for game engines utilized in team research, followed by a discussion of the value added by utilizing serious games. Our goal in this paper is to argue serious games are an effective tool with demonstrated reliability and validity and should be part of a research program for those engaged in team research. Both team researchers and those involved in serious game development can benefit from a mutual partnership which is research focused.

  12. The UEA sRNA Workbench (version 4.4): a comprehensive suite of tools for analyzing miRNAs and sRNAs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stocks, Matthew B; Mohorianu, Irina; Beckers, Matthew; Paicu, Claudia; Moxon, Simon; Thody, Joshua; Dalmay, Tamas; Moulton, Vincent

    2018-05-02

    RNA interference, a highly conserved regulatory mechanism, is mediated via small RNAs. Recent technical advances enabled the analysis of larger, complex datasets and the investigation of microRNAs and the less known small interfering RNAs. However, the size and intricacy of current data requires a comprehensive set of tools, able to discriminate the patterns from the low-level, noise-like, variation; numerous and varied suggestions from the community represent an invaluable source of ideas for future tools, the ability of the community to contribute to this software is essential. We present a new version of the UEA sRNA Workbench, reconfigured to allow an easy insertion of new tools/workflows. In its released form, it comprises of a suite of tools in a user-friendly environment, with enhanced capabilities for a comprehensive processing of sRNA-seq data e.g. tools for an accurate prediction of sRNA loci (CoLIde) and miRNA loci (miRCat2), as well as workflows to guide the users through common steps such as quality checking of the input data, normalization of abundances or detection of differential expression represent the first step in sRNA-seq analyses. The UEA sRNA Workbench is available at: http://srna-workbench.cmp.uea.ac.uk The source code is available at: https://github.com/sRNAworkbenchuea/UEA_sRNA_Workbench. v.moulton@uea.ac.uk.

  13. FOSS Tools for Research Data Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stender, Vivien; Jankowski, Cedric; Hammitzsch, Martin; Wächter, Joachim

    2017-04-01

    Established initiatives and organizations, e.g. the Initiative for Scientific Cyberinfrastructures (NSF, 2007) or the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI, 2008), promote and foster the development of sustainable research infrastructures. These infrastructures aim the provision of services supporting scientists to search, visualize and access data, to collaborate and exchange information, as well as to publish data and other results. In this regard, Research Data Management (RDM) gains importance and thus requires the support by appropriate tools integrated in these infrastructures. Different projects provide arbitrary solutions to manage research data. However, within two projects - SUMARIO for land and water management and TERENO for environmental monitoring - solutions to manage research data have been developed based on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) components. The resulting framework provides essential components for harvesting, storing and documenting research data, as well as for discovering, visualizing and downloading these data on the basis of standardized services stimulated considerably by enhanced data management approaches of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). In order to fully exploit the potentials of these developments for enhancing data management in Geosciences the publication of software components, e.g. via GitHub, is not sufficient. We will use our experience to move these solutions into the cloud e.g. as PaaS or SaaS offerings. Our contribution will present data management solutions for the Geosciences developed in two projects. A sort of construction kit with FOSS components build the backbone for the assembly and implementation of projects specific platforms. Furthermore, an approach is presented to stimulate the reuse of FOSS RDM solutions with cloud concepts. In further projects specific RDM platforms can be set-up much faster, customized to the individual needs and tools can be added during the run-time.

  14. Pro Tools All-in-One For Dummies

    CERN Document Server

    Strong, Jeff

    2012-01-01

    A professional musician guides serious hobbyists through Pro Tool Pro Tools puts professional recording and music production software in the hands of anyone with the appropriate hardware and the knowledge to use it. Musician and recording engineer Jeff Strong guides you through the latest version of this complex program, offering twice the content of the official guide at a lower price. Eight minibooks cover recording basics, getting started with Pro Tools, recording audio, editing audio, managing MIDI, mixing, mastering, and getting your music to the masses.The latest version of Pro Tools off

  15. [Adaptation of the Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture (MOSPSC) tool].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Silvestre-Busto, C; Torijano-Casalengua, M L; Olivera-Cañadas, G; Astier-Peña, M P; Maderuelo-Fernández, J A; Rubio-Aguado, E A

    2015-01-01

    To adapt the Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture (MOSPSC) Excel(®) tool for its use by Primary Care Teams of the Spanish National Public Health System. The process of translation and adaptation of MOSPSC from the Agency for Healthcare and Research in Quality (AHRQ) was performed in five steps: Original version translation, Conceptual equivalence evaluation, Acceptability and viability assessment, Content validity and Questionnaire test and response analysis, and psychometric properties assessment. After confirming MOSPSC as a valid, reliable, consistent and useful tool for assessing patient safety culture in our setting, an Excel(®) worksheet was translated and adapted in the same way. It was decided to develop a tool to analyze the "Spanish survey" and to keep it linked to the "Original version" tool. The "Spanish survey" comparison data are those obtained in a 2011 nationwide Spanish survey, while the "Original version" comparison data are those provided by the AHRQ in 2012. The translated and adapted tool and the analysis of the results from a 2011 nationwide Spanish survey are available on the website of the Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality. It allows the questions which are decisive in the different dimensions to be determined, and it provides a comparison of the results with graphical representation. Translation and adaptation of this tool enables a patient safety culture in Primary Care in Spain to be more effectively applied. Copyright © 2014 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  16. RASCAL Version 2.1 workbook. Volume 2, Revision 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Athey, G.F.; Sjoreen, A.L.; McKenna, T.J.

    1994-12-01

    The Radiological Assessment System for Consequence Analysis, Version 2.1 (RASCAL 2.1) was developed for use by the NRC personnel who respond to radiological emergencies. This workbook complements the RASCAL 2.1 User's guide (NUREG/CR-5247, Vol. 1, Rev. 2). The workbook contains exercises designed to familiarize the user with the computer-based tools of RASCAL through hands-on problem solving. The workbook contains four major sections. The first is a RASCAL familiarization exercise to acquaint the user with the operation of the forms, menus, online help, and documentation. The latter three sections contain exercises in using the three tools of RASCAL Version 2.1: DECAY, FM-DOSE, and ST-DOSE. A discussion section describing how the tools could be used to solve the problems follows each set of exercises

  17. OOTW COST TOOLS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    HARTLEY, D.S.III; PACKARD, S.L.

    1998-09-01

    This document reports the results of a study of cost tools to support the analysis of Operations Other Than War (OOTW). It recommends the continued development of the Department of Defense (DoD) Contingency Operational Support Tool (COST) as the basic cost analysis tool for 00TWS. It also recommends modifications to be included in future versions of COST and the development of an 00TW mission planning tool to supply valid input for costing.

  18. Impact of design research on industrial practice tools, technology, and training

    CERN Document Server

    Lindemann, Udo

    2016-01-01

    Showcasing exemplars of how various aspects of design research were successfully transitioned into and influenced, design practice, this book features chapters written by eminent international researchers and practitioners from industry on the Impact of Design Research on Industrial Practice. Chapters written by internationally acclaimed researchers of design analyse the findings (guidelines, methods and tools), technologies/products and educational approaches that have been transferred as tools, technologies and people to transform industrial practice of engineering design, whilst the chapters that are written by industrial practitioners describe their experience of how various tools, technologies and training impacted design practice. The main benefit of this book, for educators, researchers and practitioners in (engineering) design, will be access to a comprehensive coverage of case studies of successful transfer of outcomes of design research into practice; as well as guidelines and platforms for successf...

  19. DECADES Tools. User's manual for version 1.0

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2000-01-01

    Comprehensive comparative assessment studies of electricity options and strategies rely upon methodological approaches integrating technical, economic and human health, environmental and social aspects, and on comprehensive, reliable and up-to-date information covering all relevant characteristics of the energy chains for electricity generation. Often, however, the information available for national or regional studies cannot be directly compared or adapted to new conditions because it has been collected in different formats or is based on different assumptions. Some countries, particularly developing countries, lack sufficient resources to explore the benefits of applying new technologies and to carry out comprehensive comparative assessments of different energy sources. The inter-agency joint project on databases and methodologies for comparative assessment of different energy sources for electricity generation, in short DECADES, was established at the beginning of 1993, when nine international organizations (EC, ESCAP, IAEA, IIASA, IBRD, OECD/NEA, OPEC, UNIDO and WMO) agreed to join their efforts towards a common objective of enhancing the capabilities for comparative assessment of different energy sources in the process of planning and decision making for the electricity sector. One of the major achievements of the project is that an integrated software package for use on personal computers (PCs), called DECADES Tools, was developed to provide senior analysts and energy planners with an easy to use tool for carrying out decision support studies for the power sector. These tools consist of: several databases providing a comprehensive, harmonized set of technical, economic and environmental data for energy chains that use fossil fuels, nuclear power and, renewable energy sources for electricity generation; a data management system which provides user friendly access to the DECADES databases; an analytical software designed to access the information stored in the

  20. [Short Spanish version of Team Climate Inventory (TCI-14): development and psychometric properties].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boada-Grau, Joan; de Diego-Vallejo, Raúl; de Llanos-Serra, Emma; Vigil-Colet, Andreu

    2011-04-01

    The aim of the present paper was to develop a Spanish adaptation of the reduced, 14-item version of the Team Climate Inventory (TCI-14), a questionnaire developed to evaluate team climate. To this end the English version was adapted and applied to a sample of 360 employees from Castilla-León and Catalonia (44.4% men and 55.6% women). The results indicated that the TCI-14 has the same structure as the original version, and confirmatory factor analysis was used to verify the existence of the factors Vision, Participative Safety, Task Orientation and Support for Innovation. The TCI-14 also presented good reliability coefficients considering the low number of items on each scale (alphas ranged between .75 and .82). The TCI-14 is a potentially useful instrument for evaluating the climate of work teams. It could be used by future research as a screening tool in conjunction with other instruments.

  1. [Consequences of errors in the translation of questionnaires: Spanish version of Downton index].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aranda-Gallardo, M; Morales-Asencio, J M; Canca-Sánchez, J C; Morales-Fernández, Á; Enríquez de Luna-Rodríguez, M; Moya-Suarez, A B; Mora-Banderas, A M; Pérez-Jiménez, C; Barrero-Sojo, S

    2015-01-01

    The application of screening tools to detect the risk of falls in hospitalized patients is in general use. During the development of a systematic review a serious disparity in three items of the Spanish version of the Downton index was detected, compared to the original version. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of this error and to compare the estimated risk of falls with each of these versions, its validity and internal consistency. A descriptive cross-sectional study in acute hospitalised patients was performed during 2011 in Hospital Costa del Sol, Marbella. The patients' risk of falling was assessed by the Spanish version of the Downton index, and then it was re-calculated according to the items in the original version. Sensitivity, specificity and Cronbach's alpha were calculated. Application of the original version of the index reduced the number of patients classified as "high risk" of falling by 24.2%. With the Spanish version of the tool, the possibility of being classed as "high risk" of falling was considerably 3.3 times higher (OR: 3.3). Both versions of the Downton index showed low accuracy and diagnostic validity. The sensitivity of the original scale was 28% and specificity of 82%. Its internal consistency was low (Cronbach's alpha: .51). The Downton index, given its poor accuracy and diagnostic validity, low internal consistency, and the significant error observed in its Spanish translation, is not the most appropriate tool to assess the risk of falls in hospitalised acute patients. Copyright © 2014 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  2. Psychometric properties of the Persian version of the Intensive and Critical Care Nursing Competence Scale version-1 (ICCN-CS-1).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shouryabi, Ali Asghar; Ghahrisarabi, Alireza; Anboohi, Sima Zohari; Nasiri, Malihe; Rassouli, Maryam

    2017-11-01

    Nursing competence is highly related to patient outcomes and patient safety issues, especially in intensive care units. Competence assessment tools are needed specifically for intensive care nursing. This study was performed to determine psychometric properties of the Intensive and Critical Care Nursing Competence Scale version-1 between Iranian Nurses. The present study was a methodological research in which 289 nurses of Intensive Care Units from nine hospitals in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Tehran were selected between 2015 and 2016. The original version of the scale was translated into Persian and back-translated into English, and the comments of the developer were applied. The validity of the scale was the determined quality (content validity and face validity) and quantity (confirmatory factor analysis). Reliability of the scale was reported by Cronbach's alpha coefficient and Intra class Correlation Coefficient. SPSS-PC (v.21) and LISREL (v.8.5) were used to analyze the data. The intensive and critical care nursing competence scale version-1 is a self-assessment test that consists of 144 items and four domains which are the knowledge base, the skill base, the attitudes and values base and the experience base, which are divided into clinical competence and professional competence. Content and face validity was confirmed by 10 experts and 10 practitioner nurses in the intensive care units. In confirmatory factor analysis, all fitness indexes, except goodness of fit index (0.64), confirmed the four-factor structure of the ICCN-CS-1. The results of the factor analysis, load factor between 0.304 and 0.727 items was estimated; only 4 items out of 144 items, that were loaded were less than 0.3 due to high Cronbach's alpha coefficient (0.984-0.986), all items were preserved, no item was removed and 4 subscales of the original scale were confirmed. The results of this study indicated that the Persian version of "The Intensive and Critical Care

  3. UQTk Version 3.0.3 User Manual

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sargsyan, Khachik [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Safta, Cosmin [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Chowdhary, Kamaljit Singh [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Castorena, Sarah [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); De Bord, Sarah [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Debusschere, Bert [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

    2017-05-01

    The UQ Toolkit (UQTk) is a collection of libraries and tools for the quantification of uncertainty in numerical model predictions. Version 3.0.3 offers intrusive and non-intrusive methods for propagating input uncertainties through computational models, tools for sen- sitivity analysis, methods for sparse surrogate construction, and Bayesian inference tools for inferring parameters from experimental data. This manual discusses the download and installation process for UQTk, provides pointers to the UQ methods used in the toolkit, and describes some of the examples provided with the toolkit.

  4. Dynamic wind turbine models in power system simulation tool DIgSILENT

    OpenAIRE

    Hansen, A.D.; Jauch, C.; Sørensen, Poul Ejnar; Iov, F.; Blaabjerg, F.

    2004-01-01

    The present report describes the dynamic wind turbine models implemented in the power system simulation tool DIgSILENT (Version 12.0). The developed models are a part of the results of a national research project, whose overall objective is to create amodel database in different simulation tools. This model database should be able to support the analysis of the interaction between the mechanical structure of the wind turbine and the electrical grid during different operational modes. The repo...

  5. AF-GEOSpace Version 2.0: Space Environment Software Products for 2002

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hilmer, R. V.; Ginet, G. P.; Hall, T.; Holeman, E.; Tautz, M.

    2002-05-01

    AF-GEOSpace Version 2.0 (release 2002 on WindowsNT/2000/XP) is a graphics-intensive software program developed by AFRL with space environment models and applications. It has grown steadily to become a development tool for automated space weather visualization products and helps with a variety of tasks: orbit specification for radiation hazard avoidance; satellite design assessment and post-event analysis; solar disturbance effects forecasting; frequency and antenna management for radar and HF communications; determination of link outage regions for active ionospheric conditions; and physics research and education. The object-oriented C++ code is divided into five module classes. Science Modules control science models to give output data on user-specified grids. Application Modules manipulate these data and provide orbit generation and magnetic field line tracing capabilities. Data Modules read and assist with the analysis of user-generated data sets. Graphics Modules enable the display of features such as plane slices, magnetic field lines, line plots, axes, the Earth, stars, and satellites. Worksheet Modules provide commonly requested coordinate transformations and calendar conversion tools. Common input data archive sets, application modules, and 1-, 2-, and 3-D visualization tools are provided to all models. The code documentation includes detailed examples with click-by-click instructions for investigating phenomena that have well known effects on communications and spacecraft systems. AF-GEOSpace Version 2.0 builds on the success of its predecessors. The first release (Version 1.21, 1996/IRIX on SGI) contained radiation belt particle flux and dose models derived from CRRES satellite data, an aurora model, an ionosphere model, and ionospheric HF ray tracing capabilities. Next (Version 1.4, 1999/IRIX on SGI) science modules were added related to cosmic rays and solar protons, low-Earth orbit radiation dosages, single event effects probability maps, ionospheric

  6. Empirical validation of the English version of the Fear of Cancer Recurrence Inventory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lebel, Sophie; Simard, Sebastien; Harris, Cheryl; Feldstain, Andrea; Beattie, Sara; McCallum, Megan; Lefebvre, Monique; Savard, Josée; Devins, Gerald M

    2016-02-01

    Cancer patients report that help in managing fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) is one of their greatest unmet needs. Research on FCR has been limited by the very few validated, multi-dimensional measures of this construct. One exception is the Fear of Cancer Recurrence Inventory (FCRI), originally developed and empirically validated in French. The present study validated the English version of the FCRI. The FCRI was translated into English using a forward-backward translation procedure and pilot-tested with 17 English-speaking cancer patients. Cross-cultural equivalency of the French and English versions was established by administering both forms to 42 bilingual cancer patients. Last, 350 English-speaking breast, colon, prostate, or lung cancer patients were asked to complete the FCRI. A subsample (n = 135) was mailed the FCRI again one month later to evaluate test-retest reliability. The English translation of the FCRI was well accepted by participants. There was no item-bias when comparing bilingual participants' answers on both versions. A confirmatory factor analysis supported the hypothesized seven-factor structure. The English version has high internal consistency (α = .96 for the total scale and .71-.94 for the subscales) and test-retest reliability (r = .88 for the total scale and 56-.87 for the subscales). The English version of the FCRI is a reliable and valid measure of FCR applicable to breast, colon, prostate, and lung cancer patients. Its multi-dimensional nature makes it an attractive research and clinical tool to further our knowledge of FCR.

  7. A psychometric evaluation of the Swedish version of the Research Utilization Questionnaire using a Rasch measurement model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lundberg, Veronica; Boström, Anne-Marie; Malinowsky, Camilla

    2017-07-30

    Evidence-based practice and research utilisation has become a commonly used concept in health care. The Research Utilization Questionnaire (RUQ) has been recognised to be a widely used instrument measuring the perception of research utilisation among nursing staff in clinical practice. Few studies have however analysed the psychometric properties of the RUQ. The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Swedish version of the three subscales in RUQ using a Rasch measurement model. This study has a cross-sectional design using a sample of 163 staff (response rate 81%) working in one nursing home in Sweden. Data were collected using the Swedish version of RUQ in 2012. The three subscales Attitudes towards research, Availability of and support for research use and Use of research findings in clinical practice were investigated. Data were analysed using a Rasch measurement model. The results indicate presence of multidimensionality in all subscales. Moreover, internal scale validity and person response validity also provide some less satisfactory results, especially for the subscale Use of research findings. Overall, there seems to be a problem with the negatively worded statements. The findings suggest that clarification and refining of items, including additional psychometric evaluation of the RUQ, are needed before using the instrument in clinical practice and research studies among staff in nursing homes. © 2017 Nordic College of Caring Science.

  8. Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale: Psychometric properties in mainland China and development of a short form.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xia, Jie; Wu, Daxing; Zhang, Jibiao; Xu, Yuanchao; Xu, Yunxuan

    2016-06-01

    This study aimed to validate the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale in a sample of 730 adult Chinese individuals. Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the bidimensionality of the scale with two factors, optimism and pessimism. The total scale and optimism and pessimism factors demonstrated satisfactory reliability and validity. Population-based normative data and mean values for gender, age, and education were determined. Furthermore, we developed a 20-item short form of the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale with structural validity comparable to the full form. In summary, the Chinese version of the Optimism and Pessimism Scale is an appropriate and practical tool for epidemiological research in mainland China. © The Author(s) 2014.

  9. Portuguese version of a stress and well-being evaluation tool (ASSET)at the workplace: validation of the psychometric properties

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moreira, Sérgio; Carreiras, Joana; Cooper, Cary; Smeed, Matthew; Reis, Maria de Fátima; Pereira Miguel, José

    2018-01-01

    Objective The main objective of this work was to translate the English version of ASSET (A Shortened Stress Evaluation Tool) into the Portuguese version and to validate its psychometric properties. Additionally, this work tested the convergent validity of the instrument. Methods The translation and retroversion were conducted by experts and submitted to the authors for approval. Within an observational, cross-sectional study, regarding mental health at the workplace, ASSET together with other scales was applied to a sample of 405 participants. The psychometric validity of the subscales was studied using confirmatory factorial analysis. Results The factorial structure of ASSET is globally supported by the results, with the Perceptions of Your Job and Attitudes Towards your Organisation subscales requiring slight adjustments in the item structure and the Your Health subscales replicating the original structure. The convergent validity also supports the ASSET, showing that all subscales are significantly correlated with variables used to test convergence. Conclusions Globally, the results constitute an important contribution to ASSET and open the possibility of its usage among Portuguese-speaking countries. The results provide an evidence on the validity of the instrument and, in particular, of the mental and physical health subscales. PMID:29440211

  10. Validation of the Arabic Version of the Internet Gaming Disorder-20 Test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hawi, Nazir S; Samaha, Maya

    2017-04-01

    In recent years, researchers have been trying to shed light on gaming addiction and its association with different psychiatric disorders and psychological determinants. The latest edition version of the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) included in its Section 3 Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) as a condition for further empirical study and proposed nine criteria for the diagnosis of IGD. The 20-item Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD-20) Test was developed as a valid and reliable tool to assess gaming addiction based on the nine criteria set by the DSM-5. The aim of this study is to validate an Arabic version of the IGD-20 Test. The Arabic version of IGD-20 will not only help in identifying Arabic-speaking pathological gamers but also stimulate cross-cultural studies that could contribute to an area in need of more research for insight and treatment. After a process of translation and back-translation and with the participation of a sizable sample of Arabic-speaking adolescents, the present study conducted a psychometric validation of the IGD-20 Test. Our confirmatory factor analysis showed the validity of the Arabic version of the IGD-20 Test. The one-factor model of the Arabic IGD-20 Test had very good psychometric properties, and it fitted the sample data extremely well. In addition, correlation analysis between the IGD-20 Test and the daily duration on weekdays and weekends gameplay revealed significant positive relationships that warranted a criterion-related validation. Thus, the Arabic version of the IGD-20 Test is a valid and reliable measure of IGD among Arabic-speaking populations.

  11. DarcyTools version 3.4 - Concepts, Methods and Equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban; Kuylenstierna, Hans-Olof; Ferry, Michel

    2010-12-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is a general code for this class of problems, but the analysis of a repository for nuclear waste is the main intended application. A number of novel features are introduced in DarcyTools. The most fundamental is perhaps the method to generate grid properties (DarcyTools is a continuum porous-media code); a fracture network, with properties given to each fracture, is represented in the computational grid by a method that is based on intersecting volumes (fracture volumes and grid cell volumes). This method is believed to result in very accurate anisotropy and connectivity properties. The report focuses on the concepts, assumptions, equations and key features of DarcyTools. The main part of the report is fairly short; a number of appendices give more detailed accounts of various aspects of the code

  12. DarcyTools version 3.4 - Concepts, Methods and Equations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban; Kuylenstierna, Hans-Olof (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Lyckeby (Sweden)); Ferry, Michel (MFRDC, Orvault (France))

    2010-12-15

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is a general code for this class of problems, but the analysis of a repository for nuclear waste is the main intended application. A number of novel features are introduced in DarcyTools. The most fundamental is perhaps the method to generate grid properties (DarcyTools is a continuum porous-media code); a fracture network, with properties given to each fracture, is represented in the computational grid by a method that is based on intersecting volumes (fracture volumes and grid cell volumes). This method is believed to result in very accurate anisotropy and connectivity properties. The report focuses on the concepts, assumptions, equations and key features of DarcyTools. The main part of the report is fairly short; a number of appendices give more detailed accounts of various aspects of the code.

  13. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML): Language Specification for Level 3 Version 2 Core.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hucka, Michael; Bergmann, Frank T; Dräger, Andreas; Hoops, Stefan; Keating, Sarah M; Le Novère, Nicolas; Myers, Chris J; Olivier, Brett G; Sahle, Sven; Schaff, James C; Smith, Lucian P; Waltemath, Dagmar; Wilkinson, Darren J

    2018-03-09

    Computational models can help researchers to interpret data, understand biological functions, and make quantitative predictions. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) is a file format for representing computational models in a declarative form that different software systems can exchange. SBML is oriented towards describing biological processes of the sort common in research on a number of topics, including metabolic pathways, cell signaling pathways, and many others. By supporting SBML as an input/output format, different tools can all operate on an identical representation of a model, removing opportunities for translation errors and assuring a common starting point for analyses and simulations. This document provides the specification for Version 2 of SBML Level 3 Core. The specification defines the data structures prescribed by SBML, their encoding in XML (the eXtensible Markup Language), validation rules that determine the validity of an SBML document, and examples of models in SBML form. The design of Version 2 differs from Version 1 principally in allowing new MathML constructs, making more child elements optional, and adding identifiers to all SBML elements instead of only selected elements. Other materials and software are available from the SBML project website at http://sbml.org/.

  14. [Validity and reliability of the spanish EQ-5D-Y proxy version].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gusi, N; Perez-Sousa, M A; Gozalo-Delgado, M; Olivares, P R

    2014-10-01

    A proxy version of the EQ-5D-Y, a questionnaire to evaluate the Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in children and adolescents, has recently been developed. There are currently no data on the validity and reliability of this tool. The objective of this study was to analyze the validity and reliability of the EQ-5D-Y proxy version. A core set of self-report tools, including the Spanish version of the EQ-5D-Y were administered to a group of Spanish children and adolescents drawn from the general population. A similar core set of internationally standardized proxy tools, including the EQ-5D-Y proxy version were administered to their parents. Test-retest reliability was determined, and correlations with other generic measurements of HRQoL were calculated. Additionally, known group validity was examined by comparing groups with a priori expected differences in HRQoL. The agreement between the self-report and proxy version responses was also calculated. A total of 477 children and adolescents and their parents participated in the study. One week later, 158 participants completed the EQ-5D-Y/EQ-5D-Y proxy to facilitate reliability analysis. Agreement between the test-retest scores was higher than 88% for EQ-5D-Y self-report, and proxy version. Correlations with other health measurements showed similar convergent validity to that observed in the international EQ-5D-Y. Agreement between the self-report and proxy versions ranged from 72.9% to 97.1%. The results provide preliminary evidence of the reliability and validity of the EQ-5D-Y proxy version. Copyright © 2013 Asociación Española de Pediatría. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  15. Watershed Management Optimization Support Tool (WMOST) ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    EPA's Watershed Management Optimization Support Tool (WMOST) version 2 is a decision support tool designed to facilitate integrated water management by communities at the small watershed scale. WMOST allows users to look across management options in stormwater (including green infrastructure), wastewater, drinking water, and land conservation programs to find the least cost solutions. The pdf version of these presentations accompany the recorded webinar with closed captions to be posted on the WMOST web page. The webinar was recorded at the time a training workshop took place for EPA's Watershed Management Optimization Support Tool (WMOST, v2).

  16. Drawing as a user experience research tool

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fleury, Alexandre

    2011-01-01

    such previous work, two case studies are presented, in which drawings helped investigate the relationship between media technology users and two specific devices, namely television and mobile phones. The experiment generated useful data and opened for further consideration of the method as an appropriate HCI...... research tool....

  17. Version control of pathway models using XML patches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saffrey, Peter; Orton, Richard

    2009-03-17

    Computational modelling has become an important tool in understanding biological systems such as signalling pathways. With an increase in size complexity of models comes a need for techniques to manage model versions and their relationship to one another. Model version control for pathway models shares some of the features of software version control but has a number of differences that warrant a specific solution. We present a model version control method, along with a prototype implementation, based on XML patches. We show its application to the EGF/RAS/RAF pathway. Our method allows quick and convenient storage of a wide range of model variations and enables a thorough explanation of these variations. Trying to produce these results without such methods results in slow and cumbersome development that is prone to frustration and human error.

  18. Primer on consumer marketing research : procedures, methods, and tools

    Science.gov (United States)

    1994-03-01

    The Volpe Center developed a marketing research primer which provides a guide to the approach, procedures, and research tools used by private industry in predicting consumer response. The final two chapters of the primer focus on the challenges of do...

  19. TAE+ 5.2 - TRANSPORTABLE APPLICATIONS ENVIRONMENT PLUS, VERSION 5.2 (DEC RISC ULTRIX VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    TAE SUPPORT OFFICE

    1994-01-01

    TAE (Transportable Applications Environment) Plus is an integrated, portable environment for developing and running interactive window, text, and graphical object-based application systems. The program allows both programmers and non-programmers to easily construct their own custom application interface and to move that interface and application to different machine environments. TAE Plus makes both the application and the machine environment transparent, with noticeable improvements in the learning curve. The main components of TAE Plus are as follows: (1) the WorkBench, a What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWYG) tool for the design and layout of a user interface; (2) the Window Programming Tools Package (WPT), a set of callable subroutines that control an application's user interface; and (3) TAE Command Language (TCL), an easy-to-learn command language that provides an easy way to develop an executable application prototype with a run-time interpreted language. The WorkBench tool allows the application developer to interactively construct the layout of an application's display screen by manipulating a set of interaction objects including input items such as buttons, icons, and scrolling text lists. User interface interactive objects include data-driven graphical objects such as dials, thermometers, and strip charts as well as menubars, option menus, file selection items, message items, push buttons, and color loggers. The WorkBench user specifies the windows and interaction objects that will make up the user interface, then specifies the sequence of the user interface dialogue. The description of the designed user interface is then saved into resource files. For those who desire to develop the designed user interface into an operational application, the WorkBench tool also generates source code (C, C++, Ada, and TCL) which fully controls the application's user interface through function calls to the WPTs. The WPTs are the runtime services used by application

  20. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. User's guide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban [Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Norrkoeping (Sweden); Ferry, Michel [MFRDC, Orvault (France)

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind.The User's Guide for DarcyTools V2.1 is intended to assist new users of DarcyTools. The Guide is far from complete and it has not been the ambition to write a manual that answers all questions a user may have. The objectives of the Guide can be stated as follows: - Give an overview of the code structure and how DarcyTools is used. - Get familiar with the 'Compact Input File', which is the main way to specify input data. - Get familiar with the 'Fortran Input File', which is the more advanced way to specify input data.

  1. Scientific Visualization Tools for Enhancement of Undergraduate Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, W. J.; Chaudhury, S. R.

    2001-05-01

    Undergraduate research projects that utilize remote sensing satellite instrument data to investigate atmospheric phenomena pose many challenges. A significant challenge is processing large amounts of multi-dimensional data. Remote sensing data initially requires mining; filtering of undesirable spectral, instrumental, or environmental features; and subsequently sorting and reformatting to files for easy and quick access. The data must then be transformed according to the needs of the investigation(s) and displayed for interpretation. These multidimensional datasets require views that can range from two-dimensional plots to multivariable-multidimensional scientific visualizations with animations. Science undergraduate students generally find these data processing tasks daunting. Generally, researchers are required to fully understand the intricacies of the dataset and write computer programs or rely on commercially available software, which may not be trivial to use. In the time that undergraduate researchers have available for their research projects, learning the data formats, programming languages, and/or visualization packages is impractical. When dealing with large multi-dimensional data sets appropriate Scientific Visualization tools are imperative in allowing students to have a meaningful and pleasant research experience, while producing valuable scientific research results. The BEST Lab at Norfolk State University has been creating tools for multivariable-multidimensional analysis of Earth Science data. EzSAGE and SAGE4D have been developed to sort, analyze and visualize SAGE II (Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment) data with ease. Three- and four-dimensional visualizations in interactive environments can be produced. EzSAGE provides atmospheric slices in three-dimensions where the researcher can change the scales in the three-dimensions, color tables and degree of smoothing interactively to focus on particular phenomena. SAGE4D provides a navigable

  2. CLIPS 6.0 - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM, VERSION 6.0 (UNIX VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donnell, B.

    1994-01-01

    CLIPS, the C Language Integrated Production System, is a complete environment for developing expert systems -- programs which are specifically intended to model human expertise or knowledge. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. CLIPS 6.0 provides a cohesive tool for handling a wide variety of knowledge with support for three different programming paradigms: rule-based, object-oriented, and procedural. Rule-based programming allows knowledge to be represented as heuristics, or "rules-of-thumb" which specify a set of actions to be performed for a given situation. Object-oriented programming allows complex systems to be modeled as modular components (which can be easily reused to model other systems or create new components). The procedural programming capabilities provided by CLIPS 6.0 allow CLIPS to represent knowledge in ways similar to those allowed in languages such as C, Pascal, Ada, and LISP. Using CLIPS 6.0, one can develop expert system software using only rule-based programming, only object-oriented programming, only procedural programming, or combinations of the three. CLIPS provides extensive features to support the rule-based programming paradigm including seven conflict resolution strategies, dynamic rule priorities, and truth maintenance. CLIPS 6.0 supports more complex nesting of conditional elements in the if portion of a rule ("and", "or", and "not" conditional elements can be placed within a "not" conditional element). In addition, there is no longer a limitation on the number of multifield slots that a deftemplate can contain. The CLIPS Object-Oriented Language (COOL) provides object-oriented programming capabilities. Features supported by COOL include classes with multiple inheritance, abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, dynamic binding, and message passing with message-handlers. CLIPS 6.0 supports tight integration of the rule-based programming features of CLIPS with

  3. CLIPS 6.0 - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM, VERSION 6.0 (MACINTOSH VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, G.

    1994-01-01

    CLIPS, the C Language Integrated Production System, is a complete environment for developing expert systems -- programs which are specifically intended to model human expertise or knowledge. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. CLIPS 6.0 provides a cohesive tool for handling a wide variety of knowledge with support for three different programming paradigms: rule-based, object-oriented, and procedural. Rule-based programming allows knowledge to be represented as heuristics, or "rules-of-thumb" which specify a set of actions to be performed for a given situation. Object-oriented programming allows complex systems to be modeled as modular components (which can be easily reused to model other systems or create new components). The procedural programming capabilities provided by CLIPS 6.0 allow CLIPS to represent knowledge in ways similar to those allowed in languages such as C, Pascal, Ada, and LISP. Using CLIPS 6.0, one can develop expert system software using only rule-based programming, only object-oriented programming, only procedural programming, or combinations of the three. CLIPS provides extensive features to support the rule-based programming paradigm including seven conflict resolution strategies, dynamic rule priorities, and truth maintenance. CLIPS 6.0 supports more complex nesting of conditional elements in the if portion of a rule ("and", "or", and "not" conditional elements can be placed within a "not" conditional element). In addition, there is no longer a limitation on the number of multifield slots that a deftemplate can contain. The CLIPS Object-Oriented Language (COOL) provides object-oriented programming capabilities. Features supported by COOL include classes with multiple inheritance, abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, dynamic binding, and message passing with message-handlers. CLIPS 6.0 supports tight integration of the rule-based programming features of CLIPS with

  4. An Improved Version of TOPAZ 3D

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krasnykh, Anatoly

    2003-01-01

    An improved version of the TOPAZ 3D gun code is presented as a powerful tool for beam optics simulation. In contrast to the previous version of TOPAZ 3D, the geometry of the device under test is introduced into TOPAZ 3D directly from a CAD program, such as Solid Edge or AutoCAD. In order to have this new feature, an interface was developed, using the GiD software package as a meshing code. The article describes this method with two models to illustrate the results

  5. Disability assessment scale for dementia – long version (DADL-BR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mariana Boaro Fernandez Canon

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: There are no functional assessment tools for elderly with dementia available in the literature that will assess all occupations. Objective: To develop a Long Version of Disability Assessment for Dementia Scale (DADL-Br, covering all occupations provided by the American Association of Occupational Therapy (AOTA and the activities that compose them and evaluate its content validity. Method: With the permission of the original version main author (DAD, Isabelle Gélinas PhD, the new items of the Long Version (DADL-Br were developed based on the classification proposed by AOTA for occupations, considering the gaps in the original instrument. We reviewed the Cultural and Conceptual Equivalence by the Expert Committee and Multidisciplinary Committee. The suggestions of the Committees were accepted and the process followed for the pre-test and author analysis. Results: The first version of the instrument received 10 new fields and 64 new items, which after seven reviews of Cultural Equivalence (average concordance 89.2%, six reviews of Conceptual Equivalence (average concordance 81.2%, tree pre-tests and analysis of the original version main author, has resulted in the development of five versions, addition of twelve items and exclusion of seven items, and the final version consists of 20 fields and 109 items, being 10 new fields and 69 new items. Conclusion: This process conferred the content validity of DADL-Br, which includes all occupations proposed by AOTA and can be a useful tool to evaluate the profile of occupational performance of elderly with dementia.

  6. A Chinese version of the Language Screening Test (CLAST for early-stage stroke patients.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongyan Yang

    Full Text Available There is a severe lack of aphasia screening tools for bedside use in Chinese. A number of aphasia assessment tools have recently been developed abroad, but some of these scales were not suitable for patients with acute stroke. The Language Screening Test (which includes two parallel versions [a/b] in French has been proven to be an effective and time-saving aphasia screening scale for early-stage stroke patients. Therefore, we worked out a Chinese version of the LAST taking into consideration Chinese language and culture. Two preliminary parallel versions (a/b were tested on 154 patients with stroke at acute phase and 107 patients with stroke at non-acute phase, with the Western Aphasia Battery serving as a gold standard. The equivalence between the two parallel versions and the reliability/validity of each version were assessed. The median time to complete one preliminary Chinese version (each had some item redundancy was 98 seconds. Two final parallel versions were established after adjustment/elimination of the redundant items and were found to be equivalent (intra-class correlation coefficient: 0.991. Internal consistency is(Cronbach α for each version [a/b] was 0.956 and 0.965, respectively good. Internal validity was fine: (a no floor or ceiling effect/item redundancy; (b construct validity revealed a 1-dimension structure, just like the French version. The higher educated subjects scored higher than their lower educated counterparts (p<0.01. The external validity: at the optimum cut-off point where the score of version a/b <14 in higher educated group(<13 in lower: the specificity of each version was 0.878/0.902(1/1 in lower and sensitivity was 0.972/0.944(0.944/0.944 in lower. Inter-rater equivalence (intra-class correlation coefficient was 1. The Chinese version of the Language Screening Test was proved to be an efficient and time-saving bedside aphasia screening tool for stroke patients at acute phase and can be used by an average

  7. Transcultural adaptation and validation of Hindi version of Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaidi, Sahar; Verma, Shalini; Moiz, Jamal Ali; Hussain, Mohammed E

    2017-08-07

    To transculturally adapt the Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale for Hindi-speaking population and examine its psychometric properties in patients with low back pain. The Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale was translated and cross-culturally adapted into Hindi following international guidelines. Hindi version of the scale was completed by 120 patients with low back pain and 60 healthy controls. Patients with low back pain were also administered the Hindi-Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire and Visual Analog Scale. Psychometric evaluation included test-retest reliability, convergent and discriminative validity. Exploratory factor analysis was carried out to determine the factor structure. The factorial analysis revealed a four-factor solution (bending/carrying, ambulation/reach, prolonged postures and rest). Convergent validity was confirmed by high correlation of Hindi Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale to the Hindi version of Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (r = 0.77 and p Visual Analog Scale (r = 0.682 and p Disability Scale has good test-retest reliability, discriminative and convergent validity and is appropriate for clinical and research use in Hindi-speaking low back pain patients. Implications for rehabilitation Linguistically and culturally adapted questionnaires help researchers make adequate inferences about instruments measuring health and quality of life. The translated version would serve as a valid research tool allowing comparability of data across cultures thus, providing opportunities for large multicenter, multicountry trials. A Hindi Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale version will help to improve the quality and efficacy of assessment of low back pain by developing in patients, a better understanding of the items which can be easily correlated with the activities of daily living.

  8. Darcy Tools version 3.4. User's Guide

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Lyckeby (Sweden)); Ferry, Michel (MFRDC, Orvault (France))

    2010-12-15

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is developed by a collaborative effort by SKB (The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company ), MFRDC (Michel Ferry RandD Consulting) and CFE AB (Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB). It builds upon earlier development of groundwater models, carried out by CFE during the last twenty years. In the earlier work the CFD code PHOENICS (Spalding 1981) was used as an equation solver. DarcyTools is based on a solver called MIGAL (Ferry 2002). It has however been carefully evaluated that the two solvers produce very similar solutions and the earlier work is thus still valid as a background for DarcyTools. The present report will focus on the software that constitutes DarcyTools. Two accompanying reports cover other aspects: - Concepts, Methods and Equations. (Svensson et al. 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 1). - Verification, Validation and Demonstration (Svensson 2010) (Hereafter denoted Report 2). Two basic approaches in groundwater modelling can be identified; in one we define grid cell conductivities (sometimes called the continuum porous-medium (CPM) approach, i.e. Jackson et al. 2000), in the other we calculate the flow through the fracture network directly (DFN approach). Both approaches have their merits and drawbacks, which however will not be discussed here (for a discussion, see Sahimi 1995). In DarcyTools the two approaches are combined, meaning that we first generate a fracture network and then represent the network as grid cell properties. Further background information is given in the two reports mentioned

  9. OXlearn: a new MATLAB-based simulation tool for connectionist models.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruh, Nicolas; Westermann, Gert

    2009-11-01

    OXlearn is a free, platform-independent MATLAB toolbox in which standard connectionist neural network models can be set up, run, and analyzed by means of a user-friendly graphical interface. Due to its seamless integration with the MATLAB programming environment, the inner workings of the simulation tool can be easily inspected and/or extended using native MATLAB commands or components. This combination of usability, transparency, and extendability makes OXlearn an efficient tool for the implementation of basic research projects or the prototyping of more complex research endeavors, as well as for teaching. Both the MATLAB toolbox and a compiled version that does not require access to MATLAB can be downloaded from http://psych.brookes.ac.uk/oxlearn/.

  10. Simple Tools to Facilitate Project Management of a Nursing Research Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aycock, Dawn M; Clark, Patricia C; Thomas-Seaton, LaTeshia; Lee, Shih-Yu; Moloney, Margaret

    2016-07-01

    Highly organized project management facilitates rigorous study implementation. Research involves gathering large amounts of information that can be overwhelming when organizational strategies are not used. We describe a variety of project management and organizational tools used in different studies that may be particularly useful for novice researchers. The studies were a multisite study of caregivers of stroke survivors, an Internet-based diary study of women with migraines, and a pilot study testing a sleep intervention in mothers of low-birth-weight infants. Project management tools were used to facilitate enrollment, data collection, and access to results. The tools included protocol and eligibility checklists, event calendars, screening and enrollment logs, instrument scoring tables, and data summary sheets. These tools created efficiency, promoted a positive image, minimized errors, and provided researchers with a sense of control. For the studies described, there were no protocol violations, there were minimal missing data, and the integrity of data collection was maintained. © The Author(s) 2016.

  11. Are EM's communication tools effective? Evaluation research of two EM publications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wight, Evelyn; Gardner, Gene; Harvey, Tony

    1992-01-01

    As a reflection of its growing culture of openness, and in response to the public's need for accurate information about its activities, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of the Assistant Secretary for Environmental Restoration and Waste Management (EM) has increased the amount of information available to the public through communication tools such as brochures, fact sheets, and a travelling exhibit with an interactive computer display. Our involvement with this effort has been to design, develop, and critique booklets, brochures, fact sheets and other communication tools for EM. This paper presents an evaluation of the effectiveness of two communication tools we developed: the EM Booklet and the EM Fact Sheets. We measured effectiveness using non-parametric testing. This paper describes DOE's culture change, EM's communication tools and their context within DOE'S new open culture, our research, test methods and results, the significance of our research, and our plans for future research. (author)

  12. Quantitative Skills, Critical Thinking, and Writing Mechanics in Blended versus Face-to-Face Versions of a Research Methods and Statistics Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goode, Christopher T.; Lamoreaux, Marika; Atchison, Kristin J.; Jeffress, Elizabeth C.; Lynch, Heather L.; Sheehan, Elizabeth

    2018-01-01

    Hybrid or blended learning (BL) has been shown to be equivalent to or better than face-to-face (FTF) instruction in a broad variety of contexts. We randomly assigned students to either 50/50 BL or 100% FTF versions of a research methods and statistics in psychology course. Students who took the BL version of the course scored significantly lower…

  13. Chinese cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Foot Function Index as tool to measure patients with foot and ankle functional limitations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-Sánchez, Manuel; Ruiz-Muñoz, Maria; Li, Guang Zhi; Cuesta-Vargas, Antonio I

    2017-05-11

    To perform a cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the Foot Function Index (FFI) questionnaire to develop the Chinese version. Three hundred and six patients with foot and ankle neuromusculoskeletal diseases participated in this observational study. Construct validity, internal consistency and criterion validity were calculated for the FFI Chinese version after the translation and transcultural adaptation process. Internal consistency ranged from 0.996 to 0.998. Test-retest analysis ranged from 0.985 to 0.994; minimal detectable change 90: 2.270; standard error of measurement: 0.973. Load distribution of the three factors had an eigenvalue greater than 1. Chi-square value was 9738.14 (p Foot Function Index (Taiwan Version), Short-Form 12 (Version 2) and EuroQol-5D were used for criterion validity. Factors 1 and 2 showed significant correlation with 15/16 and 14/16 scales and subscales, respectively. Foot Function Index Chinese version psychometric characteristics were good to excellent. Chinese researchers and clinicians may use this tool for foot and ankle assessment and monitoring. Implications for rehabilitation A cross-cultural adaptation of the FFI has been done from original version to Chinese. Consistent results and satisfactory psychometric properties of the Foot Function Index Chinese version have been reported. For Chinese speaking researcher and clinician FFI-Ch could be used as a tool to assess patients with foot disease.

  14. Trace contaminant control simulation computer program, version 8.1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perry, J. L.

    1994-01-01

    The Trace Contaminant Control Simulation computer program is a tool for assessing the performance of various process technologies for removing trace chemical contamination from a spacecraft cabin atmosphere. Included in the simulation are chemical and physical adsorption by activated charcoal, chemical adsorption by lithium hydroxide, absorption by humidity condensate, and low- and high-temperature catalytic oxidation. Means are provided for simulating regenerable as well as nonregenerable systems. The program provides an overall mass balance of chemical contaminants in a spacecraft cabin given specified generation rates. Removal rates are based on device flow rates specified by the user and calculated removal efficiencies based on cabin concentration and removal technology experimental data. Versions 1.0 through 8.0 are documented in NASA TM-108409. TM-108409 also contains a source file listing for version 8.0. Changes to version 8.0 are documented in this technical memorandum and a source file listing for the modified version, version 8.1, is provided. Detailed descriptions for the computer program subprograms are extracted from TM-108409 and modified as necessary to reflect version 8.1. Version 8.1 supersedes version 8.0. Information on a separate user's guide is available from the author.

  15. Core 2D. A code for non-isothermal water flow and reactive solute transport. Users manual version 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Samper, J.; Juncosa, R.; Delgado, J.; Montenegro, L. [Universidad de A Coruna (Spain)

    2000-07-01

    Understanding natural groundwater quality patterns, quantifying groundwater pollution and assessing the effects of waste disposal, require modeling tools accounting for water flow, and transport of heat and dissolved species as well as their complex interactions with solid and gases phases. This report contains the users manual of CORE ''2D Version V.2.0, a COde for modeling water flow (saturated and unsaturated), heat transport and multicomponent Reactive solute transport under both local chemical equilibrium and kinetic conditions. it is an updated and improved version of CORE-LE-2D V0 (Samper et al., 1988) which in turns is an extended version of TRANQUI, a previous reactive transport code (ENRESA, 1995). All these codes were developed within the context of Research Projects funded by ENRESA and the European Commission. (Author)

  16. Core2D. A code for non-isothermal water flow and reactive solute transport. Users manual version 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Samper, J.; Juncosa, R.; Delgado, J.; Montenegro, L.

    2000-01-01

    Understanding natural groundwater quality patterns, quantifying groundwater pollution and assessing the effects of waste disposal, require modeling tools accounting for water flow, and transport of heat and dissolved species as well as their complex interactions with solid and gases phases. This report contains the users manual of CORE ''2D Version V.2.0, a COde for modeling water flow (saturated and unsaturated), heat transport and multicomponent Reactive solute transport under both local chemical equilibrium and kinetic conditions. it is an updated and improved version of CORE-LE-2D V0 (Samper et al., 1988) which in turns is an extended version of TRANQUI, a previous reactive transport code (ENRESA, 1995). All these codes were developed within the context of Research Projects funded by ENRESA and the European Commission. (Author)

  17. Core 2D. A code for non-isothermal water flow and reactive solute transport. Users manual version 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Samper, J; Juncosa, R; Delgado, J; Montenegro, L [Universidad de A Coruna (Spain)

    2000-07-01

    Understanding natural groundwater quality patterns, quantifying groundwater pollution and assessing the effects of waste disposal, require modeling tools accounting for water flow, and transport of heat and dissolved species as well as their complex interactions with solid and gases phases. This report contains the users manual of CORE ''2D Version V.2.0, a COde for modeling water flow (saturated and unsaturated), heat transport and multicomponent Reactive solute transport under both local chemical equilibrium and kinetic conditions. it is an updated and improved version of CORE-LE-2D V0 (Samper et al., 1988) which in turns is an extended version of TRANQUI, a previous reactive transport code (ENRESA, 1995). All these codes were developed within the context of Research Projects funded by ENRESA and the European Commission. (Author)

  18. Development of a reliable and clinically useful Italian version of the Axis II for the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD)

    OpenAIRE

    Macrì, Ludovica Antonella; Deli, Velria; Deli, Roberto

    2012-01-01

    Background: Multiple-language versions of the same psychometric instrument are increasingly needed, but simply translating an English version word-to-word into another language is not adequate to account for linguistic and cultural differences. Our aim was to alidate an Italian version of the Axis II of the Research Diagnostic Criteria for temporomandibular disorders (RDC/TMD) and to test its reproducibility in order to use this important diagnostic instr...

  19. Validation of a new mass screening tool for cognitive impairment: Cognitive Assessment for Dementia, iPad version

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Onoda K

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Keiichi Onoda,1 Tsuyoshi Hamano,2 Yoko Nabika,1 Atsuo Aoyama,1 Hiroyuki Takayoshi,1 Tomonori Nakagawa,1 Masaki Ishihara,1 Shingo Mitaki,1 Takuya Yamaguchi,1 Hiroaki Oguro,1 Kuninori Shiwaku,3 Shuhei Yamaguchi1 1Department of Neurology, 2Center for Community-Based Health Research and Education, Shimane University, Izumo, 3Shimane University, Matsue, Shimane, Japan Background: We have developed a new screening test for dementia that runs on an iPad and can be used for mass screening, known as the Cognitive Assessment for Dementia, iPad version (CADi. The CADi consists of items involving immediate recognition memory for three words, semantic memory, categorization of six objects, subtraction, backward repetition of digits, cube rotation, pyramid rotation, trail making A, trail making B, and delayed recognition memory for three words. The present study examined the reliability and validity of the CADi. Methods: CADi evaluations were conducted for patients with dementia, healthy subjects selected from a brain checkup system, and community-dwelling elderly people participating in health checkups. Results: CADi scores were lower for dementia patients than for healthy elderly individuals and correlated significantly with Mini-Mental State Examination scores. Cronbach’s alpha values for the CADi were acceptable (over 0.7, and test–retest reliability was confirmed via a significant correlation between scores separated by a one-year interval. Conclusion: These results suggest that the CADi is a useful tool for mass screening of dementia in Japanese populations. Keywords: dementia, mass screening, early detection, iPad

  20. Major Upgrades to the AIRS Version-6 Water Vapor Profile Methodology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Susskind, Joel; Blaisdell, John; Iredell, Lena

    2015-01-01

    This research is a continuation of part of what was shown at the last AIRS Science Team Meeting and the AIRS 2015 NetMeeting. AIRS Version 6 was finalized in late 2012 and is now operational. Version 6 contained many significant improvements in retrieval methodology compared to Version 5. Version 6 retrieval methodology used for the water vapor profile q(p) and ozone profile O3(p) retrievals is basically unchanged from Version 5, or even from Version 4. Subsequent research has made significant improvements in both water vapor and O3 profiles compared to Version 6.

  1. Integrated Reliability and Risk Analysis System (IRRAS), Version 2.5: Reference manual

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Russell, K.D.; McKay, M.K.; Sattison, M.B.; Skinner, N.L.; Wood, S.T.; Rasmuson, D.M.

    1991-03-01

    The Integrated Reliability and Risk Analysis System (IRRAS) is a state-of-the-art, microcomputer-based probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) model development and analysis tool to address key nuclear plant safety issues. IRRAS is an integrated software tool that gives the user the ability to create and analyze fault trees and accident sequences using a microcomputer. This program provides functions that range from graphical fault tree construction to cut set generation and quantification. Version 1.0 of the IRRAS program was released in February of 1987. Since that time, many user comments and enhancements have been incorporated into the program providing a much more powerful and user-friendly system. This version has been designated IRRAS 2.5 and is the subject of this Reference Manual. Version 2.5 of IRRAS provides the same capabilities as Version 1.0 and adds a relational data base facility for managing the data, improved functionality, and improved algorithm performance. 7 refs., 348 figs

  2. Equity Audit: A Teacher Leadership Tool for Nurturing Teacher Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    View, Jenice L.; DeMulder, Elizabeth; Stribling, Stacia; Dodman, Stephanie; Ra, Sophia; Hall, Beth; Swalwell, Katy

    2016-01-01

    This is a three-part essay featuring six teacher educators and one classroom teacher researcher. Part one describes faculty efforts to build curriculum for teacher research, scaffold the research process, and analyze outcomes. Part two shares one teacher researcher's experience using an equity audit tool in several contexts: her teaching practice,…

  3. Major Upgrades to the AIRS Version-6 Ozone Profile Methodology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Susskind, Joel; Blaisdell, John; Iredell, Lena

    2015-01-01

    This research is a continuation of part of what was shown at the last AIRS Science Team Meeting in the talk Improved Water Vapor and Ozone Profiles in SRT AIRS Version-6.X and the AIRS February 11, 2015 NetMeeting Further improvements in water vapor and ozone profiles compared to Version-6.AIRS Version-6 was finalized in late 2012 and is now operational. Version-6 contained many significant improvements in retrieval methodology compared to Version-5. However, Version-6 retrieval methodology used for the water vapor profile q(p) and ozone profile O3(p) retrievals is basically unchanged from Version-5, or even from Version-4. Subsequent research has made significant improvements in both water vapor and O3 profiles compared to Version-6. This talk will concentrate on O3 profile retrievals. Improvements in water vapor profile retrievals are given in a separate presentation.

  4. CLIPS 6.0 - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM, VERSION 6.0 (IBM PC VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donnell, B.

    1994-01-01

    CLIPS, the C Language Integrated Production System, is a complete environment for developing expert systems -- programs which are specifically intended to model human expertise or knowledge. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. CLIPS 6.0 provides a cohesive tool for handling a wide variety of knowledge with support for three different programming paradigms: rule-based, object-oriented, and procedural. Rule-based programming allows knowledge to be represented as heuristics, or "rules-of-thumb" which specify a set of actions to be performed for a given situation. Object-oriented programming allows complex systems to be modeled as modular components (which can be easily reused to model other systems or create new components). The procedural programming capabilities provided by CLIPS 6.0 allow CLIPS to represent knowledge in ways similar to those allowed in languages such as C, Pascal, Ada, and LISP. Using CLIPS 6.0, one can develop expert system software using only rule-based programming, only object-oriented programming, only procedural programming, or combinations of the three. CLIPS provides extensive features to support the rule-based programming paradigm including seven conflict resolution strategies, dynamic rule priorities, and truth maintenance. CLIPS 6.0 supports more complex nesting of conditional elements in the if portion of a rule ("and", "or", and "not" conditional elements can be placed within a "not" conditional element). In addition, there is no longer a limitation on the number of multifield slots that a deftemplate can contain. The CLIPS Object-Oriented Language (COOL) provides object-oriented programming capabilities. Features supported by COOL include classes with multiple inheritance, abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, dynamic binding, and message passing with message-handlers. CLIPS 6.0 supports tight integration of the rule-based programming features of CLIPS with

  5. Bacteriophage-based tools: recent advances and novel applications [version 1; referees: 3 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lisa O'Sullivan

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available Bacteriophages (phages are viruses that infect bacterial hosts, and since their discovery over a century ago they have been primarily exploited to control bacterial populations and to serve as tools in molecular biology. In this commentary, we highlight recent diverse advances in the field of phage research, going beyond bacterial control using whole phage, to areas including biocontrol using phage-derived enzybiotics, diagnostics, drug discovery, novel drug delivery systems and bionanotechnology.

  6. Overview of the Hydrogen Financial Analysis Scenario Tool (H2FAST); NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Melaina, Marc; Bush, Brian; Penev, Michael

    2015-05-12

    This presentation provides an introduction to the Hydrogen Financial Analysis Scenario Tool (H2FAST) and includes an overview of each of the three versions of H2FAST: the Web tool, the Excel spreadsheet version, and the beta version of the H2FAST Business Case Scenario tool.

  7. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML: Language Specification for Level 3 Version 2 Core

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hucka Michael

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Computational models can help researchers to interpret data, understand biological functions, and make quantitative predictions. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML is a file format for representing computational models in a declarative form that different software systems can exchange. SBML is oriented towards describing biological processes of the sort common in research on a number of topics, including metabolic pathways, cell signaling pathways, and many others. By supporting SBML as an input/output format, different tools can all operate on an identical representation of a model, removing opportunities for translation errors and assuring a common starting point for analyses and simulations. This document provides the specification for Version 2 of SBML Level 3 Core. The specification defines the data structures prescribed by SBML, their encoding in XML (the eXtensible Markup Language, validation rules that determine the validity of an SBML document, and examples of models in SBML form. The design of Version 2 differs from Version 1 principally in allowing new MathML constructs, making more child elements optional, and adding identifiers to all SBML elements instead of only selected elements. Other materials and software are available from the SBML project website at http://sbml.org/.

  8. Pain Assessment in Impaired Cognition (PAIC: content validity of the Dutch version of a new and universal tool to measure pain in dementia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    van Dalen-Kok AH

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Annelore H van Dalen-Kok,1 Wilco P Achterberg,1 Wieke E Rijkmans,1 Sara A Tukker-van Vuuren,1 Suzanne Delwel,2,3 Henrica CW de Vet,4 Frank Lobbezoo,2,5 Margot WM de Waal1 1Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, 2Department of Oral Kinesiology, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA, University of Amsterdam and VU University Amsterdam, 3Department of Clinical Neuropsychology, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences, VU University, 4Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, The EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, 5MOVE Research Institute Amsterdam, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherlands Objectives: Detection and measurement of pain in persons with dementia by using observational pain measurement tools is essential. However, the evidence for the psychometric properties of existing observational tools remains limited. Therefore, a new meta-tool has been developed: Pain Assessment in Impaired Cognition (PAIC, as a collaborative EU action. The aim is to describe the translation procedure and content validity of the Dutch version of the PAIC.Methods: Translation of the PAIC into Dutch followed the forward-backward approach of the Guidelines for Establishing Cultural Equivalence of Instruments. A questionnaire survey was administered to clinical nursing home experts (20 physicians and 20 nurses to determine whether the PAIC items are indicative of pain and whether items are specific for pain or for other disorders (anxiety disorder, delirium, dementia, or depression. To quantify content validity, mean scores per item were calculated.Results: Eleven items were indicative of pain, for example, “frowning,” “freezing,” and “groaning.” Fifteen items were considered to be pain-specific, for example, “frowning,” “curling up,” and “complaining.” There were discrepancies between the notion of pain characteristics according to nurses

  9. Thermonuclear Reaction Rate Libraries and Software Tools for Nuclear Astrophysics Research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smith, Michael S.; Cyburt, Richard; Schatz, Hendrik; Smith, Karl; Warren, Scott; Ferguson, Ryan; Wiescher, Michael; Lingerfelt, Eric; Buckner, Kim; Nesaraja, Caroline D.

    2008-01-01

    Thermonuclear reaction rates are a crucial input for simulating a wide variety of astrophysical environments. A new collaboration has been formed to ensure that astrophysical modelers have access to reaction rates based on the most recent experimental and theoretical nuclear physics information. To reach this goal, a new version of the REACLIB library has been created by the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics (JINA), now available online at http://www.nscl.msu.edu/~nero/db. A complementary effort is the development of software tools in the Computational Infrastructure for Nuclear Astrophysics, online at nucastrodata.org, to streamline, manage, and access the workflow of the reaction evaluations from their initiation to peer review to incorporation into the library. Details of these new projects will be described

  10. Original Research Psychometric evaluation of the Shona version of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... version of the. Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support ... informal caregivers in the management of long term health conditions ... cultural translations and adaptations of PROs.15 Given how ...... Asia Pac J Public Health. 2015 ...

  11. The EPICS process variable Gateway Version 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Evans, K.

    2005-01-01

    The EPICS Process Variable Gateway is both a Channel Access Server and Channel Access Client that provides a means for many clients, typically on different subnets, to access a process variable while making only one connection to the server that owns the process variable. It also provides additional access security beyond that implemented on the server. It thus protects critical servers while providing suitably restricted access to needed process variables. The original version of the Gateway worked with EPICS Base 3.13 but required a special version, since the changes necessary for its operation were never incorporated into EPICS Base. Version 2 works with any standard EPICS Base 3.14.6 or later and has many improvements in both performance and features over the older version. The Gateway is now used at many institutions and has become a stable, high-performance application. It is capable of handling tens of thousands of process variables with hundreds of thousands of events per second. It has run for over three months in a production environment without having to be restarted. It has many internal process variables that can be used to monitor its state using standard EPICS client tools, such as MEDM and StripTool. Other internal process variables can be used to stop the Gateway, make several kinds of reports, or change the access security without stopping the Gateway. It can even be started on remote workstations from MEDM by using a Secure Shell script. This paper will describe the new Gateway and how it is used. The Gateway is both a server (like an EPICS Input/Output Controller (IOC)) and a client (like the EPICS Motif Editor and Display Manager (MEDM), StripTool, and others). Clients connect to the server side, and the client side connects to IOCs and other servers, possibly other Gateways. See Fig. 1. There are perhaps three principal reasons for using the Gateway: (1) it allows many clients to access a process variable while making only one connection to

  12. User's Guide to STAT The SHADWELL Test Analysis Tool (Version 2.0)

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Hoover, John B

    2008-01-01

    .... The new version removes the dependency on proprietary, third-party software and adds support for several new data input formats, including SHADWELL LabVIEW test data and the Fire and Smoke Simulator (FSSIM) fire model output...

  13. Version pressure feedback mechanisms for speculative versioning caches

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eichenberger, Alexandre E.; Gara, Alan; O& #x27; Brien, Kathryn M.; Ohmacht, Martin; Zhuang, Xiaotong

    2013-03-12

    Mechanisms are provided for controlling version pressure on a speculative versioning cache. Raw version pressure data is collected based on one or more threads accessing cache lines of the speculative versioning cache. One or more statistical measures of version pressure are generated based on the collected raw version pressure data. A determination is made as to whether one or more modifications to an operation of a data processing system are to be performed based on the one or more statistical measures of version pressure, the one or more modifications affecting version pressure exerted on the speculative versioning cache. An operation of the data processing system is modified based on the one or more determined modifications, in response to a determination that one or more modifications to the operation of the data processing system are to be performed, to affect the version pressure exerted on the speculative versioning cache.

  14. A Research on Development of The Multi-mode Flood Forecasting System Version Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shen, J.-C.; Chang, C. H.; Lien, H. C.; Wu, S. J.; Horng, M. J.

    2009-04-01

    With the global economy and technological development, the degree of urbanization and population density relative to raise. At the same time, a natural buffer space and resources year after year, the situation has been weakened, not only lead to potential environmental disasters, more and more serious, disaster caused by the economy, loss of natural environment at all levels has been expanded. In view of this, the active participation of all countries in the world cross-sectoral integration of disaster prevention technology research and development, in addition, the specialized field of disaster prevention technology, science and technology development, network integration technology, high-speed data transmission and information to support the establishment of mechanisms for disaster management The decision-making and cross-border global disaster information network building and other related technologies, has become the international anti-disaster science and technology development trends, this trend. Naturally a few years in Taiwan, people's lives and property losses caused by many problems related to natural disaster prevention and disaster prevention and the establishment of applications has become a very important. For FEWS_Taiwan, flood warning system developed by the Delft Hydraulics and introduced the Water Resources Agency (WRA), it provides those functionalities for users to modify contents to add the basins, regions, data sources, models and etc. Despite this advantage, version differences due to different users or different teams yet bring about the difficulties on synchronization and integration.At the same time in different research teams will also add different modes of meteorological and hydrological data. From the government perspective of WRA, the need to plan standard operation procedures for system integration demands that the effort for version control due to version differences must be cost down or yet canceled out. As for FEWS_Taiwan, this

  15. Managing complex research datasets using electronic tools: A meta-analysis exemplar

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Sharon A.; Martin, Ellen E.; Garcia, Theresa J.; Winter, Mary A.; García, Alexandra A.; Brown, Adama; Cuevas, Heather E.; Sumlin, Lisa L.

    2013-01-01

    Meta-analyses of broad scope and complexity require investigators to organize many study documents and manage communication among several research staff. Commercially available electronic tools, e.g., EndNote, Adobe Acrobat Pro, Blackboard, Excel, and IBM SPSS Statistics (SPSS), are useful for organizing and tracking the meta-analytic process, as well as enhancing communication among research team members. The purpose of this paper is to describe the electronic processes we designed, using commercially available software, for an extensive quantitative model-testing meta-analysis we are conducting. Specific electronic tools improved the efficiency of (a) locating and screening studies, (b) screening and organizing studies and other project documents, (c) extracting data from primary studies, (d) checking data accuracy and analyses, and (e) communication among team members. The major limitation in designing and implementing a fully electronic system for meta-analysis was the requisite upfront time to: decide on which electronic tools to use, determine how these tools would be employed, develop clear guidelines for their use, and train members of the research team. The electronic process described here has been useful in streamlining the process of conducting this complex meta-analysis and enhancing communication and sharing documents among research team members. PMID:23681256

  16. Reliability and Validity Study of a Tool to Measure Cancer Stigma: Patient Version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yılmaz, Medine; Dişsiz, Gülçin; Demir, Filiz; Irız, Sibel; Alacacioglu, Ahmet

    2017-01-01

    The aim of this methodological study is to establish the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of "A Questionnaire for Measuring Attitudes toward Cancer (Cancer Stigma) - Patient version." The sample comprised oncology patients who had active cancer treatment. The construct validity was assessed using the confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis. The mean age of the participants was 54.9±12.3 years. In the confirmatory factor analysis, fit values were determined as comparative fit index = 0.93, goodness of fit index = 0.91, normed-fit index=0.91, and root mean square error of approximation RMSEA = 0.09 ( P Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin = 0.88, χ 2 = 1084.41, Df = 66, and Barletta's test P <0.000). The first factor was "impossibility of recovery and experience of social discrimination" and the second factor was "stereotypes of cancer patients." The two-factor structure accounted for 56.74% of the variance. The Cronbach's alpha value was determined as 0.88 for the two-factor scale. "A questionnaire for measuring attitudes toward cancer (cancer stigma) - Patient version" is a reliable and valid questionnaire to assess stigmatization of cancer in cancer patients.

  17. Java Power Tools

    CERN Document Server

    Smart, John

    2008-01-01

    All true craftsmen need the best tools to do their finest work, and programmers are no different. Java Power Tools delivers 30 open source tools designed to improve the development practices of Java developers in any size team or organization. Each chapter includes a series of short articles about one particular tool -- whether it's for build systems, version control, or other aspects of the development process -- giving you the equivalent of 30 short reference books in one package. No matter which development method your team chooses, whether it's Agile, RUP, XP, SCRUM, or one of many other

  18. Validation of a Japanese version of the Scoliosis Research Society-22 Patient Questionnaire among idiopathic scoliosis patients in Japan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hashimoto, Hideki; Sase, Takeshi; Arai, Yasuhisa; Maruyama, Toru; Isobe, Keijirou; Shouno, Yasuhiro

    2007-02-15

    A cross-sectional observational study to determine the response distribution, internal consistency, and construct, concurrent, and discriminative validities of The Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) Patient Questionnaire translated into Japanese as compared with the other language versions. To validate the Japanese version of SRS22. The SRS-22 was translated into several languages but yet not into Japanese. The Japanese SRS-22 and Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 were simultaneously administered to 114 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a 4-factor structure, though several items were not loaded as theoretically expected. The originally constructed Japanese SRS-22 subscales and the English version showed similar response distribution. Internal consistency was fair but lower than that of the English version. The concurrent validity of the translated version, except for the self-image subscale, was supported using Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36 subscales as a reference. The function scale differed significantly by curve angle magnitude and treatment status. The self-image score was the highest in patients under observation when curve angle was or = 40 degrees, respectively. The Japanese SRS-22 is valid and may be useful for clinical evaluation of Japanese scoliosis patients, though the self-image subscale may need further assessment.

  19. Measurement Properties of the Brazilian-Portuguese Version of the Lumbar Spine Instability Questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araujo, Amanda Costa; da Cunha Menezes Costa, Lucíola; de Oliveira, Crystian Bittencourt Soares; Morelhão, Priscila Kalil; de Faria Negrão Filho, Rúben; Pinto, Rafael Zambelli; Costa, Leonardo Oliveira Pena

    2017-07-01

    Cross-cultural adaptation and analysis of measurement properties. To translate and cross-culturally adapt the Lumbar Spine Instability Questionnaire (LSIQ) into Brazilian-Portuguese and to test its measurement properties in Brazilian patients with low back pain. The selection of subgroup of patients that respond better to specific interventions is the top research priority in the field of back pain. The LSIQ is a tool able to stratify patients with low back pain who responds better to motor control exercises. There is no Brazilian-Portuguese version of the LSIQ available. The original version of the LSIQ was translated and cross-culturally adapted. We collected data from 100 patients with low back pain. In addition to LSIQ, we also collected information about physical activity levels (measured by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire short version), disability (measured by the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire), pain intensity (measured by the Pain numerical Rating Scale), kinesiophobia (measured by the Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia), and depression (measured by the Beck Depression Inventory). The measurement properties tested were internal consistency, reproducibility (reliability and agreement), construct validity, and ceiling and floor effects. The Brazilian-Portuguese version of the LSIQ showed good measurement properties with a Cronbach alpha of 0.79, an intraclass correlation coefficient of 0.75, a standard error of measurement of 1.65 points, and a minimal detectable change of 3.54 points. We did not detect ceiling and floor effects. The construct validity analysis was observed a moderate correlation between the LSIQ and Pain Numerical Rating Scale r = 0.46, Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire r = 0.66, Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia r = 0.49, and Beck Depression Inventory r = 0.44. The Brazilian-Portuguese version of LIQ has adequate measurement properties and can be used in clinical practice and research. NA.

  20. Research on the tool holder mode in high speed machining

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhenyu, Zhao; Yongquan, Zhou; Houming, Zhou; Xiaomei, Xu; Haibin, Xiao

    2018-03-01

    High speed machining technology can improve the processing efficiency and precision, but also reduce the processing cost. Therefore, the technology is widely regarded in the industry. With the extensive application of high-speed machining technology, high-speed tool system has higher and higher requirements on the tool chuck. At present, in high speed precision machining, several new kinds of clip heads are as long as there are heat shrinkage tool-holder, high-precision spring chuck, hydraulic tool-holder, and the three-rib deformation chuck. Among them, the heat shrinkage tool-holder has the advantages of high precision, high clamping force, high bending rigidity and dynamic balance, etc., which are widely used. Therefore, it is of great significance to research the new requirements of the machining tool system. In order to adapt to the requirement of high speed machining precision machining technology, this paper expounds the common tool holder technology of high precision machining, and proposes how to select correctly tool clamping system in practice. The characteristics and existing problems are analyzed in the tool clamping system.

  1. New evaluation tool now available to assess research quality | IDRC ...

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

    2016-04-25

    Apr 25, 2016 ... New evaluation tool now available to assess research quality ... Ratings on a scale defined by rubrics, to indicate the level at which a project ... Report: The value-for-money discourse: risks and opportunities for research for development ... Copyright · Open access policy · Privacy policy · Research ethics ...

  2. LITERATURE REVIEWING WITH RESEARCH TOOLS, Part 3: Writing Literature Review

    OpenAIRE

    Ebrahim, Nader Ale

    2017-01-01

    Research Tools” enable researchers to collect, organize, analyze, visualize and publicized research outputs. Dr. Nader has collected over 700 tools that enable students to follow the correct path in research and to ultimately produce high-quality research outputs with more accuracy and efficiency. It is assembled as an interactive Web-based mind map, titled “Research Tools”, which is updated periodically. “Research Tools” consists of a hierarchical set of nodes. It has four main nodes: (1)...

  3. LITERATURE REVIEWING WITH RESEARCH TOOLS, Part 2: Finding proper articles

    OpenAIRE

    Ebrahim, Nader Ale

    2017-01-01

    Research Tools” enable researchers to collect, organize, analyze, visualize and publicized research outputs. Dr. Nader has collected over 700 tools that enable students to follow the correct path in research and to ultimately produce high-quality research outputs with more accuracy and efficiency. It is assembled as an interactive Web-based mind map, titled “Research Tools”, which is updated periodically. “Research Tools” consists of a hierarchical set of nodes. It has four main nodes: (1)...

  4. PROSA version 4.0 manual

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bicking, U.; Golly, W.; Peter, N.; Seifert, R.

    1991-05-01

    This report includes a comprehensive manual of the computer program PROSA which illustrate the handling and functioning of PROSA. The manual PROSA 4.0 (FORTRAN 77) describes the PC Version of PROSA including its program moduls. The PROSA program package is a statistical tool to decide on the basis of statistical assumptions whether in a given sequence of material balance periods a loss of material might have occurred. The evaluation of the material balance data is based on statistical test procedures. In the present PROSA Version 4.0 the three tests CUMUF test, PAGE's test and GEMUF test are applied to a sequence of material balances. PROSA Version 4.0 supports a real sequential evaluation. That means, PROSA is not only able to evaluate a series of MUF values sequentially after the campaign has finished, but also real sequentially during the campaign. PROSA Version 4.0 is a menu-guided computer program. Data input can be performed either by diskette or by key-enter. Result output is primarily an information whether or not an alarm is indicated. This information can be displayed either numerically or graphically. Therefore, a comfortable graphical output utility is attached to PROSA 4.0. The program moduls are compiled and linked with the Ryan Mc-Farland Compiler. The PROSA graphical utility uses the PLOT88 Library of Plotworks, Inc. (orig./HP) [de

  5. BASINs 4.0 Climate Assessment Tool (CAT): Supporting ...

    Science.gov (United States)

    EPA announced the availability of the report, BASINS 4.0 Climate Assessment Tool (CAT): Supporting Documentation and User's Manual. This report was prepared by the EPA's Global Change Research Program (GCRP), an assessment-oriented program, that sits within the Office of Research and Development, that focuses on assessing how potential changes in climate and other global environmental stressors may impact water quality, air quality, aquatic ecosystems, and human health in the United States. The Program’s focus on water quality is consistent with the Research Strategy of the U.S. Climate Change Research Program—the federal umbrella organization for climate change science in the U.S. government—and is responsive to U.S. EPA’s mission and responsibilities as defined by the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act. A central goal of the EPA GCRP is to provide EPA program offices, Regions, and other stakeholders with tools and information for assessing and responding to any potential future impacts of climate change. In 2007, the EPA Global Change Research Program (GCRP), in partnership with the EPA Office of Water, supported development of a Climate Assessment Tool (CAT) for version 4 of EPA’s BASINS modeling system. This report provides supporting documentation and user support materials for the BASINS CAT tool. The purpose of this report is to provide in a single document a variety of documentation and user support materials supporting the use

  6. CLIPS 6.0 - C LANGUAGE INTEGRATED PRODUCTION SYSTEM, VERSION 6.0 (DEC VAX VMS VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Donnell, B.

    1994-01-01

    CLIPS, the C Language Integrated Production System, is a complete environment for developing expert systems -- programs which are specifically intended to model human expertise or knowledge. It is designed to allow artificial intelligence research, development, and delivery on conventional computers. CLIPS 6.0 provides a cohesive tool for handling a wide variety of knowledge with support for three different programming paradigms: rule-based, object-oriented, and procedural. Rule-based programming allows knowledge to be represented as heuristics, or "rules-of-thumb" which specify a set of actions to be performed for a given situation. Object-oriented programming allows complex systems to be modeled as modular components (which can be easily reused to model other systems or create new components). The procedural programming capabilities provided by CLIPS 6.0 allow CLIPS to represent knowledge in ways similar to those allowed in languages such as C, Pascal, Ada, and LISP. Using CLIPS 6.0, one can develop expert system software using only rule-based programming, only object-oriented programming, only procedural programming, or combinations of the three. CLIPS provides extensive features to support the rule-based programming paradigm including seven conflict resolution strategies, dynamic rule priorities, and truth maintenance. CLIPS 6.0 supports more complex nesting of conditional elements in the if portion of a rule ("and", "or", and "not" conditional elements can be placed within a "not" conditional element). In addition, there is no longer a limitation on the number of multifield slots that a deftemplate can contain. The CLIPS Object-Oriented Language (COOL) provides object-oriented programming capabilities. Features supported by COOL include classes with multiple inheritance, abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, dynamic binding, and message passing with message-handlers. CLIPS 6.0 supports tight integration of the rule-based programming features of CLIPS with

  7. Validation of the Spanish-language version of the Relevant Outcome Scale for Alzheimer's Disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carnero Pardo, C; López Alcalde, S; Espinosa García, M; Sánchez Magro, I

    2017-09-01

    The Relevant Outcome Scale for Alzheimer's Disease (ROSA) is a useful tool for evaluating and monitoring dementia patients. This study aims to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Spanish version of ROSA. Spanish multicentre study involving 39 researchers and including 237 patients with Alzheimer disease (78 mild, 79 moderate, and 80 severe). The patients were tested with the following: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Fototest, Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), Blessed dementia scale, and a Spanish-language version of ROSA. A subsample of 40 subjects was retested in the 14 days following the initial evaluation. The construct validity was evaluated with the Spearman correlation coefficient (r), internal consistency with Cronbach's alpha (alpha), and test-retest reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). ROSA requires 13.8±7.4minutes to administer and its results show a significant association with the clinical stage of AD (mild, 116.7±23.1; moderate, 92.9±19.8; and severe, 64.3±22.6), and with results on the MMSE (r=0.68), Fototest (r=0.63), NPI (r=0.53), and Blessed dementia scale (r=-0.80). ROSA shows high internal consistency (alpha=0.90) and excellent test-retest reliability (ICC0.97). The Spanish version of ROSA is a brief, valid, and reliable tool permitting overall evaluation of patients with dementia. Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Neurología. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  8. A web-based data visualization tool for the MIMIC-II database.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Joon; Ribey, Evan; Wallace, James R

    2016-02-04

    Although MIMIC-II, a public intensive care database, has been recognized as an invaluable resource for many medical researchers worldwide, becoming a proficient MIMIC-II researcher requires knowledge of SQL programming and an understanding of the MIMIC-II database schema. These are challenging requirements especially for health researchers and clinicians who may have limited computer proficiency. In order to overcome this challenge, our objective was to create an interactive, web-based MIMIC-II data visualization tool that first-time MIMIC-II users can easily use to explore the database. The tool offers two main features: Explore and Compare. The Explore feature enables the user to select a patient cohort within MIMIC-II and visualize the distributions of various administrative, demographic, and clinical variables within the selected cohort. The Compare feature enables the user to select two patient cohorts and visually compare them with respect to a variety of variables. The tool is also helpful to experienced MIMIC-II researchers who can use it to substantially accelerate the cumbersome and time-consuming steps of writing SQL queries and manually visualizing extracted data. Any interested researcher can use the MIMIC-II data visualization tool for free to quickly and conveniently conduct a preliminary investigation on MIMIC-II with a few mouse clicks. Researchers can also use the tool to learn the characteristics of the MIMIC-II patients. Since it is still impossible to conduct multivariable regression inside the tool, future work includes adding analytics capabilities. Also, the next version of the tool will aim to utilize MIMIC-III which contains more data.

  9. FOSS Tools for Research Infrastructures - A Success Story?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stender, V.; Schroeder, M.; Wächter, J.

    2015-12-01

    Established initiatives and mandated organizations, e.g. the Initiative for Scientific Cyberinfrastructures (NSF, 2007) or the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI, 2008), promote and foster the development of sustainable research infrastructures. The basic idea behind these infrastructures is the provision of services supporting scientists to search, visualize and access data, to collaborate and exchange information, as well as to publish data and other results. Especially the management of research data is gaining more and more importance. In geosciences these developments have to be merged with the enhanced data management approaches of Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). The Centre for GeoInformationTechnology (CeGIT) at the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences has the objective to establish concepts and standards of SDIs as an integral part of research infrastructure architectures. In different projects, solutions to manage research data for land- and water management or environmental monitoring have been developed based on a framework consisting of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) components. The framework provides basic components supporting the import and storage of data, discovery and visualization as well as data documentation (metadata). In our contribution, we present our data management solutions developed in three projects, Central Asian Water (CAWa), Sustainable Management of River Oases (SuMaRiO) and Terrestrial Environmental Observatories (TERENO) where FOSS components build the backbone of the data management platform. The multiple use and validation of tools helped to establish a standardized architectural blueprint serving as a contribution to Research Infrastructures. We examine the question of whether FOSS tools are really a sustainable choice and whether the increased efforts of maintenance are justified. Finally it should help to answering the question if the use of FOSS for Research Infrastructures is a

  10. Integrated Reliability and Risk Analysis System (IRRAS) Version 2.0 user's guide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Russell, K.D.; Sattison, M.B.; Rasmuson, D.M.

    1990-06-01

    The Integrated Reliability and Risk Analysis System (IRRAS) is a state-of-the-art, microcomputer-based probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) model development and analysis tool to address key nuclear plant safety issues. IRRAS is an integrated software tool that gives the user the ability to create and analyze fault trees and accident sequences using a microcomputer. This program provides functions that range from graphical fault tree construction to cut set generation and quantification. Also provided in the system is an integrated full-screen editor for use when interfacing with remote mainframe computer systems. Version 1.0 of the IRRAS program was released in February of 1987. Since that time, many user comments and enhancements have been incorporated into the program providing a much more powerful and user-friendly system. This version has been designated IRRAS 2.0 and is the subject of this user's guide. Version 2.0 of IRRAS provides all of the same capabilities as Version 1.0 and adds a relational data base facility for managing the data, improved functionality, and improved algorithm performance. 9 refs., 292 figs., 4 tabs

  11. HECTR [Hydrogen Event Containment Transient Response] Version 1.5N: A modification of HECTR Version 1.5 for application to N Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Camp, A.L.; Dingman, S.E.

    1987-05-01

    This report describes HECTR Version 1.5N, which is a special version of HECTR developed specifically for application to the N Reactor. HECTR is a fast-running, lumped-parameter containment analysis computer program that is most useful for performing parametric studies. The main purpose of HECTR is to analyze nuclear reactor accidents involving the transport and combustion of hydrogen, but HECTR can also function as an experiment analysis tool and can solve a limited set of other types of containment problems. Version 1.5N is a modification of Version 1.5 and includes changes to the spray actuation logic, and models for steam vents, vacuum breakers, and building cross-vents. Thus, all of the key features of the N Reactor confinement can be modeled. HECTR is designed for flexibility and provides for user control of many important parameters, if built-in correlations and default values are not desired

  12. Validation of the Spanish version of the fibromyalgia rapid screening tool to detect fibromyalgia in primary care health centres.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Casanueva, Benigno; Belenguer, Rafael; Moreno-Muelas, José V; Urtiaga, Javier; Urtiaga, Blanca; Hernández, José L; Pina, Trinitario; González-Gay, Miguel A

    2016-01-01

    To investigate the reliability and validity of the Spanish version of the Fibromyalgia Rapid Screening Tool (FiRST), a brief questionnaire for the detection of fibromyalgia (FM) in patients with diffuse chronic pain seen at primary care health centres. The original FiRST French questionnaire was adapted to a Spanish version following the guidelines of the Rheumatology Spanish Society Study Group of FM, and the help provided by professors of French and Spanish Language. In a prospective and multicentre study, patients with chronic pain were initially divided into two groups: a group that included patients that had been diagnosed with FM according to the 1990 ACR criteria and the 2010 ACR preliminary criteria (n=404), and a non-FM (control) group composed of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (n=147) and osteoarthritis (OA) (n=219) patients. Patients from the FM group were evaluated by assessing tender point assessment, Widespread Pain Index (WPI), Symptom Severity Scale (SSS), FiRST questionnaire and Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ). The non-FM group was evaluated by means of FiRST, WPI and SSS. Sensitivity, specificity and predictive value as well as the correlation between the global score and other parameters were assessed. 356 of 404 FM (88.1%) patients who met the 1990 ACR criteria and the ACR 2010 preliminary criteria had a positive FiRST. In the control group (AR plus OA), only 16 (4.4%) subjects had a positive FiRST. The sensitivity value was 92% (95% confidence interval CI: 88.9-95.1), specificity 87.4% (95% CI: 80.8-94.0), positive predictive value 95.7% (95% CI: 93.3-98.1), and negative predictive value 78.2% (95% CI: 70.6-85.9). A significant correlation between the total FiRST score (patients with score 5 or 6) and WPI (pFIQ (p<0.0001) was found. FiRST questionnaire is a useful tool for the detection of FM in primary care health centres.

  13. The Value of Open Source Software Tools in Qualitative Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenberg, Gary

    2011-01-01

    In an era of global networks, researchers using qualitative methods must consider the impact of any software they use on the sharing of data and findings. In this essay, I identify researchers' main areas of concern regarding the use of qualitative software packages for research. I then examine how open source software tools, wherein the publisher…

  14. SMART Structures User's Guide - Version 3.0

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spangler, Jan L.

    1996-01-01

    Version 3.0 of the Solid Modeling Aerospace Research Tool (SMART Structures) is used to generate structural models for conceptual and preliminary-level aerospace designs. Features include the generation of structural elements for wings and fuselages, the integration of wing and fuselage structural assemblies, and the integration of fuselage and tail structural assemblies. The highly interactive nature of this software allows the structural engineer to move quickly from a geometry that defines a vehicle's external shape to one that has both external components and internal components which may include ribs, spars, longerons, variable depth ringframes, a floor, a keel, and fuel tanks. The geometry that is output is consistent with FEA requirements and includes integrated wing and empennage carry-through and frame attachments. This report provides a comprehensive description of SMART Structures and how to use it.

  15. Research and Development of Powder Brazing Filler Metals for Diamond Tools: A Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fei Long

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Powder brazing filler metals (PBFMs feature a number of comparative advantages. Among others, these include a low energy consumption, an accurate dosage, a good brazeability, a short production time, and a high production efficiency. These filler metals have been used in the aerospace, automobile, and electric appliances industries. The PBFMs are especially suitable for diamond tools bonding, which involves complex workpiece shapes and requires accurate dosage. The recent research of PBFMs for diamond tools is reviewed in this paper. The current applications are discussed. The CuSnTi and Ni-Cr-based PBFMs have been the two commonly used monolayer PBFMs. Thus, the bonding mechanism at the interface between both the monolayer PBFMs and a diamond tool are summarized first. The ways to improve the performance of the monolayer PBFMs for diamond tools are analyzed. Next, a research of PBFMs for impregnated diamond tools is reviewed. The technical problems that urgently need solutions are discussed. Finally, the challenges and opportunities involved with the PBFMs for diamond tools research and development are summarized, and corresponding prospects are suggested.

  16. Development and psychometric testing of the Carter Assessment of Critical Thinking in Midwifery (Preceptor/Mentor version).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carter, Amanda G; Creedy, Debra K; Sidebotham, Mary

    2016-03-01

    develop and test a tool designed for use by preceptors/mentors to assess undergraduate midwifery students׳ critical thinking in practice. a descriptive cohort design was used. participants worked in a range of maternity settings in Queensland, Australia. 106 midwifery clinicians who had acted in the role of preceptor for undergraduate midwifery students. this study followed a staged model for tool development recommended by DeVellis (2012). This included generation of items, content validity testing through mapping of draft items to critical thinking concepts and expert review, administration of items to a convenience sample of preceptors, and psychometric testing. A 24 item tool titled the XXXX Assessment of Critical Thinking in Midwifery (CACTiM) was completed by registered midwives in relation to students they had recently preceptored in the clinical environment. ratings by experts revealed a content validity index score of 0.97, representing good content validity. An evaluation of construct validity through factor analysis generated three factors: 'partnership in practice', 'reflection on practice' and 'practice improvements'. The scale demonstrated good internal reliability with a Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.97. The mean total score for the CACTiM scale was 116.77 (SD=16.68) with a range of 60-144. Total and subscale scores correlated significantly. the CACTiM (Preceptor/Mentor version) was found to be a valid and reliable tool for use by preceptors to assess critical thinking in undergraduate midwifery students. given the importance of critical thinking skills for midwifery practice, mapping and assessing critical thinking development in students׳ practice across an undergraduate programme is vital. The CACTiM (Preceptor/Mentor version) has utility for clinical education, research and practice. The tool can inform and guide preceptors׳ assessment of students׳ critical thinking in practice. The availability of a reliable and valid tool can be used to

  17. BioShaDock: a community driven bioinformatics shared Docker-based tools registry [version 1; referees: 2 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    François Moreews

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Linux container technologies, as represented by Docker, provide an alternative to complex and time-consuming installation processes needed for scientific software. The ease of deployment and the process isolation they enable, as well as the reproducibility they permit across environments and versions, are among the qualities that make them interesting candidates for the construction of bioinformatic infrastructures, at any scale from single workstations to high throughput computing architectures. The Docker Hub is a public registry which can be used to distribute bioinformatic software as Docker images. However, its lack of curation and its genericity make it difficult for a bioinformatics user to find the most appropriate images needed. BioShaDock is a bioinformatics-focused Docker registry, which provides a local and fully controlled environment to build and publish bioinformatic software as portable Docker images. It provides a number of improvements over the base Docker registry on authentication and permissions management, that enable its integration in existing bioinformatic infrastructures such as computing platforms. The metadata associated with the registered images are domain-centric, including for instance concepts defined in the EDAM ontology, a shared and structured vocabulary of commonly used terms in bioinformatics. The registry also includes user defined tags to facilitate its discovery, as well as a link to the tool description in the ELIXIR registry if it already exists. If it does not, the BioShaDock registry will synchronize with the registry to create a new description in the Elixir registry, based on the BioShaDock entry metadata. This link will help users get more information on the tool such as its EDAM operations, input and output types. This allows integration with the ELIXIR Tools and Data Services Registry, thus providing the appropriate visibility of such images to the bioinformatics community.

  18. User's manual, version 1.00 for Monteburns, version 3.01

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Poston, D.I.; Trellue, H.R.

    1998-06-01

    Monteburns is a fully automated tool that links the Monte Carlo transport code MCNP with the radioactive decay and burnup code ORIGEN2. Monteburns produces a large number of criticality and burnup results based on various material feed/removal specifications, power(s), and time intervals. The program processes input from the user that specifies the system geometry, initial material compositions, feed/removal specifications, and other code-specific parameters. Various results from MCNP, ORIGEN2, and other calculations are then output successively as the code runs. The principle function of monteburns is to transfer one-group cross section and flux values from MCNP to ORIGEN2, and then transfer the resulting material compositions (after irradiation and/or decay) from ORIGEN2 back to MCNP in a repeated, cyclic fashion. The basic requirement of the code is that the user have a working MCNP input file and other input parameters; all interaction with ORIGEN2 and other calculations are performed by monteburns. This report serves as a user's manual for monteburns. It describes how the code functions, what input the user must provide, the calculations performed by the code, and it presents the format required for input files, as well as samples of these files. Monteburns is still in a developmental stage; thus, additions and/or changes may be made over time, and the user's manual will change as well. This is the first version of the user's manual (valid for monteburns version 3.01); users should contact the authors to inquire if a more recent version is available

  19. Validation of Turkish version of brief negative symptom scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Polat Nazlı, Irmak; Ergül, Ceylan; Aydemir, Ömer; Chandhoke, Swati; Üçok, Alp; Gönül, Ali Saffet

    2016-11-01

    Negative symptoms in schizophrenia have been assessed by many instruments. However, a current consensus on these symptoms has been built and new tools, such as the Brief Negative Symptom Scale (BNSS), are generated. This study aimed to evaluate reliability and validity of the Turkish version of BNSS. The scale was translated to Turkish and backtranslated to English. After the approval of the translation, 75 schizophrenia patients were interviewed with BNSS, Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia (CDSS) and Extrapyramidal Symptom Rating Scale (ESRS). Reliability and validity analyses were then calculated. In the reliability analysis, the Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.96 and item-total score correlation coefficients were between 0.655-0.884. The intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.665. The inter-rater reliability was 0.982 (p Symptoms Subscale, Negative Symptoms Subscale, and General Psychopathology Subscale. CDSS and ESRS were not correlated with BNSS-TR. The factor structure of the scale was consisting the same items as in the original version. Our study confirms that the Turkish version of BNSS is an applicable tool for the evaluation of negative symptoms in schizophrenia.

  20. Portuguese Version of the EORTC QLQ-OES18 and QLQ-OG25 for Health-Related Quality of Life Assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Relvas-Silva, Miguel; Silva, Rui Almeida; Dinis-Ribeiro, Mário

    2017-01-31

    Health-related quality of life assessment is increasingly important as it can help both clinical research and care for patients, particularly among oncological patients. Quality of Life Questionnaire - OES18 (esophageal module) and Quality of Life Questionnaire - OG25 (esophagogastric module) are the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer modules for the evaluation of quality of life in patients with esophageal and esophagogastric cancers, respectively. The aim of our study was to translate, to culturally adapt and to perform a pilot testing to create the Portuguese version of both questionnaires. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer guidelines were followed for translation, cultural adaptation and pilot testing of Quality of Life Questionnaire - OES18 (esophageal module) and Quality of Life Questionnaire - OG25 (esophagogastric module). The Quality of Life Questionnaire - OG25 (esophagogastric module) went through a process of forward (English → Portuguese) and backward (Portuguese → English) translation, by independent native speaker translators. After review, a preliminary version was created to be pilot tested among Portuguese patients. As a Brazilian version was already available for Quality of Life Questionnaire - OES18 (esophageal module), the questionnaire was simply culturally adapted and pilot tested. Both cancer and non-cancer patients were included. Overall, 30 patients completed the Portuguese version of each questionnaire. Afterwards, a structured interview was conducted to find and report any problematic items. Troublesome items and wording were changed according to the pilot testing results. The final versions were sent to the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Group and approved. The Portuguese versions of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire - OES18 (esophageal module) and OG25

  1. The Insight ToolKit Image Registration Framework

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Brian eAvants

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Publicly available scientific resources help establish evaluation standards, provide a platform for teaching and improve reproducibility. Version 4 of the Insight ToolKit ( ITK4 seeks to es- tablish new standards in publicly available image registration methodology. ITK4 makes severaladvances in comparison to previous versions of ITK. ITK4 supports both multivariate images and objective functions; it also unifies high-dimensional (deformation field and low-dimensional (affine transformations with metrics that are reusable across transform types and with com- posite transforms that allow arbitrary series of geometric mappings to be chained together seamlessly. Metrics and optimizers take advantage of multi-core resources, when available.Furthermore, ITK4 reduces the parameter optimization burden via principled heuristics that automatically set scaling across disparate parameter types (rotations versus translations. A related approach also constrains steps sizes for gradient-based optimizers. The result is that tuning for different metrics and/or image pairs is rarely necessary allowing the researcher tomore easily focus on design/comparison of registration strategies. In total, the ITK4 contribu- tion is intended as a structure to support reproducible research practices, will provide a more extensive foundation against which to evaluate new work in image registration and also enable application level programmers a broad suite of tools on which to build. Finally, we contextu- alize this work with a reference registration evaluation study with application to pediatric brainlabeling.

  2. The Systems Biology Research Tool: evolvable open-source software

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wright Jeremiah

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Research in the field of systems biology requires software for a variety of purposes. Software must be used to store, retrieve, analyze, and sometimes even to collect the data obtained from system-level (often high-throughput experiments. Software must also be used to implement mathematical models and algorithms required for simulation and theoretical predictions on the system-level. Results We introduce a free, easy-to-use, open-source, integrated software platform called the Systems Biology Research Tool (SBRT to facilitate the computational aspects of systems biology. The SBRT currently performs 35 methods for analyzing stoichiometric networks and 16 methods from fields such as graph theory, geometry, algebra, and combinatorics. New computational techniques can be added to the SBRT via process plug-ins, providing a high degree of evolvability and a unifying framework for software development in systems biology. Conclusion The Systems Biology Research Tool represents a technological advance for systems biology. This software can be used to make sophisticated computational techniques accessible to everyone (including those with no programming ability, to facilitate cooperation among researchers, and to expedite progress in the field of systems biology.

  3. Reflective Drawing as a Tool for Reflection in Design Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calvo, Mirian

    2017-01-01

    This article explores the role of drawing as a tool for reflection. It reports on a PhD research project that aims to identify and analyse the value that co-design processes can bring to participants and their communities. The research is associated with Leapfrog, a three-year project funded by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).…

  4. A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH REGARDING THE MARKETING COMMUNICATION TOOLS USED IN THE ONLINE ENVIRONMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    POP Nicolae Al.

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Starting from the meaning of the communication process in marketing, the authors try to identify its role in assuring the continuity of the management process in what concerns the relationships between all the partners of the company, on the long term. An emphasis is made on the role of online communication and its tools in relationship marketing. In order to validate some of the mentioned ideas the authors have chosen to undertake a qualitative marketing research among the managers of some Romanian tourism companies. The qualitative part of the study had as purpose the identification of the main tools which form the basis of the communication with the beneficiaries of the touristic services, of the way in which the companies use the online communication tools for attracting, keeping and developing the long term relationships with their customers in the virtual environment. The following tools have been analyzed: websites, email marketing campaigns, e-newsletters, online advertising, search engines, sponsored links, blogs, RSS feed, social networks, forums, online discussion groups, portals, infomediaries and instant messaging. The chosen investigation method was the selective survey, the research technique - explorative interrogation and the research instrument - semi structured detailed interview, based on a conversation guide. A very important fact is the classification resulted after the respondents were requested to mention the most efficient tools for attracting customers and for maintaining the relationships with them. Although the notoriety of the online marketing tools is high, there are some tools that are known by definition, but are not used at all or are not used correctly; or are not known by definition, but are used in practice. The authors contributed by validating a performing methodology of qualitative research, a study which will open new ways and means for making the online communication tools used for touristic services in

  5. Selecting a Web 2.0 Presentation Tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hodges, Charles B.; Clark, Kenneth

    2011-01-01

    Web-based presentation tools are sometimes referred to as "next generation presentation tools" (EDUCAUSE, 2010). At the most basic level, these tools are simply online versions of traditional presentation software, such as Microsoft's PowerPoint or Apple's Keynote, but some services offer features like web-based collaboration, online presentation…

  6. Action Research on a WebQuest as an Instructional Tool for Writing Abstracts of Research Articles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krismiyati Latuperissa

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available The massive growth of and access to information technology (IT has enabled the integration of technology into classrooms. One such integration is the use of WebQuests as an instructional tool in teaching targeted learning activities such as writing abstracts of research articles in English for English as a Foreign Language (EFL learners. In the academic world, writing an abstract of a research paper or final project in English can be challenging for EFL students. This article presents an action research project on the process and outcomes of using a WebQuest designed to help 20 Indonesian university IT students write a research article’s abstract in English. Findings reveal that despite positive feedback, changes need to be made to make the WebQuest a more effective instructional tool for the purpose it was designed.

  7. Genephony: a knowledge management tool for genome-wide research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Riva Alberto

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background One of the consequences of the rapid and widespread adoption of high-throughput experimental technologies is an exponential increase of the amount of data produced by genome-wide experiments. Researchers increasingly need to handle very large volumes of heterogeneous data, including both the data generated by their own experiments and the data retrieved from publicly available repositories of genomic knowledge. Integration, exploration, manipulation and interpretation of data and information therefore need to become as automated as possible, since their scale and breadth are, in general, beyond the limits of what individual researchers and the basic data management tools in normal use can handle. This paper describes Genephony, a tool we are developing to address these challenges. Results We describe how Genephony can be used to manage large datesets of genomic information, integrating them with existing knowledge repositories. We illustrate its functionalities with an example of a complex annotation task, in which a set of SNPs coming from a genotyping experiment is annotated with genes known to be associated to a phenotype of interest. We show how, thanks to the modular architecture of Genephony and its user-friendly interface, this task can be performed in a few simple steps. Conclusion Genephony is an online tool for the manipulation of large datasets of genomic information. It can be used as a browser for genomic data, as a high-throughput annotation tool, and as a knowledge discovery tool. It is designed to be easy to use, flexible and extensible. Its knowledge management engine provides fine-grained control over individual data elements, as well as efficient operations on large datasets.

  8. Software Tools | Office of Cancer Clinical Proteomics Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    The CPTAC program develops new approaches to elucidate aspects of the molecular complexity of cancer made from large-scale proteogenomic datasets, and advance them toward precision medicine.  Part of the CPTAC mission is to make data and tools available and accessible to the greater research community to accelerate the discovery process.

  9. Research Tools and Materials | NCI Technology Transfer Center | TTC

    Science.gov (United States)

    Research Tools can be found in TTC's Available Technologies and in scientific publications. They are freely available to non-profits and universities through a Material Transfer Agreement (or other appropriate mechanism), and available via licensing to companies.

  10. Validation of the Urdu version of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Surani, Asif Anwar; Ramar, Kannan; Surani, Arif Anwar; Khaliqdina, Jehangir Shehryar; Subramanian, Shyam; Surani, Salim

    2012-09-01

    To translate and validate the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) for use in Urdu-speaking population. The original Epworth Sleepiness Scale was translated into the Urdu version (ESS-Ur) in three phases - translation and back-translation; committee-based translation; and testing in bilingual individuals. The final was subsequently tested on 89 healthy bilingual subjects between February and April, 2010, to assess the validity of the translation compared to the original version. The subjects were students and employees of Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi. Both English and Urdu versions of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale were administered to 59 (67%) women and 30 (33%) men. The mean composite Epworth score was 7.53 in English language and 7.7 in the Urdu version (p=0.76). The translated version was found to be highly correlated with the original scale (rho=0.938; pscale's Urdu version as an effective tool for measuring daytime sleepiness in Urdu-speaking population. Future studies assessing the validity of such patients with sleep disorders need to be undertaken.

  11. miRQuest: integration of tools on a Web server for microRNA research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aguiar, R R; Ambrosio, L A; Sepúlveda-Hermosilla, G; Maracaja-Coutinho, V; Paschoal, A R

    2016-03-28

    This report describes the miRQuest - a novel middleware available in a Web server that allows the end user to do the miRNA research in a user-friendly way. It is known that there are many prediction tools for microRNA (miRNA) identification that use different programming languages and methods to realize this task. It is difficult to understand each tool and apply it to diverse datasets and organisms available for miRNA analysis. miRQuest can easily be used by biologists and researchers with limited experience with bioinformatics. We built it using the middleware architecture on a Web platform for miRNA research that performs two main functions: i) integration of different miRNA prediction tools for miRNA identification in a user-friendly environment; and ii) comparison of these prediction tools. In both cases, the user provides sequences (in FASTA format) as an input set for the analysis and comparisons. All the tools were selected on the basis of a survey of the literature on the available tools for miRNA prediction. As results, three different cases of use of the tools are also described, where one is the miRNA identification analysis in 30 different species. Finally, miRQuest seems to be a novel and useful tool; and it is freely available for both benchmarking and miRNA identification at http://mirquest.integrativebioinformatics.me/.

  12. Estimation of minimal clinically important change of the Japanese version of EQ-5D in patients with chronic noncancer pain: a retrospective research using real-world data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoshizawa, Kazutake; Kobayashi, Hisanori; Fujie, Motoko; Ogawa, Yoshimasa; Yajima, Tsutomu; Kawai, Koji

    2016-03-01

    Quality of life (QoL) is routinely assessed and evaluated in medical research. However, in Japan, there is a lack of solid cutoff criteria for evaluating QoL improvement in chronic noncancer pain management. The present study was conducted to identify the minimal clinically important change (MCIC) of the Japanese version of EuroQol-5D 3L(EQ-5D) utility score and numeric rating scale (NRS) with an emphasis on chronic noncancer pain. The data source for this post hoc research was the post-marketing surveillance (PMS) data for a tramadol/acetaminophen combination tablet, which was previously conducted in real-world settings. The parameters extracted from the PMS data were sociodemographic characteristics, NRS, EQ-5D, and dichotomous physician's global impression of treatment effectiveness (PGI). The optimal cutoff points of MCIC for EQ-5D utility and NRS scores were evaluated using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis. An anchor-based approach using PGI was applied. Data of 710 patients with chronic noncancer pain were extracted from the PMS database. The NRS score decreased by 2.7 (standard deviation, 2.3) points, whereas the EQ-5D score increased by 0.16 (0.20) points at 4 weeks from baseline. The changes from baseline in NRS and EQ-5D were significantly correlated (r = 0.53, p 0.80 in both analyses. These results demonstrated novel cutoff criteria for the Japanese version of EQ-5D, focusing on patients with chronic noncancer pain. The obtained criteria were fairly consistent and can be confidently utilized as an evaluation tool in medical research on chronic noncancer pain in Japan, with additional functionality and usability for QoL assessment in pain management practice. The data source of this post hoc research was a PMS study with the identifier number UMIN000015901 at umin.ac.jp, UMIN clinical trial registry (UMIN-CTR).

  13. Basic Research Tools for Earthworm Ecology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kevin R. Butt

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available Earthworms are responsible for soil development, recycling organic matter and form a vital component within many food webs. For these and other reasons earthworms are worthy of investigation. Many technologically-enhanced approaches have been used within earthworm-focused research. These have their place, may be a development of existing practices or bring techniques from other fields. Nevertheless, let us not overlook the fact that much can still be learned through utilisation of more basic approaches which have been used for some time. New does not always equate to better. Information on community composition within an area and specific population densities can be learned using simple collection techniques, and burrowing behaviour can be determined from pits, resin-insertion or simple mesocosms. Life history studies can be achieved through maintenance of relatively simple cultures. Behavioural observations can be undertaken by direct observation or with low cost webcam usage. Applied aspects of earthworm research can also be achieved through use of simple techniques to enhance population development and even population dynamics can be directly addressed with use of relatively inexpensive, effective marking techniques. This paper seeks to demonstrate that good quality research in this sphere can result from appropriate application of relatively simple research tools.

  14. Basic Research Tools for Earthworm Ecology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Butt, K.R.; Grigoropoulou, N.

    2010-01-01

    Earthworms are responsible for soil development, recycling organic matter and form a vital component within many food webs. For these and other reasons earthworms are worthy of investigation. Many technologically-enhanced approaches have been used within earthworm-focused research. These have their place, may be a development of existing practices or bring techniques from other fields. Nevertheless, let us not overlook the fact that much can still be learned through utilisation of more basic approaches which have been used for some time. New does not always equate to better. Information on community composition within an area and specific population densities can be learned using simple collection techniques, and burrowing behaviour can be determined from pits, resin-insertion or simple mesocosms. Life history studies can be achieved through maintenance of relatively simple cultures. Behavioural observations can be undertaken by direct observation or with low cost we became usage. Applied aspects of earthworm research can also be achieved through use of simple techniques to enhance population development and even population dynamics can be directly addressed with use of relatively inexpensive, effective marking techniques. This paper seeks to demonstrate that good quality research in this sphere can result from appropriate application of relatively simple research tools.

  15. Utility of the UCSD Performance-based Skills Assessment-Brief Japanese version: discriminative ability and relation to neurocognition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chika Sumiyoshi

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The UCSD Performance-based Skills Assessment Brief (the UPSA-B has been widely used for evaluating functional capacity in patients with schizophrenia. The utility of the battery in a wide range of cultural contexts has been of concern among developers. The current study investigated the validity of the Japanese version of the UPSA-B as a measure of functional capacity and as a co-primary for neurocognion. Sixty-four Japanese patients with schizophrenia and 83 healthy adults entered the study. The Japanese version of the UPSA-B (UPSA-B Japanese version and the MATRICS Cognitive Consensus Battery Japanese version (MCCB Japanese version were administered. Normal controls performed significantly better than patients, with large effect sizes for the Total and the subscale scores of the UPSA-B. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC curve analysis revealed that the optimal cut-off point for the UPSA-B Total score was estimated at around 80. The UPSA-B Total score was significantly correlated with the MCCB Composite score and several domain scores, indicating the relationship between this co-primary measure and overall cognitive functioning in Japanese patients with schizophrenia. The results obtained here suggest that the UPSA-B Japanese version is an effective tool for evaluating disturbances of daily-living skills linked to cognitive functioning in schizophrenia, providing an identifiable cut-off point and relationships to neurocognition. Further research is warranted to evaluate the psychometrical properties and response to treatment of the Japanese version of the UPSA-B.

  16. The validity and reliability of the portuguese versions of three tools used to diagnose delirium in critically ill patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dimitri Gusmao-Flores

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study are to compare the sensitivity and specificity of three diagnostic tools for delirium (the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist, the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units and the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units Flowsheet in a mixed population of critically ill patients, and to validate the Brazilian Portuguese Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units. METHODS: The study was conducted in four intensive care units in Brazil. Patients were screened for delirium by a psychiatrist or neurologist using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Patients were subsequently screened by an intensivist using Portuguese translations of the three tools. RESULTS: One hundred and nineteen patients were evaluated and 38.6% were diagnosed with delirium by the reference rater. The Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units had a sensitivity of 72.5% and a specificity of 96.2%; the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units Flowsheet had a sensitivity of 72.5% and a specificity of 96.2%; the Intensive Care Delirium Screening Checklist had a sensitivity of 96.0% and a specificity of 72.4%. There was strong agreement between the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units and the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units Flowsheet (kappa coefficient = 0.96 CONCLUSION: All three instruments are effective diagnostic tools in critically ill intensive care unit patients. In addition, the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Confusion Assessment Method for Intensive Care Units is a valid and reliable instrument for the assessment of delirium among critically ill patients.

  17. Integrating information technologies as tools for surgical research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schell, Scott R

    2005-10-01

    Surgical research is dependent upon information technologies. Selection of the computer, operating system, and software tool that best support the surgical investigator's needs requires careful planning before research commences. This manuscript presents a brief tutorial on how surgical investigators can best select these information technologies, with comparisons and recommendations between existing systems, software, and solutions. Privacy concerns, based upon HIPAA and other regulations, now require careful proactive attention to avoid legal penalties, civil litigation, and financial loss. Security issues are included as part of the discussions related to selection and application of information technology. This material was derived from a segment of the Association for Academic Surgery's Fundamentals of Surgical Research course.

  18. ADAMS/WT advanced development - version 1.4 and beyond

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Elliott, A.S.; Depauw, T.R. [Mechanical Dynamics, Inc., Mesa, AZ (United States)

    1996-12-31

    ADAMS/WT is an wind-turbine-specific shell for the general-purpose mechanical system simulation package ADAMS5. It was developed under the guidance of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to give engineers and analysts in the wind turbine community access to the analytical power of ADAMS, without having to become expert in its particular technology. The 1.4 version of ADAMS/WT is the most recent upgrade to the package, incorporating the most up-to-date version of the AeroDyn aerodynamic forcing subroutines from the University of Utah. It is also the first version to be made available on the Windows/NT platform. In version 1.4, ADAMS/WT has been significantly improved throughout and runs much faster. Automatic generation of standardized output has been added. The documentation has been extensively augmented with more detailed descriptions, more figures and more examples. ADAMS/WT remains the most powerful analytical tool available for horizontal-axis wind turbine development. 10 figs.

  19. Hyperacusis Questionnaire as a Tool for Measuring Hypersensitivity to Sound in a Tinnitus Research Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fackrell, Kathryn; Fearnley, Constance; Hoare, Derek J; Sereda, Magdalena

    2015-01-01

    Hypersensitivity to external sounds is often comorbid with tinnitus and may be significant for adherence to certain types of tinnitus management. Therefore, a clear measure of sensitivity to sound is important. The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Hyperacusis Questionnaire (HQ) for use as a measurement tool using data from a sample of 264 adults who took part in tinnitus research. We evaluated the HQ factor structure, internal consistency, convergent and discriminant validity, and floor and ceiling effects. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach's alpha = 0.88) and moderate correlations were observed between the HQ, uncomfortable loudness levels, and other health questionnaires. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the original HQ three-factor solution and a one-factor solution were both a poor fit to the data. Four problematic items were removed and exploratory factor analysis identified a two-factor (attentional and social) solution. The original three-factor structure of the HQ was not confirmed. All fourteen items do not accurately assess hypersensitivity to sound in a tinnitus population. We propose a 10-item (2-factor) version of the HQ, which will need to be confirmed using a new tinnitus and perhaps nontinnitus population.

  20. Social networking addiction, attachment style, and validation of the Italian version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monacis, Lucia; de Palo, Valeria; Griffiths, Mark D; Sinatra, Maria

    2017-06-01

    Aim Research into social networking addiction has greatly increased over the last decade. However, the number of validated instruments assessing addiction to social networking sites (SNSs) remains few, and none have been validated in the Italian language. Consequently, this study tested the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS), as well as providing empirical data concerning the relationship between attachment styles and SNS addiction. Methods A total of 769 participants were recruited to this study. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and multigroup analyses were applied to assess construct validity of the Italian version of the BSMAS. Reliability analyses comprised the average variance extracted, the standard error of measurement, and the factor determinacy coefficient. Results Indices obtained from the CFA showed the Italian version of the BSMAS to have an excellent fit of the model to the data, thus confirming the single-factor structure of the instrument. Measurement invariance was established at configural, metric, and strict invariances across age groups, and at configural and metric levels across gender groups. Internal consistency was supported by several indicators. In addition, the theoretical associations between SNS addiction and attachment styles were generally supported. Conclusion This study provides evidence that the Italian version of the BSMAS is a psychometrically robust tool that can be used in future Italian research into social networking addiction.

  1. Psychometric Evaluation of the Hebrew Language Version of the Satisfaction with Life Scale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anaby, Dana; Jarus, Tal; Zumbo, Bruno D.

    2010-01-01

    The satisfaction with life scale (SWLS) is a widely accepted and widely used tool for measuring well-being. Although its potential as a cross-cultural index is recognized, an introduction and systematic validation of the Hebrew version is needed. Thus, the purpose of this study is: (1) to describe the process of developing the Hebrew version of…

  2. RAZORBACK - A Research Reactor Transient Analysis Code Version 1.0 - Volume 3: Verification and Validation Report.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Talley, Darren G.

    2017-04-01

    This report describes the work and results of the verification and validation (V&V) of the version 1.0 release of the Razorback code. Razorback is a computer code designed to simulate the operation of a research reactor (such as the Annular Core Research Reactor (ACRR)) by a coupled numerical solution of the point reactor kinetics equations, the energy conservation equation for fuel element heat transfer, the equation of motion for fuel element thermal expansion, and the mass, momentum, and energy conservation equations for the water cooling of the fuel elements. This V&V effort was intended to confirm that the code shows good agreement between simulation and actual ACRR operations.

  3. CUAHSI Data Services: Tools and Cyberinfrastructure for Water Data Discovery, Research and Collaboration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seul, M.; Brazil, L.; Castronova, A. M.

    2017-12-01

    CUAHSI Data Services: Tools and Cyberinfrastructure for Water Data Discovery, Research and CollaborationEnabling research surrounding interdisciplinary topics often requires a combination of finding, managing, and analyzing large data sets and models from multiple sources. This challenge has led the National Science Foundation to make strategic investments in developing community data tools and cyberinfrastructure that focus on water data, as it is central need for many of these research topics. CUAHSI (The Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc.) is a non-profit organization funded by the National Science Foundation to aid students, researchers, and educators in using and managing data and models to support research and education in the water sciences. This presentation will focus on open-source CUAHSI-supported tools that enable enhanced data discovery online using advanced searching capabilities and computational analysis run in virtual environments pre-designed for educators and scientists so they can focus their efforts on data analysis rather than IT set-up.

  4. USEtox® 2.0 Documentation (Version 1.00)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bijster, Marian; Guignard, Cécile; Hauschild, Michael Zwicky

    Reference Life Cycle Data System (ILCD) Handbook – Recommendations for Life Cycle Impact Assessment in the European context, EUR 24571 EN, by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in the Life Cycle Metrics for Chemical Products – A Guideline by the Chemical Sector to Assess...... (EC) in the Recommendations on the Use of Common Methods to Measure and Communicate the Life Cycle Environmental Performance of Products and Organisations, 2013/179/EU, by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre – Institute for Environment and Sustainability (JRC-IES) in the International...... and Report on the Environmental Footprint of Products, Based on Life Cycle Assessment, and by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in the Tool for the Reduction and Assessment of Chemical and other Environmental Impacts (TRACI) User's Manual, S-10637-OP-1-0. The latest official release version...

  5. Validity and reliability of an adapted Thai version of Scoliosis Research Society-22 questionnaire for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sathira-Angkura, Vera; Pithankuakul, Kongkit; Sakulpipatana, Susana; Piyaskulkaew, Chaiwat; Kunakornsawat, Sombat

    2012-04-20

    Cross-sectional observational study to investigate psychometric properties of an adapted Thai version of the refined Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) questionnaire. To evaluate the reliability and validity of the adapted Thai version of the refined SRS-22 questionnaire. The SRS-22 questionnaire is a valid instrument for assessing the health-related quality of life for patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Recently, the questionnaire has been translated and validated in many languages for non-English-speaking countries. Translation/retranslation of the English version of the SRS-22 was conducted, and the cross-cultural adaptation process was performed. The Thai version SRS-22 and previously validated Thai version Short-Form survey version 2.0 (SF-36V2) questionnaires were administered to 77 patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis who had surgical treatment. Fifty-eight patients (52 adolescent girls) had filled out the first set of questionnaires. Thirty patients of the first-time responders completed the second set of questionnaires. The mean age at the time of operation was 14.6 years and the mean age at the time of the final follow-up was 18.7 years. The mean preoperative scoliosis curve magnitude was 55.4° (range, 30°-95°) and postoperative curve magnitude was 20.1° (range, 0°-60°). Internal consistency was determined with Cronbach α coefficient. Intraclass correlation coefficient was used for test-retest reliability. Concurrent validity was evaluated by comparing SRS-22 domains with relevant domains in the SF-36V2 questionnaire, using the Pearson correlation coefficient. The mean overall Cronbach α coefficient of the adapted Thai version SRS-22 was 0.76. The 2 of corresponding domains (mental health = 0.80 and self-image = 0.83) had satisfactory internal consistency and the remaining domains (pain = 0.78; function/activity = 0.74; and satisfaction = 0.76) were good. The intraclass correlation coefficient for 5 domains was ranged from

  6. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. Concepts, methods, equations and demo simulations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Svensson, Urban; Kuylenstierna, Hans-Olof [Computer-aided Fluid Engineering AB, Norrkoeping (Sweden); Ferry, Michel [MFRDC, Orvault (France)

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is a general code for this class of problems, but the analysis of a repository for nuclear waste is the main intended application. A number of novel features are introduced in DarcyTools. The most fundamental is perhaps the method to generate grid properties (DarcyTools is a continuum porous media code); a fracture network, with properties given to each fracture, is represented 'directly' in the computational grid. This method is believed to result in very accurate anisotropy and connectivity properties. The report focuses on the concepts, assumptions, equations and key features of DarcyTools. The main part of the report is fairly short; a number of appendices give more detailed accounts of various aspects of the code.

  7. DarcyTools, Version 2.1. Concepts, methods, equations and demo simulations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Svensson, Urban; Kuylenstierna, Hans-Olof; Ferry, Michel

    2004-03-01

    DarcyTools is a computer code for simulation of flow and transport in porous and/or fractured media. The fractured media in mind is a fractured rock and the porous media the soil cover on the top of the rock; it is hence groundwater flows, which is the class of flows in mind. DarcyTools is a general code for this class of problems, but the analysis of a repository for nuclear waste is the main intended application. A number of novel features are introduced in DarcyTools. The most fundamental is perhaps the method to generate grid properties (DarcyTools is a continuum porous media code); a fracture network, with properties given to each fracture, is represented 'directly' in the computational grid. This method is believed to result in very accurate anisotropy and connectivity properties. The report focuses on the concepts, assumptions, equations and key features of DarcyTools. The main part of the report is fairly short; a number of appendices give more detailed accounts of various aspects of the code

  8. Verification of Simulation Tools

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Richard, Thierry

    2015-01-01

    Before qualifying a simulation tool, the requirements shall first be clearly identified, i.e.: - What type of study needs to be carried out? - What phenomena need to be modeled? This phase involves writing a precise technical specification. Once the requirements are defined, the most adapted product shall be selected from the various software options available on the market. Before using a particular version of a simulation tool to support the demonstration of nuclear safety studies, the following requirements shall be met. - An auditable quality assurance process complying with development international standards shall be developed and maintained, - A process of verification and validation (V and V) shall be implemented. This approach requires: writing a report and/or executive summary of the V and V activities, defining a validated domain (domain in which the difference between the results of the tools and those of another qualified reference is considered satisfactory for its intended use). - Sufficient documentation shall be available, - A detailed and formal description of the product (software version number, user configuration, other settings and parameters) in the targeted computing environment shall be available. - Source codes corresponding to the software shall be archived appropriately. When these requirements are fulfilled, the version of the simulation tool shall be considered qualified for a defined domain of validity, in a given computing environment. The functional verification shall ensure that: - the computer architecture of the tool does not include errors, - the numerical solver correctly represents the physical mathematical model, - equations are solved correctly. The functional verification can be demonstrated through certification or report of Quality Assurance. The functional validation shall allow the user to ensure that the equations correctly represent the physical phenomena in the perimeter of intended use. The functional validation can

  9. Translating and validating a Training Needs Assessment tool into Greek

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hicks Carolyn M

    2007-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The translation and cultural adaptation of widely accepted, psychometrically tested tools is regarded as an essential component of effective human resource management in the primary care arena. The Training Needs Assessment (TNA is a widely used, valid instrument, designed to measure professional development needs of health care professionals, especially in primary health care. This study aims to describe the translation, adaptation and validation of the TNA questionnaire into Greek language and discuss possibilities of its use in primary care settings. Methods A modified version of the English self-administered questionnaire consisting of 30 items was used. Internationally recommended methodology, mandating forward translation, backward translation, reconciliation and pretesting steps, was followed. Tool validation included assessing item internal consistency, using the alpha coefficient of Cronbach. Reproducibility (test – retest reliability was measured by the kappa correlation coefficient. Criterion validity was calculated for selected parts of the questionnaire by correlating respondents' research experience with relevant research item scores. An exploratory factor analysis highlighted how the items group together, using a Varimax (oblique rotation and subsequent Cronbach's alpha assessment. Results The psychometric properties of the Greek version of the TNA questionnaire for nursing staff employed in primary care were good. Internal consistency of the instrument was very good, Cronbach's alpha was found to be 0.985 (p 1.0, KMO (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy = 0.680 and Bartlett's test of sphericity, p Conclusion The translated and adapted Greek version is comparable with the original English instrument in terms of validity and reliability and it is suitable to assess professional development needs of nursing staff in Greek primary care settings.

  10. Translating and validating a Training Needs Assessment tool into Greek

    Science.gov (United States)

    Markaki, Adelais; Antonakis, Nikos; Hicks, Carolyn M; Lionis, Christos

    2007-01-01

    Background The translation and cultural adaptation of widely accepted, psychometrically tested tools is regarded as an essential component of effective human resource management in the primary care arena. The Training Needs Assessment (TNA) is a widely used, valid instrument, designed to measure professional development needs of health care professionals, especially in primary health care. This study aims to describe the translation, adaptation and validation of the TNA questionnaire into Greek language and discuss possibilities of its use in primary care settings. Methods A modified version of the English self-administered questionnaire consisting of 30 items was used. Internationally recommended methodology, mandating forward translation, backward translation, reconciliation and pretesting steps, was followed. Tool validation included assessing item internal consistency, using the alpha coefficient of Cronbach. Reproducibility (test – retest reliability) was measured by the kappa correlation coefficient. Criterion validity was calculated for selected parts of the questionnaire by correlating respondents' research experience with relevant research item scores. An exploratory factor analysis highlighted how the items group together, using a Varimax (oblique) rotation and subsequent Cronbach's alpha assessment. Results The psychometric properties of the Greek version of the TNA questionnaire for nursing staff employed in primary care were good. Internal consistency of the instrument was very good, Cronbach's alpha was found to be 0.985 (p 1.0, KMO (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin) measure of sampling adequacy = 0.680 and Bartlett's test of sphericity, p < 0.001. Conclusion The translated and adapted Greek version is comparable with the original English instrument in terms of validity and reliability and it is suitable to assess professional development needs of nursing staff in Greek primary care settings. PMID:17474989

  11. Research on application of system of neutron, thermohydraulic and safety analysis codes in order to simulation of the Dalat Nuclear Research Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pham Van Lam; Le Vinh Vinh; Huynh Ton Nghiem

    2004-01-01

    Requirements of neutron, thermohydraulic and safety analysis calculation are very important because of issuing new version of SAR for DNRR, research on construction of new research reactor and nuclear power plant. Research on application of system of neutron, thermohydraulic and safety analysis codes in order to simulation of the Dalat Nuclear Research Reactor has been done in the frame work of research theme in the year 2002-2003. The purposes of the research are maintaining safety operation of the DNRR and enhancement of man power and calculation and safety analysis tool potential. (author)

  12. World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map version 2 (WDMAM v.2) - released for research and education

    Science.gov (United States)

    CHOI-Dyment, Y.; Lesur, V.; Dyment, J.; Hamoudi, M.; Thebault, E.; Catalan, M.

    2015-12-01

    The World Digital Magnetic Anomaly Map is an international initiative carried out under the auspices of the International Association of Geomagnetism and Aeronomy (IAGA) and the Commission for the Geological Map of the World (CGMW). A first version of the map has been published and distributed eight years ago (WDMAM v1; Korhonen et al., 2007). We have produced a candidate which has been accepted as the second version of this map (WDMAM v2) at the International Union of Geophysics and Geodesy in Prag, in June 2015. On land, we adopted an alternative approach avoiding any unnecessary processing on existing aeromagnetic compilations. When available, we used the original aeromagnetic data. As a result the final compilation remains an acceptable representation of the national and international data grids. Over oceanic areas the marine data have been extended. In areas of insufficient data coverage, a model has been computed based on a modified digital grid of the oceanic lithosphere age, considering plate motions in the determination of magnetization vector directions. This model has been further adjusted to the available data, resulting in a better representation of the anomalies. The final grid will be periodically upgraded. Version 2.0 has been released and is available at wdmam.org to support both research and education projects. Colleagues willing to contribute data for future releases (and become a co-author of the map) should contact any of the authors or Jerome Dyment (chair of the WDMAM Task Force) at jdy@ipgp.fr .

  13. Research on Key Technologies of Unit-Based CNC Machine Tool Assembly Design

    OpenAIRE

    Zhongqi Sheng; Lei Zhang; Hualong Xie; Changchun Liu

    2014-01-01

    Assembly is the part that produces the maximum workload and consumed time during product design and manufacturing process. CNC machine tool is the key basic equipment in manufacturing industry and research on assembly design technologies of CNC machine tool has theoretical significance and practical value. This study established a simplified ASRG for CNC machine tool. The connection between parts, semantic information of transmission, and geometric constraint information were quantified to as...

  14. Linguistic Adaptation and Psychometric Properties of Tamil Version ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    of a Tamil version of General Oral Health Assessment Index would enable it to be used as a valuable ... psychometric properties, so that it can be used as an efficient tool in identifying the impact of oral ... affects a person physically and psychologically thereby .... questions 3, 5, and 7 were negatively rephrased and choices.

  15. Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of Death Depression Scale-Revised in Iranian Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharif Nia, Hamid; Pahlevan Sharif, Saeed; Lehto, Rebecca H; Allen, Kelly A; Goudarzian, Amir Hossein; Yaghoobzadeh, Ameneh; Soleimani, Mohammad Ali

    2017-07-01

    Objective: Limited research has examined the psychometric properties of death depression scales in Persian populations with cardiac disease despite the need for valid assessment tools for evaluating depressive symptoms in patients with life-limiting chronic conditions. The present study aimed at evaluating the reliability and validity of the Persian Version of Death Depression Scale - Revised (DDS-R) in Iranian patients who had recent acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Method: This psychometric study was conducted with a convenience sample of 407 patients with AMI diagnosis who completed the Persian version of the DDS-R. The face, content, and construct validity of the scale were ascertained. Internal consistency, test-retest, and construct reliability (CR) were used to assess reliability of the Persian Version of DDS-R. Results: Based on maximum likelihood exploratory factor analysis and consideration of conceptual meaning, a 4-factor solution was identified, explaining 75.89% of the total variance. Goodness-of-fit indices (GFI), Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Normed Fit Index (NFI), Incremental Fit Index (IFI), and Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) in the final DDS-R structure demonstrated the adequacy of the 4-domain structure. The internal consistency, construct reliability, and Intra-class Correlation Coefficients (ICC) were greater than .70. Conclusion: The DDS-R was found to be a valid and reliable assessment tool for evaluating death depression symptoms in Iranian patients with AMI.

  16. Cocktail : a tool for deriving correct programs

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Franssen, M.G.J.; Swart, de H.C.M.

    2004-01-01

    Cocktail is a tool for deriving correct programs from their specifications. The present version is powerful enough for educational purposes. The tool yields support for many sorted first order predicate logic, formulated in a pure type system with parametric constants (CPTS), as the specification

  17. HECTR Version 1.5 user's manual

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dingman, S.E.; Camp, A.L.; Wong, C.C.; King, D.B.; Gasser, R.D.

    1986-04-01

    This report describes the use and features of HECTR Version 1.5. HECTR is a relatively fast-running, lumped-volume containment analysis computer program that is most useful for performing parametric studies. The main purpose of HECTR is to analyze nuclear reactor accidents involving the transport and combustion of hydrogen, but HECTR can also function as an experiment analysis tool and can solve a limited set of other types of containment problems. New models added to HECTR Version 1.5 include fan coolers, containment leakage, continuous burning, and the capability to treat carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. Models for the ice condenser, sumps, and Mark III suppression pool were upgraded. HECTR is designed for flexibility and provides for user control of many important parameters, particularly those related to hydrogen combustion. Built-in correlations and default values of key parameters are also provided

  18. Incident Information Management Tool

    CERN Document Server

    Pejovic, Vladimir

    2015-01-01

    Flaws of\tcurrent incident information management at CMS and CERN\tare discussed. A new data\tmodel for future incident database is\tproposed and briefly described. Recently developed draft version of GIS-­‐based tool for incident tracking is presented.

  19. Psychometric properties of a shortened version of the Physical Self-Concept Questionnaire (PSQ-S).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodríguez-Fernández, Arantzazu; Axpe, Inge; Goñi, Alfredo

    2015-01-01

    The four-dimensional model of physical self-concept which differentiates the physical self-perceptions of ability, condition, attractiveness and strength is widely accepted. In the last two decades much research has been done on the physical self-concept and its relations with the psychological well-being/distress, anxiety disorders or Eating Behavior Disorders (EBD). To validate a shortened version of the Physical Self-Concept Questionnaire (PSQ-S) and verify its ability to discriminate between people with different levels of EBD. Responses of 1478 subjects between 13 and 21 years old to the shortened version of the PSQ were analyzed in order to check indexes of reliability and validity. Furthermore, the scores of 96 women aged 14 to 23 years old diagnosed of EBD were compared to 96 others without clinical diagnosis. The results indicate a reliability of 0.93 and confirm the tetrafactorial structure of the physical selfconcept. The highest physical self-concept is that of those without a clinical diagnosis of EBD. The Shortened-PSQ is a simple, reliable and suitable screening tool both for educational and clinical settings. It also provides a sufficient measure of physical self-concept for research purposes.

  20. Equivalência semântica da versão em português do instrumento Abuse Assessment Screen para rastrear a violência contra a mulher grávida Semantic equivalence of the Portuguese version of the Abuse Assessment Screen tool used for the screening of violence against pregnant women

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael E Reichenheim

    2000-12-01

    Full Text Available INTRODUÇÃO: Programas de investigação epidemiológica e de ação no âmbito da violência familiar estão em franca ascensão, requerendo instrumentos de aferição adaptados e vertidos para o português. O objetivo do estudo é avaliar a equivalência semântica entre o original em inglês e duas versões para o português do instrumento Abuse Assessment Screen (AAS usado no rastreamento de casos de violência contra a mulher grávida e recomendar uma versão-síntese para uso corrente. MÉTODOS: O processo de avaliação de equivalência semântica envolveu quatro etapas: tradução, retradução, apreciação formal de equivalência e crítica final através de consultas com especialista na área temática. RESULTADOS: Para cada item do instrumento apresentam-se os resultados relativos às quatro etapas. O texto cobre cada passo do processo que levou à versão final. As duas versões mostraram-se bastante semelhantes, com 14 das 15 assertivas similares, embora a segunda versão tenha se mostrado mais adequada, ainda que para alguns itens tenha sido decidido juntar as duas versões ou mesmo utilizar um item oriundo da versão um. CONCLUSÃO: É importante usar mais de uma versão no processo, em várias etapas de avaliação e de crítica, e discutir a pertinência de se acrescentar uma etapa adicional de interlocução do instrumento com membros da população-alvo.INTRODUCTION: Research programs and actions regarding family violence have been growing steadily. Therefore, there's a need to develop data collection tools. In Brazil, further problems come up since tools that have been developed elsewhere need to be adapted and translated. This study focuses on the Abuse Assessment Screening (AAS used to detect violence against pregnant women. The objective is to evaluate the semantic equivalence between the original tool in English and two Portuguese versions, and propose a synthetic version to be used in the field. METHODS: The evaluation

  1. VoiceThread as a Peer Review and Dissemination Tool for Undergraduate Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guertin, L. A.

    2012-12-01

    VoiceThread has been utilized in an undergraduate research methods course for peer review and final research project dissemination. VoiceThread (http://www.voicethread.com) can be considered a social media tool, as it is a web-based technology with the capacity to enable interactive dialogue. VoiceThread is an application that allows a user to place a media collection online containing images, audio, videos, documents, and/or presentations in an interface that facilitates asynchronous communication. Participants in a VoiceThread can be passive viewers of the online content or engaged commenters via text, audio, video, with slide annotations via a doodle tool. The VoiceThread, which runs across browsers and operating systems, can be public or private for viewing and commenting and can be embedded into any website. Although few university students are aware of the VoiceThread platform (only 10% of the students surveyed by Ng (2012)), the 2009 K-12 edition of The Horizon Report (Johnson et al., 2009) lists VoiceThread as a tool to watch because of the opportunities it provides as a collaborative learning environment. In Fall 2011, eleven students enrolled in an undergraduate research methods course at Penn State Brandywine each conducted their own small-scale research project. Upon conclusion of the projects, students were required to create a poster summarizing their work for peer review. To facilitate the peer review process outside of class, each student-created PowerPoint file was placed in a VoiceThread with private access to only the class members and instructor. Each student was assigned to peer review five different student posters (i.e., VoiceThread images) with the audio and doodle tools to comment on formatting, clarity of content, etc. After the peer reviews were complete, the students were allowed to edit their PowerPoint poster files for a new VoiceThread. In the new VoiceThread, students were required to video record themselves describing their research

  2. Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition: initial validation of the Korean version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hyun, Myung-Sun; Nam, Kyoung-A; Kang, Hee Sun; Reynolds, William M

    2009-03-01

    This paper is a report of a study conducted to test the validity and reliability of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition in Korean culture. Depression is a significant mental health problem in adolescents. The Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition has been shown to be a useful tool to assess depression in adolescents, with extensive research on this measure having been conducted in western cultures. Measures developed in western cultures need to be tested and validated before being used in Asian cultures. The participants were a convenience sample of 440 Korean adolescents with a mean age of 13.78 years (sd = 0.95) from grades 7 to 9 in three public middle schools in South Korea. A cross-sectional design was used. Back-translation was used to create the Korean version, with additional testing for cultural meaning and comprehension. The data were collected at the end of 2004. Internal consistency reliability for the Korean version of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition was 0.89, with subscale reliability ranging from 0.66 to 0.81. Evidence for criterion-related, convergent and discriminant validity for the Korean version of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition was found. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the 4-factor structure of Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition. Our results support the validity and reliability for the Korean version of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale - Second Edition as a measure of depression and suggest that it can be used to screen students and to evaluate the effectiveness of preventive interventions in school settings.

  3. Welfare assessment in porcine biomedical research – Suggestion for an operational tool

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Søndergaard, Lene Vammen; Dagnæs-Hansen, Frederik; Herskin, Mette S

    2011-01-01

    of the extent of welfare assessment in pigs used in biomedical research and to suggest a welfare assessment standard for research facilities based on an exposition of ethological considerations relevant for the welfare of pigs in biomedical research. The tools for porcine welfare assessment presented suggest...

  4. Developing a research and practice tool to measure walkability: a demonstration project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giles-Corti, Billie; Macaulay, Gus; Middleton, Nick; Boruff, Bryan; Bull, Fiona; Butterworth, Iain; Badland, Hannah; Mavoa, Suzanne; Roberts, Rebecca; Christian, Hayley

    2014-12-01

    Growing evidence shows that higher-density, mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly neighbourhoods encourage active transport, including transport-related walking. Despite widespread recognition of the benefits of creating more walkable neighbourhoods, there remains a gap between the rhetoric of the need for walkability and the creation of walkable neighbourhoods. Moreover, there is little objective data to benchmark the walkability of neighbourhoods within and between Australian cities in order to monitor planning and design intervention progress and to assess built environment and urban policy interventions required to achieve increased walkability. This paper describes a demonstration project that aimed to develop, trial and validate a 'Walkability Index Tool' that could be used by policy makers and practitioners to assess the walkability of local areas; or by researchers to access geospatial data assessing walkability. The overall aim of the project was to develop an automated geospatial tool capable of creating walkability indices for neighbourhoods at user-specified scales. The tool is based on open-source software architecture, within the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) framework, and incorporates key sub-component spatial measures of walkability (street connectivity, density and land use mix). Using state-based data, we demonstrated it was possible to create an automated walkability index. However, due to the lack of availability of consistent of national data measuring land use mix, at this stage it has not been possible to create a national walkability measure. The next stage of the project is to increase useability of the tool within the AURIN portal and to explore options for alternative spatial data sources that will enable the development of a valid national walkability index. AURIN's open-source Walkability Index Tool is a first step in demonstrating the potential benefit of a tool that could measure walkability across Australia. It

  5. LERC-SLAM - THE NASA LEWIS RESEARCH CENTER SATELLITE LINK ATTENUATION MODEL PROGRAM (MACINTOSH VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manning, R. M.

    1994-01-01

    The frequency and intensity of rain attenuation affecting the communication between a satellite and an earth terminal is an important consideration in planning satellite links. The NASA Lewis Research Center Satellite Link Attenuation Model Program (LeRC-SLAM) provides a static and dynamic statistical assessment of the impact of rain attenuation on a communications link established between an earth terminal and a geosynchronous satellite. The program is designed for use in the specification, design and assessment of satellite links for any terminal location in the continental United States. The basis for LeRC-SLAM is the ACTS Rain Attenuation Prediction Model, which uses a log-normal cumulative probability distribution to describe the random process of rain attenuation on satellite links. The derivation of the statistics for the rainrate process at the specified terminal location relies on long term rainfall records compiled by the U.S. Weather Service during time periods of up to 55 years in length. The theory of extreme value statistics is also utilized. The user provides 1) the longitudinal position of the satellite in geosynchronous orbit, 2) the geographical position of the earth terminal in terms of latitude and longitude, 3) the height above sea level of the terminal site, 4) the yearly average rainfall at the terminal site, and 5) the operating frequency of the communications link (within 1 to 1000 GHz, inclusive). Based on the yearly average rainfall at the terminal location, LeRC-SLAM calculates the relevant rain statistics for the site using an internal data base. The program then generates rain attenuation data for the satellite link. This data includes a description of the static (i.e., yearly) attenuation process, an evaluation of the cumulative probability distribution for attenuation effects, and an evaluation of the probability of fades below selected fade depths. In addition, LeRC-SLAM calculates the elevation and azimuth angles of the terminal

  6. PANTHER version 11: expanded annotation data from Gene Ontology and Reactome pathways, and data analysis tool enhancements.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mi, Huaiyu; Huang, Xiaosong; Muruganujan, Anushya; Tang, Haiming; Mills, Caitlin; Kang, Diane; Thomas, Paul D

    2017-01-04

    The PANTHER database (Protein ANalysis THrough Evolutionary Relationships, http://pantherdb.org) contains comprehensive information on the evolution and function of protein-coding genes from 104 completely sequenced genomes. PANTHER software tools allow users to classify new protein sequences, and to analyze gene lists obtained from large-scale genomics experiments. In the past year, major improvements include a large expansion of classification information available in PANTHER, as well as significant enhancements to the analysis tools. Protein subfamily functional classifications have more than doubled due to progress of the Gene Ontology Phylogenetic Annotation Project. For human genes (as well as a few other organisms), PANTHER now also supports enrichment analysis using pathway classifications from the Reactome resource. The gene list enrichment tools include a new 'hierarchical view' of results, enabling users to leverage the structure of the classifications/ontologies; the tools also allow users to upload genetic variant data directly, rather than requiring prior conversion to a gene list. The updated coding single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) scoring tool uses an improved algorithm. The hidden Markov model (HMM) search tools now use HMMER3, dramatically reducing search times and improving accuracy of E-value statistics. Finally, the PANTHER Tree-Attribute Viewer has been implemented in JavaScript, with new views for exploring protein sequence evolution. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

  7. Development and validation of a short version of the Partnership Self-Assessment Tool (PSAT among professionals in Dutch disease-management partnerships

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nieboer Anna P

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The extent to which partnership synergy is created within quality improvement programmes in the Netherlands is unknown. In this article, we describe the psychometric testing of the Partnership Self-Assessment Tool (PSAT among professionals in twenty-two disease-management partnerships participating in quality improvement projects focused on chronic care in the Netherlands. Our objectives are to validate the PSAT in the Netherlands and to reduce the number of items of the original PSAT while maintaining validity and reliability. Methods The Dutch version of the PSAT was tested in twenty-two disease-management partnerships with 218 professionals. We tested the instrument by means of structural equation modelling, and examined its validity and reliability. Results After eliminating 14 items, the confirmatory factor analyses revealed good indices of fit with the resulting 15-item PSAT-Short version (PSAT-S. Internal consistency as represented by Cronbach's alpha ranged from acceptable (0.75 for the 'efficiency' subscale to excellent for the 'leadership' subscale (0.87. Convergent validity was provided with high correlations of the partnership dimensions and partnership synergy (ranged from 0.512 to 0.609 and high correlations with chronic illness care (ranged from 0.447 to 0.329. Conclusion The psychometric properties and convergent validity of the PSAT-S were satisfactory rendering it a valid and reliable instrument for assessing partnership synergy and its dimensions of partnership functioning.

  8. Building genetic tools in Drosophila research: an interview with Gerald Rubin

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available Gerald (Gerry Rubin, pioneer in Drosophila genetics, is Founding Director of the HHMI-funded Janelia Research Campus. In this interview, Gerry recounts key events and collaborations that have shaped his unique approach to scientific exploration, decision-making, management and mentorship – an approach that forms the cornerstone of the model adopted at Janelia to tackle problems in interdisciplinary biomedical research. Gerry describes his remarkable journey from newcomer to internationally renowned leader in the fly field, highlighting his contributions to the tools and resources that have helped establish Drosophila as an important model in translational research. Describing himself as a ‘tool builder’, his current focus is on developing approaches for in-depth study of the fly nervous system, in order to understand key principles in neurobiology. Gerry was interviewed by Ross Cagan, Senior Editor of Disease Models & Mechanisms.

  9. Straightforward statistics understanding the tools of research

    CERN Document Server

    Geher, Glenn

    2014-01-01

    Straightforward Statistics: Understanding the Tools of Research is a clear and direct introduction to statistics for the social, behavioral, and life sciences. Based on the author's extensive experience teaching undergraduate statistics, this book provides a narrative presentation of the core principles that provide the foundation for modern-day statistics. With step-by-step guidance on the nuts and bolts of computing these statistics, the book includes detailed tutorials how to use state-of-the-art software, SPSS, to compute the basic statistics employed in modern academic and applied researc

  10. The Canadian minimum dataset for chronic low back pain research: a cross-cultural adaptation of the National Institutes of Health Task Force Research Standards.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lacasse, Anaïs; Roy, Jean-Sébastien; Parent, Alexandre J; Noushi, Nioushah; Odenigbo, Chúk; Pagé, Gabrielle; Beaudet, Nicolas; Choinière, Manon; Stone, Laura S; Ware, Mark A

    2017-01-01

    To better standardize clinical and epidemiological studies about the prevalence, risk factors, prognosis, impact and treatment of chronic low back pain, a minimum data set was developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Task Force on Research Standards for Chronic Low Back Pain. The aim of the present study was to develop a culturally adapted questionnaire that could be used for chronic low back pain research among French-speaking populations in Canada. The adaptation of the French Canadian version of the minimum data set was achieved according to guidelines for the cross-cultural adaptation of self-reported measures (double forward-backward translation, expert committee, pretest among 35 patients with pain in the low back region). Minor cultural adaptations were also incorporated into the English version by the expert committee (e.g., items about race/ethnicity, education level). This cross-cultural adaptation provides an equivalent French-Canadian version of the minimal data set questionnaire and a culturally adapted English-Canadian version. Modifications made to the original NIH minimum data set were minimized to facilitate comparison between the Canadian and American versions. The present study is a first step toward the use of a culturally adapted instrument for phenotyping French- and English-speaking low back pain patients in Canada. Clinicians and researchers will recognize the importance of this standardized tool and are encouraged to incorporate it into future research studies on chronic low back pain.

  11. TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH IMPLEMENTATION MANAGEMENT : DEVELOPMENT OF PERFORMANCE BASED PROCESSES, METRICS, AND TOOLS

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-02-02

    The objective of this study is to develop an evidencebased research implementation database and tool to support research implementation at the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT).A review was conducted drawing from the (1) implementati...

  12. Quantitative Risk reduction estimation Tool For Control Systems, Suggested Approach and Research Needs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miles McQueen; Wayne Boyer; Mark Flynn; Sam Alessi

    2006-03-01

    For the past year we have applied a variety of risk assessment technologies to evaluate the risk to critical infrastructure from cyber attacks on control systems. More recently, we identified the need for a stand alone control system risk reduction estimation tool to provide owners and operators of control systems with a more useable, reliable, and credible method for managing the risks from cyber attack. Risk is defined as the probability of a successful attack times the value of the resulting loss, typically measured in lives and dollars. Qualitative and ad hoc techniques for measuring risk do not provide sufficient support for cost benefit analyses associated with cyber security mitigation actions. To address the need for better quantitative risk reduction models we surveyed previous quantitative risk assessment research; evaluated currently available tools; developed new quantitative techniques [17] [18]; implemented a prototype analysis tool to demonstrate how such a tool might be used; used the prototype to test a variety of underlying risk calculational engines (e.g. attack tree, attack graph); and identified technical and research needs. We concluded that significant gaps still exist and difficult research problems remain for quantitatively assessing the risk to control system components and networks, but that a useable quantitative risk reduction estimation tool is not beyond reach.

  13. Psychometric properties of the Serbian version of the Empathy Quotient (S-EQ

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dimitrijević Aleksandar

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available In the present study we examined psychometric properties of the Serbian translation of the Empathy Quotient scale (S-EQ. The translated version of the EQ was applied on a sample of 694 high-school students. A sub-sample consisting of 375 high-school students also completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI, another widely used empathy measure. The following statistical analyses were applied: internal consistency analysis, explanatory (EFA and confirmatory (CFA factor analyses, and factor congruence analysis. Correlation with IRI and gender differences were calculated to demonstrate validity of the instrument. Results show that the Serbian 40-item version of EQ has lower reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = .782 than the original. The originally proposed one factor structure of the instrument was not confirmed. The short version with 28 items showed better reliablity (alpha= .807. The three-factor solution (cognitive empathy, emotional reactivity, and social skills showed good cross-sample stability (Tucker congruence coefficient over .8 but the results of CFA confirmed the solution proposed in the reviewed literature only partially. The mean scores are similar to those obtained in the other studies, and, as expected, women have significantly higher scores than men. Correlations with all subscales of IRI are statistically significant for the first two subscales of EQ, but not for the „social skills.” We concluded that the Serbian version of the „Empathy Quotient” is a useful research tool which can contribute to cross-cultural studies of empathy, although its psychometric characteristics are not as good as those obtained in the original study. We also suggest that a 28-item should be used preferably to the original 40-item version. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 179018: Identification, measurement and development of cognitive and emotional competences important for a society oriented to European integrations

  14. Cross-cultural adaptation and measurement properties of the Brazilian Version of the Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sartor, Cristina D; Oliveira, Mariana D; Campos, Victoria; Ferreira, Jane S S P; Sacco, Isabel C N

    The Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument is an easy-to-use questionnaire aimed at screening and detecting diabetic polyneuropathy. To translate and cross-culturally adapt the MNSI to Brazilian Portuguese and evaluate its measurement properties. Two bilingual translators translated from English into Brazilian Portuguese and made a synthetic version. The synthetic version was back translated into English. A committee of specialists and the translator checked the cultural adaptations and developed a pre-final questionnaire in Brazilian Portuguese (prefinal version). In pretesting, the prefinal version was applied to a sample of 34 subjects in which each subject was interviewed to determine whether they understood each item. For the later assessment of measurement properties, 84 subjects were assessed. A final Brazilian Portuguese version of the instrument was produced after obtaining 80% agreement (SEM0.92), reasonable construct validity for the association between the MNSI and Neuropathy Symptom Score (r=0.46, p<0.05) and excellent association between the MNSI and Neuropathy Disability Score (r=0.79, p<0.05). We did not detect floor and ceiling effects (<9.5% of patients with maximum scores). The Brazilian Portuguese version of the MNSI is suitable for application in the Brazilian diabetic population and is a reliable tool for the screening and detection of DPN. The MNSI can be used both in clinical practice and also for research purposes. Copyright © 2017 Associação Brasileira de Pesquisa e Pós-Graduação em Fisioterapia. Publicado por Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  15. How should we assess knowledge translation in research organizations; designing a knowledge translation self-assessment tool for research institutes (SATORI).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gholami, Jaleh; Majdzadeh, Reza; Nedjat, Saharnaz; Nedjat, Sima; Maleki, Katayoun; Ashoorkhani, Mahnaz; Yazdizadeh, Bahareh

    2011-02-22

    The knowledge translation self-assessment tool for research institutes (SATORI) was designed to assess the status of knowledge translation in research institutes. The objective was, to identify the weaknesses and strengths of knowledge translation in research centres and faculties associated with Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). The tool, consisting of 50 statements in four main domains, was used in 20 TUMS-affiliated research centres and departments after its reliability was established. It was completed in a group discussion by the members of the research council, researchers and research users' representatives from each centre and/or department. The mean score obtained in the four domains of 'The question of research', 'Knowledge production', 'Knowledge transfer' and 'Promoting the use of evidence' were 2.26, 2.92, 2 and 1.89 (out of 5) respectively.Nine out of 12 interventional priorities with the lowest quartile score were related to knowledge transfer resources and strategies, whereas eight of them were in the highest quartile and related to 'The question of research' and 'Knowledge production'. The self-assessment tool identifies the gaps in capacity and infrastructure of knowledge translation support within research organizations. Assessment of research institutes using SATORI pointed out that strengthening knowledge translation through provision of financial support for knowledge translation activities, creating supportive and facilitating infrastructures, and facilitating interactions between researchers and target audiences to exchange questions and research findings are among the priorities of research centres and/or departments.

  16. Raising Reliability of Web Search Tool Research through Replication and Chaos Theory

    OpenAIRE

    Nicholson, Scott

    1999-01-01

    Because the World Wide Web is a dynamic collection of information, the Web search tools (or "search engines") that index the Web are dynamic. Traditional information retrieval evaluation techniques may not provide reliable results when applied to the Web search tools. This study is the result of ten replications of the classic 1996 Ding and Marchionini Web search tool research. It explores the effects that replication can have on transforming unreliable results from one iteration into replica...

  17. Translation and validation of the Malay version of the Stroke Knowledge Test

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Siti Noorkhairina Sowtali

    2016-04-01

    Conclusions: Malay version Stroke Knowledge Test was a valid and reliable tool to assess educational needs and to evaluate stroke knowledge among participants of group-based stroke education programs in Malaysia.

  18. Assessing quality of life in children and adolescents: development and validation of the Italian version of the EQ-5D-Y

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luciana Scalone

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available

    Background: Although assessment of Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL in paediatric populations is gaining interest, it is not sufficiently assessed. While a number of specific paediatric instruments have been developed, some users appear to prefer generic tools such as the EQ-5D, which is a widely used and recommended tool to describe and value health across many different adult populations. We adapted the EQ-5D generic instrument into the EQ-5D-Y(youth for the assessment of HRQoL in children and adolescents, and investigated the feasibility, acceptability, validity and reliability of this new version of the tool.

    Methods: The Italian version of the EQ-5D-Y was administered to 415 children and adolescents from a general population aged between 8 and 15, and to 25 paediatric patients diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL.

    Results: The Italian version of the EQ-5D-Y was found to be feasible and acceptable for self-completion in the target age-group, with less than 1% refusing to complete it and no invalid answers given. Convergent and divergent validity tested with a child specific standard instrument was satisfactory overall. The test-retest reliability was moderate to good in all the domains of the descriptive system, and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS showed optimal levels of reliability (Intraclass Correlation Coefficient = 0.82. As regards known-group validity, compared with the youths from general population, the ALL patients reported more difficulties in four of the five domains of the descriptive system and, on average, had a lower VAS score.

    Conclusions:The Italian version of the EQ-5D-Y shows to be a promising tool for assessing HRQoL in children and adolescents from 8 to 15 years of age. Future studies should further investigate and optimize its applicability to clinical research and carry out economic evaluations within the health

  19. Moxibustion for Cephalic Version of Breech Presentation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlaeger, Judith M; Stoffel, Cynthia L; Bussell, Jeanie L; Cai, Hui Yan; Takayama, Miho; Yajima, Hiroyoshi; Takakura, Nobuari

    2018-05-01

    Moxibustion, a form of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), is the burning of the herb moxa (Folium Artemisiae argyi or mugwort) over acupuncture points. It is often used in China to facilitate cephalic version of breech presentation. This article reviews the history, philosophy, therapeutic use, possible mechanisms of action, and literature pertaining to its use for this indication. For moxibustion, moxa can be rolled into stick form, placed directly on the skin, or placed on an acupuncture needle and ignited to warm acupuncture points. Studies have demonstrated that moxibustion may promote cephalic version of breech presentation and may facilitate external cephalic version. However, there is currently a paucity of research on the effects of moxibustion on cephalic version of breech presentation, and thus there is a need for further studies. Areas needing more investigation include efficacy, safety, optimal technique, and best protocol for cephalic version of breech presentation. © 2018 by the American College of Nurse-Midwives.

  20. The "Metaphorical Collage" as a Research Tool in the Field of Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russo-Zimet, Gila

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to propose a research tool in the field of education--the "metaphorical collage." This tool facilitates the understanding of concepts and processes in education through the analysis of metaphors in collage works that include pictorial images and verbal images. We believe the "metaphorical collage" to be…

  1. The Healthy Aging Brain Care (HABC Monitor: validation of the Patient Self-Report Version of the clinical tool designed to measure and monitor cognitive, functional, and psychological health

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monahan PO

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Patrick O Monahan,1 Catherine A Alder,2–4 Babar A Khan,1–3 Timothy Stump,1 Malaz A Boustani1–4 1Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA; 2Indiana University Center for Aging Research, Indianapolis, IN, USA; 3Regenstrief Institute Inc., Indianapolis, IN, USA; 4Eskenazi Health, Indianapolis, IN, USA Background: Primary care providers need an inexpensive, simple, user-friendly, easily standardized, sensitive to change, and widely available multidomain instrument to measure the cognitive, functional, and psychological symptoms of patients suffering from multiple chronic conditions. We previously validated the Caregiver Report Version of the Healthy Aging Brain Care Monitor (HABC Monitor for measuring and monitoring the severity of symptoms through caregiver reports. The purpose of this study was to assess the reliability and validity of the Patient Self-Report Version of the HABC Monitor (Self-Report HABC Monitor.Design: Cross-sectional study.Setting: Primary care clinics affiliated with a safety net urban health care system in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA.Subjects: A total of 291 subjects aged ≥65 years with a mean age of 72.7 (standard deviation 6.2 years, 76% female, and 56% African Americans.Analysis: Psychometric validity and reliability of the Self-Report HABC Monitor.Results: Among 291 patients analyzed, the Self-Report HABC Monitor demonstrated excellent fit for the confirmatory factor analysis model (root mean square error of approximation =0.030, comparative fit index =0.974, weighted root mean square residual =0.837 and good internal consistency (0.78–0.92. Adequate convergent–divergent validity (differences between the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status test-based cognitive function impairment versus nonimpairment groups was demonstrated only when patients were removed from analysis if they had both cognitive function test impairment and suspiciously perfect self-report HABC Monitor cognitive floor

  2. Development of the major trauma case review tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curtis, Kate; Mitchell, Rebecca; McCarthy, Amy; Wilson, Kellie; Van, Connie; Kennedy, Belinda; Tall, Gary; Holland, Andrew; Foster, Kim; Dickinson, Stuart; Stelfox, Henry T

    2017-02-28

    As many as half of all patients with major traumatic injuries do not receive the recommended care, with variance in preventable mortality reported across the globe. This variance highlights the need for a comprehensive process for monitoring and reviewing patient care, central to which is a consistent peer-review process that includes trauma system safety and human factors. There is no published, evidence-informed standardised tool that considers these factors for use in adult or paediatric trauma case peer-review. The aim of this research was to develop and validate a trauma case review tool to facilitate clinical review of paediatric trauma patient care in extracting information to facilitate monitoring, inform change and enable loop closure. Development of the trauma case review tool was multi-faceted, beginning with a review of the trauma audit tool literature. Data were extracted from the literature to inform iterative tool development using a consensus approach. Inter-rater agreement was assessed for both the pilot and finalised versions of the tool. The final trauma case review tool contained ten sections, including patient factors (such as pre-existing conditions), presenting problem, a timeline of events, factors contributing to the care delivery problem (including equipment, work environment, staff action, organizational factors), positive aspects of care and the outcome of panel discussion. After refinement, the inter-rater reliability of the human factors and outcome components of the tool improved with an average 86% agreement between raters. This research developed an evidence-informed tool for use in paediatric trauma case review that considers both system safety and human factors to facilitate clinical review of trauma patient care. This tool can be used to identify opportunities for improvement in trauma care and guide quality assurance activities. Validation is required in the adult population.

  3. [Polish version of the ADOS (autism diagnostic observation schedule-generic)].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chojnicka, Izabela; Płoski, Rafał

    2012-01-01

    The article presents the Polish version of the autism diagnostic observation schedule-generic (ADOS), which together with the autism diagnostic interview-revised (ADI-R) is cited as the "gold standard" for the diagnosis of autism. The ADOS is a standardised, semistructured observation protocol appropriate for children and adults of differing age and language levels. It is linked to ICD-10 and DSM-IV-TR criteria. The ADOS consists of four modules, ranging from module 1 for nonverbal individuals to module 4 for verbally fluent adults. The adequate inter-rater reliability for items has been established. The protocol has high discriminant validity and distinguishes children with pervasive developmental disorders from children, who are outside of the spectrum. Although it does not enable to distinguish individuals with pervasive developmental disorder, unspecified from individuals with childhood autism. The paper presents subsequent steps of the translation process of the original version into Polish, as well as a chosen adaptation strategy of the Polish version. The ADOS is a very useful tool both for clinical diagnosis and for the scientific purpose diagnosis. In this last case it is extremely important to use a standardised method. Until now, there was no standardised diagnostic tool for autism in Poland.

  4. Visual Tools for Eliciting Connections and Cohesiveness in Mixed Methods Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murawska, Jaclyn M.; Walker, David A.

    2017-01-01

    In this commentary, we offer a set of visual tools that can assist education researchers, especially those in the field of mathematics, in developing cohesiveness from a mixed methods perspective, commencing at a study's research questions and literature review, through its data collection and analysis, and finally to its results. This expounds…

  5. Psychometric properties of the Persian version of Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hossein Kaviani H

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Background: Measuring anxiety level in clinical and non-clinical population needs valid and reliable tool. This research examined the validity and reliability of Beck Anxiety Inventory in Iranian normal population as well as clinically anxious patients.Methods: First, a two-session course was run to train research workers. After they were sufficiently prepared, they were dispatched to different regions of the city, Tehran, referring to residential places for men and women volunteer to take part in the research. At the end, 1513 respondents were randomly recruited and tested using Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI. Of this population, 112 respondents were randomly selected and re-tested in order to measure test-retest reliability with a one-month interval time between first and second tests. Meanwhile, 261 clinically anxious patients (from clinics and mental health centers were tested. In order to measure validity, 150 patients were interviewed by two parallel clinicians and the anxiety level was rated based on a 10-point scale from 0 (the least to 10 (the most. The two raters were blind to the BAI scores of the patients.    Results: For data reduction and analysis, the SPSS for Windows-edition 14, was conducted. Findings showed that the Persian version of BAI proved a good reliability (r=0.72, p<0.001, a very good validity (r=0.83, p<0.001, and an excellent internal consistency (Alpha=0.92. Conclusions: The results support the applicability of BAI in Iranian population and suggest the use of this inventory for clinical and research aims. Persian version of BAI not only can help clinicians in assessment and diagnosis, but also assist researchers to evaluate anxiety level when needed.

  6. ARM Climate Research Facility: Outreach Tools and Strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roeder, L.; Jundt, R.

    2009-12-01

    Sponsored by the Department of Energy, the ARM Climate Research Facility is a global scientific user facility for the study of climate change. To publicize progress and achievements and to reach new users, the ACRF uses a variety of Web 2.0 tools and strategies that build off of the program’s comprehensive and well established News Center (www.arm.gov/news). These strategies include: an RSS subscription service for specific news categories; an email “newsletter” distribution to the user community that compiles the latest News Center updates into a short summary with links; and a Facebook page that pulls information from the News Center and links to relevant information in other online venues, including those of our collaborators. The ACRF also interacts with users through field campaign blogs, like Discovery Channel’s EarthLive, to share research experiences from the field. Increasingly, field campaign Wikis are established to help ACRF researchers collaborate during the planning and implementation phases of their field studies and include easy to use logs and image libraries to help record the campaigns. This vital reference information is used in developing outreach material that is shared in highlights, news, and Facebook. Other Web 2.0 tools that ACRF uses include Google Maps to help users visualize facility locations and aircraft flight patterns. Easy-to-use comment boxes are also available on many of the data-related web pages on www.arm.gov to encourage feedback. To provide additional opportunities for increased interaction with the public and user community, future Web 2.0 plans under consideration for ACRF include: evaluating field campaigns for Twitter and microblogging opportunities, adding public discussion forums to research highlight web pages, moving existing photos into albums on FlickR or Facebook, and building online video archives through YouTube.

  7. Hyperacusis Questionnaire as a Tool for Measuring Hypersensitivity to Sound in a Tinnitus Research Population

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathryn Fackrell

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Hypersensitivity to external sounds is often comorbid with tinnitus and may be significant for adherence to certain types of tinnitus management. Therefore, a clear measure of sensitivity to sound is important. The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Hyperacusis Questionnaire (HQ for use as a measurement tool using data from a sample of 264 adults who took part in tinnitus research. We evaluated the HQ factor structure, internal consistency, convergent and discriminant validity, and floor and ceiling effects. Internal consistency was high (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.88 and moderate correlations were observed between the HQ, uncomfortable loudness levels, and other health questionnaires. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that the original HQ three-factor solution and a one-factor solution were both a poor fit to the data. Four problematic items were removed and exploratory factor analysis identified a two-factor (attentional and social solution. The original three-factor structure of the HQ was not confirmed. All fourteen items do not accurately assess hypersensitivity to sound in a tinnitus population. We propose a 10-item (2-factor version of the HQ, which will need to be confirmed using a new tinnitus and perhaps nontinnitus population.

  8. The use of web2 tools in action research

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kolbæk, Raymond; Steensgaard, Randi; Angel, Sanne

    2017-01-01

    . Furthermore we try to evidence-based the concept of "Sample handlings" and examines whether this concept can be used as a flexible methodological tool for developing workflow that promotes patient participation in their own rehabilitation. We use a action research design to identify actual problems, develop......, to test, evaluate and implement specific actions to promote patient participation in rehabilitation. Four nurses and four social and health assistants is having a "co-researcher" active role. The interaction with the researchers creates a reflexive and dynamic process with a learning and competence......Abstract Content: Major challenges occurs, when trying to implement research in clinical practice. In the West Danish Center for Spinal Cord Injury, we are doing a practice-based ph.d. project, that involves the practice field's own members as co-researchers. In the management of the project we use...

  9. What Industry Is Saying About the Battery ISC Device (Text Version) |

    Science.gov (United States)

    version of the video What Industry Is Saying About the Battery ISC Device. Bring Up NREL Logo with Music Transportation Research | NREL What Industry Is Saying About the Battery ISC Device (Text Version) What Industry Is Saying About the Battery ISC Device (Text Version) The following is the text

  10. New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released | News | NREL

    Science.gov (United States)

    New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released January 26 , 2018 National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers recently released an updated open-source simplified and documented. Because of the living, open-source nature of the newly updated utility, NREL

  11. Decommissioning economic risk advisor: DERAD Version 1.0 user's manual. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gjerde, A.R.; Qian, M.; Govil, P.; Balson, W.E.

    1995-04-01

    DERAD - Decommissioning Economic and Risk ADvisor - is a decision support tool designed to help utility decision makers analyze economics and financial risk of decommissioning nuclear power plants. Your current copy of DERAD, Version 1.0, is customized for PWR configurated plants. DERAD has been developed by Decision Focus Incorporated under EPRI sponsorship. If you have ideas or recommendations for how we can improve and enhance future versions of DERAD, we would like to hear from you

  12. A validated set of tool pictures with matched objects and non-objects for laterality research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verma, Ark; Brysbaert, Marc

    2015-01-01

    Neuropsychological and neuroimaging research has established that knowledge related to tool use and tool recognition is lateralized to the left cerebral hemisphere. Recently, behavioural studies with the visual half-field technique have confirmed the lateralization. A limitation of this research was that different sets of stimuli had to be used for the comparison of tools to other objects and objects to non-objects. Therefore, we developed a new set of stimuli containing matched triplets of tools, other objects and non-objects. With the new stimulus set, we successfully replicated the findings of no visual field advantage for objects in an object recognition task combined with a significant right visual field advantage for tools in a tool recognition task. The set of stimuli is available as supplemental data to this article.

  13. Multi-Mission Power Analysis Tool (MMPAT) Version 3

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wood, Eric G.; Chang, George W.; Chen, Fannie C.

    2012-01-01

    The Multi-Mission Power Analysis Tool (MMPAT) simulates a spacecraft power subsystem including the power source (solar array and/or radioisotope thermoelectric generator), bus-voltage control, secondary battery (lithium-ion or nickel-hydrogen), thermostatic heaters, and power-consuming equipment. It handles multiple mission types including heliocentric orbiters, planetary orbiters, and surface operations. Being parametrically driven along with its user-programmable features can reduce or even eliminate any need for software modifications when configuring it for a particular spacecraft. It provides multiple levels of fidelity, thereby fulfilling the vast majority of a project s power simulation needs throughout the lifecycle. It can operate in a stand-alone mode with a graphical user interface, in batch mode, or as a library linked with other tools. This software can simulate all major aspects of a spacecraft power subsystem. It is parametrically driven to reduce or eliminate the need for a programmer. Added flexibility is provided through user-designed state models and table-driven parameters. MMPAT is designed to be used by a variety of users, such as power subsystem engineers for sizing power subsystem components; mission planners for adjusting mission scenarios using power profiles generated by the model; system engineers for performing system- level trade studies using the results of the model during the early design phases of a spacecraft; and operations personnel for high-fidelity modeling of the essential power aspect of the planning picture.

  14. Validation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool (PSST) and association of PSST scores with health-related quality of life.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Câmara, Rachel de A; Köhler, Cristiano A; Frey, Benicio N; Hyphantis, Thomas N; Carvalho, André F

    2017-01-01

    To develop and validate a Brazilian Portuguese version of the Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool (PSST), a questionnaire used for the screening of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and of the most severe form of PMS, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). The PSST also rates the impact of premenstrual symptoms on daily activities. A consecutive sample of 801 women aged ≥ 18 years completed the study protocol. The internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and content validity of the Brazilian PSST were determined. The independent association of a positive screen for PMS or PMDD and quality of life determined by the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument-Abbreviated version (WHOQOL-Bref) was also assessed. Of 801 participants, 132 (16.5%) had a positive screening for PMDD. The Brazilian PSST had adequate internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.91) and test-retest reliability. The PSST also had adequate convergent/discriminant validity, without redundancy. Content validity ratio and content validity index were 0.61 and 0.94 respectively. Finally, a positive screen for PMS/PMDD was associated with worse WHOQOL-Bref scores. These findings suggest that PSST is a reliable and valid instrument to screen for PMS/PMDD in Brazilian women.

  15. EasyInterface: A toolkit for rapid development of GUIs for research prototype tools

    OpenAIRE

    Doménech, Jesús; Genaim, Samir; Johnsen, Einar Broch; Schlatte, Rudolf

    2017-01-01

    In this paper we describe EasyInterface, an open-source toolkit for rapid development of web-based graphical user interfaces (GUIs). This toolkit addresses the need of researchers to make their research prototype tools available to the community, and integrating them in a common environment, rapidly and without being familiar with web programming or GUI libraries in general. If a tool can be executed from a command-line and its output goes to the standard output, then in few minutes one can m...

  16. Collaboratively Conceived, Designed and Implemented: Matching Visualization Tools with Geoscience Data Collections and Geoscience Data Collections with Visualization Tools via the ToolMatch Service.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoebelheinrich, N. J.; Lynnes, C.; West, P.; Ferritto, M.

    2014-12-01

    Two problems common to many geoscience domains are the difficulties in finding tools to work with a given dataset collection, and conversely, the difficulties in finding data for a known tool. A collaborative team from the Earth Science Information Partnership (ESIP) has gotten together to design and create a web service, called ToolMatch, to address these problems. The team began their efforts by defining an initial, relatively simple conceptual model that addressed the two uses cases briefly described above. The conceptual model is expressed as an ontology using OWL (Web Ontology Language) and DCterms (Dublin Core Terms), and utilizing standard ontologies such as DOAP (Description of a Project), FOAF (Friend of a Friend), SKOS (Simple Knowledge Organization System) and DCAT (Data Catalog Vocabulary). The ToolMatch service will be taking advantage of various Semantic Web and Web standards, such as OpenSearch, RESTful web services, SWRL (Semantic Web Rule Language) and SPARQL (Simple Protocol and RDF Query Language). The first version of the ToolMatch service was deployed in early fall 2014. While more complete testing is required, a number of communities besides ESIP member organizations have expressed interest in collaborating to create, test and use the service and incorporate it into their own web pages, tools and / or services including the USGS Data Catalog service, DataONE, the Deep Carbon Observatory, Virtual Solar Terrestrial Observatory (VSTO), and the U.S. Global Change Research Program. In this session, presenters will discuss the inception and development of the ToolMatch service, the collaborative process used to design, refine, and test the service, and future plans for the service.

  17. Validation of the Spanish version of the Index of Spouse Abuse.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plazaola-Castaño, Juncal; Ruiz-Pérez, Isabel; Escribà-Agüir, Vicenta; Jiménez-Martín, Juan Manuel; Hernández-Torres, Elisa

    2009-04-01

    Partner violence against women is a major public health problem. Although there are currently a number of validated screening and diagnostic tools that can be used to evaluate this type of violence, such tools are not available in Spain. The aim of this study is to analyze the validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA). A cross-sectional study was carried out in 2005 in two health centers in Granada, Spain, in 390 women between 18 and 70 years old. Analyses of the factorial structure, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity were conducted. Cutoff points for each subscale were also defined. For the construct validity analysis, the SF-36 perceived general health dimension, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and the Goldberg 12-item General Health Questionnaire were included. The psychometric analysis shows that the instrument has good internal consistency, reproducibility, and construct validity. The scale is useful for the analysis of partner violence against women in both a research setting and a healthcare setting.

  18. Development of an Arabic version of the National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire as a tool to study eye diseases patients in Egypt

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nizar Saleh Abdelfattah

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available AIM:To develop and test an Arabic version of the National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire-25 (NEI-VFQ-25.METHODS:NEI-VFQ-25 was translated into Arabic according to WHO translation guidelines. We enrolled adult consenting patients with bilateral chronic eye diseases who presented to 14 hospitals across Egypt from October to December 2012, and documented their clinical findings. Psychometric properties were then tested using STATA.RESULTS:We recruited 379 patients, whose mean age was (54.5±15y. Of 46.2% were males, 227 had cataract, 31 had glaucoma, 23 had retinal detachment, 37 had diabetic retinopathy, and 61 had miscellaneous visual defects. Non-response rate and the floor and ceiling numbers of the Arabic version (ARB-VFQ-25 were calculated. Internal consistency was high in all subscales (except general health, with Cronbach-α ranging from 0.702-0.911. Test-retest reliability was high (intraclass correlation coefficient 0.79.CONCLUSION:ARB-VFQ-25 is a reliable and valid tool for assessing visual functions of Arabic speaking patients. However, some questions had high non-response rates and should be substituted by available alternatives. Our results support the importance of including self-reported visual functions as part of routine ophthalmologic examination.

  19. Introducing the Forensic Research/Reference on Genetics knowledge base, FROG-kb.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajeevan, Haseena; Soundararajan, Usha; Pakstis, Andrew J; Kidd, Kenneth K

    2012-09-01

    Online tools and databases based on multi-allelic short tandem repeat polymorphisms (STRPs) are actively used in forensic teaching, research, and investigations. The Fst value of each CODIS marker tends to be low across the populations of the world and most populations typically have all the common STRP alleles present diminishing the ability of these systems to discriminate ethnicity. Recently, considerable research is being conducted on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to be considered for human identification and description. However, online tools and databases that can be used for forensic research and investigation are limited. The back end DBMS (Database Management System) for FROG-kb is Oracle version 10. The front end is implemented with specific code using technologies such as Java, Java Servlet, JSP, JQuery, and GoogleCharts. We present an open access web application, FROG-kb (Forensic Research/Reference on Genetics-knowledge base, http://frog.med.yale.edu), that is useful for teaching and research relevant to forensics and can serve as a tool facilitating forensic practice. The underlying data for FROG-kb are provided by the already extensively used and referenced ALlele FREquency Database, ALFRED (http://alfred.med.yale.edu). In addition to displaying data in an organized manner, computational tools that use the underlying allele frequencies with user-provided data are implemented in FROG-kb. These tools are organized by the different published SNP/marker panels available. This web tool currently has implemented general functions possible for two types of SNP panels, individual identification and ancestry inference, and a prediction function specific to a phenotype informative panel for eye color. The current online version of FROG-kb already provides new and useful functionality. We expect FROG-kb to grow and expand in capabilities and welcome input from the forensic community in identifying datasets and functionalities that will be most helpful

  20. Thermal Insulation System Analysis Tool (TISTool) User's Manual. Version 1.0.0

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Wesley; Fesmire, James; Leucht, Kurt; Demko, Jonathan

    2010-01-01

    The Thermal Insulation System Analysis Tool (TISTool) was developed starting in 2004 by Jonathan Demko and James Fesmire. The first edition was written in Excel and Visual BasIc as macros. It included the basic shapes such as a flat plate, cylinder, dished head, and sphere. The data was from several KSC tests that were already in the public literature realm as well as data from NIST and other highly respectable sources. More recently, the tool has been updated with more test data from the Cryogenics Test Laboratory and the tank shape was added. Additionally, the tool was converted to FORTRAN 95 to allow for easier distribution of the material and tool. This document reviews the user instructions for the operation of this system.

  1. What’s Ketso? A Tool for Researchers, Educators, and Practitioners

    OpenAIRE

    James S. Bates

    2016-01-01

    Researchers, educators, and practitioners utilize a range of tools and techniques to obtain data, input, feedback, and information from research participants, program learners, and stakeholders. Ketso is both an array of information gathering techniques and a toolkit (see www.ketso.com). It “can be used in any situation when people come together to share information, learn from each other, make decisions and plan actions” (Tippett & How, 2011, p. 4). The word ketso means “action” in the Sesot...

  2. The Oswestry Disability Index (version 2.1a): validation of a Dutch language version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Hooff, Miranda L; Spruit, Maarten; Fairbank, Jeremy C T; van Limbeek, Jacques; Jacobs, Wilco C H

    2015-01-15

    A cross-sectional study on baseline data. To translate the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) version 2.1a into the Dutch language and to validate its use in a cohort of patients with chronic low back pain in secondary spine care. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are commonly accepted to evaluate the outcome of spine interventions. Functional status is an important outcome in spine research. The ODI is a recommended condition-specific patient-reported outcome measure used to evaluate functional status in patients with back pain. As yet, no formal translated Dutch version exists. The ODI was translated according to established guidelines. The final version was built into the electronic web-based system in addition with the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire, the numeric rating scale for pain severity, 36-Item Short Form Health Survey Questionnaire for quality of life, and the hospital anxiety and depression scale. Baseline data were used of 244 patients with chronic low back pain who participated in a combined physical and psychological program. Floor and ceiling effects, internal consistency, and the construct validity were evaluated using quality criteria. The mean ODI (standard deviation) was 39.6 (12.3); minimum 6, maximum 70. Most of the participants (88%) were moderately to severely disabled. Factor analysis determined a 1-factor structure (36% explained variance) and the homogeneity of ODI items is shown (Cronbach α = 0.79). The construct validity is supported as all (6:6) the a priori hypotheses were confirmed. Moreover, the ODI and Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire, showed a strong significant correlation (r = 0.68, P disability among Dutch patients with chronic low back pain. This translated condition-specific patient-reported outcome measure version is recommended for use in future back pain research and to evaluate outcome of back care in the Netherlands.

  3. Basic statistical tools in research and data analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zulfiqar Ali

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Statistical methods involved in carrying out a study include planning, designing, collecting data, analysing, drawing meaningful interpretation and reporting of the research findings. The statistical analysis gives meaning to the meaningless numbers, thereby breathing life into a lifeless data. The results and inferences are precise only if proper statistical tests are used. This article will try to acquaint the reader with the basic research tools that are utilised while conducting various studies. The article covers a brief outline of the variables, an understanding of quantitative and qualitative variables and the measures of central tendency. An idea of the sample size estimation, power analysis and the statistical errors is given. Finally, there is a summary of parametric and non-parametric tests used for data analysis.

  4. Positioning Mentoring as a Coach Development Tool: Recommendations for Future Practice and Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    McQuade, Sarah; Davis, Louise; Nash, Christine

    2015-01-01

    Current thinking in coach education advocates mentoring as a development tool to connect theory and practice. However, little empirical evidence exists to evaluate the effectiveness of mentoring as a coach development tool. Business, education, and nursing precede the coaching industry in their mentoring practice, and research findings offered in…

  5. Social networks, web-based tools and diseases: implications for biomedical research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costa, Fabricio F

    2013-03-01

    Advances in information technology have improved our ability to gather, collect and analyze information from individuals online. Social networks can be seen as a nonlinear superposition of a multitude of complex connections between people where the nodes represent individuals and the links between them capture a variety of different social interactions. The emergence of different types of social networks has fostered connections between individuals, thus facilitating data exchange in a variety of fields. Therefore, the question posed now is "can these same tools be applied to life sciences in order to improve scientific and medical research?" In this article, I will review how social networks and other web-based tools are changing the way we approach and track diseases in biomedical research. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. English version: Research education for diversity in educational research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Brown

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Concern expressed by government and other funding agencies and consumers of research, about the quality and relevance of research in the field of education affects not only the kind of research is conducted but also the way in which we educate researchers. The economic imperative for ‘value for money’ from research and researchers has, for instance, led to the education of research students to be seen increasingly in terms of training in a range of generic skills that can be applied to the investigation of a range of forms of research problem in a variety of contexts. Whilst breadth in the education of researchers has clear advantages, both for the careers of individual researchers and the wider research community, there is some tension between this approach and the more established view of a research degree as an induction into a narrow domain of knowledge and the production of a highly specialised academic identity. There are further developments that erode this notion of specialisation, for instance the growth of mixed method research, which has the potential to challenge the polarisation of qualitative and quantitative research, and shifts in the sites and agents of educational research signified by the growth of professional doctorates, which could further challenge the university as a dominant institution in the production of educational knowledge. In this paper I will explore what these developments mean for the teaching of research and consider how we can work collaboratively to develop both professional researchers and researching professionals, and reconcile the acquisition of skills with induction into specialised knowledge domains. This will involve exploration of both an overarching framework for thinking about the processes of doing research and specific examples of practice. Underlying the approach taken is a general commitment to research education, rather than to training and the teaching of methods, and the desire to ensure

  7. A Mentoring Toolkit: Tips and Tools for Mentoring Early-Career Researchers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flint, Kathleen

    2010-01-01

    Effective mentoring is a critical component in the training of early-career researchers, cultivating more independent, productive and satisfied scientists. For example, mentoring has been shown by the 2005 Sigma Xi National Postdoc Survey to be a key indicator for a successful postdoctoral outcome. Mentoring takes many forms and can include support for maximizing research skills and productivity as well as assistance in preparing for a chosen career path. Yet, because there is no "one-size-fits-all” approach, mentoring can be an activity that is hard to define. In this presentation, a series of tips and tools will be offered to aid mentors in developing a plan for their mentoring activities. This will include: suggestions for how to get started; opportunities for mentoring activities within the research group, within the institution, and outside the institution; tools for communicating and assessing professional milestones; and resources for fostering the professional and career development of mentees. Special considerations will also be presented for mentoring international scholars and women. These strategies will be helpful to the PI responding to the new NSF mentoring plan requirement for postdocs as well as to the student, postdoc, researcher or professor overseeing the research and training of others.

  8. Incorporating ethical principles into clinical research protocols: a tool for protocol writers and ethics committees.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Rebecca H; Wacholtz, Mary C; Barnes, Mark; Boggs, Liam; Callery-D'Amico, Susan; Davis, Amy; Digilova, Alla; Forster, David; Heffernan, Kate; Luthin, Maeve; Lynch, Holly Fernandez; McNair, Lindsay; Miller, Jennifer E; Murphy, Jacquelyn; Van Campen, Luann; Wilenzick, Mark; Wolf, Delia; Woolston, Cris; Aldinger, Carmen; Bierer, Barbara E

    2016-04-01

    A novel Protocol Ethics Tool Kit ('Ethics Tool Kit') has been developed by a multi-stakeholder group of the Multi-Regional Clinical Trials Center of Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard. The purpose of the Ethics Tool Kit is to facilitate effective recognition, consideration and deliberation of critical ethical issues in clinical trial protocols. The Ethics Tool Kit may be used by investigators and sponsors to develop a dedicated Ethics Section within a protocol to improve the consistency and transparency between clinical trial protocols and research ethics committee reviews. It may also streamline ethics review and may facilitate and expedite the review process by anticipating the concerns of ethics committee reviewers. Specific attention was given to issues arising in multinational settings. With the use of this Tool Kit, researchers have the opportunity to address critical research ethics issues proactively, potentially speeding the time and easing the process to final protocol approval. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

  9. LERC-SLAM - THE NASA LEWIS RESEARCH CENTER SATELLITE LINK ATTENUATION MODEL PROGRAM (IBM PC VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manning, R. M.

    1994-01-01

    The frequency and intensity of rain attenuation affecting the communication between a satellite and an earth terminal is an important consideration in planning satellite links. The NASA Lewis Research Center Satellite Link Attenuation Model Program (LeRC-SLAM) provides a static and dynamic statistical assessment of the impact of rain attenuation on a communications link established between an earth terminal and a geosynchronous satellite. The program is designed for use in the specification, design and assessment of satellite links for any terminal location in the continental United States. The basis for LeRC-SLAM is the ACTS Rain Attenuation Prediction Model, which uses a log-normal cumulative probability distribution to describe the random process of rain attenuation on satellite links. The derivation of the statistics for the rainrate process at the specified terminal location relies on long term rainfall records compiled by the U.S. Weather Service during time periods of up to 55 years in length. The theory of extreme value statistics is also utilized. The user provides 1) the longitudinal position of the satellite in geosynchronous orbit, 2) the geographical position of the earth terminal in terms of latitude and longitude, 3) the height above sea level of the terminal site, 4) the yearly average rainfall at the terminal site, and 5) the operating frequency of the communications link (within 1 to 1000 GHz, inclusive). Based on the yearly average rainfall at the terminal location, LeRC-SLAM calculates the relevant rain statistics for the site using an internal data base. The program then generates rain attenuation data for the satellite link. This data includes a description of the static (i.e., yearly) attenuation process, an evaluation of the cumulative probability distribution for attenuation effects, and an evaluation of the probability of fades below selected fade depths. In addition, LeRC-SLAM calculates the elevation and azimuth angles of the terminal

  10. Semantic validation of the ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tools (ICAST in Brazilian Portuguese

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Ligia da Silva Silveira

    Full Text Available Abstract Objective: The International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN Child Abuse Screening Tools (ICAST is a battery of questionnaires created by the World Health Organization, the United Nations and ISPCAN for researching maltreatment in childhood. This study aims to translate, to adapt and to validate the semantic equivalence of all items on the three questionnaires: ICAST-C (ICAST version for Children, ICAST-R (Retrospective Interview and ICAST-P (ICAST version for Parents. Methods: The process of translation and semantic validation comprised five methodological steps: 1 translation; 2 back-translation; 3 correction and semantic adaptation; 4 validation of content by professional experts in the area of abuse in childhood; and 5 a study of their acceptability to a sample of the target population, using a verbal rating scale. Results: In the evaluation of the expert committee, there was need to adapt several words for the Brazilian population while maintaining semantic and conceptual equivalence. In the ICAST-C acceptability study, children exhibited some difficulty understanding 7 of the items (out of 69 questions. For ICAST-P, parents reported a lack of clarity in 5 items (out of 57 questions. These issues were resolved and the Brazilian version of ICAST 3.0 was concluded. Conclusion: The ICAST battery is an internationally recognized tool and the process of translation into Portuguese and semantic adaptation was performed successfully. The final version proved to be easily understandable and semantic validation results were adequate. This battery has proved useful in investigation of childhood maltreatment.

  11. New Tools for New Literacies Research: An Exploration of Usability Testing Software

    Science.gov (United States)

    Asselin, Marlene; Moayeri, Maryam

    2010-01-01

    Competency in the new literacies of the Internet is essential for participating in contemporary society. Researchers studying these new literacies are recognizing the limitations of traditional methodological tools and adapting new technologies and new media for use in research. This paper reports our exploration of usability testing software to…

  12. DataUp: A tool to help researchers describe and share tabular data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strasser, Carly; Kunze, John; Abrams, Stephen; Cruse, Patricia

    2014-01-01

    Scientific datasets have immeasurable value, but they lose their value over time without proper documentation, long-term storage, and easy discovery and access. Across disciplines as diverse as astronomy, demography, archeology, and ecology, large numbers of small heterogeneous datasets (i.e., the long tail of data) are especially at risk unless they are properly documented, saved, and shared. One unifying factor for many of these at-risk datasets is that they reside in spreadsheets. In response to this need, the California Digital Library (CDL) partnered with Microsoft Research Connections and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to create the DataUp data management tool for Microsoft Excel. Many researchers creating these small, heterogeneous datasets use Excel at some point in their data collection and analysis workflow, so we were interested in developing a data management tool that fits easily into those work flows and minimizes the learning curve for researchers. The DataUp project began in August 2011. We first formally assessed the needs of researchers by conducting surveys and interviews of our target research groups: earth, environmental, and ecological scientists. We found that, on average, researchers had very poor data management practices, were not aware of data centers or metadata standards, and did not understand the benefits of data management or sharing. Based on our survey results, we composed a list of desirable components and requirements and solicited feedback from the community to prioritize potential features of the DataUp tool. These requirements were then relayed to the software developers, and DataUp was successfully launched in October 2012.

  13. Psychometric properties of the Persian version of satisfaction with care EORTC-in-patsat32 questionnaire among Iranian cancer patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pishkuhi, Mahin Ahmadi; Salmaniyan, Soraya; Nedjat, Saharnaz; Zendedel, Kazem; Lari, Mohsen Asadi

    2014-01-01

    Cancers impose an increasing burden on health of the populations and individuals, but little is known about cancer patient satisfaction with care. The aim of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Persian version of European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) In-Patsat32, as a recently developed questionnaire to assess cancer patient satisfaction with care and information provided during hospital admission. Complying with EORTC protocols, the Persian version of Inpatsat32 was translated and piloted in a small group of patients, then applied to 380 cancer patients admitted to different oncology wards in Tehran. Validity (convergent, discriminant, and divergent) and reliability of the tool was assessed through using multitrait analysis, factor analysis, intraclass correlations, Chronbach's alpha and test-retest (on a sample of 70 patients). Good acceptance and high sensitivity of the questionnaire with low floor and ceiling effects were recognized, indicating power of the instrument to detect differences between groups with heterogeneous levels of satisfaction. Multitrait scaling analyses supported the convergent validity of the majority of scales (correlation coefficient >0.4) and favorable discriminant validity (item own scale correlation >0.8). There was no correlation between In-patsat32 scales and the EORTC-C30, which measures different concepts, confirming divergent validity of the tool. Internal consistency for all domains was high (α>0.70) except for the hospital access score and the test-retest reliability was excellent (r=0.86-0.96). There was a weak responsiveness to change except for nurses technical skills. Principle component analysis confirmed five domains with much improved internal consistency (α>0.9). The Persian version of the EORTC-in-patsat32 module is a reliable and valid instrument to measure cancer patient satisfaction with care received during their hospitalization period and can be utilized in

  14. Medical Community of Inquiry: A Diagnostic Tool for Learning, Assessment, and Research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rakefet Ackerman

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim/Purpose: These days educators are expected to integrate technological tools into classes. Although they acquire relevant skills, they are often reluctant to use these tools. Background:\tWe incorporated online forums for generating a Community of Inquiry (CoI in a faculty development program. Extending the Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK model with Assessment Knowledge and content analysis of forum discourse and reflection after each CoI, we offer the Diagnostic Tool for Learning, Assessment, and Research (DTLAR. Methodology: This study spanned over two cycles of a development program for medical faculty. Contribution: This study demonstrates how the DTLAR supports in-depth examination of the benefits and challenges of using CoIs for learning and teaching. Findings: Before the program, participants had little experience with, and were reluctant to use, CoIs in classes. At the program completion, many were willing to adopt CoIs and appreciated this method’s contribution. Both CoIs discourse and reflections included positive attitudes regarding cognitive and teacher awareness categories. However, negative attitudes regarding affective aspects and time-consuming aspects of CoIs were exposed. Participants who experienced facilitating a CoI gained additional insights into its usefulness. Recommendations for Practitioners\t: The DTLAR allows analyzing adaption of online forums for learning and teaching. Recommendation for Researchers: The DTLAR allows analyzing factors that affect the acceptance of online fo-rums for learning and teaching. Impact on Society\t: While the tool was implemented in the context of medical education, it can be readily applied in other adult learning programs. Future Research: The study includes several design aspects that probably affected the improve-ment and challenges we found. Future research is called for providing guidelines for identifying boundary conditions and potential for further

  15. Latest NASA Instrument Cost Model (NICM): Version VI

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mrozinski, Joe; Habib-Agahi, Hamid; Fox, George; Ball, Gary

    2014-01-01

    The NASA Instrument Cost Model, NICM, is a suite of tools which allow for probabilistic cost estimation of NASA's space-flight instruments at both the system and subsystem level. NICM also includes the ability to perform cost by analogy as well as joint confidence level (JCL) analysis. The latest version of NICM, Version VI, was released in Spring 2014. This paper will focus on the new features released with NICM VI, which include: 1) The NICM-E cost estimating relationship, which is applicable for instruments flying on Explorer-like class missions; 2) The new cluster analysis ability which, alongside the results of the parametric cost estimation for the user's instrument, also provides a visualization of the user's instrument's similarity to previously flown instruments; and 3) includes new cost estimating relationships for in-situ instruments.

  16. Risk Analysis and Decision-Making Software Package (1997 Version) User Manual

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chung, F.T.H.

    1999-02-11

    This manual provides instructions for using the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) risk analysis and decision making software (1997 version) developed at BDM Petroleum Technologies by BDM-Oklahoma, Inc. for DOE, under contract No. DE-AC22-94PC91OO8. This software provides petroleum producers with a simple, handy tool for exploration and production risk analysis and decision-making. It collects useful risk analysis tools in one package so that users do not have to use several programs separately. The software is simple to use, but still provides many functions. The 1997 version of the software package includes the following tools: (1) Investment risk (Gambler's ruin) analysis; (2) Monte Carlo simulation; (3) Best fit for distribution functions; (4) Sample and rank correlation; (5) Enhanced oil recovery method screening; and (6) artificial neural network. This software package is subject to change. Suggestions and comments from users are welcome and will be considered for future modifications and enhancements of the software. Please check the opening screen of the software for the current contact information. In the future, more tools will be added to this software package. This manual includes instructions on how to use the software but does not attempt to fully explain the theory and algorithms used to create it.

  17. Development and validation of the Australian version of the Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised (BSS-R).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jefford, Elaine; Hollins Martin, Caroline J; Martin, Colin R

    2018-02-01

    The 10-item Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised (BSS-R) has recently been endorsed by international expert consensus for global use as the birth satisfaction outcome measure of choice. English-language versions of the tool include validated UK and US versions; however, the instrument has not, to date, been contextualised and validated in an Australian English-language version. The current investigation sought to develop and validate an English-language version of the tool for use within the Australian context. A two-stage study. Following review and modification by expert panel, the Australian BSS-R (A-BSS-R) was (Stage 1) evaluated for factor structure, internal consistency, known-groups discriminant validity and divergent validity. Stage 2 directly compared the A-BSS-R data set with the original UK data set to determine the invariance characteristics of the new instrument. Participants were a purposive sample of Australian postnatal women (n = 198). The A-BSS-R offered a good fit to data consistent with the BSS-R tridimensional measurement model and was found to be conceptually and measurement equivalent to the UK version. The A-BSS-R demonstrated excellent known-groups discriminant validity, generally good divergent validity and overall good internal consistency. The A-BSS-R represents a robust and valid measure of the birth satisfaction concept suitable for use within Australia and appropriate for application to International comparative studies.

  18. Special Section on "Tools and Algorithms for the Construction and Analysis of Systems"

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    2006-01-01

    in the Lecture Notes in Computer Science series published by Springer. TACAS is a forum for researchers, developers and users interested in rigorously based tools for the construction and analysis of systems. The conference serves to bridge the gaps between different communities – including but not limited......This special section contains the revised and expanded versions of eight of the papers from the 10th International Conference on Tools and Algorithms for the Construction and Analysis of Systems (TACAS) held in March/April 2004 in Barcelona, Spain. The conference proceedings appeared as volume 2988...... to those devoted to formal methods, software and hardware verification, static analysis, programming languages, software engineering, real-time systems, and communications protocols – that share common interests in, and techniques for, tool development. Other more theoretical papers from the conference...

  19. Field modeling for transcranial magnetic stimulation: A useful tool to understand the physiological effects of TMS?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thielscher, Axel; Antunes, Andre; Saturnino, Guilherme B

    2015-01-01

    Electric field calculations based on numerical methods and increasingly realistic head models are more and more used in research on Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS). However, they are still far from being established as standard tools for the planning and analysis in practical applications of TMS. Here, we start by delineating three main challenges that need to be addressed to unravel their full potential. This comprises (i) identifying and dealing with the model uncertainties, (ii) establishing a clear link between the induced fields and the physiological stimulation effects, and (iii) improving the usability of the tools for field calculation to the level that they can be easily used by non-experts. We then introduce a new version of our pipeline for field calculations (www.simnibs.org) that substantially simplifies setting up and running TMS and tDCS simulations based on Finite-Element Methods (FEM). We conclude with a brief outlook on how the new version of SimNIBS can help to target the above identified challenges.

  20. Telerehabilitation: Policy Issues and Research Tools

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katherine D. Seelman

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available The importance of public policy as a complementary framework for telehealth, telemedicine, and by association telerehabilitation, has been recognized by a number of experts. The purpose of this paper is to review literature on telerehabilitation (TR policy and research methodology issues in order to report on the current state of the science and make recommendations about future research needs. An extensive literature search was implemented using search terms grouped into main topics of telerehabilitation, policy, population of users, and policy specific issues such as cost and reimbursement. The availability of rigorous and valid evidence-based cost studies emerged as a major challenge to the field. Existing cost studies provided evidence that telehomecare may be a promising application area for TR. Cost studies also indicated that telepsychiatry is a promising telepractice area. The literature did not reference the International Classification on Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF. Rigorous and comprehensive TR assessment and evaluation tools for outcome studies are tantamount to generating confidence among providers, payers, clinicians and end users. In order to evaluate consumer satisfaction and participation, assessment criteria must include medical, functional and quality of life items such as assistive technology and environmental factors. Keywords: Telerehabilitation, Telehomecare, Telepsychiatry, Telepractice

  1. SHABERTH - ANALYSIS OF A SHAFT BEARING SYSTEM (CRAY VERSION)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coe, H. H.

    1994-01-01

    IBM PC version is a set of two 5.25 inch 360K MS-DOS format diskettes. The contents of the diskettes are compressed using the PKWARE archiving tools. The utility to unarchive the files, PKUNZIP.EXE, is included. The standard distribution medium for the CRAY version is also a 5.25 inch 360K MS-DOS format diskette, but alternate distribution media and formats are available upon request. The original version of SHABERTH was developed in FORTRAN IV at Lewis Research Center for use on a UNIVAC 1100 series computer. The Cray version was released in 1988, and was updated in 1990 to incorporate fluid rheological data for Rocket Propellant 1 (RP-1), thereby allowing the analysis of bearings lubricated with RP-1. The PC version is a port of the 1990 CRAY version and was developed in 1992 by SRS Technologies under contract to NASA Marshall Space Flight Center.

  2. Vietnamese validation of the short version of Internet Addiction Test

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bach Xuan Tran

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Background and aims: The main goal of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of a Vietnamese version of the short-version of Internet Addiction Test (s-IAT and to assess the relationship between s-IAT scores and demographics, health related qualify of life and perceived stress scores in young Vietnamese. Methods: The Vietnamese version of s-IAT was administered to a sample of 589 participants. Exploratory factor and reliability analyses were performed. Regression analysis was used to identify the associated factors. Results: The two-factor model of Vietnamese version of s-IAT demonstrated good psychometric properties. The internal consistency of Factor 1 (loss of control/time management was high (Cronbach's alpha=0.82 and Factor 2 (craving/social problems was satisfactory (Cronbach's alpha=0.75. Findings indicated that 20.9% youths were addicted to the Internet. Regression analysis revealed significant associations between Internet addiction and having problems in self-care, lower quality of life and high perceived stress scores. Discussion and conclusions: The Vietnamese version of s-IAT is a valid and reliable instrument to assess IA in Vietnamese population. Due to the high prevalence of IA among Vietnamese youths, IA should be paid attention in future intervention programs. s-IAT can be a useful screening tool for IA to promptly inform and treat the IA among Vietnamese youths. Keywords: Factor analysis, Short-version, Internet Addiction Test, Psychometric properties, Vietnamese

  3. Nucleic acids-based tools for ballast water surveillance, monitoring, and research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darling, John A.; Frederick, Raymond M.

    2018-03-01

    Understanding the risks of biological invasion posed by ballast water-whether in the context of compliance testing, routine monitoring, or basic research-is fundamentally an exercise in biodiversity assessment, and as such should take advantage of the best tools available for tackling that problem. The past several decades have seen growing application of genetic methods for the study of biodiversity, driven in large part by dramatic technological advances in nucleic acids analysis. Monitoring approaches based on such methods have the potential to increase dramatically sampling throughput for biodiversity assessments, and to improve on the sensitivity, specificity, and taxonomic accuracy of traditional approaches. The application of targeted detection tools (largely focused on PCR but increasingly incorporating novel probe-based methodologies) has led to a paradigm shift in rare species monitoring, and such tools have already been applied for early detection in the context of ballast water surveillance. Rapid improvements in community profiling approaches based on high throughput sequencing (HTS) could similarly impact broader efforts to catalogue biodiversity present in ballast tanks, and could provide novel opportunities to better understand the risks of biotic exchange posed by ballast water transport-and the effectiveness of attempts to mitigate those risks. These various approaches still face considerable challenges to effective implementation, depending on particular management or research needs. Compliance testing, for instance, remains dependent on accurate quantification of viable target organisms; while tools based on RNA detection show promise in this context, the demands of such testing require considerable additional investment in methods development. In general surveillance and research contexts, both targeted and community-based approaches are still limited by various factors: quantification remains a challenge (especially for taxa in larger size

  4. Biosphere-Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS) version le as coupled to the NCAR community climate model. Technical note. [NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dickinson, R.E.; Henderson-Sellers, A.; Kennedy, P.J.

    1993-08-01

    A comprehensive model of land-surface processes has been under development suitable for use with various National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) General Circulation Models (GCMs). Special emphasis has been given to describing properly the role of vegetation in modifying the surface moisture and energy budgets. The result of these efforts has been incorporated into a boundary package, referred to as the Biosphere-Atmosphere Transfer Scheme (BATS). The current frozen version, BATS1e is a piece of software about four thousand lines of code that runs as an offline version or coupled to the Community Climate Model (CCM).

  5. Experimental research on the durability cutting tools for cutting-off steel profiles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cristea Alexandru

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The production lines used for manufacturing U-shaped profiles are very complex and they must have high productivity. One of the most important stages of the fabrication process is the cutting-off. This paper presents the experimental research and analysis of the durability of the cutting tools used for cutting-off U-shaped metal steel profiles. The results of this work can be used to predict the durability of the cutting tools.

  6. Operations other than war: Requirements for analysis tools research report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hartley, D.S. III

    1996-12-01

    This report documents the research effort to determine the requirements for new or improved analysis tools to support decisions at the strategic and operational levels for military Operations Other than War (OOTW). The work was performed for the Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command (USCINCPAC). The data collection was based on workshops attended by experts in OOTWs: analysis personnel from each of the Combatant Commands, the Services, the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), the Joint Staff, and other knowledgeable personnel. Further data were gathered from other workshops and conferences and from the literature. The results of this research begin with the creation of a taxonomy of OOTWs: categories of operations, attributes of operations, and tasks requiring analytical support. The tasks are connected to the Joint Staff`s Universal Joint Task List (UJTL). Historical OOTWs are analyzed to produce frequency distributions by category and responsible CINC. The analysis products are synthesized into a list of requirements for analytical tools and definitions of the requirements. The report concludes with a timeline or roadmap for satisfying the requirements.

  7. A Tool for Measuring NASA's Aeronautics Research Progress Toward Planned Strategic Community Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tahmasebi, Farhad; Pearce, Robert

    2016-01-01

    Description of a tool for portfolio analysis of NASA's Aeronautics research progress toward planned community strategic Outcomes is presented. For efficiency and speed, the tool takes advantage of a function developed in Excels Visual Basic for Applications. The strategic planning process for determining the community Outcomes is also briefly discussed. Stakeholder buy-in, partnership performance, progress of supporting Technical Challenges, and enablement forecast are used as the criteria for evaluating progress toward Outcomes. A few illustrative examples of using the tool are also presented.

  8. Reliability and validity study of a tool to measure cancer stigma: Patient version

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Medine Yilmaz

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: The aim of this methodological study is to establish the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of “A Questionnaire for Measuring Attitudes toward Cancer (Cancer Stigma - Patient version.” Methods: The sample comprised oncology patients who had active cancer treatment. The construct validity was assessed using the confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis. Results: The mean age of the participants was 54.9±12.3 years. In the confirmatory factor analysis, fit values were determined as comparative fit index = 0.93, goodness of fit index = 0.91, normed-fit index=0.91, and root mean square error of approximation RMSEA = 0.09 (P<0.05 (Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin = 0.88, χ2 = 1084.41, Df = 66, and Barletta's test P<0.000. The first factor was “impossibility of recovery and experience of social discrimination” and the second factor was “stereotypes of cancer patients.” The two-factor structure accounted for 56.74% of the variance. The Cronbach's alpha value was determined as 0.88 for the two-factor scale. Conclusions: “A questionnaire for measuring attitudes toward cancer (cancer stigma - Patient version” is a reliable and valid questionnaire to assess stigmatization of cancer in cancer patients.

  9. [External cephalic version].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Navarro-Santana, B; Duarez-Coronado, M; Plaza-Arranz, J

    2016-08-01

    To analyze the rate of successful external cephalic versions in our center and caesarean sections that would be avoided with the use of external cephalic versions. From January 2012 to March 2016 external cephalic versions carried out at our center, which were a total of 52. We collected data about female age, gestational age at the time of the external cephalic version, maternal body mass index (BMI), fetal variety and situation, fetal weight, parity, location of the placenta, amniotic fluid index (ILA), tocolysis, analgesia, and newborn weight at birth, minor adverse effects (dizziness, hypotension and maternal pain) and major adverse effects (tachycardia, bradycardia, decelerations and emergency cesarean section). 45% of the versions were unsuccessful and 55% were successful. The percentage of successful vaginal delivery in versions was 84% (4% were instrumental) and 15% of caesarean sections. With respect to the variables studied, only significant differences in birth weight were found; suggesting that birth weight it is related to the outcome of external cephalic version. Probably we did not find significant differences due to the number of patients studied. For women with breech presentation, we recommend external cephalic version before the expectant management or performing a cesarean section. The external cephalic version increases the proportion of fetuses in cephalic presentation and also decreases the rate of caesarean sections.

  10. The Child Abuse Potential Inventory: Development of an Arabic version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al Abduwani, Jumana; Sidebotham, Peter; Al Saadoon, Muna; Al Lawati, Mohammed; Barlow, Jane

    2017-10-01

    The Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAPI) is a well-validated screening tool for assessing potential for child physical abuse, and has been translated into many different languages. To date the CAPI has not been translated into Arabic or used in any studies in Arabic-speaking populations. This study reports on the process of adapting the CAPI into Arabic Language which was undertaken following the International Society of Pharma-economics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) guidelines. The translation/adaptation process was multi-stage, and involved the use of a Delphi process, cognitive debriefing, back translation, and a pilot testing of the Arabic CAPI at two primary health care centers with a population of pregnant women (n=60). Following "literal translation" 73 out of the 160 items needed re-phrasing to adapt the items to the Oman context. No differences were found when comparing results of the translated or back-translated versions to source; however, eight items needed further amendment following translated to back-translated comparison and feedback from the pilot. Iterations were resolved following in-depth interviews. Discrepancies were due to differences in culture, parenting practices, and religion. Piloting of the tool indicated mean score value of 155.8 (SD=59.4) and eleven women (18%) scored above the cut off value of 215. This Arabic translation of the CAPI was undertaken using rigorous methodology and sets the scene for further research on the Arabic CAPI within Arabic-speaking populations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Reliability and validity of the Yoruba version of the Oswestry disability index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aiyegbusi, Ayoola Ibifubara; Akodu, Ashiyat Kehinde; Agbede, Eniolorunda Olajide

    2017-01-01

    Low back pain (LBP) is a major cause of disability, and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) is a validated assessment tool for evaluating disability in LBP patients. Cross-cultural adaptation of the ODI is important because not all populations are proficient in English. The Yoruba language is an indigenous language spoken by 40 million people in the Western part of Nigeria and some countries in West Africa and Latin America. Currently, no validated Yoruba version of ODI is available. The aim of the study was to translate, culturally adapt and validate the ODI in Yoruba language for participants with LBP. The ODI was translated into Yoruba, and this translated version was analysed in terms of semantics and linguistics. Then, the Yoruba version was translated back into English and both versions administered to 160 participants with LBP. The internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, criterion validity and test-retest reliability were assessed using Spearman's rank correlation with significance set at Pdisability in LBP patients.

  12. Development of a reliable and clinically useful Italian version of the Axis II for the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ludovica Antonella Macrì

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available

    Background: Multiple-language versions of the same psychometric instrument are increasingly needed, but simply translating an English version word-to-word into another language is not adequate to account for linguistic and cultural differences. Our aim was to alidate an Italian version of the Axis II of the Research Diagnostic Criteria for temporomandibular disorders (RDC/TMD and to test its reproducibility in order to use this important diagnostic instrument in Italian patients.

    Methods: The original English-language version was translated and culturally adapted for Italian-speaking people, back-translated to English and then tested on 68 subjects: 34 TMD patients and 34 healthy subjects. Internal consistency was assessed by calculating the Cronbach coefficient alpha for the entire scale in the two samples. The reproducibility of the domains was assessed with the use of the Spearman-Brown test-retest reliability test, Wilcoxon matched pair test, Sign test and 2x2table Chi Square test according to the data types. Correlation of the initial and test-retest scores of the Axis II was measured with the Spearman rank correlation coefficient as an additional measure of reproducibility.

    Results: The Italian version of Axis II has a good eproducibility; the internal consistency (measured with he Cronbach coefficient alpha of the overall final questionnaire was excellent: 0.95.

    Conclusions: The Axis II Italian version appeared reliable and it could be useful to assess TMD patients and to standardize the data acquisition in this relevant and common disease.

  13. Bridging the gap between HRA research and HRA practice: A Bayesian network version of SPAR-H

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Groth, Katrina M.; Swiler, Laura P.

    2013-01-01

    The shortcomings of Human Reliability Analysis (HRA) have been a topic of discussion for over two decades. Repeated attempts to address these limitations have resulted in over 50 HRA methods, and the HRA research community continues to develop new methods. However, there remains a gap between the methods developed by HRA researchers and those actually used by HRA practitioners. Bayesian Networks (BNs) have become an increasingly popular part of the risk and reliability analysis framework over the past decade. BNs provide a framework for addressing many of the shortcomings of HRA from a researcher perspective and from a practitioner perspective. Several research groups have developed advanced HRA methods based on BNs, but none of these methods has been adopted by HRA practitioners in the U.S. nuclear power industry or at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. In this paper we bridge the gap between HRA research and HRA practice by building a BN version of the widely used SPAR-H method. We demonstrate how the SPAR-H BN can be used by HRA practitioners, and we also demonstrate how it can be modified to incorporate data and information from research to advance HRA practice. The SPAR-H BN can be used as a starting point for translating HRA research efforts and advances in scientific understanding into real, timely benefits for HRA practitioners

  14. The cross-cultural generalizability of the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth version for adjudicated indigenous youth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCuish, Evan C; Mathesius, Jeffrey R; Lussier, Patrick; Corrado, Raymond R

    2018-02-01

    There is a paucity of Indigenous-specific research examining the reliability and validity of assessment tools routinely utilized within the justice system. Evaluating the cross-cultural reliability and validity of such tools is important for establishing generalizability as part of ethical practices; this is particularly important to address within Canada's Indigenous youth population because of longstanding effects of colonization, structural adversities, and overrepresentation in the youth justice system and the possible long-term impact of improper assessment on adult outcomes. A step toward this aim was undertaken in the current study by comparing scale reliability, structural validity, measurement invariance, and predictive validity of the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) across Indigenous (n = 137) and White (n = 312) adjudicated youth. Polychoric ordinal alpha values indicated that PCL:YV test score scale reliability was high for both Indigenous and White youth. Confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that a 3-factor and 4-factor model provided acceptable-to-good fit for the full sample, and an examination of configural, metric, and scalar measurement invariance illustrated that both factor structures fit the subsamples equally well. PCL:YV test scores were also moderately associated with measures of different offending outcomes and performed similarly across White and Indigenous participants. Overall, support was found for the use of the PCL:YV within Indigenous youth, including its use in conjunction with other risk factors and assessment tools to guide risk assessment decisions for this group. The importance of cross-cultural research and directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

  15. The Portuguese versions of the This Is ME Questionnaire and the Patient Dignity Question: tools for understanding and supporting personhood in clinical care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Julião, Miguel; Courelas, Carla; Costa, Manuel João; Correia Santos, Nadine; Fareleira, Filipa; Antunes, Bárbara; Magalhães, Susana; Faria de Sousa, Paulo; Chochinov, Harvey Max

    2018-05-11

    Modern medicine can be impersonal and routinized, paying insufficient attention to issues of personhood. The Patient Dignity Question (PDQ) and This Is ME (TIME) Questionnaire are clinical tools developed with the aim of probing for personhood, reinforcing dignity and promoting health care attitudes based on looking at people for who they are and not defining them solely based on their medical condition. This study aimed to translate and validate the TIME Questionnaire and the PDQ into European Portuguese, coined as Questionário Este Sou EU (ESEU) and Pergunta da Dignidade (PD), respectively. A three-stage research design, namely: a forward and back translation process (which included an expert committee panel), collected data on a sample of 43 non-institutionalized active elderly for the validation stage and a final expert panel consultation. Inclusion criteria: being 50 years old or older; ability to provide written informed consent; ability to read, speak and understand Portuguese. The original TIME authors fully endorsed the back translated version. A Portuguese version was created. Forty-three participants (response rate of 62%) were included, 53% of whom were male. The average age was 69 years old (range, 60-80 years old). The interviewed elderly strongly felt that the ESEU's summary captured their essence as a person beyond whatever health problems they might be experiencing (6.8, SD =0.48), heightened their sense of dignity (6.1, SD =1.48), considered important that health care professionals (HCPs) have access to ESEU´s summary (6.6, SD =0.73) and that this information could affect the way HCPs see and care for them (6.4, SD =0.86), rated on a Likert scale: 1 "strongly disagree"-7 "strongly agree". According to the experts' evaluations, the translated ESEU Questionnaire was clear, precise, comprehensible and captured important dimensions of personhood. The Questionário ESEU and the PD are clear, precise, comprehensible and well-aligned in terms of

  16. A Heuristic Process for GUI Widget Matching Across Application Versions

    OpenAIRE

    Molnar, Arthur-Jozsef

    2017-01-01

    This paper introduces an automated heuristic process able to achieve high accuracy when matching graphical user interface widgets across multiple versions of a target application. The proposed implementation is flexible as it allows full customization of the process and easy integration with existing tools for long term graphical user interface test case maintenance, software visualization and analysis.

  17. Studying mechanism of radical reactions: From radiation to nitroxides as research tools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maimon, Eric; Samuni, Uri; Goldstein, Sara

    2018-02-01

    Radicals are part of the chemistry of life, and ionizing radiation chemistry serves as an indispensable research tool for elucidation of the mechanism(s) underlying their reactions. The ever-increasing understanding of their involvement in diverse physiological and pathological processes has expanded the search for compounds that can diminish radical-induced damage. This review surveys the areas of research focusing on radical reactions and particularly with stable cyclic nitroxide radicals, which demonstrate unique antioxidative activities. Unlike common antioxidants that are progressively depleted under oxidative stress and yield secondary radicals, nitroxides are efficient radical scavengers yielding in most cases their respective oxoammonium cations, which are readily reduced back in the tissue to the nitroxide thus continuously being recycled. Nitroxides, which not only protect enzymes, cells, and laboratory animals from diverse kinds of biological injury, but also modify the catalytic activity of heme enzymes, could be utilized in chemical and biological systems serving as a research tool for elucidating mechanisms underlying complex chemical and biochemical processes.

  18. The propagation effect of paper version and the iPad version for periodicals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cong Zhang

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Digital journal created a new development pattern. We use journal APP as an example to analyze how to migrate the journal content to Internet and other kind of media. Based on the case study of GQ and other fashion magazines, through text analysis, control experiments, in-depth interviews and other research methods, the authors analyzed the differences and connections between the iPad App and print edition of magazines, discussed the approaches towards operation of new media, offered the tendency of mobile device platform development for China’s periodical publications. Design/methodology/approach: control experiment. Findings: The authors give a stance that the print edition of periodical publication will being alive still, and conclude that journal APP and printed version can be mutually beneficial and achieve a win-win state. And we believe that the journal APP is good at advertising propagation, which will accelerate the development of journal APP in such the information age, and such kind of media can integrate many information with variety of media forms. Research limitations/implications: Because of the limitation of technology, the authors only have the experiment on fashion magazine, which might to some degree simplify the issue under discussion. Practical implications: According to the conclusion of a series of experiments, we can imply the future of the media, and give the suggestion of both paper version and ipad version of the journal. Social implications: Since people can not live without media and media has to develope with the help of public, we have to give the new way of both sunrise media and sunset media. Originality/value: Based on the case study of GQ and other fashion magazines, through text analysis, control experiments, in-depth interviews and other research methods, the authors analyzed the differences and connections between the iPad App and print edition of magazines, discussed the approaches towards

  19. User's Manual for LEWICE Version 3.2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wright, William

    2008-01-01

    A research project is underway at NASA Glenn to produce a computer code which can accurately predict ice growth under a wide range of meteorological conditions for any aircraft surface. This report will present a description of the code inputs and outputs from version 3.2 of this software, which is called LEWICE. This version differs from release 2.0 due to the addition of advanced thermal analysis capabilities for de-icing and anti-icing applications using electrothermal heaters or bleed air applications, the addition of automated Navier-Stokes analysis, an empirical model for supercooled large droplets (SLD) and a pneumatic boot option. An extensive effort was also undertaken to compare the results against the database of electrothermal results which have been generated in the NASA Glenn Icing Research Tunnel (IRT) as was performed for the validation effort for version 2.0. This report will primarily describe the features of the software related to the use of the program. Appendix A has been included to list some of the inner workings of the software or the physical models used. This information is also available in the form of several unpublished documents internal to NASA. This report is intended as a replacement for all previous user manuals of LEWICE. In addition to describing the changes and improvements made for this version, information from previous manuals may be duplicated so that the user will not need to consult previous manuals to use this software.

  20. Vietnamese validation of the short version of Internet Addiction Test.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tran, Bach Xuan; Mai, Hue Thi; Nguyen, Long Hoang; Nguyen, Cuong Tat; Latkin, Carl A; Zhang, Melvyn W B; Ho, Roger C M

    2017-12-01

    The main goal of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of a Vietnamese version of the short-version of Internet Addiction Test (s-IAT) and to assess the relationship between s-IAT scores and demographics, health related qualify of life and perceived stress scores in young Vietnamese. The Vietnamese version of s-IAT was administered to a sample of 589 participants. Exploratory factor and reliability analyses were performed. Regression analysis was used to identify the associated factors. The two-factor model of Vietnamese version of s-IAT demonstrated good psychometric properties. The internal consistency of Factor 1 (loss of control/time management) was high (Cronbach's alpha = 0.82) and Factor 2 (craving/social problems) was satisfactory (Cronbach's alpha = 0.75). Findings indicated that 20.9% youths were addicted to the Internet. Regression analysis revealed significant associations between Internet addiction and having problems in self-care, lower quality of life and high perceived stress scores. The Vietnamese version of s-IAT is a valid and reliable instrument to assess IA in Vietnamese population. Due to the high prevalence of IA among Vietnamese youths, IA should be paid attention in future intervention programs. s-IAT can be a useful screening tool for IA to promptly inform and treat the IA among Vietnamese youths.

  1. Web-based management of research groups - using the right tools and an adequate integration strategy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Barroso, Antonio Carlos de Oliveira; Menezes, Mario Olimpio de, E-mail: barroso@ipen.b, E-mail: mario@ipen.b [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Grupo de Pesquisa em Gestao do Conhecimento Aplicada a Area Nuclear

    2011-07-01

    Nowadays broad interest in a couple of inter linked subject areas can make the configuration of a research group to be much diversified both in terms of its components and of the binding relationships that glues the group together. That is the case of the research group for knowledge management and its applications to nuclear technology - KMANT at IPEN, a living entity born 7 years ago and that has sustainably attracted new collaborators. This paper describes the strategic planning of the group, its charter and credo, the present components of the group and the diversified nature of their relations with the group and with IPEN. Then the technical competencies and currently research lines (or programs) are described as well as the research projects, and the management scheme of the group. In the sequence the web-based management and collaboration tools are described as well our experience with their use. KMANT have experiment with over 20 systems and software in this area, but we will focus on those aimed at: (a) web-based project management (RedMine, ClockinIT, Who does, PhProjekt and Dotproject); (b) teaching platform (Moodle); (c) mapping and knowledge representation tools (Cmap, Freemind and VUE); (d) Simulation tools (Matlab, Vensim and NetLogo); (e) social network analysis tools (ORA, MultiNet and UciNet); (f) statistical analysis and modeling tools (R and SmartPLS). Special emphasis is given to the coupling of the group permanent activities like graduate courses and regular seminars and how newcomers are selected and trained to be able to enroll the group. A global assessment of the role the management strategy and available tool set for the group performance is presented. (author)

  2. Web-based management of research groups - using the right tools and an adequate integration strategy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barroso, Antonio Carlos de Oliveira; Menezes, Mario Olimpio de

    2011-01-01

    Nowadays broad interest in a couple of inter linked subject areas can make the configuration of a research group to be much diversified both in terms of its components and of the binding relationships that glues the group together. That is the case of the research group for knowledge management and its applications to nuclear technology - KMANT at IPEN, a living entity born 7 years ago and that has sustainably attracted new collaborators. This paper describes the strategic planning of the group, its charter and credo, the present components of the group and the diversified nature of their relations with the group and with IPEN. Then the technical competencies and currently research lines (or programs) are described as well as the research projects, and the management scheme of the group. In the sequence the web-based management and collaboration tools are described as well our experience with their use. KMANT have experiment with over 20 systems and software in this area, but we will focus on those aimed at: (a) web-based project management (RedMine, ClockinIT, Who does, PhProjekt and Dotproject); (b) teaching platform (Moodle); (c) mapping and knowledge representation tools (Cmap, Freemind and VUE); (d) Simulation tools (Matlab, Vensim and NetLogo); (e) social network analysis tools (ORA, MultiNet and UciNet); (f) statistical analysis and modeling tools (R and SmartPLS). Special emphasis is given to the coupling of the group permanent activities like graduate courses and regular seminars and how newcomers are selected and trained to be able to enroll the group. A global assessment of the role the management strategy and available tool set for the group performance is presented. (author)

  3. The Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) scale: validation of the Japanese version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanabe, Yosuke; Hayashi, Kunihiko; Ideno, Yuki

    2016-04-29

    The present study investigated the reliability and validity of a Japanese version of the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) scale, designed to assess internalized stigma experienced by people with mental illness. A survey was conducted with 173 outpatients with mental illness who attended psychiatric clinics on a regular basis. A retest was conducted with 51 participants to evaluate the scale's psychometric properties. The alpha coefficient for the overall internal consistency was 0.91, and the coefficients of the individual ISMI subscales ranged from 0.57 to 0.81. The test-retest reliability was r = 0.85 (n = 51, P stigma resistance items excluded. The Japanese version of the ISMI scale demonstrated similar reliability and validity to the original English version. Therefore, the Japanese version of the ISMI scale may be an effective and valid tool to measure internalized stigma among Japanese people who have a mental illness.

  4. Psychometric Properties of the Japanese Version of the STarT Back Tool in Patients with Low Back Pain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsudaira, Ko; Oka, Hiroyuki; Kikuchi, Norimasa; Haga, Yuri; Sawada, Takayuki; Tanaka, Sakae

    2016-01-01

    The STarT Back Tool uses prognostic indicators to classify patients with low back pain into three risk groups to guide early secondary prevention in primary care. The present study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Japanese version of the tool (STarT-J). An online survey was conducted among Japanese patients with low back pain aged 20-64 years. Reliability was assessed by examining the internal consistency of the overall and psychosocial subscales using Cronbach's alpha coefficients. Spearman's correlation coefficients were used to evaluate the concurrent validity between the STarT-J total score/psychosocial subscore and standard reference questionnaires. Discriminant validity was evaluated by calculating the area under the curves (AUCs) for the total and psychosocial subscale scores against standard reference cases. Known-groups validity was assessed by examining the relationship between low back pain-related disability and STarT-J scores. The analysis included data for 2000 Japanese patients with low back pain; the mean (standard deviation [SD]) age was 47.7 (9.3) years, and 54.1% were male. The mean (SD) STarT-J score was 2.2 (2.1). The Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.75 for the overall scale and 0.66 for the psychosocial subscale. Spearman's correlation coefficients ranged from 0.30 to 0.59, demonstrating moderate to strong concurrent validity. The AUCs for the total score ranged from 0.65 to 0.83, mostly demonstrating acceptable discriminative ability. For known-groups validity, participants with more somatic symptoms had higher total scores. Those in higher STarT-J risk groups had experienced more low back pain-related absences. The overall STarT-J scale was internally consistent and had acceptable concurrent, discriminant, and known-groups validity. The STarT-J can be used with Japanese patients with low back pain.

  5. Examining Cognitive Status of Elderly Iranians: Farsi Version of the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gharaeipour, Manouchehr; Andrew, Melissa K

    2013-02-27

    The Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MS) is an expanded and modified version of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). Research demonstrates that the reliability, validity, specificity, and sensitivity of the 3MS are superior to that of the MMSE in detecting cognitive impairment. The Farsi version of the 3MS (F-3MS) was examined as a screening tool for dementia among elderly Iranians. The F-3MS and the Clock Drawing Test (CDT) were administered to 58 patients with dementia and 145 control subjects with normal cognition, aged 60 to 85 years. The difference between groups on the mean total scores of the F-3MS was statistically significant (dementia = 60.65 ± 9.89, control = 80.73 ± 8.26; df = 201, t = 14.75, p validity of the F-3MS. The F-3MS can be used as a valid and reliable measure for dementia screening among elderly Iranians.

  6. Collaborative writing: Tools and tips.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eapen, Bell Raj

    2007-01-01

    Majority of technical writing is done by groups of experts and various web based applications have made this collaboration easy. Email exchange of word processor documents with tracked changes used to be the standard technique for collaborative writing. However web based tools like Google docs and Spreadsheets have made the process fast and efficient. Various versioning tools and synchronous editors are available for those who need additional functionality. Having a group leader who decides the scheduling, communication and conflict resolving protocols is important for successful collaboration.

  7. Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) - Monthly, Version 2.2 (Version Superseded)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Version 2.2 of the dataset has been superseded by a newer version. Users should not use version 2.2 except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous studies...

  8. Scalable Combinatorial Tools for Health Disparities Research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael A. Langston

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Despite staggering investments made in unraveling the human genome, current estimates suggest that as much as 90% of the variance in cancer and chronic diseases can be attributed to factors outside an individual’s genetic endowment, particularly to environmental exposures experienced across his or her life course. New analytical approaches are clearly required as investigators turn to complicated systems theory and ecological, place-based and life-history perspectives in order to understand more clearly the relationships between social determinants, environmental exposures and health disparities. While traditional data analysis techniques remain foundational to health disparities research, they are easily overwhelmed by the ever-increasing size and heterogeneity of available data needed to illuminate latent gene x environment interactions. This has prompted the adaptation and application of scalable combinatorial methods, many from genome science research, to the study of population health. Most of these powerful tools are algorithmically sophisticated, highly automated and mathematically abstract. Their utility motivates the main theme of this paper, which is to describe real applications of innovative transdisciplinary models and analyses in an effort to help move the research community closer toward identifying the causal mechanisms and associated environmental contexts underlying health disparities. The public health exposome is used as a contemporary focus for addressing the complex nature of this subject.

  9. Updated fracture incidence rates for the US version of FRAX (registered trademark)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evaluation of results produced by the US version of FRAX (trademarked) indicates that this tool overestimates the likelihood of major osteoporotic fracture. In an attempt to correct this, we updated underlying baseline fracture rates for the model. We used US hospital discharge data from 2006 to ca...

  10. Validation of a Spanish Version of the Lille Apathy Rating Scale for Parkinson’s Disease

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rocio García-Ramos

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. To date, no rating scales for detecting apathy in Parkinson’s disease (PD patients have been validated in Spanish. For this reason, the aim of this study was to validate a Spanish version of Lille apathy rating scale (LARS in a cohort of PD patients from Spain. Participants and Methods. 130 PD patients and 70 healthy controls were recruited to participate in the study. Apathy was measured using the Spanish version of LARS and the neuropsychiatric inventory (NPI. Reliability (internal consistency, test-retest, and interrater reliability and validity (construct, content, and criterion validity were measured. Results. Interrater reliability was 0.93. Cronbach’s α for LARS was 0.81. The test-retest correlation coefficient was 0.97. The correlation between LARS and NPI scores was 0.61. The optimal cutoff point under the ROC curve was -14, whereas the value derived from healthy controls was -11. The prevalence of apathy in our population tested by LARS was 42%. Conclusions. The Spanish version of LARS is a reliable and useful tool for diagnosing apathy in PD patients. Total LARS score is influenced by the presence of depression and cognitive impairment. However, both disorders are independent identities with respect to apathy. The satisfactory reliability and validity of the scale make it an appropriate instrument for screening and diagnosing apathy in clinical practice or for research purposes.

  11. Reliability and validity of the Farsi version of the standardized assessment of personality-abbreviated scale

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maryam Sepehri

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: A short screening tool for high-risk individuals with personality disorder (PD is useful both for clinicians and researchers. The aim of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of the Farsi version of the Standardized Assessment of Personality-Abbreviated Scale (SAPAS. Methods: The original English version of the SAPAS questionnaire was translated into Farsi, and then, translated back into English by two professionals. A survey was then conducted using the questionnaire on 150 clients of primary health care centers in Tabriz, Iran. A total of 235 medical students were also studied for the reliability assessment of the questionnaire. The SAPAS was compared to the short form of Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI. The data analysis was performed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC curve technique, operating characteristic for diagnostic efficacy, Cronbach's alpha, and test-retest for reliability evaluation. Results: We found an area under the curve (AUC of 0.566 [95% confidence intervals (CI: 0.455-0.677]; sensitivity of 0.89 and specificity of 0.26 at the cut-off score of 2 and higher. The total Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.38 and Cohen's kappa ranged between 0.5 and 0.8. Conclusion: The current study showed that the Farsi version of the SAPAS was relatively less efficient, in term of validity and reliability, in the screening of PD in the population.

  12. An innovative simulation tool for waste to energy generation opportunities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bilal Abderezzak

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The new world energy policies encourage the use of renewable energy sources with clean technologies, and abandon progressively the fossil fuel dependence. Another energy generation trend called commonly the “Waste-to-Energy” solution, uses organic waste as a response for two major problems: energy generation and waste management. Thanks to the anaerobic digestion, the organic waste can provide a biogas composed essentially from Carbone dioxide (CO2 and Methane (CH4. This work aims essentially to help students, researchers and even decision makers to consider the importance of biogas generation. The proposed tool is the last version of our previous tool which is enhanced and completed. It presents the potential to produce biogas of any shortlisted kind of waste, including also some energy valorization ways. A technical economical data are introduced for eventual feasibility studies.

  13. Integrating Contemplative Tools into Biomedical Science Education and Research Training Programs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodney R. Dietert

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Academic preparation of science researchers and/or human or veterinary medicine clinicians through the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM curriculum has usually focused on the students (1 acquiring increased disciplinary expertise, (2 learning needed methodologies and protocols, and (3 expanding their capacity for intense, persistent focus. Such educational training is effective until roadblocks or problems arise via this highly-learned approach. Then, the health science trainee may have few tools available for effective problem solving. Training to achieve flexibility, adaptability, and broadened perspectives using contemplative practices has been rare among biomedical education programs. To address this gap, a Cornell University-based program involving formal biomedical science coursework, and health science workshops has been developed to offer science students, researchers and health professionals a broader array of personal, contemplation-based, problem-solving tools. This STEM educational initiative includes first-person exercises designed to broaden perceptional awareness, decrease emotional drama, and mobilize whole-body strategies for creative problem solving. Self-calibration and journaling are used for students to evaluate the personal utility of each exercise. The educational goals are to increase student self-awareness and self-regulation and to provide trainees with value-added tools for career-long problem solving. Basic elements of this educational initiative are discussed using the framework of the Tree of Contemplative Practices.

  14. Collaborative writing: Tools and tips

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eapen Bell

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Majority of technical writing is done by groups of experts and various web based applications have made this collaboration easy. Email exchange of word processor documents with tracked changes used to be the standard technique for collaborative writing. However web based tools like Google docs and Spreadsheets have made the process fast and efficient. Various versioning tools and synchronous editors are available for those who need additional functionality. Having a group leader who decides the scheduling, communication and conflict resolving protocols is important for successful collaboration.

  15. Neuraxial blockade for external cephalic version: Cost analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamasato, Kelly; Kaneshiro, Bliss; Salcedo, Jennifer

    2015-07-01

    Neuraxial blockade (epidural or spinal anesthesia/analgesia) with external cephalic version increases the external cephalic version success rate. Hospitals and insurers may affect access to neuraxial blockade for external cephalic version, but the costs to these institutions remain largely unstudied. The objective of this study was to perform a cost analysis of neuraxial blockade use during external cephalic version from hospital and insurance payer perspectives. Secondarily, we estimated the effect of neuraxial blockade on cesarean delivery rates. A decision-analysis model was developed using costs and probabilities occurring prenatally through the delivery hospital admission. Model inputs were derived from the literature, national databases, and local supply costs. Univariate and bivariate sensitivity analyses and Monte Carlo simulations were performed to assess model robustness. Neuraxial blockade was cost saving to both hospitals ($30 per delivery) and insurers ($539 per delivery) using baseline estimates. From both perspectives, however, the model was sensitive to multiple variables. Monte Carlo simulation indicated neuraxial blockade to be more costly in approximately 50% of scenarios. The model demonstrated that routine use of neuraxial blockade during external cephalic version, compared to no neuraxial blockade, prevented 17 cesarean deliveries for every 100 external cephalic versions attempted. Neuraxial blockade is associated with minimal hospital and insurer cost changes in the setting of external cephalic version, while reducing the cesarean delivery rate. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research © 2015 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

  16. Development of a High-Temperature Diagnostics-While-Drilling Tool

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Blankenship, Douglas [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Chavira, David [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Henfling, Joseph [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Hetmaniak, Chris [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Huey, David [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Jacobson, Ron [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); King, Dennis [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Knudsen, Steve [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Mansure, A. J. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Polsky, Yarom [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

    2009-01-01

    This report documents work performed in the second phase of the Diagnostics While-Drilling (DWD) project in which a high-temperature (HT) version of the phase 1 low-temperature (LT) proof-of-concept (POC) DWD tool was built and tested. Descriptions of the design, fabrication and field testing of the HT tool are provided.

  17. Reliability and validity of the adapted Greek version of scoliosis research society – 22 (SRS-22 questionnaire

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christodoulou Evangelos A

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The SRS-22 is a valid instrument for the assessment of the health related quality of life of patients with Idiopathic scoliosis. The SRS-22 questionnaire was developed in USA and has been widely used in the English speaking countries. Recently it has been translated and validated in many other languages. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the reliability and validity of the adapted Greek version of the refined Scoliosis Research Society-22 Questionnaire. Methods Following the steps of cross – cultural adaptation the adapted Greek version of the SRS-22 questionnaire and a validated Greek version of the SF-36 questionnaire were mailed to 68 patients treated surgically for Idiopathic Scoliosis. 51 out of the 68 patients returned the 1st set of questionnaires, while a second set was emailed to 30 randomly selected patients of the first time responders. 20 out of the 30 patients returned the 2nd set. The mean age at the time of operation was16,2 years and the mean age at the time of evaluation was 21,2 years. Descriptive statistics for content analysis were calculated. Reliability assessment was determined by estimating Cronbach's α and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC respectively. Concurrent validity was evaluated by comparing SRS-22 domains with relevant domains in the SF-36 questionnaire using Pearson's Correlation Coefficient (r. Results The calculated Cronbach's α of internal consistency for three of the corresponding domains (pain 0.85; mental health 0.87; self image 0.83 were very satisfactory and for two domains (function/activity 0.72 and satisfaction 0.67 were good. The ICC of all domains of SRS-22 questionnaire was high (ICC>0.70, demonstrating very satisfactory or excellent test/retest reproducibility. Considering concurrent validity all correlations were found to be statistically significant at the 0.01 level among related domains and generally demonstrated high correlation coefficient. Conclusion

  18. Building Identification Wizard: Version 1.5.1

    Science.gov (United States)

    2018-04-01

    develops innovative solutions in civil and military engineering , geospatial sciences, water resources, and environmental sciences for the Army, the...unlimited. The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) solves the nation’s toughest engineering and environmental challenges. ERDC...April 2018 Building Identification Wizard Version 1.5.1 M. Jason Roth U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Geotechnical and

  19. Extending the XNAT archive tool for image and analysis management in ophthalmology research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wahle, Andreas; Lee, Kyungmoo; Harding, Adam T.; Garvin, Mona K.; Niemeijer, Meindert; Sonka, Milan; Abràmoff, Michael D.

    2013-03-01

    In ophthalmology, various modalities and tests are utilized to obtain vital information on the eye's structure and function. For example, optical coherence tomography (OCT) is utilized to diagnose, screen, and aid treatment of eye diseases like macular degeneration or glaucoma. Such data are complemented by photographic retinal fundus images and functional tests on the visual field. DICOM isn't widely used yet, though, and frequently images are encoded in proprietary formats. The eXtensible Neuroimaging Archive Tool (XNAT) is an open-source NIH-funded framework for research PACS and is in use at the University of Iowa for neurological research applications. Its use for ophthalmology was hence desirable but posed new challenges due to data types thus far not considered and the lack of standardized formats. We developed custom tools for data types not natively recognized by XNAT itself using XNAT's low-level REST API. Vendor-provided tools can be included as necessary to convert proprietary data sets into valid DICOM. Clients can access the data in a standardized format while still retaining the original format if needed by specific analysis tools. With respective project-specific permissions, results like segmentations or quantitative evaluations can be stored as additional resources to previously uploaded datasets. Applications can use our abstract-level Python or C/C++ API to communicate with the XNAT instance. This paper describes concepts and details of the designed upload script templates, which can be customized to the needs of specific projects, and the novel client-side communication API which allows integration into new or existing research applications.

  20. [Analysis of researchers' implication in a research-intervention in the Stork Network: a tool for institutional analysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fortuna, Cinira Magali; Mesquita, Luana Pinho de; Matumoto, Silvia; Monceau, Gilles

    2016-09-19

    This qualitative study is based on institutional analysis as the methodological theoretical reference with the objective of analyzing researchers' implication during a research-intervention and the interferences caused by this analysis. The study involved researchers from courses in medicine, nursing, and dentistry at two universities and workers from a Regional Health Department in follow-up on the implementation of the Stork Network in São Paulo State, Brazil. The researchers worked together in the intervention and in analysis workshops, supported by an external institutional analysis. Two institutions stood out in the analysis: the research, established mainly with characteristics of neutrality, and management, with Taylorist characteristics. Differences between researchers and difficulties in identifying actions proper to network management and research were some of the interferences that were identified. The study concludes that implication analysis is a powerful tool for such studies.

  1. Korean Version of Inventory of Complicated Grief Scale: Psychometric Properties in Korean Adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Doug Hyun; Lee, Jung Jae; Moon, Duk-Soo; Cha, Myoung-Jin; Kim, Min A; Min, Seonyeong; Yang, Ji Hoon; Lee, Eun Jeong; Yoo, Seo Koo; Chung, Un-Sun

    2016-01-01

    We aimed to validate the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG)-Korean version among 1,138 Korean adolescents, representing a response rate of 57% of 1,997 students. Participants completed a set of questionnaires including demographic variables (age, sex, years of education, experience of grief), the ICG, the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Lifetime Incidence of Traumatic Events-Child (LITE-C). Exploratory factor analysis was performed to determine whether the ICG items indicated complicated grief in Korean adolescents. The internal consistency of the ICG-Korean version was Cronbach's α=0.87. The test-retest reliability for a randomly selected sample of 314 participants in 2 weeks was r=0.75 (PKaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy=0.911; Bartlett's Test of Sphericity, χ(2)=13,144.7, P<0.001). After omission of 3 items, the value of Cronbach's α increased from 0.87 for the 19-item ICG-Korean version to 0.93 for the 16-item ICG-Korean version. These results suggest that the ICG is a useful tool in assessing for complicated grief in Korean adolescents. However, the 16-item version of the ICG appeared to be more valid compared to the 19-item version of the ICG. We suggest that the 16-item version of the ICG be used to screen for complicated grief in Korean adolescents.

  2. Polish adaptation of scoliosis research society-22 questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glowacki, Maciej; Misterska, Ewa; Laurentowska, Maria; Mankowski, Przemyslaw

    2009-05-01

    Polish adaptation of the original version of Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) instrument. The transcultural adaptation of SRS-22 and evaluation of its internal consistency. High psychometric value of the SRS-22 Questionnaire has made it an effective evaluation instrument in clinically assessing the functional status of patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. First, 2 translators translated the original version into Polish. Afterwards, the translators identified differences between the translations and produced a consensus version. In the third stage, 2 native English speakers produced back translations. Finally, a team of 2 orthopedic surgeons, translators, a statistician and a psychologist reviewed all the translations to produce a prefinal version. The questionnaire was administered to 60 girls at the age of 16.6, SD 2.0 with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis treated with the Cotrel-Dubousset method in Pediatric Orthopaedics and Traumatology Clinic in Poznań. The internal consistency in the Polish version equaled 0.89 for the overall result and 0.81 for function, 0.81 for pain, 0.80 for mental health, 0.77 for self-image, and 0.69 for treatment satisfaction domains, respectively. The Polish version of SRS-22 is characterized by high internal consistency for all domains and for the overall score, which makes it an evaluation tool after surgical treatment compatible with the original SRS-22.

  3. Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN), Version 1 (Version Superseded)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Please note, this dataset has been superseded by a newer version (see below). Users should not use this version except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous...

  4. Knowledge Translation Tools are Emerging to Move Neck Pain Research into Practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macdermid, Joy C; Miller, Jordan; Gross, Anita R

    2013-01-01

    Development or synthesis of the best clinical research is in itself insufficient to change practice. Knowledge translation (KT) is an emerging field focused on moving knowledge into practice, which is a non-linear, dynamic process that involves knowledge synthesis, transfer, adoption, implementation, and sustained use. Successful implementation requires using KT strategies based on theory, evidence, and best practice, including tools and processes that engage knowledge developers and knowledge users. Tools can provide instrumental help in implementing evidence. A variety of theoretical frameworks underlie KT and provide guidance on how tools should be developed or implemented. A taxonomy that outlines different purposes for engaging in KT and target audiences can also be useful in developing or implementing tools. Theoretical frameworks that underlie KT typically take different perspectives on KT with differential focus on the characteristics of the knowledge, knowledge users, context/environment, or the cognitive and social processes that are involved in change. Knowledge users include consumers, clinicians, and policymakers. A variety of KT tools have supporting evidence, including: clinical practice guidelines, patient decision aids, and evidence summaries or toolkits. Exemplars are provided of two KT tools to implement best practice in management of neck pain-a clinician implementation guide (toolkit) and a patient decision aid. KT frameworks, taxonomies, clinical expertise, and evidence must be integrated to develop clinical tools that implement best evidence in the management of neck pain.

  5. Internet MEMS design tools based on component technology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brueck, Rainer; Schumer, Christian

    1999-03-01

    The micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) industry in Europe is characterized by small and medium sized enterprises specialized on products to solve problems in specific domains like medicine, automotive sensor technology, etc. In this field of business the technology driven design approach known from micro electronics is not appropriate. Instead each design problem aims at its own, specific technology to be used for the solution. The variety of technologies at hand, like Si-surface, Si-bulk, LIGA, laser, precision engineering requires a huge set of different design tools to be available. No single SME can afford to hold licenses for all these tools. This calls for a new and flexible way of designing, implementing and distributing design software. The Internet provides a flexible manner of offering software access along with methodologies of flexible licensing e.g. on a pay-per-use basis. New communication technologies like ADSL, TV cable of satellites as carriers promise to offer a bandwidth sufficient even for interactive tools with graphical interfaces in the near future. INTERLIDO is an experimental tool suite for process specification and layout verification for lithography based MEMS technologies to be accessed via the Internet. The first version provides a Java implementation even including a graphical editor for process specification. Currently, a new version is brought into operation that is based on JavaBeans component technology. JavaBeans offers the possibility to realize independent interactive design assistants, like a design rule checking assistants, a process consistency checking assistants, a technology definition assistants, a graphical editor assistants, etc. that may reside distributed over the Internet, communicating via Internet protocols. Each potential user thus is able to configure his own dedicated version of a design tool set dedicated to the requirements of the current problem to be solved.

  6. Seismic Canvas: Evolution as a Data Exploration and Analysis Tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kroeger, G. C.

    2015-12-01

    SeismicCanvas, originally developed as a prototype interactive waveform display and printing application for educational use has evolved to include significant data exploration and analysis functionality. The most recent version supports data import from a variety of standard file formats including SAC and mini-SEED, as well as search and download capabilities via IRIS/FDSN Web Services. Data processing tools now include removal of means and trends, interactive windowing, filtering, smoothing, tapering, resampling. Waveforms can be displayed in a free-form canvas or as a record section based on angular or great circle distance, azimuth or back azimuth. Integrated tau-p code allows the calculation and display of theoretical phase arrivals from a variety of radial Earth models. Waveforms can be aligned by absolute time, event time, picked or theoretical arrival times and can be stacked after alignment. Interactive measurements include means, amplitudes, time delays, ray parameters and apparent velocities. Interactive picking of an arbitrary list of seismic phases is supported. Bode plots of amplitude and phase spectra and spectrograms can be created from multiple seismograms or selected windows of seismograms. Direct printing is implemented on all supported platforms along with output of high-resolution pdf files. With these added capabilities, the application is now being used as a data exploration tool for research. Coded in C++ and using the cross-platform Qt framework, the most recent version is available as a 64-bit application for Windows 7-10, Mac OS X 10.6-10.11, and most distributions of Linux, and a 32-bit version for Windows XP and 7. With the latest improvements and refactoring of trace display classes, the 64-bit versions have been tested with over 250 million samples and remain responsive in interactive operations. The source code is available under a LPGLv3 license and both source and executables are available through the IRIS SeisCode repository.

  7. Simple Functions Spreadsheet tool presentation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grive, Mireia; Domenech, Cristina; Montoya, Vanessa; Garcia, David; Duro, Lara

    2010-09-01

    This document is a guide for users of the Simple Functions Spreadsheet tool. The Simple Functions Spreadsheet tool has been developed by Amphos 21 to determine the solubility limits of some radionuclides and it has been especially designed for Performance Assessment exercises. The development of this tool has been promoted by the necessity expressed by SKB of having a confident and easy-to-handle tool to calculate solubility limits in an agile and relatively fast manner. Its development started in 2005 and since then, it has been improved until the current version. This document describes the accurate and preliminary study following expert criteria that has been used to select the simplified aqueous speciation and solid phase system included in the tool. This report also gives the basic instructions to use this tool and to interpret its results. Finally, this document also reports the different validation tests and sensitivity analyses that have been done during the verification process

  8. Mutated genes as research tool

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1981-01-01

    Green plants are the ultimate source of all resources required for man's life, his food, his clothes, and almost all his energy requirements. Primitive prehistoric man could live from the abundance of nature surrounding him. Man today, dominating nature in terms of numbers and exploiting its limited resources, cannot exist without employing his intelligence to direct natural evolution. Plant sciences, therefore, are not a matter of curiosity but an essential requirement. From such considerations, the IAEA and FAO jointly organized a symposium to assess the value of mutation research for various kinds of plant science, which directly or indirectly might contribute to sustaining and improving crop production. The benefit through developing better cultivars that plant breeders can derive from using the additional genetic resources resulting from mutation induction has been assessed before at other FAO/IAEA meetings (Rome 1964, Pullman 1969, Ban 1974, Ibadan 1978) and is also monitored in the Mutation Breeding Newsletter, published by IAEA twice a year. Several hundred plant cultivars which carry economically important characters because their genes have been altered by ionizing radiation or other mutagens, are grown by farmers and horticulturists in many parts of the world. But the benefit derived from such mutant varieties is without any doubt surpassed by the contribution which mutation research has made towards the advancement of genetics. For this reason, a major part of the papers and discussions at the symposium dealt with the role induced-mutation research played in providing insight into gene action and gene interaction, the organization of genes in plant chromosomes in view of homology and homoeology, the evolutionary role of gene duplication and polyploidy, the relevance of gene blocks, the possibilities for chromosome engineering, the functioning of cytroplasmic inheritance and the genetic dynamics of populations. In discussing the evolutionary role of

  9. Validation of a French version of the Sleep Condition Indicator: a clinical screening tool for insomnia disorder according to DSM-5 criteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bayard, Sophie; Lebrun, Cindy; Maudarbocus, Khaalid Hassan; Schellaert, Vanessa; Joffre, Alicia; Ferrante, Esther; Le Louedec, Marie; Cournoulat, Alice; Gely-Nargeot, Marie-Christine; Luik, Annemarie I

    2017-12-01

    Insomnia disorder is frequent in the population, yet there is no French screening instrument available that is based on the updated DSM-5 criteria. We evaluated the validity and reliability of the French version of an insomnia screening instrument based on DSM-5 criteria, the Sleep Condition Indicator, in a population-based sample of adults. A total of 366 community-dwelling participants completed a face-to-face clinical interview to determine insomnia disorder against DSM-5 criteria and several questionnaires including the French Sleep Condition Indicator version. Three-hundred and twenty-nine participants completed the Sleep Condition Indicator again after 1 month. Statistical analyses were performed to determine the reliability, construct validity, divergent validity and temporal stability of the French translation of the Sleep Condition Indicator. In addition, an explanatory factor analysis was performed to assess the underlying structure. The internal consistency (α = 0.87) and temporal stability (r = 0.86, P French Sleep Condition Indicator were high. When using the previously defined cut-off value of ≤ 16, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.93 with a sensitivity of 95% and a specificity of 75%. Additionally, good construct and divergent validity were demonstrated. The factor analyses showed a two-factor structure with a focus on sleep and daytime effects. The French version of the Sleep Condition Indicator demonstrates satisfactory psychometric properties while being a useful instrument in detecting cases of insomnia disorder, consistent with features of DSM-5, in the general population. © 2017 European Sleep Research Society.

  10. French version of the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Cognitive Function (FACT-Cog) version 3.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joly, F; Lange, M; Rigal, O; Correia, H; Giffard, B; Beaumont, J L; Clisant, S; Wagner, L

    2012-12-01

    Impairment of cognitive function, a common complaint in patients receiving chemotherapy, is usually measured through neuropsychological tests. Patient self-evaluation of cognitive difficulties is an important complement to those tests. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Cognitive Function (FACT-Cog) is a self-report questionnaire with potential to be used in standard clinical practice as a tool for evaluating patient's cognitive function before, during, and after chemotherapy. The purpose of our study was to conduct linguistic validation of the French version of the FACT-Cog. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used in this study. After undergoing a rigorous translation methodology, the French FACT-Cog version was pretested in France with 35 cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy treatment. Interviews were conducted with all patients to ascertain their understanding of each item. The validation of the final version was conducted among 63 cancer patients, and sociodemographic information was collected as well as brief measure of cognitive function and depression score. Patient comments obtained through the cognitive debriefing interviews indicated that patients understand the French FACT-Cog items as they are intended and that the measure is culturally appropriate. Internal consistency reliability of the subscales, evaluated using Cronbach's coefficient alpha, was high for all four subscales: Perceived Cognitive Impairments = 0.93, Impact On QOL = 0.85, Comments From Others = 0.70, and Perceived Cognitive Abilities = 0.89. All item-total correlations for each subscale were greater than 0.20, and most were greater than 0.50. Results from this study effectively demonstrate that the French FACT-Cog is a reliable instrument for the self-reporting of cognitive abilities in patients undergoing chemotherapy.

  11. The German version of the Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holzinger, Dirk; Foell, Dirk; Horneff, Gerd; Foeldvari, Ivan; Tzaribachev, Nikolay; Tzaribachev, Catrin; Minden, Kirsten; Kallinich, Tilmann; Ganser, Gerd; Clara, Lucia; Haas, Johannes-Peter; Hügle, Boris; Huppertz, Hans-Iko; Weller, Frank; Consolaro, Alessandro; Bovis, Francesca; Ruperto, Nicolino

    2018-04-01

    The Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR) is a new parent/patient reported outcome measure that enables a thorough assessment of the disease status in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). We report the results of the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the parent and patient versions of the JAMAR in the German language. The reading comprehension of the questionnaire was tested in 10 JIA parents and patients. The participating centres were asked to collect demographic and clinical data along the JAMAR questionnaire in 100 consecutive JIA patients or all consecutive patients seen in a 6-month period and to administer the JAMAR to 100 healthy children and their parents. The statistical validation phase explored descriptive statistics and the psychometric issues of the JAMAR: the three Likert assumptions, floor/ceiling effects, internal consistency, Cronbach's alpha, interscale correlations, test-retest reliability, and construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity). A total of 319 JIA patients (2.8% systemic, 36.7% oligoarticular, 23.5% RF negative polyarthritis, and 37% other categories) and 100 healthy children were enrolled in eight centres. The JAMAR components discriminated well healthy subjects from JIA patients. All JAMAR components revealed good psychometric performances. In conclusion, the German version of the JAMAR is a valid tool for the assessment of children with JIA and is suitable for use both in routine clinical practice and in clinical research.

  12. The Serbian version of the Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Susic, Gordana; Vojinovic, Jelena; Vijatov-Djuric, Gordana; Stevanovic, Dejan; Lazarevic, Dragana; Djurovic, Nada; Novakovic, Dusica; Consolaro, Alessandro; Bovis, Francesca; Ruperto, Nicolino

    2018-04-01

    The Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR) is a new parent/patient-reported outcome measure that enables a thorough assessment of the disease status in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). We report the results of the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the parent and patient versions of the JAMAR in the Serbian language. The reading comprehension of the questionnaire was tested in 10 JIA parents and patients. Each participating centre was asked to collect demographic, clinical data and the JAMAR in 100 consecutive JIA patients or all consecutive patients seen in a 6-month period and to administer the JAMAR to 100 healthy children and their parents. The statistical validation phase explored descriptive statistics and the psychometric issues of the JAMAR: the three Likert assumptions, floor/ceiling effects, internal consistency, Cronbach's alpha, interscale correlations, test-retest reliability, and construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity). A total of 248 JIA patients (5.2% systemic, 44.3% oligoarticular, 23.8% RF-negative polyarthritis, 26.7% other categories) and 100 healthy children were enrolled in three centres. The JAMAR components discriminated healthy subjects from JIA patients. All JAMAR components revealed good psychometric performances. In conclusion, the Serbian version of the JAMAR is a valid tool for the assessment of children with JIA and is suitable for use both in routine clinical practice and clinical research.

  13. Cluster Flow: A user-friendly bioinformatics workflow tool [version 1; referees: 3 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Ewels

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Pipeline tools are becoming increasingly important within the field of bioinformatics. Using a pipeline manager to manage and run workflows comprised of multiple tools reduces workload and makes analysis results more reproducible. Existing tools require significant work to install and get running, typically needing pipeline scripts to be written from scratch before running any analysis. We present Cluster Flow, a simple and flexible bioinformatics pipeline tool designed to be quick and easy to install. Cluster Flow comes with 40 modules for common NGS processing steps, ready to work out of the box. Pipelines are assembled using these modules with a simple syntax that can be easily modified as required. Core helper functions automate many common NGS procedures, making running pipelines simple. Cluster Flow is available with an GNU GPLv3 license on GitHub. Documentation, examples and an online demo are available at http://clusterflow.io.

  14. Soil and Water Assessment Tool: Historical Development, Applications, and Future Research Directions, The

    OpenAIRE

    Philip W. Gassman; Manuel R. Reyes; Colleen H. Green; Jeffrey G. Arnold

    2007-01-01

    The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model is a continuation of nearly 30 years of modeling efforts conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service. SWAT has gained international acceptance as a robust interdisciplinary watershed modeling tool, as evidenced by international SWAT conferences, hundreds of SWAT-related papers presented at numerous scientific meetings, and dozens of articles published in peer-reviewed journals. The model has also been ad...

  15. Precision Departure Release Capability (PDRC) Overview and Results: NASA to FAA Research Transition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engelland, Shawn; Davis, Tom.

    2013-01-01

    NASA researchers developed the Precision Departure Release Capability (PDRC) concept to improve the tactical departure scheduling process. The PDRC system is comprised of: 1) a surface automation system that computes ready time predictions and departure runway assignments, 2) an en route scheduling automation tool that uses this information to estimate ascent trajectories to the merge point and computes release times and, 3) an interface that provides two-way communication between the two systems. To minimize technology transfer issues and facilitate its adoption by TMCs and Frontline Managers (FLM), NASA developed the PDRC prototype using the Surface Decision Support System (SDSS) for the Tower surface automation tool, a research version of the FAA TMA (RTMA) for en route automation tool and a digital interface between the two DSTs to facilitate coordination.

  16. Developing a verification tool for calculations dissemination through COBAYA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sabater Alcaraz, A.; Rucabado Rucabado, G.; Cuervo Gomez, D.; Garcia Herranz, N.

    2014-01-01

    The development of a software tool that automates the comparison of results with previous versions of the code and results using models of accuracy is crucial for implementing the code new functionalities. The work presented here has been the generation the mentioned tool and the set of reference cases that have set up the afore mentioned matrix. (Author)

  17. Easily configured real-time CPOE Pick Off Tool supporting focused clinical research and quality improvement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosenbaum, Benjamin P; Silkin, Nikolay; Miller, Randolph A

    2014-01-01

    Real-time alerting systems typically warn providers about abnormal laboratory results or medication interactions. For more complex tasks, institutions create site-wide 'data warehouses' to support quality audits and longitudinal research. Sophisticated systems like i2b2 or Stanford's STRIDE utilize data warehouses to identify cohorts for research and quality monitoring. However, substantial resources are required to install and maintain such systems. For more modest goals, an organization desiring merely to identify patients with 'isolation' orders, or to determine patients' eligibility for clinical trials, may adopt a simpler, limited approach based on processing the output of one clinical system, and not a data warehouse. We describe a limited, order-entry-based, real-time 'pick off' tool, utilizing public domain software (PHP, MySQL). Through a web interface the tool assists users in constructing complex order-related queries and auto-generates corresponding database queries that can be executed at recurring intervals. We describe successful application of the tool for research and quality monitoring.

  18. Psychometric Properties of Persian Translated Version of Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC in Arak Community-dwelling Older Adults

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daryoush Khajavi

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background: Balance deficiency, falls and fear of fall are important problems that can resulted in reversed health outcomes including decreased quality of life. The purpose of this study was surveying factor structure, validation, and reliability determination of Persian translated version of Activities-specific Balance Confidence scale in community-dwelling older adults of Arak city. Materials and Methods: Research method was descriptive in form of psychometry. The statistic population was older adults of Arak in year 2012 and 308 subjects with mean age 69.38 years were selected availably. Data were collected by Persian translated version of Activities-specific Balance Confidence that is a 16-item scale and evaluates balance confidence in activities of daily living. Data were analyzed by Exploratory Factor Analysis. Test-retest and internal reliability were calculated by Pearson correlation coefficient and Chronbach’s Alpha. Data were analyzed with SPSS-16. Results: The findings resulted in extraction of one factor with eigenvalue over one that explained 82.89% of total variance. Test-retest reliability between 1 to 4 weeks and internal reliability (Chronbach’s alpha were 0.82 and 0.98, respectively. Gutmann split-half correlation coefficient and intra-class correlation coefficient were calculated 95% and 85%, respectively. Conclusion: Persian translated version of Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC-F is a valid and reliable tool for Iranian community-dwelling older adults that can be used in clinical and research purpose.

  19. QUAST: quality assessment tool for genome assemblies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gurevich, Alexey; Saveliev, Vladislav; Vyahhi, Nikolay; Tesler, Glenn

    2013-04-15

    Limitations of genome sequencing techniques have led to dozens of assembly algorithms, none of which is perfect. A number of methods for comparing assemblers have been developed, but none is yet a recognized benchmark. Further, most existing methods for comparing assemblies are only applicable to new assemblies of finished genomes; the problem of evaluating assemblies of previously unsequenced species has not been adequately considered. Here, we present QUAST-a quality assessment tool for evaluating and comparing genome assemblies. This tool improves on leading assembly comparison software with new ideas and quality metrics. QUAST can evaluate assemblies both with a reference genome, as well as without a reference. QUAST produces many reports, summary tables and plots to help scientists in their research and in their publications. In this study, we used QUAST to compare several genome assemblers on three datasets. QUAST tables and plots for all of them are available in the Supplementary Material, and interactive versions of these reports are on the QUAST website. http://bioinf.spbau.ru/quast . Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

  20. Sexual Modes Questionnaire (SMQ): Translation and Psychometric Properties of the Italian Version of the Automatic Thought Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nimbi, Filippo Maria; Tripodi, Francesca; Simonelli, Chiara; Nobre, Pedro

    2018-03-01

    The Sexual Modes Questionnaire (SMQ) is a validated and widespread used tool to assess the association among negative automatic thoughts, emotions, and sexual response during sexual activity in men and women. To test the psychometric characteristics of the Italian version of the SMQ focusing on the Automatic Thoughts subscale (SMQ-AT). After linguistic translation, the psychometric properties (internal consistency, construct, and discriminant validity) were evaluated. 1,051 participants (425 men and 626 women, 776 healthy and 275 clinical groups complaining about sexual problems) participated in the present study. 2 confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the fit of the original factor structures of the SMQ versions. In addition, 2 principal component analyses were performed to highlight 2 new factorial structures that were further validated with confirmatory factor analyses. Cronbach α and composite reliability were used as internal consistency measures and differences between clinical and control groups were run to test the discriminant validity for the male and female versions. The associations with emotions and sexual functioning measures also are reported. Principal component analyses identified 5 factors in the male version: erection concerns thoughts, lack of erotic thoughts, age- and body-related thoughts, negative thoughts toward sex, and worries about partner's evaluation and failure anticipation thoughts. In the female version 6 factors were found: sexual abuse thoughts, lack of erotic thoughts, low self-body image thoughts, failure and disengagement thoughts, sexual passivity and control, and partner's lack of affection. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the adequacy of the factor structure for men and women. Moreover, the SMQ showed a strong association with emotional response and sexual functioning, differentiating between clinical and control groups. This measure is useful to evaluate patients and design interventions focused on

  1. A modified version of the Greek Simplified Medication Adherence Questionnaire for hemodialysis patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Victoria Alikari

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Non-adherence to the therapeutic regimen is an increasingly growing problem especially among patients undergoing hemodialysis. The aim of this study was to modify the Greek version of Simplified Medication Adherence Questionnaire (GR-SMAQ for patients undergoing hemodialysis (GR-SMAQ-HD and explore its validity and reliability. Between June 2016 and November 2016 a group of patients undergoing hemodialysis (N=107 completed the Greek version of SMAQ. The study was carried out in three Dialysis Units of Hospitals of Athens and Peloponnese region, Greece. The form of GR-SMAQ was modified specifically for renal patients while four additional items were added so as the tool study all aspects of adherence to hemodialysis regimen. Construct validity was checked through exploratory factor analysis with principal Component Analysis with the Equamax method. Test-retest reliability and internal consistency were tested. Statistical analysis was performed using the IBM SPSS Statistics version 21. The significance level was set up at 5%. The Greek version of SMAQ for patients undergoing hemodialysis includes eight questions. Three factors emerged from factor analysis. Cronbach’s α coefficient was 0.742 for the whole scale and for each subscale was for Medication Adherence 0.75, for Attendance at hemodialysis session 0.856 and for Diet/Fluid restriction was 0.717. The total mean score was 6.29 (±1.82. GR-SMAQ-HD is a reliable and valuable tool that can be used by hemodialysis nurses and students of nursing for detection of adherence levels in clinical practice.

  2. Usability Testing of a National Substance Use Screening Tool Embedded in Electronic Health Records.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Press, Anne; DeStio, Catherine; McCullagh, Lauren; Kapoor, Sandeep; Morley, Jeanne; Conigliaro, Joseph

    2016-07-08

    Screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) is currently being implemented into health systems nationally via paper and electronic methods. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the integration of an electronic SBIRT tool into an existing paper-based SBIRT clinical workflow in a patient-centered medical home. Usability testing was conducted in an academic ambulatory clinic. Two rounds of usability testing were done with medical office assistants (MOAs) using a paper and electronic version of the SBIRT tool, with two and four participants, respectively. Qualitative and quantitative data was analyzed to determine the impact of both tools on clinical workflow. A second round of usability testing was done with the revised electronic version and compared with the first version. Personal workflow barriers cited in the first round of testing were that the electronic health record (EHR) tool was disruptive to patient's visits. In Round 2 of testing, MOAs reported favoring the electronic version due to improved layout and the inclusion of an alert system embedded in the EHR. For example, using the system usability scale (SUS), MOAs reported a grade "1" for the statement, "I would like to use this system frequently" during the first round of testing but a "5" during the second round of analysis. The importance of testing usability of various mediums of tools used in health care screening is highlighted by the findings of this study. In the first round of testing, the electronic tool was reported as less user friendly, being difficult to navigate, and time consuming. Many issues faced in the first generation of the tool were improved in the second generation after usability was evaluated. This study demonstrates how usability testing of an electronic SBRIT tool can help to identify challenges that can impact clinical workflow. However, a limitation of this study was the small sample size of MOAs that participated. The results may have been biased to

  3. Low field pulsed NMR- a mass screening tool in agricultural research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tiwari, P.N.

    1994-01-01

    One of the main requirements in agricultural research is to analyse large number of samples for their one or more chemical constituents and physical properties. In plant breeding programmes and germplasm evaluation, it is necessary that the analysis is fast as many samples are to be analysed. Pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a potential tool for developing rapid and nondestructive method of analysis. Various applications of low resolution pulsed NMR in agricultural research, which are generally used as screening method are briefly described. 25 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs

  4. VALIDATION OF THE RUSSIAN VERSION OF A QUESTIONNAIRE FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF UTILITARIAN INDICES IN PEDIATRIC PRACTICE. STAGE II

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I. V. Vinyarskaya

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Aim: To create the Russian-language version of the standardized international questionnaire Health Utilities Index (HUI applicable for children's age, on the basis of the relevant international requirements to linguistic ratification and validation of tools. Patients and methods: 427 children of the first and 233 children of the second health group have taken part in the research. Average age of patients made10.8 ± 4.6 years. Criteria validity of the HUI questionnaire was assessed by comparison of patients' answers who had the different health status, a convergent validity — by comparison of the HUI attributes with scales of the PedsQL questionnaire, reliability — by calculation of Cronbach's alfa and the analysis of correlations between questions of the HUI classification. Results: Between the first and second health group there were significant distinctions on each attribute of the HUI questionnaire (p < 0.001. Average value of a number of the reduced attributes significantly differed depending on the state of health of patients: the worse the state of health is, the higher number of limited attributes is (p < 0.05. Significant correlations between the scales estimating similar concepts on questionnaires HUI and PedsQL are established. In assessment of the reliability Cronbach's according to the HUI3 and HUI2 system made 0.79 and 0.8, respectively. Significantcorrelations between the questions estimating identical attributes (sight, hearing, speech, cognitive abilities are shown. The validity and reliability assessment executed for children with various state of health, allowed to assess all attributes of the HUI2 and HUI3 systems. The received results showed satisfactory psychometric properties of the new language version of a questionnaire. Conclusion: The offeredRussian version of the international questionnaire HUI is a validated tool for the development of utility coefficients for various chronic diseases in children, creation of the

  5. A review of cultural adaptations of screening tools for autism spectrum disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soto, Sandra; Linas, Keri; Jacobstein, Diane; Biel, Matthew; Migdal, Talia; Anthony, Bruno J

    2015-08-01

    Screening children to determine risk for Autism Spectrum Disorders has become more common, although some question the advisability of such a strategy. The purpose of this systematic review is to identify autism screening tools that have been adapted for use in cultures different from that in which they were developed, evaluate the cultural adaptation process, report on the psychometric properties of the adapted instruments, and describe the implications for further research and clinical practice. A total of 21 articles met criteria for inclusion, reporting on the cultural adaptation of autism screening in 19 countries and in 10 languages. The cultural adaptation process was not always clearly outlined and often did not include the recommended guidelines. Cultural/linguistic modifications to the translated tools tended to increase with the rigor of the adaptation process. Differences between the psychometric properties of the original and adapted versions were common, indicating the need to obtain normative data on populations to increase the utility of the translated tool. © The Author(s) 2014.

  6. New Tools for New Research in Psychiatry: A Scalable and Customizable Platform to Empower Data Driven Smartphone Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torous, John; Kiang, Mathew V; Lorme, Jeanette; Onnela, Jukka-Pekka

    2016-05-05

    A longstanding barrier to progress in psychiatry, both in clinical settings and research trials, has been the persistent difficulty of accurately and reliably quantifying disease phenotypes. Mobile phone technology combined with data science has the potential to offer medicine a wealth of additional information on disease phenotypes, but the large majority of existing smartphone apps are not intended for use as biomedical research platforms and, as such, do not generate research-quality data. Our aim is not the creation of yet another app per se but rather the establishment of a platform to collect research-quality smartphone raw sensor and usage pattern data. Our ultimate goal is to develop statistical, mathematical, and computational methodology to enable us and others to extract biomedical and clinical insights from smartphone data. We report on the development and early testing of Beiwe, a research platform featuring a study portal, smartphone app, database, and data modeling and analysis tools designed and developed specifically for transparent, customizable, and reproducible biomedical research use, in particular for the study of psychiatric and neurological disorders. We also outline a proposed study using the platform for patients with schizophrenia. We demonstrate the passive data capabilities of the Beiwe platform and early results of its analytical capabilities. Smartphone sensors and phone usage patterns, when coupled with appropriate statistical learning tools, are able to capture various social and behavioral manifestations of illnesses, in naturalistic settings, as lived and experienced by patients. The ubiquity of smartphones makes this type of moment-by-moment quantification of disease phenotypes highly scalable and, when integrated within a transparent research platform, presents tremendous opportunities for research, discovery, and patient health.

  7. [Usefulness of the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (Spanish version) in Peruvian patients with Alzheimer's disease and Frontotemporal Dementia].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Custodio, Nilton; Lira, David; Montesinos, Rosa; Gleichgerrcht, Ezequiel; Manes, Facundo

    2012-01-01

    The development of screening tools for the assessment of cognitive status in patients with dementia must be brief yet both highly sensitive and specific in order to ensure its clinical utility. In this sense, it is important to adapt tools widely used around the world to particular populations, allowing for a more proper validity of its use in everyday clinical practice. One of the most popular general cognitive screening tools is the Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination (ACE), which has been adapted and validated in multiple languages and populations. To assess the usefulness of the Peruvian version of the ACE in patients with dementia. Healthy controls, patients with Alzheimer disease (AD) and patients with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) were assessed with the Peruvian version of the ACE, the ADAScog to determine dementia severity, and a complete neuropsychological battery. The Peruvian version of the ACE showed very good internal consistency, strong concurrent validity as revealed by significant correlations between the ACE total score and both the MMSE and ADAScog. The ACE was able to differentiate healthy controls from patients with dementia with high discriminatory accuracy. Using a cut-off score of 86 (out of 100), the ACE was exhibited a sensitivity of 100% and a specificity of 100%.

  8. The Light-Water-Reactor Version of the URANUS Integral fuel-rod code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Labmann, K; Moreno, A

    1977-07-01

    The LWR version of the URANUS code, a digital computer programme for the thermal and mechanical analysis of fuel rods, is presented. Material properties are discussed and their effect on integral fuel rod behaviour elaborated via URANUS results for some carefully selected reference experiments. The numerical results do not represent post-irradiation analyses of in-pile experiments, they illustrate rather typical and diverse URANUS capabilities. The performance test shows that URANUS is reliable and efficient, thus the code is a most valuable tool in fuel rod analysis work. K. LaBmann developed the LWR version of the URANUS code, material properties were reviewed and supplied by A. Moreno. (Author) 41 refs.

  9. MEDICAL INFORMATICS: AN ESSENTIAL TOOL FOR HEALTH SCIENCES RESEARCH IN ACUTE CARE

    OpenAIRE

    Li, Man; Pickering, Brian W.; Smith, Vernon D.; Hadzikadic, Mirsad; Gajic, Ognjen; Herasevich, Vitaly

    2009-01-01

    Medical Informatics has become an important tool in modern health care practice and research. In the present article we outline the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of electronic medical records (EMR) in complex environments such as intensive care units (ICU). We share our initial experience in the design, maintenance and application of a customized critical care, Microsoft SQL based, research warehouse, ICU DataMart. ICU DataMart integrates clinical and adminis...

  10. Medical Informatics: An Essential Tool for Health Sciences Research in Acute Care

    OpenAIRE

    Man Li; Brian W. Pickering; Vernon D. Smith; Mirsad Hadzikadic; Ognjen Gajic; Vitaly Herasevich

    2009-01-01

    Medical Informatics has become an important tool in modern health care practice and research. In the present article we outline the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of electronic medical records (EMR) in complex environments such as intensive care units (ICU). We share our initial experience in the design, maintenance and application of a customized critical care, Microsoft SQL based, research warehouse, ICU DataMart. ICU DataMart integrates clinical and adminis...

  11. Flammable Gas Refined Safety Analysis Tool Software Verification and Validation Report for Resolve Version 2.5

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    BRATZEL, D.R.

    2000-01-01

    The purpose of this report is to document all software verification and validation activities, results, and findings related to the development of Resolve Version 2.5 for the analysis of flammable gas accidents in Hanford Site waste tanks

  12. VAO Tools Enhance CANDELS Research Productivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greene, Gretchen; Donley, J.; Rodney, S.; LAZIO, J.; Koekemoer, A. M.; Busko, I.; Hanisch, R. J.; VAO Team; CANDELS Team

    2013-01-01

    The formation of galaxies and their co-evolution with black holes through cosmic time are prominent areas in current extragalactic astronomy. New methods in science research are building upon collaborations between scientists and archive data centers which span large volumes of multi-wavelength and heterogeneous data. A successful example of this form of teamwork is demonstrated by the CANDELS (Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey) and the Virtual Astronomical Observatory (VAO) collaboration. The CANDELS project archive data provider services are registered and discoverable in the VAO through an innovative web based Data Discovery Tool, providing a drill down capability and cross-referencing with other co-spatially located astronomical catalogs, images and spectra. The CANDELS team is working together with the VAO to define new methods for analyzing Spectral Energy Distributions of galaxies containing active galactic nuclei, and helping to evolve advanced catalog matching methods for exploring images of variable depths, wavelengths and resolution. Through the publication of VOEvents, the CANDELS project is publishing data streams for newly discovered supernovae that are bright enough to be followed from the ground.

  13. A comprehensive review on cold work of AISI D2 tool steel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdul Rahim, Mohd Aidil Shah bin; Minhat, Mohamad bin; Hussein, Nur Izan Syahriah Binti; Salleh, Mohd Shukor bin

    2017-11-01

    As a common material in mould and die application, AISI D2 cold work tool steel has proven to be a promising chosen material in the industries. However, challenges remain in using AISI D2 through a modified version with a considerable progress having been made in recent years. This paper provides a critical review of the original as-cast AISI D2 cold work tool steel up to the modified version. The main purpose is to develop an understanding of current modified tool steel trend; the machinability of AISI D2 (drilling, milling, turning, grinding and EDM/WEDM; and the microstructure evolution and mechanical properties of these cold work tool steels due to the presence of alloy materials in the steel matrix. The doping of rare earth alloy element, new steel fabrication processes, significant process parameter in machinability and surface treatment shows that there have been few empirical investigations into these cold work tool steel alloys. This study has discovered that cold work tool steel will remain to be explored in order to survive in the steel industries.

  14. Medical informatics: an essential tool for health sciences research in acute care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Man; Pickering, Brian W; Smith, Vernon D; Hadzikadic, Mirsad; Gajic, Ognjen; Herasevich, Vitaly

    2009-10-01

    Medical Informatics has become an important tool in modern health care practice and research. In the present article we outline the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of electronic medical records (EMR) in complex environments such as intensive care units (ICU). We share our initial experience in the design, maintenance and application of a customized critical care, Microsoft SQL based, research warehouse, ICU DataMart. ICU DataMart integrates clinical and administrative data from heterogeneous sources within the EMR to support research and practice improvement in the ICUs. Examples of intelligent alarms -- "sniffers", administrative reports, decision support and clinical research applications are presented.

  15. Medical Informatics: An Essential Tool for Health Sciences Research in Acute Care

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Man Li

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available Medical Informatics has become an important tool in modern health care practice and research. In the present article we outline the challenges and opportunities associated with the implementation of electronic medical records (EMR in complex environments such as intensive care units (ICU. We share our initial experience in the design, maintenance and application of a customized critical care, Microsoft SQL based, research warehouse, ICU DataMart. ICU DataMart integrates clinical and administrative data from heterogeneous sources within the EMR to support research and practice improvement in the ICUs. Examples of intelligent alarms – “sniffers”, administrative reports, decision support and clinical research applications are presented.

  16. Development of the Italian version of the revised Scoliosis Research Society-22 Patient Questionnaire, SRS-22r-I: cross-cultural adaptation, factor analysis, reliability, and validity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monticone, Marco; Baiardi, Paola; Calabrò, David; Calabrò, Fabio; Foti, Calogero

    2010-11-15

    Evaluation of the psychometric properties of a translated and culturally adapted questionnaire. Translating, culturally adapting, and validating the Italian version of the revised Scoliosis Research Society-22 Patient Questionnaire (SRS-22r-I) in order to allow its use with Italian-speaking patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). Increasing attention is being given to health-related quality of life measures as a means of adding information about the evaluation of AIS. A translated form of the revised SRS-22 has never been validated in Italian patients with AIS. The development of the SRS-22 questionnaire involved its translation and back-translation, a final review by an Expert Committee, and testing of the prefinal version to establish its correspondence to the original English version. Psychometric testing included factor analysis, reliability by internal consistency (Cronbach alpha) and test-retest repeatability (Intraclass Coefficient Correlation), and concurrent validity (Pearson correlation) by comparing the SRS-22r-I domains with the Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) subscales. It took 4 months to develop a shared version of the SRS-22r-I, which proved to be satisfactorily acceptable when administered to 223 subjects with AIS. Factor analysis indicated a 4-factor solution (54% of the explained variance), and the questionnaire had an acceptable level of internal consistency (α = 0.77) and a high level of test-retest reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.957). In terms of concurrent validity, the correlations with the related Short-Form-36 subscales were moderate to good in the case of the Pain and Mental Health domains, and moderate in the case of the Function and Self-Image domains. The Italian translation of the SRS-22r has a good factorial structure and psychometric properties, and replicates the results of existing English versions of the questionnaire. Its use for research purposes can therefore be recommended.

  17. Surveying the factor structure and reliability of the Persian version of the Jefferson Scale of Physician Lifelong Learning (JeffSPLL) in staff of medical sciences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karimi, Fatemeh Zahra; Alesheikh, Aytay; Pakravan, Soheila; Abdollahi, Mahbubeh; Damough, Mozhdeh; Anbaran, Zahra Khosravi; Farahani, Leila Amiri

    2017-10-01

    In medical sciences, commitment to lifelong learning has been expressed as an important element. Today, due to the rapid development of medical information and technology, lifelong learning is critical for safe medical care and development in medical research. JeffSPLL is one of the scales for measuring lifelong learning among the staff of medical sciences that has never been used in Iran. The aim of the present study was to determine the factor structure and reliability of the Persian version of JeffSPLL among Persian-speaking staff of universities of medical sciences in Iran. This study was a cross-sectional study, methodologically, that was conducted in 2012-2013. In this study, 210 staff members of Birjand University of Medical Sciences were selected. Data collection tool was the Persian version of JeffSPLL. To investigate the factor structure of this tool, confirmatory factor analysis was used and to evaluate the model fit, goodness-of-fit indices, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), the ratio of chi-square to the degree of freedom associated with it, comparative fit index (CFI), and root mean square residual (RMR) were used. To investigate the reliability of tool, Cronbach's alpha was employed. Data analysis was conducted using LISREL8.8 and SPSS 20 software. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that RMSEA was close to 0.1, and CFI and GFI were close to one. Therefore, four-factor model was appropriate. Cronbach's alpha was 0.92 for the whole tool and it was between 0.82 and 0.89 for subscales. The present study verified the four-factor structure of the 19-item Persian version of JeffSPLL that included professional learning beliefs and motivation, scholarly activities, attention to learning opportunities, and technical skills in information seeking among the staff. In addition, this tool has acceptable reliability. Therefore, it was appropriate to assess lifelong learning in the Persian-speaking staff population.

  18. Software Engineering Tools for Scientific Models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abrams, Marc; Saboo, Pallabi; Sonsini, Mike

    2013-01-01

    Software tools were constructed to address issues the NASA Fortran development community faces, and they were tested on real models currently in use at NASA. These proof-of-concept tools address the High-End Computing Program and the Modeling, Analysis, and Prediction Program. Two examples are the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System Model, Version 5 (GEOS-5) atmospheric model in Cell Fortran on the Cell Broadband Engine, and the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) coupled atmosphere- ocean model called ModelE, written in fixed format Fortran.

  19. U.S. Army weapon systems human-computer interface style guide. Version 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Avery, L.W.; O`Mara, P.A.; Shepard, A.P.; Donohoo, D.T.

    1997-12-31

    A stated goal of the US Army has been the standardization of the human computer interfaces (HCIs) of its system. Some of the tools being used to accomplish this standardization are HCI design guidelines and style guides. Currently, the Army is employing a number of HCI design guidance documents. While these style guides provide good guidance for the command, control, communications, computers, and intelligence (C4I) domain, they do not necessarily represent the more unique requirements of the Army`s real time and near-real time (RT/NRT) weapon systems. The Office of the Director of Information for Command, Control, Communications, and Computers (DISC4), in conjunction with the Weapon Systems Technical Architecture Working Group (WSTAWG), recognized this need as part of their activities to revise the Army Technical Architecture (ATA), now termed the Joint Technical Architecture-Army (JTA-A). To address this need, DISC4 tasked the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to develop an Army weapon systems unique HCI style guide, which resulted in the US Army Weapon Systems Human-Computer Interface (WSHCI) Style Guide Version 1. Based on feedback from the user community, DISC4 further tasked PNNL to revise Version 1 and publish Version 2. The intent was to update some of the research and incorporate some enhancements. This document provides that revision. The purpose of this document is to provide HCI design guidance for the RT/NRT Army system domain across the weapon systems subdomains of ground, aviation, missile, and soldier systems. Each subdomain should customize and extend this guidance by developing their domain-specific style guides, which will be used to guide the development of future systems within their subdomains.

  20. OLS Client and OLS Dialog: Open Source Tools to Annotate Public Omics Datasets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perez-Riverol, Yasset; Ternent, Tobias; Koch, Maximilian; Barsnes, Harald; Vrousgou, Olga; Jupp, Simon; Vizcaíno, Juan Antonio

    2017-10-01

    The availability of user-friendly software to annotate biological datasets and experimental details is becoming essential in data management practices, both in local storage systems and in public databases. The Ontology Lookup Service (OLS, http://www.ebi.ac.uk/ols) is a popular centralized service to query, browse and navigate biomedical ontologies and controlled vocabularies. Recently, the OLS framework has been completely redeveloped (version 3.0), including enhancements in the data model, like the added support for Web Ontology Language based ontologies, among many other improvements. However, the new OLS is not backwards compatible and new software tools are needed to enable access to this widely used framework now that the previous version is no longer available. We here present the OLS Client as a free, open-source Java library to retrieve information from the new version of the OLS. It enables rapid tool creation by providing a robust, pluggable programming interface and common data model to programmatically access the OLS. The library has already been integrated and is routinely used by several bioinformatics resources and related data annotation tools. Secondly, we also introduce an updated version of the OLS Dialog (version 2.0), a Java graphical user interface that can be easily plugged into Java desktop applications to access the OLS. The software and related documentation are freely available at https://github.com/PRIDE-Utilities/ols-client and https://github.com/PRIDE-Toolsuite/ols-dialog. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  1. Versions in the lifecycle of academic papers user requirements and guidelins fo digital repositories

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2005-01-01

    An academic research paper evolves through various stages during its lifecycle, for example from early conference presentation through working paper to final published refereed journal article. Different versions can co-exist in publicly available electronic form. Finding out researchers’ attitudes towards storing, labelling and making accessible these different versions, both of their own and of their peers’ work is at the heart of the VERSIONS Project, funded by the JISC under the Digital Repositories Programme. The project addresses the issues and uncertainties relating to versions of academic papers in digital repositories. By including a user requirements study, the project will clarify the needs of researchers and other stakeholders for deposit, storage and accessibility of different versions in the lifecycle of a digital resource. In addition to looking at user needs, the project will analyse researchers’ current practice in terms of retention of author copies of their own material. This investig...

  2. The SPARK Tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in health policy and systems research: development and initial validation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akl, Elie A; Fadlallah, Racha; Ghandour, Lilian; Kdouh, Ola; Langlois, Etienne; Lavis, John N; Schünemann, Holger; El-Jardali, Fadi

    2017-09-04

    Groups or institutions funding or conducting systematic reviews in health policy and systems research (HPSR) should prioritise topics according to the needs of policymakers and stakeholders. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in HPSR. We developed the tool following a four-step approach consisting of (1) the definition of the purpose and scope of tool, (2) item generation and reduction, (3) testing for content and face validity, (4) and pilot testing of the tool. The research team involved international experts in HPSR, systematic review methodology and tool development, led by the Center for Systematic Reviews on Health Policy and Systems Research (SPARK). We followed an inclusive approach in determining the final selection of items to allow customisation to the user's needs. The purpose of the SPARK tool was to prioritise questions in HPSR in order to address them in systematic reviews. In the item generation and reduction phase, an extensive literature search yielded 40 relevant articles, which were reviewed by the research team to create a preliminary list of 19 candidate items for inclusion in the tool. As part of testing for content and face validity, input from international experts led to the refining, changing, merging and addition of new items, and to organisation of the tool into two modules. Following pilot testing, we finalised the tool, with 22 items organised in two modules - the first module including 13 items to be rated by policymakers and stakeholders, and the second including 9 items to be rated by systematic review teams. Users can customise the tool to their needs, by omitting items that may not be applicable to their settings. We also developed a user manual that provides guidance on how to use the SPARK tool, along with signaling questions. We have developed and conducted initial validation of the SPARK tool to prioritise questions for systematic reviews in HPSR, along with

  3. Systematic Review of the Measurement Properties of Tools Used to Measure Behaviour Problems in Young Children with Autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanratty, Jennifer; Livingstone, Nuala; Robalino, Shannon; Terwee, Caroline B; Glod, Magdalena; Oono, Inalegwu P; Rodgers, Jacqui; Macdonald, Geraldine; McConachie, Helen

    2015-01-01

    Behaviour problems are common in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There are many different tools used to measure behavior problems but little is known about their validity for the population. To evaluate the measurement properties of behaviour problems tools used in evaluation of intervention or observational research studies with children with ASD up to the age of six years. Behaviour measurement tools were identified as part of a larger, two stage, systematic review. First, sixteen major electronic databases, as well as grey literature and research registers were searched, and tools used listed and categorized. Second, using methodological filters, we searched for articles examining the measurement properties of the tools in use with young children with ASD in ERIC, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. The quality of these papers was then evaluated using the COSMIN checklist. We identified twelve tools which had been used to measure behaviour problems in young children with ASD, and fifteen studies which investigated the measurement properties of six of these tools. There was no evidence available for the remaining six tools. Two questionnaires were found to be the most robust in their measurement properties, the Child Behavior Checklist and the Home Situations Questionnaire-Pervasive Developmental Disorders version. We found patchy evidence on reliability and validity, for only a few of the tools used to measure behaviour problems in young children with ASD. More systematic research is required on measurement properties of tools for use in this population, in particular to establish responsiveness to change which is essential in measurement of outcomes of intervention. CRD42012002223.

  4. The Understanding Bereavement Evaluation Tool (UBET) for midwives: factor structure and clinical research applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hollins Martin, Caroline J; Forrest, Eleanor; Wylie, Linda; Martin, Colin R

    2013-10-01

    The NMSF (2009) survey reported that bereavement midwife care was inadequate in a number of UK NHS Trusts. Using a small grant from the Scottish government, 3 experienced midwifery lecturers designed an interactive workbook called "Shaping bereavement care for midwives in clinical practice" for the purpose of improving delivery of bereavement education to student midwives. An instrument called the Understanding Bereavement Evaluation Tool (UBET) was designed to measure effectiveness of the workbook at equipping students with essential knowledge. To assess validity and reliability of the UBET at measuring midwives' self-perceptions of knowledge surrounding delivery of bereavement care to childbearing women, partners and families who have experienced childbirth related bereavement. An evaluative audit using the UBET was undertaken to explore student midwives' (n=179) self perceived knowledge levels before and after the workbook intervention. Validity tests have shown that the UBET, (6-item version), could be considered a psychometrically robust instrument for assessing students' knowledge gain. PCA identified that the UBET comprised two sub-scales (theoretical knowledge base - Q 1, 2 & 3 and psychosocial elements of care delivery - Q 4, 5 & 6). Data has shown that the easy to administer and short 6-item UBET is a valid and reliable tool for educators to measure success at delivering education using the "Shaping bereavement care for midwives in clinical practice" work book. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Software Tools for Battery Design | Transportation Research | NREL

    Science.gov (United States)

    Software Tools for Battery Design Software Tools for Battery Design Under the Computer-Aided Engineering for Electric Drive Vehicle Batteries (CAEBAT) project, NREL has developed software tools to help using CAEBAT software tools. Knowledge of the interplay of multi-physics at varied scales is imperative

  6. Metaphors and Drawings as Research Tools of Head Teachers' Perceptions on Their Management and Leadership Roles and Responsibilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Argyropoulou, Eleftheria; Hatira, Kalliopi

    2014-01-01

    This article introduces an alternative qualitative research tool: metaphor and drawing, as projections of personality features, to explore underlying concepts and values, thoughts and beliefs, fears and hesitations, aspirations and ambitions of the research subjects. These two projective tools are used to explore Greek state kindergarten head…

  7. The suicide assessment scale: psychometric properties of a Norwegian language version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koldsland, Bjørn Odd; Mehlum, Lars; Mellesdal, Liv Solrunn; Walby, Fredrik A; Diep, Lien M

    2012-08-07

    Rating scales are valuable tools in suicide research and can also be useful supplements to the clinical interview in suicide risk assessments. This study describes the psychometric properties of a Norwegian language version of the Suicide Assessment Scale Self-report version (SUAS-S). Participants were fifty-two patients (mean age = 39.3 years, SD = 10.7) with major depression (53.8%), bipolar disorder (25.0%) and/or a personality disorder (63.5%) referred to a psychiatric outpatient clinic. The SUAS-S, the screening section of the Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation (BSS-5), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck's Hopelessness Scale (BHS), the Symptom Check-List-90 R (SCL-90R) and the Clinical Global Impression for Severity of Suicidality (CGI-SS) were administered. One week later, the patients completed the SUAS-S a second time. Cronbach's alpha for SUAS-S was 0.88 and the test-retest reliability was 0.95 (95% CI: 0.93- 0.97). SUAS-S was positively correlated with the BSS-5 (r = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.47-0.85) for the study sample as a whole and for the suicidal (r = 0.52) and non-suicidal groups (r = 0.50) respectively. There was no difference between the SUAS-S and the BSS-5 in the ability to identify suicidality. This ability was more pronounced when the suicide risk was high. There was a substantial intercorrelation between the score on the SUAS-S and the BDI (0.81) and the BHS (0.76). The sensitivity and specificity of the SUAS-S was explored and an appropriate clinical cut-off value was assessed. The study revealed good internal consistency, test-retest reliability and concurrent validity for the Suicide Assessment Scale Self-report version. The discriminatory ability for suicidality was comparable to that of the BSS-5.

  8. Accounting Research as a didactic tool for a accounting teaching

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valeria Gisela Perez

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper develops a reflection about the importance of the research of accounting subjects in the professional accountants training, this importance is an attribute of research to increase the wealth of discipline under investigation, this can be converted into a skill and/or competence wich accountants are required to demonstrate in their professional practice.Furthermore, accounting is recognized by the authors as a science in constant development, being able to be investigated. This change in knowledge is an element that motivates professionals to be constantly updated, becoming this aspect (constant updating the skill and competence that research can bring to professional training in university classrooms.The reflection is based on the study of documents developed by prestigious authors in accounting theory, teaching and research.Therefore, this paper concludes that research is a useful tool for the professional accounting training, and rewards the important skills and competencies for professional practice; it can be conceived as well as a strategy for technical and educational activities that allows students to recreate knowledge, allowing future updates that will require their professional practice.Key words: Accounting research, university teaching, accounting education. 

  9. Validation of the Japanese Version of the Body Vigilance Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saigo, Tatsuo; Takebayashi, Yoshitake; Tayama, Jun; Bernick, Peter J; Schmidt, Norman B; Shirabe, Susumu; Sakano, Yuji

    2016-06-01

    The Body Vigilance Scale is a self-report measure of attention to bodily sensations. The measure was translated into Japanese and its reliability, validity, and factor structure were verified. Participants comprised 286 university students (age: 19 ± 1 years). All participants were administered the scale, along with several indices of anxiety (i.e., Anxiety Sensitivity Index, Short Health Anxiety Inventory Illness Likelihood Scale, Social Interaction Anxiety Scale, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale). The Japanese version of the Body Vigilance Scale exhibited a unidimensional factor structure and strong internal consistency. Construct validity was demonstrated by significant correlations with the above measures. Results suggest that the Japanese version of the scale is a reliable, valid tool for measuring body vigilance in Japanese university students. © The Author(s) 2016.

  10. Research on Key Technologies of Unit-Based CNC Machine Tool Assembly Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhongqi Sheng

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Assembly is the part that produces the maximum workload and consumed time during product design and manufacturing process. CNC machine tool is the key basic equipment in manufacturing industry and research on assembly design technologies of CNC machine tool has theoretical significance and practical value. This study established a simplified ASRG for CNC machine tool. The connection between parts, semantic information of transmission, and geometric constraint information were quantified to assembly connection strength to depict the assembling difficulty level. The transmissibility based on trust relationship was applied on the assembly connection strength. Assembly unit partition based on assembly connection strength was conducted, and interferential assembly units were identified and revised. The assembly sequence planning and optimization of parts in each assembly unit and between assembly units was conducted using genetic algorithm. With certain type of high speed CNC turning center, as an example, this paper explored into the assembly modeling, assembly unit partition, and assembly sequence planning and optimization and realized the optimized assembly sequence of headstock of CNC machine tool.

  11. Information Technology Research Services: Powerful Tools to Keep Up with a Rapidly Moving Field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hunter, Paul

    2010-01-01

    Marty firms offer Information Technology Research reports, analyst calls, conferences, seminars, tools, leadership development, etc. These entities include Gartner, Forrester Research, IDC, The Burton Group, Society for Information Management, 1nfoTech Research, The Corporate Executive Board, and so on. This talk will cover how a number of such services are being used at the Goddard Space Flight Center to improve our IT management practices, workforce skills, approach to innovation, and service delivery. These tools and services are used across the workforce, from the executive leadership to the IT worker. The presentation will cover the types of services each vendor provides and their primary engagement model. The use of these services at other NASA Centers and Headquarters will be included. In addition, I will explain how two of these services are available now to the entire NASA IT workforce through enterprise-wide subscriptions.

  12. Cost-effective evolution of research prototypes into end-user tools: The MACH case study

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Störrle, Harald

    2017-01-01

    's claim by fellow scientists, and (3) demonstrate the utility and value of the research contribution to any interested parties. However, turning an exploratory prototype into a “proper” tool for end-users often entails great effort. Heavyweight mainstream frameworks such as Eclipse do not address...... this issue; their steep learning curves constitute substantial entry barriers to such ecosystems. In this paper, we present the Model Analyzer/Checker (MACH), a stand-alone tool with a command-line interpreter. MACH integrates a set of research prototypes for analyzing UML models. By choosing a simple...... command line interpreter rather than (costly) graphical user interface, we achieved the core goal of quickly deploying research results to a broader audience while keeping the required effort to an absolute minimum. We analyze MACH as a case study of how requirements and constraints in an academic...

  13. User guide - COE calculation tool for wave energy converters. Draft version 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fernandez-Chozas, J.; Kofoed, J.P. [Aalborg Univ., Aalborg (Denmark); Helstrup Jensen, N.E. [Energinet.dk, Fredericia (Denmark)

    2013-08-15

    Aalborg University together with Energinet.dk and Julia F. Chozas Consulting Engineer, have released a freely available online spreadsheet to evaluate the Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) for wave energy projects. The open-access tool calculates the LCOE based on the power production of a Wave Energy Converter (WEC) at a particular location. Production data may derive from laboratory testing, numerical modelling or from sea trials. The tool has been developed as a transparent and simple model that evaluates WEC's economic feasibility in a range of locations, while scaling WEC's features to the selected site. (Author)

  14. Linguistic Adaptation and Psychometric Properties of Tamil Version of General Oral Health Assessment Index-Tml.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Appukuttan, D P; Vinayagavel, M; Balasundaram, A; Damodaran, L K; Shivaraman, P; Gunasshegaran, K

    2015-01-01

    Oral health has an impact on quality of life hence for research purpose validation of a Tamil version of General Oral Health Assessment Index would enable it to be used as a valuable tool among Tamil speaking population. In this study, we aimed to assess the psychometric properties of translated Tamil version of General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI-Tml). Linguistic adaptation involved forward and backward blind translation process. Reliability was analyzed using test-retest, Cronbach alpha, and split half reliability. Inter-item and item-total correlation were evaluated using Spearman rank correlation. Convenience sampling was done, and 265 consecutive patients aged 20-70 years attending the outpatient department were recruited. Subjects were requested to fill a self-reporting questionnaire along with Tamil GOHAI version. Clinical examination was done on the same visit. Concurrent validity was measured by assessing the relationship between GOHAI scores and self-perceived oral health and general health status, satisfaction with oral health, need for dental treatment and esthetic satisfaction. Discriminant validity was evaluated by comparing the GOHAI scores with the objectively assessed clinical parameters. Exploratory factor analysis was done to examine the factor structure. Mean GOHAI-Tml was 52.7 (6.8, range 22-60, median 54). The mean number of negative impacts was 2 (2.4, range 0-11, median 1). The Spearman rank correlation for test-retest ranged from 0.8 to 0.9 (P Tamil speaking population.

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

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Astrid Jaime

    2005-06-01

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

  16. Theatre elicitation integrating a participatory research tool in a mixed-method study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Roerig, S.; Evers, S.J.T.M.; Krabbendam, L.

    2015-01-01

    The relation between theatre, or drama, and research is not novel which is illustrated by concepts such as role theory, theatre for development, or distancing in drama therapy. In various scientific fields theatre is used as a communicative and/or educative tool, however in the realm of childhood

  17. Multigroup confirmatory factor analysis and structural invariance with age of the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF)--French version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fournet, Nathalie; Roulin, Jean-Luc; Monnier, Catherine; Atzeni, Thierry; Cosnefroy, Olivier; Le Gall, Didier; Roy, Arnaud

    2015-01-01

    The parent and teacher forms of the French version of the Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) were used to evaluate executive function in everyday life in a large sample of healthy children (N = 951) aged between 5 and 18. Several psychometric methods were applied, with a view to providing clinicians with tools for score interpretation. The parent and teacher forms of the BRIEF were acceptably reliable. Demographic variables (such as age and gender) were found to influence the BRIEF scores. Confirmatory factor analysis was then used to test five competing models of the BRIEF's latent structure. Two of these models (a three-factor model and a two-factor model, both based on a nine-scale structure) had a good fit. However, structural invariance with age was only obtained with the two-factor model. The French version of the BRIEF provides a useful measure of everyday executive function and can be recommended for use in clinical research and practice.

  18. Electric gun: a new tool for ultrahigh-pressure research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weingart, R.C.; Chau, H.H.; Goosman, D.R.; Hofer, W.W.; Honodel, C.A.; Lee, R.S.; Steinberg, D.J.; Stroud, J.R.

    1979-01-01

    We have developed a new tool for ultrahigh-pressure research at LLL. This system, which we call the electric gun, has already achieved thin flyer plate velocities in excess of 20 km/s and pressures of the order of 2 TPa in tantalum. We believe that the electric gun is competitive with laser- and nuclear-driven methods of producing shocks in the 1-to-5 TPa range because of its precision and ease and economy of operation. Its development is recommended for shock initiation studies, dry runs for Site 300 hydroshots, and as a shock wave generator for surface studies

  19. Conceptualising the Use of Facebook in Ethnographic Research: As Tool, as Data and as Context

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baker, Sally

    2013-01-01

    This article proposes a three-part conceptualisation of the use of Facebook in ethnographic research: as a tool, as data and as context. Longitudinal research with young adults at a time of significant change provides many challenges for the ethnographic researcher, such as maintaining channels of communication and high rates of participant…

  20. Solid Waste Projection Model: Database (Version 1.3)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blackburn, C.L.

    1991-11-01

    The Solid Waste Projection Model (SWPM) system is an analytical tool developed by Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) for Westinghouse Hanford Company (WHC). The SWPM system provides a modeling and analysis environment that supports decisions in the process of evaluating various solid waste management alternatives. This document, one of a series describing the SWPM system, contains detailed information regarding the software and data structures utilized in developing the SWPM Version 1.3 Database. This document is intended for use by experienced database specialists and supports database maintenance, utility development, and database enhancement

  1. An update to the Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT version 2)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bakker, D.C.E.; Pfeil, B.; Smith, K.; Hankin, S.; Olsen, A.; Alin, S. R.; Cosca, C.; Harasawa, S.; Kozyr, A.; Nojiri, Y.; O'Brien, K. M.; Schuster, U.; Telszewski, M.; Tilbrook, B.; Wada, C.; Akl, J.; Barbero, L.; Bates, N. R.; Boutin, J.; Bozec, Y.; Cai, W. -J.; Castle, R. D.; Chavez, F. P.; Chen, L.; Chierici, M.; Currie, K.; de Baar, H. J. W.; Evans, W.; Feely, R. A.; Fransson, A.; Gao, Z.; Hales, B.; Hardman-Mountford, N. J.; Hoppema, M.; Huang, W. -J.; Hunt, C. W.; Huss, B.; Ichikawa, T.; Johannessen, T.; Jones, E. M.; Jones, S. D.; Jutterstrom, S.; Kitidis, V.; Koertzinger, A.; Landschuetzer, P.; Lauvset, S. K.; Lefevre, N.; Manke, A. B.; Mathis, J. T.; Merlivat, L.; Metzl, N.; Murata, A.; Newberger, T.; Omar, A. M.; Ono, T.; Park, G. -H.; Paterson, K.; Pierrot, D.; Rios, A. F.; Sabine, C. L.; Saito, S.; Salisbury, J.; Sarma, V. V. S. S.; Schlitzer, R.; Sieger, R.; Skjelvan, I.; Steinhoff, T.; Sullivan, K. F.; Sun, H.; Sutton, A. J.; Suzuki, T.; Sweeney, C.; Takahashi, T.; Tjiputra, J.; Tsurushima, N.; van Heuven, S. M. A. C.; Vandemark, D.; Vlahos, P.; Wallace, D. W. R.; Wanninkhof, R.; Watson, A.J.

    2014-01-01

    The Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT), an activity of the international marine carbon research community, provides access to synthesis and gridded fCO(2) (fugacity of carbon dioxide) products for the surface oceans. Version 2 of SOCAT is an update of the previous release (version 1) with more data

  2. Effect of Software Version on the Accuracy of an Intraoral Scanning Device.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haddadi, Yasser; Bahrami, Golnosh; Isidor, Flemming

    2018-04-06

    To investigate the impact of software version on the accuracy of an intraoral scanning device. A master tooth was scanned with a high-precision optical scanner and then 10 times with a CEREC Omnicam scanner with software versions 4.4.0 and 4.4.4. Discrepancies were measured using quality control software. Mean deviation for 4.4.0 was 36.2 ± 35 μm and for 4.4.4 was 20.7 ± 14.2 μm (P ≤ .001). Software version has a significant impact on the accuracy of an intraoral scanner. It is important that researchers also publish the software version of scanners when publishing their findings.

  3. Translation and psychometric assessment of the Persian version of the Rhodes Index of Nausea, Vomiting and Retching (INVR) scale for the assessment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moradian, S; Shahidsales, S; Ghavam Nasiri, M R; Pilling, M; Molassiotis, A; Walshe, C

    2014-11-01

    No tools are available to assess or measure the experience of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) for Persian/Farsi speakers. The purpose of this study is to translate the Rhodes Index of Nausea, Vomiting and Retching (INVR) scale for use with Persian-speaking cancer patients. A sample of 94 cancer patients were recruited from a cancer research centre in Mashhad-Iran. A standard two phase process of scale translation and validation was conducted. In phase I, standard 'forward-backward' translation procedure was used to translate the original version of the INVR questionnaire into Persian. The translated questionnaire was reviewed and revised and a Persian version of the scale was produced. In the second phase, a multiphase instrumentation study describing the internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the translated version was conducted. The inter-item correlation measured by Cronbach's alpha was 0.88. Test/re-test reliability was measured by the weighted kappa and was between 0.63 and 0.79, indicating 'substantial agreement' and stability between the initial and subsequent administrations for each item. These results demonstrate that the Persian version of the INVR is acceptable for use among Iranian cancer patients. Researchers could use this study as a model for future translation and application of psychometric instrumentation. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  4. Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the persian version of the oxford knee score in patients with knee osteoarthritis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebrahimzadeh, Mohammad Hosein; Makhmalbaf, Hadi; Birjandinejad, Ali; Soltani-Moghaddas, Seyed Hosein

    2014-11-01

    The Oxford Knee Score (OKS) is a short patient-reported outcome instrument that measures pain and physical activity related to knee osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate, construct validity and consistent reliability of the Persian version of the OKS. The case series consisted of 80 patients who were clinically diagnosed with having knee osteoarthritis. All patients were requested to fill-in the Persian OKS and Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36). Correlation analysis between the Persian versions of these two instruments was then carried out. The scores of the Persian SF-36 were used to evaluate convergent and divergent validity of the 12-item Persian OKS. From a total of 80 patients, 63 were female (79%) and the remaining 17 were male (21%) with a mean age of 52.2 years. In the present study, high Cronbach's alpha of 0.95 confirms excellent internal consistency of the Persian OKS scale similar to previous investigations. The results confirm that the Persian version of this instrument is valid and reliable, similar to its English index and its subsequent translations in different languages. The Persian OKS is a reliable instrument to evaluate knee function in patients with knee osteoarthritis and is a useful tool for outcome measurement in clinical research.

  5. Reliability of short form-36 in an Internet- and a pen-and-paper version

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Basnov, Maja; Kongsved, Sissel Marie; Bech, Per

    2009-01-01

    Use of Internet versions of questionnaires may have several advantages in clinical and epidemiological research, but we know little about if Internet versions differ with respect to validity and reliability. We aimed to compare Internet- and pen-and-paper versions of short form-36 (SF-36......) with respect to test-retest reliability and internal consistency. Women referred to mammography (n = 782) were randomised to receive either a paper version with a prepaid return envelope or a guideline on how to fill in the Internet version. A subgroup was asked to answer the questionnaire once again...... in the alternative version. Test-retest reliability was assessed by the intra-class correlation coefficient. Internal consistency was calculated as Cronbach's alpha. The between-version test-retest reliability for the eight subscales were between 0.63 and 0.92. Cronbach's alpha for the two versions were all between...

  6. Intelligent tools for building a scientific information platform from research to implementation

    CERN Document Server

    Skonieczny, Łukasz; Rybiński, Henryk; Kryszkiewicz, Marzena; Niezgódka, Marek

    2014-01-01

    This book is a selection of results obtained within three years of research performed under SYNAT—a nation-wide scientific project aiming at creating an infrastructure for scientific content storage and sharing for academia, education and open knowledge society in Poland. The book is intended to be the last of the series related to the SYNAT project. The previous books, titled “Intelligent Tools for Building a Scientific Information Platform” and “Intelligent Tools for Building a Scientific Information Platform: Advanced Architectures and Solutions”, were published as volumes 390 and 467 in Springer's Studies in Computational Intelligence. Its contents is based on the SYNAT 2013 Workshop held in Warsaw. The papers included in this volume present an overview and insight into information retrieval, repository systems, text processing, ontology-based systems, text mining, multimedia data processing and advanced software engineering, addressing the problems of implementing intelligent tools for building...

  7. Ludic Educational Game Creation Tool

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vidakis, Nikolaos; Syntychakis, Efthimios; Kalafatis, Konstantinos

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents initial findings and ongoing work of the game creation tool, a core component of the IOLAOS(IOLAOS in ancient Greece was a divine hero famed for helping with some of Heracles’s labors.) platform, a general open authorable framework for educational and training games. The game...... creation tool features a web editor, where the game narrative can be manipulated, according to specific needs. Moreover, this tool is applied for creating an educational game according to a reference scenario namely teaching schoolers road safety. A ludic approach is used both in game creation and play....... Helping children staying safe and preventing serious injury on the roads is crucial. In this context, this work presents an augmented version of the IOLAOS architecture including an enhanced game creation tool and a new multimodality module. In addition presents a case study for creating educational games...

  8. New method development in prehistoric stone tool research: evaluating use duration and data analysis protocols.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Evans, Adrian A; Macdonald, Danielle A; Giusca, Claudiu L; Leach, Richard K

    2014-10-01

    Lithic microwear is a research field of prehistoric stone tool (lithic) analysis that has been developed with the aim to identify how stone tools were used. It has been shown that laser scanning confocal microscopy has the potential to be a useful quantitative tool in the study of prehistoric stone tool function. In this paper, two important lines of inquiry are investigated: (1) whether the texture of worn surfaces is constant under varying durations of tool use, and (2) the development of rapid objective data analysis protocols. This study reports on the attempt to further develop these areas of study and results in a better understanding of the complexities underlying the development of flexible analytical algorithms for surface analysis. The results show that when sampling is optimised, surface texture may be linked to contact material type, independent of use duration. Further research is needed to validate this finding and test an expanded range of contact materials. The use of automated analytical protocols has shown promise but is only reliable if sampling location and scale are defined. Results suggest that the sampling protocol reports on the degree of worn surface invasiveness, complicating the ability to investigate duration related textural characterisation. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  9. CyNC - towards a General Tool for Performance Analysis of Complex Distributed Real Time Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schiøler, Henrik; Jessen, Jan Jakob; Nielsen, Jens F. Dalsgaard

    2005-01-01

    The paper addresses the current state and the ongoing activities of a tool for performance analysis of complex real time systems. The tool named CyNC is based on network calculus allowing for the computation of backlogs and delays in a system from specified lower and upper bounds of external...... workflow and computational resources. The current version of the tool implements an extension to previous work in that it allows for general workflow and resource bounds and provides optimal solutions even to systems with cyclic dependencies. Despite the virtues of the current tool, improvements...... and extensions still remain, which are in focus of ongoing activities. Improvements include accounting for phase information to improve bounds, whereas the tool awaits extension to include flow control models, which both depend on the possibility of accounting for propagation delay. Since the current version...

  10. A Japanese version of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale: translation and equivalence assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mimura, Chizu; Griffiths, Peter

    2007-05-01

    A Japanese version of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) was developed through the forward-backward translation procedure. Married couples consisting of a native English speaker and a native Japanese speaker acted as translators to enhance the representativeness of language in the target population. Multiple translations were produced, and a panel of reviewers identified problems in conceptual and semantic equivalence between the original scale and the translated version. The Japanese version was altered accordingly with reference to alternate Japanese forms from the original English to Japanese translations. The altered translation was again retranslated into English, and problematic differences were checked. This forward-backward process was repeated until satisfactory agreement had been attained. The RSES was administered to 222 native English speakers, and the developed Japanese version (RSES-J) was administered to 1320 native Japanese speakers. Factor analysis revealed nearly identical factor structure and structural coefficients of the items between two sets of data. Target rotation confirmed the factorial agreement of the two scales in different cultural groups. High Cronbach's alpha coefficients supported the reliability of test scores on both versions. The equivalence between the RSES and the RSES-J was supported in this study. It is suggested that the RSES and the RSES-J are potential tools for comparative cross-cultural studies.

  11. A systematic literature review of the situation of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health-Children and Youth version in education: a useful tool or a flight of fancy?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moretti, Marta; Alves, Ines; Maxwell, Gregor

    2012-02-01

    This article presents the outcome of a systematic literature review exploring the applicability of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) and its Children and Youth version (ICF-CY) at various levels and in processes within the education systems in different countries. A systematic database search using selected search terms has been used. The selection of studies was then refined further using four protocols: inclusion and exclusion protocols at abstract and full text and extraction levels along with a quality protocol. Studies exploring the direct relationship between education and the ICF/ICF-CY were sought.As expected, the results show a strong presence of studies from English-speaking countries, namely from Europe and North America. The articles were mainly published in noneducational journals. The most used ICF/ICF-CY components are activity and participation, participation, and environmental factors. From the analysis of the papers included, the results show that the ICF/ICF-CY is currently used as a research tool, theoretical framework, and tool for implementing educational processes. The ICF/ICF-CY can provide a useful language to the education field where there is currently a lot of disparity in theoretical, praxis, and research issues. Although the systematic literature review does not report a high incidence of the use of the ICF/ICF-CY in education, the results show that the ICF/ICF-CY model and classification have potential to be applied in education systems.

  12. Content and functions of the pilot version 1 of RODOS/RESY

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Benz, G.; Ehrhardt, J.; Faude, D.; Fischer, F.; Paesler-Sauer, J.; Rafat, M.; Schichtel, T.; Schuele, O.; Steinhauer, C.

    1994-01-01

    RODOS/RESY is an integrated real-time on-line decision support system for external emergency management after nuclear accidents. It is part of the comprehensive RODOS-system (real-time on-line decision support), which is designed for use in Europe after accidental releases of radioactive material to the atmosphere and hydrosphere. RODOS/RESY is limited in its applicability to the near range of nuclear facilities and the early phase of an accident with airborne radioactive releases. Therefore, it serves directly as a decision-aiding tool for countermeasure actions in the responsibility of local emergency management authorities. At present, RODOS is and RandD project which aims at the further development for operational use of the first prototype version completed in autumn 1992. A first step towards this goal will be the pilot version 1 of RODOS/RESY, which bill be ready by the end of 1994 for coupling to monitoring networks of nuclear reactor remote control surveillance systems and pre-operational use. The report describes the structure, content and functions of this pilot version. (orig.) [de

  13. Reliability and validity of adapted Turkish Version of Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alanay, Ahmet; Cil, Akin; Berk, Haluk; Acaroglu, R Emre; Yazici, Muharrem; Akcali, Omer; Kosay, Can; Genc, Yasemin; Surat, Adil

    2005-11-01

    Outcome study to determine the internal consistency, and validity of adapted Turkish version of Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22) Instrument. To evaluate the validity and reliability of adapted Turkish Version of SRS-22 questionnaire. The SRS-22 questionnaire is a widely accepted questionnaire to assess the health-related quality of life for scoliotic patients in the United States. However, its adaptation in languages other than the source language is necessary for its multinational use. Translation/retranslation of the English version of the SRS-22 was done, and all steps for cross-cultural adaptation process were performed properly by an expert committee. Later, SRS-22 questionnaires and previously validated Short Form-36 (SF-36) outcome instruments were mailed to 82 patients who had been surgically treated for idiopathic scoliosis. All patients had a minimum of 2 years follow-up. Fifty-four patients (66%) responded to the first set of questionnaires. Forty-seven of the first time respondents returned their second survey. The average age of the 47 patients (12 male, 35 female) was 19.8 years (range, 14-31 years). The two measures of reliability as internal consistency and reproducibility were determined by Cronbach alpha statistics and intraclass correlation coefficient, respectively. Concurrent validity was measured by comparing with an already validated questionnaire (SF-36). Measurement was made using the Pearson correlation coefficient (r). The study demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency with high Cronbach alpha values for the four of the corresponding domains (pain, 0.72; self-image, 0.80; mental health, 0.72; and satisfaction, 0.83). However, the Cronbach alpha value for function/activity domain (0.48) was considerably lower than the original questionnaire. The intraclass correlation coefficient for the same domains was 0.80, 0.82, 0.78, 0.81, and 0.76, respectively, demonstrating a satisfactory test/retest reproducibility. Considering

  14. The French version of the Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quartier, Pierre; Hofer, Michael; Wouters, Carine; Truong, Thi Thanh Thao; Duong, Ngoc-Phoi; Agbo-Kpati, Kokou-Placide; Uettwiller, Florence; Melki, Isabelle; Mouy, Richard; Bader-Meunier, Brigitte; Consolaro, Alessandro; Bovis, Francesca; Ruperto, Nicolino

    2018-04-01

    The Juvenile Arthritis Multidimensional Assessment Report (JAMAR) is a new parent/patient reported outcome measure that enables a thorough assessment of the disease status in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). We report the results of the cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the parent and patient versions of the JAMAR in the French language. The reading comprehension of the questionnaire was tested in 10 JIA parents and patients. Each participating centre was asked to collect demographic, clinical data and the JAMAR in 100 consecutive JIA patients or all consecutive patients seen in a 6-month period and to administer the JAMAR to 100 healthy children and their parents. The statistical validation phase explored descriptive statistics and the psychometric issues of the JAMAR: the three Likert assumptions, floor/ceiling effects, internal consistency, Cronbach's alpha, interscale correlations and construct validity (convergent and discriminant validity). A total of 100 JIA patients (23% systemic, 45% oligoarticular, 20% RF negative polyarthritis, 12% other categories) and 122 healthy children, were enrolled at the paediatric rheumatology centre of the Necker Children's Hospital in Paris. Notably, none of the enrolled JIA patients is affected with psoriatic arthritis. The JAMAR components discriminated well healthy subjects from JIA patients. All JAMAR components revealed good psychometric performances. In conclusion, the French version of the JAMAR is a valid tool for the assessment of children with JIA and is suitable for use both in routine clinical practice and clinical research.

  15. Herth hope index: psychometric testing of the Chinese version.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Keung Sum; Li, Ho Cheung William; Chan, Sally Wai-Chi; Lopez, Violeta

    2012-09-01

    This article is a report on psychometric testing of the Chinese version of the herth hope index. The availability of a valid and reliable instrument that accurately measures the level of hope in patients with heart failure is crucial before any hope-enhancing interventions can be appropriately planned and evaluated. There is no such instrument for Chinese people. A test-retest, within-subjects design was used. A purposive sample of 120 Hong Kong Chinese patients with heart failure between the ages of 60 and 80 years admitted to two medical wards was recruited during an 8-month period in 2009. Participants were asked to respond to the Chinese version of the herth hope index, Hamilton depression rating scale and Rosenberg's self-esteem scale. The internal consistency, content validity and construct validity and test-retest reliability of the Chinese version of the herth hope index were assessed. The newly translated scale demonstrated adequate internal consistency, good content validity and appropriate convergent and discriminant validity. Confirmatory factor analysis added further evidence of the construct validity of the scale. Results suggest that the newly translated scale can be used as a self-report assessment tool in assessing the level of hope in Hong Kong Chinese patients with heart failure. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  16. Reactor FaceMap Tool: A modern graphics tool for displaying reactor data

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Roberts, J.C.

    1991-01-01

    A prominent graphical user interface in reactor physics applications at the Savannah River Site is the reactor facemap display. This is a two dimensional view of a cross section of a reactor. In the past each application which needed a facemap implemented its own version. Thus, none of the code was reused, the facemap implementation was hardware dependent and the user interface was different for each facemap. The Reactor FaceMap Tool was built to solve these problems. Through the use of modern computing technologies such as X Windows, object-oriented programming and client/server technology the Reactor FaceMap Tool has the flexibility to work in many diverse applications and the portability to run on numerous types of hardware

  17. BCQ+: a body constitution questionnaire to assess Yang-Xu. Part I: establishment of a first final version through a Delphi process.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Yi-Chang; Chen, Li-Li; Lin, Jun-Dai; Lin, Jui-Shan; Huang, Yi-Chia; Lai, Jim-Shoung

    2008-12-01

    Assessing an individual's level of Yang deficiency (Yang-Xu) by its manifestations is a frequent issue in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinical trials. To this end, an objective, reliable and rigorous diagnostic tool is required. This study aimed to develop a first final version of the Yang-Xu Constitution Questionnaire. We conducted 3 steps to develop such an objective measurement tool: 1) the research team was formed and a panel of 26 experts was selected for the Delphi process; 2) items for the questionnaire were generated by literature review and a Delphi process; items were reworded into colloquial questions; face and content validity of the items were evaluated through a Delphi process again; 3) the difficulty of the questionnaire was evaluated in a pilot study with 81 subjects aged 20-60 years. The literature review retrieved 35 relevant items which matched the definition of 'constitution' and 'Yang-Xu'. After a first Delphi process, 22 items were retained and translated into colloquial questions. According to the second part of the Delphi process, the content validity index of each of the 22 questions ranged between 0.85-1. These 22 questions were evaluated by 81 subjects, 2 questions that were hard to tell the difference were combined; 3 questions were modified after the research team had discussed the participants' feedback. Finally, the questionnaire was established with 21 questions. This first final version of a questionnaire to assess Yang-Xu constitution with considerable face and content validity may serve as a basis to develop an advanced Yang-Xu questionnaire. 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  18. Validation of the Croatian Version of the Social Self-Esteem Scale

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Margareta Jelić

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available Within the frame of Social Identity Theory (SIT self-esteem was given a central role in explaining intergroup discrimination. Furthermore, SIT emphasized the difference between personal and social identity and thus tried to avoid explaining group process and intergroup relations in terms of personal characteristics. However, social identity theory hypotheses are largely tested using measures of personal self-esteem due to the lack of social self-esteem measures. The Collective Self-Esteem Scale (CSES (Luhtanen i Crocker, 1992, has thus been adapted for use in Croatia. The scale measures social identity level based on belonging to the group in focus and has proved to be a useful tool in many studies. The aim of this research was the validation of the Collective Self-esteem Scale. The research was conducted on 1014 citizens of Vukovar and 273 pupils and students from Zagreb and Velika Gorica. Firstly, metric characteristics of the Croatian version of the scale were checked. Secondly, its validity and connections to related constructs were determined. Although the obtained 4-factor solution does not fully meet the structure proposed by the authors of the scale, it has had a stable factor structure on the Croatian sample, confirmed on two different samples. It gives information on the positive and negative social self-esteem level; on how one thinks other perceive his/her group; and how important that group is for one’s self-concept. All four types of information proved useful in explanation of the ethnic identity level, ingroup bias and intergroup attitudes in general. Reliability and validity values obtained in two research projects have shown the Collective Self-Esteem Scale’s potential as a useful tool when investigating group processes and intergroup relations in Croatia.

  19. Separate but Equal? A Comparison of Content on Library Web Pages and Their Text Versions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hazard, Brenda L.

    2008-01-01

    This study examines the Web sites of the Association of Research Libraries member libraries to determine the presence of a separate text version of the default graphical homepage. The content of the text version and the homepage is compared. Of 121 Web sites examined, twenty libraries currently offer a text version. Ten sites maintain wholly…

  20. An informatics supported web-based data annotation and query tool to expedite translational research for head and neck malignancies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amin, Waqas; Kang, Hyunseok P; Egloff, Ann Marie; Singh, Harpreet; Trent, Kerry; Ridge-Hetrick, Jennifer; Seethala, Raja R; Grandis, Jennifer; Parwani, Anil V

    2009-01-01

    The Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) in Head and Neck Cancer neoplasm virtual biorepository is a bioinformatics-supported system to incorporate data from various clinical, pathological, and molecular systems into a single architecture based on a set of common data elements (CDEs) that provides semantic and syntactic interoperability of data sets. The various components of this annotation tool include the Development of Common Data Elements (CDEs) that are derived from College of American Pathologists (CAP) Checklist and North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACR) standards. The Data Entry Tool is a portable and flexible Oracle-based data entry device, which is an easily mastered web-based tool. The Data Query Tool helps investigators and researchers to search de-identified information within the warehouse/resource through a 'point and click' interface, thus enabling only the selected data elements to be essentially copied into a data mart using a multi dimensional model from the warehouse's relational structure. The SPORE Head and Neck Neoplasm Database contains multimodal datasets that are accessible to investigators via an easy to use query tool. The database currently holds 6553 cases and 10607 tumor accessions. Among these, there are 965 metastatic, 4227 primary, 1369 recurrent, and 483 new primary cases. The data disclosure is strictly regulated by user's authorization. The SPORE Head and Neck Neoplasm Virtual Biorepository is a robust translational biomedical informatics tool that can facilitate basic science, clinical, and translational research. The Data Query Tool acts as a central source providing a mechanism for researchers to efficiently find clinically annotated datasets and biospecimens that are relevant to their research areas. The tool protects patient privacy by revealing only de-identified data in accordance with regulations and approvals of the IRB and scientific review committee

  1. Social networking site usage among childhood cancer survivors--a potential tool for research recruitment?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seltzer, Erica D; Stolley, Melinda R; Mensah, Edward K; Sharp, Lisa K

    2014-09-01

    The recent and rapid growth of social networking site (SNS) use presents a unique public health opportunity to develop effective strategies for the recruitment of hard-to-reach participants for cancer research studies. This survey investigated childhood cancer survivors' reported use of SNS such as Facebook or MySpace and their perceptions of using SNS, for recruitment into survivorship research. Sixty White, Black, and Hispanic adult childhood cancer survivors (range 18-48 years of age) that were randomly selected from a larger childhood cancer study, the Chicago Healthy Living Study, participated in this pilot survey. Telephone surveys were conducted to understand current SNS activity and attitudes towards using SNS as a cancer research recruitment tool. Seventy percent of participants reported SNS usage of which 80 % were at least weekly users and 79 % reported positive attitudes towards the use of SNS as a recruitment tool for survivorship research. The results of this pilot study revealed that SNS use was high and regular among the childhood cancer survivors sampled. Most had positive attitudes towards using SNS for recruitment of research. The results of this pilot survey suggest that SNS may offer an alternative approach for recruitment of childhood cancer survivors into research.

  2. Social Networking Site Usage Among Childhood Cancer Survivors - A Potential Tool for Research Recruitment?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seltzer, Erica D.; Stolley, Melinda R.; Mensah, Edward K.; Sharp, Lisa K.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose The recent and rapid growth of social networking site (SNS) use presents a unique public health opportunity to develop effective strategies for the recruitment of hard-to-reach participants for cancer research studies. This survey investigated childhood cancer survivors’ reported use of SNS such as facebook or MySpace and their perceptions of using SNS, for recruitment into survivorship research. Methods Sixty White, Black and Hispanic, adult childhood cancer survivors (range 18 – 48 years of age) that were randomly selected from a larger childhood cancer study, the Chicago Healthy Living Study (CHLS), participated in this pilot survey. Telephone surveys were conducted to understand current SNS activity and attitudes towards using SNS as a cancer research recruitment tool. Results Seventy percent of participants reported SNS usage of which 80% were at least weekly users and 79 % reported positive attitudes towards the use of SNS as a recruitment tool for survivorship research. Conclusions and implications for cancer survivors The results of this pilot study revealed that SNS use was high and regular among the childhood cancer survivors sampled. Most had positive attitudes towards using SNS for recruitment of research. The results of this pilot survey suggest that SNS may offer an alternative approach for recruitment of childhood cancer survivors into research. PMID:24532046

  3. NASA System-Level Design, Analysis and Simulation Tools Research on NextGen

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bardina, Jorge

    2011-01-01

    A review of the research accomplished in 2009 in the System-Level Design, Analysis and Simulation Tools (SLDAST) of the NASA's Airspace Systems Program is presented. This research thrust focuses on the integrated system-level assessment of component level innovations, concepts and technologies of the Next Generation Air Traffic System (NextGen) under research in the ASP program to enable the development of revolutionary improvements and modernization of the National Airspace System. The review includes the accomplishments on baseline research and the advancements on design studies and system-level assessment, including the cluster analysis as an annualization standard of the air traffic in the U.S. National Airspace, and the ACES-Air MIDAS integration for human-in-the-loop analyzes within the NAS air traffic simulation.

  4. Executive summary of European Task Force document on diagnostic tools in rhinology

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hellings, P. W.; Scadding, G.; Alobid, I.; Bachert, C.; Fokkens, W. J.; Gerth van Wijk, R.; Gevaerts, P.; Guilemany, J.; Kalogjera, L.; Lund, V. J.; Mullol, J.; Passalacqua, G.; Toskala, E.; van Drunen, C. M.

    2012-01-01

    This Executive Summary of the EAACI Task Force document on Diagnostic Tools in Rhinology provides the readers with an over- view of the currently available tools for diagnosis of nasal and sino-nasal disease, published in full version in the first issue of Clini- cal and Translational Allergy. A

  5. Systematic Review of the Measurement Properties of Tools Used to Measure Behaviour Problems in Young Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanratty, Jennifer; Livingstone, Nuala; Robalino, Shannon; Terwee, Caroline B.; Glod, Magdalena; Oono, Inalegwu P.; Rodgers, Jacqui; Macdonald, Geraldine; McConachie, Helen

    2015-01-01

    Background Behaviour problems are common in young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There are many different tools used to measure behavior problems but little is known about their validity for the population. Objectives To evaluate the measurement properties of behaviour problems tools used in evaluation of intervention or observational research studies with children with ASD up to the age of six years. Methods Behaviour measurement tools were identified as part of a larger, two stage, systematic review. First, sixteen major electronic databases, as well as grey literature and research registers were searched, and tools used listed and categorized. Second, using methodological filters, we searched for articles examining the measurement properties of the tools in use with young children with ASD in ERIC, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and PsycINFO. The quality of these papers was then evaluated using the COSMIN checklist. Results We identified twelve tools which had been used to measure behaviour problems in young children with ASD, and fifteen studies which investigated the measurement properties of six of these tools. There was no evidence available for the remaining six tools. Two questionnaires were found to be the most robust in their measurement properties, the Child Behavior Checklist and the Home Situations Questionnaire—Pervasive Developmental Disorders version. Conclusions We found patchy evidence on reliability and validity, for only a few of the tools used to measure behaviour problems in young children with ASD. More systematic research is required on measurement properties of tools for use in this population, in particular to establish responsiveness to change which is essential in measurement of outcomes of intervention. PROSPERO Registration Number CRD42012002223 PMID:26659821

  6. DEVELOPING AND VALIDATION A USABILITY EVALUATION TOOLS FOR DISTANCE EDUCATION WEBSITES: Persian Version

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Soheila HAFEZI

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available The web is playing a central role in distance education. The word “usability” is usually synonymous with functionality of the system for the user. Also, usability of a website is defined as something that can be used by a specific group of people to carry out specific objectives in an effective way, with efficiency and satisfaction. There are some useful usability evaluation instruments of websites in other languages. The aim of this study was to develop a Persian instrument to evaluate usability in distance education websites. This study was a methodology research design. According to review literature, the main structure of evaluation instrument for usability designed. It was consisted of forty-eight items divided in 8 domains. Each domain was composed of closed multiple choice questions in which an ordinal scale with three values is used (always, sometimes and never that measures the opinion of the evaluator about the frequency of visiting each item selected in the website. After that, we used face validity method. It refers to what instrument appears superficially to measure. At the final step, we omputed a formal content validity index (CVI across the experts’ ratings of each item’s relevance. The content validity index was measured by set of ten experts, who evaluated each item individually. According to CVI, the final version of instrument was composed of 40 questions divided into 8 domains: Navigation, Functionality, Feedback, Control, Language, Consistency, Error prevention and correction, and Visual clarity.CVI score for each phrase was more than 0.75. According to our findings, this instrument has enough validity to apply in evaluation usability of educational websites of Persian distance education websites. However, instrument reliability can be measured in further study.

  7. Validation of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the pelvic floor bother questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peterson, Thais Villela; Pinto, Rodrigo Ambar; Davila, G Willy; Nahas, Sérgio Carlos; Baracat, Edmund Chada; Haddad, Jorge Milhem

    2018-03-16

    The Pelvic Floor Bother Questionnaire (PFBQ) was designed to identify the presence and degree of bother associated with common pelvic floor symptoms. The PFBQ can be used in clinical practice and for research purposes, but it is not available in Brazilian Portuguese. We aimed to validate a cross-culturally adapted Brazilian Portuguese version of the PFBQ. A pilot-tested version of the PFBQ translated from English was evaluated with Brazilian patients suffering from pelvic floor disorders. Internal reliability, test-retest reliability, validity, and responsiveness to change were assessed. A total of 147 patients (mean age, 60.49 years) were enrolled in the study. The Brazilian Portuguese version of the PFBQ demonstrated good reliability (α = 0.625; ICC = 0.981). There was strong agreement beyond chance for each item (κ = 0.895-1.00). The PFBQ correlated with stage of prolapse (p Portuguese version of the PFBQ is a reliable, valid, and user-friendly instrument that can be used for assessing the presence and severity of pelvic floor symptoms in clinical and research settings in Brazil.

  8. Validating a Spanish Version of the PIMRS: Application in National and Cross-National Research on Instructional Leadership

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fromm, Germán; Hallinger, Philip; Volante, Paulo; Wang, Wen Chung

    2017-01-01

    The purposes of this study were to report on a systematic approach to validating a Spanish version of the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale and then to apply the scale in a cross-national comparison of principal instructional leadership. The study yielded a validated Spanish language version of the PIMRS Teacher Form and offers a…

  9. Why are there different versions of the Oswestry Disability Index?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fairbank, Jeremy C T

    2014-01-01

    This article updates readers on the current state of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and the impact of unvalidated versions. The ODI is now licensed to the Mapi Research Trust in order to preserve a standard version in English and in validated translations. A proposed threshold of "normality" is potentially helpful as an outcome for both audit and research. There is an application of the sex section as a quality measure in Germany. The ODI is an important international shared resource for clinicians and investigators and should not be abused. Its current status will not be enhanced by further modification. It is now registered with the International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement as a standard outcome measure.

  10. National Energy Audit Tool for Multifamily Buildings Development Plan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Malhotra, Mini [ORNL; MacDonald, Michael [Sentech, Inc.; Accawi, Gina K [ORNL; New, Joshua Ryan [ORNL; Im, Piljae [ORNL

    2012-03-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) enables low-income families to reduce their energy costs by providing funds to make their homes more energy efficient. In addition, the program funds Weatherization Training and Technical Assistance (T and TA) activities to support a range of program operations. These activities include measuring and documenting performance, monitoring programs, promoting advanced techniques and collaborations to further improve program effectiveness, and training, including developing tools and information resources. The T and TA plan outlines the tasks, activities, and milestones to support the weatherization network with the program implementation ramp up efforts. Weatherization of multifamily buildings has been recognized as an effective way to ramp up weatherization efforts. To support this effort, the 2009 National Weatherization T and TA plan includes the task of expanding the functionality of the Weatherization Assistant, a DOE-sponsored family of energy audit computer programs, to perform audits for large and small multifamily buildings This report describes the planning effort for a new multifamily energy audit tool for DOE's WAP. The functionality of the Weatherization Assistant is being expanded to also perform energy audits of small multifamily and large multifamily buildings. The process covers an assessment of needs that includes input from national experts during two national Web conferences. The assessment of needs is then translated into capability and performance descriptions for the proposed new multifamily energy audit, with some description of what might or should be provided in the new tool. The assessment of needs is combined with our best judgment to lay out a strategy for development of the multifamily tool that proceeds in stages, with features of an initial tool (version 1) and a more capable version 2 handled with currently available resources. Additional

  11. BioTapestry now provides a web application and improved drawing and layout tools.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paquette, Suzanne M; Leinonen, Kalle; Longabaugh, William J R

    2016-01-01

    Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) control embryonic development, and to understand this process in depth, researchers need to have a detailed understanding of both the network architecture and its dynamic evolution over time and space. Interactive visualization tools better enable researchers to conceptualize, understand, and share GRN models. BioTapestry is an established application designed to fill this role, and recent enhancements released in Versions 6 and 7 have targeted two major facets of the program. First, we introduced significant improvements for network drawing and automatic layout that have now made it much easier for the user to create larger, more organized network drawings. Second, we revised the program architecture so it could continue to support the current Java desktop Editor program, while introducing a new BioTapestry GRN Viewer that runs as a JavaScript web application in a browser. We have deployed a number of GRN models using this new web application. These improvements will ensure that BioTapestry remains viable as a research tool in the face of the continuing evolution of web technologies, and as our understanding of GRN models grows.

  12. Mi-DISCOVERER: A bioinformatics tool for the detection of mi-RNA in human genome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arshad, Saadia; Mumtaz, Asia; Ahmad, Freed; Liaquat, Sadia; Nadeem, Shahid; Mehboob, Shahid; Afzal, Muhammad

    2010-11-27

    MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are 22 nucleotides non-coding RNAs that play pivotal regulatory roles in diverse organisms including the humans and are difficult to be identified due to lack of either sequence features or robust algorithms to efficiently identify. Therefore, we made a tool that is Mi-Discoverer for the detection of miRNAs in human genome. The tools used for the development of software are Microsoft Office Access 2003, the JDK version 1.6.0, BioJava version 1.0, and the NetBeans IDE version 6.0. All already made miRNAs softwares were web based; so the advantage of our project was to make a desktop facility to the user for sequence alignment search with already identified miRNAs of human genome present in the database. The user can also insert and update the newly discovered human miRNA in the database. Mi-Discoverer, a bioinformatics tool successfully identifies human miRNAs based on multiple sequence alignment searches. It's a non redundant database containing a large collection of publicly available human miRNAs.

  13. e-research: Changes and challenges in the use of digital tools in primary care research

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bruun Larsen, Lars; Skonnord, Trygve; Gjelstad, Svein

    in primary care research. Examples of this are online randomisation, electronic questionnaires, automatic email scheduling, mobile phone applications and data extraction tools. The amount of data can be increased to a low cost, and this can help to reach adequate sample sizes. However, there are still...... challenges within the field. To secure a high response rate, you need to follow up manually or use another application. There are also practical and ethical problems, and the data security for sensitive data have to be followed carefully. Session content Oral presentations about some technological...

  14. Features of the latest version of the PHITS code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Tatsuhiko; Matsuda, Norihiro; Hashimoto, Shintaro; Iwamoto, Yosuke; Noda, Shusaku; Ogawa, Tatsuhiko; Nakajima, Hiroshi; Fukahori, Tokio; Okumura, Keisuke; Kai, Tetsuya; Chiba, Satoshi; Niita, Koji; Iwase, Hiroshi; Furuta, Takuya

    2013-01-01

    A Multi-purpose Monte Carlo Particle and Heavy Ion Transport code System, PHITS, developed through collaborations between JAEA and several institutes in Japan and Europe, and upgraded recently and released as PHITS2.52 is presented as an overview. In the new version, higher accuracy of the simulation was achieved by implementing the latest nuclear reaction models such as Liege intra-nuclear cascade version 4.6 (INCL4.6) and a statistical multi-fragmentation model including JAM and JQMD for high-energy regions. The reliability of the simulation code was improved by modifying both the algorithms for the electron-, positron-, and photon-transport simulations in terms of not only the code itself but also the contents of its package, such as the attached data libraries. More than 800 researchers have been registered as PHITS users, and they apply the code to various research and development fields such as nuclear technology, accelerator design, medical physics, and cosmic-ray research. (S. Ohno)

  15. Global Historical Climatology Network - Daily (GHCN-Daily), Version 2 (Version Superseded)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Please note, this dataset has been superseded by a newer version (see below). Users should not use this version except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous...

  16. Interactive Data Visualization for HIV Cohorts: Leveraging Data Exchange Standards to Share and Reuse Research Tools.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Meridith Blevins

    Full Text Available To develop and disseminate tools for interactive visualization of HIV cohort data.If a picture is worth a thousand words, then an interactive video, composed of a long string of pictures, can produce an even richer presentation of HIV population dynamics. We developed an HIV cohort data visualization tool using open-source software (R statistical language. The tool requires that the data structure conform to the HIV Cohort Data Exchange Protocol (HICDEP, and our implementation utilized Caribbean, Central and South America network (CCASAnet data.This tool currently presents patient-level data in three classes of plots: (1 Longitudinal plots showing changes in measurements viewed alongside event probability curves allowing for simultaneous inspection of outcomes by relevant patient classes. (2 Bubble plots showing changes in indicators over time allowing for observation of group level dynamics. (3 Heat maps of levels of indicators changing over time allowing for observation of spatial-temporal dynamics. Examples of each class of plot are given using CCASAnet data investigating trends in CD4 count and AIDS at antiretroviral therapy (ART initiation, CD4 trajectories after ART initiation, and mortality.We invite researchers interested in this data visualization effort to use these tools and to suggest new classes of data visualization. We aim to contribute additional shareable tools in the spirit of open scientific collaboration and hope that these tools further the participation in open data standards like HICDEP by the HIV research community.

  17. [The Family Questionnaire (FB-K) - A Short Version of the General Family Questionnaire and its Reliability and Validity].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sidor, Anna; Cierpka, Manfred

    2016-01-01

    A standardized assessment of a family system plays a crucial role in family therapy research and diagnostic, as well as in a family therapy itself. A 14-item short version of the General Family Questionnaire (FB-K) was designed to get a tool for assessing family functionality that is low time-consuming. The short version was developed by factor analysis from the long version FA-A. The quality criteria of the family questionnaire were verified in a control sample of 208 high-risk families four months after the birth of their child. The new family questionnaire demonstrates a very good reliability and a satisfactory 8-months-stability. The concurrent validity with the FACES scale "cohesion" is assured. Regarding the construct validity a positive correlation to the feeling of coherence was found. The family questionnaire shows a negative correlation to the maternal postnatal depressive symptoms, the degree of maternal stress burden, the dysfunctionality of the mother-child-relationship and impaired bonding. The values taken from a norm sample with infants are higher by trend and in the sample with children under 18 do not deviate from the values of the risk sample. FB-K covers two aspects of family functioning, the bond between family members and their willingness to communicate. The internal consistency of FB-K is excellent, the criterion and the construct validity are good.

  18. Latest Community Coordinated Modeling Center (CCMC) services and innovative tools supporting the space weather research and operational communities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendoza, A. M. M.; Rastaetter, L.; Kuznetsova, M. M.; Mays, M. L.; Chulaki, A.; Shim, J. S.; MacNeice, P. J.; Taktakishvili, A.; Collado-Vega, Y. M.; Weigand, C.; Zheng, Y.; Mullinix, R.; Patel, K.; Pembroke, A. D.; Pulkkinen, A. A.; Boblitt, J. M.; Bakshi, S. S.; Tsui, T.

    2017-12-01

    The Community Coordinated Modeling Center (CCMC), with the fundamental goal of aiding the transition of modern space science models into space weather forecasting while supporting space science research, has been serving as an integral hub for over 15 years, providing invaluable resources to both space weather scientific and operational communities. CCMC has developed and provided innovative web-based point of access tools varying from: Runs-On-Request System - providing unprecedented global access to the largest collection of state-of-the-art solar and space physics models, Integrated Space Weather Analysis (iSWA) - a powerful dissemination system for space weather information, Advanced Online Visualization and Analysis tools for more accurate interpretation of model results, Standard Data formats for Simulation Data downloads, and Mobile apps to view space weather data anywhere to the scientific community. In addition to supporting research and performing model evaluations, CCMC also supports space science education by hosting summer students through local universities. In this poster, we will showcase CCMC's latest innovative tools and services, and CCMC's tools that revolutionized the way we do research and improve our operational space weather capabilities. CCMC's free tools and resources are all publicly available online (http://ccmc.gsfc.nasa.gov).

  19. Revised Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET - Brazilian version

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Breno Sanvicente-Vieira

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To translate and adapt to Brazilian Portuguese the Revised Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET, in both paper-and-pencil and computerized versions. The RMET is a well-accepted instrument for assessment of Theory of Mind (ToM, an important component of social cognition. Methods: Following a guideline for translation of material for clinical populations, this study had three main phases: 1 formal translation and semantic adaptation to Brazilian Portuguese; 2 an acceptability trial with health professionals as judges evaluating picture-word matching; and 3 a trial using the paper-and-pencil and computerized versions (experiments built in E-Prime 2.0.10 software with healthy participants to test whether the instrument has similar outputs to those expected in versions in other languages. Results: RMET was adequately adapted to Brazilian Portuguese. This version showed acceptability and outputs similar to versions of the instrument in other languages, including the original one. We kept the same number of images as the original English version. Conclusions: Considering the scarcity of cognitive assessment instruments adequately adapted to Portuguese and the importance of social cognition in many psychiatric disorders, this work adds an important resource to Brazilian research and is administrable in both paper-and-pencil and computerized versions.

  20. EFSUMB Statement on Medical Student Education in Ultrasound [long version

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Cantisani, V.; Dietrich, C F; Badea, R

    2016-01-01

    The European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) recommends that ultrasound should be used systematically as an easy accessible and instructive educational tool in the curriculum of modern medical schools. Medical students should acquire theoretical knowledge o...... of the modality and hands-on training should be implemented and adhere to evidence-based principles. In this paper we report EFSUMB policy statements on medical student education in ultrasound that in a short version is already published in Ultraschall in der Medizin 1.......The European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) recommends that ultrasound should be used systematically as an easy accessible and instructive educational tool in the curriculum of modern medical schools. Medical students should acquire theoretical knowledge...

  1. The Experience of Implementing Urban HEART Barcelona: a Tool for Action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Novoa, Ana M; Pérez, Glòria; Espelt, Albert; Echave, Cynthia; de Olalla, Patricia G; Calvo, M Jesús; Pasarín, Maribel; Diez, Èlia; Borrell, Carme; Calvo, M Jesús; Cormenzana, Berta; Cortés, Imma; Diez, Èlia; Echave, Cynthia; Espelt, Albert; de Olalla, Patrícia G; Gòmez, Josep; Novoa, Ana M; Pallarès, Montserrat; Pérez, Glòria; Rodríguez-Sanz, Maica

    2017-10-16

    Urban Health Equity Assessment and Response Tool (HEART) is a tool developed by the World Health Organization whose objective is to provide evidence on urban health inequalities so as to help to decide the best interventions aimed to promote urban health equity. The aim of this paper is to describe the experience of implementing Urban HEART in Barcelona city, both the adaptation of Urban HEART to the city of Barcelona, its use as a means of identifying and monitoring health inequalities among city neighbourhoods, and the difficulties and barriers encountered throughout the process. Although ASPB public health technicians participated in the Urban HEART Advisory Group, had large experience in health inequalities analysis and research and showed interest in implementing the tool, it was not until 2015, when the city council was governed by a new left-wing party for which reducing health inequalities was a priority that Urban HEART could be used. A provisional matrix was developed, including both health and health determinant indicators, which allowed to show how some neighbourhoods in the city systematically fare worse for most of the indicators while others systematically fare better. It also allowed to identify 18 neighbourhoods-those which fared worse in most indicators-which were considered a priority for intervention, which entered the Health in the Barcelona Neighbourhoods programme and the Neighbourhoods Plan. This provisional version was reviewed and improved by the Urban HEART Barcelona Working Group. Technicians with experience in public health and/or in indicator and database management were asked to indicate suitability and relevance from a list of potential indicators. The definitive Urban HEART Barcelona version included 15 indicators from the five Urban HEART domains and improved the previous version in several requirements. Several barriers were encountered, such as having to estimate indicators in scarcely populated areas or finding adequate

  2. Multimedia Informed Consent Tool for a Low Literacy African Research Population: Development and Pilot-Testing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Afolabi, Muhammed Olanrewaju; Bojang, Kalifa; D’Alessandro, Umberto; Imoukhuede, Egeruan Babatunde; Ravinetto, Raffaella M; Larson, Heidi Jane; McGrath, Nuala; Chandramohan, Daniel

    2014-01-01

    Background International guidelines recommend the use of appropriate informed consent procedures in low literacy research settings because written information is not known to guarantee comprehension of study information. Objectives This study developed and evaluated a multimedia informed consent tool for people with low literacy in an area where a malaria treatment trial was being planned in The Gambia. Methods We developed the informed consent document of the malaria treatment trial into a multimedia tool integrating video, animations and audio narrations in three major Gambian languages. Acceptability and ease of use of the multimedia tool were assessed using quantitative and qualitative methods. In two separate visits, the participants’ comprehension of the study information was measured by using a validated digitised audio questionnaire. Results The majority of participants (70%) reported that the multimedia tool was clear and easy to understand. Participants had high scores on the domains of adverse events/risk, voluntary participation, study procedures while lowest scores were recorded on the question items on randomisation. The differences in mean scores for participants’ ‘recall’ and ‘understanding’ between first and second visits were statistically significant (F (1,41)=25.38, pmultimedia tool was acceptable and easy to administer among low literacy participants in The Gambia. It also proved to be effective in delivering and sustaining comprehension of study information across a diverse group of participants. Additional research is needed to compare the tool to the traditional consent interview, both in The Gambia and in other sub-Saharan settings. PMID:25133065

  3. What’s Ketso? A Tool for Researchers, Educators, and Practitioners

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James S. Bates

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Researchers, educators, and practitioners utilize a range of tools and techniques to obtain data, input, feedback, and information from research participants, program learners, and stakeholders. Ketso is both an array of information gathering techniques and a toolkit (see www.ketso.com. It “can be used in any situation when people come together to share information, learn from each other, make decisions and plan actions” (Tippett & How, 2011, p. 4. The word ketso means “action” in the Sesotho language, spoken in the African nation of Lesotho where the concept for this instrument was conceived. Ketso techniques fall into the participatory action research family of social science research methods (Tippett, Handley, & Ravetz, 2007. Ohio State University Extension professionals have used the Ketso toolkit and its techniques in numerous settings, including for professional development, conducting community needs/interests assessments, brainstorming, and data collection. As a toolkit, Ketso uses tactile and colorful leaves, branches, and icons to organize and display participants’ contributions on felt mats. As an array of techniques, Ketso is effective in engaging audiences because it is inclusive and provides each participant a platform for their perspective to be shared.

  4. Developing a User-Centred Planning Tool for Young Adults with Development Disorders: A Research-Based Teaching Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ribu, Kirsten; Patel, Tulpesh

    2016-01-01

    People with development disorders, for instance autism, need structured plans to help create predictability in their daily lives. Digital plans can facilitate enhanced independency, learning, and quality of life, but existing apps are largely general purpose and lack the flexibility required by this specific but heterogeneous user group. Universal design is both a goal and a process and should be based on a holistic approach and user-centered design, interacting with the users in all stages of the development process. At Oslo and Akershus University College (HiOA) we conducted a research-based teaching project in co-operation with the Department of Neuro-habilitation at Oslo University Hospital (OUS) with two employees acting as project managers and students as developers. Three groups of Computer Science bachelor students developed digital prototypes for a planning tool for young adults with pervasive development disorders, who live either with their families or in supervised residences, and do not receive extensive public services. The students conducted the initial planning phase of the software development process, focusing on prototyping the system requirements, whilst a professional software company programmed the end solution. The goal of the project was to develop flexible and adaptive user-oriented and user-specific app solutions for tablets that can aid this diverse user group in structuring daily life, whereby, for example, photos of objects and places known to the individual user replace general pictures or drawings, and checklists can be elaborate or sparse as necessary. The three student groups worked independently of each other and created interactive working prototypes based on tests, observations and short interviews with end users (both administrators and residents) and regular user feedback from the project managers. Three very different solutions were developed that were of high enough quality that an external software company were able to

  5. Mode of childbirth and neonatal outcome after external cephalic version: A prospective cohort study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosman, A N; Vlemmix, F; Ensing, S; Opmeer, B C; Te Hoven, S; Velzel, J; de Hundt, M; van den Berg, S; Rota, H; van der Post, J A M; Mol, B W J; Kok, M

    2016-08-01

    to assess the mode of childbirth and adverse neonatal outcomes in women with a breech presentation with or without an external cephalic version attempt, and to compare the mode of childbirth among women with successful ECV to women with a spontaneous cephalic presentation. prospective matched cohort study. 25 clusters (hospitals and its referring midwifery practices) in the Netherlands. Data of the Netherlands perinatal registry for the matched cohort. singleton pregnancies from January 2011 to August 2012 with a fetus in breech presentation and a childbirth from 36 weeks gestation onwards. Spontaneous cephalic presentations (selected from national registry 2009 and 2010) were matched in a 2:1 ratio to cephalic presentations after a successful version attempt. Matching criteria were maternal age, parity, gestational age at childbirth and fetal gender. Main outcomes were mode of childbirth and neonatal outcomes. of 1613 women eligible for external cephalic version, 1169 (72.5%) received an ECV attempt. The overall caesarean childbirth rate was significantly lower compared to women who did not receive a version attempt (57% versus 87%; RR 0.66 (0.62-0.70)). Women with a cephalic presentation after ECV compared to women with a spontaneous cephalic presentation had a decreased risk for instrumental vaginal childbirth (RR 0.52 (95% CI 0.29-0.94)) and an increased risk of overall caesarean childbirth (RR 1.7 (95%CI 1.2-2.5)). women who had a successful ECV are at increased risk for a caesarean childbirth but overall, ECV is an important tool to reduce the caesarean rate. ECV is an important tool to reduce the caesarean section rates. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  6. Psychometric validation of a German version of the compulsive Internet use scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wartberg, Lutz; Petersen, Kay-Uwe; Kammerl, Rudolf; Rosenkranz, Moritz; Thomasius, Rainer

    2014-02-01

    Excessive Internet use and Internet addiction are currently increasing in many industrial nations. Verified and validated measuring instruments could contribute to a better understanding of this still quite recent development. The aim of this survey was to investigate the psychometric properties of a German version of the Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS). We surveyed a representative German quota sample of 1,723 adolescents aged between 14 and 17 years, as well as one parent each, with standardized questionnaires. In addition, adolescents and parents were asked whether the media use by the youth was considered problematic or excessive, and whether it led to arguments at home. We conducted confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) with maximum likelihood estimation to examine the factorial validity of the German CIUS, as well as reliability and correlation analyses. The results of the CFA indicate good psychometric properties for the German version of the CIUS. They appear in line with the findings for the original version of the questionnaire. Furthermore, the CIUS showed high internal consistency, and we found significant correlations between the "CIUS-summary score" and different ratings of problems with the media usage by the youth and the parents. The German version of the CIUS seems to be a valid and suitable diagnostic tool for measuring problematic to pathological Internet use.

  7. Multiscale Software Tool for Controls Prototyping in Supersonic Combustors

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Pindera, M

    2004-01-01

    .... In Phase I we have developed a proof-of-concept version of such a tool. We have developed a model-free direct control strategy with on-line training and demonstrated its capabilities in controlling isolator unstart in a hypersonic combustor...

  8. A New Improved and Extended Version of the Multicell Bacterial Simulator gro.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gutiérrez, Martín; Gregorio-Godoy, Paula; Pérez Del Pulgar, Guillermo; Muñoz, Luis E; Sáez, Sandra; Rodríguez-Patón, Alfonso

    2017-08-18

    gro is a cell programming language developed in Klavins Lab for simulating colony growth and cell-cell communication. It is used as a synthetic biology prototyping tool for simulating multicellular biocircuits and microbial consortia. In this work, we present several extensions made to gro that improve the performance of the simulator, make it easier to use, and provide new functionalities. The new version of gro is between 1 and 2 orders of magnitude faster than the original version. It is able to grow microbial colonies with up to 10 5 cells in less than 10 min. A new library, CellEngine, accelerates the resolution of spatial physical interactions between growing and dividing cells by implementing a new shoving algorithm. A genetic library, CellPro, based on Probabilistic Timed Automata, simulates gene expression dynamics using simplified and easy to compute digital proteins. We also propose a more convenient language specification layer, ProSpec, based on the idea that proteins drive cell behavior. CellNutrient, another library, implements Monod-based growth and nutrient uptake functionalities. The intercellular signaling management was improved and extended in a library called CellSignals. Finally, bacterial conjugation, another local cell-cell communication process, was added to the simulator. To show the versatility and potential outreach of this version of gro, we provide studies and novel examples ranging from synthetic biology to evolutionary microbiology. We believe that the upgrades implemented for gro have made it into a powerful and fast prototyping tool capable of simulating a large variety of systems and synthetic biology designs.

  9. Direct numerical control of machine tools in a nuclear research center by the CAMAC system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zwoll, K.; Mueller, K.D.; Becks, B.; Erven, W.; Sauer, M.

    1977-01-01

    The production of mechanical parts in research centers can be improved by connecting several numerically controlled machine tools to a central process computer via a data link. The CAMAC Serial Highway with its expandable structure yields an economic and flexible system for this purpose. The CAMAC System also facilitates the development of modular components controlling the machine tools itself. A CAMAC installation controlling three different machine tools connected to a central computer (PDP11) via the CAMAC Serial Highway is described. Besides this application, part of the CAMAC hardware and software can also be used for a great variety of scientific experiments

  10. TU-CD-304-11: Veritas 2.0: A Cloud-Based Tool to Facilitate Research and Innovation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mishra, P; Patankar, A; Etmektzoglou, A; Svatos, M [Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA (United States); Lewis, J [Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA (United States)

    2015-06-15

    Purpose: We introduce Veritas 2.0, a cloud-based, non-clinical research portal, to facilitate translation of radiotherapy research ideas to new delivery techniques. The ecosystem of research tools includes web apps for a research beam builder for TrueBeam Developer Mode, an image reader for compressed and uncompressed XIM files, and a trajectory log file based QA/beam delivery analyzer. Methods: The research beam builder can generate TrueBeam readable XML file either from scratch or from pre-existing DICOM-RT plans. DICOM-RT plan is first converted to XML format and then researcher can interactively modify or add control points to them. Delivered beam can be verified via reading generated images and analyzing trajectory log files. Image reader can read both uncompressed and HND-compressed XIM images. The trajectory log analyzer lets researchers plot expected vs. actual values and deviations among 30 mechanical axes. The analyzer gives an animated view of MLC patterns for the beam delivery. Veritas 2.0 is freely available and its advantages versus standalone software are i) No software installation or maintenance needed, ii) easy accessibility across all devices iii) seamless upgrades and iv) OS independence. Veritas is written using open-source tools like twitter bootstrap, jQuery, flask, and Python-based modules. Results: In the first experiment, an anonymized 7-beam DICOM-RT IMRT plan was converted to XML beam containing 1400 control points. kV and MV imaging points were inserted into this XML beam. In another experiment, a binary log file was analyzed to compare actual vs expected values and deviations among axes. Conclusions: Veritas 2.0 is a public cloud-based web app that hosts a pool of research tools for facilitating research from conceptualization to verification. It is aimed at providing a platform for facilitating research and collaboration. I am full time employee at Varian Medical systems, Palo Alto.

  11. TU-CD-304-11: Veritas 2.0: A Cloud-Based Tool to Facilitate Research and Innovation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mishra, P; Patankar, A; Etmektzoglou, A; Svatos, M; Lewis, J

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: We introduce Veritas 2.0, a cloud-based, non-clinical research portal, to facilitate translation of radiotherapy research ideas to new delivery techniques. The ecosystem of research tools includes web apps for a research beam builder for TrueBeam Developer Mode, an image reader for compressed and uncompressed XIM files, and a trajectory log file based QA/beam delivery analyzer. Methods: The research beam builder can generate TrueBeam readable XML file either from scratch or from pre-existing DICOM-RT plans. DICOM-RT plan is first converted to XML format and then researcher can interactively modify or add control points to them. Delivered beam can be verified via reading generated images and analyzing trajectory log files. Image reader can read both uncompressed and HND-compressed XIM images. The trajectory log analyzer lets researchers plot expected vs. actual values and deviations among 30 mechanical axes. The analyzer gives an animated view of MLC patterns for the beam delivery. Veritas 2.0 is freely available and its advantages versus standalone software are i) No software installation or maintenance needed, ii) easy accessibility across all devices iii) seamless upgrades and iv) OS independence. Veritas is written using open-source tools like twitter bootstrap, jQuery, flask, and Python-based modules. Results: In the first experiment, an anonymized 7-beam DICOM-RT IMRT plan was converted to XML beam containing 1400 control points. kV and MV imaging points were inserted into this XML beam. In another experiment, a binary log file was analyzed to compare actual vs expected values and deviations among axes. Conclusions: Veritas 2.0 is a public cloud-based web app that hosts a pool of research tools for facilitating research from conceptualization to verification. It is aimed at providing a platform for facilitating research and collaboration. I am full time employee at Varian Medical systems, Palo Alto

  12. Validation of the Italian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (I-YFAS 2.0) in a sample of undergraduate students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aloi, Matteo; Rania, Marianna; Rodríguez Muñoz, Rita Cristina; Jiménez Murcia, Susana; Fernández-Aranda, Fernando; De Fazio, Pasquale; Segura-Garcia, Cristina

    2017-09-01

    Food addiction (FA) refers to a condition characterized by addiction in relation to some high-fat and high-sugar carbohydrate that leads to clinically significant impairment or distress on several areas of functioning. The Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS 2.0) has been recently updated to measure FA according to the DSM-5 criteria for substance-related and addictive disorders. This study aimed at validating the Italian version of YFAS 2.0. A sample of 574 Italian university students was involved in this research. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Kuder-Richardson's alpha for dichotomous data were run to evaluate scale structure and reliability. Correlations between YFAS 2.0 and eating psychopathology, binge eating, sleep, and mood symptoms were evaluated. Analogously to the original version, a single factor structure emerged at the CFA. The alpha coefficient was 0.87. Moreover, sound, from moderate to high, correlations were found with other measures. The Italian version of the YFAS 2.0 has demonstrated in a sample of university students to be a useful tool to investigate food addictions. Level of evidence Level V, descriptive study.

  13. Translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and reproducibility of the Brazilian portuguese-language version of the Wisconsin Smoking Withdrawal Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliveira Junior, Boanerges Lopes de; Jardim, José Roberto; Nascimento, Oliver Augusto; Souza, George Márcio da Costa e; Baker, Timothy B; Santoro, Ilka Lopes

    2012-01-01

    To cross-culturally adapt the Wisconsin Smoking Withdrawal Scale (WSWS) for use in Brazil and evaluate the reproducibility of the new (Brazilian Portuguese-language) version. The original English version of the WSWS was translated into Brazilian Portuguese. For cross-cultural adaptation, the Brazilian Portuguese-language version of the WSWS was administered to eight volunteers, all of whom were smokers. After adjustments had been made, the WSWS version was back-translated into English. The Brazilian Portuguese-language version was thereby found to be accurate. The final Brazilian Portuguese-language version of the WSWS was applied to 75 smokers at three distinct times. For the assessment of interobserver reproducibility, it was applied twice within a 30-min interval by two different interviewers. For the assessment of intraobserver reproducibility, it was applied again 15 days later by one of the interviewers. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used in order to test the concordance of the answers. The significance level was set at p Portuguese-language version of the WSWS is reproducible, fast, and simple. It can therefore be used as a tool for assessing the severity of the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal syndrome.

  14. Qualitative and Quantitative Management Tools Used by Financial Officers in Public Research Universities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trexler, Grant Lewis

    2012-01-01

    This dissertation set out to identify effective qualitative and quantitative management tools used by financial officers (CFOs) in carrying out their management functions of planning, decision making, organizing, staffing, communicating, motivating, leading and controlling at a public research university. In addition, impediments to the use of…

  15. Validation of the French version of the BACS (the brief assessment of cognition in schizophrenia) among 50 French schizophrenic patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bralet, Marie-Cécile; Falissard, Bruno; Neveu, Xavier; Lucas-Ross, Margaret; Eskenazi, Anne-Marie; Keefe, Richard S E

    2007-09-01

    Schizophrenic patients demonstrate impairments in several key dimensions of cognition. These impairments are correlated with important aspects of functional outcome. While assessment of these cognition disorders is increasingly becoming a part of clinical and research practice in schizophrenia, there is no standard and easily administered test battery. The BACS (Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia) has been validated in English language [Keefe RSE, Golberg TE, Harvey PD, Gold JM, Poe MP, Coughenour L. The Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia: reliability, sensibility, and comparison with a standard neurocognitive battery. Schizophr. Res 2004;68:283-97], and was found to be as sensitive to cognitive dysfunction as a standard battery of tests, with the advantage of requiring less than 35 min to complete. We developed a French adaptation of the BACS and this study tested its ease of administration and concurrent validity. Correlation analyses between the BACS (version A) and a standard battery were performed. A sample of 50 stable schizophrenic patients received the French Version A of the BACS in a first session, and in a second session a standard battery. All the patients completed each of the subtests of the French BACS . The mean duration of completion for the BACS French version was 36 min (S.D.=5.56). A correlation analysis between the BACS (version A) global score and the standard battery global score showed a significant result (r=0.81, p<0.0001). The correlation analysis between the BACS (version A) sub-scores and the standard battery sub-scores showed significant results for verbal memory, working memory, verbal fluency, attention and speed of information processing and executive functions (p<0.001) and for motor speed (p<0.05). The French Version of the BACS is easier to use in French schizophrenic patients compared to a standard battery (administration shorter and completion rate better) and its good psychometric properties suggest

  16. The Development of a Communication Tool to Facilitate the Cancer Trial Recruitment Process and Increase Research Literacy among Underrepresented Populations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torres, Samantha; de la Riva, Erika E; Tom, Laura S; Clayman, Marla L; Taylor, Chirisse; Dong, Xinqi; Simon, Melissa A

    2015-12-01

    Despite increasing need to boost the recruitment of underrepresented populations into cancer trials and biobanking research, few tools exist for facilitating dialogue between researchers and potential research participants during the recruitment process. In this paper, we describe the initial processes of a user-centered design cycle to develop a standardized research communication tool prototype for enhancing research literacy among individuals from underrepresented populations considering enrollment in cancer research and biobanking studies. We present qualitative feedback and recommendations on the prototype's design and content from potential end users: five clinical trial recruiters and ten potential research participants recruited from an academic medical center. Participants were given the prototype (a set of laminated cards) and were asked to provide feedback about the tool's content, design elements, and word choices during semi-structured, in-person interviews. Results suggest that the prototype was well received by recruiters and patients alike. They favored the simplicity, lay language, and layout of the cards. They also noted areas for improvement, leading to card refinements that included the following: addressing additional topic areas, clarifying research processes, increasing the number of diverse images, and using alternative word choices. Our process for refining user interfaces and iterating content in early phases of design may inform future efforts to develop tools for use in clinical research or biobanking studies to increase research literacy.

  17. The COMET Sleep Research Platform.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nichols, Deborah A; DeSalvo, Steven; Miller, Richard A; Jónsson, Darrell; Griffin, Kara S; Hyde, Pamela R; Walsh, James K; Kushida, Clete A

    2014-01-01

    The Comparative Outcomes Management with Electronic Data Technology (COMET) platform is extensible and designed for facilitating multicenter electronic clinical research. Our research goals were the following: (1) to conduct a comparative effectiveness trial (CET) for two obstructive sleep apnea treatments-positive airway pressure versus oral appliance therapy; and (2) to establish a new electronic network infrastructure that would support this study and other clinical research studies. The COMET platform was created to satisfy the needs of CET with a focus on creating a platform that provides comprehensive toolsets, multisite collaboration, and end-to-end data management. The platform also provides medical researchers the ability to visualize and interpret data using business intelligence (BI) tools. COMET is a research platform that is scalable and extensible, and which, in a future version, can accommodate big data sets and enable efficient and effective research across multiple studies and medical specialties. The COMET platform components were designed for an eventual move to a cloud computing infrastructure that enhances sustainability, overall cost effectiveness, and return on investment.

  18. A Clinical Reasoning Tool for Virtual Patients: Design-Based Research Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hege, Inga; Kononowicz, Andrzej A; Adler, Martin

    2017-11-02

    Clinical reasoning is a fundamental process medical students have to learn during and after medical school. Virtual patients (VP) are a technology-enhanced learning method to teach clinical reasoning. However, VP systems do not exploit their full potential concerning the clinical reasoning process; for example, most systems focus on the outcome and less on the process of clinical reasoning. Keeping our concept grounded in a former qualitative study, we aimed to design and implement a tool to enhance VPs with activities and feedback, which specifically foster the acquisition of clinical reasoning skills. We designed the tool by translating elements of a conceptual clinical reasoning learning framework into software requirements. The resulting clinical reasoning tool enables learners to build their patient's illness script as a concept map when they are working on a VP scenario. The student's map is compared with the experts' reasoning at each stage of the VP, which is technically enabled by using Medical Subject Headings, which is a comprehensive controlled vocabulary published by the US National Library of Medicine. The tool is implemented using Web technologies, has an open architecture that enables its integration into various systems through an open application program interface, and is available under a Massachusetts Institute of Technology license. We conducted usability tests following a think-aloud protocol and a pilot field study with maps created by 64 medical students. The results show that learners interact with the tool but create less nodes and connections in the concept map than an expert. Further research and usability tests are required to analyze the reasons. The presented tool is a versatile, systematically developed software component that specifically supports the clinical reasoning skills acquisition. It can be plugged into VP systems or used as stand-alone software in other teaching scenarios. The modular design allows an extension with new

  19. MoDOT pavement preservation research program volume IV, pavement evaluation tools-data collection methods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-10-01

    The overarching goal of the MoDOT Pavement Preservation Research Program, Task 3: Pavement Evaluation Tools Data : Collection Methods was to identify and evaluate methods to rapidly obtain network-level and project-level information relevant to :...

  20. Psychometric Properties of the Persian Version of the Relationship Assessment Scale among Couples

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    غلامرضا دهشیری

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available This research administrated to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of Relationship Assessment scale. Therefore, 315 married individuals (199 women and 116 men from Tehran city were volunteered to respond to four scales: the Relationship Assessment, the Kansas Marital Satisfaction, the Oxford Happiness and the Life Satisfaction. Results from exploratory & confirmatory factor analysis showed that factor structure of Relationship Assessment scale was unidimensional. The internal consistency of the scale in the total sample was 0.88. Significant correlations between scores of the Relationship Assessment scale with the scores of the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale, the Life Satisfaction Scale and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire demonstrated good convergent validity of the scale. Also, the results showed that there was no significant gender difference between the mean scores of relationship satisfaction. In conclusion, the Relationship Assessment scale is a valid and reliable tool to measure marital satisfaction in Iran.

  1. Validation in the cross-cultural adaptation of the Korean version of the Oswestry Disability Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeon, Chang-Hoon; Kim, Dong-Jae; Kim, Se-Kang; Kim, Dong-Jun; Lee, Hwan-Mo; Park, Heui-Jeon

    2006-12-01

    Disability questionnaires are used for clinical assessment, outcome measurement, and research methodology. Any disability measurement must be adapted culturally for comparability of data, when the patients, who are measured, use different languages. This study aimed to conduct cross-cultural adaptation in translating the original (English) version of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) into Korean, and then to assess the reliability of the Korean versions of the Oswestry Disability Index (KODI). We used methodology to obtain semantic, idiomatic, experimental, and conceptual equivalences for the process of cross-cultural adaptation. The KODI were tested in 116 patients with chronic low back pain. The internal consistency and reliability for the KODI reached 0.9168 (Cronbach's alpha). The test-retest reliability was assessed with 32 patients (who were not included in the assessment of Cronbach's alpha) over a time interval of 4 days. Test-retest correlation reliability was 0.9332. The entire process and the results of this study were reported to the developer (Dr. Fairbank JC), who appraised the KODI. There is little evidence of differential item functioning in KODI. The results suggest that the KODI is internally consistent and reliable. Therefore, the KODI can be recommended as a low back pain assessment tool in Korea.

  2. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML): Language Specification for Level 3 Version 1 Core.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hucka, Michael; Bergmann, Frank T; Hoops, Stefan; Keating, Sarah M; Sahle, Sven; Schaff, James C; Smith, Lucian P; Wilkinson, Darren J

    2015-09-04

    Computational models can help researchers to interpret data, understand biological function, and make quantitative predictions. The Systems Biology Markup Language (SBML) is a file format for representing computational models in a declarative form that can be exchanged between different software systems. SBML is oriented towards describing biological processes of the sort common in research on a number of topics, including metabolic pathways, cell signaling pathways, and many others. By supporting SBML as an input/output format, different tools can all operate on an identical representation of a model, removing opportunities for translation errors and assuring a common starting point for analyses and simulations. This document provides the specification for Version 1 of SBML Level 3 Core. The specification defines the data structures prescribed by SBML as well as their encoding in XML, the eXtensible Markup Language. This specification also defines validation rules that determine the validity of an SBML document, and provides many examples of models in SBML form. Other materials and software are available from the SBML project web site, http://sbml.org/.

  3. Turkish Version of Kolcaba's Immobilization Comfort Questionnaire: A Validity and Reliability Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tosun, Betül; Aslan, Özlem; Tunay, Servet; Akyüz, Aygül; Özkan, Hüseyin; Bek, Doğan; Açıksöz, Semra

    2015-12-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Immobilization Comfort Questionnaire (ICQ). The sample used in this methodological study consisted of 121 patients undergoing lower extremity arthroscopy in a training and research hospital. The validity study of the questionnaire assessed language validity, structural validity and criterion validity. Structural validity was evaluated via exploratory factor analysis. Criterion validity was evaluated by assessing the correlation between the visual analog scale (VAS) scores (i.e., the comfort and pain VAS scores) and the ICQ scores using Spearman's correlation test. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin coefficient and Bartlett's test of sphericity were used to determine the suitability of the data for factor analysis. Internal consistency was evaluated to determine reliability. The data were analyzed with SPSS version 15.00 for Windows. Descriptive statistics were presented as frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations. A p value ≤ .05 was considered statistically significant. A moderate positive correlation was found between the ICQ scores and the VAS comfort scores; a moderate negative correlation was found between the ICQ and the VAS pain measures in the criterion validity analysis. Cronbach α values of .75 and .82 were found for the first and second measurements, respectively. The findings of this study reveal that the ICQ is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the comfort of patients in Turkey who are immobilized because of lower extremity orthopedic problems. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  4. DDT: A Research Tool for Automatic Data Distribution in High Performance Fortran

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eduard AyguadÉ

    1997-01-01

    Full Text Available This article describes the main features and implementation of our automatic data distribution research tool. The tool (DDT accepts programs written in Fortran 77 and generates High Performance Fortran (HPF directives to map arrays onto the memories of the processors and parallelize loops, and executable statements to remap these arrays. DDT works by identifying a set of computational phases (procedures and loops. The algorithm builds a search space of candidate solutions for these phases which is explored looking for the combination that minimizes the overall cost; this cost includes data movement cost and computation cost. The movement cost reflects the cost of accessing remote data during the execution of a phase and the remapping costs that have to be paid in order to execute the phase with the selected mapping. The computation cost includes the cost of executing a phase in parallel according to the selected mapping and the owner computes rule. The tool supports interprocedural analysis and uses control flow information to identify how phases are sequenced during the execution of the application.

  5. The GATO gene annotation tool for research laboratories

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. Fujita

    2005-11-01

    Full Text Available Large-scale genome projects have generated a rapidly increasing number of DNA sequences. Therefore, development of computational methods to rapidly analyze these sequences is essential for progress in genomic research. Here we present an automatic annotation system for preliminary analysis of DNA sequences. The gene annotation tool (GATO is a Bioinformatics pipeline designed to facilitate routine functional annotation and easy access to annotated genes. It was designed in view of the frequent need of genomic researchers to access data pertaining to a common set of genes. In the GATO system, annotation is generated by querying some of the Web-accessible resources and the information is stored in a local database, which keeps a record of all previous annotation results. GATO may be accessed from everywhere through the internet or may be run locally if a large number of sequences are going to be annotated. It is implemented in PHP and Perl and may be run on any suitable Web server. Usually, installation and application of annotation systems require experience and are time consuming, but GATO is simple and practical, allowing anyone with basic skills in informatics to access it without any special training. GATO can be downloaded at [http://mariwork.iq.usp.br/gato/]. Minimum computer free space required is 2 MB.

  6. Virtual Globes and Glacier Research: Integrating research, collaboration, logistics, data archival, and outreach into a single tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolan, M.

    2006-12-01

    Virtual Globes are a paradigm shift in the way earth sciences are conducted. With these tools, nearly all aspects of earth science can be integrated from field science, to remote sensing, to remote collaborations, to logistical planning, to data archival/retrieval, to PDF paper retriebal, to education and outreach. Here we present an example of how VGs can be fully exploited for field sciences, using research at McCall Glacier, in Arctic Alaska.

  7. Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Validation of the Persian Version of the Oxford Knee Score in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Hosein Ebrahimzadeh

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Background: The Oxford Knee Score (OKS is a short patient-reported outcome instrument that measures pain and physical activity related to knee osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate, construct validity and consistent reliability of the Persian version of the OKS. Methods: The case series consisted of 80 patients who were clinically diagnosed with having knee osteoarthritis. All patients were requested to fill-in the Persian OKS and Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36. Correlation analysis between the Persian versions of these two instruments was then carried out. The scores of the Persian SF-36 were used to evaluate convergent and divergent validity of the 12-item Persian OKS. Results: From a total of 80 patients, 63 were female (79% and the remaining 17 were male (21% with a mean age of 52.2 years. In the present study, high Cronbach’s alpha of 0.95 confirms excellent internal consistency of the Persian OKS scale similar to previous investigations. The results confirm that the Persian version of this instrument is valid and reliable, similar to its English index and its subsequent translations in different languages. Conclusion: The Persian OKS is a reliable instrument to evaluate knee function in patients with knee osteoarthritis and is a useful tool for outcome measurement in clinical research.

  8. CALIPSO lidar calibration at 532 nm: version 4 nighttime algorithm

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kar, Jayanta; Vaughan, Mark A.; Lee, Kam-Pui; Tackett, Jason L.; Avery, Melody A.; Garnier, Anne; Getzewich, Brian J.; Hunt, William H.; Josset, Damien; Liu, Zhaoyan; Lucker, Patricia L.; Magill, Brian; Omar, Ali H.; Pelon, Jacques; Rogers, Raymond R.; Toth, Travis D.; Trepte, Charles R.; Vernier, Jean-Paul; Winker, David M.; Young, Stuart A.

    2018-03-01

    Data products from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) on board Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) were recently updated following the implementation of new (version 4) calibration algorithms for all of the Level 1 attenuated backscatter measurements. In this work we present the motivation for and the implementation of the version 4 nighttime 532 nm parallel channel calibration. The nighttime 532 nm calibration is the most fundamental calibration of CALIOP data, since all of CALIOP's other radiometric calibration procedures - i.e., the 532 nm daytime calibration and the 1064 nm calibrations during both nighttime and daytime - depend either directly or indirectly on the 532 nm nighttime calibration. The accuracy of the 532 nm nighttime calibration has been significantly improved by raising the molecular normalization altitude from 30-34 km to the upper possible signal acquisition range of 36-39 km to substantially reduce stratospheric aerosol contamination. Due to the greatly reduced molecular number density and consequently reduced signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at these higher altitudes, the signal is now averaged over a larger number of samples using data from multiple adjacent granules. Additionally, an enhanced strategy for filtering the radiation-induced noise from high-energy particles was adopted. Further, the meteorological model used in the earlier versions has been replaced by the improved Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2), model. An aerosol scattering ratio of 1.01 ± 0.01 is now explicitly used for the calibration altitude. These modifications lead to globally revised calibration coefficients which are, on average, 2-3 % lower than in previous data releases. Further, the new calibration procedure is shown to eliminate biases at high altitudes that were present in earlier versions and consequently leads to an improved representation of

  9. A conceptual model specification language (CMSL Version 2)

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wieringa, Roelf J.

    1992-01-01

    Version 2 of a language (CMSL) to specify conceptual models is defined. CMSL consists of two parts, the value specification language VSL and the object spercification language OSL. There is a formal semantics and an inference system for CMSL but research on this still continues. A method for

  10. Translation and validation of a Spanish version of the xerostomia inventory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Serrano, Carlos; Fariña, María P; Pérez, Cristhian; Fernández, Marcos; Forman, Katherine; Carrasco, Mauricio

    2016-12-01

    The aim of this study was to validate a Spanish cross-cultural adaptation of the xerostomia inventory (XI). The original English version of XI was translated into Spanish, cross-culturally adapted and field tested. The Spanish version of XI (XI-Sp) was tested with a sample of 41 patients with xerostomia. The reliability of the XI-Sp was determined through internal consistency and test-retest methods. The construct validity of XI-Sp was determined by means of correlation between XI-Sp scores and salivary flow measurements. Overall XI-Sp scores were 40.8 (SD = 10) for the first application and 40.2 (SD = 9.5) for the second. Cronbach's alpha value for the XI-Sp was 0.89 and 0.87, respectively, while interitem correlation averages were r = 0.44 and r = 0.39 for each application. Interitem correlation and corrected total was r c ≥0.30. The test-retest intraclass correlation coefficient value for the XI-Sp score was 0.59 and 0.91. Convergent validity for construct validity correlation with salivary flow showed a medium effect size (r 2  = 0.10) for the first application but did not make a statistically significant prediction for the second (r 2  = 0.7). This study provides evidence concerning the reliability of the XI-Sp, showing that it may be a useful tool for Spanish-speaking xerostomia patients for both clinical and epidemiologic research. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S and The Gerodontology Association. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  11. The suicide assessment scale: Psychometric properties of a Norwegian language version

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Koldsland Bjørn

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Rating scales are valuable tools in suicide research and can also be useful supplements to the clinical interview in suicide risk assessments. This study describes the psychometric properties of a Norwegian language version of the Suicide Assessment Scale Self-report version (SUAS-S. Methods Participants were fifty-two patients (mean age = 39.3 years, SD = 10.7 with major depression (53.8%, bipolar disorder (25.0% and/or a personality disorder (63.5% referred to a psychiatric outpatient clinic. The SUAS-S, the screening section of the Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation (BSS-5, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI, Beck’s Hopelessness Scale (BHS, the Symptom Check-List-90 R (SCL-90R and the Clinical Global Impression for Severity of Suicidality (CGI-SS were administered. One week later, the patients completed the SUAS-S a second time. Results Cronbach’s alpha for SUAS-S was 0.88 and the test–retest reliability was 0.95 (95% CI: 0.93– 0.97. SUAS-S was positively correlated with the BSS-5 (r = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.47–0.85 for the study sample as a whole and for the suicidal (r = 0.52 and non-suicidal groups (r = 0.50 respectively. There was no difference between the SUAS-S and the BSS-5 in the ability to identify suicidality. This ability was more pronounced when the suicide risk was high. There was a substantial intercorrelation between the score on the SUAS-S and the BDI (0.81 and the BHS (0.76. The sensitivity and specificity of the SUAS-S was explored and an appropriate clinical cut-off value was assessed. Conclusions The study revealed good internal consistency, test–retest reliability and concurrent validity for the Suicide Assessment Scale Self-report version. The discriminatory ability for suicidality was comparable to that of the BSS-5.

  12. Resolve. Version 2.5: Flammable Gas Accident Analysis Tool Acceptance Test Plan and Test Results

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    LAVENDER, J.C.

    2000-01-01

    RESOLVE. Version 2 .5 is designed to quantify the risk and uncertainty of combustion accidents in double-shell tanks (DSTs) and single-shell tanks (SSTs). The purpose of the acceptance testing is to ensure that all of the options and features of the computer code run; to verify that the calculated results are consistent with each other; and to evaluate the effects of the changes to the parameter values on the frequency and consequence trends associated with flammable gas deflagrations or detonations

  13. Controversies over the mechanisms underlying the crucial role of the left fronto-parietal areas in the representation of tools

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guido eGainotti

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available Anatomo-clinical and neuroimaging data show that the left fronto-parietal areas play an important role in representing tools. As manipulation is an important source of knowledge about tools, it has been assumed that motor activity explains the link between tool knowledge and the left fronto-parietal areas. However, controversies exist over the exact mechanisms underlying this relationship. According to a strong version of the ‘embodied cognition theory’, activation of a tool concept necessarily involves re-enactment of the corresponding kind of action. Impairment of the ability to use tools should, therefore, lead to impairment of tool knowledge. Both the ‘domains of knowledge hypothesis’ and the ‘sensory-motor model of conceptual knowledge’ refute the strong version of the ‘embodied cognition hypothesis’ but acknowledge that manipulation and other action schemata play an important role in our knowledge of tools. The basic difference between these two models is that the former is based on an innatist model and the latter holds that the brain’s organization of categories is experience dependent. Data supporting and arguing against each of these models are briefly reviewed. In particular, the following lines of research, which argue against the innate nature of the brain’s categorical organization, are discussed: (1 the observation that in patients with category-specific disorders the semantic impairment does not respect the boundaries between biological entities and artefact items; (2 data showing that experience-driven neuroplasticity in musicians is not confined to alterations of perceptual and motor maps but also leads to the establishment of higher-level semantic representations for musical instruments; (3 results of experiments using previously unfamiliar materials showing that the history of our sensory-motor experience with an object significantly affects its neural representation.

  14. The Translation Equivalence of Two Japanese Versions of theRosenberg Self-Esteem Scale

    OpenAIRE

    Brown, R. A.

    2010-01-01

    The present research investigated the comparability of two commonly used Japanese translationsof the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (RSES). Study 1 revealed that participants evaluated themselvesmore negatively on one version that the other. Study 2 however showed that participants did notevaluate a target person who was depicted endorsing the RSES items significantly differentlyregardless which version was used.

  15. Psychometric Evaluation of the Serbian Version of the Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jovanovic, Veljko; Zuljevic, Dragan

    2013-01-01

    The main purpose of this study was to evaluate psychometric properties of the Serbian version of the Multidimensional Students' Life Satisfaction Scale (MSLSS). The research was carried out on a sample of 408 high school students (250 females, 158 males), with the mean age 16.6. The Serbian version of the MSLSS has demonstrated good psychometric…

  16. ICLUS Tools and Datasets (Version 1.2) and User's Manual: Arcgis Tools and Datasets for Modeling US Housing Density (External Review Draft)

    Science.gov (United States)

    This draft Geographic Information System (GIS) tool can be used to generate scenarios of housing-density changes and calculate impervious surface cover for the conterminous United States. A draft User’s Guide accompanies the tool. This product distributes the population project...

  17. Assessing Clinical Trial-Associated Workload in Community-Based Research Programs Using the ASCO Clinical Trial Workload Assessment Tool.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Good, Marjorie J; Hurley, Patricia; Woo, Kaitlin M; Szczepanek, Connie; Stewart, Teresa; Robert, Nicholas; Lyss, Alan; Gönen, Mithat; Lilenbaum, Rogerio

    2016-05-01

    Clinical research program managers are regularly faced with the quandary of determining how much of a workload research staff members can manage while they balance clinical practice and still achieve clinical trial accrual goals, maintain data quality and protocol compliance, and stay within budget. A tool was developed to measure clinical trial-associated workload, to apply objective metrics toward documentation of work, and to provide clearer insight to better meet clinical research program challenges and aid in balancing staff workloads. A project was conducted to assess the feasibility and utility of using this tool in diverse research settings. Community-based research programs were recruited to collect and enter clinical trial-associated monthly workload data into a web-based tool for 6 consecutive months. Descriptive statistics were computed for self-reported program characteristics and workload data, including staff acuity scores and number of patient encounters. Fifty-one research programs that represented 30 states participated. Median staff acuity scores were highest for staff with patients enrolled in studies and receiving treatment, relative to staff with patients in follow-up status. Treatment trials typically resulted in higher median staff acuity, relative to cancer control, observational/registry, and prevention trials. Industry trials exhibited higher median staff acuity scores than trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute, academic institutions, or others. The results from this project demonstrate that trial-specific acuity measurement is a better measure of workload than simply counting the number of patients. The tool was shown to be feasible and useable in diverse community-based research settings. Copyright © 2016 by American Society of Clinical Oncology.

  18. NCDC International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) Project, Version 2 (Version Superseded)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Version 2 of the dataset has been superseded by a newer version. Users should not use version 2 except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous studies that...

  19. NCDC International Best Track Archive for Climate Stewardship (IBTrACS) Project, Version 1 (Version Superseded)

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Version 1 of the dataset has been superseded by a newer version. Users should not use version 1 except in rare cases (e.g., when reproducing previous studies that...

  20. Versioning Complex Data

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Macduff, Matt C.; Lee, Benno; Beus, Sherman J.

    2014-06-29

    Using the history of ARM data files, we designed and demonstrated a data versioning paradigm that is feasible. Assigning versions to sets of files that are modified with some special assumptions and domain specific rules was effective in the case of ARM data, which has more than 5000 datastreams and 500TB of data.

  1. Assessing Reliability of Two Versions of Vocabulary Levels Tests in Iranian Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aso Bayazidi

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available This study examined the equivalence and reliability of the two versions of the Vocabulary Levels Test in an Iranian context. This study was motivated by the fact that the Vocabulary Levels test is increasingly being used in Iran for both research and pedagogical purposes without having been checked for validity and reliability in this context. The equivalence and reliability of the two versions of the test were examined through the parallel-form approach to reliability in Classical True Score theory. Seventy-five intermediate learners of English as a foreign language at the Iran Language Institute took the two versions of the test with one week interval between the two administrations in a counterbalanced fashion. To examine the equivalence of the two versions, the means and variances of the scores obtained for the two tests were compared using paired-sample t-test and one-way ANOVA, respectively. The results of the analyses indicated that the difference between the means of the two versions was significant, and the two versions cannot be considered as parallel forms. To assess the reliability of the two versions, the correlation between the scores obtained from them was estimated using Pearson Product Moment correlation. The results of the analyses showed that the two versions are highly correlated and are reliable tests. It is concluded that the two versions should not be treated as equivalent in longitudinal and gain score studies.

  2. Research and technology management in the electricity industry methods, tools and case studies

    CERN Document Server

    Daim, Tugrul; Kim, Jisun

    2013-01-01

    Technologies such as renewable energy alternatives including wind, solar and biomass, storage technologies and electric engines are creating a different landscape for the  electricity industry. Using sources and ideas from technologies such as renewable energy alternatives, Research and Technology Management in the Electricity Industry explores a different landscape for this industry and applies it to the electric industry supported by real industry cases. Divided into three sections, Research and Technology Management in the Electricity Industry introduces a range of  methods and tools includ

  3. The tool for the automatic analysis of lexical sophistication (TAALES): version 2.0.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kyle, Kristopher; Crossley, Scott; Berger, Cynthia

    2017-07-11

    This study introduces the second release of the Tool for the Automatic Analysis of Lexical Sophistication (TAALES 2.0), a freely available and easy-to-use text analysis tool. TAALES 2.0 is housed on a user's hard drive (allowing for secure data processing) and is available on most operating systems (Windows, Mac, and Linux). TAALES 2.0 adds 316 indices to the original tool. These indices are related to word frequency, word range, n-gram frequency, n-gram range, n-gram strength of association, contextual distinctiveness, word recognition norms, semantic network, and word neighbors. In this study, we validated TAALES 2.0 by investigating whether its indices could be used to model both holistic scores of lexical proficiency in free writes and word choice scores in narrative essays. The results indicated that the TAALES 2.0 indices could be used to explain 58% of the variance in lexical proficiency scores and 32% of the variance in word-choice scores. Newly added TAALES 2.0 indices, including those related to n-gram association strength, word neighborhood, and word recognition norms, featured heavily in these predictor models, suggesting that TAALES 2.0 represents a substantial upgrade.

  4. Augmented reality as a tool for linguistic research: Intercepting and manipulating multimodal interaction

    OpenAIRE

    Pitsch, Karola; Neumann, Alexander; Schnier, Christian; Hermann, Thomas

    2013-01-01

    We suggest that an Augmented Reality (AR) system for coupled interaction partners provides a new tool for linguistic research that allows to manipulate the coparticipants’ real-time perception and action. It encompasses novel facilities for recording heterogeneous sensor-rich data sets to be accessed in parallel with qualitative/manual and quantitative/computational methods.

  5. Adaptation and Validation of the Spanish Version of the Nomophobia Questionnaire in Nursing Studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gutiérrez-Puertas, Lorena; Márquez-Hernández, Verónica V; Aguilera-Manrique, Gabriel

    2016-10-01

    Nomophobia is the uncontrollable fear of leaving your house without your mobile phone and is currently having a significant impact on the younger population. The aim of this study was first to translate the original version (written in English) of the Nomophobia questionnaire, culturally adapting it to the Spanish sociolinguistic context, and subsequently to analyze the psychometric properties of the Spanish version with a sample of nursing students. In the first stage, a process of translation-back translation was carried out, following standardized recommendations. In order to validate the content, the adapted and agreed version of the Nomophobia questionnaire, consisting of 20 items, was submitted to a panel of 20 experts. After the content analysis and subsequent debate, a third version of the scale was obtained. The results confirmed a four-dimensional structure, the same as the original questionnaire, with a Cronbach's α value of .928 for the questionnaire as a whole, thus showing good internal consistency. The results of this study mean a suitable tool can be offered to nursing professionals with the aim of facilitating the diagnosis of addictive behaviors in relation to mobile phone use.

  6. Cool Farm Tool – Potato: Model Description and Performance of Four Production Systems

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Haverkort, A.J.; Hillier, J.G.

    2011-01-01

    The Cool Farm Tool – Potato (CFT-Potato) is a spreadsheet programme that allows the calculation of the amount of CO2 equivalents that it costs to produce 1 t of potato. The spreadsheet was adapted from an original generic version of the tool, and completed for potato production in diverse production

  7. Resurrecting Legacy Code Using Ontosoft Knowledge-Sharing and Digital Object Management to Revitalize and Reproduce Software for Groundwater Management Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwon, N.; Gentle, J.; Pierce, S. A.

    2015-12-01

    Software code developed for research is often used for a relatively short period of time before it is abandoned, lost, or becomes outdated. This unintentional abandonment of code is a valid problem in the 21st century scientific process, hindering widespread reusability and increasing the effort needed to develop research software. Potentially important assets, these legacy codes may be resurrected and documented digitally for long-term reuse, often with modest effort. Furthermore, the revived code may be openly accessible in a public repository for researchers to reuse or improve. For this study, the research team has begun to revive the codebase for Groundwater Decision Support System (GWDSS), originally developed for participatory decision making to aid urban planning and groundwater management, though it may serve multiple use cases beyond those originally envisioned. GWDSS was designed as a java-based wrapper with loosely federated commercial and open source components. If successfully revitalized, GWDSS will be useful for both practical applications as a teaching tool and case study for groundwater management, as well as informing theoretical research. Using the knowledge-sharing approaches documented by the NSF-funded Ontosoft project, digital documentation of GWDSS is underway, from conception to development, deployment, characterization, integration, composition, and dissemination through open source communities and geosciences modeling frameworks. Information assets, documentation, and examples are shared using open platforms for data sharing and assigned digital object identifiers. Two instances of GWDSS version 3.0 are being created: 1) a virtual machine instance for the original case study to serve as a live demonstration of the decision support tool, assuring the original version is usable, and 2) an open version of the codebase, executable installation files, and developer guide available via an open repository, assuring the source for the

  8. Setup Instructions for the Applied Anomaly Detection Tool (AADT) Web Server

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-09-01

    tool has been developed for many platforms: Android , iOS, and Windows. The Windows version has been developed as a web server that allows the...Microsoft Windows. 15. SUBJECT TERMS Applied Anomaly Detection Tool, AADT, Windows, server, web service, installation 16. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: 17...instructional information about identifying them as groups and individually. The software has been developed for several different platforms: Android

  9. STOPP/START criteria for potentially inappropriate prescribing in older people: version 2.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Mahony, Denis; O'Sullivan, David; Byrne, Stephen; O'Connor, Marie Noelle; Ryan, Cristin; Gallagher, Paul

    2015-03-01

    Screening tool of older people's prescriptions (STOPP) and screening tool to alert to right treatment (START) criteria were first published in 2008. Due to an expanding therapeutics evidence base, updating of the criteria was required. We reviewed the 2008 STOPP/START criteria to add new evidence-based criteria and remove any obsolete criteria. A thorough literature review was performed to reassess the evidence base of the 2008 criteria and the proposed new criteria. Nineteen experts from 13 European countries reviewed a new draft of STOPP & START criteria including proposed new criteria. These experts were also asked to propose additional criteria they considered important to include in the revised STOPP & START criteria and to highlight any criteria from the 2008 list they considered less important or lacking an evidence base. The revised list of criteria was then validated using the Delphi consensus methodology. The expert panel agreed a final list of 114 criteria after two Delphi validation rounds, i.e. 80 STOPP criteria and 34 START criteria. This represents an overall 31% increase in STOPP/START criteria compared with version 1. Several new STOPP categories were created in version 2, namely antiplatelet/anticoagulant drugs, drugs affecting, or affected by, renal function and drugs that increase anticholinergic burden; new START categories include urogenital system drugs, analgesics and vaccines. STOPP/START version 2 criteria have been expanded and updated for the purpose of minimizing inappropriate prescribing in older people. These criteria are based on an up-to-date literature review and consensus validation among a European panel of experts. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Geriatrics Society.

  10. Quinoa, Version 0.1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2016-05-06

    Quinoa is a set of computational tools that enables research and numerical analysis in fluid dynamics. At this time it is a test-bed to experiment with various algorithms using fully asynchronous runtime systems.

  11. Science in the Eyes of Preschool Children: Findings from an Innovative Research Tool

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dubosarsky, Mia D.

    How do young children view science? Do these views reflect cultural stereotypes? When do these views develop? These fundamental questions in the field of science education have rarely been studied with the population of preschool children. One main reason is the lack of an appropriate research instrument that addresses preschool children's developmental competencies. Extensive body of research has pointed at the significance of early childhood experiences in developing positive attitudes and interests toward learning in general and the learning of science in particular. Theoretical and empirical research suggests that stereotypical views of science may be replaced by authentic views following inquiry science experience. However, no preschool science intervention program could be designed without a reliable instrument that provides baseline information about preschool children's current views of science. The current study presents preschool children's views of science as gathered from a pioneering research tool. This tool, in the form of a computer "game," does not require reading, writing, or expressive language skills and is operated by the children. The program engages children in several simple tasks involving picture recognition and yes/no answers in order to reveal their views about science. The study was conducted with 120 preschool children in two phases and found that by the age of 4 years, participants possess an emergent concept of science. Gender and school differences were detected. Findings from this interdisciplinary study will contribute to the fields of early childhood, science education, learning technologies, program evaluation, and early childhood curriculum development.

  12. I-RREACH: an engagement and assessment tool for improving implementation readiness of researchers, organizations and communities in complex interventions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maar, Marion; Yeates, Karen; Barron, Marcia; Hua, Diane; Liu, Peter; Moy Lum-Kwong, Margaret; Perkins, Nancy; Sleeth, Jessica; Tobe, Joshua; Wabano, Mary Jo; Williamson, Pamela; Tobe, Sheldon W

    2015-05-04

    Non-communicable chronic diseases are the leading causes of mortality globally, and nearly 80% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). In high-income countries (HICs), inequitable distribution of resources affects poorer and otherwise disadvantaged groups including Aboriginal peoples. Cardiovascular mortality in high-income countries has recently begun to fall; however, these improvements are not realized among citizens in LMICs or those subgroups in high-income countries who are disadvantaged in the social determinants of health including Aboriginal people. It is critical to develop multi-faceted, affordable and realistic health interventions in collaboration with groups who experience health inequalities. Based on community-based participatory research (CBPR), we aimed to develop implementation tools to guide complex interventions to ensure that health gains can be realized in low-resource environments. We developed the I-RREACH (Intervention and Research Readiness Engagement and Assessment of Community Health Care) tool to guide implementation of interventions in low-resource environments. We employed CBPR and a consensus methodology to (1) develop the theoretical basis of the tool and (2) to identify key implementation factor domains; then, we (3) collected participant evaluation data to validate the tool during implementation. The I-RREACH tool was successfully developed using a community-based consensus method and is rooted in participatory principles, equalizing the importance of the knowledge and perspectives of researchers and community stakeholders while encouraging respectful dialogue. The I-RREACH tool consists of three phases: fact finding, stakeholder dialogue and community member/patient dialogue. The evaluation for our first implementation of I-RREACH by participants was overwhelmingly positive, with 95% or more of participants indicating comfort with and support for the process and the dialogue it creates. The I

  13. Accelerated Leach Testing of GLASS: ALTGLASS Version 3.0

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Trivelpiece, Cory L. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL); Jantzen, Carol M. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL); Crawford, Charles L. [Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States). Savannah River National Lab. (SRNL)

    2016-12-31

    The Accelerated Leach Testing of GLASS (ALTGLASS) database is a collection of data from short- and long-term product consistency tests (PCT, ASTM C1285 A and B) on high level waste (HLW) as well as low activity waste (LAW) glasses. The database provides both U.S. and international researchers with an archive of experimental data for the purpose of studying, modeling, or validating existing models of nuclear waste glass corrosion. The ALTGLASS database is maintained and updated by researchers at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). This newest version, ALTGLASS Version 3.0, has been updated with an additional 503 rows of data representing PCT results from corrosion experiments conducted in the United States by the Savannah River National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and the Vitreous State Laboratory (SRNL, PNNL, ANL, VSL, respectively) as well as the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) in the United Kingdom.

  14. Accelerated Leach Testing of GLASS: ALTGLASS Version 3.0

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trivelpiece, Cory L.; Jantzen, Carol M.; Crawford, Charles L.

    2016-01-01

    The Accelerated Leach Testing of GLASS (ALTGLASS) database is a collection of data from short- and long-term product consistency tests (PCT, ASTM C1285 A and B) on high level waste (HLW) as well as low activity waste (LAW) glasses. The database provides both U.S. and international researchers with an archive of experimental data for the purpose of studying, modeling, or validating existing models of nuclear waste glass corrosion. The ALTGLASS database is maintained and updated by researchers at the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL). This newest version, ALTGLASS Version 3.0, has been updated with an additional 503 rows of data representing PCT results from corrosion experiments conducted in the United States by the Savannah River National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, and the Vitreous State Laboratory (SRNL, PNNL, ANL, VSL, respectively) as well as the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) in the United Kingdom.

  15. Handbook of Research on Technology Tools for Real-World Skill Development (2 Volumes)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosen, Yigel, Ed.; Ferrara, Steve, Ed.; Mosharraf, Maryam, Ed.

    2016-01-01

    Education is expanding to include a stronger focus on the practical application of classroom lessons in an effort to prepare the next generation of scholars for a changing world economy centered on collaborative and problem-solving skills for the digital age. "The Handbook of Research on Technology Tools for Real-World Skill Development"…

  16. Iatrogenic Opioid Withdrawal in Critically Ill Patients: A Review of Assessment Tools and Management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiu, Ada W; Contreras, Sofia; Mehta, Sangeeta; Korman, Jennifer; Perreault, Marc M; Williamson, David R; Burry, Lisa D

    2017-12-01

    To (1) provide an overview of the epidemiology, clinical presentation, and risk factors of iatrogenic opioid withdrawal in critically ill patients and (2) conduct a literature review of assessment and management of iatrogenic opioid withdrawal in critically ill patients. We searched MEDLINE (1946-June 2017), EMBASE (1974-June 2017), and CINAHL (1982-June 2017) with the terms opioid withdrawal, opioid, opiate, critical care, critically ill, assessment tool, scale, taper, weaning, and management. Reference list of identified literature was searched for additional references as well as www.clinicaltrials.gov . We restricted articles to those in English and dealing with humans. We identified 2 validated pediatric critically ill opioid withdrawal assessment tools: (1) Withdrawal Assessment Tool-Version 1 (WAT-1) and (2) Sophia Observation Withdrawal Symptoms Scale (SOS). Neither tool differentiated between opioid and benzodiazepine withdrawal. WAT-1 was evaluated in critically ill adults but not found to be valid. No other adult tool was identified. For management, we identified 5 randomized controlled trials, 2 prospective studies, and 2 systematic reviews. Most studies were small and only 2 studies utilized a validated assessment tool. Enteral methadone, α-2 agonists, and protocolized weaning were studied. We identified 2 validated assessment tools for pediatric intensive care unit patients; no valid tool for adults. Management strategies tested in small trials included methadone, α-2 agonists, and protocolized sedation/weaning. We challenge researchers to create validated tools assessing specifically for opioid withdrawal in critically ill children and adults to direct management.

  17. DiVinE-CUDA - A Tool for GPU Accelerated LTL Model Checking

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jiří Barnat

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we present a tool that performs CUDA accelerated LTL Model Checking. The tool exploits parallel algorithm MAP adjusted to the NVIDIA CUDA architecture in order to efficiently detect the presence of accepting cycles in a directed graph. Accepting cycle detection is the core algorithmic procedure in automata-based LTL Model Checking. We demonstrate that the tool outperforms non-accelerated version of the algorithm and we discuss where the limits of the tool are and what we intend to do in the future to avoid them.

  18. The Virtual Museum for Meteorites: an Online Tool for Researchers Educators and Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Madiedo, J. M.

    2013-09-01

    The Virtual Museum for Meteorites (Figure 1) was created as a tool for students, educators and researchers [1, 2]. One of the aims of this online resource is to promote the interest in meteorites. Thus, the role of meteorites in education and outreach is fundamental, as these are very valuable tools to promote the public's interest in Astronomy and Planetary Sciences. Meteorite exhibitions reveal the fascination of students, educators and even researchers for these extraterrestrial rocks and how these can explain many key questions origin and evolution of our Solar System. However, despite the efforts related to the origin and evolution of our Solar System. However, despite the efforts of private collectors, museums and other institutions to organize meteorite exhibitions, the reach of these is usually limited. The Virtual Museum for Meteorites takes advantage of HTML and related technologies to overcome local boundaries and offer its contents for a global audience. A description of the recent developments performed in the framework of this virtual museum is given in this work.

  19. A simulator tool set for evaluating HEVC/SHVC streaming

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al Hadhrami, Tawfik; Nightingale, James; Wang, Qi; Grecos, Christos; Kehtarnavaz, Nasser

    2015-02-01

    Video streaming and other multimedia applications account for an ever increasing proportion of all network traffic. The recent adoption of High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) as the H.265 standard provides many opportunities for new and improved services multimedia services and applications in the consumer domain. Since the delivery of version one of H.265, the Joint Collaborative Team on Video Coding have been working towards standardisation of a scalable extension (SHVC) to the H.265 standard and a series of range extensions and new profiles. As these enhancements are added to the standard the range of potential applications and research opportunities will expend. For example the use of video is also growing rapidly in other sectors such as safety, security, defence and health with real-time high quality video transmission playing an important role in areas like critical infrastructure monitoring and disaster management. Each of which may benefit from the application of enhanced HEVC/H.265 and SHVC capabilities. The majority of existing research into HEVC/H.265 transmission has focussed on the consumer domain addressing issues such as broadcast transmission and delivery to mobile devices with the lack of freely available tools widely cited as an obstacle to conducting this type of research. In this paper we present a toolset which facilitates the transmission and evaluation of HEVC/H.265 and SHVC encoded video on the popular open source NCTUns simulator. Our toolset provides researchers with a modular, easy to use platform for evaluating video transmission and adaptation proposals on large scale wired, wireless and hybrid architectures. The toolset consists of pre-processing, transmission, SHVC adaptation and post-processing tools to gather and analyse statistics. It has been implemented using HM15 and SHM5, the latest versions of the HEVC and SHVC reference software implementations to ensure that currently adopted proposals for scalable and range extensions to

  20. A therapist version of the Alliance Negotiation Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doran, Jennifer M; Gómez-Penedo, Juan Martín; Safran, Jeremy D; Roussos, Andrés

    2018-05-02

    The aim of the current study was to design and evaluate a therapist version of the Alliance Negotiation Scale (ANS). The ANS was created in order to operationalize the construct of dyadic negotiation in psychotherapy and to augment existing conceptualizations of the working alliance. The ANS has existed only as a client self-report form since its inception and has demonstrated promise as a psychotherapy process measure. This research intended to develop a complementary therapist self-report version of the measure. The scale creation process is discussed in detail, and the results of a preliminary psychometric investigation are reported. The ANS-Therapist version (ANS-T) was developed using a sample of therapists (n = 114) through a principal components analysis procedure. The ANS-T contains 9 unidimensional items and was moderately correlated with therapist-reported working alliance (r = .468). The results of the study support the composition of the ANS-T and provide initial support for the reliability and validity of the measure. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.