Measuring Digital Signage ROI : A combination of Digital Signage and Mobile Advertising as a method for measuring Digtal Signage ROI

OpenAIRE

Helander, Fredrik

2010-01-01

Marketing has changed a lot the past decade. New modern marketing channels have been developed and marketing have become more effective. This has affected the expectations advertisers have on advertising channels. One thing advertisers increasingly expect is to be able to efficiently measure the result of advertising, the ROI. A method for measuring ROI of digital signage is in focus in this study. The measurement is enabled by a combination of digital signage and mobile advertising. First a ...

Normalisation: ROI optimal treatment planning - SNDH pattern

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shilvat, D.V.; Bhandari, Virendra; Tamane, Chandrashekhar; Pangam, Suresh

2001-01-01

Dose precision maximally to the target / ROI (Region of Interest), taking care of tolerance dose of normal tissue is the aim of ideal treatment planning. This goal is achieved with advanced modalities such as, micro MLC, simulator and 3-dimensional treatment planning system. But SNDH PATTERN uses minimum available resources as, ALCYON II Telecobalt unit, CT Scan, MULTIDATA 2-dimensional treatment planning system to their maximum utility and reaches to the required precision, same as that with advance modalities. Among the number of parameters used, 'NORMALISATION TO THE ROI' will achieve the aim of the treatment planning effectively. This is dealing with an example of canal of esophagus modified treatment planning based on SNDH pattern. Results are attractive and self explanatory. By implementing SNDH pattern, the QUALITY INDEX of treatment plan will reach to greater than 90%, with substantial reduction in dose to the vital organs. Aim is to utilize the minimum available resources efficiently to achieve highest possible precision for delivering homogenous dose to ROI while taking care of tolerance dose to vital organs

An alternative to γ histograms for ROI-based quantitative dose comparisons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dvorak, P

2009-01-01

An alternative to gamma (γ) histograms for ROI-based quantitative comparisons of dose distributions using the γ concept is proposed. The method provides minimum values of dose difference and distance-to-agreement such that a pre-set fraction of the region of interest passes the γ test. Compared to standard γ histograms, the method provides more information in terms of pass rate per γ calculation. This is achieved at negligible additional calculation cost and without loss of accuracy. The presented method is proposed as a useful and complementary alternative to standard γ histograms, increasing both the quantity and quality of information for use in acceptance or rejection decisions. (note)

Reproducibility of CT bone dosimetry: Operator versus automated ROI definition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Louis, O.; Luypaert, R.; Osteaux, M.; Kalender, W.

1988-01-01

Intrasubject reproducibility with repeated determination of vertebral mineral density from a given set of CT images was investigated. The region of interest (ROI) in 10 patient scans was selected by four independent operators either manually or with an automated procedure separating cortical and spongeous bone, the operators being requested to interact in ROI selection. The mean intrasubject variation was found to be much lower with the automated process (0.3 to 0.6%) than with the conventional method (2.5 to 5.2%). In a second study, 10 patients were examined twice to determine the reproducibility of CT slice selection by the operator. The errors were of the same order of magnitude as in ROI selection. (orig.)

Roi Vaara tähendussõnad

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

2003-01-01

10. II oli Tallinna Kunstihoones soome kunstniku Roi Vaara performance Tallinna Kunstihoone uue juhataja Reiu Tüüri, kuraatorite Andres Härmi ja Reet Varblase inauguratsiooni ning TK interneti lehekülje esitluse puhul. Uue ühtse nimekuju KU autorit Edith Parist autasustati 1934 krooniga

Wavelet-based compression with ROI coding support for mobile access to DICOM images over heterogeneous radio networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Maglogiannis, Ilias; Doukas, Charalampos; Kormentzas, George; Pliakas, Thomas

2009-07-01

Most of the commercial medical image viewers do not provide scalability in image compression and/or region of interest (ROI) encoding/decoding. Furthermore, these viewers do not take into consideration the special requirements and needs of a heterogeneous radio setting that is constituted by different access technologies [e.g., general packet radio services (GPRS)/ universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), wireless local area network (WLAN), and digital video broadcasting (DVB-H)]. This paper discusses a medical application that contains a viewer for digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) images as a core module. The proposed application enables scalable wavelet-based compression, retrieval, and decompression of DICOM medical images and also supports ROI coding/decoding. Furthermore, the presented application is appropriate for use by mobile devices activating in heterogeneous radio settings. In this context, performance issues regarding the usage of the proposed application in the case of a prototype heterogeneous system setup are also discussed.

SU-F-J-19: Robust Region-Of-Interest (ROI) for Consistent Registration On Deteriorated Surface Images

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, H; Malin, M; Chmura, S; Hasan, Y; Al-Hallaq, H [The Department of Radiation and Cellular Oncology, The University of Chicago Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: For African-American patients receiving breast radiotherapy with a bolus, skin darkening can affect the surface visualization when using optical imaging for daily positioning and gating at deep-inspiration breath holds (DIBH). Our goal is to identify a region-of-interest (ROI) that is robust against deteriorating surface image quality due to skin darkening. Methods: We study four patients whose post-mastectomy surfaces are imaged daily with AlignRT (VisionRT, UK) for DIBH radiotherapy and whose surface image quality is degraded toward the end of treatment. To simulate the effects of skin darkening, surfaces from the first ten fractions of each patient are systematically degraded by 25–35%, 40–50% and 65–75% of the total area of the clinically used ROI-ipsilateral-chestwall. The degraded surfaces are registered to the reference surface in six degrees-of-freedom. To identify a robust ROI, three additional reference ROIs — ROI-chest+abdomen, ROI-bilateral-chest and ROI-extended-ipsilateral-chestwall are created and registered to the degraded surfaces. Differences in registration using these ROIs are compared to that using ROI-ipsilateral-chestwall. Results: For three patients, the deviations in the registrations to ROI-ipsilateral-chestwall are > 2.0, 3.1 and 7.9mm on average for 25–35%, 40–50% and 65–75% degraded surfaces, respectively. Rotational deviations reach 11.1° in pitch. For the last patient, registration is consistent to within 2.6mm even on the 65–75% degraded surfaces, possibly because the surface topography has more distinct features. For ROI-bilateral-chest and ROI-extended-ipsilateral-chest registrations deviate in a similar pattern. However, registration on ROI-chest+abdomen is robust to deteriorating image qualities to within 4.2mm for all four patients. Conclusion: Registration deviations using ROI-ipsilateral-chestwall can reach 9.8mm on the 40–50% degraded surfaces. Caution is required when using AlignRT for patients

The evaluation of the automatic setting of ROI to SPECT measuring cerebral blood flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mizuno, Hiroshi; Takahashi, Masaaki; Yoshioka, Katsunori

2007-01-01

It has been pointed out that the manual settings of region of interest (ROI) to the single-photon-emission-computed-tomography (SPECT) slice lacked objectivity when the fixed quantity value of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was measured previously. Therefore, we jointly developed software Brain ROI'' with Daiichi Radioisotope Laboratories, Ltd. (DRL) that normalized an individual brain to a standard brain template by using Statistical Parametric Mapping 2 (SPM 2) of easy Z-score Imaging System ver. 3.0 (eZIS Ver. 3.0), and, ROI template was set to a specific slice. In this paper, we evaluated the accuracy of this software with ROI template that we made the useful size of the shape, in some clinical samples. As a result, the method of the automatic setting of ROI was the objectively. However, we thought that we should use the shape of ROI template without an influence of Brain atrophy. Moreover, we should see Normalizing individual brain and confirm the accuracy of normalization. When failing in normalization, we should partially correct ROI or set all by the manual operation of the operator. However, it was thought that this software was useful if the tendency was understood because the failure example was few. (author)

A direct ROI quantification method for inherent PVE correction: accuracy assessment in striatal SPECT measurements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vanzi, Eleonora; De Cristofaro, Maria T.; Sotgia, Barbara; Mascalchi, Mario; Formiconi, Andreas R. [University of Florence, Clinical Pathophysiology, Florence (Italy); Ramat, Silvia [University of Florence, Neurological and Psychiatric Sciences, Florence (Italy)

2007-09-15

The clinical potential of striatal imaging with dopamine transporter (DAT) SPECT tracers is hampered by the limited capability to recover activity concentration ratios due to partial volume effects (PVE). We evaluated the accuracy of a least squares method that allows retrieval of activity in regions of interest directly from projections (LS-ROI). An Alderson striatal phantom was filled with striatal to background ratios of 6:1, 9:1 and 28:1; the striatal and background ROIs were drawn on a coregistered X-ray CT of the phantom. The activity ratios of these ROIs were derived both with the LS-ROI method and with conventional SPECT EM reconstruction (EM-SPECT). Moreover, the two methods were compared in seven patients with motor symptoms who were examined with N-3-fluoropropyl-2-{beta}-carboxymethoxy-3-{beta}-(4-iodophenyl) (FP-CIT) SPECT, calculating the binding potential (BP). In the phantom study, the activity ratios obtained with EM-SPECT were 3.5, 5.3 and 17.0, respectively, whereas the LS-ROI method resulted in ratios of 6.2, 9.0 and 27.3, respectively. With the LS-ROI method, the BP in the seven patients was approximately 60% higher than with EM-SPECT; a linear correlation between the LS-ROI and the EM estimates was found (r = 0.98, p = 0.03). The LS-ROI PVE correction capability is mainly due to the fact that the ill-conditioning of the LS-ROI approach is lower than that of the EM-SPECT one. The LS-ROI seems to be feasible and accurate in the examination of the dopaminergic system. This approach can be fruitful in monitoring of disease progression and in clinical trials of dopaminergic drugs. (orig.)

Can state-of-the-art HVS-based objective image quality criteria be used for image reconstruction techniques based on ROI analysis?

Science.gov (United States)

Dostal, P.; Krasula, L.; Klima, M.

2012-06-01

Various image processing techniques in multimedia technology are optimized using visual attention feature of the human visual system. Spatial non-uniformity causes that different locations in an image are of different importance in terms of perception of the image. In other words, the perceived image quality depends mainly on the quality of important locations known as regions of interest. The performance of such techniques is measured by subjective evaluation or objective image quality criteria. Many state-of-the-art objective metrics are based on HVS properties; SSIM, MS-SSIM based on image structural information, VIF based on the information that human brain can ideally gain from the reference image or FSIM utilizing the low-level features to assign the different importance to each location in the image. But still none of these objective metrics utilize the analysis of regions of interest. We solve the question if these objective metrics can be used for effective evaluation of images reconstructed by processing techniques based on ROI analysis utilizing high-level features. In this paper authors show that the state-of-the-art objective metrics do not correlate well with subjective evaluation while the demosaicing based on ROI analysis is used for reconstruction. The ROI were computed from "ground truth" visual attention data. The algorithm combining two known demosaicing techniques on the basis of ROI location is proposed to reconstruct the ROI in fine quality while the rest of image is reconstructed with low quality. The color image reconstructed by this ROI approach was compared with selected demosaicing techniques by objective criteria and subjective testing. The qualitative comparison of the objective and subjective results indicates that the state-of-the-art objective metrics are still not suitable for evaluation image processing techniques based on ROI analysis and new criteria is demanded.

Measuring the ROI on Knowledge Management Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Wickhorst, Vickie

2002-01-01

Defines knowledge management and corporate portals and provides a model that can be applied to assessing return on investment (ROI) for a knowledge management solution. Highlights include leveraging knowledge in an organization; assessing the value of human capital; and the Intellectual Capital Performance Measurement Model. (LRW)

ROI en medios sociales: campañas de marketing en bibliotecas

OpenAIRE

González-Fernández-Villavicencio, Nieves

2015-01-01

Social media marketing must be a part of a digital marketing plan. Although marketing traditionally has been associated with obtaining an economic ROI (return on investment), it also can be measured in terms of social ROI (return on influence, return on relationships, reputation, branding, etc.). This study addresses the use of digital marketing campaigns by libraries for social profitability. Concepts related to digital marketing and social media marketing, and the way different types of org...

Automated PET-only quantification of amyloid deposition with adaptive template and empirically pre-defined ROI

Science.gov (United States)

Akamatsu, G.; Ikari, Y.; Ohnishi, A.; Nishida, H.; Aita, K.; Sasaki, M.; Yamamoto, Y.; Sasaki, M.; Senda, M.

2016-08-01

Amyloid PET is useful for early and/or differential diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Quantification of amyloid deposition using PET has been employed to improve diagnosis and to monitor AD therapy, particularly in research. Although MRI is often used for segmentation of gray matter and for spatial normalization into standard Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) space where region-of-interest (ROI) template is defined, 3D MRI is not always available in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of PET-only amyloid quantification with an adaptive template and a pre-defined standard ROI template that has been empirically generated from typical cases. A total of 68 subjects who underwent brain 11C-PiB PET were examined. The 11C-PiB images were non-linearly spatially normalized to the standard MNI T1 atlas using the same transformation parameters of MRI-based normalization. The automatic-anatomical-labeling-ROI (AAL-ROI) template was applied to the PET images. All voxel values were normalized by the mean value of cerebellar cortex to generate the SUVR-scaled images. Eleven typical positive images and eight typical negative images were normalized and averaged, respectively, and were used as the positive and negative template. Positive and negative masks which consist of voxels with SUVR  ⩾1.7 were extracted from both templates. Empirical PiB-prone ROI (EPP-ROI) was generated by subtracting the negative mask from the positive mask. The 11C-PiB image of each subject was non-rigidly normalized to the positive and negative template, respectively, and the one with higher cross-correlation was adopted. The EPP-ROI was then inversely transformed to individual PET images. We evaluated differences of SUVR between standard MRI-based method and PET-only method. We additionally evaluated whether the PET-only method would correctly categorize 11C-PiB scans as positive or negative. Significant correlation was observed between the SUVRs

Return on investment. What is ROI and how to use it.

Science.gov (United States)

Cotter, Steve

2014-08-01

Formulated and interpreted correctly, ROI tools and techniques can be very useful for EMS managers when evaluating various competing projects and initiatives within the organization. More so, decision makers and elected bodies responsible for approving the financial support of these initiatives are demanding that they be presented with a more complete picture of the return for any dollars allocated under ever-tightening financial considerations that all organizations face today. ROI can be a powerful tool in supporting your organization when competing for limited dollars.

The hands-on project office guaranteeing ROI and on-time delivery

CERN Document Server

Kesner, Richard M

2003-01-01

THE THREE PILLARS OF IT DELIVERY - PROBLEM RESOLUTION, SERVICE REQUESTS, AND PROJECTSIntroduction The Business Context The Internal Economy for Investing in IT Services and ProjectsThe Three Pillars of IT Delivery Managing Service DeliveryManaging Project Commitments IT Metrics and Reporting Tools THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE BUSINESS MODELIntroduction: Revisiting the IT Organization IT Service and Project Delivery RolesThe Role of the Project Management Office: Measuring its ROI The PMO Value Proposition: An Initial ROI Estimate ALIGNMENT AND PLANNING - DOING THE RIGHT THINGS Introduction Ge

Application of a semi-automatic ROI setting system for brain PET images to animal PET studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuge, Yuji; Akai, Nobuo; Tamura, Koji

1998-01-01

ProASSIST, a semi-automatic ROI (region of interest) setting system for human brain PET images, has been modified for use with the canine brain, and the performance of the obtained system was evaluated by comparing the operational simplicity for ROI setting and the consistency of ROI values obtained with those by a conventional manual procedure. Namely, we created segment maps for the canine brain by making reference to the coronal section atlas of the canine brain by Lim et al., and incorporated them into the ProASSIST system. For the performance test, CBF (cerebral blood flow) and CMRglc (cerebral metabolic rate in glucose) images in dogs with or without focal cerebral ischemia were used. In ProASSIST, brain contours were defined semiautomatically. In the ROI analysis of the test image, manual modification of the contour was necessary in half cases examined (8/16). However, the operation was rather simple so that the operation time per one brain section was significantly shorter than that in the manual operation. The ROI values determined by the system were comparable with those by the manual procedure, confirming the applicability of the system to these animal studies. The use of the system like the present one would also merit the more objective data acquisition for the quantitative ROI analysis, because no manual procedure except for some specifications of the anatomical features is required for ROI setting. (author)

Effects of ROI definition and reconstruction method on quantitative outcome and applicability in a response monitoring trial

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krak, Nanda C.; Boellaard, R.; Hoekstra, Otto S.; Hoekstra, Corneline J.; Twisk, Jos W.R.; Lammertsma, Adriaan A.

2005-01-01

Quantitative measurement of tracer uptake in a tumour can be influenced by a number of factors, including the method of defining regions of interest (ROIs) and the reconstruction parameters used. The main purpose of this study was to determine the effects of different ROI methods on quantitative outcome, using two reconstruction methods and the standard uptake value (SUV) as a simple quantitative measure of FDG uptake. Four commonly used methods of ROI definition (manual placement, fixed dimensions, threshold based and maximum pixel value) were used to calculate SUV (SUV [MAN] , SUV 15 mm , SUV 50 , SUV 75 and SUV max , respectively) and to generate ''metabolic'' tumour volumes. Test-retest reproducibility of SUVs and of ''metabolic'' tumour volumes and the applicability of ROI methods during chemotherapy were assessed. In addition, SUVs calculated on ordered subsets expectation maximisation (OSEM) and filtered back-projection (FBP) images were compared. ROI definition had a direct effect on quantitative outcome. On average, SUV [MAN] , SUV 15 mm , SUV 50 and SUV 75 , were respectively 48%, 27%, 34% and 15% lower than SUV max when calculated on OSEM images. No statistically significant differences were found between SUVs calculated on OSEM and FBP reconstructed images. Highest reproducibility was found for SUV 15 mm and SUV [MAN] (ICC 0.95 and 0.94, respectively) and for ''metabolic'' volumes measured with the manual and 50% threshold ROIs (ICC 0.99 for both). Manual, 75% threshold and maximum pixel ROIs could be used throughout therapy, regardless of changes in tumour uptake or geometry. SUVs showed the same trend in relative change in FDG uptake after chemotherapy, irrespective of the ROI method used. The method of ROI definition has a direct influence on quantitative outcome. In terms of simplicity, user-independence, reproducibility and general applicability the threshold-based and fixed dimension methods are the best ROI methods. Threshold methods are in

Oil palm fresh fruit bunch ripeness classification based on rule- based expert system of ROI image processing technique results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alfatni, M S M; Shariff, A R M; Marhaban, M H; Shafie, S B; Saaed, O M B; Abdullah, M Z; BAmiruddin, M D

2014-01-01

There is a processing need for a fast, easy and accurate classification system for oil palm fruit ripeness. Such a system will be invaluable to farmers and plantation managers who need to sell their oil palm fresh fruit bunch (FFB) for the mill as this will avoid disputes. In this paper,a new approach was developed under the name of expert rules-based systembased on the image processing techniques results of thethree different oil palm FFB region of interests (ROIs), namely; ROI1 (300x300 pixels), ROI2 (50x50 pixels) and ROI3 (100x100 pixels). The results show that the best rule-based ROIs for statistical colour feature extraction with k-nearest neighbors (KNN) classifier at 94% were chosen as well as the ROIs that indicated results higher than the rule-based outcome, such as the ROIs of statistical colour feature extraction with artificial neural network (ANN) classifier at 94%, were selected for further FFB ripeness inspection system

Examining Brain Morphometry Associated with Self-Esteem in Young Adults Using Multilevel-ROI-Features-Based Classification Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bo Peng

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Purpose: This study is to exam self-esteem related brain morphometry on brain magnetic resonance (MR images using multilevel-features-based classification method.Method: The multilevel region of interest (ROI features consist of two types of features: (i ROI features, which include gray matter volume, white matter volume, cerebrospinal fluid volume, cortical thickness, and cortical surface area, and (ii similarity features, which are based on similarity calculation of cortical thickness between ROIs. For each feature type, a hybrid feature selection method, comprising of filter-based and wrapper-based algorithms, is used to select the most discriminating features. ROI features and similarity features are integrated by using multi-kernel support vector machines (SVMs with appropriate weighting factor.Results: The classification performance is improved by using multilevel ROI features with an accuracy of 96.66%, a specificity of 96.62%, and a sensitivity of 95.67%. The most discriminating ROI features that are related to self-esteem spread over occipital lobe, frontal lobe, parietal lobe, limbic lobe, temporal lobe, and central region, mainly involving white matter and cortical thickness. The most discriminating similarity features are distributed in both the right and left hemisphere, including frontal lobe, occipital lobe, limbic lobe, parietal lobe, and central region, which conveys information of structural connections between different brain regions.Conclusion: By using ROI features and similarity features to exam self-esteem related brain morphometry, this paper provides a pilot evidence that self-esteem is linked to specific ROIs and structural connections between different brain regions.

A Joint Watermarking and ROI Coding Scheme for Annotating Traffic Surveillance Videos

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Su Po-Chyi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available We propose a new application of information hiding by employing the digital watermarking techniques to facilitate the data annotation in traffic surveillance videos. There are two parts in the proposed scheme. The first part is the object-based watermarking, in which the information of each vehicle collected by the intelligent transportation system will be conveyed/stored along with the visual data via information hiding. The scheme is integrated with H.264/AVC, which is assumed to be adopted by the surveillance system, to achieve an efficient implementation. The second part is a Region of Interest (ROI rate control mechanism for encoding traffic surveillance videos, which helps to improve the overall performance. The quality of vehicles in the video will be better preserved and a good rate-distortion performance can be attained. Experimental results show that this potential scheme works well in traffic surveillance videos.

Attention to detail helps Clarian measure ROI.

Science.gov (United States)

2007-01-01

Clarian Health takes a risk and embarks on a branding strategy. Taking a multi-integrated approach, with The Heavy Weights in Indianapolis, Clarian started managing its marketing by tracking return on investment (ROI) and making the most of a CRM database. In a groundbreaking approach, it found that it was actually able to turn its marketing effort into a money-maker, leading higher-ups to see its outreach efforts as necessity.

Efficient ConvNet Feature Extraction with Multiple RoI Pooling for Landmark-Based Visual Localization of Autonomous Vehicles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yi Hou

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Efficient and robust visual localization is important for autonomous vehicles. By achieving impressive localization accuracy under conditions of significant changes, ConvNet landmark-based approach has attracted the attention of people in several research communities including autonomous vehicles. Such an approach relies heavily on the outstanding discrimination power of ConvNet features to match detected landmarks between images. However, a major challenge of this approach is how to extract discriminative ConvNet features efficiently. To address this challenging, inspired by the high efficiency of the region of interest (RoI pooling layer, we propose a Multiple RoI (MRoI pooling technique, an enhancement of RoI, and a simple yet efficient ConvNet feature extraction method. Our idea is to leverage MRoI pooling to exploit multilevel and multiresolution information from multiple convolutional layers and then fuse them to improve the discrimination capacity of the final ConvNet features. The main advantages of our method are (a high computational efficiency for real-time applications; (b GPU memory efficiency for mobile applications; and (c use of pretrained model without fine-tuning or retraining for easy implementation. Experimental results on four datasets have demonstrated not only the above advantages but also the high discriminating power of the extracted ConvNet features with state-of-the-art localization accuracy.

Influence of ROI selection on Resting Functional Connectivity: An Individualized Approach for Resting fMRI Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

William Seunghyun Sohn

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The differences in how our brain is connected are often thought to reflect the differences in our individual personalities and cognitive abilities. Individual differences in brain connectivity has long been recognized in the neuroscience community however it has yet to manifest itself in the methodology of resting state analysis. This is evident as previous studies use the same region of interest (ROIs for all subjects. In this paper we demonstrate that the use of ROIs which are standardized across individuals leads to inaccurate calculations of functional connectivity. We also show that this problem can be addressed by taking an individualized approach by using subject-specific ROIs. Finally we show that ROI selection can affect the way we interpret our data by showing different changes in functional connectivity with ageing.

The fast iris image clarity evaluation based on Tenengrad and ROI selection

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Shuqin; Han, Min; Cheng, Xu

2018-04-01

In iris recognition system, the clarity of iris image is an important factor that influences recognition effect. In the process of recognition, the blurred image may possibly be rejected by the automatic iris recognition system, which will lead to the failure of identification. Therefore it is necessary to evaluate the iris image definition before recognition. Considered the existing evaluation methods on iris image definition, we proposed a fast algorithm to evaluate the definition of iris image in this paper. In our algorithm, firstly ROI (Region of Interest) is extracted based on the reference point which is determined by using the feature of the light spots within the pupil, then Tenengrad operator is used to evaluate the iris image's definition. Experiment results show that, the iris image definition algorithm proposed in this paper could accurately distinguish the iris images of different clarity, and the algorithm has the merit of low computational complexity and more effectiveness.

Low-Cost Small Satellite Atmospheric Rotating Solar Occultation Imager (ROI)

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Utilizing a unique, new occultation technique involving imaging, the ROI concept will meet or exceed the quality of SAGE measurements at a small fraction of the...

包装彩盒检测中定位核提取算法%Extraction algorithm of ROI for detecting colored box

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

陈功明; 李锋

2016-01-01

To reduce the complexity of the existing method for automatically extracting region of interest (ROI)and improve the detection efficiency in package printing detection process,an algorithm for automatic extraction of ROI was proposed on account of multi-feature.Based on the input selected rectangular region,by comparing the output parameters like contrast ratio,duty cycle,XY direction confidence interval and the symmetry of the fitting curve of the matching coefficient,the ROI was j udged to be good or not.The feasibility of the scheme was verified using the method of automatically calculative center coordinate error. Simulation analysis demonstrates that the algorithm succeeds in extracting automatic ROI for less than 100 ms,and success rate reaches 99.78% or more,the complexity of the proposed algorithm is much lower than that of the existing ones.The proposed verification method is simple and reliable.%为降低现有包装印刷品检测过程中感兴趣区域(简称定位核)提取方法的复杂度，提高检测效率，提出一种基于多特征的定位核自动提取方案。通过输入选中的矩形区域，输出参数对比度、占空比、XY 方向置信区间的取值范围及匹配系数拟合曲线的对称性，综合判断提取定位核的好坏。提出自动求取中心点坐标误差法对该方案的有效性进行验证。仿真分析结果表明，该方案可在100 ms内自动提取定位核，成功率达到99.78%以上，明显优于已有方案，所提验证方法简单可靠。

Cloud computing and ROI a new framework for it strategy

CERN Document Server

Mohapatra, Sanjay

2014-01-01

This book develops an IT strategy for cloud computing that helps businesses evaluate their readiness for cloud services and calculate the ROI. The framework provided helps reduce risks involved in transitioning from traditional "on site" IT strategy to virtual "cloud computing." Since the advent of cloud computing, many organizations have made substantial gains implementing this innovation. Cloud computing allows companies to focus more on their core competencies, as IT enablement is taken care of through cloud services. Cloud Computing and ROI includes case studies covering retail, automobile and food processing industries. Each of these case studies have successfully implemented the cloud computing framework and their strategies are explained. As cloud computing may not be ideal for all businesses, criteria?are also offered to help determine if this strategy should be adopt.

The Criticality of Connecting People to Financial Results ‒ an ROI Calculation Model for Romanian FSOs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Niculescu

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Organisational culture and employee engagement have been the focus of recent broad-based research efforts. Adding this concern to the revealed importance of performance indicators on human capital, and that their use is getting momentum, in order to attach financial values to knowledge management assets, it becomes more and more critical to measure human capital value. Key for Romanian FSO’s managers becomes to consider that both human and financial values have a focus on adding value in every process and function in the organisation, and to perpetuate organisational profitability by the corporate culture, on the one hand, where culture is a powerful factor that helps a company to engage, on the other hand, talented people. There is a substantial concern on using ROI on Learning and Development programmes, but whilst this is still declared, Romanian FSOs do not yet have a consistent method to measure it. This study is showing the criticality of connecting people to financial results and data analysis suggests that ROI calculation has a positive impact on creating and fostering a powerful organisational culture and that employees’ awareness of ROI values within their organisation has a powerful effect on their sense of engagement. Our findings have a more practical implication for the analysed industry by shaping a formal ROI measurement mechanisms blueprint, an ROI calculation model for the Romanian FSOs, in the form of a mechanism that could be employed when considering the design of an ROI Methodology for Romanian FSOs.

Ludwig, un roi sur la lune : l’histoire d’un roi fou jouée par des comédien.ne.s en situation de handicap mental

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marie Astier

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Ludwig, un roi sur la lune, spectacle mis en scène par Madeleine Louarn avec les comédien.ne.s professionnels en situation de handicap mental de l’Atelier Catalyse et présenté lors de la dernière édition du Festival d’Avignon n’est pas une reconstitution historique de la vie de Louis II de Bavière, roi du XIXe siècle diagnostiqué paranoïaque et destitué pour être interné, mais une tentative de transcrire théâtralement la perception du monde d’un homme amoureux de l’Art, de la nature et des hommes, mais qui devait être Roi. Ce n’est ni un personnage ni des comédien.ne.s « handicapé.e.s » que nous sommes invités à voir, mais les visions de Ludwig incarnées par des comédien.ne.s qui se trouvent être en situation de handicap mental. Dans ce spectacle, la « folie » devenue plus tard « handicap mental » apparaît sous les traits de la non-conformité bien plus que sous ceux de la pathologie.

Computerized analysis of mammographic parenchymal patterns for assessing breast cancer risk: Effect of ROI size and location

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Hui; Giger, Maryellen L.; Huo Zhimin; Olopade, Olufunmilayo I.; Lan Li; Weber, Barbara L.; Bonta, Ioana

2004-01-01

The long-term goal of our research is to develop computerized radiographic markers for assessing breast density and parenchymal patterns that may be used together with clinical measures for determining the risk of breast cancer and assessing the response to preventive treatment. In our earlier studies, we found that women at high risk tended to have dense breasts with mammographic patterns that were coarse and low in contrast. With our method, computerized texture analysis is performed on a region of interest (ROI) within the mammographic image. In our current study, we investigate the effect of ROI size and ROI location on the computerized texture features obtained from 90 subjects (30 BRCA1/BRCA2 gene-mutation carriers and 60 age-matched women deemed to be at low risk for breast cancer). Mammograms were digitized at 0.1 mm pixel size and various ROI sizes were extracted from different breast regions in the craniocaudal (CC) view. Seventeen features, which characterize the density and texture of the parenchymal patterns, were extracted from the ROIs on these digitized mammograms. Stepwise feature selection and linear discriminant analysis were applied to identify features that differentiate between the low-risk women and the BRCA1/BRCA2 gene-mutation carriers. ROC analysis was used to assess the performance of the features in the task of distinguishing between these two groups. Our results show that there was a statistically significant decrease in the performance of the computerized texture features, as the ROI location was varied from the central region behind the nipple. However, we failed to show a statistically significant decrease in the performance of the computerized texture features with decreasing ROI size for the range studied

A method to estimate the fractional fat volume within a ROI of a breast biopsy for WAXS applications: Animal tissue evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, Robert Y.; McDonald, Nancy; Laamanen, Curtis; LeClair, Robert J.

2014-01-01

Purpose: To develop a method to estimate the mean fractional volume of fat (ν ¯ fat ) within a region of interest (ROI) of a tissue sample for wide-angle x-ray scatter (WAXS) applications. A scatter signal from the ROI was obtained and use of ν ¯ fat in a WAXS fat subtraction model provided a way to estimate the differential linear scattering coefficient μ s of the remaining fatless tissue. Methods: The efficacy of the method was tested using animal tissue from a local butcher shop. Formalin fixed samples, 5 mm in diameter 4 mm thick, were prepared. The two main tissue types were fat and meat (fibrous). Pure as well as composite samples consisting of a mixture of the two tissue types were analyzed. For the latter samples, ν fat for the tissue columns of interest were extracted from corresponding pixels in CCD digital x-ray images using a calibration curve. The means ν ¯ fat were then calculated for use in a WAXS fat subtraction model. For the WAXS measurements, the samples were interrogated with a 2.7 mm diameter 50 kV beam and the 6° scattered photons were detected with a CdTe detector subtending a solid angle of 7.75 × 10 −5 sr. Using the scatter spectrum, an estimate of the incident spectrum, and a scatter model, μ s was determined for the tissue in the ROI. For the composite samples, a WAXS fat subtraction model was used to estimate the μ s of the fibrous tissue in the ROI. This signal was compared to μ s of fibrous tissue obtained using a pure fibrous sample. Results: For chicken and beef composites, ν ¯ fat =0.33±0.05 and 0.32 ± 0.05, respectively. The subtractions of these fat components from the WAXS composite signals provided estimates of μ s for chicken and beef fibrous tissue. The differences between the estimates and μ s of fibrous obtained with a pure sample were calculated as a function of the momentum transfer x. A t-test showed that the mean of the differences did not vary from zero in a statistically significant way thereby

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in the characterization of testicular germ cell neoplasms: Effect of ROI methods on apparent diffusion coefficient values and interobserver variability

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tsili, Athina C., E-mail: a_tsili@yahoo.gr [Department of Clinical Radiology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Ntorkou, Alexandra, E-mail: alexdorkou@hotmail.com [Department of Clinical Radiology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Astrakas, Loukas, E-mail: astrakas@uoi.gr [Department of Medical Physics, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Xydis, Vasilis, E-mail: vxydis@cc.uoi.gr [Department of Clinical Radiology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Tsampalas, Stavros, E-mail: stamp@gmail.com [Department of Urology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Sofikitis, Nikolaos, E-mail: akrosnin@hotmail.com [Department of Urology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece); Argyropoulou, Maria I., E-mail: margyrop@cc.uoi.gr [Department of Clinical Radiology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, University Campus, 45110, Ioannina (Greece)

2017-04-15

Highlights: • Seminomas have lower mean ADC compared to NSGCNs. • Round ROI is accurate in characterizing TGCNS. • ROI shape has no significant effect on interobserver variability. - Abstract: Introduction: To evaluate the difference in apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements at diffusion-weighted (DW) magnetic resonance imaging of differently shaped regions-of-interest (ROIs) in testicular germ cell neoplasms (TGCNS), the diagnostic ability of differently shaped ROIs in differentiating seminomas from nonseminomatous germ cell neoplasms (NSGCNs) and the interobserver variability. Materials and methods: Thirty-three TGCNs were retrospectively evaluated. Patients underwent MR examinations, including DWI on a 1.5-T MR system. Two observers measured mean tumor ADCs using four distinct ROI methods: round, square, freehand and multiple small, round ROIs. The interclass correlation coefficient was analyzed to assess interobserver variability. Statistical analysis was used to compare mean ADC measurements among observers, methods and histologic types. Results: All ROI methods showed excellent interobserver agreement, with excellent correlation (P < 0.001). Multiple, small ROIs provided the lower mean ADC in TGCNs. Seminomas had lower mean ADC compared to NSGCNs for each ROI method (P < 0.001). Round ROI proved the most accurate method in characterizing TGCNS. Conclusion: Interobserver variability in ADC measurement is excellent, irrespective of the ROI shape. Multiple, small round ROIs and round ROI proved the more accurate methods for ADC measurement in the characterization of TGCNs and in the differentiation between seminomas and NSGCNs, respectively.

Single-shot full resolution region-of-interest (ROI) reconstruction in image plane digital holographic microscopy

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Mandeep; Khare, Kedar

2018-05-01

We describe a numerical processing technique that allows single-shot region-of-interest (ROI) reconstruction in image plane digital holographic microscopy with full pixel resolution. The ROI reconstruction is modelled as an optimization problem where the cost function to be minimized consists of an L2-norm squared data fitting term and a modified Huber penalty term that are minimized alternately in an adaptive fashion. The technique can provide full pixel resolution complex-valued images of the selected ROI which is not possible to achieve with the commonly used Fourier transform method. The technique can facilitate holographic reconstruction of individual cells of interest from a large field-of-view digital holographic microscopy data. The complementary phase information in addition to the usual absorption information already available in the form of bright field microscopy can make the methodology attractive to the biomedical user community.

Radiologic-pathologic analysis of quantitative 3D tumour enhancement on contrast-enhanced MR imaging: a study of ROI placement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chockalingam, Arun; Duran, Rafael; Sohn, Jae Ho; Schernthaner, Ruediger; Chapiro, Julius; Lee, Howard; Sahu, Sonia; Nguyen, Sonny; Geschwind, Jean-Francois; Lin, MingDe

2016-01-01

To investigate the influence of region-of-interest (ROI) placement on 3D tumour enhancement [Quantitative European Association for the Study of the Liver (qEASL)] in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients treated with transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). Phase 1: 40 HCC patients had nine ROIs placed by one reader using systematic techniques (3 ipsilateral to the lesion, 3 contralateral to the lesion, and 3 dispersed throughout the liver) and qEASL variance was measured. Intra-class correlations were computed. Phase 2: 15 HCC patients with histosegmentation were selected. Six ROIs were systematically placed by AC (3 ROIs ipsilateral and 3 ROIs contralateral to the lesion). Three ROIs were placed by 2 radiologists. qEASL values were compared to histopathology by Pearson's correlation, linear regression, and median difference. Phase 1: The dispersed method (abandoned in phase 2) had low consistency and high variance. Phase 2: qEASL correlated strongly with pathology in systematic methods [Pearson's correlation coefficient = 0.886 (ipsilateral) and 0.727 (contralateral)] and in clinical methods (0.625 and 0.879). However, ipsilateral placement matched best with pathology (median difference: 5.4 %; correlation: 0.89; regression CI: [0.904, 0.1409]). qEASL is a robust method with comparable values among tested placements. Ipsilateral placement showed high consistency and better pathological correlation. (orig.)

The Study on Bone Mineral Density Measurement Error in Accordance with Change in ROI by Utilizing Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Yun Hong [Dept. of Diagnostic Radiology, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Lee, In Ja [Dept. of Radiological Technology, Dongnam Health College, Suwon (Korea, Republic of); Yong, Hyung Jin [Dept. of Medicine Physics, The Graduate School of Biomedical Science Korea University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2012-03-15

Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry(DEXA) is commonly used to diagnose Osteoporosis. The errors of DEXA bone density operation are caused by operator, bone mineral density meter, blood testing, patient. We focus on operator error then study about how much influence operator's region of intest(ROI) in bone testing result. During from March to July in 2011. 50 patients ware selected respectively from 30, 40, 50, 60, and 70 age groups who came to Korea University Medical Center(KUMC) for their Osteoporosis treatment. A-test was performed with usually ROI and B-test was performed with most widely ROI. Then, We compare A-test and B-test for find maximum difference of T-score error which occurred operator ROI controlling. Standard deviation of T-score of B-test showed 0.1 higher then A-test in femur neck. Standard deviation of B-test showed 0.2 higher then A-test in Ward's area which in Greater trocanter and Inter trocanter. Standard deviation of B-test showed 0,1 lower then A-test in L-1. Bone density testing about Two hundred patients results are as follow. When operator ROI was changed wider than normal ROI, bone density of femur was measured more higher but bone density of L-spine was measured more lower then normal bone density. That means, sometime DEXA bone density testing result is dependent by operator ROI controlling. This is relevant with the patient's medicine and health insurance, thus, tester always keep the size of ROI for to prevent any problem in the patient.

A method to estimate the fractional fat volume within a ROI of a breast biopsy for WAXS applications: Animal tissue evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang, Robert Y., E-mail: rx-tang@laurentian.ca [Biomolecular Sciences Program, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario P3E 2C6 (Canada); McDonald, Nancy, E-mail: mcdnancye@gmail.com; Laamanen, Curtis, E-mail: cx-laamanen@laurentian.ca [Department of Physics, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario P3E 2C6 (Canada); LeClair, Robert J., E-mail: rleclair@laurentian.ca [Department of Physics, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario P3E 2C6, Canada and Biomolecular Sciences Program, Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, Ontario P3E 2C6 (Canada)

2014-11-01

Purpose: To develop a method to estimate the mean fractional volume of fat (ν{sup ¯}{sub fat}) within a region of interest (ROI) of a tissue sample for wide-angle x-ray scatter (WAXS) applications. A scatter signal from the ROI was obtained and use of ν{sup ¯}{sub fat} in a WAXS fat subtraction model provided a way to estimate the differential linear scattering coefficient μ{sub s} of the remaining fatless tissue. Methods: The efficacy of the method was tested using animal tissue from a local butcher shop. Formalin fixed samples, 5 mm in diameter 4 mm thick, were prepared. The two main tissue types were fat and meat (fibrous). Pure as well as composite samples consisting of a mixture of the two tissue types were analyzed. For the latter samples, ν{sub fat} for the tissue columns of interest were extracted from corresponding pixels in CCD digital x-ray images using a calibration curve. The means ν{sup ¯}{sub fat} were then calculated for use in a WAXS fat subtraction model. For the WAXS measurements, the samples were interrogated with a 2.7 mm diameter 50 kV beam and the 6° scattered photons were detected with a CdTe detector subtending a solid angle of 7.75 × 10{sup −5} sr. Using the scatter spectrum, an estimate of the incident spectrum, and a scatter model, μ{sub s} was determined for the tissue in the ROI. For the composite samples, a WAXS fat subtraction model was used to estimate the μ{sub s} of the fibrous tissue in the ROI. This signal was compared to μ{sub s} of fibrous tissue obtained using a pure fibrous sample. Results: For chicken and beef composites, ν{sup ¯}{sub fat}=0.33±0.05 and 0.32 ± 0.05, respectively. The subtractions of these fat components from the WAXS composite signals provided estimates of μ{sub s} for chicken and beef fibrous tissue. The differences between the estimates and μ{sub s} of fibrous obtained with a pure sample were calculated as a function of the momentum transfer x. A t-test showed that the mean of the

Language pathway tracking: comparing nTMS-based DTI fiber tracking with a cubic ROIs-based protocol.

Science.gov (United States)

Negwer, Chiara; Sollmann, Nico; Ille, Sebastian; Hauck, Theresa; Maurer, Stefanie; Kirschke, Jan S; Ringel, Florian; Meyer, Bernhard; Krieg, Sandro M

2017-03-01

OBJECTIVE Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) fiber tracking (FT) has been widely used in glioma surgery in recent years. It can provide helpful information about subcortical structures, especially in patients with eloquent space-occupying lesions. This study compared the newly developed navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation (nTMS)-based DTI FT of language pathways with the most reproducible protocol for language pathway tractography, using cubic regions of interest (ROIs) for the arcuate fascicle. METHODS Thirty-seven patients with left-sided perisylvian lesions underwent language mapping by repetitive nTMS. DTI FT was performed using the cubic ROIs-based protocol and the authors' nTMS-based DTI FT approach. The same minimal fiber length and fractional anisotropy were chosen (50 mm and 0.2, respectively). Both protocols were performed with standard clinical tractography software. RESULTS Both methods visualized language-related fiber tracts (i.e., corticonuclear tract, arcuate fascicle, uncinate fascicle, superior longitudinal fascicle, inferior longitudinal fascicle, arcuate fibers, commissural fibers, corticothalamic fibers, and frontooccipital fascicle) in all 37 patients. Using the cubic ROIs-based protocol, 39.9% of these language-related fiber tracts were detected in the examined patients, as opposed to 76.0% when performing nTMS-based DTI FT. For specifically tracking the arcuate fascicle, however, the cubic ROIs-based approach showed better results (97.3% vs 75.7% with nTMS-based DTI FT). CONCLUSIONS The cubic ROIs-based protocol was designed for arcuate fascicle tractography, and this study shows that it is still useful for this intention. However, superior results were obtained using the nTMS-based DTI FT for visualization of other language-related fiber tracts.

Evaluation of bone involvement in patients with Gaucher disease: a semi-quantitative magnetic resonance imaging method (using ROI estimation of bone lesion) as an alternative method to semi-quantitative methods used so far.

Science.gov (United States)

Komninaka, Veroniki; Kolomodi, Dionysia; Christoulas, Dimitrios; Marinakis, Theodoros; Papatheodorou, Athanasios; Repa, Konstantina; Voskaridou, Ersi; Revenas, Konstantinos; Terpos, Evangelos

2015-10-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate bone involvement in patients with Gaucher disease (GD) and to propose a novel semi-quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) staging. MRI of the lumbar spine, femur, and tibia was performed in 24 patients with GD and 24 healthy controls. We also measured circulating levels of C-C motif ligand-3 (CCL-3) chemokine, C-telopeptide of collagen type-1 (CTX), and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase isoform type-b (TRACP-5b). We used the following staging based on MRI data: stage I: region of interest (ROI) 1/2 of normal values and bone infiltration up to 30%; stage II: ROI 1/3 of normal values and bone infiltration from 30 to 60%; stage III: ROI 1/4 of normal values and bone infiltration from 60% to 80%; and stage IV: detection of epiphyseal infiltration, osteonecrosis and deformity regardless of the ROI's values. All but two patients had abnormal MRI findings: 9 (37.5%), 6 (25%), 3 (12.5%), and 4 (16.7%) had stages I-IV, respectively. Patients with GD had elevated chitotriosidase, serum TRACP-5b, and CCL-3 levels (P < 0.001). We propose an easily reproducible semi-quantitative scoring system and confirm that patients with GD have abnormal MRI bone findings and enhanced osteoclast activity possibly due to elevated CCL-3. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Aznar, Hanotin, and May (eds., À la place du roi. Vice-rois, gouverneurs et ambassadeurs dans les monarchies française et espanole (Casa de Velázquez, 2014

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lisandra Estevez

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The French and Spanish courts were two of the most powerful cultural and political institutions in seventeenth-century Europe.  Both rivals and allies, the French and Spanish crowns were bound by disputes and diplomacy.  This anthology examines the Gallic and Iberian court systems from a comparative approach, filling an important lacuna in early modern political studies and diplomatic history.  It is based on the proceedings of a seminar held at the Casa de Velázquez, Madrid in June 2010. Edited by Daniel Aznar, Guillaume Hanotin and Niels F. May, À la place du roi. Vice-rois, gouverneurs et ambassadeurs dans les monarchies française et espanole (XVIe-XVIIIe siècles unites ten essays by leading scholars of seventeenth-century French and Spanish history.

Generating region proposals for histopathological whole slide image retrieval.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Yibing; Jiang, Zhiguo; Zhang, Haopeng; Xie, Fengying; Zheng, Yushan; Shi, Huaqiang; Zhao, Yu; Shi, Jun

2018-06-01

Content-based image retrieval is an effective method for histopathological image analysis. However, given a database of huge whole slide images (WSIs), acquiring appropriate region-of-interests (ROIs) for training is significant and difficult. Moreover, histopathological images can only be annotated by pathologists, resulting in the lack of labeling information. Therefore, it is an important and challenging task to generate ROIs from WSI and retrieve image with few labels. This paper presents a novel unsupervised region proposing method for histopathological WSI based on Selective Search. Specifically, the WSI is over-segmented into regions which are hierarchically merged until the WSI becomes a single region. Nucleus-oriented similarity measures for region mergence and Nucleus-Cytoplasm color space for histopathological image are specially defined to generate accurate region proposals. Additionally, we propose a new semi-supervised hashing method for image retrieval. The semantic features of images are extracted with Latent Dirichlet Allocation and transformed into binary hashing codes with Supervised Hashing. The methods are tested on a large-scale multi-class database of breast histopathological WSIs. The results demonstrate that for one WSI, our region proposing method can generate 7.3 thousand contoured regions which fit well with 95.8% of the ROIs annotated by pathologists. The proposed hashing method can retrieve a query image among 136 thousand images in 0.29 s and reach precision of 91% with only 10% of images labeled. The unsupervised region proposing method can generate regions as predictions of lesions in histopathological WSI. The region proposals can also serve as the training samples to train machine-learning models for image retrieval. The proposed hashing method can achieve fast and precise image retrieval with small amount of labels. Furthermore, the proposed methods can be potentially applied in online computer-aided-diagnosis systems. Copyright

Maximizing ROI (return on information)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McDonald, B.

2000-05-01

The role and importance of managing information are discussed, underscoring the importance by quoting from the report of the International Data Corporation, according to which Fortune 500 companies lost $ 12 billion in 1999 due to inefficiencies resulting from intellectual re-work, substandard performance , and inability to find knowledge resources. The report predicts that this figure will rise to $ 31.5 billion by 2003. Key impediments to implementing knowledge management systems are identified as : the cost and human resources requirement of deployment; inflexibility of historical systems to adapt to change; and the difficulty of achieving corporate acceptance of inflexible software products that require changes in 'normal' ways of doing business. The author recommends the use of model, document and rule-independent systems with a document centered interface (DCI), employing rapid application development (RAD) and object technologies and visual model development, which eliminate these problems, making it possible for companies to maximize their return on information (ROI), and achieve substantial savings in implementation costs.

The leap from ROI to SROI: Farther than expected?

Science.gov (United States)

Gargani, John

2017-10-01

Social return on investment (SROI) is a popular method for evaluating the impact that organizations have on society and the environment. It has its roots in finance, where return on investment (ROI) is used to evaluate investments. Over the past ten years, SROI has made the leap from a tool for building private wealth to one that advances the public good. Has it landed us in a better place? To answer the question, I describe the general approach to financial analysis, how it is applied to financial decisions, and how it has been adapted to evaluate impact. I then consider the strengths and weaknesses of SROI, and suggest how, by pushing beyond the constraints of financial analysis, it can give stakeholders voice and provide evidence of success from diverse perspectives. Along the way, I propose a conceptual model for value, a foundational concept in SROI that has been criticized by some as underdeveloped, and I include a technical appendix that identifies potential sources of statistical bias in SROI estimates. I conclude by acknowledging our growing need to incorporate efficiency as one of multiple success criteria and the role that SROI-properly implemented-can play. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Data from the Roi Removal Project, West Hawaii, 2010-2011 (NODC Accession 0082197

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — In situ observations of the introduced predatory grouper roi (Cephalopholis argus) were taken within the coral reef ecosystem of Puako, northwest side of the Island...

A localization algorithm of adaptively determining the ROI of the reference circle in image

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Zeen; Zhang, Jun; Zhang, Daimeng; Liu, Xiaomao; Tian, Jinwen

2018-03-01

Aiming at solving the problem of accurately positioning the detection probes underwater, this paper proposed a method based on computer vision which can effectively solve this problem. The theory of this method is that: First, because the shape information of the heat tube is similar to a circle in the image, we can find a circle which physical location is well known in the image, we set this circle as the reference circle. Second, we calculate the pixel offset between the reference circle and the probes in the picture, and adjust the steering gear through the offset. As a result, we can accurately measure the physical distance between the probes and the under test heat tubes, then we can know the precise location of the probes underwater. However, how to choose reference circle in image is a difficult problem. In this paper, we propose an algorithm that can adaptively confirm the area of reference circle. In this area, there will be only one circle, and the circle is the reference circle. The test results show that the accuracy of the algorithm of extracting the reference circle in the whole picture without using ROI (region of interest) of the reference circle is only 58.76% and the proposed algorithm is 95.88%. The experimental results indicate that the proposed algorithm can effectively improve the efficiency of the tubes detection.

Efficient random access high resolution region-of-interest (ROI) image retrieval using backward coding of wavelet trees (BCWT)

Science.gov (United States)

Corona, Enrique; Nutter, Brian; Mitra, Sunanda; Guo, Jiangling; Karp, Tanja

2008-03-01

Efficient retrieval of high quality Regions-Of-Interest (ROI) from high resolution medical images is essential for reliable interpretation and accurate diagnosis. Random access to high quality ROI from codestreams is becoming an essential feature in many still image compression applications, particularly in viewing diseased areas from large medical images. This feature is easier to implement in block based codecs because of the inherent spatial independency of the code blocks. This independency implies that the decoding order of the blocks is unimportant as long as the position for each is properly identified. In contrast, wavelet-tree based codecs naturally use some interdependency that exploits the decaying spectrum model of the wavelet coefficients. Thus one must keep track of the decoding order from level to level with such codecs. We have developed an innovative multi-rate image subband coding scheme using "Backward Coding of Wavelet Trees (BCWT)" which is fast, memory efficient, and resolution scalable. It offers far less complexity than many other existing codecs including both, wavelet-tree, and block based algorithms. The ROI feature in BCWT is implemented through a transcoder stage that generates a new BCWT codestream containing only the information associated with the user-defined ROI. This paper presents an efficient technique that locates a particular ROI within the BCWT coded domain, and decodes it back to the spatial domain. This technique allows better access and proper identification of pathologies in high resolution images since only a small fraction of the codestream is required to be transmitted and analyzed.

Return-on-Investment (ROI) Analyses of an Inpatient Lay Health Worker Model on 30-Day Readmission Rates in a Rural Community Hospital.

Science.gov (United States)

Cardarelli, Roberto; Bausch, Gregory; Murdock, Joan; Chyatte, Michelle Renee

2017-07-07

The purpose of the study was to assess the return-on-investment (ROI) of an inpatient lay health worker (LHW) model in a rural Appalachian community hospital impacting 30-day readmission rates. The Bridges to Home (BTH) study completed an evaluation in 2015 of an inpatient LHW model in a rural Kentucky hospital that demonstrated a reduction in 30-day readmission rates by 47.7% compared to a baseline period. Using the hospital's utilization and financial data, a validated ROI calculator specific to care transition programs was used to assess the ROI of the BTH model comparing 3 types of payment models including Diagnosis Related Group (DRG)-only payments, pay-for-performance (P4P) contracts, and accountable care organizations (ACOs). The BTH program had a -$0.67 ROI if the hospital had only a DRG-based payment model. If the hospital had P4P contracts with payers and 0.1% of its annual operating revenue was at risk, the ROI increased to $7.03 for every $1 spent on the BTH program. However, if the hospital was an ACO as was the case for this study's community hospital, the ROI significantly increased to $38.48 for every $1 spent on the BTH program. The BTH model showed a viable ROI to be considered by community hospitals that are part of an ACO or P4P program. A LHW care transition model may be a cost-effective alternative for impacting excess 30-day readmissions and avoiding associated penalties for hospital systems with a value-based payment model. © 2017 National Rural Health Association.

Feeding biology of the introduced fish roi, and its impact on Hawaiian reef fishes, January 2004 and January 2005, (NODC Accession 0002172)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Feeding biology of the introduced fish roi (Cephalopholis argus), and its impact on Hawaiian reef fishes and fisheries between January 2004 and January 2005. Roi...

Usefulness of a three-dimensional stereotaxic ROI template on anatomically standardised {sup 99m}Tc-ECD SPET

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeuchi, Ryo [Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Nuclear Medicine, Nishi-Kobe Medical Center, Kobe (Japan); Yonekura, Yoshiharu [Biomedical Imaging Research Center, Fukui Medical University, Fukui (Japan); Matsuda, Hiroshi [Department of Radiology, National Center Hospital for Mental, Tokyo (Japan); Konishi, Junji [Department of Nuclear Medicine and Diagnostic Imaging, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto (Japan)

2002-03-01

We have constructed a three-dimensional stereotaxic ROI template (3DSRT) on anatomically standardised cerebral blood flow (CBF) single-photon emission tomography (SPET) images to objectively estimate regional CBF (rCBF). The 3DSRT is composed of 259 regions of interest (ROIs) in 11 segments (1, superior frontal; 2, middle and inferior frontal; 3, primary sensorimotor; 4, parietal; 5, angular; 6, temporal; 7, occipital; 8, pericallosal; 9, lenticular nucleus; 10, thalamus; 11, hippocampus) on each side. We measured the rCBF values of the 518 ROIs and calculated the area-weighted average (segmental CBF; sCBF) of the 22 segments based on the rCBF in each ROI. We compared vascular reserve before and after revascularisation surgery using sCBF on anatomically standardised resting and acetazolamide (Acz)-challenged CBF SPET images, which were obtained using an equal-volume-split dual-injection single-day protocol [resting and vascular reserve (RVR) method] in 13 patients who had not suffered any major stroke but did have significant cerebrovascular stenosis. Prior to the evaluation, we examined the sCBF values of 16 subjects with various cerebrovascular conditions (8, normal; 3, lacunar infarction; 2, chronic infarction; 2, meningioma; 1, aneurysm) using physiological saline instead of Acz (placebo study) in order to confirm the reproducibility of the RVR method. In the placebo study we observed excellent linearity (y=1.444+0.964x) between the 352 pairs of baseline (x) and post-placebo (y) sCBF values in the 16 subjects, irrespective of the segment location. In all of the 13 patients, estimation of sCBF demonstrated impaired vascular reserve pre-operatively and improved vascular reserve postoperatively. We conclude that the 3DSRT, which could be identically set on the anatomically standardised images obtained at baseline and after Acz injection, allowed objective assessment of the pre- and postoperative vascular reserve, which was not easy with conventional ROI settings

75 FR 41242 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed International...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-15

... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2010-0143] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact... included an Environmental Report (ER) on December 30, 2009, that proposes the construction, operation, and... intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) evaluating this proposed action. The EIS will...

Effect of single-visit VIA and cryotherapy cervical cancer prevention program in Roi Et, Thailand: a preliminary report.

Science.gov (United States)

Chumworathayi, Bandit; Blumenthal, Paul D; Limpaphayom, Khunying Kobchitt; Kamsa-Ard, Supot; Wongsena, Metee; Supaatakorn, Pongsatorn

2010-02-01

To assess the effect of introducing visual inspection with acetic acid and cryotherapy on cervical cancer incidence rates in Roi Et province over time, between 1997 and 2006, and compare this with two nearby provinces. Data from two cancer registration units, one in Srinagarind Hospital and another in Ubon Ratchathani Cancer Center (to which all cervical cancer patients were referred from the three study provinces) were registered, extracted, combined and analyzed using a generalized estimation equation. Cervical cancer detection rates improved. These are represented by the apparent increased incidence rates in Roi Et province during the study period compared with two nearby provinces (P = 0.01), equivalent to a doubling of the previously reported age-standardized incidence ratio and three times its baseline in 2006. A single-visit approach to cervical cancer prevention in Roi Et province using visual inspection with acetic acid and cryotherapy appeared to have an effect in revealing an increased cervical cancer incidence rate by achieving higher coverage, resulting in increased case finding.

Les marbriers des Bâtiments du roi : organisation et réalisations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sophie Mouquin

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Matériau noble, symbole de beauté, de pouvoir et d’éternité, le marbre est sous l’Ancien Régime, et particulièrement sous le règne de Louis XIV et la Régence, un matériau royal. Toutes les maisons royales reçoivent pavements, lambris et cheminées réalisés dans des marbres aux couleurs vives, provenant pour la plupart de carrières du royaume. Leur origine répond ainsi à la politique royale du marbre français que les directeurs des Bâtiments du roi s’efforcent de mettre en place et de consolider. Tous ces travaux ont leurs artisans : Derbais, Dezègre, Pasquier, Ménard, Mathaut, Lisquy, Tarlé, Trouard, etc., autant de noms indissociables des réalisations marbrières dans les maisons royales, mais si souvent oubliés. Ils jouent pourtant, dans ce domaine, un rôle de premier plan à tous niveaux, de la carrière au chantier. L’exposé présente l’organisation de ce corps de métier, sa place au sein des Bâtiments du roi et son rôle dans la politique marbrière. Il s’appuie sur les principales réalisations versaillaises, comme l’appartement des bains, l’escalier des Ambassadeurs, l’escalier de la Reine, la galerie des Glaces, le salon d’Hercule, les cheminées et les lambris des appartements du Roi et de la Reine. Il évoquera le chantier des jardins avec le bosquet de la Colonnade et d’autres bosquets.

In situ study of the impact of inter- and intra-reader variability on region of interest (ROI) analysis in preclinical molecular imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Habte, Frezghi; Budhiraja, Shradha; Keren, Shay; Doyle, Timothy C; Levin, Craig S; Paik, David S

2013-01-01

We estimated reader-dependent variability of region of interest (ROI) analysis and evaluated its impact on preclinical quantitative molecular imaging. To estimate reader variability, we used five independent image datasets acquired each using microPET and multispectral fluorescence imaging (MSFI). We also selected ten experienced researchers who utilize molecular imaging in the same environment that they typically perform their own studies. Nine investigators blinded to the data type completed the ROI analysis by drawing ROIs manually that delineate the tumor regions to the best of their knowledge and repeated the measurements three times, non-consecutively. Extracted mean intensities of voxels within each ROI are used to compute the coefficient of variation (CV) and characterize the inter- and intra-reader variability. The impact of variability was assessed through random samples iterated from normal distributions for control and experimental groups on hypothesis testing and computing statistical power by varying subject size, measured difference between groups and CV. The results indicate that inter-reader variability was 22.5% for microPET and 72.2% for MSFI. Additionally, mean intra-reader variability was 10.1% for microPET and 26.4% for MSFI. Repeated statistical testing showed that a total variability of CV variability has been observed mainly due to differences in the ROI placement and geometry drawn between readers, which may adversely affect statistical power and erroneously lead to negative study outcomes.

Land-use change and managed aquifer recharge effects on the hydrogeochemistry of two contrasting atoll island aquifers, Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Hejazian, Mehrdad; Gurdak, Jason J.; Swarzenski, Peter W.; Odigie, Kingsley; Storlazzi, Curt

2017-01-01

Freshwater resources on low-lying atoll islands are highly vulnerable to climate change and sea-level rise. In addition to rainwater catchment, groundwater in the freshwater lens is a critically important water resource on many atoll islands, especially during drought. Although many atolls have high annual rainfall rates, dense natural vegetation and high evapotranspiration rates can limit recharge to the freshwater lens. Here we evaluate the effects of land-use/land-cover change and managed aquifer recharge on the hydrogeochemistry and supply of groundwater on Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Roi-Namur is an artificially conjoined island that has similar hydrogeology on the Roi and Namur lobes, but has contrasting land-use/land-cover and managed aquifer recharge only on Roi. Vegetation removal and managed aquifer recharge operations have resulted in an estimated 8.6 x 105 m3 of potable groundwater in the freshwater lens on Roi, compared to only 1.6 x 104 m3 on Namur. We use groundwater samples from a suite of 33 vertically nested monitoring wells, statistical testing, and geochemical modeling using PHREEQC to show that the differences in land-use/land-cover and managed aquifer recharge on Roi and Namur have a statistically significant effect on several groundwater-quality parameters and the controlling geochemical processes. Results also indicate a seven-fold reduction in the dissolution of carbonate rock in the freshwater lens and overlying vadose zone of Roi compared to Namur. Mixing of seawater and the freshwater lens is a more dominant hydrogeochemical process on Roi because of the greater recharge and flushing of the aquifer with freshwater as compared to Namur. In contrast, equilibrium processes and dissolution-precipitation non-equilibrium reactions are more dominant on Namur because of the longer residence times relative to the rate of geochemical reactions. Findings from Roi-Namur Island support selective land-use/land-cover change and

75 FR 67996 - Environmental Documents Prepared for Proposed Oil, Gas, and Mineral Operations by the Gulf of...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-04

... Environmental Documents Prepared for Proposed Oil, Gas, and Mineral Operations by the Gulf of Mexico Outer... regarding whether those effects have significant impacts. Environmental Assessments are used to evaluate.... ACTION: Notice of the Availability of Environmental Documents Prepared for OCS Mineral Proposals by the...

Land-use change and managed aquifer recharge effects on the hydrogeochemistry of two contrasting atoll island aquifers, Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hejazian, Mehrdad; Gurdak, Jason J.; Swarzenski, Peter; Odigie, Kingsley O.; Storlazzi, Curt D.

2017-01-01

Freshwater resources on low-lying atoll islands are highly vulnerable to climate change and sea-level rise. In addition to rainwater catchment, groundwater in the freshwater lens is a critically important water resource on many atoll islands, especially during drought. Although many atolls have high annual rainfall rates, dense natural vegetation and high evapotranspiration rates can limit recharge to the freshwater lens. Here we evaluate the effects of land-use/land-cover change and managed aquifer recharge on the hydrogeochemistry and supply of groundwater on Roi-Namur Island, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Roi-Namur is an artificially conjoined island that has similar hydrogeology on the Roi and Namur lobes, but has contrasting land-use/land-cover and managed aquifer recharge only on Roi. Vegetation removal and managed aquifer recharge operations have resulted in an estimated 8.6 × 10"5 m"3 of potable groundwater in the freshwater lens on Roi, compared to only 1.6 × 10"4 m"3 on Namur. We use groundwater samples from a suite of 33 vertically nested monitoring wells, statistical testing, and geochemical modeling using PHREEQC to show that the differences in land-use/land-cover and managed aquifer recharge on Roi and Namur have a statistically significant effect on several groundwater-quality parameters and the controlling geochemical processes. Results also indicate a six-fold reduction in the dissolution of carbonate rock in the freshwater lens and overlying vadose zone of Roi compared to Namur. Mixing of seawater and the freshwater lens is a more dominant hydrogeochemical process on Roi because of the greater recharge and flushing of the aquifer with freshwater as compared to Namur. In contrast, equilibrium processes and dissolution-precipitation non-equilibrium reactions are more dominant on Namur because of the longer residence times relative to the rate of geochemical reactions. Findings from Roi-Namur Island support selective land

Development of intelligent surveillance system (ISS) in region of interest (ROI) using Kalman filter and camshift on Raspberry Pi 2

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Junghun; Hong, Kicheon

2017-06-01

Due to the improvement of the picture quality of closed-circuit television (CCTV), the demand for CCTV has increased rapidly and its market size has also increased. The current system structure of CCTV transfers compressed images without analysis received from CCTV to a control center. The compressed images are suitable for the evidence required for a criminal arrest, but they cannot prevent crime in real time, which has been considered a limitation. Thus, the present paper proposes a system implementation that can prevent crimes by applying a situation awareness system at the back end of the CCTV cameras for image acquisition to prevent crimes efficiently. In the system implemented in the present paper, the region of interest (ROI) is set virtually within the image data when a barrier, such as fence, cannot be installed in actual sites and unauthorized intruders are tracked constantly through data analysis and recognized in the ROI via the developed algorithm. Additionally, a searchlight or alarm sound is activated to prevent crime in real time and the urgent information is transferred to the control center. The system was implemented in the Raspberry Pi 2 board to be run in real time. The experiment results showed that the recognition success rate was 85% or higher and the track accuracy was 90% or higher. By utilizing the system, crime prevention can be achieved by implementing a social safety network.

Roi Detection and Vessel Segmentation in Retinal Image

Science.gov (United States)

Sabaz, F.; Atila, U.

2017-11-01

Diabetes disrupts work by affecting the structure of the eye and afterwards leads to loss of vision. Depending on the stage of disease that called diabetic retinopathy, there are sudden loss of vision and blurred vision problems. Automated detection of vessels in retinal images is a useful study to diagnose eye diseases, disease classification and other clinical trials. The shape and structure of the vessels give information about the severity of the disease and the stage of the disease. Automatic and fast detection of vessels allows for a quick diagnosis of the disease and the treatment process to start shortly. ROI detection and vessel extraction methods for retinal image are mentioned in this study. It is shown that the Frangi filter used in image processing can be successfully used in detection and extraction of vessels.

A comparison between the conventional manual ROI method and an automatic algorithm for semiquantitative analysis of SPECT studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pagan, L; Novi, B; Guidarelli, G; Tranfaglia, C; Galli, S; Lucchi, G; Fagioli, G

2011-01-01

In this study, the performance of a free software for automatic segmentation of striatal SPECT brain studies (BasGanV2 - www.aimn.it) and a standard manual Region Of Interest (ROI) method were compared. The anthropomorphic Alderson RSD phantom, filled with solutions at different concentration of 123 I-FP-CIT with Caudate-Putamen to Background ratios between 1 and 8.7 and Caudate to Putamen ratios between 1 and 2, was imaged on a Philips-Irix triple head gamma camera. Images were reconstructed using filtered back-projection and processed with both BasGanV2, that provides normalized striatal uptake values on volumetric anatomical ROIs, and a manual method, based on average counts per voxel in ROIs drawn in a three-slice section. Caudate-Putamen/Background and Caudate/Putamen ratios obtained with the two methods were compared with true experimental ratios. Good correlation was found for each method; BasGanV2, however, has higher R index (BasGan R mean = 0.95, p mean = 0.89, p 123 I-FP-CIT SPECT data with, moreover, the advantage of the availability of a control subject's database.

How to Prepare an Indirect Cost Rate Proposal for a Non-profit Organization

Science.gov (United States)

The indirect cost rate proposal is the documentation prepared by a grantee organization, in accordance with applicable federal cost principles, to substantiate its claim for the reimbursement of indirect costs.

ROI DETECTION AND VESSEL SEGMENTATION IN RETINAL IMAGE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Sabaz

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Diabetes disrupts work by affecting the structure of the eye and afterwards leads to loss of vision. Depending on the stage of disease that called diabetic retinopathy, there are sudden loss of vision and blurred vision problems. Automated detection of vessels in retinal images is a useful study to diagnose eye diseases, disease classification and other clinical trials. The shape and structure of the vessels give information about the severity of the disease and the stage of the disease. Automatic and fast detection of vessels allows for a quick diagnosis of the disease and the treatment process to start shortly. ROI detection and vessel extraction methods for retinal image are mentioned in this study. It is shown that the Frangi filter used in image processing can be successfully used in detection and extraction of vessels.

Reinterpretation of ozone data from Base Roi Baudouin

Science.gov (United States)

Kelder, H.; Muller, C.

1994-01-01

The ozone Dobson measurements obtained in Antarctica at the Belgian 'Base Roi Baudouin' (70 deg 26 min S, 24 deg 19 min E) in 1965 and 1966 were retrieved from the KNMI (Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute) archives in De Bilt. Despite excellent treatment at the time by the meteorologists in charge at the KNMI (Wisse and Meerburg, 1969), a study of the original observers notes was made in order to check possible seasonal ozone phenomena. No systematic anomaly in the first analysis was found; meteorological data from the site together with Brewer-Mast ozone soundings concur that the conditions did not correspond either in 1965 nor 1966 to the current ozone hole (Farman et al., 1985) situation, however, the data yields excellent correlation with stratospheric temperature and shows in 1966 a clear November maximum in opposition to an October value around 344 Dobson units.

76 FR 4371 - Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed San Juan Basin...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-25

...; NMNM122352] Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed San Juan Basin Energy Connect Project, San Juan County, New Mexico, and La Plata County, Colorado AGENCY: Bureau of Land... prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the proposed San Juan Energy Connect Project, and by...

Multi-ROI Association and Tracking With Belief Functions: Application to Traffic Sign Recognition

OpenAIRE

Boumediene , Mohammed; Lauffenburger , Jean-Philippe; Daniel , Jérémie; Cudel , Christophe; Ouamri , Abdelaziz

2014-01-01

International audience; —This paper presents an object tracking algorithm using belief functions applied to vision-based traffic sign recognition systems. This algorithm tracks detected sign candidates over time in order to reduce false positives due to data fusion formalization. In the first stage, regions of interest (ROIs) are detected and combined using the transferable belief model semantics. In the second stage, the local pignistic probability algorithm generates the associations maximi...

How To Prepare Program Proposals for the American Psychological Association Annual Convention.

Science.gov (United States)

Tentoni, Stuart C.

The purpose of this paper is to dispel myths about preparing program proposals for the American Psychological Association's annual convention. The report's goal is to increase the number of student presenters at future annual conventions. It has been determined that, for a variety of reasons, psychology graduate students participate more in poster…

Cerebral blood flow SPET in transient global amnesia with automated ROI analysis by 3DSRT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takeuchi, Ryo [Division of Nuclear Medicine, Nishi-Kobe Medical Center, Kohjidai 5-7-1, 651-2273, Nishi-ku, Kobe-City, Hyogo (Japan); Matsuda, Hiroshi [Department of Radiology, National Center Hospital for Mental, Nervous and Muscular Disorders, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo (Japan); Yoshioka, Katsunori [Daiichi Radioisotope Laboratories, Ltd., Tokyo (Japan); Yonekura, Yoshiharu [Biomedical Imaging Research Center, University of Fukui, Fukui (Japan)

2004-04-01

The aim of this study was to determine the areas involved in episodes of transient global amnesia (TGA) by calculation of cerebral blood flow (CBF) using 3DSRT, fully automated ROI analysis software which we recently developed. Technetium-99m l,l-ethyl cysteinate dimer single-photon emission tomography ({sup 99m}Tc-ECD SPET) was performed during and after TGA attacks on eight patients (four men and four women; mean study interval, 34 days). The SPET images were anatomically standardized using SPM99 followed by quantification of 318 constant ROIs, grouped into 12 segments (callosomarginal, precentral, central, parietal, angular, temporal, posterior cerebral, pericallosal, lenticular nucleus, thalamus, hippocampus and cerebellum), in each hemisphere to calculate segmental CBF (sCBF) as the area-weighted mean value for each of the respective 12 segments based on the regional CBF in each ROI. Correlation of the intra- and post-episodic sCBF of each of the 12 segments of the eight patients was estimated by scatter-plot graphical analysis and Pearson's correlation test with Fisher's Z-transformation. For the control, {sup 99m}Tc-ECD SPET was performed on eight subjects (three men and five women) and repeated within 1 month; the correlation between the first and second sCBF values of each of the 12 segments was evaluated in the same way as for patients with TGA. Excellent reproducibility between the two sCBF values was found in all 12 segments of the control subjects. However, a significant correlation between intra- and post-episodic sCBF was not shown in the thalamus or angular segments of TGA patients. The present study was preliminary, but at least suggested that thalamus and angular regions are closely involved in the symptoms of TGA. (orig.)

Cerebral blood flow SPET in transient global amnesia with automated ROI analysis by 3DSRT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeuchi, Ryo; Matsuda, Hiroshi; Yoshioka, Katsunori; Yonekura, Yoshiharu

2004-01-01

The aim of this study was to determine the areas involved in episodes of transient global amnesia (TGA) by calculation of cerebral blood flow (CBF) using 3DSRT, fully automated ROI analysis software which we recently developed. Technetium-99m l,l-ethyl cysteinate dimer single-photon emission tomography ( 99m Tc-ECD SPET) was performed during and after TGA attacks on eight patients (four men and four women; mean study interval, 34 days). The SPET images were anatomically standardized using SPM99 followed by quantification of 318 constant ROIs, grouped into 12 segments (callosomarginal, precentral, central, parietal, angular, temporal, posterior cerebral, pericallosal, lenticular nucleus, thalamus, hippocampus and cerebellum), in each hemisphere to calculate segmental CBF (sCBF) as the area-weighted mean value for each of the respective 12 segments based on the regional CBF in each ROI. Correlation of the intra- and post-episodic sCBF of each of the 12 segments of the eight patients was estimated by scatter-plot graphical analysis and Pearson's correlation test with Fisher's Z-transformation. For the control, 99m Tc-ECD SPET was performed on eight subjects (three men and five women) and repeated within 1 month; the correlation between the first and second sCBF values of each of the 12 segments was evaluated in the same way as for patients with TGA. Excellent reproducibility between the two sCBF values was found in all 12 segments of the control subjects. However, a significant correlation between intra- and post-episodic sCBF was not shown in the thalamus or angular segments of TGA patients. The present study was preliminary, but at least suggested that thalamus and angular regions are closely involved in the symptoms of TGA. (orig.)

Voxel based statistical analysis method for microPET studies to assess the cerebral glucose metabolism in cat deafness model: comparison to ROI based method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jin Su; Lee, Jae Sung; Park, Min Hyun; Lee, Jong Jin; Kang, Hye Jin; Lee, Hyo Jeong; Oh, Seung Ha; Kim, Chong Sun; Jung, June Key; Lee, Myung Chul; Lee, Dong Soo; Lim, Sang Moo

2005-01-01

Imaging research on the brain of sensory-deprived cats using small animal PET scanner has gained interest since the abundant information about the sensory system of ths animal is available and close examination of the brain is possible due to larger size of its brain than mouse or rat. In this study, we have established the procedures for 3D voxel-based statistical analysis (SPM) of FDG PET image of cat brain, and confirmed using ROI based-method. FDG PET scans of 4 normal and 4 deaf cats were acquired for 30 minutes using microPET R4 scanner. Only the brain cortices were extracted using a masking and threshold method to facilitate spatial normalization. After spatial normalization and smoothing, 3D voxel-wise and ROI based t-test were performed to identify the regions with significant different FDG uptake between the normal and deaf cats. In ROI analysis, 26 ROIs were drawn on both hemispheres, and regional mean pixel value in each ROI was normalized to the global mean of the brain. Cat brains were spatially normalized well onto the target brain due to the removal of background activity. When cerebral glucose metabolism of deaf cats were compared to the normal controls after removing the effects of the global count, the glucose metabolism in the auditory cortex, head of caudate nucleus, and thalamus in both hemispheres of the deaf cats was significantly lower than that of the controls (P<0.01). No area showed a significantly increased metabolism in the deaf cats even in higher significance level (P<0.05). ROI analysis also showed significant reduction of glucose metabolism in the same region. This study established and confirmed a method for voxel-based analysis of animal PET data of cat brain, which showed high localization accuracy and specificity and was useful for examining the cerebral glucose metabolism in a cat cortical deafness model

Voxel based statistical analysis method for microPET studies to assess the cerebral glucose metabolism in cat deafness model: comparison to ROI based method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jin Su; Lee, Jae Sung; Park, Min Hyun; Lee, Jong Jin; Kang, Hye Jin; Lee, Hyo Jeong; Oh, Seung Ha; Kim, Chong Sun; Jung, June Key; Lee, Myung Chul; Lee, Dong Soo [Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Lim, Sang Moo [KIRAMS, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2005-07-01

Imaging research on the brain of sensory-deprived cats using small animal PET scanner has gained interest since the abundant information about the sensory system of ths animal is available and close examination of the brain is possible due to larger size of its brain than mouse or rat. In this study, we have established the procedures for 3D voxel-based statistical analysis (SPM) of FDG PET image of cat brain, and confirmed using ROI based-method. FDG PET scans of 4 normal and 4 deaf cats were acquired for 30 minutes using microPET R4 scanner. Only the brain cortices were extracted using a masking and threshold method to facilitate spatial normalization. After spatial normalization and smoothing, 3D voxel-wise and ROI based t-test were performed to identify the regions with significant different FDG uptake between the normal and deaf cats. In ROI analysis, 26 ROIs were drawn on both hemispheres, and regional mean pixel value in each ROI was normalized to the global mean of the brain. Cat brains were spatially normalized well onto the target brain due to the removal of background activity. When cerebral glucose metabolism of deaf cats were compared to the normal controls after removing the effects of the global count, the glucose metabolism in the auditory cortex, head of caudate nucleus, and thalamus in both hemispheres of the deaf cats was significantly lower than that of the controls (P<0.01). No area showed a significantly increased metabolism in the deaf cats even in higher significance level (P<0.05). ROI analysis also showed significant reduction of glucose metabolism in the same region. This study established and confirmed a method for voxel-based analysis of animal PET data of cat brain, which showed high localization accuracy and specificity and was useful for examining the cerebral glucose metabolism in a cat cortical deafness model.

SU-F-J-29: Dosimetric Effect of Image Registration ROI Size and Focus in Automated CBCT Registration for Spine SBRT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magnelli, A; Smith, A; Chao, S; Suh, J; Xia, P [The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Spinal stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) involves highly conformal dose distributions and steep dose gradients due to the proximity of the spinal cord to the treatment volume. To achieve the planning goals while limiting the spinal cord dose, patients are setup using kV cone-beam CT (kV-CBCT) with 6 degree corrections. The kV-CBCT registration with the reference CT is dependent on a user selected region of interest (ROI). The objective of this work is to determine the dosimetric impact of ROI selection. Methods: Twenty patients were selected for this study. For each patient, the kV-CBCT was registered to the reference CT using three ROIs including: 1) the external body, 2) a large anatomic region, and 3) a small region focused in the target volume. Following each registration, the aligned CBCTs and contours were input to the treatment planning system for dose evaluation. The minimum dose, dose to 99% and 90% of the tumor volume (D99%, D90%), dose to 0.03cc and the dose to 10% of the spinal cord subvolume (V10Gy) were compared to the planned values. Results: The average deviations in the tumor minimum dose were 2.68%±1.7%, 4.6%±4.0%, 14.82%±9.9% for small, large and the external ROIs, respectively. The average deviations in tumor D99% were 1.15%±0.7%, 3.18%±1.7%, 10.0%±6.6%, respectively. The average deviations in tumor D90% were 1.00%±0.96%, 1.14%±1.05%, 3.19%±4.77% respectively. The average deviations in the maximum dose to the spinal cord were 2.80%±2.56%, 7.58%±8.28%, 13.35%±13.14%, respectively. The average deviation in V10Gy to the spinal cord were 1.69%±0.88%, 1.98%±2.79%, 2.71%±5.63%. Conclusion: When using automated registration algorithms for CBCT-Reference alignment, a small target-focused ROI results in the least dosimetric deviation from the plan. It is recommended to focus narrowly on the target volume to keep the spinal cord dose below tolerance.

77 FR 20411 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Southline...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-04

... Cruces District Office, Las Cruces, New Mexico, intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS... Administration [LLNM930000 L51010000.ER0000 LVRWG11G0790 NMNM124104] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Southline Transmission Line Project in New Mexico and Arizona (DOE/EIS...

75 FR 44008 - Revised Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Boardman...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-27

... Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Boardman to Hemingway 500 Kilovolt Transmission..., intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Boardman to Hemingway (B2H) Project... for construction by IPC between the existing Hemingway substation, located near Melba in Owyhee County...

Cephalopholis argus fish census and assemblage data from the West Hawaii Roi Removal Project 2010-2012 (NODC Accession 0099263)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This project examined the results of the field manipulative experiment that has been set up to test the ecological effects of introduced roi on reef fish...

MEASURES OF EFFICIENCY AND INVESTMENTS RETURN: AN STUDY OF BRAZILIAN ELECTRICITY DISTRIBUTORS WITH DATA ENVELOPMENT ANALYSIS, MALMQUIST INDEX AND ROI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valter Saurin

2013-03-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to determine, in a group of companies from the Brazilian electric sector, if there is a relationship between the return on investment (ROI and the concept of efficiency estimated by the method Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA, as well as evaluating the growth of productivity based on Malmquist Index (Fare et al, 1996. The hypothesis is that firms that had return on investment higher during certain period of time are those employed their resources efficiently in getting their outputs (DEA efficient. The input (1 Products (5 DEA model correspond to the operating cost (I, the network length (km, the number of consumers and the market billed high, medium and low voltage, respectively. The sample consisted of 31 companies of Brazilian electricity distribution and timing of the study was from 2007 to 2009. We calculated the Malmquist index (M0, represented by the change in total factor productivity (TFPC, which is composed by the evolution of technical efficiency (EC and the change in the technological frontier (TC of the companies were also determined ROI for each period. We calculated the correlation between the TFPC, TC, EC, score the DEA and the ROI for the period 2007 to 2009. The results showed a positive correlation, although weak, between efficiency change and the indexes mentioned above, rejecting the initial hypothesis

Study of regional cerebral blood flow in obsessive compulsive disorder patients with SPM and ROI method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Peiyong; Jiang Xufeng; Zhang Liying; Guo Wanhua; Zhu Chengmo

2002-01-01

Objective: To investigate the alternations in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) patients using statistical parametric mapping (SPM). Methods: rCBF measurements using 99 Tc m -ethyl cysteinate dimer (ECD) SPECT was performed on 14 OCD patients and 23 age-matched healthy volunteers. The rCBF distribution was compared between these two groups with SPM under the conditions of increased and decreased perfusion, and with regions of interest (ROIs) using cerebral template. P value was set at 0.01 level. Results: SPM analysis showed that rCBF decreased in cerebral areas including bilateral putamen, superior temporal gyrus and precuneus, and right orbital gyrus, superior and middle frontal gyrus, and left temporo-occipital lobule and superior parietal gyrus, and vermis. rCBF was also increased in left inferior frontal gyrus and posterior cingulate gyrus. With ROIs method, rCBF was decreased in right anterior frontal, temporo-parietal lobule and left temporo-occipital lobule. Conclusions: The study supports the viewpoint that rCBF abnormality of fronto-striatal circuits is involved in OCD patients. SPM method is a forceful tool in analyzing cerebral regional characters

77 FR 1080 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Copper Flat Mine...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-09

... District Office, Las Cruces, New Mexico, intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and by...] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Copper Flat Mine Plan of...: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, and the Federal...

Keeping it real--building an ROI model for an ambulatory EMR initiative that the physician practices espouse.

Science.gov (United States)

Mullen, Rńee; Donnelly, John T

2006-01-01

The ambulatory electronic medical record initiative at Magic Valley Regional Medical Center (MVRMC) in South Central Idaho underwent a rigorous product evaluation process that resulted in one of the market-leading EMR products being selected for implementation. MVRMC includes four business entities, including a 213-bed regional hospital and a 19-practice management services organization. Early in the process, the organization viewed buy-in from its physicians as a critical success factor. The physicians had been integral to product selection, and it was equally important for them to trust the economic model for its acquisition-especially because it was likely that they would be asked to put "some skin in the game." To make this initiative economically feasible, MVRMC received a grant from Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality based on the potential impact of the endeavor on healthcare delivery in the region. However, because the functional analysis did not result in the selection of the least expensive product, the AHRQ grant would only help defray the startup expenses, but not ongoing support and maintenance expenses after implementation; these costs would be borne by anticipated increases in the practice's revenue or reduction in its operating expenses. The ROI model would need to explain how each practice, from the single physician specialist to an almost 20-physician family practice, could pay for the desirable outcomes discussed during the selection phase of the project. The physicians, who had participated in technology initiatives in the past, were skeptical that cost-justifying an IT system was realistic, even though they recognized the potential benefits it could have on the quality and consistency of the care. Because some process standardization within and between practices would be needed to use electronic charting effectively, it was important that the ROI model did not outweigh the benefits of an as-yet untested operational workflow that

Proposed Guidance for Preparing and Reviewing Molten Salt Nonpower Reactor Licence Applications (NUREG-1537)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Belles, Randy [ORNL; Flanagan, George F. [ORNL; Voth, Marcus [Boston Government Services, LLC

2018-05-01

Development of non-power molten salt reactor (MSR) test facilities is under consideration to support the analyses needed for development of a full-scale MSR. These non-power MSR test facilities will require review by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff. This report proposes chapter adaptations for NUREG-1537 in the form of interim staff guidance to address preparation and review of molten salt non-power reactor license applications. The proposed adaptations are based on a previous regulatory gap analysis of select chapters from NUREG-1537 for their applicability to non-power MSRs operating with a homogeneous fuel salt mixture.

In situ observation data from the grouper roi (Cephalopholis argus) removal project in West Hawaii from 2010-2011 (NODC Accession 0082197)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — In situ observations of the introduced predatory grouper roi (Cephalopholis argus) were taken within the coral reef ecosystem of Puako, northwest side of the Island...

Baseline Marine Biological Survey ROI-NAMUR Outfall United States Army Kwajalein Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands, 1997(NODC Accession 0000630)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Roi-Namur is located at the northernmost tip of Kwajalein Atoll, approximately 64 kilometers north of the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll(USAKA) central command post on...

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) Variables That Influence Perceived Return on Investment (ROI) in Higher Education: Chief Marketing Officers' Perceptions

Science.gov (United States)

King, Adrienne L.

2013-01-01

This study examines the relationship of the level of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) implementation, level of open systems and change in state appropriations on perceived return on investment (ROI) in U.S. public higher education institutions (HEIs). Designed to provide HEI leaders with data to more accurately determine the best IMC…

Du bon maniement de l’argent du roi en Espagne au XVIIIe siècle. Les enseignements d’un procès pour fraude

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anne Dubet

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Pour nombre d’historiens – dont je fais partie – les réformes financières entreprises par les premiers Bourbons d’Espagne au XVIIIe siècle n’affectent pas tant l’organisation fiscale de leurs territoires que leur administration. Avant que de modifier la répartition sociale des contributions, il s’agit de rendre au roi et à ses ministres de confiance la décision en matière de dépenses et de s’assurer de son exécution. Ce projet de contrôle accru du roi sur ses propres deniers se traduit certes...

Development of Guidelines for Mentoring Internal Supervision for the Schools under Roi-Et Office of Primary Education Service Area 2

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natchana Sahunil

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The research aimed to 1 study the factors and indicators of mentoring internal supervision for schools, 2 study the current state and the desirable state of mentoring internal supervision for schools, and 3 study the guidelines on the operation of mentoring internal supervision for the schools under Roi-Et Office of Primary Education Service Area 2. The research was divided into 3 phases. In phase 1 the informants comprised 5 certified experts. In phase 2 the sample comprised 488 government teachers under Roi-Et Office of Primary Education Service Area 2, btained through multi-stage random sampling. In phase 3 the informants comprised school directors, school deputy directors and supervisor teachers under Roi-Et Office of Primary Education Service Area 2, totally 9 persons. The research instruments onsisted of 1 a questionnaire having the discrimination from 0.34 to 0.79 and the total reliability of 0.87, 2 a structured interview form, and 3 a suitability and feasibility assessment form for the guidelines on the operation of mentoring internal supervision. The analysis of data employed percentage, the mean and standard deviation. The results are as follows: 1. There are 4 factors of the guidelines on mentoring internal supervision for schools. They are: preparation of mentoring supervision, with 12 indicators ; management of mentoring supervision, with 12 indicators ; operation of mentoring supervision, with 14 indicators ; and evaluation of mentoring supervision, with 10 indicators, all of which had been evaluated by the experts as, on the whole, very suitable. 2. The current state of the mentoring internal supervision for schools, on the whole and factor by factor, was in the moderate level in every factor. Meanwhile, the desirable state of mentoring internal supervision for schools, on the whole, was in the high level. When considered factor by factor, the factor with the highest mean is management of mentoring supervision. The factor with

Comparison of a zero-profile anchored spacer (ROI-C) and the polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cages with an anterior plate in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yijie; Wang, Heng; Li, Xuefeng; Chen, Jie; Sun, Han; Wang, Genlin; Yang, Huilin; Jiang, Weimin

2016-06-01

We aimed to analyze the clinical and radiographic efficacy of a new zero-profile anchored spacer called the ROI-C in anterior discectomy and fusion (ACDF) for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy (MCSM). We retrospectively reviewed the clinical, radiological outcomes and complications of multilevel ACDF with the ROI-C or with the polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cages with an anterior plate. From April 2011 to April 2014, 60 patients with MCSM were operated on using ACDF, with the ROI-C in 28 patients and PEEK cages with an anterior plate in 32 patients. The operative time, intraoperative blood loss, and clinical and radiological results were compared between the ROI-C group and the cage-plate group. The mean follow-up time was 23.8 ± 6.6 months, ranging from 12 to 36 months. At the first month and the last follow-up, the neck disability index (NDI) scores were decreased, and the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) scores were significantly increased, compared with the presurgical measurements in both groups. There were no significant differences in NDI scores or JOA scores between the two groups (P > 0.05), but there were significant differences in the operation time, blood loss and the presence of dysphagia (P PEEK cage with an anterior plate.

Bring Workplace Assessment into Business Communication Classrooms: A Proposal to Better Prepare Students for Professional Workplaces

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Han

2010-01-01

To help students better understand and be better prepared for professional workplaces, the author suggests that business communication teachers examine and learn from workplace assessment methods. Throughout the article, the author discusses the rationale behind this proposal, reviews relevant literature, reports interview findings on workplace…

Lib-Value: Values, Outcomes, and Return on Investment of Academic Libraries, Phase III: ROI of the Syracuse University Library

Science.gov (United States)

Kingma, Bruce; McClure, Kathleen

2015-01-01

This study measures the return on investment (ROI) of the Syracuse University library. Faculty and students at Syracuse University were surveyed using contingent valuation methodology to measure their willingness to pay in time and money for the services of the academic library. Their travel time and use of the online library was measured to…

Young Investigator Proposal, Research Area 7.4 Reactive Chemical Systems: Multifunctional, Bimetallic Nanomaterials Prepared by Atomic Layer Electroless Deposition

Science.gov (United States)

2017-09-30

Report: Young Investigator Proposal, Research Area 7.4 Reactive Chemical Systems: Multifunctional, Bimetallic Nanomaterials Prepared by Atomic Layer ...Chemical Systems: Multifunctional, Bimetallic Nanomaterials Prepared by Atomic Layer Electroless Deposition Report Term: 0-Other Email: pcappillino... Layer Electroless Deposition (ALED, Figure 1) is the ability to tune growth mechanism, hence growth morphology, by altering conditions. In this

75 FR 1650 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed HB Potash, LLC-“In...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-12

...) Carlsbad Field Office, Carlsbad, New Mexico, intends to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and...] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed HB Potash, LLC--``In-Situ... Intent. SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, (NEPA) and...

Baseline marine biological survey at Roi-Namur sewage outfall, United States Army Kwajalein Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands, 1997 (NODC Accession 0000630)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Roi-Namur is located at the northernmost tip of Kwajalein Atoll, approximately 64 kilometers north of the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) central command post on...

Shifting from region of interest (ROI) to voxel-based analysis in human brain mapping

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Astrakas, Loukas G.; Argyropoulou, Maria I.

2010-01-01

Current clinical studies involve multidimensional high-resolution images containing an overwhelming amount of structural and functional information. The analysis of such a wealth of information is becoming increasingly difficult yet necessary in order to improve diagnosis, treatment and healthcare. Voxel-wise analysis is a class of modern methods of image processing in the medical field with increased popularity. It has replaced manual region of interest (ROI) analysis and has provided tools to make statistical inferences at voxel level. The introduction of voxel-based analysis software in all modern commercial scanners allows clinical use of these techniques. This review will explain the main principles, advantages and disadvantages behind these methods of image analysis. (orig.)

Dynamic PET reconstruction using temporal patch-based low rank penalty for ROI-based brain kinetic analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Kyungsang; Ye, Jong Chul; Son, Young Don; Cho, Zang Hee; Bresler, Yoram; Ra, Jong Beom

2015-01-01

Dynamic positron emission tomography (PET) is widely used to measure changes in the bio-distribution of radiopharmaceuticals within particular organs of interest over time. However, to retain sufficient temporal resolution, the number of photon counts in each time frame must be limited. Therefore, conventional reconstruction algorithms such as the ordered subset expectation maximization (OSEM) produce noisy reconstruction images, thus degrading the quality of the extracted time activity curves (TACs). To address this issue, many advanced reconstruction algorithms have been developed using various spatio-temporal regularizations. In this paper, we extend earlier results and develop a novel temporal regularization, which exploits the self-similarity of patches that are collected in dynamic images. The main contribution of this paper is to demonstrate that the correlation of patches can be exploited using a low-rank constraint that is insensitive to global intensity variations. The resulting optimization framework is, however, non-Lipschitz and non-convex due to the Poisson log-likelihood and low-rank penalty terms. Direct application of the conventional Poisson image deconvolution by an augmented Lagrangian (PIDAL) algorithm is, however, problematic due to its large memory requirements, which prevents its parallelization. Thus, we propose a novel optimization framework using the concave-convex procedure (CCCP) by exploiting the Legendre–Fenchel transform, which is computationally efficient and parallelizable. In computer simulation and a real in vivo experiment using a high-resolution research tomograph (HRRT) scanner, we confirm that the proposed algorithm can improve image quality while also extracting more accurate region of interests (ROI) based kinetic parameters. Furthermore, we show that the total reconstruction time for HRRT PET is significantly accelerated using our GPU implementation, which makes the algorithm very practical in clinical environments

A Training Program to Enhance Postgraduate Students' Research Skills in Preparing a Research Proposal in the Field of Curriculum and Instruction Methods of Arabic Language

Science.gov (United States)

Alfakih, Ahmed Hassan

2017-01-01

The study examined the impact of a training program on enhancing postgraduate students' research skills in preparing a research proposal. The nature of the skills required to prepare a research proposal were first determined using a questionnaire. A training program for improving such skills was then constructed and seven postgraduate students in…

78 FR 13643 - Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Delta Wetlands Project...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-28

... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Delta Wetlands Project in San Joaquin and Contra Costa Counties... Joaquin County and Holland Tract and Webb Tract are located in Contra Costa County. A wetland delineation...

Tombes et cimetières éthiopiens : des rois, des saints, des anonymes1

OpenAIRE

Derat, Marie-Laure

2009-01-01

L’histoire des tombes et cimetières éthiopiens, dans la longue durée, en est encore à ses balbutiements. Si les tombes des saints et des rois nous sont un peu mieux connus grâce à des textes témoignant à la fois des enjeux entourant les sépultures de ces personnages hors du commun et des soins apportés à leur inhumation, en revanche, les cimetières ordinaires échappent encore largement à l’enquête, en grande partie parce que le commun des mortels est inhumé dans l’anonymat et dans un grand dé...

Marine biological survey of ROI-NAMUR outfall at the United States Army Kwajalein Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands, May 2000 (NODC Accession 0000653)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Roi-Namur is located at the northernmost tip of Kwajalein Atoll, approximately 64 kilometers north of the U.S. Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) central command post on...

77 FR 38614 - Northwest Pipeline, GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-28

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. PF12-2-000] Northwest Pipeline, GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Kalama Lateral Pipeline Project, Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public Scoping Meeting The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissio...

76 FR 10348 - Northwest Pipeline, GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-24

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP11-59-000] Northwest Pipeline, GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Molalla Capacity Replacement Project and Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public Scoping Meeting The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory...

77 FR 41182 - Northwest Pipeline GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-12

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP12-471-000] Northwest Pipeline GP; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed South Seattle Delivery Lateral Expansion Project, Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public Scoping Meeting The staff of the Federal Energy...

78 FR 7808 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Buffalo Valley...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-04

... amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Mount Lewis Field Office, Battle Mountain, Nevada, intends to... Buffalo Valley Mine Project, a proposed open pit gold mine, mill, and associated facilities, located on..._mountain_field.html . In order to be considered during the preparation of the Draft EIS, all comments must...

The Development of Rally Activities to Environmental Conservationfor Social Education Teachers of Mathayom Suksa Education Area Office 27 Roi-Et Province

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Phiphop Sinthuphong

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The purposes of this research on the development of rally activities to environmental conservation for social education teachers of Mathayom suksa education area office 27 Roi-et province were ; 1 to study and analyze the place organized rally to environmental conservation, 2 to develop activities rally to environmental conservation for social education teachers 3 and compare knowledge and attitude toward environmental conservation, before and after the activity 4 to study participation in activities rally to environmental conservation after the activities. The samples used in the study and analysis of the event was social Education Teachers of Mathayom Suksa Education Area Office 27 Roi-Et Province were 77 and sample used in the event of 50 people. Social education teachers under the office of the secondary area 27 province. The tools used in this study were manual and brochures of Green activities Car Rally to environmental conservation, knowledge test, attitudes test and participating questionnaire manuals. The statistical analysis of data were percentage, mean, standard deviation and Paired t-test The results showed that there were proper place in activity all 9 points include 1. Wat Burapharam, 2. Pralanchai Swamp, 3.Roi-Et aquarium, 4. Ku Ka Sing ancient park, 5. Ku Phra Kona ancient park, 6. Jasmine rice learning source (land development station , 7. Chi river, 8.Don Swamp and 9. Rai Dakdea and dodo scouts camp. The tool in rally activities environmental conservation had suitability at more level. After participation of rally activities environmental conservation, social education teachers had mean score of knowledge and attitude to environmental conservation at more than before the participation at statistical significant level .05. And the score of knowledge and attitude toward environmental conservation, before and after the organized activities, it was found that, according to the hypothesis .05 and They had participation in

76 FR 38673 - Environmental Documents Prepared for Proposed Oil, Gas, and Mineral Operations by the Gulf of...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-01

... the Survey, SEA M10-008. Gulf of Mexico. Coastal Technology Corporation, Located on the Atlantic 2/1.... Planning Areas of the Gulf of Mexico. Energy Resource Technology GOM, Matagorda Island, Block 2/3/2011 Inc... Environmental Documents Prepared for Proposed Oil, Gas, and Mineral Operations by the Gulf of Mexico Outer...

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedure for preparation, follow-up and experience gained from maintenance: application to replacement of pressure vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lochard, Jacques; Lefaure, Christian

1990-01-01

This report proposes the organisation and ALARA procedures for preparation, follow-up and analysis of the lessons learned during maintenance works at a nuclear power plant. After a brief description of the ALARA principle in the first chapter, the following chapters describe proposals for establishing and start-up of a maintenance building site. The proposals are illustrated by the replacement of the pressure vessel as an example

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedure for preparation, follow-up and experience gained from maintenance: application to replacement of pressure vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lochard, Jacques; Lefaure, Christian

1989-12-01

This report proposes the organisation and ALARA procedures for preparation, follow-up and analysis of the lessons learned during maintenance works at a nuclear power plant. After a brief description of the ALARA principle in the first chapter, the following chapters describe proposals for establishing and start-up of a maintenance building site. The proposals are illustrated by the replacement of the pressure vessel as an example

A framework supporting the development of a Grid portal for analysis based on ROI.

Science.gov (United States)

Ichikawa, K; Date, S; Kaishima, T; Shimojo, S

2005-01-01

In our research on brain function analysis, users require two different simultaneous types of processing: interactive processing to a specific part of data and high-performance batch processing to an entire dataset. The difference between these two types of processing is in whether or not the analysis is for data in the region of interest (ROI). In this study, we propose a Grid portal that has a mechanism to freely assign computing resources to the users on a Grid environment according to the users' two different types of processing requirements. We constructed a Grid portal which integrates interactive processing and batch processing by the following two mechanisms. First, a job steering mechanism controls job execution based on user-tagged priority among organizations with heterogeneous computing resources. Interactive jobs are processed in preference to batch jobs by this mechanism. Second, a priority-based result delivery mechanism that administrates a rank of data significance. The portal ensures a turn-around time of interactive processing by the priority-based job controlling mechanism, and provides the users with quality of services (QoS) for interactive processing. The users can access the analysis results of interactive jobs in preference to the analysis results of batch jobs. The Grid portal has also achieved high-performance computation of MEG analysis with batch processing on the Grid environment. The priority-based job controlling mechanism has been realized to freely assign computing resources to the users' requirements. Furthermore the achievement of high-performance computation contributes greatly to the overall progress of brain science. The portal has thus made it possible for the users to flexibly include the large computational power in what they want to analyze.

77 FR 38077 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on a Proposed Boat-House Facility...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-26

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR National Park Service [NPS-NCR-GWMP-1202-9483: 3310-0250-471] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on a Proposed Boat-House Facility for Non-Motorized... identify a preferred site for construction of an environmentally sustainable facility for non-motorized...

Implementasi CMMI dalam Sebuah Organisasi Pengembang Software untuk Mencapai Return on Investment (ROI yang Diinginkan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ikrar Adinata Arin

2012-06-01

Full Text Available The main mechanism to achieve a level of maturity in the organization of software developers is always focused, structured and consistent in carrying out work procedures of a quality standard applied. This article offers readers an approach and discourse of using CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integrated concept thatgives a positive impact on development of organizational business in a software developer. The goals of CMMI are getting the best product quality, increasing productivity, reducing operational costs as well as software development period and increasing customer’s satisfaction. Nevertheless, a leader of the organization shouldalso be able to take important decisions to be consistent with the estimated time of desired return on investment (ROI.

Korea-France collaboration for the preparation of joint proposal for the OECD project on the steam explosion experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Jin Ho; Kim, H. D.; Kim, J. H.; Hong, S. W.; Min, B. T.; Park, I. K.

2004-07-01

There are some difficulties in design of the new reactor containment and in establishment of accident management strategy for operating reactors, since there exist a few phenomenological uncertainties in a steam explosion which occurs at the time of the interaction between the corium melt and coolant. So, the OECD/NEA recommended a research which could finalize the unsolved issues in a steam explosion and then an international collaborative research involving US, France, Germany, Japan and Korea, so called the SERENA (Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Application) started in 2002. The first phase of this collaborative research is an analytical research and the second phase is planned to be an experimental research which will start in 2005. Korea and France agreed that both countries would cooperate in the second phase of the SERENA program at the specialist meetings and collaborative committee between the KAERI (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute) and the CEA (Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique). This preparation research is performed in order to carry out the agreement between Korea and France and propose a collaborative research to the SERENA second phase. The contents of this research is to perform a collaborative research between Korea and France to propose an international collaborative research on a steam explosion research to the OECD. The scope includes the technical exchange for the construction of an international collaborative research and the preparation of a proposal for an international collaborative research for the OECD steam explosion program. Two steam explosion specialist meetings were held to discuss the technical issues in the TROI and KROTOS experiments. A formal accession and amendment agreement for the collaboration was contracted between the KAERI/KINS/CEA/IRSN. And the KAERI's capability to perform an international collaborative research was proved by advertizing the TROI test results to the USNRC/CSARP and JAERI. Also, the English

76 FR 41816 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ocotillo Sol Solar...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-07-15

...] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ocotillo Sol Solar Project... (ROW) authorization request for the Ocotillo Sol Solar Energy Facility (Project), a 15-18 megawatt (MW... Ocotillo Sol Solar Project by any of the following methods: Mail: Noel Ludwig, California Desert District...

Recovery from optic neuritis: an ROI-based analysis of LGN and visual cortical areas

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Korsholm, Kirsten; Madsen, Kristoffer Hougaard; Frederiksen, Jette L

2007-01-01

in the ROIs and compared activation during monocular stimulation of the affected and unaffected eye. In the acute phase the activation of LGN during visual stimulation of the affected eye was significantly reduced (P difference in LGN activation between...... the affected and unaffected eye diminished during recovery, and after 180 days the difference was no longer significant (P = 0.59). The decreased difference during recovery was mainly due to an increase in the fMRI signal when stimulating the affected eye, but included a component of a decreasing fMRI signal...... from LGN when stimulating the unaffected eye. In LOC, V1 and V2 activation during visual stimulation of the affected eye in the acute phase was significantly reduced (P difference diminished with no significant differences left after 180...

La Maison du Roi sous Louis XIV, une troupe d’élite. Étude tactique

OpenAIRE

Chauviré, Frédéric

2009-01-01

La Maison du roi constitue le corps le plus prestigieux de l’armée royale. Mais c’est aussi une troupe d’élite, redoutée sur tous les champs de bataille. Sa supériorité tactique trouve son origine dans la singularité de sa doctrine de combat. Beaucoup plus manœuvrière que les régiments ordinaires, elle s’en distingue également par sa conduite de la charge : choix de l’arme blanche, adoption d’une allure élevée et recherche du choc. Les qualités de cette troupe expliquent que Louis XIV ait vou...

77 FR 59603 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Oregon LNG Export...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-28

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. PF12-18-000; Docket No. PF12-20-000] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Oregon LNG Export Project and Washington Expansion Project, Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Public Scoping Meetings [[Page 59604

76 FR 5396 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rising Tree Wind...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-31

...] Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rising Tree Wind Farm... on issues and alternatives related to the Rising Tree Wind Farm Draft EIS/EIR and possible CDCA PA by... INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information and/or to have your name added to our mailing list, contact...

Evaluation and comparison of return of investment for proposed use of solar systems in the Czech and Slovak Republic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Weiss

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of the paper is to evaluate return of investment (ROI and cost savings from proposed use of solar systems for residents funded by government grants. The paper deals with proposals for solar energy systems for various use, simple calculations of payback periods of solar systems financed with subsidy and without subsidy. Apart from climatic conditions, chemical composition the of the absorber and structural elements that are made of copper, respectively aluminum and Al-Mg alloy play an important role in assessing the payback period of the investment in solar panels.

Safety of drinking water supplies to suburban Paris: analysis and control of radioactivity at Choisy-le-Roi

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rapinat, M.; Philipot, J.M.; Cadet, J.L.

1990-01-01

The Syndicat des Eaux d'Ile de France and the Compagnie des Eaux have undertaken several stringent actions, to analyse and control radioactivity at Cholsy-le-Roi, 150 KM downstream from Nogent/s/Seine:- founding in 1985 a new laboratory branch for radioactivity measurement. - adding new elements to the existing alarm network (automatic analysis of the raw water quality). - studies for the treatability of radioelements. - using protected resources (ground water). -set up of a second treated water feeder between the river Seine and the river Marne areas. Others projects are under study, such as the creation of a raw water reservoir and increasing the capacity of treated water stockage. (author)

Bias in tensor based morphometry Stat-ROI measures may result in unrealistic power estimates.

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, Wesley K; Holland, Dominic

2011-07-01

A series of reports have recently appeared using tensor based morphometry statistically-defined regions of interest, Stat-ROIs, to quantify longitudinal atrophy in structural MRIs from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI). This commentary focuses on one of these reports, Hua et al. (2010), but the issues raised here are relevant to the others as well. Specifically, we point out a temporal pattern of atrophy in subjects with Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment whereby the majority of atrophy in two years occurs within the first 6 months, resulting in overall elevated estimated rates of change. Using publicly-available ADNI data, this temporal pattern is also found in a group of identically-processed healthy controls, strongly suggesting that methodological bias is corrupting the measures. The resulting bias seriously impacts the validity of conclusions reached using these measures; for example, sample size estimates reported by Hua et al. (2010) may be underestimated by a factor of five to sixteen. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Buffon, the director of 'Jardin du Roi' in the 1700s].

Science.gov (United States)

Jeune, Bernard; Petersen, Hans Christian

2008-01-01

Buffon and Linné were the two greatest naturalists of the 1700s. As they were both born in 1707, their 300 anniversaries were therefore celebrated in France and Sweden. At the celebration meeting at the University of Bourgogne in Dijon - The Buffon Legacy - September 3-6, 2007, we presented the following paper: "Buffon and the longevity of species". In the present paper the life and work of Buffon is introduced on the basis of recent literature, including Jacques Roger's famous biography. Among non-biologists Buffon has nearly been forgotten, even though in the 1700s he was considered to be at the same level as the most famous French thinkers of the Enlightenment - Montesquieu, Voltaire, Rousseau and Diderot. His largest contributions were the publication of his comprehensive "Histoire naturelle" and his long and significant leadership of "Jardin du Roi", which he built up to become one of the best scientific institutions of Europe. Buffon's scientific contributions wereas overshadowed by those of Linné, as it was his classification system, which became dominant all overn Europe. Buffon's student Lamarck and later Darwin contributed by pushing Buffon in oblivion of history, even though Darwin valued him highly. However, in recent decades Buffon is experiencing a renaissance in connection with the increasing interest in biological anthropology, biogeography, ethology, and ecology, as well as on account of his modern species concept.

Investigating the Impact uf E-Learning as an Alternative for Business Education in Pharmaceutical Industry in Romania by Roi Methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petruţa Blaga

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The capability of organizations to accumulate and apply new knowledge is a key factor in order to achieve the new competitive standards. A continuous changing diversity, to which the need of adaptation to the changes of external environment is added, speeds up the rate of development and business education. The new information and communication technologies speed up the rate of change and increase the need of education that is subject to a higher information flow. The achievements of information technology, along with changes within society, determine the creation of new paradigms for business education and training. Under these circumstances, e-learning has become one of the main educational forms of human resources in business. This research aims to measure the impact of some initiatives within human resources on an organization, market leader within pharmaceutical field, namely measuring the efficiency of business education programs concerning human resources through e-learning. Under these circumstances, the carried-out research aims to put into practice the theoretical frame of ROI (Return on Investment methodology of evaluating the business education programs concerning human resources in five stages, suggested by J. J. Phillips. The research validates theoretical data of the surveyed model and it is based on the analysis of the data gathering process within the ROI Methodology. This work shows only aspects related to the measuring of the participants` reaction towards the e-learning business education program, respectively

Procès inquisitorial contra el castellà d'Amposta Fra Pedro Roiç de Moros a la cúria pontificia del papa Benet XIII (I414-1418

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alanyà i Roig, Josep

2002-06-01

Full Text Available The Arxiu de la Corona d'Aragó in Barcelona houses the original commital proceedings instituted by a court of cardinals set up by pope Benedict XIII in the year 1414 and teh trial itself of the lord of Amposta, Fra Pedro Roiç de Moros, knight of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, who had been charged with indictable offences—concubinage, robbery, housing apostates, oath breaking and counterfeiting money, mismanagement of the Castlery's assets, excesses against his vassals, wasteful use of assets, dereliction and property abandonment— of which he was found guilty, and thereafter sentenced to losing the dignity of his lordship. Roiç de Moros appealed to the Council of Constance as well as to pope Martin V. It would be to no avail. Roiç de Moros paid a very high price for choosing to support count Jaume d'Urgell and deciding to oppose Ferran dAntequera and the policies of pope Benedict XIII. The follow up and analysis of the court´s records are very interesting for their human variety and interesting informations about fortresses, houses, barns, treaures and services there were in different locations of the Castlery of Amposta, such as Batea, Gandesa, Miravet, Ulldecona, Ascó and other towns and villages along the Ribera d´Ebre. The whole criminal prosecution bears a very peculiar historic interest mainly because the protagonists, the court procedures, and their causes are the link between the Interregnum in the Aragonese Crown and the fìnal days of the Western Schism.

A l'Arxiu de la Corona d'Aragó de Barcelona es conserva el procés original instruït per un tribunal de cardenals creat pel papa Benet XIII l'any 1414 per jutjar el Castella d'Amposta, l'hospitaler Fra Pedro Roiç de Moros, acusat de crims greus —concubinat, bandositats, recepció d’apòstates, perjuri i fabricació de moneda falsa, mala administració dels bens de la Castellania, comissió d'excessos contra els seus vassalls, dilapidado de bens i abando

Biokinetics and dosimetry in patients of 99mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr3-octreotide prepared from lyophilized kits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gonzalez-Vazquez, Armando; Ferro-Flores, Guillermina; Arteaga de Murphy, Consuelo; Gutierrez-Garcia, Zohar

2006-01-01

99m Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr 3 -octreotide ( 99m Tc-HYNIC-TOC) has shown high in vitro and in vivo stability, rapid background clearance and rapid detection of somatostatin receptor-positive tumors. The aim of this study was to establish a biokinetic model for 99m Tc-HYNIC-TOC prepared from lyophilized kits, and to evaluate its dosimetry as a tumor imaging agent in patients with histologically confirmed neuroendocrine tumors. Whole-body images from eight patients were acquired at 5, 60, 90, 180 min and 24 h after 99m Tc-HYNIC-TOC administration obtained from instant freeze-dried kit formulations with radiochemical purities >95%. Regions of interest (ROIs) were drawn around source organs on each time frame. The same set of ROIs was used for all eight scans and the count per minute (cpm) of each ROI was converted to activity using the conjugate view counting method. The image sequence was used to extrapolate 99m Tc-HYNIC-TOC time-activity curves in each organ, to adjust a biokinetic model using the SAAM software, and to calculate the total number of disintegrations (N) that occurred in the source regions. N data were the input for the OLINDA/EXM code to calculate internal radiation dose estimates. Images showed an average tumor/blood (heart) ratio of 4.3±0.7 in receptor-positive tumors at 1 h. The mean radiation absorbed dose calculated for a study using 740 MBq was 24, 21.5, 5.5 and 1.0 mSv for spleen, kidneys, liver and bone marrow respectively and the effective dose was 4.4 mSv

Biokinetics and dosimetry in patients of 99mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr3-octreotide prepared from lyophilized kits.

Science.gov (United States)

González-Vázquez, Armando; Ferro-Flores, Guillermina; Arteaga de Murphy, Consuelo; Gutiérrez-García, Zohar

2006-07-01

99mTc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr3-octreotide (99mTc-HYNIC-TOC) has shown high in vitro and in vivo stability, rapid background clearance and rapid detection of somatostatin receptor-positive tumors. The aim of this study was to establish a biokinetic model for 99mTc-HYNIC-TOC prepared from lyophilized kits, and to evaluate its dosimetry as a tumor imaging agent in patients with histologically confirmed neuroendocrine tumors. Whole-body images from eight patients were acquired at 5, 60, 90, 180 min and 24 h after 99mTc-HYNIC-TOC administration obtained from instant freeze-dried kit formulations with radiochemical purities >95%. Regions of interest (ROIs) were drawn around source organs on each time frame. The same set of ROIs was used for all eight scans and the count per minute (cpm) of each ROI was converted to activity using the conjugate view counting method. The image sequence was used to extrapolate 99mTc-HYNIC-TOC time-activity curves in each organ, to adjust a biokinetic model using the SAAM software, and to calculate the total number of disintegrations (N) that occurred in the source regions. N data were the input for the OLINDA/EXM code to calculate internal radiation dose estimates. Images showed an average tumor/blood (heart) ratio of 4.3+/-0.7 in receptor-positive tumors at 1 h. The mean radiation absorbed dose calculated for a study using 740 MBq was 24, 21.5, 5.5 and 1.0 mSv for spleen, kidneys, liver and bone marrow respectively and the effective dose was 4.4 mSv.

Reliability evaluation of I-123 ADAM SPECT imaging using SPM software and AAL ROI methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yang, Bang-Hung [Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan (China); Department of Nuclear Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan (China); Tsai, Sung-Yi [Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan (China); Department of Imaging Medical, St.Martin De Porres Hospital, Chia-Yi, Taiwan (China); Wang, Shyh-Jen [Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan (China); Department of Nuclear Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan (China); Su, Tung-Ping; Chou, Yuan-Hwa [Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan (China); Chen, Chia-Chieh [Institute of Nuclear Energy Research, Longtan, Taiwan (China); Chen, Jyh-Cheng, E-mail: jcchen@ym.edu.tw [Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan (China)

2011-08-21

The level of serotonin was regulated by serotonin transporter (SERT), which is a decisive protein in regulation of serotonin neurotransmission system. Many psychiatric disorders and therapies were also related to concentration of cerebral serotonin. I-123 ADAM was the novel radiopharmaceutical to image SERT in brain. The aim of this study was to measure reliability of SERT densities of healthy volunteers by automated anatomical labeling (AAL) method. Furthermore, we also used statistic parametric mapping (SPM) on a voxel by voxel analysis to find difference of cortex between test and retest of I-123 ADAM single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images. Twenty-one healthy volunteers were scanned twice with SPECT at 4 h after intravenous administration of 185 MBq of {sup 123}I-ADAM. The image matrix size was 128x128 and pixel size was 3.9 mm. All images were obtained through filtered back-projection (FBP) reconstruction algorithm. Region of interest (ROI) definition was performed based on the AAL brain template in PMOD version 2.95 software package. ROI demarcations were placed on midbrain, pons, striatum, and cerebellum. All images were spatially normalized to the SPECT MNI (Montreal Neurological Institute) templates supplied with SPM2. And each image was transformed into standard stereotactic space, which was matched to the Talairach and Tournoux atlas. Then differences across scans were statistically estimated on a voxel by voxel analysis using paired t-test (population main effect: 2 cond's, 1 scan/cond.), which was applied to compare concentration of SERT between the test and retest cerebral scans. The average of specific uptake ratio (SUR: target/cerebellum-1) of {sup 123}I-ADAM binding to SERT in midbrain was 1.78{+-}0.27, pons was 1.21{+-}0.53, and striatum was 0.79{+-}0.13. The cronbach's {alpha} of intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was 0.92. Besides, there was also no significant statistical finding in cerebral area using SPM2

77 FR 6793 - D'Lo Gas Storage, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the PROPOSED D...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-09

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP12-39-000] D'Lo Gas Storage, LLC; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the PROPOSED D'LO Gas Storage Project, Request for Comments on Environmental Issues, and Notice of Onsite Environmental Review The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ...

« Les rois de Ségou » : De l'épopée à la série télévisée | Tamari ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Les Rois de Ségou (“The Kings of Segu”) is a television series from Mali directed by ... Together with another film released at about the same time, Samanyana Basi (“Basi from ... dialogues are laden with adages, thus approximating the characteristics of bardic speech. ... EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

Stereoscopic Visual Attention-Based Regional Bit Allocation Optimization for Multiview Video Coding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dai Qionghai

2010-01-01

Full Text Available We propose a Stereoscopic Visual Attention- (SVA- based regional bit allocation optimization for Multiview Video Coding (MVC by the exploiting visual redundancies from human perceptions. We propose a novel SVA model, where multiple perceptual stimuli including depth, motion, intensity, color, and orientation contrast are utilized, to simulate the visual attention mechanisms of human visual system with stereoscopic perception. Then, a semantic region-of-interest (ROI is extracted based on the saliency maps of SVA. Both objective and subjective evaluations of extracted ROIs indicated that the proposed SVA model based on ROI extraction scheme outperforms the schemes only using spatial or/and temporal visual attention clues. Finally, by using the extracted SVA-based ROIs, a regional bit allocation optimization scheme is presented to allocate more bits on SVA-based ROIs for high image quality and fewer bits on background regions for efficient compression purpose. Experimental results on MVC show that the proposed regional bit allocation algorithm can achieve over % bit-rate saving while maintaining the subjective image quality. Meanwhile, the image quality of ROIs is improved by  dB at the cost of insensitive image quality degradation of the background image.

Using Soil Conservation Strategies in the Development of Learning Activities for the Students of Roi - Et College of Agriculture and Technology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jariya Kanchanwong

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The purposes of this research were 1 to study nutrient content in soil samples taken from Roi - Et College of Agriculture and Technology Campus, 2 to study the social factors, economic factors and technological factors the effect on soil conservation of Roi - Et College of Agriculture and Technology students, 3 the development of soil conservation activities Learning package efficiency of 80/80, 4 to Study and to compare the knowledge, attitudes and skills regarding soil conservation of students of Roi - Et College of Agriculture and Technology. The student activities package of learning soil conservation was enrolled by 40 people in its club. These people were selected by purposive sampling. The instruments were used in this research as follows; 1 scientific analysis, 2 social questionnaire on economic and technological factors affecting soil conservation, 3 test of knowledge about soil conservation, 4 test of attitudes about soil conservation, 5 test of skill about soil conservation. The experimental research was designed to use students as key informants. The statistics analysis was used in the research as follows: frequency, percentage, average, standard deviation, test results, assumptions which included a dependent t-test statistical at the significance level of 0.05. The results of the study were as follows: 1 The study found that the amount of soil nutrient content (N: P: K around cultivated plants in an area of converted agriculture land have the significance: Soil checks collected in plots from soil containing morning glory, chrysanthemums, marigolds, corn and cassava, and had neutral pH. 2 The results of the analysis determing the factors that affected the conservation of soil found economic factors were at a high level Social factors and technology factors were moderate thus leading the approach that has come to create of learning activities package in soil conservation. 3 The results showed that the efficiency of the manual was 83

Semi-automatic ROI placement system for analysis of brain PET images based on elastic model. Application to diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ohyama, Masashi; Mishina, Masahiro; Kitamura, Shin; Katayama, Yasuo; Senda, Michio; Tanizaki, Naoki; Ishii, Kenji

2000-01-01

PET with 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is a useful technique to image cerebral glucose metabolism and to detect patients with Alzheimer's disease in the early stage, in which characteristic temporoparietal hypometabolism is visualized. We have developed a new system, in which the standard brain ROI atlas made of networks of segments is elastically transformed to match the subject brain images, so that standard ROIs defined on the segments are placed on the individual brain images and are used to measure radioactivity over each brain region. We applied this methods to Alzheimer's disease. This method was applied to the images of 10 normal subjects (ages 55 +/- 12) and 21 patients clinically diagnosed as Alzheimer's disease (age 61 +/- 10). The FDG uptake reflecting glucose metabolism was evaluated with SUV, i.e. decay corrected radioactivity divided by injected dose per body weight in (Bq/ml)/(Bq/g). The system worked all right in every subject including those with extensive hypometabolism. Alzheimer patients showed markedly lower in the parietal cortex (4.0-4.1). When the threshold value of FDG uptake in the parietal lobe was set as 5 (Bq/ml)/(Bq/g), we could discriminate the patients with Alzheimer's disease from the normal subjects. The sensitivity was 86% and the specificity was 90%. This system can assist diagnosis of FDG images and may be useful for treating data of a large number of subjects; e.g. when PET is applied to health screening. (author)

Biokinetics and dosimetry in patients of {sup 99m}Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr{sup 3}-octreotide prepared from lyophilized kits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gonzalez-Vazquez, Armando [Departamento de Medicina Nuclear, Hospital Militar (Mexico); Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Mexico (Mexico); Ferro-Flores, Guillermina [Departamento de Materiales Radiactivos, Gerencia de Aplicaciones Nucleares en la Salud, Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Km. 36.5 Carretera Mexico-Toluca, Ocoyoacac, Estado de Mexico, C.P. 52045 (Mexico)]. E-mail: gff@nuclear.inin.mx; Arteaga de Murphy, Consuelo [Departamento de Medicina Nuclear, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Medicas y Nutricion Salvador Zubiran (Mexico); Gutierrez-Garcia, Zohar [Departamento de Medicina Nuclear, Hospital Militar (Mexico)

2006-07-15

{sup 99m}Tc-EDDA/HYNIC-Tyr{sup 3}-octreotide ({sup 99m}Tc-HYNIC-TOC) has shown high in vitro and in vivo stability, rapid background clearance and rapid detection of somatostatin receptor-positive tumors. The aim of this study was to establish a biokinetic model for {sup 99m}Tc-HYNIC-TOC prepared from lyophilized kits, and to evaluate its dosimetry as a tumor imaging agent in patients with histologically confirmed neuroendocrine tumors. Whole-body images from eight patients were acquired at 5, 60, 90, 180 min and 24 h after {sup 99m}Tc-HYNIC-TOC administration obtained from instant freeze-dried kit formulations with radiochemical purities >95%. Regions of interest (ROIs) were drawn around source organs on each time frame. The same set of ROIs was used for all eight scans and the count per minute (cpm) of each ROI was converted to activity using the conjugate view counting method. The image sequence was used to extrapolate {sup 99m}Tc-HYNIC-TOC time-activity curves in each organ, to adjust a biokinetic model using the SAAM software, and to calculate the total number of disintegrations (N) that occurred in the source regions. N data were the input for the OLINDA/EXM code to calculate internal radiation dose estimates. Images showed an average tumor/blood (heart) ratio of 4.3{+-}0.7 in receptor-positive tumors at 1 h. The mean radiation absorbed dose calculated for a study using 740 MBq was 24, 21.5, 5.5 and 1.0 mSv for spleen, kidneys, liver and bone marrow respectively and the effective dose was 4.4 mSv.

Process-based project proposal risk management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alok Kumar

2016-12-01

Full Text Available We all are aware of the organizational omnipresence. Projects within the organizations are ubiquitous too. Projects achieve their goals successfully if they are planned, scheduled, controlled and implemented well. The project lifecycle of initiating, planning, scheduling, controlling and implementing are very well-planned by project managers and the organizations. Successful projects have well-developed risk management plans to deal with situations impacting projects. Like any other organisation, a university does try to access funds for different purposes too. For such organisations, running a project is not the issue, rather getting a project proposal approved to fund a project is the key. Project proposal processing is done by the nodal office in every organisation. Usually, these nodal offices help in administration and submission of a project proposal for accessing funds. Seldom are these nodal project offices within the organizations facilitate a project proposal approval by proactively reaching out to the project managers. And as project managers prepare project proposals, little or no attention is made to prepare a project proposal risk plan so as to maximise project acquisition. Risk plans are submitted while preparing proposals but these risk plans cater to a requirement to address actual projects upon approval. Hence, a risk management plan for project proposal is either missing or very little effort is made to treat the risks inherent in project acquisition. This paper is an integral attempt to highlight the importance of risk treatment for project proposal stage as an extremely important step to preparing the risk management plan made for projects corresponding to their lifecycle phases. Several tools and techniques have been proposed in the paper to help and guide either the project owner (proposer or the main organisational unit responsible for project management. Development of tools and techniques to further enhance project

Sliding Window-Based Region of Interest Extraction for Finger Vein Images

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Lu; Yang, Gongping; Yin, Yilong; Xiao, Rongyang

2013-01-01

Region of Interest (ROI) extraction is a crucial step in an automatic finger vein recognition system. The aim of ROI extraction is to decide which part of the image is suitable for finger vein feature extraction. This paper proposes a finger vein ROI extraction method which is robust to finger displacement and rotation. First, we determine the middle line of the finger, which will be used to correct the image skew. Then, a sliding window is used to detect the phalangeal joints and further to ascertain the height of ROI. Last, for the corrective image with certain height, we will obtain the ROI by using the internal tangents of finger edges as the left and right boundary. The experimental results show that the proposed method can extract ROI more accurately and effectively compared with other methods, and thus improve the performance of finger vein identification system. Besides, to acquire the high quality finger vein image during the capture process, we propose eight criteria for finger vein capture from different aspects and these criteria should be helpful to some extent for finger vein capture. PMID:23507824

IntroductionLa parole des rois à la fin du Moyen Âge : les voies d’une enquête

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stéphane PÉQUIGNOT

2007-10-01

Full Text Available El artículo sugiere algunas propuestas para una investigación general sobre el hablar de los reyes a finales de la Edad Media. Basándose en un estado de la cuestión para el caso de la Corona de Aragón, se indaga la inscripción del hablar de los reyes en distintas temporalidades imbricadas entre sí. La transcripción de las palabras resulta de un proceso complejo, la « fábrica de la palabra », cuyos mecanismos y huellas son objeto de estudio. Por otra parte, las representaciones del hablar de los reyes hacen a menudo referencia a unos modelos traídos del pasado, a veces se dirigen a un público futuro, mientras testimonian también su necesaria adaptación a las circunstancias de cada momento. Estos « actas reales de palabra », así como los « estilos expresivos » que contribuyen a forjar, se examinan en la secunda parte del artículo. Finalmente, el tiempo dedicado o dejado a las palabras reales participa de las evoluciones a largo plazo de las relaciones a lo escrito, de los regímenes políticos y de su forma de legitimación ; constituye un modo de comunicación político importante, un recurso y, también, una toma de riesgo para el poder y la autoridad monarquica.L’article invite à une enquête générale sur la parole des rois à la fin du Moyen Âge et en esquisse plusieurs voies possibles. À l’aide d’un état de la question sur la couronne d’Aragon, c’est l’inscription de la parole des rois dans différentes temporalités imbriquées qui est visée. Sa transcription même résulte d’un processus complexe, la « fabrique de la parole », dont mécanismes et traces sont examinés. D’autre part, les représentations de la parole des rois renvoient souvent à des modèles du passé, visent parfois un public futur tout en témoignant aussi d’une nécessaire adaptation aux circonstances présentes. Ces « actes royaux de parole » et les « styles expressifs » qu’ils contribuent à consolider

Detection scheme for a partially occluded pedestrian based on occluded depth in lidar-radar sensor fusion

Science.gov (United States)

Kwon, Seong Kyung; Hyun, Eugin; Lee, Jin-Hee; Lee, Jonghun; Son, Sang Hyuk

2017-11-01

Object detections are critical technologies for the safety of pedestrians and drivers in autonomous vehicles. Above all, occluded pedestrian detection is still a challenging topic. We propose a new detection scheme for occluded pedestrian detection by means of lidar-radar sensor fusion. In the proposed method, the lidar and radar regions of interest (RoIs) have been selected based on the respective sensor measurement. Occluded depth is a new means to determine whether an occluded target exists or not. The occluded depth is a region projected out by expanding the longitudinal distance with maintaining the angle formed by the outermost two end points of the lidar RoI. The occlusion RoI is the overlapped region made by superimposing the radar RoI and the occluded depth. The object within the occlusion RoI is detected by the radar measurement information and the occluded object is estimated as a pedestrian based on human Doppler distribution. Additionally, various experiments are performed in detecting a partially occluded pedestrian in outdoor as well as indoor environments. According to experimental results, the proposed sensor fusion scheme has much better detection performance compared to the case without our proposed method.

Career satisfaction and work-life balance of specialist orthodontists within the UK/ROI.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Junaid, S M; Hodges, S J; Petrie, A; Cunningham, S J

2017-07-07

Objectives To investigate factors affecting career satisfaction and work-life balance in specialist orthodontists in the UK/ROI.Design and setting Prospective questionnaire-based study.Subjects and methods The questionnaire was sent to specialist orthodontists who were members of the British Orthodontic Society.Results Orthodontists reported high levels of career satisfaction (median score 90/100). Career satisfaction was significantly higher in those who exhibited: i) satisfaction with working hours; ii) satisfaction with the level of control over their working day; iii) ability to manage unexpected home events; and iv) confidence in how readily they managed patient expectations. The work-life balance score was lower than the career satisfaction score but the median score was 75/100. Work-life balance scores were significantly affected by the same four factors, but additionally were higher in those who worked part-time.Conclusions Orthodontists in this study were highly satisfied with their career and the majority responded that they would choose orthodontics again. Work-life balance scores were lower than career satisfaction scores but still relatively high. It is important for the profession to consider ways of maintaining, or improving, career satisfaction and work-life balance; including maintaining flexibility of working hours and ensuring that all clinicians have ready access to appropriate training courses throughout their careers (for example, management of patient expectations).

LOCUS MR: Localization of unaffected spins in MR tomography and MR spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthael, D.; Haase, A.

1986-01-01

Different pulse sequences have been proposed for localized in vivo MR spectroscopy. For localized MR tomography and MR spectroscopy, a method is proposed, dubbed LOCUS (LOCalization of Unaffected Spins) MR. The method uses the initial saturation of regions surrounding the region of interest (ROI) in the presence of gradients. This is followed by a conventional MR study of the unaffected ROI. In animals, human extremities, and phantoms, proton MR studies demonstrated that the method provides an optimal signal-to-noise ratio, an easily variable ROI, and ROI shim. The method can be combined with two- and three-dimensional imaging, and it allows localized measurement of MR parameters. The multinuclear capability is discussed

Total Mini-Mental State Examination score and regional cerebral blood flow using Z score imaging and automated ROI analysis software in subjects with memory impairment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikeda, Eiji; Shiozaki, Kazumasa; Takahashi, Nobukazu; Togo, Takashi; Odawara, Toshinari; Oka, Takashi; Inoue, Tomio; Hirayasu, Yoshio

2008-01-01

The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) is considered a useful supplementary method to diagnose dementia and evaluate the severity of cognitive disturbance. However, the region of the cerebrum that correlates with the MMSE score is not clear. Recently, a new method was developed to analyze regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) using a Z score imaging system (eZIS). This system shows changes of rCBF when compared with a normal database. In addition, a three-dimensional stereotaxic region of interest (ROI) template (3DSRT), fully automated ROI analysis software was developed. The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between rCBF changes and total MMSE score using these new methods. The association between total MMSE score and rCBF changes was investigated in 24 patients (mean age±standard deviation (SD) 71.5±9.2 years; 6 men and 18 women) with memory impairment using eZIS and 3DSRT. Step-wise multiple regression analysis was used for multivariate analysis, with the total MMSE score as the dependent variable and rCBF change in 24 areas as the independent variable. Total MMSE score was significantly correlated only with the reduction of left hippocampal perfusion but not with right (P<0.01). Total MMSE score is an important indicator of left hippocampal function. (author)

Effects of Land-Use Change and Managed Aquifer Recharge on Geochemical Reactions with Implications for Groundwater Quantity and Quality in Atoll Island Aquifers, Roi-Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Hejazian, M.; Swarzenski, P. W.; Gurdak, J. J.; Odigie, K. O.; Storlazzi, C. D.

2015-12-01

This study compares the hydrogeochemistry of two contrasting atoll groundwater systems in Roi-Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Roi-Namur houses a U.S. Department of Defense military installation and presents an ideal study location where a human impacted aquifer is co-located next to a natural aquifer as part of two artificially conjoined atoll islands. The hydrogeology and geochemistry of carbonate atoll aquifers has been well studied, particularly because of its small, well-defined hydrologic system that allows for relatively precise modeling. However, it is unknown how changes in land-use/land cover and managed aquifer recharge (MAR) alters natural geochemical processes in atoll aquifers. A better understanding of this has implications on groundwater quantity and quality, carbonate dissolution, and best aquifer management practices in the context of rising sea level and saltwater intrusion. Roi has been heavily modified to house military and civilian operations; here, lack of vegetation and managed recharge has increased the volume of potable groundwater and affected the geochemical processes in the freshwater lens and saltwater transition zone. Namur is heavily vegetated and the hydrogeology is indicative of a natural atoll island. A suite of monitoring wells were sampled across both island settings for major ions, nutrients, trace elements, DOC/DIC, δ13C and δ18O/2H isotopes. By modeling geochemical reactions using a conservative mixing approach, we measure deviations from expected reactions and compare the two contrasting settings using derived geochemical profiles through a wide salinity spectrum. Results indicate that groundwater on Namur is more heavily depleted in δ13C and has greater dissolved inorganic carbon, suggesting higher microbial oxidation and greater dissolution within the carbonate aquifer. This suggests MAR and reduction of vegetation makes the groundwater supply on atoll islands more resilient to sea level rise.

SU-G-BRC-01: A Data-Driven Pre-Optimization Method for Prediction of Achievability of Clinical Objectives in IMRT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ranganathan, V; Kumar, P [Philips India Limited, Bangalore, Karnataka (India); Bzdusek, K [Philips, Fitchburg, WI (United States); Das, J Maria [Sanjay Gandhi PG Inst Med Scienes, Lucknow (India)

2016-06-15

Purpose: We propose a novel data-driven method to predict the achievability of clinical objectives upfront before invoking the IMRT optimization. Methods: A new metric called “Geometric Complexity (GC)” is used to estimate the achievability of clinical objectives. Here, GC is the measure of the number of “unmodulated” beamlets or rays that intersect the Region-of-interest (ROI) and the target volume. We first compute the geometric complexity ratio (GCratio) between the GC of a ROI (say, parotid) in a reference plan and the GC of the same ROI in a given plan. The GCratio of a ROI indicates the relative geometric complexity of the ROI as compared to the same ROI in the reference plan. Hence GCratio can be used to predict if a defined clinical objective associated with the ROI can be met by the optimizer for a given case. Basically a higher GCratio indicates a lesser likelihood for the optimizer to achieve the clinical objective defined for a given ROI. Similarly, a lower GCratio indicates a higher likelihood for the optimizer to achieve the clinical objective defined for the given ROI. We have evaluated the proposed method on four Head and Neck cases using Pinnacle3 (version 9.10.0) Treatment Planning System (TPS). Results: Out of the total of 28 clinical objectives from four head and neck cases included in the study, 25 were in agreement with the prediction, which implies an agreement of about 85% between predicted and obtained results. The Pearson correlation test shows a positive correlation between predicted and obtained results (Correlation = 0.82, r2 = 0.64, p < 0.005). Conclusion: The study demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed method in head and neck cases for predicting the achievability of clinical objectives with reasonable accuracy.

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedure for preparation, follow-up and experience gained from maintenance: application to replacement of pressure vessel; Proposition d'organisation et procedure ALARA pour la preparation le suivi et le retour d'experience des chantiers de maintenance: application au RGV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lochard, Jacques; Lefaure, Christian

1990-01-01

This report proposes the organisation and ALARA procedures for preparation, follow-up and analysis of the lessons learned during maintenance works at a nuclear power plant. After a brief description of the ALARA principle in the first chapter, the following chapters describe proposals for establishing and start-up of a maintenance building site. The proposals are illustrated by the replacement of the pressure vessel as an example.

7 CFR 3403.6 - Content of proposals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... SBIR Phase I or Phase II effort. Proposals principally for the development of proven concepts toward... 7 Agriculture 15 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Content of proposals. 3403.6 Section 3403.6... Preparation of Proposals § 3403.6 Content of proposals. (a) The proposed research must be responsive to one of...

Policy Board Proposals Ignore Real Problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Hawley, Willis D.

1989-01-01

The recent National Policy Board for Educational Administration report ("Improving the Preparation of School Administrators: An Agenda for Reform") does not address fundamental questions or make convincing proposals concerning the preparation of school administrators. The report's nine overall recommendations for improving school administration…

Noctis Landing: A Proposed Landing Site/Exploration Zone for Human Missions to the Surface of Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Pascal; Acedillo, Shannen; Braham, Stephen; Brown, Adrian; Elphic, Richard; Fong, Terry; Glass, Brian; Hoftun, Christopher; Johansen, Brage W.; Lorber, Kira;

Le roi et la parole dans quelques recueils d’exempla castillans des XIIIe et XIVe siècles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Olivier Biaggini

2007-05-01

Full Text Available Aquí se examina el hablar del rey tal como lo ponen en escena los relatos ejemplares de Calila e Dimna, Sendebar, Castigos de Sancho IV y El conde Lucanor de don Juan Manuel. Un recorrido previo por el discurso alfonsí (Espéculo y Segunda partida permite precisar los planteamientos de la cuestión mostrando que la palabra regia vale menos por su enunciado que por su enunciación, sometida a unas reglas estrictas. Ahora bien, regular la palabra sirve para definir las condiciones de su poder. De modo muy diverso, las colecciones de exempla representan el hablar del rey en situaciones que subrayan su prestigio o que indican a la inversa la necesidad de controlar sus efectos nefastos. En todo caso, contribuye directamente a la construcción de modelos políticos que, si bien se aplican ante todo a la realeza (Calila, Sendebar, Castigos, pueden en cierta medida ajustarse también a la nobleza (Conde Lucanor.On examine ici la parole du roi telle que la mettent en scène les récits exemplaires du Calila e Dimna, du Sendebar, des Castigos de Sanche IV et du Conde Lucanor de Don Juan Manuel. Un détour par le discours juridique alphonsin (Espéculo et Segunda partida permet de préciser les enjeux de cette question en montrant que la parole royale vaut moins par son énoncé que par son énonciation, soumise à des contraintes strictes. Or, réguler la parole sert à définir les conditions de son pouvoir. De façon très variée, les recueils d’exempla représentent la parole du roi dans des situations qui soulignent son prestige ou, inversement, pointent la nécessité d’en contrôler les effets néfastes. Dans tous les cas, elle contribue directement à la construction de modèles politiques qui, s’ils s’appliquent avant tout à la royauté (Calila, Sendebar, Castigos, sont aussi en partie transposables à la noblesse (Conde Lucanor.

First clinical experience with a multiple region of interest registration and correction method in radiotherapy of head-and-neck cancer patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beek, Suzanne van; Kranen, Simon van; Mencarelli, Angelo; Remeijer, Peter; Rasch, Coen; Herk, Marcel van; Sonke, Jan-Jakob

2010-01-01

Purpose: To discuss the first clinical experience with a multiple region of interest (mROI) registration and correction method for high-precision radiotherapy of head-and-neck cancer patients. Materials and methods: 12-13 3D rectangular-shaped ROIs were automatically placed around bony structures on the planning CT scans (n = 50 patients) which were individually registered to subsequent CBCT scans. mROI registration was used to quantify global and local setup errors. The time required to perform the mROI registration was compared with that of a previously used single-ROI method. The number of scans with residual local setup error exceeding 5 mm/5 deg. (warnings) was scored together with the frequency ROIs exceeding these limits for three or more consecutive imaging fractions (systematic errors). Results: In 40% of the CBCT scans, one or more ROI-registrations exceeded the 5 mm/5 deg.. Most warnings were seen in ROI 'hyoid', 31% of the rotation warnings and 14% of the translation warnings. Systematic errors lead to 52 consults of the treating physician. The preparation and registration time was similar for both registration methods. Conclusions: The mROI registration method is easy to use with little extra workload, provides additional information on local setup errors, and helps to select patients for re-planning.

ADN to BSN: lessons from human capital theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Graf, Christina M

2006-01-01

Currently, approximately 16% of associate degree nursing (ADN) graduates acquire baccalaureate or higher degrees. Human capital analysis demonstrated negative to minimal average returns on investment (ROI) in BSN education. Increasing the ROI may influence ADNs to pursue baccalaureate education and can be an effective strategy for meeting the projected need for BSN-prepared nurses.

Reconstructing cone-beam CT with spatially varying qualities for adaptive radiotherapy: a proof-of-principle study.

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Wenting; Yan, Hao; Gu, Xuejun; Tian, Zhen; Luo, Ouyang; Yang, Liu; Zhou, Linghong; Cervino, Laura; Wang, Jing; Jiang, Steve; Jia, Xun

2014-10-21

With the aim of maximally reducing imaging dose while meeting requirements for adaptive radiation therapy (ART), we propose in this paper a new cone beam CT (CBCT) acquisition and reconstruction method that delivers images with a low noise level inside a region of interest (ROI) and a relatively high noise level outside the ROI. The acquired projection images include two groups: densely sampled projections at a low exposure with a large field of view (FOV) and sparsely sampled projections at a high exposure with a small FOV corresponding to the ROI. A new algorithm combining the conventional filtered back-projection algorithm and the tight-frame iterative reconstruction algorithm is also designed to reconstruct the CBCT based on these projection data. We have validated our method on a simulated head-and-neck (HN) patient case, a semi-real experiment conducted on a HN cancer patient under a full-fan scan mode, as well as a Catphan phantom under a half-fan scan mode. Relative root-mean-square errors (RRMSEs) of less than 3% for the entire image and ~1% within the ROI compared to the ground truth have been observed. These numbers demonstrate the ability of our proposed method to reconstruct high-quality images inside the ROI. As for the part outside ROI, although the images are relatively noisy, it can still provide sufficient information for radiation dose calculations in ART. Dose distributions calculated on our CBCT image and on a standard CBCT image are in agreement, with a mean relative difference of 0.082% inside the ROI and 0.038% outside the ROI. Compared with the standard clinical CBCT scheme, an imaging dose reduction of approximately 3-6 times inside the ROI was achieved, as well as an 8 times outside the ROI. Regarding computational efficiency, it takes 1-3 min to reconstruct a CBCT image depending on the number of projections used. These results indicate that the proposed method has the potential for application in ART.

Effect of scatter and attenuation correction in ROI analysis of brain perfusion scintigraphy. Phantom experiment and clinical study in patients with unilateral cerebrovascular disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bai, J. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). 21st Century Center of Excellence Program; Hashimoto, J.; Kubo, A. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Radiology; Ogawa, K. [Hosei Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Electronic Informatics; Fukunaga, A.; Onozuka, S. [Keio Univ., Tokyo (Japan). Dept. of Neurosurgery

2007-07-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of scatter and attenuation correction in region of interest (ROI) analysis of brain perfusion single-photon emission tomography (SPECT), and to assess the influence of selecting the reference area on the calculation of lesion-to-reference count ratios. Patients, methods: Data were collected from a brain phantom and ten patients with unilateral internal carotid artery stenosis. A simultaneous emission and transmission scan was performed after injecting {sup 123}I-iodoamphetamine. We reconstructed three SPECT images from common projection data: with scatter correction and nonuniform attenuation correction, with scatter correction and uniform attenuation correction, and with uniform attenuation correction applied to data without scatter correction. Regional count ratios were calculated by using four different reference areas (contralateral intact side, ipsilateral cerebellum, whole brain and hemisphere). Results: Scatter correction improved the accuracy of measuring the count ratios in the phantom experiment. It also yielded marked difference in the count ratio in the clinical study when using the cerebellum, whole brain or hemisphere as the reference. Difference between nonuniform and uniform attenuation correction was not significant in the phantom and clinical studies except when the cerebellar reference was used. Calculation of the lesion-to-normal count ratios referring the same site in the contralateral hemisphere was not dependent on the use of scatter correction or transmission scan-based attenuation correction. Conclusion: Scatter correction was indispensable for accurate measurement in most of the ROI analyses. Nonuniform attenuation correction is not necessary when using the reference area other than the cerebellum. (orig.)

High-Performance Region-of-Interest Image Error Concealment with Hiding Technique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shih-Chang Hsia

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Recently region-of-interest (ROI based image coding is a popular topic. Since ROI area contains much more important information for an image, it must be prevented from error decoding while suffering from channel lost or unexpected attack. This paper presents an efficient error concealment method to recover ROI information with a hiding technique. Based on the progressive transformation, the low-frequency components of ROI are encoded to disperse its information into the high-frequency bank of original image. The capability of protection is carried out with extracting the ROI coefficients from the damaged image without increasing extra information. Simulation results show that the proposed method can efficiently reconstruct the ROI image when ROI bit-stream occurs errors, and the measurement of PSNR result outperforms the conventional error concealment techniques by 2 to 5 dB.

SU-E-I-39: Combining Conventional Tomographic Imaging Strategy and Interior Tomography for Low Dose Dual-Energy CT (DECT)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, Q [School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi 710049 (China); Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (United States); Xing, L [Department of Radiation Oncology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA (United States); Xiong, G; Elmore, K; Min, J [Dalio Institute of Cardiovascular Imaging, New York- Presbyterian Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Dual-energy CT (DECT) affords quantitative information of tissue density and provides a new dimension for disease diagnosis and treatment planning. The technique, however, increases the imaging dose because of the doubled scans, and thus hinders its widespread clinical applications. The purpose of this work is to develop a novel hybrid DECT image acquisition and reconstruction strategy, in which one of the energies is dealt by interior tomography while the other one is obtained using conventional tomography approach. Methods: In the proposed hybrid imaging strategy, the projection data of one of the energies (e.g., high-energy) were acquired and processed in an interior scanning model, whereas the other energy in the conventional tomographic approach. It known that, if the ROI is piecewise constant or polynomial, the interior ROI can be reconstructed with TV or HOT minimization. Here we extend the TV based interior reconstruction method into dual-energy situation. The ROI images so obtained were overlaid in the context of conventional CT of the companion energy. A material based composition in ROI was used in the proposed reconstruction framework. Results: In the simulation experiment with a diagnostic DECT geometry and energies, we were able to derive the densities of soft-tissues and bones in the ROI with high fidelity. In the experimental CBCT study, both kV and MV data were collected using the on-board kV and MV imaging system. The MV data were truncated only across the ROI. Using the interior tomography reconstruction above, we were able to obtain the ROI images as that obtained using un-truncated MV data with known tissue densities. Conclusion: The proposed DECT imaging strategy provides an effective way to extract tissue density information in the ROI and in the context of anatomical images of CT imaging, with much reduced imaging dose.

Interior region-of-interest reconstruction using a small, nearly piecewise constant subregion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taguchi, Katsuyuki; Xu Jingyan; Srivastava, Somesh; Tsui, Benjamin M. W.; Cammin, Jochen; Tang Qiulin

2011-01-01

Purpose: To develop a method to reconstruct an interior region-of-interest (ROI) image with sufficient accuracy that uses differentiated backprojection (DBP) projection onto convex sets (POCS) [H. Kudo et al., ''Tiny a priori knowledge solves the interior problem in computed tomography'', Phys. Med. Biol. 53, 2207-2231 (2008)] and a tiny knowledge that there exists a nearly piecewise constant subregion. Methods: The proposed method first employs filtered backprojection to reconstruct an image on which a tiny region P with a small variation in the pixel values is identified inside the ROI. Total variation minimization [H. Yu and G. Wang, ''Compressed sensing based interior tomography'', Phys. Med. Biol. 54, 2791-2805 (2009); W. Han et al., ''A general total variation minimization theorem for compressed sensing based interior tomography'', Int. J. Biomed. Imaging 2009, Article 125871 (2009)] is then employed to obtain pixel values in the subregion P, which serve as a priori knowledge in the next step. Finally, DBP-POCS is performed to reconstruct f(x,y) inside the ROI. Clinical data and the reconstructed image obtained by an x-ray computed tomography system (SOMATOM Definition; Siemens Healthcare) were used to validate the proposed method. The detector covers an object with a diameter of ∼500 mm. The projection data were truncated either moderately to limit the detector coverage to diameter 350 mm of the object or severely to cover diameter 199 mm. Images were reconstructed using the proposed method. Results: The proposed method provided ROI images with correct pixel values in all areas except near the edge of the ROI. The coefficient of variation, i.e., the root mean square error divided by the mean pixel values, was less than 2.0% or 4.5% with the moderate or severe truncation cases, respectively, except near the boundary of the ROI. Conclusions: The proposed method allows for reconstructing interior ROI images with sufficient accuracy with a tiny knowledge that

Data-driven classification of ventilated lung tissues using electrical impedance tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gómez-Laberge, Camille; Hogan, Matthew J; Elke, Gunnar; Weiler, Norbert; Frerichs, Inéz; Adler, Andy

2011-01-01

Current methods for identifying ventilated lung regions utilizing electrical impedance tomography images rely on dividing the image into arbitrary regions of interest (ROI), manually delineating ROI, or forming ROI with pixels whose signal properties surpass an arbitrary threshold. In this paper, we propose a novel application of a data-driven classification method to identify ventilated lung ROI based on forming k clusters from pixels with correlated signals. A standard first-order model for lung mechanics is then applied to determine which ROI correspond to ventilated lung tissue. We applied the method in an experimental study of 16 mechanically ventilated swine in the supine position, which underwent changes in positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) and fraction of inspired oxygen (F I O 2 ). In each stage of the experimental protocol, the method performed best with k = 4 and consistently identified 3 lung tissue ROI and 1 boundary tissue ROI in 15 of the 16 subjects. When testing for changes from baseline in lung position, tidal volume, and respiratory system compliance, we found that PEEP displaced the ventilated lung region dorsally by 2 cm, decreased tidal volume by 1.3%, and increased the respiratory system compliance time constant by 0.3 s. F I O 2 decreased tidal volume by 0.7%. All effects were tested at p < 0.05 with n = 16. These findings suggest that the proposed ROI detection method is robust and sensitive to ventilation dynamics in the experimental setting

78 FR 58608 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request: Furnishing Identifying Number of Tax Return Preparer

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-24

...: Furnishing Identifying Number of Tax Return Preparer AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Treasury. ACTION... IRS is soliciting comments concerning furnishing identifying number of tax return preparer. DATES.... ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Yvette Lawrence, Internal Revenue Service, Room 6129, 1111...

48 CFR 315.605 - Content of unsolicited proposals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... CONTRACTING METHODS AND CONTRACT TYPES CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION Unsolicited Proposals 315.605 Content of... prepared under Government supervision; (b) The methods and approaches stated in the proposal were developed... Title (This certification shall be signed by a responsible management official of the proposing...

Optimizing the calculation of point source count-centroid in pixel size measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Luyi; Kuang Anren; Su Xianyu

2004-01-01

Purpose: Pixel size is an important parameter of gamma camera and SPECT. A number of Methods are used for its accurate measurement. In the original count-centroid method, where the image of a point source(PS) is acquired and its count-centroid calculated to represent PS position in the image, background counts are inevitable. Thus the measured count-centroid (Xm) is an approximation of the true count-centroid (Xp) of the PS, i.e. Xm=Xp+(Xb-Xp)/(1+Rp/Rb), where Rp is the net counting rate of the PS, Xb the background count-centroid and Rb the background counting rate. To get accurate measurement, Rp must be very big, which is unpractical, resulting in the variation of measured pixel size. Rp-independent calculation of PS count-centroid is desired. Methods: The proposed method attempted to eliminate the effect of the term (Xb-Xp)/(1+Rp/Rb) by bringing Xb closer to Xp and by reducing Rb. In the acquired PS image, a circular ROI was generated to enclose the PS, the pixel with the maximum count being the center of the ROI. To choose the diameter (D) of the ROI, a Gaussian count distribution was assumed for the PS, accordingly, K=I-(0.5)D/R percent of the total PS counts was in the ROI, R being the full width at half maximum of the PS count distribution. D was set to be 6*R to enclose most (K=98.4%) of the PS counts. The count-centroid of the ROI was calculated to represent Xp. The proposed method was tested in measuring the pixel size of a well-tuned SPECT, whose pixel size was estimated to be 3.02 mm according to its mechanical and electronic setting (128*128 matrix, 387 mm UFOV, ZOOM=1). For comparison, the original method, which was use in the former versions of some commercial SPECT software, was also tested. 12 PSs were prepared and their image acquired and stored. The net counting rate of the PSs increased from 10cps to 1183cps. Results: Using the proposed method, the measured pixel size (in mm) varied only between 3.00 and 3.01( mean= 3.01±0.00) as Rp increased

Multi-resolution analysis for region of interest extraction in thermographic nondestructive evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Ortiz-Jaramillo, B.; Fandiño Toro, H. A.; Benitez-Restrepo, H. D.; Orjuela-Vargas, S. A.; Castellanos-Domínguez, G.; Philips, W.

2012-03-01

Infrared Non-Destructive Testing (INDT) is known as an effective and rapid method for nondestructive inspection. It can detect a broad range of near-surface structuring flaws in metallic and composite components. Those flaws are modeled as a smooth contour centered at peaks of stored thermal energy, termed Regions of Interest (ROI). Dedicated methodologies must detect the presence of those ROIs. In this paper, we present a methodology for ROI extraction in INDT tasks. The methodology deals with the difficulties due to the non-uniform heating. The non-uniform heating affects low spatial/frequencies and hinders the detection of relevant points in the image. In this paper, a methodology for ROI extraction in INDT using multi-resolution analysis is proposed, which is robust to ROI low contrast and non-uniform heating. The former methodology includes local correlation, Gaussian scale analysis and local edge detection. In this methodology local correlation between image and Gaussian window provides interest points related to ROIs. We use a Gaussian window because thermal behavior is well modeled by Gaussian smooth contours. Also, the Gaussian scale is used to analyze details in the image using multi-resolution analysis avoiding low contrast, non-uniform heating and selection of the Gaussian window size. Finally, local edge detection is used to provide a good estimation of the boundaries in the ROI. Thus, we provide a methodology for ROI extraction based on multi-resolution analysis that is better or equal compared with the other dedicate algorithms proposed in the state of art.

Selection of optimum ROI for dual radionuclide analysis of 55Fe-63Ni and 63Ni-60Co

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Priya, S.; Prabhath Ravi, K.; Yadav, R.K.B.; Rao, D.D.; Gopalakrishnan, R.K.

2016-01-01

Dual label counting in liquid scintillation counting (LSC) enables simultaneous activity determination of two radionuclides. Dual counting procedure for 3 H and 14 C has been well established. There are several other nuclides like 63 Ni (E β- =67keV), 55 Fe (6 keV X-ray and auger electron) which are often chemically separated using detailed procedures with high decontamination factors (DF) and quantified using LSC. Despite the laborious separations, traces of these nuclides in the chemically separated fractions can mutually make their quantification difficult due to overlap of counts from both radionuclides in the spectrum, which gets further complicated in presence of traces of 60 Co. For dual label counting technique, it is essential to establish the discriminator setting at which there will be spillover of counts from both radionuclides in the two counting regions required for the inclusion method. The objective of the current work is to establish two counting ROI's for dual counting of (i) 63 Ni- 55 Fe and (ii) 63 Ni- 60 Co in a TDCR based LSC system

Coastal groundwater exchange on a small Pacific atoll island: Roi Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Oberle, Ferdinand K. J.; Swarzenski, Peter W.; Storlazzi, Curt

2017-04-01

Atoll islands, most of which only average 1-2 meters above today's sea level, provide a tremendous natural laboratory in which to study and better understand the intensifying impacts of high rates of sea-level rise on tropical reef-lined islands globally due to their unique geologic structure and limited water supply. Groundwater resources of atolls are typically minimal due to the low elevation and small surface area of the islands and are also subject to recurring droughts, and more frequent, storm-driven seawater overwash events. Although groundwater is the principal means of freshwater storage on atoll islands and is a major factor in determining the overall sustainability of island communities, hydrological data on how an aquifer will response to changes in sea-level rise or storm-driven overwash remain limited. We here present high-resolution time series hydrogeological and geochemical data to determine the role of the atoll's carbonate geology, land use, and atmospheric and oceanographic forcing in driving coastal groundwater exchange on the island of Roi Namur on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. This information can provide new estimates on the recovery and resilience of coastal groundwater resources on such islands to expected climate change-driven perturbations.

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedures for maintenance site: application to replacement of steam generator; Propositions d'organisation et procedures ALARA pour la preparation des chantiers de maintenance: application au RGV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lochard, J; Lefaure, C

1989-08-01

This report proposes generic organization and ALARA procedures for preparing a maintenance site at a NPP. After a short description of the ALARA principle, it describes the proposition for French sites. They are grouped according to the following: motivation, organisation, means. They are illustrated by the example of steam generator replacement. Three special points concerning preparation of the site are developed: education; training of operators; review of the project.

METALLOGRAPHIC SAMPLE PREPARATION STATION-CONSTRUCTIVE CONCEPT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

AVRAM Florin Timotei

2016-11-01

Full Text Available In this paper we propose to present the issues involved in the case of the constructive conception of a station for metallographic sample preparation. This station is destined for laboratory work. The metallographic station is composed of a robot ABB IRB1600, a metallographic microscope, a gripping device, a manipulator, a laboratory grinding and polishing machine. The robot will be used for manipulation of the sample preparation and the manipulator take the sample preparation for processing.

Cooperative Robot Teams Applied to the Site Preparation Task

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parker, LE

2001-01-01

Prior to human missions to Mars, infrastructures on Mars that support human survival must be prepared. robotic teams can assist in these advance preparations in a number of ways. This paper addresses one of these advance robotic team tasks--the site preparation task--by proposing a control structure that allows robot teams to cooperatively solve this aspect of infrastructure preparation. A key question in this context is determining how robots should make decisions on which aspect of the site preparation t6ask to address throughout the mission, especially while operating in rough terrains. This paper describes a control approach to solving this problem that is based upon the ALLIANCE architecture, combined with performance-based rough terrain navigation that addresses path planning and control of mobile robots in rough terrain environments. They present the site preparation task and the proposed cooperative control approach, followed by some of the results of the initial testing of various aspects of the system

Automated segmentation of ultrasonic breast lesions using statistical texture classification and active contour based on probability distance.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Bo; Cheng, H D; Huang, Jianhua; Tian, Jiawei; Liu, Jiafeng; Tang, Xianglong

2009-08-01

Because of its complicated structure, low signal/noise ratio, low contrast and blurry boundaries, fully automated segmentation of a breast ultrasound (BUS) image is a difficult task. In this paper, a novel segmentation method for BUS images without human intervention is proposed. Unlike most published approaches, the proposed method handles the segmentation problem by using a two-step strategy: ROI generation and ROI segmentation. First, a well-trained texture classifier categorizes the tissues into different classes, and the background knowledge rules are used for selecting the regions of interest (ROIs) from them. Second, a novel probability distance-based active contour model is applied for segmenting the ROIs and finding the accurate positions of the breast tumors. The active contour model combines both global statistical information and local edge information, using a level set approach. The proposed segmentation method was performed on 103 BUS images (48 benign and 55 malignant). To validate the performance, the results were compared with the corresponding tumor regions marked by an experienced radiologist. Three error metrics, true-positive ratio (TP), false-negative ratio (FN) and false-positive ratio (FP) were used for measuring the performance of the proposed method. The final results (TP = 91.31%, FN = 8.69% and FP = 7.26%) demonstrate that the proposed method can segment BUS images efficiently, quickly and automatically.

« Comment se comporter avec un roi chrétien » : l’ouvrage perdu d’Abū l-Ḥasan ʿAlī Ibn al-Qaṭṭān et les enjeux du cérémonial almohade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehdi Ghouirgate

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Cet article propose de revenir sur un document aussi exceptionnel que méconnu. Il s’agit du résumé d’un ouvrage (maqāla, aujourd’hui perdu, intitulé « Comment se comporter avec un roi chrétien », et que l’on trouve dans le dictionnaire bio-bibliographique d’Ibn ʿAbd al-Malik. Cette maqāla fut rédigée, par un homme de lettres au service des Almohades, Abū l-Ḥasan ʿAlī Ibn al-Qaṭṭān (m. 1231. C’est la seule source qui ait consigné des indications sur la conduite que devait adopter le souverain lors d’une cérémonie, en présence d’un prince étranger. À ce titre, on y trouve des renseignements essentiels sur le cérémonial almohade ainsi que sur les dilemmes que devaient résoudre le calife : d’un point de vue idéologique, il ne pouvait souffrir aucun autre pouvoir, mais l’impossibilité de mener des opérations d’envergure sur deux fronts à la fois l’amena à composer avec le roi du León. De même, c’est le seul document à avoir fait état d’une divergence de point de vue entre le calife et les intellectuels organiques du système, les Ṭalaba. Ce différend met en lumière des tensions latentes au sommet entre divers serviteurs de l’État, qui n’avaient pas la même forme de légitimité, ni tout à fait les mêmes intérêts.

Uses of γ-radiation for preparing culture media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Speranskaya, I.D.; Tumanyan, M.A.; Mironova, L.L.

1977-01-01

A technique has been developed for sterilizing the culture media by γ-radiation. For this purpose, dry preparations were exposed to doses of 3 to 6 Mrad and then dissolved in sterile distilled water. The quality of the preparations prepared in such a way is not inferior to that of the preparations sterilized by filtering. The advantage of the proposed technique is that it is possible to prepare liquid media quickly and to store dry sterile media for a long time at room temperature

Responding to the 2015 CMS Proposed Rule Changes for LTC Facilities: A Call to Redouble Efforts to Prepare Students and Practitioners for Nursing Homes.

Science.gov (United States)

Bern-Klug, Mercedes; Connolly, Robert; Downes, Deirdre; Galambos, Colleen; Kusmaul, Nancy; Kane, Rosalie; Hector, Paige; Beaulieu, Elise

2016-01-01

In July of 2015, the Federal Register published for public comment proposed rule changes for nursing homes certified to receive Medicare and/or Medicaid. If the final rules are similar to the proposed rules, they will represent the largest change in federal rules governing nursing homes since the Nursing Home Reform Act which was part of OBRA 1987. The proposed changes have the potential to enhance the quality of care and quality of life of nursing home residents. Many of the proposed changes would directly affect the practice of social work and would likely expand the role for nursing home social workers. This article discusses the role that members of the National Nursing Home Social Work Network (NNHSW Network) played in developing and submitting a response to CMS. The article provides the context for the publication of the proposed rules, describes the process used by the NNHSW Network to develop and build support for comments on these rules, and also includes the actual comments submitted to CMS. Social work education programs and continuing education programs throughout the country will continue to have an important role to play in helping to prepare social work students and practitioners for a career in long-term care.

Dissipative preparation of entanglement in optical cavities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kastoryano, Michael James; Reiter, Florentin; Sørensen, Anders Søndberg

2011-01-01

We propose a novel scheme for the preparation of a maximally entangled state of two atoms in an optical cavity. Starting from an arbitrary initial state, a singlet state is prepared as the unique fixed point of a dissipative quantum dynamical process. In our scheme, cavity decay is no longer...

Privacy-Aware Image Encryption Based on Logistic Map and Data Hiding

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Jianglin; Liao, Xiaofeng; Chen, Xin; Guo, Shangwei

The increasing need for image communication and storage has created a great necessity for securely transforming and storing images over a network. Whereas traditional image encryption algorithms usually consider the security of the whole plain image, region of interest (ROI) encryption schemes, which are of great importance in practical applications, protect the privacy regions of plain images. Existing ROI encryption schemes usually adopt approximate techniques to detect the privacy region and measure the quality of encrypted images; however, their performance is usually inconsistent with a human visual system (HVS) and is sensitive to statistical attacks. In this paper, we propose a novel privacy-aware ROI image encryption (PRIE) scheme based on logistical mapping and data hiding. The proposed scheme utilizes salient object detection to automatically, adaptively and accurately detect the privacy region of a given plain image. After private pixels have been encrypted using chaotic cryptography, the significant bits are embedded into the nonprivacy region of the plain image using data hiding. Extensive experiments are conducted to illustrate the consistency between our automatic ROI detection and HVS. Our experimental results also demonstrate that the proposed scheme exhibits satisfactory security performance.

BPF-type region-of-interest reconstruction for parallel translational computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Weiwen; Yu, Hengyong; Wang, Shaoyu; Liu, Fenglin

2017-01-01

The objective of this study is to present and test a new ultra-low-cost linear scan based tomography architecture. Similar to linear tomosynthesis, the source and detector are translated in opposite directions and the data acquisition system targets on a region-of-interest (ROI) to acquire data for image reconstruction. This kind of tomographic architecture was named parallel translational computed tomography (PTCT). In previous studies, filtered backprojection (FBP)-type algorithms were developed to reconstruct images from PTCT. However, the reconstructed ROI images from truncated projections have severe truncation artefact. In order to overcome this limitation, we in this study proposed two backprojection filtering (BPF)-type algorithms named MP-BPF and MZ-BPF to reconstruct ROI images from truncated PTCT data. A weight function is constructed to deal with data redundancy for multi-linear translations modes. Extensive numerical simulations are performed to evaluate the proposed MP-BPF and MZ-BPF algorithms for PTCT in fan-beam geometry. Qualitative and quantitative results demonstrate that the proposed BPF-type algorithms cannot only more accurately reconstruct ROI images from truncated projections but also generate high-quality images for the entire image support in some circumstances.

Region of Interest Selection Interface for Wide-Angle Arthroscope

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jung Kyunghwa

2015-01-01

Full Text Available We have proposed a new interface for an wide-angle endoscope for solo surgery. The wide-angle arthroscopic view and magnified region of interest (ROI within the wide view were shown simultaneously. With a camera affixed to surgical instruments, the position of the ROI could be determined by manipulating the surgical instrument. Image features acquired by the A-KAZE approach were used to estimate the change of position of the surgical instrument by tracking the features every time the camera moved. We examined the accuracy of ROI selection using three different images, which were different-sized square arrays and tested phantom experiments. When the number of ROIs was twelve, the success rate was best, and the rate diminished as the size of ROIs decreased. The experimental results showed that the method of using a camera without additional sensors satisfied the appropriate accuracy required for ROI selection, and this interface was helpful in performing surgery with fewer assistants.

Optimizing the calculation of point source count-centroid in pixel size measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou Luyi; Kuang Anren; Su Xianyu

2004-01-01

Pixel size is an important parameter of gamma camera and SPECT. A number of methods are used for its accurate measurement. In the original count-centroid method, where the image of a point source (PS) is acquired and its count-centroid calculated to represent PS position in the image, background counts are inevitable. Thus the measured count-centroid (X m ) is an approximation of the true count-centroid (X p ) of the PS, i.e. X m =X p + (X b -X p )/(1+R p /R b ), where Rp is the net counting rate of the PS, X b the background count-centroid and Rb the background counting. To get accurate measurement, R p must be very big, which is unpractical, resulting in the variation of measured pixel size. R p -independent calculation of PS count-centroid is desired. Methods: The proposed method attempted to eliminate the effect of the term (X b -X p )/(1 + R p /R b ) by bringing X b closer to X p and by reducing R b . In the acquired PS image, a circular ROI was generated to enclose the PS, the pixel with the maximum count being the center of the ROI. To choose the diameter (D) of the ROI, a Gaussian count distribution was assumed for the PS, accordingly, K=1-(0.5) D/R percent of the total PS counts was in the ROI, R being the full width at half maximum of the PS count distribution. D was set to be 6*R to enclose most (K=98.4%) of the PS counts. The count-centroid of the ROI was calculated to represent X p . The proposed method was tested in measuring the pixel size of a well-tuned SPECT, whose pixel size was estimated to be 3.02 mm according to its mechanical and electronic setting (128 x 128 matrix, 387 mm UFOV, ZOOM=1). For comparison, the original method, which was use in the former versions of some commercial SPECT software, was also tested. 12 PSs were prepared and their image acquired and stored. The net counting rate of the PSs increased from 10 cps to 1183 cps. Results: Using the proposed method, the measured pixel size (in mm) varied only between 3.00 and 3.01 (mean

Un inventaire phytosociologique des dunes à la côte méditerranéenne française entre carnon et le grau du roi (département de l’hérault)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hekking, W.H.A.

1959-01-01

Dans la région des dunes et des bas-fonds située à une distance de 3.6 à 5.3 kilomètres de Carnon au Grau du Roi, entre l’Etang de Mauguio et la Mer méditerranéenne et dans le département de l’Hérault on peut constater deux suites progressives des associations phytosociologiques : A) LA VÉGÉ TATION

Riverland expedited response action proposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-04-01

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) recommended that the US Department of Energy (DOE) prepare an expedited response action (ERA) for the Riverland Railroad Car Wash Pit and the 600 Area Army Munitions Burial Site. A non-time-critical ERA proposal includes preparation of an engineering evaluation/cost analysis (EE/CA) section. The EE/CA is a rapid, focused evaluation of available technologies using specific screening factors to assess feasibility, appropriateness, and cost. The ERA proposal will undergo reviews by Westinghouse Hanford Company (WHC), DOE, EPA, Ecology, and the public. Ecology and EPA will issue an Action Agreement Memorandum after resolution of all review comments. The, memorandum will authorize remediation activities. The ERA goal is to reduce the potential for any contaminant migration to the soil column, groundwater, and Columbia River. The ERA may be the final remediation of the 100-IU-1 Operable Unit. A No Action Record of Decision may be issued after cleanup completion

Simple and efficient method for region of interest value extraction from picture archiving and communication system viewer with optical character recognition software and macro program.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Young Han; Park, Eun Hae; Suh, Jin-Suck

2015-01-01

The objectives are: 1) to introduce a simple and efficient method for extracting region of interest (ROI) values from a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) viewer using optical character recognition (OCR) software and a macro program, and 2) to evaluate the accuracy of this method with a PACS workstation. This module was designed to extract the ROI values on the images of the PACS, and created as a development tool by using open-source OCR software and an open-source macro program. The principal processes are as follows: (1) capture a region of the ROI values as a graphic file for OCR, (2) recognize the text from the captured image by OCR software, (3) perform error-correction, (4) extract the values including area, average, standard deviation, max, and min values from the text, (5) reformat the values into temporary strings with tabs, and (6) paste the temporary strings into the spreadsheet. This principal process was repeated for the number of ROIs. The accuracy of this module was evaluated on 1040 recognitions from 280 randomly selected ROIs of the magnetic resonance images. The input times of ROIs were compared between conventional manual method and this extraction module-assisted input method. The module for extracting ROI values operated successfully using the OCR and macro programs. The values of the area, average, standard deviation, maximum, and minimum could be recognized and error-corrected with AutoHotkey-coded module. The average input times using the conventional method and the proposed module-assisted method were 34.97 seconds and 7.87 seconds, respectively. A simple and efficient method for ROI value extraction was developed with open-source OCR and a macro program. Accurate inputs of various numbers from ROIs can be extracted with this module. The proposed module could be applied to the next generation of PACS or existing PACS that have not yet been upgraded. Copyright © 2015 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Opacity annotation of diffuse lung diseases using deep convolutional neural network with multi-channel information

Science.gov (United States)

Mabu, Shingo; Kido, Shoji; Hashimoto, Noriaki; Hirano, Yasushi; Kuremoto, Takashi

2018-02-01

This research proposes a multi-channel deep convolutional neural network (DCNN) for computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) that classifies normal and abnormal opacities of diffuse lung diseases in Computed Tomography (CT) images. Because CT images are gray scale, DCNN usually uses one channel for inputting image data. On the other hand, this research uses multi-channel DCNN where each channel corresponds to the original raw image or the images transformed by some preprocessing techniques. In fact, the information obtained only from raw images is limited and some conventional research suggested that preprocessing of images contributes to improving the classification accuracy. Thus, the combination of the original and preprocessed images is expected to show higher accuracy. The proposed method realizes region of interest (ROI)-based opacity annotation. We used lung CT images taken in Yamaguchi University Hospital, Japan, and they are divided into 32 × 32 ROI images. The ROIs contain six kinds of opacities: consolidation, ground-glass opacity (GGO), emphysema, honeycombing, nodular, and normal. The aim of the proposed method is to classify each ROI into one of the six opacities (classes). The DCNN structure is based on VGG network that secured the first and second places in ImageNet ILSVRC-2014. From the experimental results, the classification accuracy of the proposed method was better than the conventional method with single channel, and there was a significant difference between them.

77 FR 54620 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-05

... prepared by the company. Written comments are invited on: (a) Whether this proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the...

Oklahoma State University proposed Advanced Technology Research Center. Environmental Assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-06-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) evaluating the construction and equipping of the proposed Advanced Technology Research Center (ATRC) at Oklahoma State University (OSU) in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Based on the analysis in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement is not required.

An Integrative Approach to Accurate Vehicle Logo Detection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hao Pan

2013-01-01

required for many applications in intelligent transportation systems and automatic surveillance. The task is challenging considering the small target of logos and the wide range of variability in shape, color, and illumination. A fast and reliable vehicle logo detection approach is proposed following visual attention mechanism from the human vision. Two prelogo detection steps, that is, vehicle region detection and a small RoI segmentation, rapidly focalize a small logo target. An enhanced Adaboost algorithm, together with two types of features of Haar and HOG, is proposed to detect vehicles. An RoI that covers logos is segmented based on our prior knowledge about the logos’ position relative to license plates, which can be accurately localized from frontal vehicle images. A two-stage cascade classier proceeds with the segmented RoI, using a hybrid of Gentle Adaboost and Support Vector Machine (SVM, resulting in precise logo positioning. Extensive experiments were conducted to verify the efficiency of the proposed scheme.

Promoting Sustainability through Investment in Building Information Modeling (BIM Technologies: A Design Company Perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marius Reizgevičius

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of this article is to enhance the understanding of how design companies perceive the benefits of Building Information Modeling (BIM technologies application. BIM is recognized in the literature as a (potentially powerful driver leading the construction sector towards sustainability. However, for design companies, the choice to invest in BIM technologies is basically an economic one. Specifically, a design company assesses economic benefits and efficiency improvements thanks to the application of BIM technologies. The article discusses the return on investments (ROI in BIM technologies and reviews ROI calculation methodologies proposed by other authors. In order to evaluate BIM return on investment correctly practical ROI calculations are carried out. Appropriate methods, together with the relevant variables for ROI calculation, are developed. The study allows for adjusting the calculation method making it more accurate and understandable using the Autodesk Revit based ROI calculation of the first year.

Preparing for CLIC tests

CERN Multimedia

Laurent Guiraud

1999-01-01

The Canon 5 undergoes first brazing for preparation in the CLIC study at the CLIC Test Facility 2 (CTF2). This will test injection for a proposed linear collider that will further explore discoveries made at the LHC. Electric fields in the canon will boost electrons into the acceleration fields of the collider.

Relations between the distribution of signal strength on dynamic MRI imaging and the effect of primary systemic chemotherapy on breast cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ohta, Koji; Endo, Naoki; Miyanaga, Tamon; Hosokawa, Osamu; Takeda, Takayuki; Kaizaki, Yasuharu

2009-01-01

The subjects were 24 patients in whom MRI was performed before and after primary system chemotherapy (PSC). We investigated the pattern of contrast enhancement with respect to treatment responses. We prepared the time-signal intensity in each region of interest (ROI) (small ROI), established by dividing the maximum cut surface of each tumor into 9, and then subdividing them, and examined the distribution of enhancement. We counted small ROIs showing early enhancement and late washout per lesion. Counts were plotted on the longitudinal axis, and the tumor reduction rate on the transverse axis based on data for all tumors. These were also evaluated with respect to subtypes. The complete response (CR) group showed early enhancement and late washout. In addition, the small ROI count was correlated with the tumor reduction rate only in the luminal group. In this group, treatment responses may have more strongly depended on the intra-tumoral vascular density and permeability, because anticancer agent sensitivity was low. (author)

Studies on the Preparation of Magnetic Photocatalysts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watson, S.; Scott, J.; Beydoun, D.; Amal, R.

2005-01-01

A crystalline titanium dioxide coating was deposited onto silica insulated magnetite particles to prepare a stable magnetic photocatalyst. The direct deposition of crystalline titanium dioxide was conducted by aging dispersions of insulated magnetite particles in a titanium sol-gel precursor mixture at 60-90 deg. C. The coating process was found to be influenced by pH, alkoxide precursor concentration, aging time and reaction temperature. A mechanism for the formation of the titanium dioxide coating has been proposed. The photocatalytic performance of the prepared particles was found to be related to the preparation conditions

Cost/benefit analysis for selected waste minimization technologies at TA-55

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boerigter, S.T.

1996-01-01

The TA-55 plutonium facility at LANL is one of the remaining plutonium-handling facilities in the United States with significant operational capability. In recent years a great deal of attention has been focused on the waste streams generated by this facility. Costs of properly treating these streams have risen significantly. This paper discusses the characterization of several proposed radioactive waste minimization technologies as a function of Return on Investment (ROI). In particular, the DOE Environmental Management program has identified a specific funding channel for such technology development activities, but this funding channel requires a restrictive definition of ROI. Here, a simple extension to the required ROI equation is used to capture the lifecycle ROI due to offsets in future capital charges resulting from present spending

7 CFR 3406.16 - Scope of a research proposal.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... initiative(s) for which they have prepared their proposals. (a) Studies and experimentation in food and... constituents from or adding desirable ones to food products. (iii) Propose and evaluate ways to enhance... development (e.g., exploitation of new technologies by small rural businesses). (iv) Identify control factors...

76 FR 63574 - Tax Return Preparer Penalties Under Section 6695; Correction

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-13

... Tax Return Preparer Penalties Under Section 6695; Correction AGENCY: Internal Revenue Service (IRS... to the tax return preparer penalties under section 6695 of the Internal Revenue Code. The proposed regulations are necessary to monitor and to improve compliance with the tax return preparer due to diligence...

Preparation of edge states by shaking boundaries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shi, Z.C. [Department of Physics, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350002 (China); Center for Quantum Sciences and School of Physics, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024 (China); Hou, S.C. [Institute of Fluid Physics, China Academy of Engineering Physics, Mianyang, Sichuan (China); Wang, L.C. [School of Physics and Optoelectronic Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024 (China); Yi, X.X., E-mail: yixx@nenu.edu.cn [Center for Quantum Sciences and School of Physics, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024 (China)

2016-10-15

Preparing topological states of quantum matter, such as edge states, is one of the most important directions in condensed matter physics. In this work, we present a proposal to prepare edge states in Aubry–André–Harper (AAH) model with open boundaries, which takes advantage of Lyapunov control to design operations. We show that edge states can be obtained with almost arbitrary initial states. A numerical optimalization for the control is performed and the dependence of control process on the system size is discussed. The merit of this proposal is that the shaking exerts only on the boundaries of the model. As a by-product, a topological entangled state is achieved by elaborately designing the shaking scheme.

75 FR 22874 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-30

... that 75% of the 30 hours per response (22.5 hours) is prepared by the company for a total annual... on: (a) Whether this proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of...

76 FR 8386 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-14

... estimate that 25% of the 1.3 burden hours per response (0.32 hours) is prepared by the company for total...: (a) Whether this proposed collection of information is necessary for the performance of the functions...

48 CFR 452.215-71 - Instructions for the Preparation of Technical and Business Proposals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... contained in the technical proposal so that the contractor's understanding of the statement of work may be... required if appropriate.) (2) Business Proposal. (a) Furnish financial statements for the last two years... specified in the statement of work. Any “alternate” proposal may be considered if overall performance would...

Multi-Task Vehicle Detection with Region-of-Interest Voting.

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Wenqing; Liu, Yao; Shen, Chen; Cai, Deng; Hua, Xian-Sheng

2017-10-12

Vehicle detection is a challenging problem in autonomous driving systems, due to its large structural and appearance variations. In this paper, we propose a novel vehicle detection scheme based on multi-task deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) and region-of-interest (RoI) voting. In the design of CNN architecture, we enrich the supervised information with subcategory, region overlap, bounding-box regression and category of each training RoI as a multi-task learning framework. This design allows the CNN model to share visual knowledge among different vehicle attributes simultaneously, thus detection robustness can be effectively improved. In addition, most existing methods consider each RoI independently, ignoring the clues from its neighboring RoIs. In our approach, we utilize the CNN model to predict the offset direction of each RoI boundary towards the corresponding ground truth. Then each RoI can vote those suitable adjacent bounding boxes which are consistent with this additional information. The voting results are combined with the score of each RoI itself to find a more accurate location from a large number of candidates. Experimental results on the real-world computer vision benchmarks KITTI and the PASCAL2007 vehicle dataset show that our approach achieves superior performance in vehicle detection compared with other existing published works.

Sensor-Oriented Path Planning for Multiregion Surveillance with a Single Lightweight UAV SAR

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jincheng; Chen, Jie; Wang, Pengbo; Li, Chunsheng

2018-01-01

In the surveillance of interested regions by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), system performance relies greatly on the motion control strategy of the UAV and the operation characteristics of the onboard sensors. This paper investigates the 2D path planning problem for the lightweight UAV synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system in an environment of multiple regions of interest (ROIs), the sizes of which are comparable to the radar swath width. Taking into account the special requirements of the SAR system on the motion of the platform, we model path planning for UAV SAR as a constrained multiobjective optimization problem (MOP). Based on the fact that the UAV route can be designed in the map image, an image-based path planner is proposed in this paper. First, the neighboring ROIs are merged by the morphological operation. Then, the parts of routes for data collection of the ROIs can be located according to the geometric features of the ROIs and the observation geometry of UAV SAR. Lastly, the route segments for ROIs surveillance are connected by a path planning algorithm named the sampling-based sparse A* search (SSAS) algorithm. Simulation experiments in real scenarios demonstrate that the proposed sensor-oriented path planner can improve the reconnaissance performance of lightweight UAV SAR greatly compared with the conventional zigzag path planner. PMID:29439447

Sensor-Oriented Path Planning for Multiregion Surveillance with a Single Lightweight UAV SAR.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jincheng; Chen, Jie; Wang, Pengbo; Li, Chunsheng

2018-02-11

In the surveillance of interested regions by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), system performance relies greatly on the motion control strategy of the UAV and the operation characteristics of the onboard sensors. This paper investigates the 2D path planning problem for the lightweight UAV synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system in an environment of multiple regions of interest (ROIs), the sizes of which are comparable to the radar swath width. Taking into account the special requirements of the SAR system on the motion of the platform, we model path planning for UAV SAR as a constrained multiobjective optimization problem (MOP). Based on the fact that the UAV route can be designed in the map image, an image-based path planner is proposed in this paper. First, the neighboring ROIs are merged by the morphological operation. Then, the parts of routes for data collection of the ROIs can be located according to the geometric features of the ROIs and the observation geometry of UAV SAR. Lastly, the route segments for ROIs surveillance are connected by a path planning algorithm named the sampling-based sparse A* search (SSAS) algorithm. Simulation experiments in real scenarios demonstrate that the proposed sensor-oriented path planner can improve the reconnaissance performance of lightweight UAV SAR greatly compared with the conventional zigzag path planner.

Preparing Instructional Leaders: A Model

Science.gov (United States)

Brazer, S. David; Bauer, Scott C.

2013-01-01

Purpose: This article proposes a model that provides one means of making instructional leadership the central focus of leadership preparation. It draws from conceptualizations of teaching and learning as well as organizational and leadership theory to advocate for greater coherence in education leadership programs. Conceptual Argument: We begin…

Dissimilarity Representations in Lung Parenchyma Classification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Lauge Emil Borch Laurs; de Bruijne, Marleen

2009-01-01

parenchyma classification. This allows for the classifiers to work on dissimilarities between objects, which might be a more natural way of representing lung parenchyma. In this context, dissimilarity is defined between CT regions of interest (ROI)s. ROIs are represented by their CT attenuation histogram...... and ROI dissimilarity is defined as a histogram dissimilarity measure between the attenuation histograms. In this setting, the full histograms are utilized according to the chosen histogram dissimilarity measure. We apply this idea to classification of different emphysema patterns as well as normal...... are built in this representation. This is also the general trend in lung parenchyma classification in computed tomography (CT) images, where the features often are measures on feature histograms. Instead, we propose to build normal density based classifiers in dissimilarity representations for lung...

Hydrogeology and geochemistry of the freshwater lens on Roi Namur atoll, the Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Swarzenski, P. W.

2015-12-01

More than 90% of the world's ~400 larger atoll islands are located in the Pacific and Indian Oceans and are inhabited by ~ 3/4 million people. As ground elevations of these atolls rarely exceed a few meters above mean sea level, atoll communities must rely precariously on finite resources, including fresh water and land. When demand for water exceeds precipitation rates, fresh groundwater may provide an additional, albeit also limited resource. The shape and size of this freshwater lens is controlled by precipitation, infiltration, discharge, and groundwater pumping, as well as hydrogeologic characteristics of the aquifer, and climate. Small atoll islands like Roi Namur on Kwajalein perhaps best illustrate the strong interdependence of the islet's depositional history and geochemical transformations that occur within the shallow aquifer and its host rock. This study utilized electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) to define the position of the freshwater lens above underlying seawater and to examine scales of freshwater /saltwater mixing. Time series Rn-222 measurements were used to evaluate groundwater discharge rates to the coastal waters, and a suite of groundwater geochemical tracers, including select nutrients, trace elements, and water isotopes, were used to develop a better understanding of how the fresh water lens will likely to respond to external perturbations, such as managed recharge, and the inevitability of future marine over wash events that will be become more frequent and severe under expected sea level rise.

Proposed Fermilab fixed target experiment: Kaons at the Tevatron

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-12-01

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA), DOE/EA-0898, evaluating the impacts associated with the proposed fixed target experiment at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Femilab) in Batavia, Illinois, known as Kaons at the Tevatron (KTeV). The proposed KTeV project includes reconfiguration of an existing target station, enhancement of an existing beam transport system connected to existing utility facilities, and construction of a new experimental detector hall area. The study of the K meson, a type of subatomic particle, has been going on at Fermilab for 20 years. The proposed KTEV project advances the search for the origins of a violation of a fundamental symmetry of nature called charge parity (CP) violation. Based on the analysis in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement is not required

Proposed environmental remediation at Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-05-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment evaluating proposed environmental remediation activity at Argonne National Laboratory-East (ANL-E), Argonne, Illinois. The environmental remediation work would (1) reduce, eliminate, or prevent the release of contaminants from a number of Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Solid Waste Management Units (SWMUs) and two radiologically contaminated sites located in areas contiguous with SWMUs, and (2) decrease the potential for exposure of the public, ANL-E employees, and wildlife to such contaminants. The actions proposed for SWMUs are required to comply with the RCRA corrective action process and corrective action requirements of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency; the actions proposed are also required to reduce the potential for continued contaminant release. Based on the analysis in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement is not required

Composite Wavelet Filters for Enhanced Automated Target Recognition

Science.gov (United States)

Chiang, Jeffrey N.; Zhang, Yuhan; Lu, Thomas T.; Chao, Tien-Hsin

2012-01-01

Automated Target Recognition (ATR) systems aim to automate target detection, recognition, and tracking. The current project applies a JPL ATR system to low-resolution sonar and camera videos taken from unmanned vehicles. These sonar images are inherently noisy and difficult to interpret, and pictures taken underwater are unreliable due to murkiness and inconsistent lighting. The ATR system breaks target recognition into three stages: 1) Videos of both sonar and camera footage are broken into frames and preprocessed to enhance images and detect Regions of Interest (ROIs). 2) Features are extracted from these ROIs in preparation for classification. 3) ROIs are classified as true or false positives using a standard Neural Network based on the extracted features. Several preprocessing, feature extraction, and training methods are tested and discussed in this paper.

An efficient contents-adaptive backlight control method for mobile devices

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Qiao Song; Yan, Ya Xing; Zhang, Xiao Mou; Cai, Hua; Deng, Xin; Wang, Jin

2015-03-01

For most of mobile devices with a large screen, image quality and power consumption are both of the major factors affecting the consumers' preference. Contents-adaptive backlight control (CABC) method can be utilized to adjust the backlight and promote the performance of mobile devices. Unlike the previous works mostly focusing on the reduction of power consumption, both of image quality and power consumption are taken into account in the proposed method. Firstly, region of interest (ROI) is detected to divide image into two parts: ROI and non-ROI. Then, three attributes including entropy, luminance, and saturation information in ROI are calculated. To achieve high perceived image quality in mobile devices, optimal value of backlight can be calculated by a linear combination of the aforementioned attributes. Coefficients of the linear combination are determined by applying the linear regression to the subjective scores of human visual experiments and objective values of the attributes. Based on the optimal value of backlight, displayed image data are processed brightly and backlight is darkened to reduce the power consumption of backlight later. Here, the ratios of increasing image data and decreasing backlight functionally depend on the luminance information of displayed image. Also, the proposed method is hardware implemented. Experimental results indicate that the proposed technique exhibits better performance compared to the conventional methods.

Proposals to overcome limitations in the EU chemical risk assessment scheme

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Trapp, Stefan; Schwartz, S.

2000-01-01

The noti®cation of new chemicals in the European Union requires a risk assessment. A Technical Guidance Document (TGD) was prepared for assistance. The TGD proposes QSARs, regressions and models from various sources. Each method has its own range of applicability and its own restrictions. Regress......The noti®cation of new chemicals in the European Union requires a risk assessment. A Technical Guidance Document (TGD) was prepared for assistance. The TGD proposes QSARs, regressions and models from various sources. Each method has its own range of applicability and its own restrictions...

Technetium-99m ceftizoxime kit preparation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Diniz, Simone Odilia Fernandes; Siqueira, Cristiano Ferrari; Nelson, David Lee; Cardoso, Valbert Nascimento

2005-01-01

The aim of this work was to prepare a kit of 99 m Tc-ceftizoxime ( 99m Tc-CFT), with stability and biological activity preserved, able to identify a septic focus (E. coli) in the experimental infection model in rats. The preparation of the CFT kit involved the use of lyophilized solutions containing the antibiotic ceftizoxime and the sodium dithionite reducing agent (6.0 mg/m L). After lyophilization, the kit was reconstituted with 1.0 mL of sodium 99m Tc pertechnetate solution (Na 99m Tc O 4- ) with an activity of 370 MBq. The solution was boiled for 10 min and filtered through a cellulose ester filter. The labeling efficiency was on the order of 92%, remaining stable for six hours and the kit remained stable for two months. The biological activity of the 99m Tc-CFT was evaluated by diffusion in agar impregnated with E.coli and S. aureus. Seven Wistar rats, weighing from 200 to 250 g, were used for the development of the septic focus. After 24 hours from the induction of the infectious site (E.coli), the animals were anesthetized and 0.1 mL of 99m Tc-CFT (37 MBq) was injected into the tail veins of the animals. The images were obtained with a gamma camera one, two and six hours after injection and the regions of interest (ROIs) were calculated. The diameters of the inhibition halos for 99 m Tc-CFT were 27.16 ± 0.23 and 27.17 ± 0.20 for S.aureus and E.coli, respectively, while those for the unlabeled CFT were 30.4 ± 0.33 and 29.43 ± 0.26, respectively. The results for the biodistribution of 99m Tc-CFT in infected animals furnished a ratio of 1.97 ± 0.31, 2.10 ± 0.42 and 2.01 ± 0.42 for cpm-target/cpm-no target for the one, two and six-hour periods, respectively. The images showed a clear uptake of labeled antibiotic ( 99m Tc-CFT) by the infectious site during the experiment. The results attest to the viability of producing a kit with 99m technetium-labeled ceftizoxime for the investigation of infectious processes. (author)

Historical information on ORNL proposals for ECCS testing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1976-01-01

This document contains a compilation of the correspondence and preliminary report which the Oak Ridge National Laboratory submitted to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission on the subject of in situ testing of emergency core cooling systems (ECCS) in pressurized water reactors. Most of the correspondence, which was prepared four to five years ago, deals with an ORNL proposal to evaluate the merits of conducting an in situ ECCS test in a full-scale commercial power plant. The end result of this work was to be a report in which the feasibility of conducting such an experiment would be discussed and a ''rough'' cost estimate provided. In support of this proposal, ORNL prepared a brief preliminary prospectus which identified some of the key questions that were to be addressed should the evaluation study be funded

States and state-preparing procedures in quantum mechanics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benioff, P.A.; Ekstein, Hans

D'Espagnat and others have shown that different preparation procedures that mix systems prepared in unequivalent states and objectively different, are nevertheless assigned the same state. This unpalatable result follows from the usual interpretative rules of quantum mechanics. It is shown here that this result is incompatible with the strengthened interpretative rules (requiring randomness of the measurement outcome sequence) recently proposed. Thus, the randomness requirement restores reasonableness

Finger crease pattern recognition using Legendre moments and principal component analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Rongfang; Lin, Tusheng

2007-03-01

The finger joint lines defined as finger creases and its distribution can identify a person. In this paper, we propose a new finger crease pattern recognition method based on Legendre moments and principal component analysis (PCA). After obtaining the region of interest (ROI) for each finger image in the pre-processing stage, Legendre moments under Radon transform are applied to construct a moment feature matrix from the ROI, which greatly decreases the dimensionality of ROI and can represent principal components of the finger creases quite well. Then, an approach to finger crease pattern recognition is designed based on Karhunen-Loeve (K-L) transform. The method applies PCA to a moment feature matrix rather than the original image matrix to achieve the feature vector. The proposed method has been tested on a database of 824 images from 103 individuals using the nearest neighbor classifier. The accuracy up to 98.584% has been obtained when using 4 samples per class for training. The experimental results demonstrate that our proposed approach is feasible and effective in biometrics.

Analysis of iterative region-of-interest image reconstruction for x-ray computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Sidky, Emil Y; Kraemer, David N; Roth, Erin G; Ullberg, Christer; Reiser, Ingrid S; Pan, Xiaochuan

2014-10-03

One of the challenges for iterative image reconstruction (IIR) is that such algorithms solve an imaging model implicitly, requiring a complete representation of the scanned subject within the viewing domain of the scanner. This requirement can place a prohibitively high computational burden for IIR applied to x-ray computed tomography (CT), especially when high-resolution tomographic volumes are required. In this work, we aim to develop an IIR algorithm for direct region-of-interest (ROI) image reconstruction. The proposed class of IIR algorithms is based on an optimization problem that incorporates a data fidelity term, which compares a derivative of the estimated data with the available projection data. In order to characterize this optimization problem, we apply it to computer-simulated two-dimensional fan-beam CT data, using both ideal noiseless data and realistic data containing a level of noise comparable to that of the breast CT application. The proposed method is demonstrated for both complete field-of-view and ROI imaging. To demonstrate the potential utility of the proposed ROI imaging method, it is applied to actual CT scanner data.

Methodological approach to organizational performance improvement process

OpenAIRE

Buble, Marin; Dulčić, Želimir; Pavić, Ivan

2017-01-01

Organizational performance improvement is one of the fundamental enterprise tasks. This especially applies to the case when the term “performance improvement” implies efficiency improvement measured by indicators, such as ROI, ROE, ROA, or ROVA/ROI. Such tasks are very complex, requiring implementation by means of project management. In this paper, the authors propose a methodological approach to improving the organizational performance of a large enterprise.

Maintenance of water uptake and reduced water loss contribute to water stress tolerance of Spiraea alba Du Roi and Spiraea tomentosa L.

Science.gov (United States)

Stanton, Kelly M; Mickelbart, Michael V

2014-01-01

Two primarily eastern US native shrubs, Spiraea alba Du Roi and Spiraea tomentosa L., are typically found growing in wet areas, often with standing water. Both species have potential for use in the landscape, but little is known of their environmental requirements, including their adaptation to water stress. Two geographic accessions of each species were evaluated for their response to water stress under greenhouse conditions. Above-ground biomass, water relations and gas exchange were measured in well-watered and water stress treatments. In both species, water stress resulted in reduced growth, transpiration and pre-dawn water potential. However, both species also exhibited the ability to osmotically adjust to lower soil water content, resulting in maintained midday leaf turgor potential in all accessions. Net CO2 assimilation was reduced only in one accession of S. alba, primarily due to large reductions in stomatal conductance. S. tomentosa lost a larger proportion of leaves than S. alba in response to water stress. The primary water stress tolerance strategies of S. alba and S. tomentosa appear to be the maintenance of water uptake and reduced water loss.

Simultaneous spectrophotometric determination of overlapping spectra of paracetamol and caffeine in laboratory prepared mixtures and pharmaceutical preparations using continuous wavelet and derivative transform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmed Ashour

2015-03-01

Full Text Available In the present paper, two spectrophotometric methods were used for the simultaneous analysis of paracetamol (PCT and caffeine (CAF in their laboratory prepared mixtures and pharmaceutical preparations. Simple spectrophotometric analysis of PCT and CAF is not possible due to their complete spectral overlap. The proposed methods are based on the application of continuous wavelet transform (CWT and derivative transform (using Savitsky–Golay filters on the ratio spectra to predict each of CAF and PCT. Several wavelet families were tested. Coif1 and Sym2 were found to give best results under optimum conditions. The transformed signals of ratio spectra were used to plot the calibration curves for both components. The predictability of the built calibrations was validated through their application on several synthetic mixtures of both drugs. The proposed methods were used for the prediction of CAF and PCT in pharmaceutical preparation. The obtained results were statistically compared to a reference HPLC method. No significant differences were found between the obtained results and those from the reference method. Being simple, rapid, cheap and sensitive, the proposed methods are recommended for the routine daily analysis of these two drugs in their mixtures in quality control laboratories.

Environmental assessment report on proposed Yeelirrie uranium project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-01-01

In accordance with Government requirements, Western Mining Corporation Ltd. has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Review and Management Programme for its proposed uranium mine development at Yeelirrie, Western Australia. This report includes an outline of the proposal, an enviromental assessment, recommendations by the Environmental Protection Authority made after consideration of the Company's draft statement and a review of public and State Government Departmental Submissions received on the Yeelirrie EIS/ERMP

Environmental impact assessment of the proposed Information Technology Park at Perungudi.

Science.gov (United States)

Sharmilaa, G

2007-10-01

Environmental impact assessment studies of the proposed Information Technology Park at Perungudi have been carried out. The study involved assessing the existing environmental quality of the proposed site, and predicting impacts and preparing an environmental management plan. Data on the existing quality of water, soil, land use pattern, air, noise and socio-economic details of the proposed project were assessed. The impacts due to the proposed activity were identified and evaluated using the Network Impact Methodology. The water requirement was found to be 3,63,400 L/day. The total wastewater likely to be generated was found to be 2,90,720 L/day. The wastewater will be treated in a sewage treatment plant. The generation of solid waste was assessed to about 500 kg/day. Increase in traffic level was found out by traffic survey. The socio-economic environment will have a positive impact from the proposed project. An Environmental Management Plan was prepared which includes the mitigation measures for improving the eco-profile of the study area.

Methodological approach to organizational performance improvement process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marin Buble

2001-01-01

Full Text Available Organizational performance improvement is one of the fundamental enterprise tasks. This especially applies to the case when the term “performance improvement” implies efficiency improvement measured by indicators, such as ROI, ROE, ROA, or ROVA/ROI. Such tasks are very complex, requiring implementation by means of project management. In this paper, the authors propose a methodological approach to improving the organizational performance of a large enterprise.

TU-G-BRD-02: Automated Systematic Quality Assurance Program for Radiation Oncology Information System Upgrades

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, B; Yi, B; Eley, J; Mutaf, Y; Rahman, S; D’Souza, W

2015-01-01

Purpose: To: (1) describe an independent, automated, systematic software-based protocol for verifying clinical data accuracy/integrity for mitigation of data corruption/loss risks following radiation oncology information system (ROIS) upgrades; and (2) report on application of this approach in an academic/community practice environment. Methods: We propose a robust approach to perform quality assurance on the ROIS after an upgrade, targeting four data sources: (1) ROIS relational database; (2) ROIS DICOM interface; (3) ROIS treatment machine data configuration; and (4) ROIS-generated clinical reports. We investigated the database schema for differences between pre-/post-upgrade states. Paired DICOM data streams for the same object (such as RT-Plan/Treatment Record) were compared between pre-/post-upgrade states for data corruption. We examined machine configuration and related commissioning data files for changes and corruption. ROIS-generated treatment appointment and treatment parameter reports were compared to ensure patient encounter and treatment plan accuracy. This protocol was supplemented by an end-to-end clinical workflow test to verify essential ROI functionality and integrity of components interfaced during patient care chain of activities. We describe the implementation of this protocol during a Varian ARIA system upgrade at our clinic. Results: We verified 1,638 data tables with 2.4 billion data records. For 222 under-treatment patients, 605 DICOM RT plans and 13,480 DICOM treatment records retrieved from the ROIS DICOM interface were compared, with no differences in fractions, doses delivered, or treatment parameters. We identified 82 new data tables and 78 amended/deleted tables consistent with the upgrade. Reports for 5,073 patient encounters over a 2-week horizon were compared and were identical to those before the upgrade. Content in 12,237 xml machine files was compared, with no differences identified. Conclusion: An independent QA

TU-G-BRD-02: Automated Systematic Quality Assurance Program for Radiation Oncology Information System Upgrades

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, B; Yi, B; Eley, J; Mutaf, Y; Rahman, S; D’Souza, W [University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: To: (1) describe an independent, automated, systematic software-based protocol for verifying clinical data accuracy/integrity for mitigation of data corruption/loss risks following radiation oncology information system (ROIS) upgrades; and (2) report on application of this approach in an academic/community practice environment. Methods: We propose a robust approach to perform quality assurance on the ROIS after an upgrade, targeting four data sources: (1) ROIS relational database; (2) ROIS DICOM interface; (3) ROIS treatment machine data configuration; and (4) ROIS-generated clinical reports. We investigated the database schema for differences between pre-/post-upgrade states. Paired DICOM data streams for the same object (such as RT-Plan/Treatment Record) were compared between pre-/post-upgrade states for data corruption. We examined machine configuration and related commissioning data files for changes and corruption. ROIS-generated treatment appointment and treatment parameter reports were compared to ensure patient encounter and treatment plan accuracy. This protocol was supplemented by an end-to-end clinical workflow test to verify essential ROI functionality and integrity of components interfaced during patient care chain of activities. We describe the implementation of this protocol during a Varian ARIA system upgrade at our clinic. Results: We verified 1,638 data tables with 2.4 billion data records. For 222 under-treatment patients, 605 DICOM RT plans and 13,480 DICOM treatment records retrieved from the ROIS DICOM interface were compared, with no differences in fractions, doses delivered, or treatment parameters. We identified 82 new data tables and 78 amended/deleted tables consistent with the upgrade. Reports for 5,073 patient encounters over a 2-week horizon were compared and were identical to those before the upgrade. Content in 12,237 xml machine files was compared, with no differences identified. Conclusion: An independent QA

Remote State Preparation of a Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger Class State

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhan Youbang

2005-01-01

In this paper, we propose a scheme for the remote preparation of a three-particle Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger class state by a two-particle entangled state and a three-particle entangled state. It is shown that, by this scheme, only two classical bits and one two-particle projective measurement are enough for such preparation.

Accurate Region-of-Interest Recovery Improves the Measurement of the Cell Migration Rate in the In Vitro Wound Healing Assay.

Science.gov (United States)

Bedoya, Cesar; Cardona, Andrés; Galeano, July; Cortés-Mancera, Fabián; Sandoz, Patrick; Zarzycki, Artur

2017-12-01

The wound healing assay is widely used for the quantitative analysis of highly regulated cellular events. In this essay, a wound is voluntarily produced on a confluent cell monolayer, and then the rate of wound reduction (WR) is characterized by processing images of the same regions of interest (ROIs) recorded at different time intervals. In this method, sharp-image ROI recovery is indispensable to compensate for displacements of the cell cultures due either to the exploration of multiple sites of the same culture or to transfers from the microscope stage to a cell incubator. ROI recovery is usually done manually and, despite a low-magnification microscope objective is generally used (10x), repositioning imperfections constitute a major source of errors detrimental to the WR measurement accuracy. We address this ROI recovery issue by using pseudoperiodic patterns fixed onto the cell culture dishes, allowing the easy localization of ROIs and the accurate quantification of positioning errors. The method is applied to a tumor-derived cell line, and the WR rates are measured by means of two different image processing software. Sharp ROI recovery based on the proposed method is found to improve significantly the accuracy of the WR measurement and the positioning under the microscope.

Filtered region of interest cone-beam rotational angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schafer, Sebastian; Noeel, Peter B.; Walczak, Alan M.; Hoffmann, Kenneth R.

2010-01-01

Purpose: Cone-beam rotational angiography (CBRA) is widely used in the modern clinical settings. In a number of procedures, the area of interest is often considerably smaller than the field of view (FOV) of the detector, subjecting the patient to potentially unnecessary x-ray dose. The authors therefore propose a filter-based method to reduce the dose in the regions of low interest, while supplying high image quality in the region of interest (ROI). Methods: For such procedures, the authors propose a method of filtered region of interest (FROI)-CBRA. In the authors' approach, a gadolinium filter with a circular central opening is placed into the x-ray beam during image acquisition. The central region is imaged with high contrast, while peripheral regions are subjected to a substantial lower intensity and dose through beam filtering. The resulting images contain a high contrast/intensity ROI, as well as a low contrast/intensity peripheral region, and a transition region in between. To equalize the two regions' intensities, the first projection of the acquisition is performed with and without the filter in place. The equalization relationship, based on Beer's law, is established through linear regression using corresponding filtered and nonfiltered data. The transition region is equalized based on radial profiles. Results: Evaluations in 2D and 3D show no visible difference between conventional FROI-CBRA projection images and reconstructions in the ROI. CNR evaluations show similar image quality in the ROI, with a reduced CNR in the reconstructed peripheral region. In all filtered projection images, the scatter fraction inside the ROI was reduced. Theoretical and experimental dose evaluations show a considerable dose reduction; using a ROI half the original FOV reduces the dose by 60% for the filter thickness of 1.29 mm. Conclusions: These results indicate the potential of FROI-CBRA to reduce the dose to the patient while supplying the physician with the desired

Filtered region of interest cone-beam rotational angiography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schafer, Sebastian; Noeel, Peter B.; Walczak, Alan M.; Hoffmann, Kenneth R. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Neurosurgery, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States) and Toshiba Stroke Research Center, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Neurosurgery, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Computer Science, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States) and Toshiba Stroke Research Center, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Neurosurgery, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 and Toshiba Stroke Research Center, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Mechanical Engineering, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Neurosurgery, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States); Department of Computer Science, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States) and Toshiba Stroke Research Center, SUNY at Buffalo, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14214 (United States)

2010-02-15

Purpose: Cone-beam rotational angiography (CBRA) is widely used in the modern clinical settings. In a number of procedures, the area of interest is often considerably smaller than the field of view (FOV) of the detector, subjecting the patient to potentially unnecessary x-ray dose. The authors therefore propose a filter-based method to reduce the dose in the regions of low interest, while supplying high image quality in the region of interest (ROI). Methods: For such procedures, the authors propose a method of filtered region of interest (FROI)-CBRA. In the authors' approach, a gadolinium filter with a circular central opening is placed into the x-ray beam during image acquisition. The central region is imaged with high contrast, while peripheral regions are subjected to a substantial lower intensity and dose through beam filtering. The resulting images contain a high contrast/intensity ROI, as well as a low contrast/intensity peripheral region, and a transition region in between. To equalize the two regions' intensities, the first projection of the acquisition is performed with and without the filter in place. The equalization relationship, based on Beer's law, is established through linear regression using corresponding filtered and nonfiltered data. The transition region is equalized based on radial profiles. Results: Evaluations in 2D and 3D show no visible difference between conventional FROI-CBRA projection images and reconstructions in the ROI. CNR evaluations show similar image quality in the ROI, with a reduced CNR in the reconstructed peripheral region. In all filtered projection images, the scatter fraction inside the ROI was reduced. Theoretical and experimental dose evaluations show a considerable dose reduction; using a ROI half the original FOV reduces the dose by 60% for the filter thickness of 1.29 mm. Conclusions: These results indicate the potential of FROI-CBRA to reduce the dose to the patient while supplying the physician with

Automatic feature learning using multichannel ROI based on deep structured algorithms for computerized lung cancer diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Wenqing; Zheng, Bin; Qian, Wei

2017-10-01

This study aimed to analyze the ability of extracting automatically generated features using deep structured algorithms in lung nodule CT image diagnosis, and compare its performance with traditional computer aided diagnosis (CADx) systems using hand-crafted features. All of the 1018 cases were acquired from Lung Image Database Consortium (LIDC) public lung cancer database. The nodules were segmented according to four radiologists' markings, and 13,668 samples were generated by rotating every slice of nodule images. Three multichannel ROI based deep structured algorithms were designed and implemented in this study: convolutional neural network (CNN), deep belief network (DBN), and stacked denoising autoencoder (SDAE). For the comparison purpose, we also implemented a CADx system using hand-crafted features including density features, texture features and morphological features. The performance of every scheme was evaluated by using a 10-fold cross-validation method and an assessment index of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). The observed highest area under the curve (AUC) was 0.899±0.018 achieved by CNN, which was significantly higher than traditional CADx with the AUC=0.848±0.026. The results from DBN was also slightly higher than CADx, while SDAE was slightly lower. By visualizing the automatic generated features, we found some meaningful detectors like curvy stroke detectors from deep structured schemes. The study results showed the deep structured algorithms with automatically generated features can achieve desirable performance in lung nodule diagnosis. With well-tuned parameters and large enough dataset, the deep learning algorithms can have better performance than current popular CADx. We believe the deep learning algorithms with similar data preprocessing procedure can be used in other medical image analysis areas as well. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Use of gamma radiation for preparation of nutrient culture media

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Speranskaya, I.D.; Tumanyan, M.A.; Mironova, L.L.

1977-01-01

A technique was developed for sterilization of nutrient culture media using ..gamma..-radiation. For this purpose, dry preparations were exposed to 3 to 6 Mrad radiation, then dissolved in sterile distilled water. The quality of media and solutions thus obtained is as good as that of preparations sterilized by filtration. The advantage of the proposed sterilization method is that liquid media can be rapidly prepared and dry sterile media can be stored at room temperature for long periods of time.

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedure for preparation, follow-up and experience gained from maintenance: application to replacement of pressure vessel; Proposition d'organisation et procedure ALARA pour le suivi et le retour d'experience des chantiers de maintenance: application au RGV

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lochard, Jacques; Lefaure, Christian

1989-12-01

This report proposes the organisation and ALARA procedures for preparation, follow-up and analysis of the lessons learned during maintenance works at a nuclear power plant. After a brief description of the ALARA principle in the first chapter, the following chapters describe proposals for establishing and start-up of a maintenance building site. The proposals are illustrated by the replacement of the pressure vessel as an example.

77 FR 54939 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-06

... approximately 13 respondents. We estimate that 25% of the 15 hours (4 hours per response) is prepared by the company for a total reporting burden of 52 hours (4 hours per response x 13 responses). Written comments are invited on: (a) Whether this proposed collection of information is necessary for the performance...

Rail Safety/Equipment Crashworthiness : Volume 3. Proposed Engineering Standards.

Science.gov (United States)

1978-07-01

The document, the third of four volumes, contains recommended Engineering Standards prepared in the format of the standards published in the Code of Federal Regulations (Title 49, Transportation, Parts 200). The standards proposed provide improved oc...

Droplet Size-Aware and Error-Correcting Sample Preparation Using Micro-Electrode-Dot-Array Digital Microfluidic Biochips.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zipeng; Lai, Kelvin Yi-Tse; Chakrabarty, Krishnendu; Ho, Tsung-Yi; Lee, Chen-Yi

2017-12-01

Sample preparation in digital microfluidics refers to the generation of droplets with target concentrations for on-chip biochemical applications. In recent years, digital microfluidic biochips (DMFBs) have been adopted as a platform for sample preparation. However, there remain two major problems associated with sample preparation on a conventional DMFB. First, only a (1:1) mixing/splitting model can be used, leading to an increase in the number of fluidic operations required for sample preparation. Second, only a limited number of sensors can be integrated on a conventional DMFB; as a result, the latency for error detection during sample preparation is significant. To overcome these drawbacks, we adopt a next generation DMFB platform, referred to as micro-electrode-dot-array (MEDA), for sample preparation. We propose the first sample-preparation method that exploits the MEDA-specific advantages of fine-grained control of droplet sizes and real-time droplet sensing. Experimental demonstration using a fabricated MEDA biochip and simulation results highlight the effectiveness of the proposed sample-preparation method.

Pulmonary emphysema classification based on an improved texton learning model by sparse representation

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Min; Zhou, Xiangrong; Goshima, Satoshi; Chen, Huayue; Muramatsu, Chisako; Hara, Takeshi; Yokoyama, Ryujiro; Kanematsu, Masayuki; Fujita, Hiroshi

2013-03-01

In this paper, we present a texture classification method based on texton learned via sparse representation (SR) with new feature histogram maps in the classification of emphysema. First, an overcomplete dictionary of textons is learned via KSVD learning on every class image patches in the training dataset. In this stage, high-pass filter is introduced to exclude patches in smooth area to speed up the dictionary learning process. Second, 3D joint-SR coefficients and intensity histograms of the test images are used for characterizing regions of interest (ROIs) instead of conventional feature histograms constructed from SR coefficients of the test images over the dictionary. Classification is then performed using a classifier with distance as a histogram dissimilarity measure. Four hundreds and seventy annotated ROIs extracted from 14 test subjects, including 6 paraseptal emphysema (PSE) subjects, 5 centrilobular emphysema (CLE) subjects and 3 panlobular emphysema (PLE) subjects, are used to evaluate the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method. The proposed method is tested on 167 PSE, 240 CLE and 63 PLE ROIs consisting of mild, moderate and severe pulmonary emphysema. The accuracy of the proposed system is around 74%, 88% and 89% for PSE, CLE and PLE, respectively.

Analysis of iterative region-of-interest image reconstruction for x-ray computed tomography

Science.gov (United States)

Sidky, Emil Y.; Kraemer, David N.; Roth, Erin G.; Ullberg, Christer; Reiser, Ingrid S.; Pan, Xiaochuan

2014-01-01

Abstract. One of the challenges for iterative image reconstruction (IIR) is that such algorithms solve an imaging model implicitly, requiring a complete representation of the scanned subject within the viewing domain of the scanner. This requirement can place a prohibitively high computational burden for IIR applied to x-ray computed tomography (CT), especially when high-resolution tomographic volumes are required. In this work, we aim to develop an IIR algorithm for direct region-of-interest (ROI) image reconstruction. The proposed class of IIR algorithms is based on an optimization problem that incorporates a data fidelity term, which compares a derivative of the estimated data with the available projection data. In order to characterize this optimization problem, we apply it to computer-simulated two-dimensional fan-beam CT data, using both ideal noiseless data and realistic data containing a level of noise comparable to that of the breast CT application. The proposed method is demonstrated for both complete field-of-view and ROI imaging. To demonstrate the potential utility of the proposed ROI imaging method, it is applied to actual CT scanner data. PMID:25685824

Technetium-99m ceftizoxime kit preparation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Diniz, Simone Odilia Fernandes; Siqueira, Cristiano Ferrari; Nelson, David Lee; Cardoso, Valbert Nascimento [Minas Gerais Univ. Federal, Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil). Faculdade de Farmacia]. E-mail: simone@farmacia.ufmg.br; Martin-Comin, Josep [Bellvitge Univ., Barcelona (Spain)

2005-10-15

The aim of this work was to prepare a kit of {sup 99}m Tc-ceftizoxime ({sup 99m} Tc-CFT), with stability and biological activity preserved, able to identify a septic focus (E. coli) in the experimental infection model in rats. The preparation of the CFT kit involved the use of lyophilized solutions containing the antibiotic ceftizoxime and the sodium dithionite reducing agent (6.0 mg/m L). After lyophilization, the kit was reconstituted with 1.0 mL of sodium {sup 99m} Tc pertechnetate solution (Na {sup 99m} Tc O{sub 4-}) with an activity of 370 MBq. The solution was boiled for 10 min and filtered through a cellulose ester filter. The labeling efficiency was on the order of 92%, remaining stable for six hours and the kit remained stable for two months. The biological activity of the {sup 99m} Tc-CFT was evaluated by diffusion in agar impregnated with E.coli and S. aureus. Seven Wistar rats, weighing from 200 to 250 g, were used for the development of the septic focus. After 24 hours from the induction of the infectious site (E.coli), the animals were anesthetized and 0.1 mL of {sup 99m} Tc-CFT (37 MBq) was injected into the tail veins of the animals. The images were obtained with a gamma camera one, two and six hours after injection and the regions of interest (ROIs) were calculated. The diameters of the inhibition halos for {sup 99}m Tc-CFT were 27.16 {+-} 0.23 and 27.17 {+-} 0.20 for S.aureus and E.coli, respectively, while those for the unlabeled CFT were 30.4 {+-} 0.33 and 29.43 {+-} 0.26, respectively. The results for the biodistribution of {sup 99m} Tc-CFT in infected animals furnished a ratio of 1.97 {+-} 0.31, 2.10 {+-} 0.42 and 2.01 {+-} 0.42 for cpm-target/cpm-no target for the one, two and six-hour periods, respectively. The images showed a clear uptake of labeled antibiotic ({sup 99m} Tc-CFT) by the infectious site during the experiment. The results attest to the viability of producing a kit with {sup 99m} technetium-labeled ceftizoxime for the

48 CFR 49.206-1 - Submission of settlement proposals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... accounting data. Actual, standard (appropriately adjusted), or average costs may be used in preparing settlement proposals if they are determined under generally recognized accounting principles consistently... not be required to maintain unduly elaborate cost accounting systems merely because their contracts...

Preparation and characterisation of glass surfaces for experimental purposes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Serruys, Y.

1986-01-01

Experimental investigation of glasses, applied especially to the prevision of the behaviour of vitrified nuclear wastes, requires the preparation of well-defined and reproducibles surfaces, in order to separate the investigated phenomena from artifacts due to surface anomalies and to allow a valuable comparison between results obtained in different laboratories. The aim of the present report is to determine which characters, both physical and chemical, of glass surfaces, have to be controlled, because of their influence upon the investigated phenomena or the experimental processes employed in the investigation. A method is then presented for a surface preparation giving good guaranties of quality and reproducibility. The physical and chemical aspects of surface characterisation are successively considered. The relevant characters and their importance are described, then the corresponding techniques of characterisation are reviewed and it has been attempted to propose a set of techniques allowing a characterisation as complete as possible for laboratory purposes. A preparation method for experimental sample, aiming to satisfy all the previously defined criteria, is then proposed, and present results obtained with this method are described [fr

Gender Classification Based on Eye Movements: A Processing Effect During Passive Face Viewing.

Science.gov (United States)

Sammaknejad, Negar; Pouretemad, Hamidreza; Eslahchi, Changiz; Salahirad, Alireza; Alinejad, Ashkan

2017-01-01

Studies have revealed superior face recognition skills in females, partially due to their different eye movement strategies when encoding faces. In the current study, we utilized these slight but important differences and proposed a model that estimates the gender of the viewers and classifies them into two subgroups, males and females. An eye tracker recorded participant's eye movements while they viewed images of faces. Regions of interest (ROIs) were defined for each face. Results showed that the gender dissimilarity in eye movements was not due to differences in frequency of fixations in the ROI s per se. Instead, it was caused by dissimilarity in saccade paths between the ROIs. The difference enhanced when saccades were towards the eyes. Females showed significant increase in transitions from other ROI s to the eyes. Consequently, the extraction of temporal transient information of saccade paths through a transition probability matrix, similar to a first order Markov chain model, significantly improved the accuracy of the gender classification results.

Optimization of focality and direction in dense electrode array transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)

Science.gov (United States)

Guler, Seyhmus; Dannhauer, Moritz; Erem, Burak; Macleod, Rob; Tucker, Don; Turovets, Sergei; Luu, Phan; Erdogmus, Deniz; Brooks, Dana H.

2016-06-01

Objective. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) aims to alter brain function non-invasively via electrodes placed on the scalp. Conventional tDCS uses two relatively large patch electrodes to deliver electrical current to the brain region of interest (ROI). Recent studies have shown that using dense arrays containing up to 512 smaller electrodes may increase the precision of targeting ROIs. However, this creates a need for methods to determine effective and safe stimulus patterns as the number of degrees of freedom is much higher with such arrays. Several approaches to this problem have appeared in the literature. In this paper, we describe a new method for calculating optimal electrode stimulus patterns for targeted and directional modulation in dense array tDCS which differs in some important aspects with methods reported to date. Approach. We optimize stimulus pattern of dense arrays with fixed electrode placement to maximize the current density in a particular direction in the ROI. We impose a flexible set of safety constraints on the current power in the brain, individual electrode currents, and total injected current, to protect subject safety. The proposed optimization problem is convex and thus efficiently solved using existing optimization software to find unique and globally optimal electrode stimulus patterns. Main results. Solutions for four anatomical ROIs based on a realistic head model are shown as exemplary results. To illustrate the differences between our approach and previously introduced methods, we compare our method with two of the other leading methods in the literature. We also report on extensive simulations that show the effect of the values chosen for each proposed safety constraint bound on the optimized stimulus patterns. Significance. The proposed optimization approach employs volume based ROIs, easily adapts to different sets of safety constraints, and takes negligible time to compute. An in-depth comparison study gives

Socioeconomic and other predictors of colonoscopy preparation quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Lebwohl, Benjamin; Wang, Timothy C; Neugut, Alfred I

2010-07-01

Suboptimal bowel preparation prior to colonoscopy is a common occurrence, with a deleterious impact on colonoscopy effectiveness. Established risk factors for suboptimal bowel preparation have been proposed, but social factors, such as socioeconomic status and marital status, have not been investigated. The aim of this study was to evaluate sociodemographic factors, including insurance status and marital status, as predictive of suboptimal preparation. We analyzed a database of 12,430 consecutive colonoscopies during a 28-month period at Columbia University Medical Center. We collected the following variables: age, gender, indication for colonoscopy, location (inpatient vs. outpatient), race, marital status, and Medicaid status. Preparation quality was recorded and dichotomized as optimal or suboptimal. We employed multivariate regression to determine independent risk factors for suboptimal bowel preparation. Among the 10,921 examinations in which bowel preparation was recorded, suboptimal preparation occurred in 34% of Medicaid patients versus 18% of non-Medicaid patients (P Married patients had decreased rates of suboptimal preparation (OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.80-0.98). Other variables associated with suboptimal preparation included increased age (OR per 10 years 1.09, 95% CI 1.05-1.14), male gender (OR 1.44, 95% CI 1.31-1.59), inpatient status (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.26-1.80), and later time of day (OR 1.89, 95% CI 1.71-2.09). Unmarried status and Medicaid status are predictive of suboptimal bowel preparation. Future studies are warranted to identify how these social conditions predict bowel preparation quality and to implement interventions to optimize bowel preparation in vulnerable populations.

75 FR 23798 - Environmental Assessment Prepared for Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-04

... Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound, Offshore Massachusetts AGENCY: Minerals Management... Energy Project proposed for Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. On January 16, 2009, the MMS... construct a wind power facility on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, offshore Massachusetts. Following the...

Proposal for basic safety requirements regarding the disposal of high-level radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-04-01

A working group commissioned to prepare proposals for basic safety requirements for the storage and transport of radioactive waste prepared its report to the Danish Agency of Environmental Protection. The proposals include: radiation protection requirements, requirements concerning the properties of high-level waste units, the geological conditions of the waste disposal location, the supervision of waste disposal areas. The proposed primary requirements for safety evaluation of the disposal of high-level waste in deep geological formations are of a general nature, not being tied to specific assumptions regarding the waste itself, the geological and other conditions at the place of disposal, and the technical methods of disposal. It was impossible to test the proposals for requirements on a working repository. As no country has, to the knowledge of the working group, actually disposed of hifg-level radioactive waste or approved of plans for such disposal. Methods for evaluating the suitability of geological formations for waste disposal, and background material concerning the preparation of these proposals for basic safety requirements relating to radiation, waste handling and geological conditions are reviewed. Appended to the report is a description of the phases of the fuel cycle that are related to the storage of spent fuel and the disposal of high-level reprocessing waste in a salt formation. It should be noted that the proposals of the working group are not limited to the disposal of reprocessed fuel, but also include the direct disposal of spent fuel as well as disposal in geological formations other than salt. (EG)

Experimental studies of thermal preparation of internal combustion engine

Science.gov (United States)

Karnaukhov, N. N.; Merdanov, Sh M.; V, Konev V.; Borodin, D. M.

2018-05-01

In conditions of autonomous functioning of road construction machines, it becomes necessary to use its internal sources. This can be done by using a heat recovery system of an internal combustion engine (ICE). For this purpose, it is proposed to use heat accumulators that accumulate heat of the internal combustion engine during the operation of the machine. Experimental studies have been carried out to evaluate the efficiency of using the proposed pre-start thermal preparation system, which combines a regular system based on liquid diesel fuel heaters and an ICE heat recovery system. As a result, the stages of operation of the preheating thermal preparation system, mathematical models and the dependence of the temperature change of the antifreeze at the exit from the internal combustion engine on the warm-up time are determined.

Single-photon two-qubit entangled states: Preparation and measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yoon-Ho

2003-01-01

We implement experimentally a deterministic method to prepare and measure the so-called single-photon two-qubit entangled states or single-photon Bell states, in which the polarization and the spatial modes of a single photon each represent a quantum bit. All four single-photon Bell states can be easily prepared and measured deterministically using linear optical elements alone. We also discuss how this method can be used for the recently proposed single-photon two-qubit quantum cryptography scheme

Nodule Detection in a Lung Region that's Segmented with Using Genetic Cellular Neural Networks and 3D Template Matching with Fuzzy Rule Based Thresholding

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ozekes, Serhat; Osman, Onur; Ucan, N.

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to develop a new method for automated lung nodule detection in serial section CT images with using the characteristics of the 3D appearance of the nodules that distinguish themselves from the vessels. Lung nodules were detected in four steps. First, to reduce the number of region of interests (ROIs) and the computation time, the lung regions of the CTs were segmented using Genetic Cellular Neural Networks (G-CNN). Then, for each lung region, ROIs were specified with using the 8 directional search; +1 or -1 values were assigned to each voxel. The 3D ROI image was obtained by combining all the 2-Dimensional (2D) ROI images. A 3D template was created to find the nodule-like structures on the 3D ROI image. Convolution of the 3D ROI image with the proposed template strengthens the shapes that are similar to those of the template and it weakens the other ones. Finally, fuzzy rule based thresholding was applied and the ROI's were found. To test the system's efficiency, we used 16 cases with a total of 425 slices, which were taken from the Lung Image Database Consortium (LIDC) dataset. The computer aided diagnosis (CAD) system achieved 100% sensitivity with 13.375 FPs per case when the nodule thickness was greater than or equal to 5.625 mm. Our results indicate that the detection performance of our algorithm is satisfactory, and this may well improve the performance of computer aided detection of lung nodules

Cyclic joint remote state preparation in noisy environment

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chang-yue; Bai, Ming-qiang; Zhou, Si-qi

2018-06-01

We propose a scheme of cyclic joint remote state preparation for three sides, which takes advantage of three GHZ states to compose product state as quantum channel. Suppose there are six legitimate participants, says Alice, Bob, Charlie, David, Emma and Fred in the scheme. It can be shown that Alice and David can remotely prepare a single-qubit state on Bob's side; meanwhile, Bob and Emma can remotely prepare a desired quantum state on Charlie's side, and Charlie and Fred can also remotely prepare a single-qubit state on Alice's side at the same time. Further, it can be achieved in the opposite direction of the cycle by changing the quantum channel. Based on it, we generalize this protocol to N (N≥3) sides utilizing three multi-qubit GHZ-type states as quantum channel. Therefore, the scheme can achieve cyclic joint remote state preparation, which remotely prepares N states in quantum network with N-party, simultaneously. In addition, we consider that the effect of amplitude-damping noise of the initial states is prepared in four different laboratory. Clearly, we use fidelity to describe how much information has been lost in the cyclic process. Our investigation about the effect of noise shows that the preparing of the initial state in different laboratories will affect the loss of information.

75 FR 45572 - Oil Pollution Prevention; Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Rule-Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-03

... Oil Pollution Prevention; Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Rule--Proposed... Federal Regulations is proposed to be amended as follows: PART 112--OIL POLLUTION PREVENTION 1. The... certain facilities must prepare or amend their Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plans...

Automatic detection and classification of breast tumors in ultrasonic images using texture and morphological features.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Yanni; Wang, Yuanyuan; Jiao, Jing; Guo, Yi

2011-01-01

Due to severe presence of speckle noise, poor image contrast and irregular lesion shape, it is challenging to build a fully automatic detection and classification system for breast ultrasonic images. In this paper, a novel and effective computer-aided method including generation of a region of interest (ROI), segmentation and classification of breast tumor is proposed without any manual intervention. By incorporating local features of texture and position, a ROI is firstly detected using a self-organizing map neural network. Then a modified Normalized Cut approach considering the weighted neighborhood gray values is proposed to partition the ROI into clusters and get the initial boundary. In addition, a regional-fitting active contour model is used to adjust the few inaccurate initial boundaries for the final segmentation. Finally, three textures and five morphologic features are extracted from each breast tumor; whereby a highly efficient Affinity Propagation clustering is used to fulfill the malignancy and benign classification for an existing database without any training process. The proposed system is validated by 132 cases (67 benignancies and 65 malignancies) with its performance compared to traditional methods such as level set segmentation, artificial neural network classifiers, and so forth. Experiment results show that the proposed system, which needs no training procedure or manual interference, performs best in detection and classification of ultrasonic breast tumors, while having the lowest computation complexity.

76 FR 75556 - Notice of Availability of the Proposed Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-02

...] Notice of Availability of the Proposed Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Taos Field Office, New Mexico AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice of...) has prepared the Proposed Resource Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement (Proposed RMP...

Proposals for chemical weapons during the American Civil War.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasegawa, Guy R

2008-05-01

Proposals for chemical weapons that arose during the American Civil War are described. Most incendiary and all biological agents are excluded. The described proposals appeared primarily in periodicals or letters to government officials on both sides. The weapons were usually meant to temporarily disable enemy combatants, but some might have been lethal, and Civil War caregivers were ill-prepared to deal with the weapons' effects. Evidently, none of the proposed weapons were used. In only one instance was use against civilians mentioned. Among the agents most commonly proposed were cayenne pepper or other plant-based irritants such as black pepper, snuff, mustard, and veratria. Other suggested agents included chloroform, chlorine, hydrogen cyanide, arsenic compounds, sulfur, and acids. Proponents usually suggested that the chemicals be included in explosive artillery projectiles. Less commonly proposed vehicles of delivery included fire engines, kites, and manned balloons. Some of the proposed weapons have modern counterparts.

A synthetic interpretation: the double-preparation theory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gondran, Michel; Gondran, Alexandre

2014-01-01

In the 1927 Solvay conference, three apparently irreconcilable interpretations of the quantum mechanics wave function were presented: the pilot-wave interpretation by de Broglie, the soliton wave interpretation by Schrödinger and the Born statistical rule by Born and Heisenberg. In this paper, we demonstrate the complementarity of these interpretations corresponding to quantum systems that are prepared differently and we deduce a synthetic interpretation: the double-preparation theory. We first introduce in quantum mechanics the concept of semi-classical statistically prepared particles, and we show that in the Schrödinger equation these particles converge, when h→0, to the equations of a statistical set of classical particles. These classical particles are undiscerned, and if we assume continuity between classical mechanics and quantum mechanics, we conclude the necessity of the de Broglie–Bohm interpretation for the semi-classical statistically prepared particles (statistical wave). We then introduce in quantum mechanics the concept of a semi-classical deterministically prepared particle, and we show that in the Schrödinger equation this particle converges, when h→0, to the equations of a single classical particle. This classical particle is discerned and assuming continuity between classical mechanics and quantum mechanics, we conclude the necessity of the Schrödinger interpretation for the semi-classical deterministically prepared particle (the soliton wave). Finally we propose, in the semi-classical approximation, a new interpretation of quantum mechanics, the ‘theory of the double preparation’, which depends on the preparation of the particles. (paper)

Preparing Graduate Students for Non-Academic Careers

Science.gov (United States)

Woolf, Lawrence

2014-03-01

One of the primary topics discussed at the conference concerned career development, since most graduate students will not have the academic careers of their advisors. Goals included reviewing the primary functions of physicists in industry, evaluating how students are currently prepared for these careers, and identifying how to fill gaps in preparation. A number of non-academic physicists provided insight into meeting these goals. Most physics graduate programs in general do not purposely prepare students for a non-academic career. Strategies for overcoming this shortcoming include advising students about these careers and providing training on broadly valued professional skills such as written and verbal communication, time and project management, leadership, working in teams, innovation, product development, and proposal writing. Alumni and others from industry could provide guidance on careers and skills and should be invited to talk to students. Academic training could also better prepare students for non-academic careers by including engineering and cross disciplinary problem solving as well as incorporating software and toolsets common in industry.

Improving the Mathematics Preparation of Elementary Teachers, One Lesson at a Time

Science.gov (United States)

Berk, Dawn; Hiebert, James

2009-01-01

In this paper, we describe a model for systematically improving the mathematics preparation of elementary teachers, one lesson at a time. We begin by identifying a serious obstacle for teacher educators: the absence of mechanisms for developing a shareable knowledge base for teacher preparation. We propose our model as a way to address this…

A robust firearm identification algorithm of forensic ballistics specimens

Science.gov (United States)

Chuan, Z. L.; Jemain, A. A.; Liong, C.-Y.; Ghani, N. A. M.; Tan, L. K.

2017-09-01

There are several inherent difficulties in the existing firearm identification algorithms, include requiring the physical interpretation and time consuming. Therefore, the aim of this study is to propose a robust algorithm for a firearm identification based on extracting a set of informative features from the segmented region of interest (ROI) using the simulated noisy center-firing pin impression images. The proposed algorithm comprises Laplacian sharpening filter, clustering-based threshold selection, unweighted least square estimator, and segment a square ROI from the noisy images. A total of 250 simulated noisy images collected from five different pistols of the same make, model and caliber are used to evaluate the robustness of the proposed algorithm. This study found that the proposed algorithm is able to perform the identical task on the noisy images with noise levels as high as 70%, while maintaining a firearm identification accuracy rate of over 90%.

Proposed Casey's Pond Improvement Project, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-05-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA), evaluating the impacts associated with the proposed Casey's Pond Improvement Project at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Illinois. The improvement project would maximize the efficiency of the Fermilab Industrial Cooling Water (ICW) distribution system, which removes (via evaporation) the thermal load from experimental and other support equipment supporting the high energy physics program at Fermilab. The project would eliminate the risk of overheating during fixed target experiments, ensure that the Illinois Water Quality Standards are consistently achieved and provide needed additional water storage for fire protection. Based on the analysis in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Therefore, the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement is not required

Detecting high spatial variability of ice shelf basal mass balance, Roi Baudouin Ice Shelf, Antarctica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Berger

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Ice shelves control the dynamic mass loss of ice sheets through buttressing and their integrity depends on the spatial variability of their basal mass balance (BMB, i.e. the difference between refreezing and melting. Here, we present an improved technique – based on satellite observations – to capture the small-scale variability in the BMB of ice shelves. As a case study, we apply the methodology to the Roi Baudouin Ice Shelf, Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica, and derive its yearly averaged BMB at 10 m horizontal gridding. We use mass conservation in a Lagrangian framework based on high-resolution surface velocities, atmospheric-model surface mass balance and hydrostatic ice-thickness fields (derived from TanDEM-X surface elevation. Spatial derivatives are implemented using the total-variation differentiation, which preserves abrupt changes in flow velocities and their spatial gradients. Such changes may reflect a dynamic response to localized basal melting and should be included in the mass budget. Our BMB field exhibits much spatial detail and ranges from −14.7 to 8.6 m a−1 ice equivalent. Highest melt rates are found close to the grounding line where the pressure melting point is high, and the ice shelf slope is steep. The BMB field agrees well with on-site measurements from phase-sensitive radar, although independent radar profiling indicates unresolved spatial variations in firn density. We show that an elliptical surface depression (10 m deep and with an extent of 0.7 km × 1.3 km lowers by 0.5 to 1.4 m a−1, which we tentatively attribute to a transient adaptation to hydrostatic equilibrium. We find evidence for elevated melting beneath ice shelf channels (with melting being concentrated on the channel's flanks. However, farther downstream from the grounding line, the majority of ice shelf channels advect passively (i.e. no melting nor refreezing toward the ice shelf front. Although the absolute, satellite

Hierarchical anatomical brain networks for MCI prediction: revisiting volumetric measures.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luping Zhou

Full Text Available Owning to its clinical accessibility, T1-weighted MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging has been extensively studied in the past decades for prediction of Alzheimer's disease (AD and mild cognitive impairment (MCI. The volumes of gray matter (GM, white matter (WM and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF are the most commonly used measurements, resulting in many successful applications. It has been widely observed that disease-induced structural changes may not occur at isolated spots, but in several inter-related regions. Therefore, for better characterization of brain pathology, we propose in this paper a means to extract inter-regional correlation based features from local volumetric measurements. Specifically, our approach involves constructing an anatomical brain network for each subject, with each node representing a Region of Interest (ROI and each edge representing Pearson correlation of tissue volumetric measurements between ROI pairs. As second order volumetric measurements, network features are more descriptive but also more sensitive to noise. To overcome this limitation, a hierarchy of ROIs is used to suppress noise at different scales. Pairwise interactions are considered not only for ROIs with the same scale in the same layer of the hierarchy, but also for ROIs across different scales in different layers. To address the high dimensionality problem resulting from the large number of network features, a supervised dimensionality reduction method is further employed to embed a selected subset of features into a low dimensional feature space, while at the same time preserving discriminative information. We demonstrate with experimental results the efficacy of this embedding strategy in comparison with some other commonly used approaches. In addition, although the proposed method can be easily generalized to incorporate other metrics of regional similarities, the benefits of using Pearson correlation in our application are reinforced by the experimental

76 FR 9406 - Proposed Collection; Comment Request for Regulation Project

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-17

... comments concerning the existing proposed regulations, REG-100194-10, Specified Tax Return Preparers Required to File Individual Income Tax Returns Using Magnetic Media--Taxpayer Choice Statements. DATES...: Direct all written comments to Yvette Lawrence, Internal Revenue Service, Room 6129, 1111 Constitution...

Navigating the Road to Success: A Systematic Approach to Preparing Competitive Grant Proposals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Theresa Mackenzie

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Purpose Difficulty in securing research funding has been cited as one barrier to the involvement of more librarians and information professionals in conducting original research. This article seeks to support the work of librarians who wish to secure research funding by describing a systematic approach to the creation of successful grant applications.Approach The authors draw on more than fifteen years collective experience in supporting the development of successful research grant proposals. Eleven grant‐writing best practicesor ‘key approaches’ are described, and a planning timeline is suggested.Conclusions: Use of these best practices can assist researchers in creating successful research grant proposals that will also help streamline the research process once it is underway. It is important to recognize the competitive nature of research grant competitions, obtain feedback from an internal review panel, and use feedback from funding agencies to strengthen future grant applications.

Amorphous bimetallic alloys prepared by steam condensation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Drago, V.

1988-01-01

Amorphous alloys of MnSn are prepared by steam condensation, in a substratum with a temperature near of the liquid helium. The magnetic and paramagnetic hyperfine spectrum and the ordination temperature by Moessbauer effect 119Sn are measured. A diagram of magnetic phase is proposed, basing on the measures of Moessbauer effect. (C.G.C.) [pt

Miniature Non-Intrusive Multi-Parameter Oronasal Respiratory Health Monitor, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Redondo Optics Inc. (ROI), proposes to develop, demonstrate, and deliver to NASA an intrinsically safe, miniature, low power, autonomous, and self-calibrated,...

A simple derivation and analysis of a helical cone beam tomographic algorithm for long object imaging via a novel definition of region of interest

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu Jicun; Tam, Kwok; Johnson, Roger H

2004-01-01

We derive and analyse a simple algorithm first proposed by Kudo et al (2001 Proc. 2001 Meeting on Fully 3D Image Reconstruction in Radiology and Nuclear Medicine (Pacific Grove, CA) pp 7-10) for long object imaging from truncated helical cone beam data via a novel definition of region of interest (ROI). Our approach is based on the theory of short object imaging by Kudo et al (1998 Phys. Med. Biol. 43 2885-909). One of the key findings in their work is that filtering of the truncated projection can be divided into two parts: one, finite in the axial direction, results from ramp filtering the data within the Tam window. The other, infinite in the z direction, results from unbounded filtering of ray sums over PI lines only. We show that for an ROI defined by PI lines emanating from the initial and final source positions on a helical segment, the boundary data which would otherwise contaminate the reconstruction of the ROI can be completely excluded. This novel definition of the ROI leads to a simple algorithm for long object imaging. The overscan of the algorithm is analytically calculated and it is the same as that of the zero boundary method. The reconstructed ROI can be divided into two regions: one is minimally contaminated by the portion outside the ROI, while the other is reconstructed free of contamination. We validate the algorithm with a 3D Shepp-Logan phantom and a disc phantom

Proposals for the Reform of Constitutional Regulations on Public Finances

OpenAIRE

Tibor András Hetei

2011-01-01

The main purpose of this paper is to make specific proposals in the areas of public finance and the budget process in the context of the reform of the Hungarian Constitution. In preparing the proposals the author has reviewed the prevailing constitutional regulations as well as the relevant practice of the Constitutional Court, and examined and compared the constitutional schemes of European countries. The paper finds that a number of aspects of the constitutional regulation of public finance...

Determination of ethamsylate in pharmaceutical preparations based on an auto-oxidation chemiluminescence reaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Fengzhen; Zhang, Chao; Baeyens, Willy R G; Zhang, Xinrong

2002-10-15

Strong chemiluminescence emission has been observed by mixing alkaline hydrolytic products of ethamsylate with Tween 80 in acidic rhodamine 6G solution. This phenomenon has been utilized to design a flow-injection chemiluminescence method for the determination of ethamsylate in a pharmaceutical preparation. Under the optimum conditions, the proposed procedure has a linear range between 0.05 and 2.0 microg ml(-1), with a detection limit of 0.02 microg ml(-1) for ethamsylate. The method was applied to the determination of ethamsylate in pharmaceutical preparations. The possible mechanism of this chemiluminescence reaction was proposed. Copyright 2002 Elsevier Science B.V.

75 FR 62447 - Departmental Offices; Proposed Collections; Comment Requests

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-08

... Management and Budget. The Office of International Affairs of the Department of the Treasury is soliciting... the formulation of international financial and monetary policies and for the preparation of the U.S... Statistical Reports section of the Introduction) will be revised by adding a paragraph on the proposed new SLT...

Cultivating Advanced Technical Writing Skills through a Graduate-Level Course on Writing Research Proposals

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, Brian D.; Dempsey, Jillian L.

2017-01-01

A graduate-level course focused on original research proposals is introduced to address the uneven preparation in technical writing of new chemistry graduate students. This course focuses on writing original research proposals. The general course structure features extensive group discussions, small-group activities, and regular in-class…

Automated Segmentation Methods of Drusen to Diagnose Age-Related Macular Degeneration Screening in Retinal Images

OpenAIRE

Kim, Young Jae; Kim, Kwang Gi

2018-01-01

Existing drusen measurement is difficult to use in clinic because it requires a lot of time and effort for visual inspection. In order to resolve this problem, we propose an automatic drusen detection method to help clinical diagnosis of age-related macular degeneration. First, we changed the fundus image to a green channel and extracted the ROI of the macular area based on the optic disk. Next, we detected the candidate group using the difference image of the median filter within the ROI. We...

Universal Sample Preparation Module for Molecular Analysis in Space, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Lynntech proposes to develop and demonstrate the ability of a compact, light-weight, and automated universal sample preparation module (USPM) to process samples from...

75 FR 10500 - Environmental Assessment Prepared for Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound, MA

Science.gov (United States)

2010-03-08

... Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project in Nantucket Sound, MA AGENCY: Minerals Management Service (MMS... MMS for the Cape Wind Energy Project proposed for Nantucket Sound, Massachusetts. On January 16, 2009... facility on Horseshoe Shoal in Nantucket Sound, Massachusetts. Following the adoption of the Energy Policy...

Final Environmental Assessment for a Proposed Pararescue and Combat Rescue Officer Training Campus at Kirtland Air Force Base

Science.gov (United States)

2006-09-01

beginning of 2005 within the ROI was 5.2 percent (New Mexico Department of Labor 2005). 3.3.2.3 Kirtland Air Force Base Kirtland AFB had...International Sunport, New Mexico. Accessed 5/2005 from http://www. wrcc.dri.edu/ CLIMA TEDA T A.html. AETC P J/CRO Campus at Kirtland AFB Preliminary

Allochthonous Addition of Meteoritic Organics to the Lunar Regolith

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas-Keprta, K. L.; Clemett, S.; Ross, D. K.; Le, L.; Rahman, Z.; McKay, D. S.; Gibson, E. K.; Gonzalez, C.

2013-01-01

Preparation of lunar samples 74220,861 was discussed in detail in [3, 4]. Our analysis sequence was as follows: optical microscopy, UV fluorescence imaging, -Raman, FESEM-EDX imaging and mapping, FETEMEDX imaging and mapping of a Focused Ion Beam (FIB) extracted section, and NanoSIMs analysis. We observed fluffytextured C-rich regions of interest (ROI) on three different volcanic glass beads. Each ROI was several m2 in size and fluoresced when exposed to UV. Using FESEM/EDX, the largest ROI measured 36 m and was located on an edge of a plateau located on the uppermost surface of the bead. The ROI was covered on one edge by a siliceous filament emanating from the plateau surface indicating it was attached to the bead while on the Moon. EDX mapping of the ROI shows it is composed primarily of heterogeneously distributed C. Embedded with the carbonaceous phase are localized concentrations of Si, Fe, Al and Ti indicating the presence of glass and/or minerals grains. -Raman showed strong D- and G-bands and their associated second order bands; intensity and location of these bands indicates the carbonaceous matter is structurally disorganized. A TEM thin section was extracted from the surface of a glass bead using FIB microscopy. High resolution TEM imaging and selected area electron diffraction demonstrate the carbonaceous layer to be amorphous; it lacked any long or short range order characteristic of micro- or nanocrystalline graphite. Additionally TEM imaging also revealed the presence of submicron mineral grains, typically < 50 nm in size, dispersed within the carbonaceous layer. NanoSIMs data will be presented and discussed at the meeting. Given the noted similarities between the carbonaceous matter present on 74220 glass beads and meteoritic kerogen, we suggest the allochthonous addition of meteoritic organics as the most probable source for the C-rich ROIs.

Respiratory protection standard: comments on OSHA's proposed revision.

Science.gov (United States)

Decker, M D

1995-06-01

On November 15, 1994, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published in the Federal Register (59:58884-58956) the draft of a proposed revision of the Respiratory Protection Standard. One of OSHA's oldest standards, the Respiratory Protection Standard defines the conduct of the employer (eg, hospital) with respect to respirator training, fit testing, medical examinations, use, storage, and so on. The proposed revision appears to have been drafted with no consideration for its effect on healthcare workers or the healthcare industry. SHEA has prepared the following comments to OSHA, which have been submitted to the docket and will be presented at public hearings later this month.

The BGO-OD experiment: data analysis in preparation for physics proposals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jude, Thomas [Physikalisches Institut, University of Bonn, Bonn (Germany); Collaboration: BGO-OD-Collaboration

2014-07-01

The BGO-OD experiment at the ELSA accelerator facility, Bonn, consists of the highly segmented BGO calorimeter with a particle tracking magnetic spectrometer at forward angles. This allows the investigation of final states of mixed charge with nearly 4π acceptance, with very high precision at forward angles for charged particles. An extensive physics programme using an energy tagged bremsstrahlung photon beam is planned using this unique setup. This includes measurements of associated strangeness, vector meson and pseudoscaler meson photoproduction. The commissioning phase of the experiment is almost complete. This talk focuses on analysis of the commissioning data, which includes particle track reconstruction in the forward spectrometer and momentum reconstruction with the BGO calorimeter. Comparisons are made with simulated data, and analysis results relevant to the physics proposals are presented.

Remote state preparation of spatial qubits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Solis-Prosser, M. A.; Neves, L. [Center for Optics and Photonics, Universidad de Concepcion, Casilla 4016, Concepcion (Chile) and Departamento de Fisica, Universidad de Concepcion, Casilla 160-C, Concepcion (Chile)

2011-07-15

We study the quantum communication protocol of remote state preparation (RSP) for pure states of qubits encoded in single photons transmitted through a double slit, the so-called spatial qubits. Two measurement strategies that one can adopt to remotely prepare the states are discussed. The first strategy is the well-known spatial postselection, where a single-pixel detector measures the transverse position of the photon between the focal and the image plane of a lens. The second strategy, proposed by ourselves, is a generalized measurement divided into two steps: the implementation of a two-outcome positive operator-valued measurement (POVM) followed by the spatial postselection at the focal plane of the lens by a two-pixel detector in each output of the POVM. In both cases we analyze the effects of the finite spatial resolution of the detectors over three figures of merit of the protocol, namely, the probability of preparation, the fidelity, and purity of the remotely prepared states. It is shown that our strategy improves these figures compared with spatial postselection, at the expense of increasing the classical communication cost as well as the required experimental resources. In addition, we present a modified version of our strategy for RSP of spatial qudits which is able to prepare arbitrary pure states, unlike spatial postselection alone. We expect that our study may also be extended for RSP of the angular spectrum of a single-photon field as an alternative for quantum teleportation which requires very inefficient nonlinear interactions.

Remote state preparation of spatial qubits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solis-Prosser, M. A.; Neves, L.

2011-01-01

We study the quantum communication protocol of remote state preparation (RSP) for pure states of qubits encoded in single photons transmitted through a double slit, the so-called spatial qubits. Two measurement strategies that one can adopt to remotely prepare the states are discussed. The first strategy is the well-known spatial postselection, where a single-pixel detector measures the transverse position of the photon between the focal and the image plane of a lens. The second strategy, proposed by ourselves, is a generalized measurement divided into two steps: the implementation of a two-outcome positive operator-valued measurement (POVM) followed by the spatial postselection at the focal plane of the lens by a two-pixel detector in each output of the POVM. In both cases we analyze the effects of the finite spatial resolution of the detectors over three figures of merit of the protocol, namely, the probability of preparation, the fidelity, and purity of the remotely prepared states. It is shown that our strategy improves these figures compared with spatial postselection, at the expense of increasing the classical communication cost as well as the required experimental resources. In addition, we present a modified version of our strategy for RSP of spatial qudits which is able to prepare arbitrary pure states, unlike spatial postselection alone. We expect that our study may also be extended for RSP of the angular spectrum of a single-photon field as an alternative for quantum teleportation which requires very inefficient nonlinear interactions.

Places Available: How to Write a Competitive Proposal for Horizon 2020

CERN Multimedia

2014-01-01

This training aims to help perspective proposal writers to prepare competitive proposals for projects under the new EU Horizon 2020 programme. Note: the course is not designed to address the specific aspects of Marie-Curie and ERC projects.   Content: Module 1: Structure and Terminology used in Horizon 2020 Module 2: How the Research Topics were selected (Lobby) Module 3: How Proposal are Evaluated Module 4: How to Write the ‘Potential Impact’ of the Proposal Module 5: The One Page Proposal Module 6: How to Streamline Proposal Writing Module 7: How to Find the Best Partners Format: Lectures and presentations Language: English Duration: 5 hours  Contact: Silvia Schuh, 79871, silvia.schuh@cern.ch or Nathalie Dumeaux, 78144, nathalie.dumeaux@cern.ch Upcoming Sessions: 9 a.m. - 1 p.m., 13 May 2014 Sign Up in EDH!

Automated retinal vessel type classification in color fundus images

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, H.; Barriga, S.; Agurto, C.; Nemeth, S.; Bauman, W.; Soliz, P.

2013-02-01

Automated retinal vessel type classification is an essential first step toward machine-based quantitative measurement of various vessel topological parameters and identifying vessel abnormalities and alternations in cardiovascular disease risk analysis. This paper presents a new and accurate automatic artery and vein classification method developed for arteriolar-to-venular width ratio (AVR) and artery and vein tortuosity measurements in regions of interest (ROI) of 1.5 and 2.5 optic disc diameters from the disc center, respectively. This method includes illumination normalization, automatic optic disc detection and retinal vessel segmentation, feature extraction, and a partial least squares (PLS) classification. Normalized multi-color information, color variation, and multi-scale morphological features are extracted on each vessel segment. We trained the algorithm on a set of 51 color fundus images using manually marked arteries and veins. We tested the proposed method in a previously unseen test data set consisting of 42 images. We obtained an area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 93.7% in the ROI of AVR measurement and 91.5% of AUC in the ROI of tortuosity measurement. The proposed AV classification method has the potential to assist automatic cardiovascular disease early detection and risk analysis.

Preparation of DNA films for studies under vacuum conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smialek, M. A.; Balog, Richard; Jones, N. C.

2010-01-01

process. Using a transmission electron microscope we also examined the structure of the DNA films which are formed upon evacuation and how the proposed adducts influence the preparation process. It was found that the addition of bases cause the DNA to aggregate, noting that a base is required...

Using cell nuclei features to detect colon cancer tissue in hematoxylin and eosin stained slides.

Science.gov (United States)

Jørgensen, Alex Skovsbo; Rasmussen, Anders Munk; Andersen, Niels Kristian Mäkinen; Andersen, Simon Kragh; Emborg, Jonas; Røge, Rasmus; Østergaard, Lasse Riis

2017-08-01

Currently, diagnosis of colon cancer is based on manual examination of histopathological images by a pathologist. This can be time consuming and interpretation of the images is subject to inter- and intra-observer variability. This may be improved by introducing a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for automatic detection of cancer tissue within whole slide hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stains. Cancer disrupts the normal control mechanisms of cell proliferation and differentiation, affecting the structure and appearance of the cells. Therefore, extracting features from segmented cell nuclei structures may provide useful information to detect cancer tissue. A framework for automatic classification of regions of interest (ROI) containing either benign or cancerous colon tissue extracted from whole slide H&E stained images using cell nuclei features was proposed. A total of 1,596 ROI's were extracted from 87 whole slide H&E stains (44 benign and 43 cancer). A cell nuclei segmentation algorithm consisting of color deconvolution, k-means clustering, local adaptive thresholding, and cell separation was performed within the ROI's to extract cell nuclei features. From the segmented cell nuclei structures a total of 750 texture and intensity-based features were extracted for classification of the ROI's. The nine most discriminative cell nuclei features were used in a random forest classifier to determine if the ROI's contained benign or cancer tissue. The ROI classification obtained an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.96, sensitivity of 0.88, specificity of 0.92, and accuracy of 0.91 using an optimized threshold. The developed framework showed promising results in using cell nuclei features to classify ROIs into containing benign or cancer tissue in H&E stained tissue samples. © 2017 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry. © 2017 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

A hybrid correlation analysis with application to imaging genetics

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Wenxing; Fang, Jian; Calhoun, Vince D.; Wang, Yu-Ping

2018-03-01

Investigating the association between brain regions and genes continues to be a challenging topic in imaging genetics. Current brain region of interest (ROI)-gene association studies normally reduce data dimension by averaging the value of voxels in each ROI. This averaging may lead to a loss of information due to the existence of functional sub-regions. Pearson correlation is widely used for association analysis. However, it only detects linear correlation whereas nonlinear correlation may exist among ROIs. In this work, we introduced distance correlation to ROI-gene association analysis, which can detect both linear and nonlinear correlations and overcome the limitation of averaging operations by taking advantage of the information at each voxel. Nevertheless, distance correlation usually has a much lower value than Pearson correlation. To address this problem, we proposed a hybrid correlation analysis approach, by applying canonical correlation analysis (CCA) to the distance covariance matrix instead of directly computing distance correlation. Incorporating CCA into distance correlation approach may be more suitable for complex disease study because it can detect highly associated pairs of ROI and gene groups, and may improve the distance correlation level and statistical power. In addition, we developed a novel nonlinear CCA, called distance kernel CCA, which seeks the optimal combination of features with the most significant dependence. This approach was applied to imaging genetic data from the Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort (PNC). Experiments showed that our hybrid approach produced more consistent results than conventional CCA across resampling and both the correlation and statistical significance were increased compared to distance correlation analysis. Further gene enrichment analysis and region of interest (ROI) analysis confirmed the associations of the identified genes with brain ROIs. Therefore, our approach provides a powerful tool for finding

Detection of Cardiopulmonary Activity and Related Abnormal Events Using Microsoft Kinect Sensor.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Naji, Ali; Chahl, Javaan

2018-03-20

Monitoring of cardiopulmonary activity is a challenge when attempted under adverse conditions, including different sleeping postures, environmental settings, and an unclear region of interest (ROI). This study proposes an efficient remote imaging system based on a Microsoft Kinect v2 sensor for the observation of cardiopulmonary-signal-and-detection-related abnormal cardiopulmonary events (e.g., tachycardia, bradycardia, tachypnea, bradypnea, and central apnoea) in many possible sleeping postures within varying environmental settings including in total darkness and whether the subject is covered by a blanket or not. The proposed system extracts the signal from the abdominal-thoracic region where cardiopulmonary activity is most pronounced, using a real-time image sequence captured by Kinect v2 sensor. The proposed system shows promising results in any sleep posture, regardless of illumination conditions and unclear ROI even in the presence of a blanket, whilst being reliable, safe, and cost-effective.

Detection of Cardiopulmonary Activity and Related Abnormal Events Using Microsoft Kinect Sensor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Al-Naji

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Monitoring of cardiopulmonary activity is a challenge when attempted under adverse conditions, including different sleeping postures, environmental settings, and an unclear region of interest (ROI. This study proposes an efficient remote imaging system based on a Microsoft Kinect v2 sensor for the observation of cardiopulmonary-signal-and-detection-related abnormal cardiopulmonary events (e.g., tachycardia, bradycardia, tachypnea, bradypnea, and central apnoea in many possible sleeping postures within varying environmental settings including in total darkness and whether the subject is covered by a blanket or not. The proposed system extracts the signal from the abdominal-thoracic region where cardiopulmonary activity is most pronounced, using a real-time image sequence captured by Kinect v2 sensor. The proposed system shows promising results in any sleep posture, regardless of illumination conditions and unclear ROI even in the presence of a blanket, whilst being reliable, safe, and cost-effective.

Application of a dual-resolution voxelization scheme to compressed-sensing (CS)-based iterative reconstruction in digital tomosynthesis (DTS)

Science.gov (United States)

Park, S. Y.; Kim, G. A.; Cho, H. S.; Park, C. K.; Lee, D. Y.; Lim, H. W.; Lee, H. W.; Kim, K. S.; Kang, S. Y.; Park, J. E.; Kim, W. S.; Jeon, D. H.; Je, U. K.; Woo, T. H.; Oh, J. E.

2018-02-01

In recent digital tomosynthesis (DTS), iterative reconstruction methods are often used owing to the potential to provide multiplanar images of superior image quality to conventional filtered-backprojection (FBP)-based methods. However, they require enormous computational cost in the iterative process, which has still been an obstacle to put them to practical use. In this work, we propose a new DTS reconstruction method incorporated with a dual-resolution voxelization scheme in attempt to overcome these difficulties, in which the voxels outside a small region-of-interest (ROI) containing target diagnosis are binned by 2 × 2 × 2 while the voxels inside the ROI remain unbinned. We considered a compressed-sensing (CS)-based iterative algorithm with a dual-constraint strategy for more accurate DTS reconstruction. We implemented the proposed algorithm and performed a systematic simulation and experiment to demonstrate its viability. Our results indicate that the proposed method seems to be effective for reducing computational cost considerably in iterative DTS reconstruction, keeping the image quality inside the ROI not much degraded. A binning size of 2 × 2 × 2 required only about 31.9% computational memory and about 2.6% reconstruction time, compared to those for no binning case. The reconstruction quality was evaluated in terms of the root-mean-square error (RMSE), the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and the universal-quality index (UQI).

Around the laboratories: Dubna: Physics results and progress on bubble chamber techniques; Stanford (SLAC): Operation of a very rapid cycling bubble chamber; Daresbury: Photographs of visitors to the Laboratory; Argonne: Charge exchange injection tests into the ZGS in preparation for a proposed Booster

CERN Multimedia

1969-01-01

Around the laboratories: Dubna: Physics results and progress on bubble chamber techniques; Stanford (SLAC): Operation of a very rapid cycling bubble chamber; Daresbury: Photographs of visitors to the Laboratory; Argonne: Charge exchange injection tests into the ZGS in preparation for a proposed Booster

Construction Method of Display Proposal for Commodities in Sales Promotion by Genetic Algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Yumoto, Masaki

In a sales promotion task, wholesaler prepares and presents the display proposal for commodities in order to negotiate with retailer's buyers what commodities they should sell. For automating the sales promotion tasks, the proposal has to be constructed according to the target retailer's buyer. However, it is difficult to construct the proposal suitable for the target retail store because of too much combination of commodities. This paper proposes a construction method by Genetic algorithm (GA). The proposed method represents initial display proposals for commodities with genes, improve ones with the evaluation value by GA, and rearrange one with the highest evaluation value according to the classification of commodity. Through practical experiment, we can confirm that display proposal by the proposed method is similar with the one constructed by a wholesaler.

Methodology for the evaluation process in the director´s preparation from education.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Humberto Clemente Calderón Echevarría

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The presented work proposes a methodology oriented to the evaluation of the process of director´s preparation which may contribute to the improvement of the program. It explains the need of the evaluation, activity as such, indicators to evaluate, methods and techniques to be used and the steps in which have to be done. Until now doesn´t exist a methodology which can evaluate the process of directors’ preparation in the educational sector. The development of this methodology has as a background the result obtained by means of different investigations made in the Provincial Post Office and that later were applied in the Provincial Department of Education. Nowadays is perfected in the Pedagogical University "Capitán Silverio Blanco Núñez", thus, the employment opportunities in similar processes of other entities. In the proposed methodology is conceived that the process evaluation of the director’s preparation flows out in a cyclical manner, continuous, flexible, and interactive, away from the traditional linear formula, rigid and schematic. From the above idea it can be identify four stages, and the relevant procedures, the evaluation of the process of directors’ preparation in education.

Preparation of sensitized ZnS and its photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Haitao; Chen Xinyi; Li Zhaosheng; Kou Jiahui; Yu Tao; Zou Zhigang

2007-01-01

In this paper, sensitized ZnS with visible light driven photocatlytic ability was successfully prepared. The obtained ZnS was characterized by x-ray diffraction, UV-visible diffuse reflectance spectra and Fourier transform infrared spectra. The photocatalytic property of the prepared ZnS was evaluated by decomposing methyl orange (MO). These sensitized ZnS powders with a proper molar ratio showed higher photocatalytic activity than TiO 2 (P25) under visible light (λ > 420 nm) irradiation. A possible explanation for the visible light activity of the prepared ZnS was proposed

A dual adaptive watermarking scheme in contourlet domain for DICOM images

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rabbani Hossein

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Nowadays, medical imaging equipments produce digital form of medical images. In a modern health care environment, new systems such as PACS (picture archiving and communication systems, use the digital form of medical image too. The digital form of medical images has lots of advantages over its analog form such as ease in storage and transmission. Medical images in digital form must be stored in a secured environment to preserve patient privacy. It is also important to detect modifications on the image. These objectives are obtained by watermarking in medical image. Methods In this paper, we present a dual and oblivious (blind watermarking scheme in the contourlet domain. Because of importance of ROI (region of interest in interpretation by medical doctors rather than RONI (region of non-interest, we propose an adaptive dual watermarking scheme with different embedding strength in ROI and RONI. We embed watermark bits in singular value vectors of the embedded blocks within lowpass subband in contourlet domain. Results The values of PSNR (peak signal-to-noise ratio and SSIM (structural similarity measure index of ROI for proposed DICOM (digital imaging and communications in medicine images in this paper are respectively larger than 64 and 0.997. These values confirm that our algorithm has good transparency. Because of different embedding strength, BER (bit error rate values of signature watermark are less than BER values of caption watermark. Our results show that watermarked images in contourlet domain have greater robustness against attacks than wavelet domain. In addition, the qualitative analysis of our method shows it has good invisibility. Conclusions The proposed contourlet-based watermarking algorithm in this paper uses an automatically selection for ROI and embeds the watermark in the singular values of contourlet subbands that makes the algorithm more efficient, and robust against noise attacks than other transform

dātu ša šarri. La « loi du roi »dans la Babylonie achéménide et séleucide dātu ša šarri, The “Law of the King” in Achaemenid and Seleucid Babylonia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sophie Démare-Lafont

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Cet article examine le champ sémantique de l’expression dātu ša šarri, « loi du roi », formée sur un terme d’origine vieux-perse (data. La dizaine d’occurrences d’époques achéménide et séleucide montre que la « loi du roi »désigne un mode d’élaboration de la norme issu de la pratique judiciaire du souverain, progressivement compilée pour former un corps de règles invoquées dans les contrats. Ce procédé de création de la loi et de fabrication des recueils législatifs rappelle celui du rescrit romain.This article investigates the meaning of the formula dātu ša šarri, “law of the king”, using the akkadian dātu based on the old Persian word dāta. The ten Achaemenid and Seleucid occurrences of this formula suggest a process of creation of legal rules comparable to the Roman rescript: the legal standard dātu ša šarri derives from the judicial practice of the king, whose decisions were progressively compiled in order to create a body of regulations which were invoked in contracts.

Classical Communication and Entanglement Cost in Preparing a Class of Multi-qubit States

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Guixia; Liu Yimin; Zhang Zhanjun

2008-01-01

Recently, several similar protocols [J. Opt. B 4 (2002) 380; Phys. Lett. A 316 (2003) 159; Phys. Lett. A 355 (2006) 285; Phys. Lett. A 336 (2005) 317] for remotely preparing a class of multi-qubit states (i.e, α|0...0> + β|1...1>) were proposed, respectively. In this paper, by applying the controlled-not (CNOT) gate, a new simple protocol is proposed for remotely preparing such class of states. Compared to the previous protocols, both classical communication cost and required quantum entanglement in our protocol are remarkably reduced. Moreover, the difficulty of identifying some quantum states in our protocol is also degraded. Hence our protocol is more economical and feasible.

Scientific writing and communication papers, proposals, and presentations

CERN Document Server

Hofmann, Angelika H

2014-01-01

Scientific Writing and Communication: Papers, Proposals, and Presentations, Second Edition, serves as a comprehensive " reference guide to scientific writing and communication. The second edition of Angelika Hofmann's successful text covers all the areas of scientific communication that a scientist needs to know and master in order to successfully promote his or her research and career. This unique "all-in-one" handbook begins with a discussion of the basic principles of scientific writing style and composition and then applies these principles to writing research papers, review articles, grant proposals, research statements, and resumes, as well as to preparing academic presentations and posters. Scientific Writing and Communication: Papers, Proposals, and Presentations has been used successfully for a number of years in courses on scientific writing at various universities and institutes worldwide. Readers of the second edition will find numerous new examples and exercises, many with an expanded interdiscip...

[Establishment of design space for production process of traditional Chinese medicine preparation].

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Bing; Shi, Xin-Yuan; Qiao, Yan-Jiang; Wu, Zhi-Sheng; Lin, Zhao-Zhou

2013-03-01

The philosophy of quality by design (QbD) is now leading the changes in the drug manufacturing mode from the conventional test-based approach to the science and risk based approach focusing on the detailed research and understanding of the production process. Along with the constant deepening of the understanding of the manufacturing process, the design space will be determined, and the emphasis of quality control will be shifted from the quality standards to the design space. Therefore, the establishment of the design space is core step in the implementation of QbD, and it is of great importance to study the methods for building the design space. This essay proposes the concept of design space for the production process of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparations, gives a systematic introduction of the concept of the design space, analyzes the feasibility and significance to build the design space in the production process of traditional Chinese medicine preparations, and proposes study approaches on the basis of examples that comply with the characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine preparations, as well as future study orientations.

A multivariate shape quantification approach for sickle red blood cell in patient-specific microscopy image data

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Mengjia; Yang, Jinzhu; Zhao, Hong

2017-07-01

The morphological change of red blood cells(RBCs) plays an important role in revealing the biomechanical and biorheological characteristics of RBCs. Aiming to extract the shape indices for the sickle RBCs, an automated ex-vivo RBC shape quantification method is proposed. First, single RBC regions (ROIs) are extracted from raw microscopy image via an automatic hierarchical ROI extraction method. Second, an improved random walk method is used to detect the RBC outline. Finally, three types of RBC shape factors are calculated based on the elliptical fitting RBC contour. Experiments indicate that the proposed method can accurately segment the RBCs from the microscopy images with low contrast and prevent the disturbance of artifacts. Moreover, it can provide an efficient shape quantification means for diverse RBC shapes in a batch manner.

Terahertz composite imaging method

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

QIAO Xiaoli; REN Jiaojiao; ZHANG Dandan; CAO Guohua; LI Lijuan; ZHANG Xinming

2017-01-01

In order to improve the imaging quality of terahertz(THz) spectroscopy, Terahertz Composite Imaging Method(TCIM) is proposed. The traditional methods of improving THz spectroscopy image quality are mainly from the aspects of de-noising and image enhancement. TCIM breaks through this limitation. A set of images, reconstructed in a single data collection, can be utilized to construct two kinds of composite images. One algorithm, called Function Superposition Imaging Algorithm(FSIA), is to construct a new gray image utilizing multiple gray images through a certain function. The features of the Region Of Interest (ROI) are more obvious after operating, and it has capability of merging ROIs in multiple images. The other, called Multi-characteristics Pseudo-color Imaging Algorithm(McPcIA), is to construct a pseudo-color image by combining multiple reconstructed gray images in a single data collection. The features of ROI are enhanced by color differences. Two algorithms can not only improve the contrast of ROIs, but also increase the amount of information resulting in analysis convenience. The experimental results show that TCIM is a simple and effective tool for THz spectroscopy image analysis.

A novel background field removal method for MRI using projection onto dipole fields (PDF).

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Tian; Khalidov, Ildar; de Rochefort, Ludovic; Spincemaille, Pascal; Liu, Jing; Tsiouris, A John; Wang, Yi

2011-11-01

For optimal image quality in susceptibility-weighted imaging and accurate quantification of susceptibility, it is necessary to isolate the local field generated by local magnetic sources (such as iron) from the background field that arises from imperfect shimming and variations in magnetic susceptibility of surrounding tissues (including air). Previous background removal techniques have limited effectiveness depending on the accuracy of model assumptions or information input. In this article, we report an observation that the magnetic field for a dipole outside a given region of interest (ROI) is approximately orthogonal to the magnetic field of a dipole inside the ROI. Accordingly, we propose a nonparametric background field removal technique based on projection onto dipole fields (PDF). In this PDF technique, the background field inside an ROI is decomposed into a field originating from dipoles outside the ROI using the projection theorem in Hilbert space. This novel PDF background removal technique was validated on a numerical simulation and a phantom experiment and was applied in human brain imaging, demonstrating substantial improvement in background field removal compared with the commonly used high-pass filtering method. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Human Mars Landing Site and Impacts on Mars Surface Operations

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffman, Stephen J.; Bussey, Ben

2016-01-01

This paper describes NASA's initial steps for identifying and evaluating candidate Exploration Zones (EZs) and Regions of Interests (ROIs) for the first human crews that will explore the surface of Mars. NASA's current effort to define the exploration of this planet by human crews, known as the Evolvable Mars Campaign (EMC), provides the context in which these EZs and ROIs are being considered. The EMC spans all aspects of a human Mars mission including launch from Earth, transit to and from Mars, and operations on the surface of Mars. An EZ is a collection of ROIs located within approximately 100 kilometers of a centralized landing site. ROIs are areas relevant for scientific investigation and/or development/maturation of capabilities and resources necessary for a sustainable human presence. The EZ also contains one or more landing sites and a habitation site that will be used by multiple human crews during missions to explore and utilize the ROIs within the EZ. With the EMC as a conceptual basis, the EZ model has been refined to a point where specific site selection criteria for scientific exploration and in situ resource utilization can be defined. In 2015 these criteria were distributed to the planetary sciences community and the in situ resource utilization and civil engineering communities as part of a call for EZ proposals. The resulting "First Landing Site/Exploration Zone Workshop for Human Missions to the Surface of Mars" was held in October 2015 during which 47 proposals for EZs and ROIs were presented and discussed. Proposed locations spanned all longitudes and all allowable latitudes (+/- 50 degrees). Proposed justification for selecting one of these EZs also spanned a significant portion of the scientific and resource criteria provided to the community. Several important findings resulted from this Workshop including: (a) a strong consensus that, at a scale of 100 km (radius), multiple places on Mars exist that have both sufficient scientific interest

Environmental Assessment for Proposed Security Forces Operations Facility, Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Meyer, Elizabeth; Myklebust, Jessica; Denier, James; Christner, Jennifer; Fontaine, Kathyrn

2006-01-01

The United States Air Force (USAF) has prepared this EA in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act to evaluate the potential environmental and social impacts from the construction and operation of the proposed SFOF...

Revisión y propuesta de indicadores (KPI de la Biblioteca en los medios sociales

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

González Fernández-Villavicencio, Nieves

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is to review the literature about systems of measure in social networks and present a draft proposal of set of indicators to help the units of information to evaluate the use and impact of their services through social Web o Web 2.0, with the aim to obtain cost and return of investment (ROI of such services. Libraries have a long way in evaluation process but, in this article, we propose to evaluate the ROI and offer to organizations that support the units of information or libraries, the justification in order to demonstrate the added value they provide with social Web.

El objetivo de este estudio es la revisión de una parte significativa de la literatura existente sobre indicadores en la web social, en el contexto del social media marketing, y la propuesta de una serie de indicadores para la Biblioteca social, que ayude a las unidades de información a evaluar el uso e impacto de los servicios que ofrecen a través de las herramientas de la web social o web 2.0, con el objetivo de poder obtener los costes y retorno de inversión (ROI de dichos servicios. Aunque la evaluación es una tarea con larga tradición bibliotecaria, en este artículo nos planteamos valorar el ROI, como justificación necesaria ante las organizaciones que sustentan dichas unidades de información, demostrando el valor añadido que ofrecen los servicios de la web social.

Preparation of environmental analyses for synfuel and unconventional gas technologies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reed, R.M. (ed.)

1982-09-01

Government agencies that offer financial incentives to stimulate the commercialization of synfuel and unconventional gas technologies usually require an analysis of environmental impacts resulting from proposed projects. This report reviews potentially significant environmental issues associated with a selection of these technologies and presents guidance for developing information and preparing analyses to address these issues. The technologies considered are western oil shale, tar sand, coal liquefaction and gasification, peat, unconventional gas (western tight gas sands, eastern Devonian gas shales, methane from coal seams, and methane from geopressured aquifers), and fuel ethanol. Potentially significant issues are discussed under the general categories of land use, air quality, water use, water quality, biota, solid waste disposal, socioeconomics, and health and safety. The guidance provided in this report can be applied to preparation and/or review of proposals, environmental reports, environmental assessments, environmental impact statements, and other types of environmental analyses. The amount of detail required for any issue discussed must, by necessity, be determined on a case-by-case basis.

76 FR 62820 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Valley Electric...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-11

... with construction activities, material storage, and staging. The proposed transmission project is in... proposed project will support the delivery of 500 megawatts into the VEA transmission system through the... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLNVS03000.L5101.ER0000. LVRWF1104400; NVN...

77 FR 71404 - Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Flood Risk Management Study...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-30

... Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Flood Risk Management Study for the Blanchard River Watershed... the subject Flood Risk Management Study. The Buffalo District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers... with the proposed Flood Risk Management Study in the Blanchard River Watershed including the...

Catalytic Oxidation of Toluene on Hydrothermally Prepared Ceria Nanocrystals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Duplančić

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Ceria nanocrystals were prepared hydrothermally and tested as potential catalysts for oxidation of volatile organic compounds using toluene as a model compound. Pure ceria with a crystallite size of 4 nm, determined by the Scherrer method from XRD pattern has been obtained. The specific surface area of the prepared nanoparticles determined by BET analysis yielded 201 m2 g–1, while the band gap of 3.2 eV was estimated from DRS spectrum via Tauc’s plot. Catalytic tests were performed on calcined ceria (500 °C with increased crystallite size (9 nm caused by thermal treatment. The tests showed good activities for the toluene oxidation with T50 temperatures, corresponding to 50 % toluene conversion, observed at 250 °C and even lower temperatures depending on the total flow rate of the gas mixture. The one-dimensional pseudo-homogeneous model of the fixed bed reactor was proposed to describe the reactor performance and the appropriate kinetic parameters were estimated. Good agreement between experimental data and the proposed model was observed.

PENERAPAN CRITICAL REVIEW ARTIKEL PEMBELAJARAN IPA UNTUK MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN MAHASISWA DALAM MENYUSUN PROPOSAL SKRIPSI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

p parmin

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The aims of this research is to improve students’ ability in develop- ing a proposal thesis by applying critical review of scientific articles come from journals. The research is designed by class action research. The results showed 63% of students thesis proposals on Research Methodology course scored above 80. Based on the results obtained it can be concluded that the application has been critical review or critical study of scientific articles can enhance students’ ability in preparing research proposals.

Applying RF Magnetron sputtering to prepare ZnO thin films and their characterization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saad, M.; Kassis, A.

2009-05-01

ZnO thin films were prepared using Rf magnetron sputtering under several preparation conditions (different values of deposition pressure, Rf power, substrate temperature). The optical properties of these films were investigated by measuring their transmission in the spectral range (300-1000 nm), and the electrical properties were investigated by measuring their electrical resistance. Results have been discussed in terms of the modified Thornton model for sputtered thin metal oxide films. Preparation conditions for depositing the highly resistive transparent i-ZnO buffer layer and the highly conducting transparent n-ZnO window layer for solar cells were proposed. (author)

Proposed rulemaking to risk-inform special treatment requirements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reed, Timothy A.; McKenna, Eileen M.

2003-01-01

This paper presents the status of Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) rulemaking efforts to risk-inform special treatment requirements that reside in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations, 10 CFR Part 21, Part 50, and Part 100. The staff has prepared a proposed rulemaking to add a new section to 10 CFR Part 50 to provide an alternative set of requirements for treatment of structures, systems and components (SSCs), using a risk-informed categorization process to determine safety significance of the SSCs. These requirements can be voluntarily adopted by light-water reactor licensees and applicants. The proposed rule is based upon extensive interactions with stakeholders (including consideration of public comments on draft rule language made available on the NRC rulemaking web site), experience with pilot plants, and guidance development activities. The NRC staff expects that stakeholder input provided in response to the proposed rule issuance will be valuable and support the efforts to issue the final rule. (author)

Abnormal externally guided movement preparation in recent-onset schizophrenia is associated with impaired selective attention to external input

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Smid, Henderikus G. O. M.; Westenbroek, Joanna M.; Bruggeman, Richard; Knegtering, Henderikus; Van den Bosch, Robert J.

2009-01-01

Several theories propose that the primary cognitive impairment in schizophrenia concerns a deficit in the processing of external input information. There is also evidence, however, for impaired motor preparation in schizophrenia. This provokes the question whether the impaired motor preparation in

Transmission Electron Microscopy Specimen Preparation Method for Multiphase Porous Functional Ceramics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zhang, Wei; Kuhn, Luise Theil; Jørgensen, Peter Stanley

2013-01-01

An optimum method is proposed to prepare thin foil transmission electron microscopy (TEM) lamellae of multiphase porous functional ceramics: prefilling the pore space of these materials with an epoxy resin prior to focused ion beam milling. Several advantages of epoxy impregnation are demonstrated...... by successful preparation of TEM specimens that maintain the structural integrity of the entire lamella. Feasibility of the TEM alignment procedure is demonstrated, and ideal TEM analyses are illustrated on solid oxide fuel cell and solid oxide electrolysis cell materials. Some potential drawbacks of the TEM...

Social Justice Leadership as Praxis: Developing Capacities through Preparation Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Furman, Gail

2012-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to propose a conceptual framework for social justice leadership as praxis and to explore the implications of this framework for leadership preparation programs. Conceptual Argument: The conceptual framework for social justice leadership is grounded in a review of literature and organized around three central…

Return on investment of public health interventions: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Masters, Rebecca; Anwar, Elspeth; Collins, Brendan; Cookson, Richard; Capewell, Simon

2017-08-01

Public sector austerity measures in many high-income countries mean that public health budgets are reducing year on year. To help inform the potential impact of these proposed disinvestments in public health, we set out to determine the return on investment (ROI) from a range of existing public health interventions. We conducted systematic searches on all relevant databases (including MEDLINE; EMBASE; CINAHL; AMED; PubMed, Cochrane and Scopus) to identify studies that calculated a ROI or cost-benefit ratio (CBR) for public health interventions in high-income countries. We identified 2957 titles, and included 52 studies. The median ROI for public health interventions was 14.3 to 1, and median CBR was 8.3. The median ROI for all 29 local public health interventions was 4.1 to 1, and median CBR was 10.3. Even larger benefits were reported in 28 studies analysing nationwide public health interventions; the median ROI was 27.2, and median CBR was 17.5. This systematic review suggests that local and national public health interventions are highly cost-saving. Cuts to public health budgets in high income countries therefore represent a false economy, and are likely to generate billions of pounds of additional costs to health services and the wider economy. 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/.

Platelet-rich fibrin prepared from stored whole-blood samples.

Science.gov (United States)

Isobe, Kazushige; Suzuki, Masashi; Watanabe, Taisuke; Kitamura, Yutaka; Suzuki, Taiji; Kawabata, Hideo; Nakamura, Masayuki; Okudera, Toshimitsu; Okudera, Hajime; Uematsu, Kohya; Nakata, Koh; Tanaka, Takaaki; Kawase, Tomoyuki

2017-12-01

In regenerative therapy, self-clotted platelet concentrates, such as platelet-rich fibrin (PRF), are generally prepared on-site and are immediately used for treatment. If blood samples or prepared clots can be preserved for several days, their clinical applicability will expand. Here, we prepared PRF from stored whole-blood samples and examined their characteristics. Blood samples were collected from non-smoking, healthy male donors (aged 27-67 years, N = 6), and PRF clots were prepared immediately or after storage for 1-2 days. Fibrin fiber was examined by scanning electron microscopy. Bioactivity was evaluated by means of a bioassay system involving human periosteal cells, whereas PDGF-BB concentrations were determined by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Addition of optimal amounts of a 10% CaCl 2 solution restored the coagulative ability of whole-blood samples that contained an anticoagulant (acid citrate dextrose) and were stored for up to 2 days at ambient temperature. In PRF clots prepared from the stored whole-blood samples, the thickness and cross-links of fibrin fibers were almost identical to those of freshly prepared PRF clots. PDGF-BB concentrations in the PRF extract were significantly lower in stored whole-blood samples than in fresh samples; however, both extracts had similar stimulatory effects on periosteal-cell proliferation. Quality of PRF clots prepared from stored whole-blood samples is not reduced significantly and can be ensured for use in regenerative therapy. Therefore, the proposed method enables a more flexible treatment schedule and choice of a more suitable platelet concentrate immediately before treatment, not after blood collection.

Proposal of organisation and ALARA procedures for maintenance site: application to replacement of steam generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lochard, J.; Lefaure, C.

1989-08-01

This report proposes generic organization and ALARA procedures for preparing a maintenance site at a NPP. After a short description of the ALARA principle, it describes the proposition for French sites. They are grouped according to the following: motivation, organisation, means. They are illustrated by the example of steam generator replacement. Three special points concerning preparation of the site are developed: education; training of operators; review of the project

Landmark-based deep multi-instance learning for brain disease diagnosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Mingxia; Zhang, Jun; Adeli, Ehsan; Shen, Dinggang

2018-01-01

In conventional Magnetic Resonance (MR) image based methods, two stages are often involved to capture brain structural information for disease diagnosis, i.e., 1) manually partitioning each MR image into a number of regions-of-interest (ROIs), and 2) extracting pre-defined features from each ROI for diagnosis with a certain classifier. However, these pre-defined features often limit the performance of the diagnosis, due to challenges in 1) defining the ROIs and 2) extracting effective disease-related features. In this paper, we propose a landmark-based deep multi-instance learning (LDMIL) framework for brain disease diagnosis. Specifically, we first adopt a data-driven learning approach to discover disease-related anatomical landmarks in the brain MR images, along with their nearby image patches. Then, our LDMIL framework learns an end-to-end MR image classifier for capturing both the local structural information conveyed by image patches located by landmarks and the global structural information derived from all detected landmarks. We have evaluated our proposed framework on 1526 subjects from three public datasets (i.e., ADNI-1, ADNI-2, and MIRIAD), and the experimental results show that our framework can achieve superior performance over state-of-the-art approaches. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Observing proposals on the Web at the National Optical Astronomy Observatories

Science.gov (United States)

Pilachowski, Catherine A.; Barnes, Jeannette; Bell, David J.

1998-07-01

Proposals for telescope time at facilities available through the National Optical Astronomy Observatories can now be prepared and submitted via the WWW. Investigators submit proposal information through a series of HTML forms to the NOAO server, where the information is processed by Perl CGI scripts. PostScript figures and ASCII files may be attached by investigators for inclusion in their proposals using their browser's upload feature. Proposal information is saved on the server so that investigators can return in later sessions to continue work on a proposal and so that collaborators can participate in writing the proposal if they have access to the proposal account name and password. The system provides on-line verification of LATEX syntax and a spellchecker, and confirms that all sections of the proposal are filled out. Users can request a LATEX or PostScript copy of their proposal by e-mail, or view the proposal on line. The advantages of the Web-based process for our users are convenience, access to on-line documentation, and the simple interface which avoids direct confrontation with LATEX. From the NOAO point of view, the advantage is the use of standardized formats and syntax, particularly as we begin to receive proposals for the Gemini telescopes and some independent observatories.

Should the mass of a nanoferrite sample prepared by autocombustion method be considered as a realistic preparation parameter?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wahba, Adel Maher, E-mail: adel.mousa@f-eng.tanta.edu.eg [Department of Engineering Physics and Mathematics, Faculty of Engineering, Tanta University (Egypt); Mohamed, Mohamed Bakr [Ain shams University, Faculty of Science, Physics Department, Cairo (Egypt)

2017-02-15

Detectable variations in structural, elastic and magnetic properties have been reported depending on the mass of the cobalt nanoferrite sample prepared by citrate autocombustion method. Heat released during the autocombustion process and its duration are directly proportional to the mass to be prepared, and is thus expected to affect both the crystallite size and the cation distribution giving rise to the reported variations in microstrain, magnetization, and coercivity. Formation of a pure spinel phase has been validated using X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD) and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectra. Crystallite sizes obtained from Williamson-Hall (W-H) method range from 28–87 nm, being further supported by images of high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM). Saturation magnetization and coercivity deduced from M-H hysteresis loops show a clear correlation with the cation distribution, which was proposed on the basis of experimentally obtained data of XRD, VSM, and IR. Elastic parameters have been estimated using the cation distribution and FTIR data, with a resulting trend quite opposite to that of the lattice parameter. - Highlights: • Samples with different masses of CoFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} were prepared by autocombustion method. • XRD and IR data confirmed a pure spinel cubic structure for all samples. • Structural and magnetic properties show detectable changes with the mass prepared. • Cation distribution was suggested from experimental data of XRD, IR, and M-H loops.

Proposed Site Treatment Plan (PSTP). STP reference document

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) is required by Section 3021(b) of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as amended by the Federal Facility Compliance Act (FFCAct), to prepare a plan describing the development of treatment capacities and technologies for treating mixed waste (hazardous/radioactive waste). DOE decided to prepare its site treatment plan in a three phased approach. The first phase, called the Conceptual Site Treatment Plan (CSTP), was issued in October 1993. At the Savannah River Site (SRS) the CSTP described mixed waste streams generated at SRS and listed treatment scenarios for each waste stream utilizing an onsite, offsite DOE, and offsite or onsite commercial or vendor treatment option. The CSTP is followed by the Draft Site Treatment Plan (DSTP), due to be issued in August 1994. The DSTP, the current activity., will narrow the options discussed in the CSTP to a preferred treatment option, if possible, and will include waste streams proposed to be shipped to SRS from other DOE facilities as well as waste streams SRS may send offsite for treatment. The SRS DSTP process has been designed to address treatment options for each of the site's mixed waste streams. The SRS Proposed Site Treatment Plan (PSTP) is due to be issued in February 1995. The compliance order would be derived from the PSTP

Development of the high-level waste high-temperature melter feed preparation flowsheet for vitrification process testing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seymour, R.G.

1995-01-01

High-level waste (HLW) feed preparation flowsheet development was initiated in fiscal year (FY) 1994 to evaluate alternative flowsheets for preparing melter feed for high-temperature melter (HTM) vitrification testing. Three flowsheets were proposed that might lead to increased processing capacity relative to the Hanford Waste Vitrification Plant (HWVP) and that were flexible enough to use with other HLW melter technologies. This document describes the decision path that led to the selection of flowsheets to be tested in the FY 1994 small-scale HTM tests. Feed preparation flowsheet development for the HLW HTM was based on the feed preparation flowsheet that was developed for the HWVP. This approach allowed the HLW program to build upon the extensive feed preparation flowsheet database developed under the HWVP Project. Primary adjustments to the HWVP flowsheet were to the acid adjustment and glass component additions. Developmental background regarding the individual features of the HLW feed preparation flowsheets is provided. Applicability of the HWVP flowsheet features to the new HLW vitrification mission is discussed. The proposed flowsheets were tested at the laboratory-scale at Pacific Northwest Laboratory. Based on the results of this testing and previously established criteria, a reductant-based flowsheet using glycolic acid and a nitric acid-based flowsheet were selected for the FY 1994 small-scale HTM testing

End-preparation assessments and tests for compounded sterile preparations.

Science.gov (United States)

McElhiney, Linda F

2013-01-01

Outsourcing has become a necessity to obtain sterile products that are currently on backorder. Because of the expense of outsourcing sterile compounding, pharmacy leadership in health systems are now considering the option of insourcing and batch preparing compounded sterile preparations, which can be a viable option for a health system. It can significantly decrease drug-spending costs, and the pharmacy has a complete record of the compounding process. The key to preparing high-quality, safe, sterile preparations and meeting United States Pharmacopeia standards is end-preparation assessments and tests.

Proposed satellite position determination systems and techniques for Geostationary Synthetic Aperture Radar

OpenAIRE

Martin Fuster, Roger; Fernández Usón, Marc; Casado Blanco, David; Broquetas Ibars, Antoni

2016-01-01

This paper proposes two different calibration techniques for Geostationary Synthetic Aperture Radar (GEOSAR) missions requiring a high precision positioning, based on Active Radar Calibrators and Ground Based Interferometry. The research is enclosed in the preparation studies of a future GEOSAR mission providing continuous monitoring at continental scale. Peer Reviewed

Estimation of local spectrum content of cervical cancer-related features via two dimensional method of geometric restriction in frequency domain

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Raad, V.

2004-01-01

Digital colposcopy is an emerging new technology, which can be used as adjunct to the conventional Pap test for staging of cervical cancer and it can improve the diagnostic accuracy of the test. Computer aided diagnosis (CAD) in digital colposcopy has as a goal to segment and outline abnormal areas on the cervix, one of which is an important anatomical landmark on the ectocervix - the transformation zone (TZ). In this paper we proposed a new method for estimation of the local spectrum features of cervical cancer in vivo. We used a 2D method to estimate the energy of the local frequency bands, using a geometric restriction (GR). In the current work we reported up to 12 dB difference between the local power spectral density content of the region of interest (ROI) and (ROI) C for the mid-frequency band. We devised a method to present pseudo-color visual maps of the cervical images, useful for CAD and successful ROI segmentation. (author)

Proposed Oral Reference Dose (RfD) for Barium and Compounds (Final Report, 2004)

Science.gov (United States)

This document is the final report from the 2004 external peer review of the Proposed Oral Reference Dose (RfD) for Barium and Compounds, prepared by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA), for the Integrated Risk...

Dosimetry and prescription in liver radioembolization with 90Y microspheres: 3D calculation of tumor-to-liver ratio from global 99mTc-MAA SPECT information

Science.gov (United States)

Mañeru, Fernando; Abós, Dolores; Bragado, Laura; Fuentemilla, Naiara; Caudepón, Fernando; Pellejero, Santiago; Miquelez, Santiago; Rubio, Anastasio; Goñi, Elena; Hernández-Vitoria, Araceli

2017-12-01

Dosimetry in liver radioembolization with 90Y microspheres is a fundamental tool, both for the optimization of each treatment and for improving knowledge of the treatment effects in the tissues. Different options are available for estimating the administered activity and the tumor/organ dose, among them the so-called partition method. The key factor in the partition method is the tumor/normal tissue activity uptake ratio (T/N), which is obtained by a single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scan during a pre-treatment simulation. The less clear the distinction between healthy and tumor parenchyma within the liver, the more difficult it becomes to estimate the T/N ratio; therefore the use of the method is limited. This study presents a methodology to calculate the T/N ratio using global information from the SPECT. The T/N ratio is estimated by establishing uptake thresholds consistent with previously performed volumetry. This dose calculation method was validated against 3D voxel dosimetry, and was also compared with the standard partition method based on freehand regions of interest (ROI) outlining on SPECT slices. Both comparisons were done on a sample of 20 actual cases of hepatocellular carcinoma treated with resin microspheres. The proposed method and the voxel dosimetry method yield similar results, while the ROI-based method tends to over-estimate the dose to normal tissues. In addition, the variability associated with the ROI-based method is more extreme than the other methods. The proposed method is simpler than either the ROI or voxel dosimetry approaches and avoids the subjectivity associated with the manual selection of regions.

Questioning the Use of Outcome Measures to Evaluate Principal Preparation Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Fuller, Ed; Hollingworth, Liz

2018-01-01

Policymakers are proposing the use of outcome measures as indicators of effective principal preparation programs. The three most common metrics recommended are: (1) graduates' effectiveness in improving student achievement test scores, (2) graduate job placement rates, and (3) principal job retention once employed. This article explores the use of…

Preparation of genuine Yeo-Chua entangled state and teleportation of two-atom state via cavity QED

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2010-01-01

We first propose a scheme for preparing the genuine Yeo-Chua 4-qubit entangled state via cavity QED. Using the genuine Yeo-Chua atomic state, we further propose a cavity QED scheme for teleporting an arbitrary two-atom state. In two schemes the large-detuning is chosen and the necessary time is designed to be much shorter than Rydberg-atom’s lifespan. Both schemes share the distinct advantage that cavity decay and atom decay can be neglected. As for the interaction manipulation, our preparation scheme is more feasible than a recent similar one. Compared with the Yeo and Chua’s scheme, our teleportation scheme has significantly reduced the measuring difficulty.

Nonlinear Geometric Warping of the Mask Image: A New Method for Reducing Misregistration Artifacts in Digital Subtraction Angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayashi, Nobushige; Sakai, Toyohiko; Kitagawa, Manabu; Inagaki, Rika; Sadato, Norihiro; Ishii, Yasushi; Nishimoto, Yasuhiro; Tanaka, Masato; Fukushima, Tetsuya; Komuro, Hiroyuki; Ogura, Hisakazu; Kobayashi, Hidenori; Kubota, Toshihiko

1998-01-01

Purpose: Misregistration artifact is the major cause of image degradation in digital subtraction angiography (DSA). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a newly developed nonlinear geometric warping method to reduce misregistration artifact in DSA. Methods: The processing of the images was carried out on a workstation with a fully automatic computerized program. After making differential images with a lapracian filter, 49 regions of interest (ROIs) were set in the image to be processed. Each ROI of the live image scanned the corresponding ROI of the mask image searching for the best position to match itself. Each pixel of the mask image was shifted individually following the data calculated from the shifts of the ROIs. Five radiologists compared the images produced by the conventional parallel shift technique and those processed with this new method in 16 series of cerebral DSA. Results: In 14 of 16 series (88%), more radiologists judged the images processed with the new method to be better in quality. Small arteries near the skull base and veins of low density were clearly visualized in the images processed by the new method. Conclusion: This newly proposed method could be a simple and practical way to automatically reduce misregistration artifacts in DSA

Region of interest and windowing-based progressive medical image delivery using JPEG2000

Science.gov (United States)

Nagaraj, Nithin; Mukhopadhyay, Sudipta; Wheeler, Frederick W.; Avila, Ricardo S.

2003-05-01

An important telemedicine application is the perusal of CT scans (digital format) from a central server housed in a healthcare enterprise across a bandwidth constrained network by radiologists situated at remote locations for medical diagnostic purposes. It is generally expected that a viewing station respond to an image request by displaying the image within 1-2 seconds. Owing to limited bandwidth, it may not be possible to deliver the complete image in such a short period of time with traditional techniques. In this paper, we investigate progressive image delivery solutions by using JPEG 2000. An estimate of the time taken in different network bandwidths is performed to compare their relative merits. We further make use of the fact that most medical images are 12-16 bits, but would ultimately be converted to an 8-bit image via windowing for display on the monitor. We propose a windowing progressive RoI technique to exploit this and investigate JPEG 2000 RoI based compression after applying a favorite or a default window setting on the original image. Subsequent requests for different RoIs and window settings would then be processed at the server. For the windowing progressive RoI mode, we report a 50% reduction in transmission time.

A Local Region of Interest Imaging Method for Electrical Impedance Tomography with Internal Electrodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyeuknam Kwon

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT is a very attractive functional imaging method despite the low sensitivity and resolution. The use of internal electrodes with the conventional reconstruction algorithms was not enough to enhance image resolution and accuracy in the region of interest (ROI. We propose a local ROI imaging method with internal electrodes developed from careful analysis of the sensitivity matrix that is designed to reduce the sensitivity of the voxels outside the local region and optimize the sensitivity of the voxel inside the local region. We perform numerical simulations and physical measurements to demonstrate the localized EIT imaging method. In preliminary results with multiple objects we show the benefits of using an internal electrode and the improved resolution due to the local ROI image reconstruction method. The sensitivity is further increased by allowing the surface electrodes to be unevenly spaced with a higher density of surface electrodes near the ROI. Also, we analyse how much the image quality is improved using several performance parameters for comparison. While these have not yet been studied in depth, it convincingly shows an improvement in local sensitivity in images obtained with an internal electrode in comparison to a standard reconstruction method.

75 FR 3916 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed 3-Bars Ecosystem...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-25

... for the Proposed 3-Bars Ecosystem and Landscape Restoration Project, Eureka County, NV AGENCY: Bureau... proposed 3- Bars Ecosystem and Landscape Restoration Project by the following methods: E-mail: 3bars... 3-Bars Ecosystem and Landscape Restoration Project located primarily on public lands and on non...

Proposed risk evaluation guidelines for use by the DOE-AL Nuclear Explosive Safety Division in evaluating proposed shipments of nuclear components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Just, R.A.; Love, A.F.

1997-10-01

The licensing requirements of 10 CFR 71 (US Code of Federal Regulations) are the primary criteria used to license proposed US Department of Energy (DOE) shipments of nuclear components. However, if a shipment cannot meet 10 CFR 71 requirements, a Transportation System Risk Assessment (TSRA) is prepared to document: (1) the degree of compliance of proposed DOE shipments of nuclear components with applicable federal regulations, and (2) the risk associated with the proposed shipments. The Nuclear Explosive Safety Division (NESD) of the Department of Energy, Albuquerque Area Office (DOE-AL) is responsible for evaluating TSRAs and for preparing Safety Evaluation Reports (SERs) to authorize the off-site transport. Hazards associated with the transport may include the presence of fissile material, chemically and radiologically toxic uranium, and ionizing radiation. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has historically considered only radiological hazards in licensing the transport of radiological material because the US Department of Transportation considers licensing requirements of nonradiological (i.e., chemically toxic) hazards. The requirements of 10 CFR 71 are based primarily on consideration of radiological hazards. For completeness, this report provides information for assessing the effects of chemical toxicity. Evaluating the degree of compliance with the requirements of 10 CFR 71 is relatively straightforward. However, there are few precedents associated with developing TSRA risk assessments for packages that do not comply with all of the requirements of 10 CFR 71. The objective of the task is to develop Risk Evaluation Guidelines for DOE-AL to use when evaluating a TSRA. If the TSRA shows that the Risk Evaluation Guidelines are not exceeded, then from a risk perspective the TSRA should be approved if there is evidence that the ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) principle has been applied

Solution preparation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seitz, M.G.

1982-01-01

Reviewed in this statement are methods of preparing solutions to be used in laboratory experiments to examine technical issues related to the safe disposal of nuclear waste from power generation. Each approach currently used to prepare solutions has advantages and any one approach may be preferred over the others in particular situations, depending upon the goals of the experimental program. These advantages are highlighted herein for three approaches to solution preparation that are currently used most in studies of nuclear waste disposal. Discussion of the disadvantages of each approach is presented to help a user select a preparation method for his particular studies. Also presented in this statement are general observations regarding solution preparation. These observations are used as examples of the types of concerns that need to be addressed regarding solution preparation. As shown by these examples, prior to experimentation or chemical analyses, laboratory techniques based on scientific knowledge of solutions can be applied to solutions, often resulting in great improvement in the usefulness of results

Preparation of radiological effluent technical specifications for nuclear power plants. a guidance manual for users of standard technical specifications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boegli, J.S.; Bellamy, R.R.; Britz, W.L.; Waterfield, R.L.

1978-10-01

The purpose of this manual is to describe methods found acceptable to the staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for the calculation of certain key values required in the preparation of proposed radiological effluent Technical Specifications using the Standard Technical Specifications for light-water-cooled nuclear power plants. This manual also provides guidance to applicants for operating licenses for nuclear power plants in the preparation of proposed radiological effluent Technical Specifications or in preparing requests for changes to existing radiological effluent Technical Specifications for operating licenses. The manual additionally describes current staff positions on the methodology for estimating radiation exposure due to the release of radioactive materials in effluents and on the administrative control of radioactive waste treatment systems

Diffusion weighted imaging for differentiating benign from malignant orbital tumors: Diagnostic performance of the apparent diffusion coefficient based on region of interest selection method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xu, Xiao Quan; Hu, Hao Hu; Su, Guo Yi; Liu, Hu; Shi, Hai Bin; Wu, Fei Yun [First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing (China)

2016-09-15

To evaluate the differences in the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) measurements based on three different region of interest (ROI) selection methods, and compare their diagnostic performance in differentiating benign from malignant orbital tumors. Diffusion-weighted imaging data of sixty-four patients with orbital tumors (33 benign and 31 malignant) were retrospectively analyzed. Two readers independently measured the ADC values using three different ROIs selection methods including whole-tumor (WT), single-slice (SS), and reader-defined small sample (RDSS). The differences of ADC values (ADC-ROI{sub WT}, ADC-ROI{sub SS}, and ADC-ROI{sub RDSS}) between benign and malignant group were compared using unpaired t test. Receiver operating characteristic curve was used to determine and compare their diagnostic ability. The ADC measurement time was compared using ANOVA analysis and the measurement reproducibility was assessed using Bland-Altman method and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC). Malignant group showed significantly lower ADC-ROI{sub WT}, ADC-ROI{sub SS}, and ADC-ROI{sub RDSS} than benign group (all p < 0.05). The areas under the curve showed no significant difference when using ADC-ROI{sub WT}, ADC-ROI{sub SS}, and ADC-ROI{sub RDSS} as differentiating index, respectively (all p > 0.05). The ROI{sub SS} and ROI{sub RDSS} required comparable measurement time (p > 0.05), while significantly shorter than ROI{sub WT} (p < 0.05). The ROI{sub SS} showed the best reproducibility (mean difference ± limits of agreement between two readers were 0.022 [-0.080–0.123] × 10{sup -3} mm{sup 2}/s; ICC, 0.997) among three ROI method. Apparent diffusion coefficient values based on the three different ROI selection methods can help to differentiate benign from malignant orbital tumors. The results of measurement time, reproducibility and diagnostic ability suggest that the ROI{sub SS} method are potentially useful for clinical practice.

Proposed protocols for peripheral and renal Doppler

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fonseca Portuguez, Adriana

2009-01-01

A literature review was performed in order to prepare a summary of the important concepts of Doppler and applications in peripheral vascular evaluation and renal. The normal characteristics are summarized and explained in each vascular system and diagnostic criteria of the disorders frequently encountered in practice. Requested more studies have been identified and proposed protocols and report sheets have been developed to standardize the methodology of realization of several Doppler studies. The variability between operators has been treated to reduce as much as possible and follow-up studies have provided in patients who need. (author) [es

78 FR 4134 - Notice of Intent To Prepare An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) On the Proposal To Relocate...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-18

... Proposal To Relocate the 18th Aggressor Squadron From Eielson Air Force Base (EAFB), Alaska to Joint Base... Eielson AFB, AK AGENCY: Pacific Air Forces, United States Air Force, DOD. ACTION: Notice of Intent... Statement (EIS) considering a proposal to relocate the 18th Aggressor Squadron from Eielson AFB to Joint...

Preparation of BiOBr thin films with micro-nano-structure and their photocatalytic applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Rui [College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Fan, Caimei, E-mail: fancm@163.com [College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Zhang, Xiaochao, E-mail: zhang13598124761@163.com [College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Wang, Yawen; Wang, Yunfang [College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024 (China); Zhang, Hui [Particle Technology Research Centre, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario N6A 5B9 (Canada)

2014-07-01

A series of micro-nano-structure BiOBr thin films were prepared at a low temperature by the alcoholysis-coating method using BiBr{sub 3} as precursor. The as-prepared films were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface area. The obtained results indicated that micro-nano-structure tetragonal BiOBr films with different intensity ratios of (110) to (102) characteristic peaks could be synthesized through controlling the reaction temperature and the calcination temperatures. Furthermore, the photocatalytic activities of BiOBr thin films with different preparation conditions have been evaluated by the degradation of methyl orange (MO) under UV light irradiation, suggesting that the photocatalytic activity should be closely related to the solvent, the alcoholysis reaction temperature, and the calcining temperature. The best photocatalytic degradation efficiency of MO for BiOBr thin films reaches 98.5% under 2.5 h UV irradiation. The BiOBr thin films display excellent stability and their photocatalytic activity still remains above 90% after being used five times. The main reasons for the higher photocatalytic activity of micro-nano-structure BiOBr microspheres have been investigated. In addition, the possible formation mechanism of BiOBr thin films with micro-nano-structure and excellent photocatalytic activity was proposed and discussed. - Highlights: • The BiOBr film was prepared at low temperature via alcoholysis-coating method. • The optimum process conditions of preparing BiOBr film were discussed. • As-prepared BiOBr films were composed of micro-nano flake structures. • The BiOBr films demonstrated excellent photocatalytic activity. • The formation mechanism of BiOBr films with high activity was proposed.

78 FR 76781 - Proposed Modification of Class B Airspace; Salt Lake City, UT

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-19

... airspace area description modification are stated in degrees relative to True North. All geographic... benefits is not prepared. Such a determination has been made for this proposed rule. The reasoning for this... certification must include a statement providing the factual basis for this determination, and the reasoning...

Design of preparative-supercritical fluid chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Rajendran, Arvind

2012-08-10

Preparative supercritical fluid chromatography (prep-SFC) is an important separation process in the chromatographers toolbox. Owing to the unique properties of the mobile phase, which is predominantly CO(2), the behavior of SFC is markedly different from high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). This review article focuses on the scale-up of preparative chromatography. The basics of SFC, with particular focus on highlighting the key differences between SFC and HPLC, are introduced. Then, a framework for rational design of prep-SFC is proposed. This framework is based on obtaining basic system parameters from analytical scale equipment, i.e., with very small amount of material, and performing design and optimization in silico to evaluate process performance and to identify operating conditions for scale-up. The tools required to obtain the input parameters such as adsorption isotherms are discussed and the development of the design and optimization framework is elaborated. Examples from the literature which use this approach for successful scale-up are provided. Finally the design of multi-column SFC systems is discussed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Computer Aided Solution for Automatic Segmenting and Measurements of Blood Leucocytes Using Static Microscope Images.

Science.gov (United States)

Abdulhay, Enas; Mohammed, Mazin Abed; Ibrahim, Dheyaa Ahmed; Arunkumar, N; Venkatraman, V

2018-02-17

Blood leucocytes segmentation in medical images is viewed as difficult process due to the variability of blood cells concerning their shape and size and the difficulty towards determining location of Blood Leucocytes. Physical analysis of blood tests to recognize leukocytes is tedious, time-consuming and liable to error because of the various morphological components of the cells. Segmentation of medical imagery has been considered as a difficult task because of complexity of images, and also due to the non-availability of leucocytes models which entirely captures the probable shapes in each structures and also incorporate cell overlapping, the expansive variety of the blood cells concerning their shape and size, various elements influencing the outer appearance of the blood leucocytes, and low Static Microscope Image disparity from extra issues outcoming about because of noise. We suggest a strategy towards segmentation of blood leucocytes using static microscope images which is a resultant of three prevailing systems of computer vision fiction: enhancing the image, Support vector machine for segmenting the image, and filtering out non ROI (region of interest) on the basis of Local binary patterns and texture features. Every one of these strategies are modified for blood leucocytes division issue, in this manner the subsequent techniques are very vigorous when compared with its individual segments. Eventually, we assess framework based by compare the outcome and manual division. The findings outcome from this study have shown a new approach that automatically segments the blood leucocytes and identify it from a static microscope images. Initially, the method uses a trainable segmentation procedure and trained support vector machine classifier to accurately identify the position of the ROI. After that, filtering out non ROI have proposed based on histogram analysis to avoid the non ROI and chose the right object. Finally, identify the blood leucocytes type using

77 FR 72297 - Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Gulf of Alaska; Proposed 2013 and 2014...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-12-05

... EIS, and the Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) prepared for this action may be obtained... 2015), and 147 mt (in 2016 and later years). Proposed Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) and TAC... amounts proposed for the 2013 and 2014 ABCs are based on the 2011 SAFE report, as discussed below. The AP...

78 FR 43224 - Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Sun Valley to...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-19

....XXX; AZA35079] Notice of Availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Sun... Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed Sun..., operate, and maintain a 500/230-kV overhead transmission line from the Sun Valley Substation to the Morgan...

Groundwater movement on a Low-lying Carbonate Atoll Island and its Response to Climatic and Sea-level Fluctuations: Roi Namur, Republic of the Marshall Islands

Science.gov (United States)

Oberle, F. J.; Swarzenski, P. W.; Storlazzi, C. D.

2017-12-01

Atoll islands, most of which only average 1-2 meters above today's sea level, provide a tremendous natural laboratory in which to study and better understand the intensifying impacts of high rates of sea-level rise on tropical reef-lined islands. These islands are unique and on the frontline of negative societal impacts due to their geologic structure and limited water supply. Groundwater resources on atolls are typically minimal due to the low elevation and small surface area of the islands and are also subject to recurring droughts, and more frequent, storm-driven seawater overwash events. Although groundwater is the principal means of freshwater storage on atoll islands and is a major factor in determining the overall sustainability of island settlements, hydrological data on how an aquifer will response to changes in sea-level rise or storm-driven overwash remain limited. Here we present high-resolution time series hydrogeological and geochemical data from a 16 month study to determine the role of an atoll's carbonate geology, land use, and atmospheric and oceanographic forcing in driving coastal groundwater exchange including submarine groundwater discharge on the island of Roi-Namur on Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands. This information can provide new estimates on the recovery and resilience of coastal groundwater resources on similar islands that are expected to experience climate change-driven perturbations.

77 FR 70460 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Ho-Chunk Nation...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-26

... Impact Statement for the Proposed Ho-Chunk Nation Beloit Casino Project, City of Beloit, Rock County, WI...) application for a proposed 33-acre fee-to-trust transfer and casino project to be located in the City of... address, and ``DEIS Scoping Comments, Ho-Chunk Nation Beloit Casino Project'' on the first page of your...

Method for preparing 99mTc-labelled radiopharmaceuticals for myocardial scintigraphy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seifert, S.; Syhre, R.; Muenze, R.

1987-01-01

Radiopharmaceuticals which preferably concentrate in myocardial tissue are prepared, in particular technetium compounds with the reducing ligand molecule DMPE. A method is introduced to convert pertechnetate in one step into the proposed compound by means of a saline, slow-oxidizing and lyophilized form of the reducing ligand DMPE, preferably DMPE x 2HCl

Reaction kinetics for preparation of silica film with Stoeber method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shang Mengying; Jiang Xiaodong; Liu Miao; Luo Xuan; Tang Yongjian; Cao Linhong

2013-01-01

A new formula was proposed to investigate the relationship between reaction time and tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) conversion rate for preparation of silica sol with Stöber method, by studying the reaction kinetics of TEOS hydrolytic process. An appropriate conversion rate was then determined and used to calculate the theoretical optimal reaction time. Meanwhile, silica sols were prepared by sol-gel process using TEOS as precursor and ammonia as catalyst. It was found that the reaction time decreases with an increasing amount of ammonia and water. The values of experimental optimal reaction time were obtained, and agree with the theoretical results (the errors are within 5%), which shows good applicability of our formula. (authors)

Preparation and characterization of rare-earth bulks with controllable nanostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song Xiaoyan; Zhang Jiuxing; Li Erdong; Lu Nianduan; Yin Fuxing

2006-01-01

The preparation and characterization of pure rare-earth-metal bulks with controllable nanostructures are reported in this paper. A novel 'oxygen-free' in situ synthesis technique that combines inert-gas condensation with spark plasma sintering (SPS) technology is proposed. Taking into account the special mechanisms of SPS consolidation and the scale effects of nanoparticles, we introduced practical procedures for preparing rare-earth bulks of amorphous, mixed amorphous and nanocrystals, and nanocrystalline microstructures, respectively. Compared with the conventional polycrystalline bulk, these nanostructured bulks exhibit substantially improved physical and mechanical properties. This technique enables comprehensive studies on the microstructures and properties of a large variety of nanostructured metallic materials that are highly reactive in the air

Estimating Return on Investment in Translational Research: Methods and Protocols

Science.gov (United States)

Trochim, William; Dilts, David M.; Kirk, Rosalind

2014-01-01

Assessing the value of clinical and translational research funding on accelerating the translation of scientific knowledge is a fundamental issue faced by the National Institutes of Health and its Clinical and Translational Awards (CTSA). To address this issue, the authors propose a model for measuring the return on investment (ROI) of one key CTSA program, the clinical research unit (CRU). By estimating the economic and social inputs and outputs of this program, this model produces multiple levels of ROI: investigator, program and institutional estimates. A methodology, or evaluation protocol, is proposed to assess the value of this CTSA function, with specific objectives, methods, descriptions of the data to be collected, and how data are to be filtered, analyzed, and evaluated. This paper provides an approach CTSAs could use to assess the economic and social returns on NIH and institutional investments in these critical activities. PMID:23925706

Estimating return on investment in translational research: methods and protocols.

Science.gov (United States)

Grazier, Kyle L; Trochim, William M; Dilts, David M; Kirk, Rosalind

2013-12-01

Assessing the value of clinical and translational research funding on accelerating the translation of scientific knowledge is a fundamental issue faced by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and its Clinical and Translational Awards (CTSAs). To address this issue, the authors propose a model for measuring the return on investment (ROI) of one key CTSA program, the clinical research unit (CRU). By estimating the economic and social inputs and outputs of this program, this model produces multiple levels of ROI: investigator, program, and institutional estimates. A methodology, or evaluation protocol, is proposed to assess the value of this CTSA function, with specific objectives, methods, descriptions of the data to be collected, and how data are to be filtered, analyzed, and evaluated. This article provides an approach CTSAs could use to assess the economic and social returns on NIH and institutional investments in these critical activities.

A Signature Pedagogy for Leadership Education: Preparing Principals through Participatory Action Research

Science.gov (United States)

Sappington, Neil; Baker, Paul J.; Gardner, Dianne; Pacha, Joe

2010-01-01

This study proposes participatory action research as a signature pedagogy for principal preparation programs. Signature pedagogies bring professional knowledge and core values together in distinctive teaching and learning arrangements. A rationale and learning results are presented that describe key components of action research intended to help…

A methodology for the preparation of nanoporous polyimide films with low dielectric constants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang Lizhong; Liu Jiugui; Wu Dezhen; Li Hangquan; Jin Riguang

2006-01-01

A method to generate nanoporous polyimide films with low dielectric constants was proposed. The preparation consisted of two steps. Firstly, a polyimide/silica hybrid film was prepared via sol-gel process. Secondly, the hybrid film was treated with hydrofluoric acid to remove the dispersed silica particles, leaving pores with diameters between 20 and 120 nm, depending on the size of silica particles. Both hybrid and porous films were subjected to a variety of characterizations including transmission electron microscopy observation, dielectric constant measurement and tensile strength measurement

PROJECT ENGINEERING DATA MANAGEMENT AT AUTOMATED PREPARATION OF DESIGN DOCUMENTATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. V. Guryanov

2017-01-01

Full Text Available We have developed and realized instrumental means for automated support of end-to-end design process for design documentation on a product at the programming level. The proposed decision is based on processing of the engineering project data that are contained in interdependent design documents: tactical technical characteristics of products, data on the valuable metals contained in them, the list of components applied in a product and others. Processing of engineering data is based on their conversion to the form provided by requirements of industry standards for design documentation preparation. The general graph of the design documentation developed on a product is provided. The description of the developed software product is given. Automated preparation process of interdependent design documents is shown on the example of preparation of purchased products list. Results of work can be used in case of research and development activities on creation of perspective samples of ADP equipment.

Sample preparation of energy materials for X-ray nanotomography with micromanipulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen-Wiegart, Yu-chen Karen; Camino, Fernando E; Wang, Jun

2014-06-06

X-ray nanotomography presents an unprecedented opportunity to study energy storage/conversion materials at nanometer scales in three dimensions, with both elemental and chemical sensitivity. A critical step in obtaining high-quality X-ray nanotomography data is reliable sample preparation to ensure that the entire sample fits within the field of view of the X-ray microscope. Although focused-ion-beam lift-out has previously been used for large sample (few to tens of microns) preparation, a difficult undercut and lift-out procedure results in a time-consuming sample preparation process. Herein, we propose a much simpler and direct sample preparation method to resolve the issues that block the view of the sample base after milling and during the lift-out process. This method is applied on a solid-oxide fuel cell and a lithium-ion battery electrode, before numerous critical 3D morphological parameters are extracted, which are highly relevant to their electrochemical performance. A broad application of this method for microstructure study with X-ray nanotomography is discussed and presented. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Scout-view assisted interior digital tomosynthesis (iDTS) based on compressed-sensing theory

Science.gov (United States)

Park, S. Y.; Kim, G. A.; Cho, H. S.; Seo, C. W.; Je, U. K.; Park, C. K.; Lim, H. W.; Kim, K. S.; Lee, D. Y.; Lee, H. W.; Kang, S. Y.; Park, J. E.; Woo, T. H.; Lee, M. S.

2017-12-01

Conventional digital tomosynthesis (DTS) based on the filtered-backprojection (FBP) reconstruction requires full field-of-view scan and also relatively dense projections, which results in still high dose for medical imaging purposes. In this work, to overcome these difficulties, we propose a new type of DTS examinations, the so-called scout-view assisted interior DTS (iDTS), in which the x-ray beam span covers only a small region-of-interest (ROI) containing target diagnosis with the help of some scout views and they are used in the reconstruction to add additional information to interior ROI otherwise absent with conventional iDTS reconstruction methods. We considered an effective iterative algorithm based on compressed-sensing theory, rather than the FBP-based algorithm, for more accurate iDTS reconstruction. We implemented the proposed algorithm, performed a systematic simulation and experiment, and investigated the image characteristics. We successfully reconstructed iDTS images of substantially high accuracy and no truncation artifacts by using the proposed method, preserving superior image homogeneity, edge sharpening, and in-plane spatial resolution.

Research and implementation of finger-vein recognition algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Pang, Zengyao; Yang, Jie; Chen, Yilei; Liu, Yin

2017-06-01

In finger vein image preprocessing, finger angle correction and ROI extraction are important parts of the system. In this paper, we propose an angle correction algorithm based on the centroid of the vein image, and extract the ROI region according to the bidirectional gray projection method. Inspired by the fact that features in those vein areas have similar appearance as valleys, a novel method was proposed to extract center and width of palm vein based on multi-directional gradients, which is easy-computing, quick and stable. On this basis, an encoding method was designed to determine the gray value distribution of texture image. This algorithm could effectively overcome the edge of the texture extraction error. Finally, the system was equipped with higher robustness and recognition accuracy by utilizing fuzzy threshold determination and global gray value matching algorithm. Experimental results on pairs of matched palm images show that, the proposed method has a EER with 3.21% extracts features at the speed of 27ms per image. It can be concluded that the proposed algorithm has obvious advantages in grain extraction efficiency, matching accuracy and algorithm efficiency.

Hierarchical Controlled Remote State Preparation by Using a Four-Qubit Cluster State

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Peng-Cheng; Chen, Gui-Bin; Li, Xiao-Wei; Zhan, You-Bang

2018-02-01

We propose a scheme for hierarchical controlled remote preparation of an arbitrary single-qubit state via a four-qubit cluster state as the quantum channel. In this scheme, a sender wishes to help three agents to remotely prepare a quantum state, respectively. The three agents are divided into two grades, that is, an agent is in the upper grade and other two agents are in the lower grade. In this process of remote state preparation, the agent of the upper grade only needs the assistance of any one of the other two agents for recovering the sender's original state, while an agent of the lower grade needs the collaboration of all the other two agents. In other words, the agents of two grades have different authorities to reconstruct sender's original state.

Hierarchical Controlled Remote State Preparation by Using a Four-Qubit Cluster State

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Peng-Cheng; Chen, Gui-Bin; Li, Xiao-Wei; Zhan, You-Bang

2018-06-01

We propose a scheme for hierarchical controlled remote preparation of an arbitrary single-qubit state via a four-qubit cluster state as the quantum channel. In this scheme, a sender wishes to help three agents to remotely prepare a quantum state, respectively. The three agents are divided into two grades, that is, an agent is in the upper grade and other two agents are in the lower grade. In this process of remote state preparation, the agent of the upper grade only needs the assistance of any one of the other two agents for recovering the sender's original state, while an agent of the lower grade needs the collaboration of all the other two agents. In other words, the agents of two grades have different authorities to reconstruct sender's original state.

Regional absolute conductivity reconstruction using projected current density in MREIT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sajib, Saurav Z K; Kim, Hyung Joong; Woo, Eung Je; Kwon, Oh In

2012-01-01

Magnetic resonance electrical impedance tomography (MREIT) is a non-invasive technique for imaging the internal conductivity distribution in tissue within an MRI scanner, utilizing the magnetic flux density, which is introduced when a current is injected into the tissue from external electrodes. This magnetic flux alters the MRI signal, so that appropriate reconstruction can provide a map of the additional z-component of the magnetic field (B z ) as well as the internal current density distribution that created it. To extract the internal electrical properties of the subject, including the conductivity and/or the current density distribution, MREIT techniques use the relationship between the external injection current and the z-component of the magnetic flux density B = (B x , B y , B z ). The tissue studied typically contains defective regions, regions with a low MRI signal and/or low MRI signal-to-noise-ratio, due to the low density of nuclear magnetic resonance spins, short T 2 or T* 2 relaxation times, as well as regions with very low electrical conductivity, through which very little current traverses. These defective regions provide noisy B z data, which can severely degrade the overall reconstructed conductivity distribution. Injecting two independent currents through surface electrodes, this paper proposes a new direct method to reconstruct a regional absolute isotropic conductivity distribution in a region of interest (ROI) while avoiding the defective regions. First, the proposed method reconstructs the contrast of conductivity using the transversal J-substitution algorithm, which blocks the propagation of severe accumulated noise from the defective region to the ROI. Second, the proposed method reconstructs the regional projected current density using the relationships between the internal current density, which stems from a current injection on the surface, and the measured B z data. Combining the contrast conductivity distribution in the entire imaging

Professional Preparation of Students of Social Pedagogy in the Czech Republic

Science.gov (United States)

Martincová, Jana; Andrysová, Pavla

2017-01-01

This paper addresses the professional preparation of future teachers of social pedagogy (social educators) in the context of current tasks which the social pedagogy in the Czech Republic still has. Based on the results of the research which aims to present the professional characteristics of students of social pedagogy, we propose an innovation of…

A Proposed Model for Assessing Organisational Culture Towards Achieving Business Objectives

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hafez Salleh

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Most of the traditional business performances measures are based on productivity and process criteria, which mainly focus on method of investment appraisal such as payback method, return on investment (ROI, cost-benefits analysis (CBA, net present value (NPV, internal rate of return (IRR. However, the measurement scales of business performance are not limited to those measures. One element that has strong correlation to the business performances is ‘organisational culture’. Many studies proved that one of the significant criteria for achieving desired business objectives is the right organisational culture within workplace. Basically, the measurement of organisational culture is reflecting on two distinct elements: organisational culture and business objectives. In broader perspective, an organisation is considered effective if it meets its business objectives. This paper aims to present and discuss the preliminary culture model to indicate the culture performance within organisational. The model has been developed through literature review, expert opinion and experience which is anticipated of being able to potentially measure the culture capability of organisations across industries to “successfully achieve business objectives”. The model is composed of six progressive stages of maturity that an organisation can achieve its culture performance. For each maturity stage, the model describes a set of characteristics that must be in place for the company to achieve each stage. The validity of the proposed model will be tested by a few case studies. The idea is to provide managers with a qualitative measurement tools to enable them to identify where culture improvements are required within their organisations and to indicate their readiness for achieving business objectives.

Optimization of Region-of-Interest Sampling Strategies for Hepatic MRI Proton Density Fat Fraction Quantification

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Cheng William; Wolfson, Tanya; Sy, Ethan Z.; Schlein, Alexandra N.; Hooker, Jonathan C.; Dehkordy, Soudabeh Fazeli; Hamilton, Gavin; Reeder, Scott B.; Loomba, Rohit; Sirlin, Claude B.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND Clinical trials utilizing proton density fat fraction (PDFF) as an imaging biomarker for hepatic steatosis have used a laborious region-of-interest (ROI) sampling strategy of placing an ROI in each hepatic segment. PURPOSE To identify a strategy with the fewest ROIs that consistently achieves close agreement with the nine-ROI strategy. STUDY TYPE Retrospective secondary analysis of prospectively acquired clinical research data. POPULATION A total of 391 adults (173 men, 218 women) with known or suspected NAFLD. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE Confounder-corrected chemical-shift-encoded 3T MRI using a 2D multiecho gradientrecalled echo technique. ASSESSMENT An ROI was placed in each hepatic segment. Mean nine-ROI PDFF and segmental PDFF standard deviation were computed. Segmental and lobar PDFF were compared. PDFF was estimated using every combinatorial subset of ROIs and compared to the nine-ROI average. STATISTICAL TESTING Mean nine-ROI PDFF and segmental PDFF standard deviation were summarized descriptively. Segmental PDFF was compared using a one-way analysis of variance, and lobar PDFF was compared using a paired t-test and a Bland–Altman analysis. The PDFF estimated by every subset of ROIs was informally compared to the nine-ROI average using median intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland–Altman analyses. RESULTS The study population’s mean whole-liver PDFF was 10.1±8.9% (range: 1.1–44.1%). Although there was no significant difference in average segmental (P=0.452) or lobar (P=0.154) PDFF, left and right lobe PDFF differed by at least 1.5 percentage points in 25.1% (98/391) of patients. Any strategy with ≥ 4 ROIs had ICC >0.995. 115 of 126 four-ROI strategies (91%) had limits of agreement (LOA) 0.995, and 2/36 (6%) of two-ROI strategies and 46/84 (55%) of three-ROI strategies had LOA <1.5%. DATA CONCLUSION Four-ROI sampling strategies with two ROIs in the left and right lobes achieve close agreement with nine-ROI PDFF. Level of

Optimization of region-of-interest sampling strategies for hepatic MRI proton density fat fraction quantification.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Cheng William; Wolfson, Tanya; Sy, Ethan Z; Schlein, Alexandra N; Hooker, Jonathan C; Fazeli Dehkordy, Soudabeh; Hamilton, Gavin; Reeder, Scott B; Loomba, Rohit; Sirlin, Claude B

2018-04-01

Clinical trials utilizing proton density fat fraction (PDFF) as an imaging biomarker for hepatic steatosis have used a laborious region-of-interest (ROI) sampling strategy of placing an ROI in each hepatic segment. To identify a strategy with the fewest ROIs that consistently achieves close agreement with the nine-ROI strategy. Retrospective secondary analysis of prospectively acquired clinical research data. A total of 391 adults (173 men, 218 women) with known or suspected NAFLD. Confounder-corrected chemical-shift-encoded 3T MRI using a 2D multiecho gradient-recalled echo technique. An ROI was placed in each hepatic segment. Mean nine-ROI PDFF and segmental PDFF standard deviation were computed. Segmental and lobar PDFF were compared. PDFF was estimated using every combinatorial subset of ROIs and compared to the nine-ROI average. Mean nine-ROI PDFF and segmental PDFF standard deviation were summarized descriptively. Segmental PDFF was compared using a one-way analysis of variance, and lobar PDFF was compared using a paired t-test and a Bland-Altman analysis. The PDFF estimated by every subset of ROIs was informally compared to the nine-ROI average using median intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland-Altman analyses. The study population's mean whole-liver PDFF was 10.1 ± 8.9% (range: 1.1-44.1%). Although there was no significant difference in average segmental (P = 0.452) or lobar (P = 0.154) PDFF, left and right lobe PDFF differed by at least 1.5 percentage points in 25.1% (98/391) of patients. Any strategy with ≥4 ROIs had ICC >0.995. 115 of 126 four-ROI strategies (91%) had limits of agreement (LOA) 0.995, and 2/36 (6%) of two-ROI strategies and 46/84 (55%) of three-ROI strategies had LOA <1.5%. Four-ROI sampling strategies with two ROIs in the left and right lobes achieve close agreement with nine-ROI PDFF. 3 Technical Efficacy: Stage 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2018;47:988-994. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance

Optimal preparation-to-colonoscopy interval in split-dose PEG bowel preparation determines satisfactory bowel preparation quality: an observational prospective study.

Science.gov (United States)

Seo, Eun Hee; Kim, Tae Oh; Park, Min Jae; Joo, Hee Rin; Heo, Nae Yun; Park, Jongha; Park, Seung Ha; Yang, Sung Yeon; Moon, Young Soo

2012-03-01

Several factors influence bowel preparation quality. Recent studies have indicated that the time interval between bowel preparation and the start of colonoscopy is also important in determining bowel preparation quality. To evaluate the influence of the preparation-to-colonoscopy (PC) interval (the interval of time between the last polyethylene glycol dose ingestion and the start of the colonoscopy) on bowel preparation quality in the split-dose method for colonoscopy. Prospective observational study. University medical center. A total of 366 consecutive outpatients undergoing colonoscopy. Split-dose bowel preparation and colonoscopy. The quality of bowel preparation was assessed by using the Ottawa Bowel Preparation Scale according to the PC interval, and other factors that might influence bowel preparation quality were analyzed. Colonoscopies with a PC interval of 3 to 5 hours had the best bowel preparation quality score in the whole, right, mid, and rectosigmoid colon according to the Ottawa Bowel Preparation Scale. In multivariate analysis, the PC interval (odds ratio [OR] 1.85; 95% CI, 1.18-2.86), the amount of PEG ingested (OR 4.34; 95% CI, 1.08-16.66), and compliance with diet instructions (OR 2.22l 95% CI, 1.33-3.70) were significant contributors to satisfactory bowel preparation. Nonrandomized controlled, single-center trial. The optimal time interval between the last dose of the agent and the start of colonoscopy is one of the important factors to determine satisfactory bowel preparation quality in split-dose polyethylene glycol bowel preparation. Copyright © 2012 American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Proposal for regulation of logging activities in oil wells using ionizing radiation sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hidrowoh, Jacob R.

2000-01-01

It covers general aspects of nuclear energy and the suitable legal frame for its application related to oil industry. Besides, a regulation proposal to control logging activities in Ecuador using ionizing radiation sources in oil wells. It was prepared taking into account the Ecuadorian Atomic Energy Commission criteria and international regulations

Staff evaluation of US Department of Energy proposal for monitored retrievable storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-03-01

As directed by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, the US Department of Energy has prepared a proposal for the US Congress for a facility that can be used for the monitored retrievable storage of spent fuel from commercial users. This report describes the evaluation performed by the staff of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission of the design concepts for the monitored retrievable storage facility proposed by the Department of Energy. On February 5, 1986 the NRC submitted its principal comments to the Department of Energy in the letter shown on the following pages. 30 refs., 10 figs., 2 tabs

Normalized STEAM-based diffusion tensor imaging provides a robust assessment of muscle tears in football players: preliminary results of a new approach to evaluate muscle injuries.

Science.gov (United States)

Giraudo, Chiara; Motyka, Stanislav; Weber, Michael; Karner, Manuela; Resinger, Christoph; Feiweier, Thorsten; Trattnig, Siegfried; Bogner, Wolfgang

2018-02-08

To assess acute muscle tears in professional football players by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and evaluate the impact of normalization of data. Eight football players with acute lower limb muscle tears were examined. DTI metrics of the injured muscle and corresponding healthy contralateral muscle and of ROIs drawn in muscle tears (ROI tear ) in the corresponding healthy contralateral muscle (ROI hc_t ) in a healthy area ipsilateral to the injury (ROI hi ) and in a corresponding contralateral area (ROI hc_i ) were compared. The same comparison was performed for ratios of the injured (ROI tear /ROI hi ) and contralateral sides (ROI hc_t /ROI hc_i ). ANOVA, Bonferroni-corrected post-hoc and Student's t-tests were used. Analyses of the entire muscle did not show any differences (p>0.05 each) except for axial diffusivity (AD; p=0.048). ROI tear showed higher mean diffusivity (MD) and AD than ROI hc_t (ptear than in ROI hi and ROI hc_t (ptear than in any other ROI (pmuscle tears in athletes especially after normalization to healthy muscle tissue. • STEAM-based DTI allows the investigation of muscle tears affecting professional football players. • Fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity differ between injured and healthy muscle areas. • Only normalized data show differences of fibre tracking metrics in muscle tears. • The normalization of DTI-metrics enables a more robust characterization of muscle tears.

Finding of No Significant Impact, proposed remediation of the Maybell Uranium Mill Processing Site, Maybell, Colorado

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-0347) on the proposed surface remediation of the Maybell uranium mill processing site in Moffat County, Colorado. The mill site contains radioactively contaminated materials from processing uranium ore that would be stabilized in place at the existing tailings pile location. Based on the analysis in the EA, DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, Public Law 91-190 (42 U.S.C. section 4321 et seq.), as amended. Therefore, preparation of an environmental impact statement is not required and DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI)

Abnormal externally guided movement preparation in recent-onset schizophrenia is associated with impaired selective attention to external input.

Science.gov (United States)

Smid, Henderikus G O M; Westenbroek, Joanna M; Bruggeman, Richard; Knegtering, Henderikus; Van den Bosch, Robert J

2009-11-30

Several theories propose that the primary cognitive impairment in schizophrenia concerns a deficit in the processing of external input information. There is also evidence, however, for impaired motor preparation in schizophrenia. This provokes the question whether the impaired motor preparation in schizophrenia is a secondary consequence of disturbed (selective) processing of the input needed for that preparation, or an independent primary deficit. The aim of the present study was to discriminate between these hypotheses, by investigating externally guided movement preparation in relation to selective stimulus processing. The sample comprised 16 recent-onset schizophrenia patients and 16 controls who performed a movement-precuing task. In this task, a precue delivered information about one, two or no parameters of a movement summoned by a subsequent stimulus. Performance measures and measures derived from the electroencephalogram showed that patients yielded smaller benefits from the precues and showed less cue-based preparatory activity in advance of the imperative stimulus than the controls, suggesting a response preparation deficit. However, patients also showed less activity reflecting selective attention to the precue. We therefore conclude that the existing evidence for an impairment of externally guided motor preparation in schizophrenia is most likely due to a deficit in selective attention to the external input, which lends support to theories proposing that the primary cognitive deficit in schizophrenia concerns the processing of input information.

76 FR 14745 - Notice To Rescind a Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement, Ada and Canyon...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-17

... To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement, Ada and Canyon Counties, ID AGENCY: Federal Highway... prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for a proposed highway project in Ada and Canyon County, Idaho... Highway 44 from Exit 25 at Interstate 84 in Canyon County to Ballantyne Lane in Ada County. The project is...

Finding of no significant impact proposed remedial action at two uranium processing sites near Slick Rock, Colorado

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-0339) of the proposed remedial action at two uranium processing sites near Slick Rock in San Miguel County, Colorado. These sites contain radioactively contaminated materials that would be removed and stabilized at a remote location. Based on the information and analyses in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action does not constitute a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), as amended. Therefore, preparation of an environmental impact statement is not required, and the DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (ONSI)

PENERAPAN CRITICAL REVIEW ARTIKEL PEMBELAJARAN IPA UNTUK MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN MAHASISWA DALAM MENYUSUN PROPOSAL SKRIPSI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Parmin -

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Penelitian bertujuan untuk meningkatkan kemampuan mahasiswa dalam menyusun proposal skripsi melalui penerapan critical review artikel ilmiah bersumber dari jurnal. Penelitian dirancang dengan metode penelitian tindakan kelas. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan 63% proposal skripsi mahasiswa pada mata kuliah Metodologi Penelitian mendapatkan nilai diatas 80. Berdasarkan hasil yang telah diperoleh dapat disimpulkan penerapan critical review atau kajian kritis terhadap artikel ilmiah dapat meningkatkan kemampuan mahasiswa dalam menyusun proposal penelitian.   The aims of this research is to improve students' ability in developing a proposal thesis by applying critical review of scientific articles come from journals. The research is designed by class action research. The results showed 63% of students thesis proposals on Research Methodology course scored above 80. Based on the results obtained it can be concluded that the application has been critical review or critical study of scientific articles can enhance students' ability in preparing research proposals.

A novel preparation technique of red (sparkling wine for protein analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elisabeth I. Vogt

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Despite their low concentration, proteins can influence several key enological parameters such as foam stability or haze formation in (sparkling wine. Most studies focus on white (sparkling wine since the higher content of phenolic compounds in red wines impairs proteomic research. The aim of the study was the development of a method for the preparation of red (sparkling wine proteins for proteomic analysis. Three methods of sample preparation were assessed on silver stained SDS-PAGE gels and with MALDI-TOF MS. Our new method was highly suitable for the preparation of proteins for the aforementioned applications. The results showed a substantial increase in signal intensity with a simultaneous decrease in background noise. The preparation protocol consists of (i dialysis and freeze drying of the sample, (ii removal of phenolic compounds by water-saturated phenol and (iii protein precipitation by addition of ammonium acetate. Employment of this method followed by SDS-PAGE analysis allowed for silver stained gels with diminished background or streaking and clearly resolved protein bands. Analysis of spectra obtained from samples prepared according to the proposed protocol showed increased intensity and signal-to-noise ratio in MALDI-TOF MS. Furthermore it was demonstrated that this method can be applied to various kinds of grape products.

SU-F-P-35: A Multi-Institutional Plan Quality Checking Tool Built On Oncospace: A Shared Radiation Oncology Database System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bowers, M; Robertson, S; Moore, J; Wong, J; Phillips, M; Hendrickson, K; Evans, K; McNutt, T

2016-01-01

Purpose: Late toxicity from radiation to critical structures limits the possible dose in Radiation Therapy. Perfectly conformal treatment of a target is not realizable, so the clinician must accept a certain level of collateral radiation to nearby OARs. But how much? General guidelines exist for healthy tissue sparing which guide RT treatment planning, but are these guidelines good enough to create the optimal plan given the individualized patient anatomy? We propose a means to evaluate the planned dose level to an OAR using a multi-institutional data-store of previously treated patients, so a clinician might reconsider planning objectives. Methods: The tool is built on Oncospace, a federated data-store system, which consists of planning data import, web based analysis tools, and a database containing:1) DVHs: dose by percent volume delivered to each ROI for each patient previously treated and included in the database.2) Overlap Volume Histograms (OVHs): Anatomical measure defined as the percent volume of an ROI within a given distance to target structures.Clinicians know what OARs are important to spare. For any ROI, Oncospace knows for which patients’ anatomy that ROI was harder to plan in the past (the OVH is less). The planned dose should be close to the least dose of previous patients. The tool displays the dose those OARs were subjected to, and the clinician can make a determination about the planning objectives used.Multiple institutions contribute to the Oncospace Consortium, and their DVH and OVH data are combined and color coded in the output. Results: The Oncospace website provides a plan quality display tool which identifies harder to treat patients, and graphically displays the dose delivered to them for comparison with the proposed plan. Conclusion: The Oncospace Consortium manages a data-store of previously treated patients which can be used for quality checking new plans. Grant funding by Elekta.

SU-F-P-35: A Multi-Institutional Plan Quality Checking Tool Built On Oncospace: A Shared Radiation Oncology Database System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bowers, M; Robertson, S; Moore, J; Wong, J [Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD (United States); Phillips, M [University Washington, Seattle, WA (United States); Hendrickson, K; Evans, K [University of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States); McNutt, T [Johns Hopkins University, Severna Park, MD (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Late toxicity from radiation to critical structures limits the possible dose in Radiation Therapy. Perfectly conformal treatment of a target is not realizable, so the clinician must accept a certain level of collateral radiation to nearby OARs. But how much? General guidelines exist for healthy tissue sparing which guide RT treatment planning, but are these guidelines good enough to create the optimal plan given the individualized patient anatomy? We propose a means to evaluate the planned dose level to an OAR using a multi-institutional data-store of previously treated patients, so a clinician might reconsider planning objectives. Methods: The tool is built on Oncospace, a federated data-store system, which consists of planning data import, web based analysis tools, and a database containing:1) DVHs: dose by percent volume delivered to each ROI for each patient previously treated and included in the database.2) Overlap Volume Histograms (OVHs): Anatomical measure defined as the percent volume of an ROI within a given distance to target structures.Clinicians know what OARs are important to spare. For any ROI, Oncospace knows for which patients’ anatomy that ROI was harder to plan in the past (the OVH is less). The planned dose should be close to the least dose of previous patients. The tool displays the dose those OARs were subjected to, and the clinician can make a determination about the planning objectives used.Multiple institutions contribute to the Oncospace Consortium, and their DVH and OVH data are combined and color coded in the output. Results: The Oncospace website provides a plan quality display tool which identifies harder to treat patients, and graphically displays the dose delivered to them for comparison with the proposed plan. Conclusion: The Oncospace Consortium manages a data-store of previously treated patients which can be used for quality checking new plans. Grant funding by Elekta.

Influence of parameter settings in voxel-based morphometry 8. Using DARTEL and region-of-interest on reproducibility in gray matter volumetry.

Science.gov (United States)

Goto, M; Abe, O; Aoki, S; Hayashi, N; Miyati, T; Takao, H; Matsuda, H; Yamashita, F; Iwatsubo, T; Mori, H; Kunimatsu, A; Ino, K; Yano, K; Ohtomo, K

2015-01-01

To investigate whether reproducibility of gray matter volumetry is influenced by parameter settings for VBM 8 using Diffeomorphic Anatomical Registration Through Exponentiated Lie Algebra (DARTEL) with region-of-interest (ROI) analyses. We prepared three-dimensional T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (3D-T1WIs) of 21 healthy subjects. All subjects were imaged with each of five MRI systems. Voxel-based morphometry 8 (VBM 8) and WFU PickAtlas software were used for gray matter volumetry. The bilateral ROI labels used were those provided as default settings with the software: Frontal Lobe, Hippocampus, Occipital Lobe, Orbital Gyrus, Parietal Lobe, Putamen, and Temporal Lobe. All 3D-T1WIs were segmented to gray matter with six parameters of VBM 8, with each parameter having between three and eight selectable levels. Reproducibility was evaluated as the standard deviation (mm³) of measured values for the five MRI systems. Reproducibility was influenced by 'Bias regularization (BiasR)', 'Bias FWHM', and 'De-noising filter' settings, but not by 'MRF weighting', 'Sampling distance', or 'Warping regularization' settings. Reproducibility in BiasR was influenced by ROI. Superior reproducibility was observed in Frontal Lobe with the BiasR1 setting, and in Hippocampus, Parietal Lobe, and Putamen with the BiasR3*, BiasR1, and BiasR5 settings, respectively. Reproducibility of gray matter volumetry was influenced by parameter settings in VBM 8 using DARTEL and ROI. In multi-center studies, the use of appropriate settings in VBM 8 with DARTEL results in reduced scanner effect.

Recommendations for the Preparation of Environmental Assessments and Environmental Impact Statements, 2nd edition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

2004-12-01

This document provides recommendations for the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) preparation of environmental assessments and environmental impact statements under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA). The Office of NEPA Policy and Compliance prepared these recommendations in consultation with the Office of the Assistant General Counsel for Environment and following coordination with the DOE NEPA Community. The recommendations should materially aid those responsible for preparing and reviewing NEPA documents to focus on significant environmental issues, adequately analyze environmental impacts, and effectively present the analysis to decisionmakers and the public. The recommendations are not all-encompassing, however; preparers must apply independent judgment to determine the appropriate scope and analytical requirements of NEPA for each proposal. These recommendations do not constitute legal requirements, but are intended to enhance compliance with existing NEPA regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508, 10 CFR Part 1021).

Preparation of new phthalocyanine complexes of some rare-earth elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugimoto, Hiroshi; Higashi, Teruaki; Mori, Masayasu

1982-01-01

The reaction of tris(1,3-diphenyl-1,3-propanedionato) complexes of heavier rare-earth elements, M 3+ (dbm) 3 and lithium phthalocyaninato (2-), Li 2 (pc) gave two types of new stable phthalocyanine complexes, [M 3+ (pc)(dbm)(dbmH)] and [M 3+ (pc)(dbm)] depending on the solvents used for the preparation. The structure of both types of complexes are tentatively proposed. (author)

Prediction of the pharmacological effect of octreotide in acromegaly by means of {sup 111}In-pentetreotide scintigraphy and calculation of a pituitary uptake index; Praediktion der pharmakologischen Wirkung von Octreotid bei Akromegalie mittels {sup 111}In-Pentetreotid-Szintigraphie und Berechnung eines hypophysaeren Uptake-Index

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goerges, R. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). Klinik und Poliklinik fuer Nuklearmedizin; Cordes, U. [Arbeitsgemeinschaft Niedergelassener Endokrinologen, Mainz/Darmstadt (Germany); Engelbach, M. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). III. Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik; Bartelt, K.M. [Arbeitsgemeinschaft Niedergelassener Endokrinologen, Mainz/Darmstadt (Germany); Haberern, G. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). Klinik und Poliklinik fuer Nuklearmedizin; Hey, O. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). Neurochirurgische Klinik und Poliklinik; Beyer, J. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). III. Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik; Bockisch, A. [Mainz Univ. (Germany). Klinik und Poliklinik fuer Nuklearmedizin

1997-06-01

Aim: The aim of our prospective study was to optimize the determination of the pituitary somatostatin receptor status by means of 111-In-pentetreotide scintigraphy and to compare it intraindividually with the pharmacological effect of octreotide in active acromegaly. Methods: In n=22 patients with growth hormone (GH) secreting pituitary adenoma, 111-In-penetreotide scintigraphy was performed, and the specific radionuclide accumulation in the pituitary area (evaluation visually as well as semiquantitatively by means of ROI technique and calculation of various uptake indices) was correlated with the acute drop of GH after administration of 100 {mu}g octreotide s.c. (octreotide acute test). Results: The uptake index we propose (cts/pixel-ratio circular pituitary ROI: Irregular cerebrum ROI after background correction in the sagittal SPECT slice with maximum pituitary uptake 24 h p.i.) correlates best with the pharmacological effect (acute decrease of GH levels) of octreotide; its upper normal limit amounts of 3.5. Conclusion: As often the normal pituitary gland can be visualized scintigraphically, the purely visual differentiation between a normal and pathological receptor status sometimes is equivocal. A pituitary uptake index, calculated by means of a standardized ROI technique, facilitates this discrimination and so contributes to select possible responders for a treatment with octreotide. (orig.) [Deutsch] Ziel: Ziel unserer prospektiven Studie war die optimierte Bestimmung des hypophysaeren Somatostatin-Rezeptorstatus in der 111-In-Pentetreotid-Szintigraphie und der intraindividuelle Vergleich mit dem pharmakologischen Effekt von Octreotid bei florider Akromegalie. Methoden: Bei n=22 Patienten mit Wachstumshormon-(GH)-sezernierendem Hypophysenadenom wurde eine 111-In-Pentetreotid-Szintigraphie durchgefuehrt und die spezifische Nuklidakkumulation in der Hypophysenregion (Auswertung sowohl visuell als auch semiquantitativ mittels ROI-Technik und Berechnung

Preparação e caracterização espectroscópica de complexos de boro: uma proposta para uma prática integrada de química inorgânica Preparation and spectroscopic characterization of boron complexes: a proposal for an integrated inorganic laboratory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karl Eberhard Bessler

2010-01-01

Full Text Available As a proposal for an undergraduate second or third year inorganic laboratory course, the present paper describes the preparation of three representative boron complexes: potassium tetrafluoroborate, pyridoxin boron complex and potassium bis(oxalatoborate. The complexes are characterised by infrared and multinuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H, 11B and 19F where isotopic effects are demonstrated.

A proposed HTTP service based IDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed M. Abd-Eldayem

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The tremendous growth of the web-based applications has increased information security vulnerabilities over the Internet. Security administrators use Intrusion-Detection System (IDS to monitor network traffic and host activities to detect attacks against hosts and network resources. In this paper IDS based on Naïve Bayes classifier is analyzed. The main objective is to enhance IDS performance through preparing the training data set allowing to detect malicious connections that exploit the http service. Results of application are demonstrated and discussed. In the training phase of the proposed IDS, at first a feature selection technique based on Naïve Bayes classifier is used, this technique identifies the most important HTTP traffic features that can be used to detect HTTP attacks. In the testing and running phases proposed IDS classifies the network traffic based on the requested service, then based on the selected features Naïve Bayes classifier is used to analyze the HTTP service based traffic and identifies the HTTP normal connections and attacks. The performance of the IDS is measured through experiments using NSL-KDD data set. The results show that the detection rate of the IDS is about 99%, the false-positive rate is about 1%, and the false-negative rate is about 0.25%; therefore, proposed IDS holds the highest detection rate and the lowest false alarm compared with other leading IDS. In addition, the proposed IDS based on Naïve Bayes is used to classify network connections as a normal or attack. And it holds a high detection rate and a low false alarm.

All solid-state polymer electrolytes prepared from a hyper-branched graft polymer using atom transfer radical polymerization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higa, Mitsuru; Fujino, Yukiko; Koumoto, Taihei; Kitani, Ryousuke; Egashira, Satsuki

2005-01-01

We propose an all solid-state (liquid free) polymer electrolyte (SPE) prepared from a hyper-branched graft copolymer. The graft copolymer consisting of a poly(methyl methacrylate) main chain and poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate side chains was synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization changing the average chain distance between side chains, side chain length and branched chain length of the proposed structure of the graft copolymer. The ionic conductivity of the SPEs increases with increasing the side chain length, branched chain length and/or average distance between the side chains. The ionic conductivity of the SPE prepared from POEM 9 whose POEM content = 51 wt% shows 2 x 10 -5 S/cm at 30 deg. C. The tensile strength of the SPEs decreases with increases the side chain length, branched chain length and/or average distance between the side chains. These results indicate that a SPE prepared from the hyper-branched graft copolymer has potential to be applied to an all-solid polymer electrolyte

Preparation and multi-properties determination of radium-containing rocklike material

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Changshou; Li, Xiangyang; Zhao, Guoyan; Jiang, Fuliang; Li, Ming; Zhang, Shuai; Wang, Hong; Liu, Kaixuan

2018-02-01

The radium-containing rocklike material were fabricated using distilled water, ordinary Portland cement and additives mixed aggregates and admixtures according to certain proportion. The physico-mechanical properties as well as radioactive properties of the prepared rocklike material were measured. Moreover, the properties of typical granite sample were also investigated. It is found on one hand, similarities exist in physical and mechanical properties between the rocklike material and the granite sample, this confirms the validity of the proposed method; on the other hand, the rocklike material generally performs more remarkable radioactive properties compared with the granite sample, while radon diffusive properties in both materials are essentially matching. This study will provide a novel way to prepare reliable radium-containing samples for radon study of underground uranium mine.

Evaluation of Deformable Image Coregistration in Adaptive Dose Painting by Numbers for Head-and-Neck Cancer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Olteanu, Luiza A.M., E-mail: AnaMariaLuiza.Olteanu@uzgent.be [Department of Radiotherapy, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan, Ghent (Belgium); Madani, Indira; De Neve, Wilfried; Vercauteren, Tom; De Gersem, Werner [Department of Radiotherapy, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan, Ghent (Belgium)

2012-06-01

Purpose: To assess the accuracy of contour deformation and feasibility of dose summation applying deformable image coregistration in adaptive dose painting by numbers (DPBN) for head and neck cancer. Methods and Materials: Data of 12 head-and-neck-cancer patients treated within a Phase I trial on adaptive {sup 18}F-FDG positron emission tomography (PET)-guided DPBN were used. Each patient had two DPBN treatment plans: the initial plan was based on a pretreatment PET/CT scan; the second adapted plan was based on a PET/CT scan acquired after 8 fractions. The median prescription dose to the dose-painted volume was 30 Gy for both DPBN plans. To obtain deformed contours and dose distributions, pretreatment CT was deformed to per-treatment CT using deformable image coregistration. Deformed contours of regions of interest (ROI{sub def}) were visually inspected and, if necessary, adjusted (ROI{sub def{sub ad}}) and both compared with manually redrawn ROIs (ROI{sub m}) using Jaccard (JI) and overlap indices (OI). Dose summation was done on the ROI{sub m}, ROI{sub def{sub ad}}, or their unions with the ROI{sub def}. Results: Almost all deformed ROIs were adjusted. The largest adjustment was made in patients with substantially regressing tumors: ROI{sub def} = 11.8 {+-} 10.9 cm{sup 3} vs. ROI{sub def{sub ad}} = 5.9 {+-} 7.8 cm{sup 3} vs. ROI{sub m} = 7.7 {+-} 7.2 cm{sup 3} (p = 0.57). The swallowing structures were the most frequently adjusted ROIs with the lowest indices for the upper esophageal sphincter: JI = 0.3 (ROI{sub def}) and 0.4 (ROI{sub def{sub ad}}); OI = 0.5 (both ROIs). The mandible needed the least adjustment with the highest indices: JI = 0.8 (both ROIs), OI = 0.9 (ROI{sub def}), and 1.0 (ROI{sub def{sub ad}}). Summed doses differed non-significantly. There was a trend of higher doses in the targets and lower doses in the spinal cord when doses were summed on unions. Conclusion: Visual inspection and adjustment were necessary for most ROIs. Fast automatic ROI

77 FR 40392 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; EDGX Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Changes To...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-07-09

... prepared by the self-regulatory organization. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments.... I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance of the Proposed Rule Change.... [[Page 40393

76 FR 34250 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Gila Lower Box Area of...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-13

... management prescriptions should apply? 7. What potential impacts would this proposed action have on neighboring private landowners? 8. What effects would this proposed action have on recreation and tourism in... accordance with policy, and tribal concerns will be given due consideration, including impacts on Indian...

Ergonomic analysis of radiopharmaceuticals samples preparation process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gomes, Luciene Betzler C.; Santos, Isaac Luquetti dos; Fonseca, Antonio Carlos C. da; Pellini, Marcos Pinto; Rebelo, Ana Maria

2005-01-01

The doses of radioisotopes to be administrated in patients for diagnostic effect or therapy are prepared in the radiopharmacological sector. The preparation process adopts techniques that are aimed to reduce the exposition time of the professionals and the absorption of excessive doses for patients. The ergonomic analysis of this process contributes in the prevention of occupational illnesses and to prevent risks of accidents during the routines, providing welfare and security to the involved users and conferring to the process an adequate working standard. In this context it is perceived relevance of studies that deal with the analysis of factors that point with respect to the solution of problems and for establishing proposals that minimize risks in the exercise of the activities. Through a methodology that considers the application of the concepts of Ergonomics, it is searched the improvement of the effectiveness or the quality and reduction of the difficulties lived for the workers. The work prescribed, established through norms and procedures codified will be faced with the work effectively carried through, the real work, shaped to break the correct appreciation, with focus in the activities. This work has as objective to argue an ergonomic analysis of samples preparation process of radioisotopes in the Setor de Radiofarmacia do Hospital Universitario Clementino Fraga Filho da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). (author)

Infrared Image Segmentation by Combining Fractal Geometry with Wavelet Transformation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xionggang Tu

2014-11-01

Full Text Available An infrared image is decomposed into three levels by discrete stationary wavelet transform (DSWT. Noise is reduced by wiener filter in the high resolution levels in the DSWT domain. Nonlinear gray transformation operation is used to enhance details in the low resolution levels in the DSWT domain. Enhanced infrared image is obtained by inverse DSWT. The enhanced infrared image is divided into many small blocks. The fractal dimensions of all the blocks are computed. Region of interest (ROI is extracted by combining all the blocks, which have similar fractal dimensions. ROI is segmented by global threshold method. The man-made objects are efficiently separated from the infrared image by the proposed method.

Relative costs of anesthesiologist prepared, hospital pharmacy prepared and outsourced anesthesia drugs.

Science.gov (United States)

Jelacic, Srdjan; Craddick, Karen; Nair, Bala G; Bounthavong, Mark; Yeung, Kai; Kusulos, Dolly; Knutson, Jennifer A; Somani, Shabir; Bowdle, Andrew

2017-02-01

Anesthesia drugs can be prepared by anesthesia providers, hospital pharmacies or outsourcing facilities. The decision whether to outsource all or some anesthesia drugs is challenging since the costs associated with different anesthesia drug preparation methods remain poorly described. The costs associated with preparation of 8 commonly used anesthesia drugs were analyzed using a budget impact analysis for 4 different syringe preparation strategies: (1) all drugs prepared by anesthesiologist, (2) drugs prepared by anesthesiologist and hospital pharmacy, (3) drugs prepared by anesthesiologist and outsourcing facility, and (4) all drugs prepared by outsourcing facility. A strategy combining anesthesiologist and hospital pharmacy prepared drugs was associated with the lowest estimated annual cost in the base-case budget impact analysis with an annual cost of $225 592, which was lower than other strategies by a margin of greater than $86 000. A combination of anesthesiologist and hospital pharmacy prepared drugs resulted in the lowest annual cost in the budget impact analysis. However, the cost of drugs prepared by an outsourcing facility maybe lower if the capital investment needed for the establishment and maintenance of the US Pharmacopeial Convention Chapter compliant facility is included in the budget impact analysis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

How to teach the potassium hydroxide preparation: a disappearing clinical art form.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkison, Bart D; Sperling, Leonard C; Spillane, Anne P; Meyerle, Jon H

2015-08-01

Using potassium hydroxide (KOH) preparations in the diagnosis of superficial fungal infections is a technique that has been handed down from teacher to apprentice for more than 100 years. The technique is simple, accurate, and inexpensive; however, there is reason to believe it is falling to the wayside in favor of empiric treatment, especially in primary care settings. To continue the use of this valuable diagnostic aid, a system of teaching the KOH preparation to the next generation of physicians (ie, medical students, residents) is proposed with emphasis on facilitating the process by storing viable skin samples infected with dermatophytes for long periods of time. This technique obviates the need to find suitably infected patients before each teaching laboratory. This technique also is appropriate to refresh the skills of practicing physicians as they prepare for point-of-care testing assessments.

Eventos Gastronômicos e Estratégias de Marketing: O Festival Comida Di Buteco em Belo Horizonte, MG.Eventos Gastronômicos e Estratégias de Marketing: O Festival Comida Di Buteco, em Belo Horizonte, MG / Gastronomic Events and Marketing Strategies: The Fes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Graziela Da Silva Suzuki

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Os eventos são considerados como estratégias de comunicação no composto de marketing. Sendo assim, o presente trabalho tem por objetivo identificar o Retorno Sobre Investimento (ROI da participação no festival gastronômico “Comida di Buteco”. Para tanto, utilizam-se teorias do marketing de relacionamento, da comunicação, da retenção e uma adaptação das categorias propostas pela metodologia ROI, de Phillips. Foram realizadas 12 entrevistas com os gestores e proprietários de bares participantes do festival. A técnica de análise dos dados foi a do discurso do sujeito coletivo (DSC. Palavras-chave: Gastronomia. Evento Gastronômico. Marketing de relacionamento. Festival Comida di Buteco. Belo Horizonte, MG. Gastronomic Events and Marketing Strategies: The Festival ‘Comida Di Buteco’ - Events are considered as communication strategies in the marketing mix. Thus, this study aims to identify the Return on Investment (ROI participation in the gastronomic festival ‘Comida de Buteco [Food di Buteco]. The methodology uses theories of relationship marketing, communication, retention and the adaptation of the categories proposed by the Phillips ROI methodology. 12 interviews with managers and owners of bars were made. Data analysis technique was that of the CSD. Keywords: Gastronomy. Gastronomic Event. Relationship marketing. Food Festival. Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.

Improving Technical, Tactical and Psychological Preparation of Freestyle Wrestlers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pakulin Serhij

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Objectives: 1 to justify the ways of improvement of training free style wrestlers to improve the results of their activities and competitive sports skills; 2 to identify the areas of improvement of psychological preparation and the structure of complex psycho-pedagogical methods for optimizing mental condition of free style wrestlers. Material and methods: The following methods were used in the study: analysis and synthesis of the scientific data of methodological literature; pedagogical supervision; survey (interview, questionnaire; analysis of freestyle wrestlers competitive activity; testing of physical and psychological fitness; pedagogical experiment; methods of mathematical and statistical analysis of research results. Results: it has been demonstrated that there is a necessity to improve technical, tactical and psychological preparation of freestyle fighters; the basic problems of the process have been defined. Conclusion: 1 the method of preparation of freestyle wrestlers has been grounded and the feasibility of its use for rapid making the best technical and tactical decisions in a competitive activity has been proved. It is proposed to include specific tactical training methods for each action and various combinations of basic actions into the coach program of wrestling; 2 the directions of improving psychological preparation and the structure of complex psychological and pedagogical methods of optimizing the mental condition of free style wrestlers are substantiated.

pH adjustment of human blood plasma prior to bioanalytical sample preparation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hendriks, G.; Uges, D. R. A.; Franke, J. P.

2008-01-01

pH adjustment in bioanalytical sample preparation concerning ionisable compounds is one of the most common sample treatments. This is often done by mixing an aliquot of the sample with a proper buffer adjusted to the proposed pH. The pH of the resulting mixture however, does not necessarily have to

Feasibility study for application of the compressed-sensing framework to interior computed tomography (ICT) for low-dose, high-accurate dental x-ray imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Je, U. K.; Cho, H. M.; Cho, H. S.; Park, Y. O.; Park, C. K.; Lim, H. W.; Kim, K. S.; Kim, G. A.; Park, S. Y.; Woo, T. H.; Choi, S. I.

2016-02-01

In this paper, we propose a new/next-generation type of CT examinations, the so-called Interior Computed Tomography (ICT), which may presumably lead to dose reduction to the patient outside the target region-of-interest (ROI), in dental x-ray imaging. Here an x-ray beam from each projection position covers only a relatively small ROI containing a target of diagnosis from the examined structure, leading to imaging benefits such as decreasing scatters and system cost as well as reducing imaging dose. We considered the compressed-sensing (CS) framework, rather than common filtered-backprojection (FBP)-based algorithms, for more accurate ICT reconstruction. We implemented a CS-based ICT algorithm and performed a systematic simulation to investigate the imaging characteristics. Simulation conditions of two ROI ratios of 0.28 and 0.14 between the target and the whole phantom sizes and four projection numbers of 360, 180, 90, and 45 were tested. We successfully reconstructed ICT images of substantially high image quality by using the CS framework even with few-view projection data, still preserving sharp edges in the images.

75 FR 58370 - Notice of Intent To Prepare a Legislative Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-24

... Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Extension of the Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range Land... Riverside counties, California, for continued military use of the Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range... addressing legislative alternatives and the effects of continued withdrawal. The CMAGR Draft L-EIS will...

75 FR 20379 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Hollister...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-19

... exploration. The full-scale project would augment the existing mine water management facilities that currently include a reverse-osmosis and desilting water treatment plant and rapid infiltration basins by adding... Statement for the Proposed Hollister Underground Mine Project, Elko County, NV AGENCY: Bureau of Land...

Computer aided detection of masses in mammography using subregion Hotelling observers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baydush, Alan H.; Catarious, David M.; Abbey, Craig K.; Floyd, Carey E.

2003-01-01

We propose to investigate the use of the subregion Hotelling observer for the basis of a computer aided detection scheme for masses in mammography. A database of 1320 regions of interest (ROIs) was selected from the DDSM database collected by the University of South Florida using the Lumisys scanner cases. The breakdown of the cases was as follows: 656 normal ROIs, 307 benign ROIs, and 357 cancer ROIs. Each ROI was extracted at a size of 1024x1024 pixels and subsampled to 128x128 pixels. For the detection task, cancer and benign cases were considered positive and normal was considered negative. All positive cases had the lesion centered in the ROI. We chose to investigate the subregion Hotelling observer as a classifier to detect masses. The Hotelling observer incorporates information about the signal, the background, and the noise correlation for prediction of positive and negative and is the optimal detector when these are known. For our study, 225 subregion Hotelling observers were set up in a 15x15 grid across the center of the ROIs. Each separate observer was designed to 'observe', or discriminate, an 8x8 pixel area of the image. A leave one out training and testing methodology was used to generate 225 'features', where each feature is the output of the individual observers. The 225 features derived from separate Hotelling observers were then narrowed down by using forward searching linear discriminants (LDs). The reduced set of features was then analyzed using an additional LD with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The 225 Hotelling observer features were searched by the forward searching LD, which selected a subset of 37 features. This subset of 37 features was then analyzed using an additional LD, which gave a ROC area under the curve of 0.9412+/-0.006 and a partial area of 0.6728. Additionally, at 98% sensitivity the overall classifier had a specificity of 55.9% and a positive predictive value of 69.3%. Preliminary results suggest that

Preparing for Surgery

Science.gov (United States)

... Events Advocacy For Patients About ACOG Preparing for Surgery Home For Patients Search FAQs Preparing for Surgery ... Surgery FAQ080, August 2011 PDF Format Preparing for Surgery Gynecologic Problems What is the difference between outpatient ...

75 FR 8963 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Reporting and...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-26

..., including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public...)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)) requires Federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in... Vapor Lamp Products Radiation Safety Report'' FDA Form 3647 ``Guide for Preparing Annual Reports on...

Study of preparation and surface morphology of self-ordered nanoporous alumina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodrigues, Elisa Marchezini; Martins, Maximiliano Delany; Silva, Ronald Arreguy

2013-01-01

Nanoporous alumina is a typical material that exhibits self-ordered nanochannels spontaneously organized in hexagonal shape. Produced by anodizing of metallic aluminum, it has been used as a template for production of materials at the nanoscale. This work aimed to study the preparation of nanoporous alumina by anodic anodizing of metallic aluminum substrates. The nanoporous alumina was prepared following the methodology proposed by Masuda and Fukuda (1995), a two-step method consisting of anodizing the aluminum sample in the potentiostatic mode, removing the layer of aluminum oxide (alumina) formed and then repeat the anodization process under the same conditions as the first anodization. This method produces nanoporous alumina with narrow pore diameter distribution and well-ordered structure. (author)

Robust preprocessing for stimulus-based functional MRI of the moving fetus.

Science.gov (United States)

You, Wonsang; Evangelou, Iordanis E; Zun, Zungho; Andescavage, Nickie; Limperopoulos, Catherine

2016-04-01

Fetal motion manifests as signal degradation and image artifact in the acquired time series of blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies. We present a robust preprocessing pipeline to specifically address fetal and placental motion-induced artifacts in stimulus-based fMRI with slowly cycled block design in the living fetus. In the proposed pipeline, motion correction is optimized to the experimental paradigm, and it is performed separately in each phase as well as in each region of interest (ROI), recognizing that each phase and organ experiences different types of motion. To obtain the averaged BOLD signals for each ROI, both misaligned volumes and noisy voxels are automatically detected and excluded, and the missing data are then imputed by statistical estimation based on local polynomial smoothing. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed pipeline was effective in mitigating the motion-induced artifacts in stimulus-based fMRI data of the fetal brain and placenta.

Preparation of nanodispersed titania using stabilized ammonium nitrate melts

KAUST Repository

Raciulete, Monica

2010-10-01

An expedite one-step approach using simple precursors has been proposed to obtain metallic oxide compounds and exemplified by preparation of highly dispersed TiO2. The technique consists in heating to 400500 °C of molten ammonium nitrate stabilized with an organic nitrogen-containing compound (urea, melamine, ammonium oxalate) and containing dissolved metal salt precursor (TiOCl2). The crystallites of the resulting TiO2 demonstrated variable size and shape as a function of stabilizer used. Their activity in photocatalytic oxidation of formic acid also depends on the nature of the stabilizer. The catalysts as-prepared showed high photocatalytic performance, superior to that of the Degussa P25 reference. Nitrogen containing stabilizers play a double role of increasing the process safety and modifying the properties of the solid products. © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

77 FR 130 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Intercontinental...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-03

... an underground mine to extract polyhalite ore. These prospecting permits are located about 40 miles... proposed Mine Plan of Operations includes an underground mine accessed by a shaft and a ramp, and... wells, pipelines, power lines, and a railroad load-out facility. The polyhalite will be continuously...

Functional connectivity and structural covariance between regions of interest can be measured more accurately using multivariate distance correlation.

Science.gov (United States)

Geerligs, Linda; Cam-Can; Henson, Richard N

2016-07-15

Studies of brain-wide functional connectivity or structural covariance typically use measures like the Pearson correlation coefficient, applied to data that have been averaged across voxels within regions of interest (ROIs). However, averaging across voxels may result in biased connectivity estimates when there is inhomogeneity within those ROIs, e.g., sub-regions that exhibit different patterns of functional connectivity or structural covariance. Here, we propose a new measure based on "distance correlation"; a test of multivariate dependence of high dimensional vectors, which allows for both linear and non-linear dependencies. We used simulations to show how distance correlation out-performs Pearson correlation in the face of inhomogeneous ROIs. To evaluate this new measure on real data, we use resting-state fMRI scans and T1 structural scans from 2 sessions on each of 214 participants from the Cambridge Centre for Ageing & Neuroscience (Cam-CAN) project. Pearson correlation and distance correlation showed similar average connectivity patterns, for both functional connectivity and structural covariance. Nevertheless, distance correlation was shown to be 1) more reliable across sessions, 2) more similar across participants, and 3) more robust to different sets of ROIs. Moreover, we found that the similarity between functional connectivity and structural covariance estimates was higher for distance correlation compared to Pearson correlation. We also explored the relative effects of different preprocessing options and motion artefacts on functional connectivity. Because distance correlation is easy to implement and fast to compute, it is a promising alternative to Pearson correlations for investigating ROI-based brain-wide connectivity patterns, for functional as well as structural data. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Magnetic separation techniques in sample preparation for biological analysis: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Jincan; Huang, Meiying; Wang, Dongmei; Zhang, Zhuomin; Li, Gongke

2014-12-01

Sample preparation is a fundamental and essential step in almost all the analytical procedures, especially for the analysis of complex samples like biological and environmental samples. In past decades, with advantages of superparamagnetic property, good biocompatibility and high binding capacity, functionalized magnetic materials have been widely applied in various processes of sample preparation for biological analysis. In this paper, the recent advancements of magnetic separation techniques based on magnetic materials in the field of sample preparation for biological analysis were reviewed. The strategy of magnetic separation techniques was summarized. The synthesis, stabilization and bio-functionalization of magnetic nanoparticles were reviewed in detail. Characterization of magnetic materials was also summarized. Moreover, the applications of magnetic separation techniques for the enrichment of protein, nucleic acid, cell, bioactive compound and immobilization of enzyme were described. Finally, the existed problems and possible trends of magnetic separation techniques for biological analysis in the future were proposed. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Preparing organisations for employee-driven open innovation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amundsen, O.

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The present study addresses the need to prepare organisations, small or large, for open innovation approaches, including the development of capacity to exploit the potential benefits of such principles through Employee-Driven Innovation (EDI. Based on interviews in 20 Norwegian enterprises, we propose that EDI is an under-explored opportunity in many organisations, and that the systematic introduction of EDI practices increases organisations' ability to exploit open innovation principles and favourably impacts the capacity for innovation. Specifically, EDI results in a more general interest in improvement among employees, increased engagement in innovation processes, and reduced opposition to change.

76 FR 6493 - Notice of Intent to Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed K Road/Moapa Band...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-04

... Impact Statement for the Proposed K Road/Moapa Band of Paiute Indians Photovoltaic Solar Facility, Clark... U.S.C. 415, is the BIA approval of a solar energy ground lease and associated agreements entered... proposed solar generation facility to an existing substation on a transmission line with a rating up to 500...

Remote state preparation through hyperentangled atomic states

Science.gov (United States)

Nawaz, Mehwish; ul-Islam, Rameez-; Ikram, Manzoor

2018-04-01

Hyperentangled states have enhanced channel capacity in quantum processing and have yielded` evident increased communication speed in quantum informatics as a consequence of excessively high information content coded over each quantum entity. In the present article, we intend to demonstrate this fact by utilizing atomic states simultaneously entangled both in internal as well as external degrees of freedom, i.e. the de Broglie motion for remote state preparation (RSP). The results clearly demonstrate that we can efficiently communicate two bit information while manipulating only a single quantum subsystem. The states are prepared and manipulated using atomic Bragg diffraction as well as Ramsey interferometry, both of which are now considered as standard, state of the art tools based on cavity quantum electrodynamics. Since atomic Bragg diffraction is a large interaction time regime and produces spatially well separated, decoherence resistant outputs, the schematics presented here for the RSP offer important perspectives on efficient detection as well as unambiguous information coding and readout. The article summarizes the experimental feasibility of the proposal, culminating with a brief discussion.

Oculomotor preparation as a rehearsal mechanism in spatial working memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, David G; Ball, Keira; Smith, Daniel T

2014-09-01

There is little consensus regarding the specific processes responsible for encoding, maintenance, and retrieval of information in visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM). One influential theory is that VSWM may involve activation of the eye-movement (oculomotor) system. In this study we experimentally prevented healthy participants from planning or executing saccadic eye-movements during the encoding, maintenance, and retrieval stages of visual and spatial working memory tasks. Participants experienced a significant reduction in spatial memory span only when oculomotor preparation was prevented during encoding or maintenance. In contrast there was no reduction when oculomotor preparation was prevented only during retrieval. These results show that (a) involvement of the oculomotor system is necessary for optimal maintenance of directly-indicated locations in spatial working memory and (b) oculomotor preparation is not necessary during retrieval from spatial working memory. We propose that this study is the first to unambiguously demonstrate that the oculomotor system contributes to the maintenance of spatial locations in working memory independently from the involvement of covert attention. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cajá-flavored drinks: a proposal for mixed flavor beverages and a study of the consumer profile

OpenAIRE

Mamede,Maria Eugênia de Oliveira; Kalschne,Daneysa Lahis; Santos,Adriana Pereira Coelho; Benassi,Marta de Toledo

2015-01-01

Mixed flavor beverages represent a trend that is gaining the allegiance of potential fruit juice consumers. The present study proposed to prepare mixed flavor beverages and verify their consumer acceptance. Cajá beverage (sample A) was used as the standard. The other beverages were prepared by mixing the cajá-flavored product with other flavors: strawberry (B), pineapple (C), jabuticaba (D), mango (E) and cashew (F). The consumer profiles in the two regions studied were similar. Ove...

LHC preparations change gear

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1995-01-01

After the formal approval by CERN Council in December (January, page 1) of the LHC protonproton collider for CERN's 27- kilometre LEP tunnel, preparations for the new machine change gear. Lyndon Evans becomes LHC Project Leader, and CERN's internal structure will soon be reorganized to take account of the project becoming a definite commitment. On the experimental side, the full Technical Proposals for the big general purpose ATLAS and CMS detectors were aired at a major meeting of the LHC Committee at CERN in January. These Technical Proposals are impressive documents each of some several hundred pages. (Summaries of the detector designs will appear in forthcoming issues of the CERN Courier.) The ALICE heavy ion experiment is not far behind, and plans for other LHC experiments are being developed. Playing an important role in this groundwork has been the Detector Research and Development Committee (DRDC), founded in 1990 to foster detector development for the LHC experimental programme and structured along the lines of a traditional CERN Experiments Committee. Established under the Director Generalship of Carlo Rubbia and initially steered by Research Director Walter Hoogland, the DRDC has done sterling work in blazing a trail for LHC experiments. Acknowledging that the challenge of LHC experimentation needs technological breakthroughs as well as specific detector subsystems, DRDC proposals have covered a wide front, covering readout electronics and computing as well as detector technology. Its first Chairman was Enzo larocci, succeeded in 1993 by Michal Turala. DRDC's role was to evaluate proposals, and make recommendations to CERN's Research Board for approval and resource allocation, not an easy task when the LHC project itself had yet to be formally approved. Over the years, a comprehensive portfolio of detector development has been built up, much of which has either led to specific LHC detector subsystems for traditional detector tasks

Proposed design procedure for transmission shafting under fatigue loading

Science.gov (United States)

Loewenthal, S. H.

1978-01-01

The B106 American National Standards Committee is currently preparing a new standard for the design of transmission shafting. A design procedure, proposed for use in the new standard, for computing the diameter of rotating solid steel shafts under combined cyclic bending and steady torsion is presented. The formula is based on an elliptical variation of endurance strength with torque exhibited by combined stress fatigue data. Fatigue factors are cited to correct specimen bending endurance strength data for use in the shaft formula. A design example illustrates how the method is to be applied.

77 FR 16258 - Notice of Public Scoping Meetings on an Environmental Impact Statement for Proposed Outer...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-20

... an Environmental Impact Statement for Proposed Outer Continental Shelf Gulf of Mexico Eastern... initiating in preparation for completing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National... and Gas Lease Sale 224: Eastern Planning Area, Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (OCS...

76 FR 59678 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Marshfield Reduction...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-27

... facilities: One new compressor building housing an approximately 6,300-hp gas turbine driving a centrifugal compressor unit; An 8,400 gallon condensate tank; A 2 million British Thermal Unit per hour natural gas... proposes to construct and operate a new 6,300-horsepower (hp) compressor station and appurtenant facilities...

Sulfonate-terminated carbosilane dendron-coated nanotubes: a greener point of view in protein sample preparation.

Science.gov (United States)

González-García, Estefanía; Gutiérrez Ulloa, Carlos E; de la Mata, Francisco Javier; Marina, María Luisa; García, María Concepción

2017-09-01

Reduction or removal of solvents and reagents in protein sample preparation is a requirement. Dendrimers can strongly interact with proteins and have great potential as a greener alternative to conventional methods used in protein sample preparation. This work proposes the use of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) functionalized with carbosilane dendrons with sulfonate groups for protein sample preparation and shows the successful application of the proposed methodology to extract proteins from a complex matrix. SEM images of nanotubes and mixtures of nanotubes and proteins were taken. Moreover, intrinsic fluorescence intensity of proteins was monitored to observe the most significant interactions at increasing dendron generations under neutral and basic pHs. Different conditions for the disruption of interactions between proteins and nanotubes after protein extraction and different concentrations of the disrupting reagent and the nanotube were also tried. Compatibility of extraction and disrupting conditions with the enzymatic digestion of proteins for obtaining bioactive peptides was also studied. Finally, sulfonate-terminated carbosilane dendron-coated SWCNTs enabled the extraction of proteins from a complex sample without using non-environmentally friendly solvents that were required so far. Graphical Abstract Green protein extraction from a complex sample employing carbosilane dendron coated nanotubes.

Fast liner proposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sherwood, A.R.; Freeman, B.L.; Gerwin, R.A.; Jarboe, T.R.; Krakowski, R.A.; Malone, R.C.; Marshall, J.; Miller, R.L.; Suydam, B.

1977-08-01

This is a proposal to study, both theoretically and experimentally, the possibility of making a fusion reactor by magnetically imploding a cylindrical metallic shell on a prepared plasma. The approach is characterized by the following features: (1) the nonrotating liner would be driven by an axial current, (2) the plasma would also carry an axial current that provides an azimuthal magnetic field for thermal insulation in both the radial and longitudinal directions, (3) solid end plugs would be utilized to prevent axial loss of particles, and (4) liner speeds would be in the 10 6 cm/s range. The preliminary calculations indicate (1) that the energetics are favorable (energy inputs of about 10 MJ might produce a machine in the break-even regime), (2) that radiation and heat losses could be made tolerable, (3) that alpha-particle heating could be made very effective, and (4) that Taylor instabilities in a fast liner might be harmless because of the large viscosities at high pressures. A preliminary conceptual design of the sort of fusion reactor that might result from such an approach is discussed, as are some of the relevant reactor scaling arguments

PATH OF PREPARATION OF EDUCATIONAL PROPOSAL FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION IN EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN VIEW OF BAURU THEORY PEDAGOGY OF HISTORICAL AND CRITICAL THEORY AND HISTORICAL-CULTURAL

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta de Castro Alves Corrêa

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This article aims to present the trajectory deployment of historical-critical pedagogy and cultural-historical theory in the Early Childhood Education from Municipal System of Education of Bauru and emphasize the process of formulating a new Pedagogical proposal anchored in the Marxist perspective, discussing the progress and difficulties encountered in the preparation of this document to ensure the principles of this concept in the theoretical and practical education of the collective. Therefore, it was necessary to recover the memory of the work at this stage of education since its implementation in the city, because it is understood that to investigate the educational past is possible to understand the theoretical position adopted for the realization of the formal character of the school children assumes within this pedagogy. For the organization of the study , we chose an experience report , for better suit the purposes of this paper and allow to know the variables that contributed to the choice of the historical-critical pedagogy and cultural-historical theory as a theoretical unit privileged to teach the child zero to five years.

Ultrasound estimates of muscle quality in older adults: reliability and comparison of Photoshop and ImageJ for the grayscale analysis of muscle echogenicity.

Science.gov (United States)

Harris-Love, Michael O; Seamon, Bryant A; Teixeira, Carla; Ismail, Catheeja

2016-01-01

Background. Quantitative diagnostic ultrasound imaging has been proposed as a method of estimating muscle quality using measures of echogenicity. The Rectangular Marquee Tool (RMT) and the Free Hand Tool (FHT) are two types of editing features used in Photoshop and ImageJ for determining a region of interest (ROI) within an ultrasound image. The primary objective of this study is to determine the intrarater and interrater reliability of Photoshop and ImageJ for the estimate of muscle tissue echogenicity in older adults via grayscale histogram analysis. The secondary objective is to compare the mean grayscale values obtained using both the RMT and FHT methods across both image analysis platforms. Methods. This cross-sectional observational study features 18 community-dwelling men (age = 61.5 ± 2.32 years). Longitudinal views of the rectus femoris were captured using B-mode ultrasound. The ROI for each scan was selected by 2 examiners using the RMT and FHT methods from each software program. Their reliability is assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and the standard error of the measurement (SEM). Measurement agreement for these values is depicted using Bland-Altman plots. A paired t-test is used to determine mean differences in echogenicity expressed as grayscale values using the RMT and FHT methods to select the post-image acquisition ROI. The degree of association among ROI selection methods and image analysis platforms is analyzed using the coefficient of determination (R (2)). Results. The raters demonstrated excellent intrarater and interrater reliability using the RMT and FHT methods across both platforms (lower bound 95% CI ICC = .97-.99, p Photoshop was .97 and 1.05 grayscale levels when using the RMT and FHT ROI selection methods, respectively. Comparatively, the SEM values were .72 and .81 grayscale levels, respectively, when using the RMT and FHT ROI selection methods in ImageJ. Uniform coefficients of determination (R (2) = .96

Preparation, characterization and mechanical properties of rare-earth-based nanocomposites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Musbah S.S.

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study reports research related to different preparation methods and characterization of polymer nanocomposites for optical applications. The Eu-ion doped Gd2O3 nanophosphor powder with different nanoparticle content was embedded in the matrix of PMMA. Preparation was carried out by mixing molding (bulk, electrospinning (nanofibers and solution casting (thin films with neat particles and particles coated with AMEO silane. Among the pros and cons for proposed methods, the mixing molding enables to avoid solvent use while the best deagglomeration and nanoparticle distribution is gained using the electrospinning method. The results of dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA and nanoindentation revealed that the storage modulus of the composites was higher than that of pure PMMA and increased with nanophosphor content. Surface modification of particles improved the mechanical properties of nanocomposites.

Use of Take-set system for radiopharmaceutical labelling: example of indium-111 labeled pentetreotide (Octreoscan) preparation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ben Reguiga, M.; Sinegre, M.; Besse, H.; Stievenart, J.L.; Le Guludec, D.

2009-01-01

The quality of indium 111 radiolabelled pentetreotide preparation (Octreoscan, Covidien) depends on several factors among which the use of a special transfer needle (Sterican) especially conceived to avoid the metal impurities introduction into the reactional medium during labelling. This device, usually provided by the supplier, can exceptionally present defects (twisted needle, folded bevel...) preventing its use for the preparation. In order to manage this risk, we propose in the present technical note an alternative labelling method, based on an adaptation of the original one and using another transfer device, the Take-setSWAN system, which permits to obtain high quality Octreoscan preparations that meet the product approval specifications. (authors)

Modeling oscillatory dynamics in brain microcircuits as a way to help uncover neurological disease mechanisms: A proposal

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Skinner, F. K. [Toronto Western Research Institute, University Health Network, Krembil Discovery Tower, Toronto Western Hospital, 60 Leonard Street, 7th floor, 7KD411, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8 (Canada); Department of Medicine (Neurology), University of Toronto, 200 Elizabeth Street, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C4 (Canada); Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Medical Sciences Building, 3rd Floor, 1 King' s College Circle, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8 (Canada); Ferguson, K. A. [Toronto Western Research Institute, University Health Network, Krembil Discovery Tower, Toronto Western Hospital, 60 Leonard Street, 7th floor, 7KD411, Toronto, Ontario M5T 2S8 (Canada); Department of Physiology, University of Toronto Medical Sciences Building, 3rd Floor, 1 King' s College Circle, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8 (Canada)

2013-12-15

There is an undisputed need and requirement for theoretical and computational studies in Neuroscience today. Furthermore, it is clear that oscillatory dynamical output from brain networks is representative of various behavioural states, and it is becoming clear that one could consider these outputs as measures of normal and pathological brain states. Although mathematical modeling of oscillatory dynamics in the context of neurological disease exists, it is a highly challenging endeavour because of the many levels of organization in the nervous system. This challenge is coupled with the increasing knowledge of cellular specificity and network dysfunction that is associated with disease. Recently, whole hippocampus in vitro preparations from control animals have been shown to spontaneously express oscillatory activities. In addition, when using preparations derived from animal models of disease, these activities show particular alterations. These preparations present an opportunity to address challenges involved with using models to gain insight because of easier access to simultaneous cellular and network measurements, and pharmacological modulations. We propose that by developing and using models with direct links to experiment at multiple levels, which at least include cellular and microcircuit, a cycling can be set up and used to help us determine critical mechanisms underlying neurological disease. We illustrate our proposal using our previously developed inhibitory network models in the context of these whole hippocampus preparations and show the importance of having direct links at multiple levels.

78 FR 57877 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Maricopa Solar...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-20

... companies. The project proposes to use mono/polycrystalline or ``thin film'' PV modules, which would be... National Monument, a unit of the BLM National Landscape Conservation System. The BLM will use and...

78 FR 50358 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rule, Standards...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-08-19

... Escherichia. coli exceedance of the proposed standard occurred during 5 percent of the monitoring period with.../2013/5079/SIR2013-5079.pdf . Accessed July 30, 2013. Dated: August 13, 2013. Leslie Kux, Assistant...

Design, Fabrication and Experimental Validation of a Novel Dry-Contact Sensor for Measuring Electroencephalography Signals without Skin Preparation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chin-Teng Lin

2011-05-01

Full Text Available In the present study, novel dry-contact sensors for measuring electro-encephalography (EEG signals without any skin preparation are designed, fabricated by an injection molding manufacturing process and experimentally validated. Conventional wet electrodes are commonly used to measure EEG signals; they provide excellent EEG signals subject to proper skin preparation and conductive gel application. However, a series of skin preparation procedures for applying the wet electrodes is always required and usually creates trouble for users. To overcome these drawbacks, novel dry-contact EEG sensors were proposed for potential operation in the presence or absence of hair and without any skin preparation or conductive gel usage. The dry EEG sensors were designed to contact the scalp surface with 17 spring contact probes. Each probe was designed to include a probe head, plunger, spring, and barrel. The 17 probes were inserted into a flexible substrate using a one-time forming process via an established injection molding procedure. With these 17 spring contact probes, the flexible substrate allows for high geometric conformity between the sensor and the irregular scalp surface to maintain low skin-sensor interface impedance. Additionally, the flexible substrate also initiates a sensor buffer effect, eliminating pain when force is applied. The proposed dry EEG sensor was reliable in measuring EEG signals without any skin preparation or conductive gel usage, as compared with the conventional wet electrodes.

Evaluation of chronic pulmonary emphysema ultrafast computed tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsuchida, Fumihiro; Yagyu, Hisanaga; Ohishi, Shuji; Nakamura, Hiroyuki; Matsuoka, Takeshi

2003-01-01

We compared pulmonary ventilation dynamics between 41 patients with pulmonary emphysema and 11 healthy subjects with normal pulmonary function using ultrafast computed tomography (CT). Regions of interest (ROIs) for multislice scanning were selected from the anatomical levels of the carina in the right upper lung field. Several identical slices were selected from the inspiratory and expiratory scans. The average CT values in the ROIs (AvROI) were obtained during the inspiratory phase (inAvROI) and the expiratory phase (exAvROI. The ratio of change from inAvROI to exAvROI ((I-E)/E ratio) was also used for image analysis. Furthermore, possible correlations between the CT image parameters and pulmonary function test parameters were examined. The results showed that the exAvROI and inAvROI values and (I-E)/E ratio were lower in the emphysema group than in the normal pulmonary function group. Among the image data parameters, the exAvROI value correlated most closely with pulmonary function parameters, in particular, with the pulmonary diffusing capacity. These findings suggest that image data parameters of ventilation dynamics may be useful for evaluating the severity of pulmonary emphysema. (author)

Mars Surface System Common Capabilities and Challenges for Human Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffman, Stephen J.; Toups, Larry

2016-01-01

NASA has begun a process to identify and evaluate candidate locations where humans could land, live and work on the martian surface. These locations are referred to as Exploration Zones (EZs). Given current mission concepts, an EZ is a collection of Regions of Interest (ROIs) that are located within approximately 100 kilometers of a centralized landing site. ROIs are areas that are relevant for scientific investigation and/or development/maturation of capabilities and resources necessary for a sustainable human presence. The EZ also contains a landing site and a habitation site that will be used by multiple human crews during missions to explore and utilize the ROIs within the EZ. In parallel with this process, NASA continues to make progress on the Evolvable Mars Campaign examining alternatives that can pioneer an extended human presence on Mars that is Earth independent. This involves ongoing assessments of surface systems and operations to enable a permanent, sustainable human presence. Because of the difficulty in getting equipment and supplies to the surface of Mars, part of these assessments involve identifying those systems and processes that can perform in multiple, sometimes completely unrelated, situations. These assessments have been performed in a very generic surface mission carried out at a very generic surface location. As specific candidate EZs are identified it becomes important to evaluate the current suite of surface systems and operations as they are likely to perform for the specific locations and for the types of operations - both scientific and development - that are proposed for these EZs. It is also important to evaluate the proposed EZs for their suitability to be explored or developed given the range of capabilities and constraints for the types of surface systems and operations being considered within the EMC. This means looking at setting up and operating a field station at a central location within the EZ as well as traversing to and

Novel EBSD preparation method for Cu/Sn microbumps using a focused ion beam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Tao-Chi; Chen, Chih; Chiu, Kuo-Jung; Lin, Han-Wen; Kuo, Jui-Chao

2012-01-01

We proposed a novel technique developed from focused ion beam (FIB) polishing for sample preparation of electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) measurement. A low-angle incident gallium ion beam with a high acceleration voltage of 30 kV was used to eliminate the surface roughness of cross-sectioned microbumps resulting from mechanical polishing. This work demonstrates the application of the FIB polishing technique to solders for a high-quality sample preparation for EBSD measurement after mechanical polishing. - Highlights: ► The novel FIB technique of sample preparation is fast, effective and low-cost. ► It can enhance the process precision to the specific area of the sample. ► It is convenient for analyzing the metallurgy of the microbump in 3DIC packaging. ► The EBSD image quality can be enhanced by just using a common FIB instrument.

Recycle Waste Collection Tank (RWCT) simulant testing in the PVTD feed preparation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrigo, G.P.; Daume, J.T.; Halstead, S.D.; Myers, R.L.; Beckette, M.R.; Freeman, C.J.; Hatchell, B.K.

1996-03-01

(This is part of the radwaste vitrification program at Hanford.) RWCT was to routinely receive final canister decontamination sand blast frit and rinse water, Decontamination Waste Treatment Tank bottoms, and melter off-gas Submerged Bed Scrubber filter cake. In order to address the design needs of the RWCT system to meet performance levels, the PNL Vitrification Technology (PVTD) program used the Feed Preparation Test System (FPTS) to evaluate its equipment and performance for a simulant of RWCT slurry. (FPTS is an adaptation of the Defense Waste Processing Facility feed preparation system and represents the initially proposed Hanford Waste Vitrification Plant feed preparation system designed by Fluor-Daniel, Inc.) The following were determined: mixing performance, pump priming, pump performance, simulant flow characterization, evaporator and condenser performance, and ammonia dispersion. The RWCT test had two runs, one with and one without tank baffles

Cold pressure welding of aluminium-steel blanks: Manufacturing process and electrochemical surface preparation

Science.gov (United States)

Schmidt, Hans Christian; Homberg, Werner; Orive, Alejandro Gonzalez; Grundmeier, Guido; Hordych, Illia; Maier, Hans Jürgen

2018-05-01

In this study the manufacture of aluminium-steel blanks by cold pressure welding and their preparation for a welding process through electrochemical surface treatment are investigated and discussed. The cold pressure welding process was done with an incremental rolling tool that allows for the partial pressure welding of two blanks along a prepared path. The influence of the surface preparation by electrochemical deposition of bond promoting organosilane-based agents and roughening on a nano-scale is investigated and compared to conventional surface treatments. Coating the surfaces with a thin organosilane-based film incorporating specific functional groups should promote additional bonding between the mating oxide layers; its influence on the total weld strength is studied. Pressure welding requires suitable process strategies, and the current advances in the proposed incremental rolling process for the combination of mild steel and aluminium are presented.

Preparation of polymeric aluminium ferric chloride from bauxite tailings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma D.

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Bauxite tailings are the main solid wastes in the ore dressing process. The Al2O3 and Fe2O3 contents in bauxite tailings can reach 50% and 13% respectively. The present study proposed a feasible method to use bauxite tailings to prepare polymeric aluminium ferric chloride (PAFC, a new composite inorganic polymer for water purification. Bauxite tailings roasted reacting with hydrochloric acid under air, pickle liquor which mainly contains Fe3+, Al3+ was generated, then calcium aluminate was used to adjust pH value and the basicity of the pickle liquor, the PAFC was subsequently prepared after the polymerization process. The optimal synthesizing parameters for the preparation of PAFC obtained were as follows: the concentration of hydrochloric acid of 24 wt%, ratio of hydrochloric acid to bauxite tailings of 6:1, temperature of 90ºC, leaching time of 2.5 hours, ration of pickle liquor to calcium aluminate of 12:1, polymerization temperature of 90ºC and polymerization time of about 3 hours. The basicity of PAFC was higher than 68%, the sum concentration of Al2O3 and Fe2O3 was beyond 12.5%. The results of flocculation tests indicate that the PAFC has a better performance of removing the turbidity of wastewater compared to PAC, and PAFC prepared by bauxite tailings is a kind of high quality flocculants.

Personal authentication through dorsal hand vein patterns

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Chih-Bin; Hao, Shu-Sheng; Lee, Jen-Chun

2011-08-01

Biometric identification is an emerging technology that can solve security problems in our networked society. A reliable and robust personal verification approach using dorsal hand vein patterns is proposed in this paper. The characteristic of the approach needs less computational and memory requirements and has a higher recognition accuracy. In our work, the near-infrared charge-coupled device (CCD) camera is adopted as an input device for capturing dorsal hand vein images, it has the advantages of the low-cost and noncontact imaging. In the proposed approach, two finger-peaks are automatically selected as the datum points to define the region of interest (ROI) in the dorsal hand vein images. The modified two-directional two-dimensional principal component analysis, which performs an alternate two-dimensional PCA (2DPCA) in the column direction of images in the 2DPCA subspace, is proposed to exploit the correlation of vein features inside the ROI between images. The major advantage of the proposed method is that it requires fewer coefficients for efficient dorsal hand vein image representation and recognition. The experimental results on our large dorsal hand vein database show that the presented schema achieves promising performance (false reject rate: 0.97% and false acceptance rate: 0.05%) and is feasible for dorsal hand vein recognition.

Draft regulatory analysis: notice of proposed rulemaking motor gasoline allocation revisions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

1980-06-01

The Draft Regulatory Analysis is prepared for those proposed regulations which either may have a major impact on the general economy, individual industries, or geographic regions and levels of government, or may be significant in that they affect important DOE policy concerns and are the object of public interest. The problems and proposed solutions for the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Public Hearings on the Motor Gasoline Allocation Program are examined. The ERA's mandate for this program is set out in the Emergency Petroleum Allocation Act of 1973. Under this Act, the President is empowered to enforce, at his discretion, price and allocation controls on petroleum and petroleum products, including gasoline, through September 30, 1981. The Act sets the following allocation goals: protect public health; maintain public services and agricultural operations; foster competition in the petroleum industry; distribute petroleum among industry sectors and US regions equitably; and minimize economic disruption and unnecessary interference wth market mechanisms.

Function Lateralization via Measuring Coherence Laterality

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ze; Mechanic-Hamilton, Dawn; Pluta, John; Glynn, Simon; Detre, John A.

2009-01-01

A data-driven approach for lateralization of brain function based on the spatial coherence difference of functional MRI (fMRI) data in homologous regions-of-interest (ROI) in each hemisphere is proposed. The utility of using coherence laterality (CL) to determine function laterality was assessed first by examining motor laterality using normal subjects’ data acquired both at rest and with a simple unilateral motor task and subsequently by examining mesial temporal lobe memory laterality in normal subjects and patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. The motor task was used to demonstrate that CL within motor ROI correctly lateralized functional stimulation. In patients with unilateral epilepsy studied during a scene-encoding task, CL in a hippocampus-parahippocampus-fusiform (HPF) ROI was concordant with lateralization based on task activation, and the CL index (CLI) significantly differentiated the right side group to the left side group. By contrast, normal controls showed a symmetric HPF CLI distribution. Additionally, similar memory laterality prediction results were still observed using CL in epilepsy patients with unilateral seizures after the memory encoding effect was removed from the data, suggesting the potential for lateralization of pathological brain function based on resting fMRI data. A better lateralization was further achieved via a combination of the proposed approach and the standard activation based approach, demonstrating that assessment of spatial coherence changes provides a complementary approach to quantifying task-correlated activity for lateralizing brain function. PMID:19345736

Study of robot landmark recognition with complex background

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yuqing; Yang, Jia

2007-12-01

It's of great importance for assisting robot in path planning, position navigating and task performing by perceiving and recognising environment characteristic. To solve the problem of monocular-vision-oriented landmark recognition for mobile intelligent robot marching with complex background, a kind of nested region growing algorithm which fused with transcendental color information and based on current maximum convergence center is proposed, allowing invariance localization to changes in position, scale, rotation, jitters and weather conditions. Firstly, a novel experiment threshold based on RGB vision model is used for the first image segmentation, which allowing some objects and partial scenes with similar color to landmarks also are detected with landmarks together. Secondly, with current maximum convergence center on segmented image as each growing seed point, the above region growing algorithm accordingly starts to establish several Regions of Interest (ROI) orderly. According to shape characteristics, a quick and effectual contour analysis based on primitive element is applied in deciding whether current ROI could be reserved or deleted after each region growing, then each ROI is judged initially and positioned. When the position information as feedback is conveyed to the gray image, the whole landmarks are extracted accurately with the second segmentation on the local image that exclusive to landmark area. Finally, landmarks are recognised by Hopfield neural network. Results issued from experiments on a great number of images with both campus and urban district as background show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Environmental analysis and data report prepared for the environmental assessment of remedial action at the Lowman uranium mill tailings site near Lowman, Idaho

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-01-01

This document contains information and data gathered in support of the preparation of the environmental assessment (EA) of the proposed remedial action at the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project site near Lowman, Idaho. The Lowman EA was prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which requires Federal agencies to assess the effects of their actions on the environment. It examines the short-term and the long-term effects of the US Department of Energy's (DOE) proposed remedial action for the Lowman site as well as the no action alternative. The DOE will use the information and analyses presented in the EA to determine whether the proposed action would have a significant impact on the environment. If the impacts are determined to be significant, an environmental impact statement will be prepared. If the impacts are not judged to be significant, the DOE may issue a Finding of No Significant Impact and implement the proposed action. The information and data presented in this environmental analyses and data report are for background purposes only and are not required as part of the NEPA decision-making process

Diffusion-weighted imaging of breast lesions: Region-of-interest placement and different ADC parameters influence apparent diffusion coefficient values

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bickel, Hubert; Pinker, Katja; Polanec, Stephan; Magometschnigg, Heinrich; Wengert, Georg; Spick, Claudio; Helbich, Thomas H.; Baltzer, Pascal [Medical University Vienna, Division of Molecular and Gender Imaging, Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy, Vienna (Austria); Bogner, Wolfgang [Medical University Vienna - MR Center of Excellence, Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-Guided Therapy, Vienna (Austria); Bago-Horvath, Zsuzsanna [Medical University Vienna, Department of Pathology, Vienna (Austria)

2017-05-15

To investigate the influence of region-of-interest (ROI) placement and different apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) parameters on ADC values, diagnostic performance, reproducibility and measurement time in breast tumours. In this IRB-approved, retrospective study, 149 histopathologically proven breast tumours (109 malignant, 40 benign) in 147 women (mean age 53.2) were investigated. Three radiologists independently measured minimum, mean and maximum ADC, each using three ROI placement approaches:1 - small 2D-ROI, 2 - large 2D-ROI and 3 - 3D-ROI covering the whole lesion. One reader performed all measurements twice. Median ADC values, diagnostic performance, reproducibility, and measurement time were calculated and compared between all combinations of ROI placement approaches and ADC parameters. Median ADC values differed significantly between the ROI placement approaches (p <.001). Minimum ADC showed the best diagnostic performance (AUC.928-.956), followed by mean ADC obtained from 2D ROIs (.926-.94). Minimum and mean ADC showed high intra- (ICC.85-.94) and inter-reader reproducibility (ICC.74-.94). Median measurement time was significantly shorter for the 2D ROIs (p <.001). ROI placement significantly influences ADC values measured in breast tumours. Minimum and mean ADC acquired from 2D-ROIs are useful for the differentiation of benign and malignant breast lesions, and are highly reproducible, with rapid measurement. (orig.)

Finding of no significant impact proposed corrective action for the Northeast Site at the Pinellas Plant in Largo, Florida

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-06-01

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has prepared an Environmental Assessment (EA) (DOE/EA-0976) of the proposed corrective action for the Northeast Site at the Pinellas Plant in Largo, Florida. The Northeast Site contains contaminated groundwater that would be removed, treated, and discharged to the Pinellas County Sewer System. Based on the analyses in the EA, the DOE has determined that the proposed action is not a major Federal action significantly affecting the quality of the human environment, within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C.4321 et.seq. Therefore, the preparation of an environmental impact statement is not required and the DOE is issuing this Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI).

Proceedings of the public meeting to address a proposed federal radiation research agenda. Volume 2. Science projection papers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-03-01

Separate abstracts were prepared for the 14 science projection papers presented at a public meeting on March 10-11, 1980 to address a proposed federal radiation research agenda into the biological effects of ionizing radiation

Archaeological Excavation Report for Proposed Well 199-K-131 in Support of the 100-KR-4 Pump-and-Treat Project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woody, Dave M.; Prendergast-Kennedy, Ellen L.

2004-06-22

An archaeological excavation was conducted at the site of proposed groundwater monitoring well 199-K-131 in support of the 100-KR-4 Pump-and-Treat Project between June 2 and 3, 2004. Excavations confirmed that there were no intact cultural deposits at the proposed well location. This report was prepared to document the findings of the test excavation.

Method of preparing light-weight plugging mud

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gorskiy, V F; Melnichuk, A N; Vernikovskiy, A N

1982-01-01

A method is proposed for preparing a light-weight plugging mud which includes mixing Portland cement on an aqueous suspension of palygorskite. It is distinguished by the fact that in order to improve the quality of the mud and strength of the cement stone with simultaneous decrease in the gas permeability, before mixing the Portland cement, the aqueous suspension of palygorskite is dispersed to stabilization of viscosity, and after mixing the Portland cement, the obtained cement-clay mixture is exposed to additional dispersion under pressure. The ratio of the ingredients is the following (% by mass): Portland cement 32.0-61.0; palygorskite 1.2-2.9; water--the rest.

European experiences of the proposed ASTM test method for crack arrest toughness of ferritic materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jutla, T.; Lidbury, D.P.G.; Ziebs, J.; Zimmermann, C.

1986-01-01

The proposed ASTM test method for measuring the crack arrest toughness of ferritic materials using wedge-loaded, side-grooved, compact specimens was applied to three steels: A514 bridge steel, A588 bridge steel, and A533B pressure vessel steel. Five sets of results from different laboratories are discussed here. Notches were prepared by spark erosion, although root radii varied from ∝0.1-1.5 mm. Although fast fractures were successfully initiated, arrest did not occur in a significant number of cases. The results showed no obvious dependence of crack arrest toughness, K a , (determined by a static analysis) on crack initiation toughness, K 0 . It was found that K a decreases markedly with increasing crack jump distance. A limited amount of further work on smaller specimens of the A533B steel showed that lower K a values tended to be recorded. It is concluded that a number of points relating to the proposed test method and notch preparation are worthy of further consideration. It is pointed out that the proposed validity criteria may screen out lower bound data. Nevertheless, for present practical purposes, K a values may be regarded as useful in providing an estimate of arrest toughness - although not necessarily a conservative estimate. (orig./HP)

76 FR 52676 - Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB Continuum of Care Check-Up...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-23

... Chief Information Officer, HUD. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The proposed information collection requirement... assistance needs, prepare for training conferences, develop sample tools and templates, guidebooks, Webinars... of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503; fax: 202-395-5806. E...

Ferroelectric Dipole Electrets Prepared from Soft and Hard PZT Ceramics in Electrostatic Vibration Energy Harvesters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Asanuma, H; Oguchi, H; Hara, M; Kuwano, H

2013-01-01

Aiming at longer stability of surface potential, we propose a ferroelectric dipole electret (FDE) prepared from hard ferroelectric material. We compared output power of electrostatic vibration energy harvester and surface potential stability between FDEs prepared from soft and hard PZT ceramics, as well as a CYTOP polymer electret. The hard FDE showed a seven-fold increase in output power over the soft FDE and nine-fold increase over the CYTOP polymer electret. The hard FDE also showed longer stability of surface potential than that of the soft FDE, whereas the stability of the hard FDE was not yet comparable to that of CYTOP polymer electret. A FDE prepared from harder PZT ceramic (with higher coercive electric field and Curie temperature) may provide more stability in surface potential

A Data Preparation Methodology in Data Mining Applied to Mortality Population Databases.

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez, Joaquín; Iturbide, Emmanuel; Olivares, Víctor; Hidalgo, Miguel; Martínez, Alicia; Almanza, Nelva

2015-11-01

It is known that the data preparation phase is the most time consuming in the data mining process, using up to 50% or up to 70% of the total project time. Currently, data mining methodologies are of general purpose and one of their limitations is that they do not provide a guide about what particular task to develop in a specific domain. This paper shows a new data preparation methodology oriented to the epidemiological domain in which we have identified two sets of tasks: General Data Preparation and Specific Data Preparation. For both sets, the Cross-Industry Standard Process for Data Mining (CRISP-DM) is adopted as a guideline. The main contribution of our methodology is fourteen specialized tasks concerning such domain. To validate the proposed methodology, we developed a data mining system and the entire process was applied to real mortality databases. The results were encouraging because it was observed that the use of the methodology reduced some of the time consuming tasks and the data mining system showed findings of unknown and potentially useful patterns for the public health services in Mexico.

Ultrasound estimates of muscle quality in older adults: reliability and comparison of Photoshop and ImageJ for the grayscale analysis of muscle echogenicity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael O. Harris-Love

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Background. Quantitative diagnostic ultrasound imaging has been proposed as a method of estimating muscle quality using measures of echogenicity. The Rectangular Marquee Tool (RMT and the Free Hand Tool (FHT are two types of editing features used in Photoshop and ImageJ for determining a region of interest (ROI within an ultrasound image. The primary objective of this study is to determine the intrarater and interrater reliability of Photoshop and ImageJ for the estimate of muscle tissue echogenicity in older adults via grayscale histogram analysis. The secondary objective is to compare the mean grayscale values obtained using both the RMT and FHT methods across both image analysis platforms. Methods. This cross-sectional observational study features 18 community-dwelling men (age = 61.5 ± 2.32 years. Longitudinal views of the rectus femoris were captured using B-mode ultrasound. The ROI for each scan was selected by 2 examiners using the RMT and FHT methods from each software program. Their reliability is assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs and the standard error of the measurement (SEM. Measurement agreement for these values is depicted using Bland-Altman plots. A paired t-test is used to determine mean differences in echogenicity expressed as grayscale values using the RMT and FHT methods to select the post-image acquisition ROI. The degree of association among ROI selection methods and image analysis platforms is analyzed using the coefficient of determination (R2. Results. The raters demonstrated excellent intrarater and interrater reliability using the RMT and FHT methods across both platforms (lower bound 95% CI ICC = .97–.99, p < .001. Mean differences between the echogenicity estimates obtained with the RMT and FHT methods was .87 grayscale levels (95% CI [.54–1.21], p < .0001 using data obtained with both programs. The SEM for Photoshop was .97 and 1.05 grayscale levels when using the RMT and FHT ROI selection

Standardized Competencies for Parenteral Nutrition Order Review and Parenteral Nutrition Preparation, Including Compounding: The ASPEN Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Boullata, Joseph I; Holcombe, Beverly; Sacks, Gordon; Gervasio, Jane; Adams, Stephen C; Christensen, Michael; Durfee, Sharon; Ayers, Phil; Marshall, Neil; Guenter, Peggi

2016-08-01

Parenteral nutrition (PN) is a high-alert medication with a complex drug use process. Key steps in the process include the review of each PN prescription followed by the preparation of the formulation. The preparation step includes compounding the PN or activating a standardized commercially available PN product. The verification and review, as well as preparation of this complex therapy, require competency that may be determined by using a standardized process for pharmacists and for pharmacy technicians involved with PN. An American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN) standardized model for PN order review and PN preparation competencies is proposed based on a competency framework, the ASPEN-published interdisciplinary core competencies, safe practice recommendations, and clinical guidelines, and is intended for institutions and agencies to use with their staff. © 2016 American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition.

A voxelwise approach to determine consensus regions-of-interest for the study of brain network plasticity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sarah M. Rajtmajer

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Despite exciting advances in the functional imaging of the brain, it remains a challenge to define regions of interest (ROIs that do not require investigator supervision and permit examination of change in networks over time (or plasticity. Plasticity is most readily examined by maintaining ROIs constant via seed-based and anatomical-atlas based techniques, but these approaches are not data-driven, requiring definition based on prior experience (e.g. choice of seed-region, anatomical landmarks. These approaches are limiting especially when functional connectivity may evolve over time in areas that are finer than known anatomical landmarks or in areas outside predetermined seeded regions. An ideal method would permit investigators to study network plasticity due to learning, maturation effects, or clinical recovery via multiple time point data that can be compared to one another in the same ROI while also preserving the voxel-level data in those ROIs at each time point. Data-driven approaches (e.g., whole-brain voxelwise approaches ameliorate concerns regarding investigator bias, but the fundamental problem of comparing the results between distinct data sets remains. In this paper we propose an approach, aggregate-initialized label propagation (AILP, which allows for data at separate time points to be compared for examining developmental processes resulting in network change (plasticity. To do so, we use a whole-brain modularity approach to parcellate the brain into anatomically constrained functional modules at separate time points and then apply the AILP algorithm to form a consensus set of ROIs for examining change over time. To demonstrate its utility, we make use of a known dataset of individuals with traumatic brain injury sampled at two time points during the first year of recovery and show how the AILP procedure can be applied to select regions of interest to be used in a graph theoretical analysis of plasticity.

77 FR 12818 - Intent To Prepare a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rio Grande...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-02

... damage from floods emanating from the Rio Grande. The local cost-sharing sponsors of the proposed project...; flood and sediment control dams; local levees; intermittent levee replacement; watershed land treatment... and Fish, and the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Officer. Coordination will continue...

75 FR 47564 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Modernization and...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-06

.... Additional information concerning the meetings and the proposed alternatives are available on the EIS website...'s public website at http://www.townsendbombingrangeeis.com ; (3) E-mail to townsendbombingrangeeis... airspace/air traffic. Relevant and reasonable measures that could avoid or mitigate environmental effects...

Sodium Dichromate Barrel Landfill expedited response action proposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-09-01

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) recommended that the US Department of Energy (DOE) prepare an expedited response action (ERA) for the Sodium Dichromate Barrel Landfill. The Sodium Dichromate Barrel Disposal Site was used in 1945 for disposal of crushed barrels. The site location is the sole waste site within the 100-IU-4 Operable Unit. The Waste Information Data System (WIDS 1992) assumes that the crushed barrels contained 1% residual sodium dichromate at burial time and that only buried crushed barrels are at the site. Burial depth is shallow since visual inspection finds numerous barrel debris on the surface. A non-time-critical ERA proposal includes preparation of an engineering evaluation and cost analysis (EE/CA) section. The EE/CA is a rapid, focused evaluation of available technologies using specific screening factors to assess feasibility, appropriateness, and cost. The ERA goal is to reduce the potential for any contaminant migration from the landfill to the soil column, groundwater, and Columbia River. Since the landfill is the only waste site within the operable unit, the ERA will present a final remediation of the 100-IU-4 operable unit

Revisiting Wasson's Soma: exploring the effects of preparation on the chemistry of Amanita muscaria.

Science.gov (United States)

Feeney, Kevin

2010-12-01

In 1968 R. Gordon Wasson first proposed his groundbreaking theory identifying Soma, the hallucinogenic sacrament of the Vedas, as the Amanita muscaria mushroom. While Wasson's theory has garnered acclaim, it is not without its faults. One omission in Wasson's theory is his failure to explain how pressing and filtering Soma, as described in the Rig Veda, supports his theory of Soma's identity. Several critics have reasoned that such preparation should be unnecessary if equivalent results can be obtained by consuming the raw plant, as is done with other psychoactive mushrooms. In order to address these specific criticisms over 600 anecdotal accounts of Amanita muscaria inebriation were collected and analyzed to determine the impact of preparation on Amanita muscaria's effects. The findings of this study demonstrated that the effects of Amanita muscaria were related to the type of preparation employed, and that its toxic effects were considerably reduced by preparations that paralleled those described for Soma in the Rig Veda. While unlikely to end debate over the identity of Soma, this study's findings help to solidify the foundation of Wasson's theory, and also to demonstrate the importance of preparation in understanding and uncovering the true identity of Soma.

Preparation of medicines for children - a hierarchy of classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Ernest, Terry B; Craig, Jo; Nunn, Anthony; Salunke, Smita; Tuleu, Catherine; Breitkreutz, Joerg; Alex, Rainer; Hempenstall, John

2012-10-05

There is some confusion about the types of paediatric pharmaceutical preparation (in a regulatory and pharmaceutical development context) that are acceptable for approval by medicines regulators. Some of the confusion relates to terminology which may mean different things to different stakeholders. It may not always be possible to provide authorised, commercially manufactured, age appropriate, ready-to-administer preparations. In terms of assurance of quality and bioavailability there is a continuum from this ideal through intermediate products through authorised compounding and manipulation of commercial dosage forms to ad hoc compounding using only the skills and experience of the individual pharmacist. Additionally, it is widely known that caregivers may manipulate medicines at home, for example by segmenting tablets and by addition to foods or liquids. The first intent of the manufacturer should be to provide for children an age appropriate, ready-to-administer preparation which is commercially manufactured and approved by the competent authorities. However, there will still be a place for providing other age appropriate preparations such as approved products that are 'intermediates' requiring reconstitution before use, or instructions for compounding or manipulation of a dosage form. If compounding or manipulation is likely to be required it is preferable that data are generated by Industry, approved by the competent authorities and provided in the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC). It is acknowledged however, that ad hoc compounding or manipulation may also take place in certain circumstances such as logistical difficulties or to satisfy the needs of the child who does not find the authorised product to be 'age appropriate'. This paper explores compounding and manipulation of medicines in relation to approval by medicines regulators and non-approved preparation to fulfil the needs of the individual patient. Definitions are proposed to provide a

Technetium-99m ceftizoxime kit preparation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone Odília Fernandes Diniz

2005-10-01

Full Text Available The aim of this work was to prepare a kit of 99mTc-ceftizoxime (99mTc-CFT, with stability and biological activity preserved, able to identify a septic focus (E. coli in the experimental infection model in rats. The preparation of the CFT kit involved the use of lyophilized solutions containing the antibiotic ceftizoxime and the sodium dithionite reducing agent (6.0 mg/mL. After lyophilization, the kit was reconstituted with 1.0 mL of sodium 99mTc-pertechnetate solution (Na99mTcO4- with an activity of 370 MBq. The solution was boiled for 10 min and filtered through a cellulose ester filter. The labeling efficiency was on the order of 92%, remaining stable for six hours and the kit remained stable for two months. The biological activity of the 99mTc-CFT was evaluated by diffusion in agar impregnated with E.coli and S. aureus. Seven Wistar rats, weighing from 200 to 250 g, were used for the development of the septic focus. After 24 hours from the induction of the infectious site (E.coli, the animals were anesthetized and 0.1 mL of 99mTc-CFT (37 MBq was injected into the tail veins of the animals. The images were obtained with a gamma camera one, two and six hours after injection and the regions of interest (ROIs were calculated. The diameters of the inhibition halos for 99mTc-CFT were 27.16 ± 0.23 and 27.17 ± 0.20 for S.aureus and E.coli, respectively, while those for the unlabeled CFT were 30.4 ± 0.33 and 29.43 ± 0.26, respectively. The results for the biodistribution of 99mTc-CFT in infected animals furnished a ratio of 1.97 ± 0.31, 2.10 ± 0.42 and 2.01 ± 0.42 for cpm-target/cpm-no target for the one, two and six-hour periods, respectively. The images showed a clear uptake of labeled antibiotic (99mTc-CFT by the infectious site during the experiment. The results attest to the viability of producing a kit with 99m technetium-labeled ceftizoxime for the investigation of infectious processes.O objetivo deste trabalho foi preparar um kit de Tc

30 Energy Cities' proposals for the energy transition of cities and towns

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

In 2012, Energy Cities initiated a collective process aimed at making proposals to accelerate the energy transition of European territories. The 30 Proposals presented in this document are the result of part of this collective work. Other proposals are available on the Internet. These Proposals are based on the observation and analysis of hundreds of practical examples, all stemming from existing practices. Our intention is to make these practices 'talk', to convey their meaning and to show the path they are pointing at, sometimes without us being aware of it. The criterion for selecting these Proposals is straightforward and concerns their transforming capacity, that is, their ability to change the way we think and act. Specific attention has therefore been given to all aspects of innovation, including territorial governance. These Proposals aim to 'recreate society' through a subject which concerns us all, energy, and beyond this, to open avenues to the transition towards a more humane economy, more attuned to the challenges of the century. Proposals: 1 - Empowering local players: Take local control of energy supply; Unite all stakeholders in a local energy alliance; Ensure public budgets integrate positive and negative energy externalities; Co-create a long-term vision to shape all policies; Eradicate local fuel poverty; Lead by example by transforming municipal energy management; Prepare an Energy Transition Action Plan; Be part of regional, national and European networks to gain exposure to others' experience; 2 - Knowing our territories' resources and flows: Know the territory's metabolism so as to optimise local potential and reduce the impact of human activities on the ecosystem; Identify local energy potential in order to live within our means; Prepare a local heat plan to match need and available resource; Create and implement a territorial bio-waste action plan; Make the best use of energy and material flows by encouraging synergies between players; Make

Sample preparation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1992-01-01

Sample preparation prior to HPLC analysis is certainly one of the most important steps to consider in trace or ultratrace analysis. For many years scientists have tried to simplify the sample preparation process. It is rarely possible to inject a neat liquid sample or a sample where preparation may not be any more complex than dissolution of the sample in a given solvent. The last process alone can remove insoluble materials, which is especially helpful with the samples in complex matrices if other interactions do not affect extraction. Here, it is very likely a large number of components will not dissolve and are, therefore, eliminated by a simple filtration process. In most cases, the process of sample preparation is not as simple as dissolution of the component interest. At times, enrichment is necessary, that is, the component of interest is present in very large volume or mass of material. It needs to be concentrated in some manner so a small volume of the concentrated or enriched sample can be injected into HPLC. 88 refs

75 FR 18875 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Dairy Syncline...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-13

... facilitate mobile equipment operation and personnel, some small support facilities at the active mining sites.... Plans have been developed and submitted for agency review of proposed open pit mining operations at the... new mining operations at the Dairy Syncline Phosphate Lease Area lie within the Caribou-Targhee...

76 FR 20370 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Normally Pressured...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-12

... . Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Pinedale Field Office and will be posted online... wildlife habitats and populations within the Project Area, including big game, raptors, and sage-grouse... water depletions and effects on downstream listed fish species; Impacts to lands with wilderness...

The Surface Imprinted Polystyrene Beads Prepared via Emulsion Templates

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Guo Xiang CHENG; Guang Ling PEI; Ling Gang ZENG; Li Yong ZHANG; Chao LIU

2004-01-01

In this paper, the surface imprinted cross-linked polystyrene beads were prepared via suspension polymerization with styrene (St), divinylbezene (DVB), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA1788), the mixture of Span 85 and xylene or the mixture of Span 85 and paraffin as monomer, cross-linking agent, dispersion stabilizer and templates, respectively. The results indicate that there are dense cavities on the surface of beads, and the diameter and density of cavity are related with the composition and amount of emulsion template. The forming mechanism of cavity from thermodynamics and dynamics was proposed.

Experience in the Canadian programme in preparing for DGRs of all waste types. Preparing for Canada's DGR Projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gierszewski, Paul

2014-01-01

Document available in abstract form only. Full text follows: The presentation gives an overview of two Canadian Deep Geologic Repository projects, and draws on this experience with respect to the Workshop topics of Issues for Construction, Preparing as an Organization, and Optimization. The first project is the Ontario Power Generation proposed DGR for Low and Intermediate Level Waste. This facility would be sited at the Bruce nuclear site near Kincardine, Ontario. The project is currently in the Environmental Assessment and Site Preparation and Construction Licensing stage. The second project is the Nuclear Waste Management Organisation's proposed DGR for used fuel. This facility is currently in the siting phase. This is a staged process to find a willing and informed host community. Currently several communities have indicated interest in learning more about the project and having an initial feasibility screening conducted on their area. Construction of a DGR is a large undertaking, with numerous technical topics to be addressed that may not be initially considered as part of conceptual design and initial postclosure safety assessment. Examples of construction issues that may affect the design are: - Site access (supplies, access, workforce, and infrastructure); - Shaft sinking approach, and ensuring it aligns with need for geo-scientific information and postclosure performance; - Local rock stresses impacting DGR design and layout; and - Regulations applicable to DGR and their implications. Examples of topics that need to be taken into account with respect to transition as an organization from a research or siting group to preparing to build a DGR are: - Staffing, and evolution of required skills; - Establishing appropriate Quality Assurance processes; - Establishing design / records management; Optimization proceeds in stages. During conceptual/preliminary design, there is iterative development of the safety case between geoscience, engineering and safety

Manufacture of high-strength composite materials from prepregs prepared by radiation processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laricheva, V.P.; Korotkij, A.F.

2008-01-01

Scientific principles of the manufacture of high-strength heat-resistant polymer composite materials with the successive ionizing-radiation and heat treatment (via the step of long-lived prepregs) were developed. Methods for the selection of components for the preparation of long-lived prepregs, as well as for the determination of the optimal curing conditions, were proposed. The mechanical properties of the materials were studied [ru

Use of Take-set system for radiopharmaceutical labelling: example of indium-111 labeled pentetreotide (Octreoscan) preparation; Utilisation du systeme Take-set pour le radiomarquage des medicaments radiopharmaceutiques: exemple de la preparation du pentetreotide marque a l'indium 111 (Octreoscan)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ben Reguiga, M.; Sinegre, M. [Hopital Beaujon, Unite de Radiopharmacie, Service de Pharmacie-toxicologie, 92 - Clichy (France); Besse, H.; Stievenart, J.L.; Le Guludec, D. [Hopital Beaujon, Service de Medecine Nucleaire92 - Clichy (France)

2009-09-15

The quality of indium 111 radiolabelled pentetreotide preparation (Octreoscan, Covidien) depends on several factors among which the use of a special transfer needle (Sterican) especially conceived to avoid the metal impurities introduction into the reactional medium during labelling. This device, usually provided by the supplier, can exceptionally present defects (twisted needle, folded bevel...) preventing its use for the preparation. In order to manage this risk, we propose in the present technical note an alternative labelling method, based on an adaptation of the original one and using another transfer device, the Take-setSWAN system, which permits to obtain high quality Octreoscan preparations that meet the product approval specifications. (authors)

Researcher Self-Care in Emotionally Demanding Research: A Proposed Conceptual Framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Smita; Cavallaro, Liz

2018-03-01

Researchers are emotionally and psychologically affected by emotionally demanding research that demands a tremendous amount of mental, emotional, or physical energy and potentially affects or depletes the researcher's well-being. Little attention has been given to preparing doctoral students and novice researchers engaged in such studies. Four possible types of emotionally demanding research experiences are presented: sensitive issues, personal trauma previously experienced, experience of traumatic life events during research, and unexpected events that arise during research in what was previously not identified as a sensitive issue. The need for self-care is highly relevant to each type, despite their different impacts on researcher well-being. This conceptual article furthers conversation in the field about how researchers and educators can address the need for self-care to prepare novice researchers and proposes a conceptual framework for researcher self-care in emotionally demanding research, with an aim for future empirical study.

MODEL OF TECTONIC EARTHQUAKE PREPARATION AND OCCURRENCE AND ITS PRECURSORS IN CONDITIONS OF CRUSTAL STRETCHING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. M. Semenov

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In connection with changes in the stress-strain state of the Earth's crust, various physical and mechanical processes, including destruction, take place in the rocks and are accompanied by tectonic earthquakes. Different models have been proposed to describe earthquake preparation and occurrence, depending on the mechanisms and the rates of geodynamic processes. One of the models considers crustal stretching that is characteristic of formation of rift structures. The model uses the data on rock samples that are stretched until destruction in a special laboratory installation. Based on the laboratory modeling, it is established that the samples are destroyed in stages that are interpreted as stages of preparation and occurrence of an earthquake source. The preparation stage of underground tremors is generally manifested by a variety of temporal (long-, medium- and short-term precursors. The main shortcoming of micro-modeling is that, considering small sizes of the investigated samples, it is impossible to reveal a link between the plastic extension of rocks (taking place in the earthquake hypocenter and the rock rupture. Plasticity is the ability of certain rocks to change shape and size irreversibly, while the rock continuity is maintained, in response to applied external forces. In order to take into account the effect of plastic deformation of rocks on earthquake preparation and occurrence, we propose not to refer to the diagrams showing stretching of the rock samples, but use a typical diagram of metal stretching, which can be obtained when testing a metal rod for breakage (Fig. 1. The diagram of metal stretching as a function of the relative elongation (to some degree of approximation and taking into account the coefficient of plasticity can be considered as a model of preparation and occurrence of an earthquake source in case of rifting. The energy released in the period immediately preceding the earthquake contributes to the emergence of

76 FR 11259 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Rasmussen Valley...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-01

... operation, a small support staging facility would be constructed at the active mining site immediately west... cooperating agency. The mining and reclamation plans have been developed and submitted for agency review of proposed open pit mining operations at the Rasmussen Valley Phosphate Federal Mineral Lease I-05975, in...

76 FR 336 - Intent To Prepare a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for PacRim Coal's Proposed...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-04

... Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for PacRim Coal's Proposed Chuitna Coal Project AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of... Chuitna Coal Project. It is anticipated that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Native Village... the Alaska Surface Coal Mining Control and Reclamation Act (ASCMCRA) permit, which governs all aspects...

76 FR 34211 - Intent To Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Kennecott Utah Copper...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-13

... Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Kennecott Utah Copper LLC Tailings Expansion Project, Near Magna... Copper Tailings Expansion Project, an expansion of an active commercial mining operation near Magna, Salt Lake County, UT. Kennecott Utah Copper LLC (KUC) has applied for a Department of the Army (DA) permit...

Preparation of pure TiO2 sorption material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Špendlíková, Irena; Raindl, Jakub; Němec, Mojmír

2013-01-01

Among the natural or anthropogenic radionuclides of very low concentrations nowadays measured in environmental samples, the radionuclide of 236 U has been recently included. In these ultra-trace analyses, the purity of sorption materials is very important and the traditional preparation procedures have to be optimized to minimize possible contamination. In the case of the determination of natural concentration of 236 U ( 236 U/ 238 U ∼ 10 -10 - 10 -14 ), the sample treatment procedure has to be modified in order to eliminate possible contamination from anthropogenic 236 U that may result even in more than ten thousand times higher 236 U/ 238 U ratios. Many inorganic and organic materials have been proposed for the extraction of uranium. However, only several of them are suitable for the uranium sorption from the solutions of low uranium concentration, but relatively high salt content, such as fresh water, sea water etc. At the same time they have to meet other limiting parameters such as fast kinetics, chemical stability, and low costs. Among the inorganic sorption materials, titanium dioxide has been studied for years with promising results. Titanium dioxides can be prepared via the hydrolysis of titanium compounds, either inorganic salts or organic derivatives, but their properties strongly depend on the preparation conditions. In classical procedures, titanium dioxides are prepared from commercial inorganic salts, such as sulphates or chlorides, or even from industrial intermediates of the titanium white production. Typically, the resulting titanium dioxides are contaminated with uranium already from the origin. Assuming that most organic compounds do not contain uranium and that it is possible to find 'uranium free' water, titanium dioxide free of uranium contamination could be prepared by the hydrolysis of organic titanium derivatives. The aim of this study was to find a suitable way of pure titanium dioxide preparation and to optimize the preparation

The definition of basic parameters of the set of small-sized equipment for preparation of dry mortar for various applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emelyanova Inga

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Based on the conducted information retrieval and review of the scientific literature, unsolved issues have been identified in the process of preparation of dry construction mixtures in the conditions of a construction site. The constructions of existing technological complexes for the production of dry construction mixtures are considered and their main drawbacks are identified in terms of application in the conditions of the construction site. On the basis of the conducted research, the designs of technological sets of small-sized equipment for the preparation of dry construction mixtures in the construction site are proposed. It is found out that the basis for creating the proposed technological kits are new designs of concrete mixers operating in cascade mode. A technique for calculating the main parameters of technological sets of equipment is proposed, depending on the use of the base machine of the kit.

Inter-plane artifact suppression in tomosynthesis using 3D CT image data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kim Jae G

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite its superb lateral resolution, flat-panel-detector (FPD based tomosynthesis suffers from low contrast and inter-plane artifacts caused by incomplete cancellation of the projection components stemming from outside the focal plane. The incomplete cancellation of the projection components, mostly due to the limited scan angle in the conventional tomosynthesis scan geometry, often makes the image contrast too low to differentiate the malignant tissues from the background tissues with confidence. Methods In this paper, we propose a new method to suppress the inter-plane artifacts in FPD-based tomosynthesis. If 3D whole volume CT images are available before the tomosynthesis scan, the CT image data can be incorporated into the tomosynthesis image reconstruction to suppress the inter-plane artifacts, hence, improving the image contrast. In the proposed technique, the projection components stemming from outside the region-of-interest (ROI are subtracted from the measured tomosynthesis projection data to suppress the inter-plane artifacts. The projection components stemming from outside the ROI are calculated from the 3D whole volume CT images which usually have lower lateral resolution than the tomosynthesis images. The tomosynthesis images are reconstructed from the subtracted projection data which account for the x-ray attenuation through the ROI. After verifying the proposed method by simulation, we have performed both CT scan and tomosynthesis scan on a phantom and a sacrificed rat using a FPD-based micro-CT. Results We have measured contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR from the tomosynthesis images which is an indicator of the residual inter-plane artifacts on the focal-plane image. In both cases of the simulation and experimental imaging studies of the contrast evaluating phantom, CNRs have been significantly improved by the proposed method. In the rat imaging also, we have observed better visual contrast from the tomosynthesis

Inter-plane artifact suppression in tomosynthesis using 3D CT image data

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Despite its superb lateral resolution, flat-panel-detector (FPD) based tomosynthesis suffers from low contrast and inter-plane artifacts caused by incomplete cancellation of the projection components stemming from outside the focal plane. The incomplete cancellation of the projection components, mostly due to the limited scan angle in the conventional tomosynthesis scan geometry, often makes the image contrast too low to differentiate the malignant tissues from the background tissues with confidence. Methods In this paper, we propose a new method to suppress the inter-plane artifacts in FPD-based tomosynthesis. If 3D whole volume CT images are available before the tomosynthesis scan, the CT image data can be incorporated into the tomosynthesis image reconstruction to suppress the inter-plane artifacts, hence, improving the image contrast. In the proposed technique, the projection components stemming from outside the region-of-interest (ROI) are subtracted from the measured tomosynthesis projection data to suppress the inter-plane artifacts. The projection components stemming from outside the ROI are calculated from the 3D whole volume CT images which usually have lower lateral resolution than the tomosynthesis images. The tomosynthesis images are reconstructed from the subtracted projection data which account for the x-ray attenuation through the ROI. After verifying the proposed method by simulation, we have performed both CT scan and tomosynthesis scan on a phantom and a sacrificed rat using a FPD-based micro-CT. Results We have measured contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) from the tomosynthesis images which is an indicator of the residual inter-plane artifacts on the focal-plane image. In both cases of the simulation and experimental imaging studies of the contrast evaluating phantom, CNRs have been significantly improved by the proposed method. In the rat imaging also, we have observed better visual contrast from the tomosynthesis images reconstructed by

MnFe(PGe) compounds: Preparation, structural evolution, and magnetocaloric effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yue Ming; Zhang Hong-Guo; Zhang Jiu-Xing; Liu Dan-Min

2015-01-01

The interdependences of preparation conditions, magnetic and crystal structures, and magnetocaloric effects (MCE) of the MnFePGe-based compounds are reviewed. Based upon those findings, a new method for the evaluation of the MCE in these compounds, based on differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), is proposed. The MnFePGe-based compounds are a group of magnetic refrigerants with giant magnetocaloric effect (GMCE), and as such, have drawn tremendous attention, especially due to their many advantages for practical applications. Structural evolution and phase transformation in the compounds as functions of temperature, pressure, and magnetic field are reported. Influences of preparation conditions upon the homogeneity of the compounds’ chemical composition and microstructure, both of which play a key role in the MCE and thermal hysteresis of the compounds, are introduced. Lastly, the origin of the “virgin effect” in the MnFePGe-based compounds is discussed. (paper)

76 FR 49785 - Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed Samish Indian...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-11

... Impact Statement for the Proposed Samish Indian Nation Fee-to-Trust Acquisition and Casino Project... 11.41-acre fee-to-trust transfer and casino project to be located in Anacortes, Washington. The... Casino Project'' on the first page of your written comments. The public scoping meeting will be held at...

Cajá-flavored drinks: a proposal for mixed flavor beverages and a study of the consumer profile

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Eugênia de Oliveira Mamede

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Mixed flavor beverages represent a trend that is gaining the allegiance of potential fruit juice consumers. The present study proposed to prepare mixed flavor beverages and verify their consumer acceptance. Cajá beverage (sample A was used as the standard. The other beverages were prepared by mixing the cajá-flavored product with other flavors: strawberry (B, pineapple (C, jabuticaba (D, mango (E and cashew (F. The consumer profiles in the two regions studied were similar. Overall beverages B, A and F were the most accepted, with scores of 7.7, 6.4 and 6.2, respectively. Internal Preference Mapping showed that most of the consumers were located near beverages A, B and F, confirming the acceptance results. The consumers indicated appearance and flavor as the most appreciated characteristics in beverages A, B and F. Beverages A, B and F presented higher total soluble solids contents and viscosities than the other beverages. Consumer segmentation did not depend on the different levels of familiarity with the cajá flavor. Thus the preparation of mixed flavor beverages of cajá-strawberry and cajá-cashew is an excellent proposal because it presents flavors with good potential for marketing in different regions of Brazil.

Estimating the arterial input function from dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI data with compensation for flow enhancement (II): Applications in spine diagnostics and assessment of crohn's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

van Schie, Jeroen J N; Lavini, Cristina; van Vliet, Lucas J; Kramer, Gem; Pieters-van den Bos, Indra; Marcus, J T; Stoker, Jaap; Vos, Frans M

2018-05-01

Pharmacokinetic (PK) models can describe microvascular density and integrity. An essential component of PK models is the arterial input function (AIF) representing the time-dependent concentration of contrast agent (CA) in the blood plasma supplied to a tissue. To evaluate a novel method for subject-specific AIF estimation that takes inflow effects into account. Retrospective study. Thirteen clinical patients referred for spine-related complaints; 21 patients from a study into luminal Crohn's disease with known Crohn's Disease Endoscopic Index of Severity (CDEIS). Dynamic fast spoiled gradient echo (FSPGR) at 3T. A population-averaged AIF, AIFs derived from distally placed regions of interest (ROIs), and the new AIF method were applied. Tofts' PK model parameters (including v p and K trans ) obtained with the three AIFs were compared. In the Crohn's patients K trans was correlated to CDEIS. The median values of the PK model parameters from the three methods were compared using a Mann-Whitney U-test. The associated variances were statistically assessed by the Brown-Forsythe test. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was computed to test the correlation of K trans to CDEIS. The median v p was significantly larger when using the distal ROI approach, compared to the two other methods (P < 0.05 for both comparisons, in both applications). Also, the variances in v p were significantly larger with the ROI approach (P < 0.05 for all comparisons). In the Crohn's disease study, the estimated K trans parameter correlated better with the CDEIS (r = 0.733, P < 0.001) when the proposed AIF was used, compared to AIFs from the distal ROI method (r = 0.429, P = 0.067) or the population-averaged AIF (r = 0.567, P = 0.011). The proposed method yielded realistic PK model parameters and improved the correlation of the K trans parameter with CDEIS, compared to existing approaches. 3 Technical Efficacy Stage 1 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2018;47:1197-1204. © 2017

Final technical evaluation report for the proposed revised reclamation plan for the Atlas Corporation Moab Mill

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-03-01

This final Technical Evaluation Report (TER) summarizes the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff's review of Atlas Corporation's proposed reclamation plan for its uranium mill tailings pile near Moab, Utah. The proposed reclamation would allow Atlas to (1) reclaim the tailings pile for permanent disposal and long-term custodial care by a government agency in its current location on the Moab site, (2) prepare the site for closure, and (3) relinquish responsibility of the site after having its NRC license terminated. The NRC staff concludes that, subject to license conditions identified in the TER, the proposed reclamation plan meets the requirements identified in NRC regulations, which appear primarily in 10 CFR Part 40. 112 refs., 6 figs., 16 tabs

Decision optimization of case-based computer-aided decision systems using genetic algorithms with application to mammography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazurowski, Maciej A; Habas, Piotr A; Zurada, Jacek M; Tourassi, Georgia D

2008-01-01

This paper presents an optimization framework for improving case-based computer-aided decision (CB-CAD) systems. The underlying hypothesis of the study is that each example in the knowledge database of a medical decision support system has different importance in the decision making process. A new decision algorithm incorporating an importance weight for each example is proposed to account for these differences. The search for the best set of importance weights is defined as an optimization problem and a genetic algorithm is employed to solve it. The optimization process is tailored to maximize the system's performance according to clinically relevant evaluation criteria. The study was performed using a CAD system developed for the classification of regions of interests (ROIs) in mammograms as depicting masses or normal tissue. The system was constructed and evaluated using a dataset of ROIs extracted from the Digital Database for Screening Mammography (DDSM). Experimental results show that, according to receiver operator characteristic (ROC) analysis, the proposed method significantly improves the overall performance of the CAD system as well as its average specificity for high breast mass detection rates

Improving Land Use/Land Cover Classification by Integrating Pixel Unmixing and Decision Tree Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Yang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Decision tree classification is one of the most efficient methods for obtaining land use/land cover (LULC information from remotely sensed imageries. However, traditional decision tree classification methods cannot effectively eliminate the influence of mixed pixels. This study aimed to integrate pixel unmixing and decision tree to improve LULC classification by removing mixed pixel influence. The abundance and minimum noise fraction (MNF results that were obtained from mixed pixel decomposition were added to decision tree multi-features using a three-dimensional (3D Terrain model, which was created using an image fusion digital elevation model (DEM, to select training samples (ROIs, and improve ROI separability. A Landsat-8 OLI image of the Yunlong Reservoir Basin in Kunming was used to test this proposed method. Study results showed that the Kappa coefficient and the overall accuracy of integrated pixel unmixing and decision tree method increased by 0.093% and 10%, respectively, as compared with the original decision tree method. This proposed method could effectively eliminate the influence of mixed pixels and improve the accuracy in complex LULC classifications.

Preparing strategic information management plans for hospitals: a practical guideline SIM plans for hospitals: a guideline.

Science.gov (United States)

Brigl, B; Ammenwerth, E; Dujat, C; Gräber, S; Grosse, A; Häber, A; Jostes, C; Winter, A

2005-01-01

Systematic information management in hospitals demands for a strategic information management plan (SIM plan). As preparing a SIM plan is a considerable challenge we provide a practical guideline that is directly applicable when a SIM plan is going to be prepared. The guideline recommends a detailed structure of a SIM plan and gives advice about its content and the preparation process. It may be used as template, which can be adapted to the individual demands of any hospital. The guideline was used in several hospitals preparing a SIM plan. Experiences showed that the SIM plans could be prepared very efficiently and timely using the guideline, that the proposed SIM plan structure suited well, that the guideline offers enough flexibility to meet the requirements of the individual hospitals and that the specific recommendations of the guideline were very helpful. Nevertheless, we must strive for a more comprehensive theory of strategic information management planning which -- in the sense of enterprise architecture planning -- represents the intrinsic correlations of the different parts of a SIM plan to a greater extent.

Theophylline cocrystals prepared by spray drying: physicochemical properties and aerosolization performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Alhalaweh, Amjad; Kaialy, Waseem; Buckton, Graham; Gill, Hardyal; Nokhodchi, Ali; Velaga, Sitaram P

2013-03-01

The purpose of this work was to characterize theophylline (THF) cocrystals prepared by spray drying in terms of the physicochemical properties and inhalation performance when aerosolized from a dry powder inhaler. Cocrystals of theophylline with urea (THF-URE), saccharin (THF-SAC) and nicotinamide (THF-NIC) were prepared by spray drying. Milled THF and THF-SAC cocrystals were also used for comparison. The physical purity, particle size, particle morphology and surface energy of the materials were determined. The in vitro aerosol performance of the spray-dried cocrystals, drug-alone and a drug-carrier aerosol, was assessed. The spray-dried particles had different size distributions, morphologies and surface energies. The milled samples had higher surface energy than those prepared by spray drying. Good agreement was observed between multi-stage liquid impinger and next-generation impactor in terms of assessing spray-dried THF particles. The fine particle fractions of both formulations were similar for THF, but drug-alone formulations outperformed drug-carrier formulations for the THF cocrystals. The aerosolization performance of different THF cocrystals was within the following rank order as obtained from both drug-alone and drug-carrier formulations: THF-NIC>THF-URE>THF-SAC. It was proposed that micromeritic properties dominate over particle surface energy in terms of determining the aerosol performance of THF cocrystals. Spray drying could be a potential technique for preparing cocrystals with modified physical properties.

76 FR 2903 - Interconnection of the Proposed Hyde County Wind Energy Center Project (DOE/EIS-0461), and...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-18

... Wind Energy Center Project (DOE/EIS-0461), and Proposed Crowned Ridge Wind Energy Center Project (DOE... to prepare environmental impact statements (EISs) for the Hyde County Wind Energy Center Project and the Crowned Ridge Wind Energy Center Project in the Federal Register on November 30, 2010. Both...

A "three-in-one" sample preparation method for simultaneous determination of B-group water-soluble vitamins in infant formula using VitaFast(®) kits.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Heng; Lan, Fang; Shi, Yupeng; Wan, Zhi-Gang; Yue, Zhen-Feng; Fan, Fang; Lin, Yan-Kui; Tang, Mu-Jin; Lv, Jing-Zhang; Xiao, Tan; Yi, Changqing

2014-06-15